[Book Review] Doorways to the Deadeye- Eric J. Guignard

In Doorways to the Deadeye, Eric J. Guignard tells the tall tales of Crossbuck Luke Thacker, a rail-riding hobo in Depression-era America. The stories are told within the framework of a reporter recording tales told by a fellow ‘bo who knew Luke firsthand. These tales are somewhat episodic, telling of various important moments in Luke’s life, but with an overarching storyline. Luke lives his life on the rails following the Hobo Code, a series of symbols that help guide wayward vagrants like himself. One day, the Code leads him through a hidden doorway to a realm where the dead live on as memories. Here he meets famous people from history, cavorting with everyone from Harriet Tubman to John Dillinger.

Guignard has created a fun and unique concept with the Deadeye, or Athanasia, as it’s citizens call it. Athanasia is something of a shadow world, existing right alongside the world of the living. The more widely known and remembered a person was in their life, the stronger they are in the Deadeye, and the longer they will persist. But once a person fades from the collective human memory, they fade from Athanasia as well. Guignard uses Athanasia to explore the concepts of life and death, of creating a personal legacy, and of how we are shaped by the way we are remembered. 

Doorways to the Deadeye was selected as a finalist for the 2019 Horror Writers Association Bram Stoker Awards® for Superior Achievement in a First Novel. I have some mixed feelings about this nomination. I absolutely loved this book, but I’m not entirely sure how squarely it falls into the category of horror. There are a few dark concepts, and a bit of violence. I don’t think I would classify it as horror myself though. That being said, Doorways to the Deadeye is a phenomenal novel that certainly deserves recognition. Luke’s tall tales are whimsical and fantastic. The worlds that Guignard builds are wondrous and immersive and full of magic. This one really defies being put into a genre box, with elements of fantasy and adventure and historical fiction, with a little darkness mixed in as well. 

My absolute favorite aspect of Guignard’s work is the overall tone. As I mentioned, all of the stories found within the novel are being relayed by King Shaw, a homeless man on his deathbed, to a reporter in 1985. As he spins his yarns, Shaw talks to Daniel about the importance of storytelling and how to captivate an audience. The tone is reminiscent of stories told around a campfire, colorful and lighthearted. Guignard truly captures the spirit of the American tall tale, and that is the real draw of Doorways to the Deadeye. 

This is a book that I believe will stick with me for a long time. The love poured into this work is evident. Though not strictly or classically horror, I still strongly recommend reading Doorways to the Deadeye. It is a novel that will make you think and feel, and that is perhaps one of the more important metrics of a good piece of writing. I don’t often reread books, but I get the feeling that this will make another appearance on my nightstand down the line. 

You can purchase a copy on Amazon for $7.95 (Kindle) or $13.39 (Paperback).

[Book Review] Hot Splices- Mike Watt

Hot Splices tells several interwoven tales of The Film Addicts- lovers, consumers and creators of all things cinema. After graduating from film school, they each went their separate ways, to carve out their place in film history. Years later, they all end up returning one by one to the old student dorms, now owned by one of The Addicts. The main driving plot amongst these stories is the search for the lost Borgia films, created by a psychopath using actual footage of murders he committed. The films, when played together, are said to cause insanity and uncontrollable violence. The Addicts hope to find and screen these lost evil films.

Throughout the entire story are countless film references. It is clear that Watt lives and breathes cinema. Everything The Addicts think, do and say reflects on some aspect of filmmaking. From quotes and references, to the technical aspects and history of film and film equipment, Watt definitely knows his stuff. The book’s blurb declares “If you do not love film… If you do not wish to devour it as it devours you… If all you seek from film is entertainment…This is not the book for you.” I don’t entirely agree with that. I only understood a fraction of the movie references, and almost none of the technical references. Even so, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was a learning experience and a glimpse into a passion filled world that I probably never would have been able to see without this book. The experience certainly would have been much richer had I already been an insider to this part of the world.

One of the most intriguing parts of this world Watt has created is the mythos of the Dark Gods of Filmmaking. These are all-powerful deities that preside over different aspects of filmmaking. Cinemagog is their Zues, the father of all Film Gods. The lesser Gods range from Dollirostrum (God of the Grips) to Yapim (God of Producers) to Poesner (God of Hair, Make-up and Wardrobe) and many more. The mythos surrounding these Gods is interesting and mysterious. Some of the younger film students only consider them to be a fun story, while some of the older Addicts consider them much, much more. 

While clearly set in a modern and realistic world, there are certain changes that bring a certain fantasy element to the tale. The Addicts all do something called “flixing” in which they take individual frames of film and place them on their tongues. This produces a hallucinogenic-like experience that varies based on what sort of scene they are flixing on. An addict that over-flixes can run the risk of cuts appearing all over their skin like the perforated sprocket holes on the edges of film. As the story goes on, more and more strange events start to take place as the narrative takes a definitely weird turn.

Almost as a post-script, Watt includes a few “Deleted Scenes” after the conclusion of the main story. These read as totally separate, standalone plotlines, but within the same universe and setting as the main story. These Deleted Scenes are really where the most horror is to be found. What Happened To The Guy Before Me? tells of a filmmaker who takes a job working nights in a dim and desolate film processing plant, where he encounters something dark and strange. The Marie Browning Code is the story of a film student who tries to take his flixing to a new level and actually enter the story. The Worthless Life And Pointless Death Of Angela St. Satan follows a film critic who is looking into the disappearance of a less-than-B-list actress. These three short horrors alone would be worth the price of admission.

From a purely horror aspect, Hot Splices is rather light reading. With the exception of the horrific Deleted Scenes, the horror elements are very faint and only touched on in the main plotline. This might be considered weird fiction, but with a dark vibe. It really defies classification. That being said, I thoroughly enjoyed this read. Watt crafts a dark, intricate world that truly draws you in. The premise and the details are genuinely unique. The characters are real and dynamic. I’m no film buff by any means, but I am extremely glad that I read this book. 

You can purchase a copy on Amazon for $4.99 (Kindle) or $14.99 (paperback). Also available free with Kindle Unlimited.

1st Annual Home Grown Horror Awards

I take great pleasure in announcing something that I’ve been working on for quite some time now. As a way to continue giving back to the horror community and recognize talent, I am implementing the annual Home Grown Horror Awards. I know these don’t have the prestige of a Stoker Award, but I’m just hoping to give some recognition to the hard working and talented authors that I’ve had the pleasure of reading this year. Before I get into the awards, I’ll go over some details.

Eligibility

In order to be eligible for the Home Grown Horror Awards, a work simply must have been read and reviewed by Home Grown Horror during the applicable calendar year. That’s it. It can have been published at any point, so long as it crossed my desk this year. I do not take specific award consideration requests. Anything that I review will be officially in the running. There are no entrance fees or process at all. Works that I review will be considered whether a review was solicited by the author or publisher or not.

What are the categories?

This year, there are no categories. Simply a 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winner. A work of any length can be considered. This year I have a novella, a single-author collection, and a short novel. In future years, I do hope to add categories such as Novel, Novella, Collection, etc. It will all depend on the reception of this year’s awards, and next year’s participation.

What do the winners get?

All three winners will be presented with a small plaque as a token of my respect and admiration, should they chose to accept it. In addition to this, winners will be given permission to use their respective Home Grown Horror Awards winner logo, and will be able to proudly call themselves winners. Hopefully I will be able to add more value to the winner package in future years.

The 2019 Home Grown Horror Award Winners

3rd Place- Sean McDonough’s The Class Reunion

Sean McDonough takes us back to school with his fourth novel, The Class Reunion. I powered through this book in practically one sitting. I could not put it down. It is everything I’ve come to know and love about McDonough’s writing. If you are looking for a character driven slasher blood-bath, you’ve come to the right place. Click here for the full review

2nd Place- Matthew V. Brockmeyer’s Under Rotting Sky

Under Rotting Sky: Stories is Matthew V. Brockmeyer’s debut collection of short, dark fiction. With an emphasis on dark. These stories are shockingly disturbing and brutal. I legitimately cannot recommend this book without giving that warning upfront. That being said, I absolutely loved this collection, and highly recommend it. Brockmeyer has no qualms whatsoever about crossing every line imaginable, and he does so with brutal bluntness. These stories make you feel. They hurt the soul and make you question the decency of the human race. If you aren’t afraid to be taken to some dark, bleak and terrifying places, this is the collection for you. Click here for the full review

1st Place- Mike Duke’s CRAWL

Reviewer’s Note: This was one of the first reviews I ever wrote, and as such it’s a bit on the short side. If I re-wrote it today, I’d have a lot more to say. Despite the short review, this one solidly earned 1st Place for 2019

I am not particularly afraid of caves, or insects, or anything of that nature. Or, at least, I wasn’t until I read Crawl. Never before has a written work produced such a visceral reaction for me. The things that Mike Duke puts these characters through are truly, skin-crawlingly horrific. Click here for the full review

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I would like to thank everyone who has submitted work for review. You’ve made the first few months of running this website very successful and amazing. I haven’t yet come across a story that I didn’t enjoy. I appreciate everyone who has checked out my reviews, and hope that you keep coming back for more. This started as a small passion project for me. While it’s still very small, it has grown far beyond my initial expectations. With your continued support, I hope to keep expanding in 2020. My goal will always be to provide exposure and spotlight talented authors within the community. I will never charge for the reviews that I write or for any publicity I help provide. However, there are costs associated with running this site. If you would like to help support this passion project, please check out the Donations Page. Either way, I hope you enjoy what I do here. I sure do. You keep writing, I’ll keep reviewing.

Sincerely,

Will Blosser

[Book Review] The Outback- R. F. Blackstone

Reviewer’s Note: If this looks familiar, its probably because I’ve written on this story before. This is one of four stories in R. F. Blackstone’s The Book of Spite. While I read the collection, I wrote reviews for each story as I finished it, so that the thoughts would be fresh in my mind. The result was a massive review for the whole collection. It was far too long to include all my thoughts on each story. So, my review of the collection as a whole had to be edited down for space. What you see here are my complete thoughts on this short story, in all the lengthy glory it deserves.

R. F. Blackstone’s short story The Outback tells the tale of Noni Stevens, a survivor of some unexplained apocalypse. We follow Noni as she struggles to survive in a brutal and unforgiving Australian Outback. With monsters of both the creature and the human variety on her tail, Noni must keep moving or face a sure and violent death.

The story has three distinct sections, that are almost different enough to be separate stories within the same world. The effect is something of an emotional roller coaster ride. The lulls in the action only serve to get your blood pumping that harder once the story kicks back into gear. This isn’t just an action packed survival story, however. There are some genuinely tender moments. It honestly surprised me.

One of my favorite genres is apocalypse horror, and the world building that goes along with it. I prefer a “less is more” approach, and The Outback really nailed it. Blackstone never truly explains what happened or why things went south. He doesn’t even tell you outright what horrors there are to face. You have to piece it together based on the thoughts, actions and dialog of the characters. I found that approach to be realistic and well done. And once you start learning what’s out there, the apocalypse seems pretty terrifying. I’m lookin at you, dropbears!

No good horror story is complete without including the element of human emotion. If the author can’t make us feel what the characters feel, how can we be scared? The genuinely tender moments I mentioned earlier are what really sold this story to me. The surprising depth Noni shows during the last half of the story really brought it home for me. The emotions she struggled with were so relatable it was almost difficult to read. At the most emotional point of the story, Blackstone takes us in an entirely unexpected direction. The ending was absolutely unpredictable and pretty strange. The whirlwind action and crazy ending make this a fun and interesting read that will certainly keep you on your toes.

You can purchase a copy on Amazon for $2.99 (Kindle). Also available free with Kindle Unlimited.

Look for this story and more in the upcoming collection The Book of Spite. Available on Amazon for $5.99 (Kindle), or free with Kindle Unlimited