Gross Out by Duncan Ralston

 

🌟🌟🌟🌟

Four "Gross Greatness" Stars

Twisted With A Splash of Craziness! 

A taste of what lies within:

The Splatterfest convention has come to town pulling horror authors from all over the world along with fans as everyone gathers and to also check out the Gross Out contest. The only problem is everyone wants to be seen and everyone wants to be heard along with some author gouging. 

Some of the authors have it in for each other and want to showcase against each other so what better place to do it than this convention. Though things might get a little messy and one eager beaver fan has some unsavory plans for one of his author idols which could turn this show into some bloodletting. 

The convention is turned on its ear when the authors go into a crazed mode with all kind of antics to show that their books are the best and they will do whatever it takes to be seen and heard!

That is about all I can give on a taste without giving away spoilers so you will need to read the book!

Thoughts:

There are warnings on this book of having iron stomachs and this book is not for the weak stomachs! HEED THIS WARNING! This book is a no holds barred kind of book where if it is in the twisted mind of this author you can better believe that it will be on the page of this book! 

There are tons of "gross out" situations in this book and there are some blood laced throughout the book as well. Make sure you do not eat while reading this book or you will get sick and trust me when I say this because this book has major situations for what I would say that only "hardcore" horror fans could handle. 

Now onto the story itself - there were some cool things in this book as author Duncan Ralston dropped real horror author names in this book and even gave one of them a cameo appearance, but no spoilers here as you will have to read the book to see who that horror author is in the story. 

The concept of having all the horror authors in one place is just like those real conventions that they have and the author goes deep into this story with how it all plays out. The beginning of the book up to the 30% mark is a little bit of a slow burn but only because of world building and setting up characters, but the last 70% of the book takes off into the "gross and nasty" unknown! 

The author also brought back a couple of characters from his book Woom and the Lonely Motel makes an appearance in this book as well.

It might be best to have a barf bag next to your chair for this book and oh I would also recommend a "Gross" suit.  You all thought I was going to say "Gore" suit didn't you?! LOL  Not this time around as the Gore suit has been turned inside out for the Gross stuff! Also it is best to be covered head to toe with the Gross Suit as it will definitely be getting icky. gooey, slimey, and just downright nasty the more you delve into this book! 

Attached is the author, Duncan Ralston, profile page from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7509031.Duncan_Ralston

Attached is the author, Duncan Ralston, profile page from Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Duncan-Ralston/e/B00F23Y41Q

Attached is my review from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4641941771

Carnivore by Justin Boote

 

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Five " Crazed Creatures" Stars

Twisted Terror!

A taste of what lies within:

The village of Fritton Woods has been turned into a graveyard as some residents of the village are found dead as "something" is killing them in a gory and gruesome manner! 

Detective Inspector Jim Morfield along with his partner Detective Gareth Connolly are on the hunt for what they think might be a serial killer, but that is not the only problem they have to worry about as it seems the forest creatures and farm animals are also a force to be reckoned with as well! 

Something has turned the harmless animals into crazy carnivores that are ready to eat anything in their path! Morfield and Connolly have their work cut out for them as they are not only tracking a serial killer but they have to figure out what is causing the animals to go crazy and why they are attacking people of the village!

Thoughts:

This was a new author to me and I was very impressed by how fast I was pulled into the story! The action takes off right away and kept me hooked throughout the book! I read the story within 24 hours as the book kept my insomnia fueled as I was up to the early hours of the morning reading it!

There were tons of blood, gore, and descriptive graphic scenes of the animal attacks which made me grab my gore suit as it was so needed for this book! 

Fast pace, great storytelling, mystery, tension, graphic gore descriptions, and intense situations! 

I know I won't look at harmless animals from farms/woods as just cute creatures after reading this book! This is the first book in a series so I will be looking forward to the other books in the series and any other books that this author has out there. 

Attached is the author, Justin Boote, profile page from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16317222.Justin_Boote

Attached is the author, Justin Boote, profile page from Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Justin-Boote/e/B073Q44SZP

Attached is my review from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4545218077

The Ravenous Dead (Gravekeeper #2) by Darcy Coates

 

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Five "Screaming Spook " Stars

Malevolent Shade!

A taste of what lies within:

Keira is back along with her friends Adage, Mason and Zoe as they try to figure out what is keeping a serial killer shade apparition from the 1800's tied to the forest behind Keira's cottage and she wants to know why the shade seems to be after her. 

In the meantime, Keira is almost kidnapped from the people that were chasing her in the first book as she accidentally runs into them and she tries to figure out why they are still after her. 

The only thing she can do is try to piece the puzzle together and hopefully fill in her memories of her previous life. With the help of her friends she is going to try and solve not only the mystery of her former life but also try to help the ghosts move on into the next life. 

Thoughts:

This story started a little slow for some reason even though it kind of picks up right where the first book left off, but around the 30% mark the story escalated and kept me on my toes as ghost action became intense along with the happenings of the men who are after Keira. The pace picked up so much that it kept me up half the night reading the book as I just could not put it down! 

I love the characters in this series as all of them have become attachable. I found myself chuckling some throughout the book as the character Zoe makes me laugh with some of the quips she throws out toward her friends. All of the characters though just mesh together and I am so looking forward to the next book in this series. 

The mystery of Keira's past is high on my list of who she really is and why people are looking for her still. There is a deep mystery surrounding her past and the author is still keeping it under wraps, so I will be waiting to see what the next book reveals. 

Attached is the author, Darcy Coates, profile page from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7734837.Darcy_Coates

Attached is the author, Darcy Coates, profile page from Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Darcy-Coates/e/B00HVNVT0E

Attached is my review from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4618006550

Flight or Fright by Stephen King

 

🌟🌟🌟🌟

Four "Fly The Frightful Skies" Stars

Hang on Tight! 

A taste of what lies within:

This book was interesting, but here is the nitty gritty, if you are a frequent flyer, I don't think it would be good idea to read this book on your flight. Actually I would advise against it as some of the stories within this book will make you wish that you hadn't read it and it might have you sleeping with the oxygen mask attached to your face the whole trip. There are 17 stories within these pages written by different authors, but I have some favorites listed below.

Favorite stories are:

Nightmare at 20,000 Feet by Richard Matheson

The Flying Machine by Ambrose Pierce

Two Minutes Forty-Five Seconds by Dan Simmons

Air Raid by John Varley

You Are Released by Joe Hill

Murder in the Air by Peter Tremayne

The Turbulence Expert by Stephen King

Thoughts:

Before I even made it to chapter one, I was already dreading what was ahead of me as the introduction by Stephen King was scary enough to where I never want to fly. Here is a small blurb from his introduction: "Yet you are entering what is basically a tube filled with oxygen and sitting atop tons of highly flammable jet fuel." Now if that doesn't send shivers down your spine, I don't know what will as now I cannot get that image out of my head!

I have flown one time when I was young, but after reading this book, I have decided that I don't even want to attempt stepping foot on a plane ever again.

So with that being said, I did enjoy the book but I only enjoyed them, because like I said, I know I won't be "flying the friendly skies".  😆

Attached is the author, Stephen King, profile page from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3389.Stephen_King

Attached is the author, Stephen King, profile page from Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Stephen-King/e/B000AQ0842

Attached is my review from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2520444410

Blood Lanes by Brian G. Berry

 

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Five "Heads Are Gonna Roll" Stars

Gore Splatter Action!

A taste of what lies within:

Silverside Lanes Bowling Alley is trying to get into tip-top shape as they have some competition that will be coming to town, so the boss, Mr. Swallecki wants everyone to stay late into the night to make the place shine. 

While cleaning the bowling alley the employees see on the tv news that a serial killer (Charles Warner) has escaped capture but they don't think nothing of it as they figure he isn't heading their way. That is where they are wrong! Warner is in their area and he is not that far away from the bowling alley! It is going to be a murder and mayhem kind of night! 

Thoughts:

I have read a few books by this author and he always starts off the book with some kind of action! Once the action begins the story is non-stop all the way to the end. There never is no time to breathe as when the action starts rolling then it is time to prepare for blood to start flying! 

This story grabbed me right away as there was quite a bit of action in the beginning when the killer breaks free and all the descriptive gore action that takes place when the character Warner starts going on a killing spree, but when he gets to the bowling alley is where the real carnage begins and I scrunched down in my cozy chair to enjoy the mayhem gore ride! 

Attached is the author, Brian G. Berry, profile page from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/21022968.Brian_G_Berry

Attached is the author, Brian G. Berry, profile page from Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Brian-Berry/e/B08M413RDW

Attached is my review from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4239993365

The Fall of Man (Zombie Apocalypse #1) by Jeff DeGordick

 

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Five "Dreaded Zombie" Stars

Survival is Key!

A taste of what lies within:

Sarah and her son, David are wanting to leave behind the townhome they have been living in since the world fell apart as they had heard from some people traveling through that there is a safe haven called Noah's Ark located in Durham, North Carolina.

Sarah doesn't really want to leave the townhome but when David keeps begging to go she finally gives in. Sarah starts to thinking that maybe they will be able to make it after all as North Carolina is only about 100 miles from their home in Virginia, so they set out to locate this place called Noah's Ark. 

Once they are roadbound though they end up realizing that things are a lot rougher out in the world than they thought but it seems David has some kind of special telepathy gift to keep the zombies away and Sarah is kind of amazed as she doesn't understand how David has that power. 

Sarah and David will have to overcome all obstacles to reach the Ark including not only zombies, but bandits that control the border and some of the main roads. 

Does Sarah and David make it to Durham? What awaits them at Noah's Ark? No spoilers here as you will need to read the book!

Thoughts:

I have read this author before as he normally writes horror stories, but this time he stepped over into the apocalyptical world and just as in his horror stories the pace was fast and the writing style flows along. 

I really became attached to the characters Sarah and David as they made their way through the story. Sarah is stubborn and has a fierce streak to her to the point where she wants to get things done her way. David is a young teenager but he does everything his mom tells him to do though he has that stubborn streak running through him too as he sometimes does stuff on his own and then she gets upset with him, but he is usually always trying to do things for the good of his mom. 

There were lots of crazy things that happened to them on their travels and there was even one section of the book that I really didn't want to read because I knew something bad was going to happen - like I had a dread feeling that something was about to hit the fan and there was nothing I could do to stop it feeling! Yes - the author can give you those feelings of tension and dread with the nail biting suspense as I have read his other stories that throw out that same trepidation! If someone is chasing the characters you are going to hear the running footsteps and if zombies are moaning and groaning you are going to hear those sounds.

This book had an action right in the beginning of the book and it basically did not let up all the way through the story. I read the last 60% within 24 hours as the action just kicked up and there was so much happening with the characters that I couldn't put the book down! I own the rest of the books in this series and plan on stepping into book two soon!  

Attached is the author, Jeff DeGordick, profile page from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16102371.Jeff_DeGordick

Attached is the author, Jeff DeGordick, profile page from Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Jeff-DeGordick/e/B01NCK67PZ

Attached is my review from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3135326097

Authors I Have Discovered - Part V

 

My next list of 10 authors that I have discovered in the last five years are as follows:

Patrick James Ryan
(Horror)

Goodreads Author Profile: 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7394233.Patrick_James_Ryan

Amazon Author Profile:

https://www.amazon.com/Patrick-James-Ryan/e/B00DBLMZGW

Now with this author I found another "diamond in the rough" read as I saw his book "Out of the Shadows" and as creepy as the cover is of the book, the blurb of the stories contained within the pages sounded really good and then I read his book "The Night It Got Out" and wow that was a romp into the gore zone! Gore suit was needed for that book! There are more books by this author which are sitting on my to read shelf. 

Books Reads:

The Night It Got Out
Out of the Shadows

Michael McBride
(Horror)

Goodreads Author Profile: 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/300145.Michael_McBride

Amazon Author Profile:

https://www.amazon.com/Michael-McBride/e/B0034NWL84

Website of Author:

https://author.michaelmcbride.net/

I read this author for the first time back in November of 2017 in the Goodreads group, Horror Aficionados and I was quite impressed by the writing style of the author along with the story. I have since added a few more of his books to my "to-read" shelf. 

Book Read:

Subhuman

Ania Ahlborn
(Horror)

Goodreads Author Profile: 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4867939.Ania_Ahlborn

Amazon Author Profile:

https://www.amazon.com/Ania-Ahlborn/e/B0053A0B1U

Website of Author:

https://www.aniaahlborn.com/

This author was coming across my Goodreads feed quite a bit back in the Summer of 2017 and I was curious to step into the mind of this author. I can say I wasn't disappointed as the book "Seed" just had tons of creepy atmosphere that reading the story at night in the dark was probably not too bright but I love spooky "skittering" chills racing along my skin so why not just go with the flow. Then just recently I read her book "I Call Upon Thee" which also was a great book. I do have quite a few books still simmering on my kindle by her and will read some more by her in the future.

Books Read:

Seed
I Call Upon Thee

Sam West
(Horror)

Goodreads Author Profile: 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4638631.Sam_West

Amazon Author Profile:

https://www.amazon.com/Sam-West/e/B00LB8JCWW

This author was recommended to me from a friend about three years ago as I hadn't really being seeing her books come across my feed so I went to check out the book, "Djinn" and wow it was like stepping into a gore pool as this story was swimming in.....well....gore! So if you want to dangle your feet into some books with extreme elements then go check out this author. I have since also read her book, "At Night" which was also really good! I would have your gore suit handy just in case. :) 

Books Read:

Djinn
At Night

Lee Franklin
(Horror)

Goodreads Author Profile: 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20283097.Lee_Franklin

Amazon Author Profile:

https://www.amazon.com/Lee-Franklin/e/B07F2SPNBN

Website of Author:

https://www.leefranklin.com/

I stepped into this author's work back in 2020 and read her book Nang Tani. It kept me wrapped in blood and gore! Thankfully I had my gore suit because it was needed for this book! The writing style is smooth and easy to read - just flows along at a fast pace. I have since read some other books by her as well and I always zip up my gore suit with this author as there is always splatter that ends up being sprayed in all directions! lol 

Books Read:

Berserker: Green Hell
Nang Tani
Sandgroper
Xtreme Xmas (Anthology)

D.J. Doyle
(Horror)

Goodreads Author Profile: 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4865336.D_J_Doyle

Amazon Author Profile:

https://www.amazon.com/D-J-Doyle/e/B00PHXG752

I had been seeing this author come across my Goodreads feeds quite a lot in 2020 and when I saw that she had co-authored this book Xtreme Xmas with author, Lee Franklin I grabbed it as I knew this book was going to drag me down into an extreme hell from what the blurb was saying! Holiday horror books are always interesting to me and I have read a few, but this one was different as the two authors (D.J. and Lee) wrote about other authors and stuck them in an extreme horror book - very extreme! This book was so extreme and gory that I had a few gore suits on as one just would not keep the blood visceral goo from soaking to my skin! 

Since then I have stepped into more of her work and have a few more on my kindle simmering. 

Books Read:

Red
Host
Xtreme Xmas (Anthology)

William Massa
(Urban/Dark Fantasy)

Goodreads Author Profile: 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7351982.William_Massa

Amazon Author Profile:

https://www.amazon.com/William-Massa/e/B00G5D8ITQ

Website of Author:

https://www.williammassa.com/

I stepped into this author's world back in March of 2020 when I read the first three books in his Shadow Detective series (which I am now stepping back into that series to finish the books) and then I stepped back into his world again with the Occult Assassin series in 2021 and read all them. I have read almost all of his The Hexecutioner series as I have one book left to read in that 10 book series.  The writing style is smooth and easy to read along with action packed scenes that are worthy of the movie screens. I have a couple more series that I need to read and some other books by him simmering on my kindle. 

Books Read:

Occult Assassin series (books 1 - 7)

The Hexecutioner series (books 1-9)

The Shadow Detective series (books 1-3)

Adam Nevill
(Horror)

Goodreads Author Profile: 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3381686.Adam_Nevill

Amazon Author Profile:

https://www.amazon.com/Adam-Nevill/e/B0034PH9HA

Website of Author:

https://adamlgnevill.com/

Back in late 2017, I kept seeing this author coming across my feed over on Goodreads and it seemed quite a few of my friends were reading him, so I grabbed his book "Some Will Not Sleep: Selected Horrors" which are short stories. I was very impressed by not only his writing style but how he was able to capture my interest right away with his stories. Then just recently I read the book, Cunning Folk in the Goodreads group Castle Dracula and that was an adventure into the horror realm! I have a few more books by him that I need to read at some point in time. 

Books Read:

Cunning Folk
Some Will Not Sleep: Selected Horrors

Matt Drabble
(Horror)

Goodreads Author Profile: 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6447741.Matt_Drabble

Amazon Author Profile:

https://www.amazon.com/Matt-Drabble/e/B0089NFG8Q

Website of Author:

https://www.matt-drabble.co.uk

Cruising around on Amazon in the kindle book section really does bring out rewards for finding "diamonds in the rough" on horror authors. Back in 2017, I came across this author, Matt Drabble and grabbed his book Abra-Cadaver. Wow! What a read! I was impressed as I read the book within three days give or take! (lol) So impressed was I by this author, that I ran out to see what else he had out there. I have since read his trilogy "The Gated" which was really good and I have a few more books on my kindle my this author. 

Books Read:

Abra - Cadaver
The Gated Trilogy

James Watts
(Horror)

Goodreads Author Profile: 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16871469.James_Watts

Amazon Author Profile:

https://www.amazon.com/James-M.-Watts/e/B004G8WXIO

Website of Author:

Southern Horror author James Watts – Southern Horror (home.blog)

My introduction to this author was his book, "The Beast of Sorrows" that I read last year (2021) and "Wow" what a horror ride that turned out to be! This is a werewolf book that you will not soon forget and there is quite a bit of fur action within these pages. Since then I have also stepped into his other book, "Them" just this year and was impressed by how fast I was pulled into the story. Looking forward to whatever else he has coming out in the future. 

Books Read:

Beast of Sorrows 
Them

That is a wrap for this blog post!

Happy Reading Everyone! 

Kill Hill Carnage by Tim Meyer

 

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Five "Creature Feature Rampage" Stars

Gore Suit Needed!

A taste of what lies within:

The summer camp St. Christopher is known for having had a horrific tragedy that wiped out adults and kids back in 1991. Something had made its way through the camp and killed almost everyone, but no one could ever figure out "what" or "who" did the crime.  Now years later some college friends (Seth, Dave, Warren, Fiona and Jenna) want to go check out the camp to see if they could figure out what happened there. The camp is in close proximity to an old plant factory that seems to be back up and running but it is off limits to any outsiders. 

The friends are not at the camp long when something is already stalking the camp and when one of the friends (Dave) wanders off into the woods but doesn't return they wonder what is going on until they realize that they are in big trouble when his head comes sailing through a window!

Screaming, roaring, howling just takes over the camp with the friends trying to figure out where to run as the creature that killed Dave is now stalking them, but when they split up and run towards the old factory is when things take a turn for the worse. 

When Frank Harmon arrives on the scene he is to do whatever is necessary to take care of the matter as he was hired to keep things quiet up at the camp and factory, but even he doesn't realize how bad things are until he comes face to face with the monster that is roaming Kill Hill. Not only that but panic sets in for everyone when there is not only one monster but several roaming around!

What really happened back in 1991 at the summer camp? What killed everyone there? What are these monsters that are roaming the area? What is really going on up at the factory? Does anyone make it out alive? 

No spoilers here as you will just need to read the book if you want to learn more of this story!

Thoughts:

This is my third book by this author and all I can say is "Wowza" as I was just pulled straight into the story and when this book went into overdrive it just exploded with activity galore to the point I had to throw on my gore suit as the splatter was flying through the air! 

Another great book by this author and the title definitely fits all the gory carnage within this story. Fast paced and twisted blood action is constant in the last half of the book. There was so much happening with monsters and blood/gore that I was exhausted as I could feel the emotions of the characters and what they were going through as they tried to escape the clutches of the monsters. 

There are some really twisted gore descriptions within this book which kept my eyes glued to the pages and I kept turning the pages to see what would happen next with the characters. The last 40% of the story I read within 6 hours as I just could not put the book down! 

Also the story alternates every few pages between the camp carnage in 1991 and the present time which was intriguing as well considering I could see more of what happened within the storyline from that year. All in all this was a great story and I have really enjoyed reading books by this author!

Attached is the author, Tim Meyer, profile page from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7831833.Tim_Meyer

Attached is the author, Tim Meyer, profile page from Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Tim-Meyer/e/B009ISFTZ6

Attached is my review from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2501266932

The Window by Glenn Rolfe

 

🌟🌟🌟🌟

Four "Devilish Demon" Stars!

Demon Twisted Hell Ride!

A taste of what is within:

James is a teenager trying to come to terms with his parents being divorced and having to move away with his mom, but though he is struggling with it, he gets excited when he is able to go stay with his dad (Richie) and his dad's girlfriend for the summer. James has his friends there and he feels that at least he will have some type of normalcy while he stays with his dad.

Things are from normal though as James ends up seeing his dad doing something twisted crazy in front of a window, but what really creeps James out is that there is something with fiery eyes staring back at James from the reflection. As his dad seems to fall into a deep depression and becomes more "strange" James has to figure out what he actually saw in the window and what can he do about it. When he finds out that it could be a demon is when things go off the wicked rails and he tries to figure out how he can save his dad from the demon as it seems that his dad has become a victim of its power! 

That is about all I can give on a taste without giving away spoilers so if you want to know more then you will just need to read the book!

Thoughts:

The story with the demons was great and this story was just tied into an occult theme along with personal demons that the father Richie and James were dealing with as they both went through hardships from everything that was happening in their lives. 

I will say this though there is quite a bit of sexual encounters in this book - major horror erotica so if you are not into that type of storyline then this book might not be for you, but the demonic possession/occult theme was really spooky and some parts of the book creeped me out. 

I consider myself a seasoned horror buff and not much creeps me out, but I have to admit that some parts of the demon stuff gave me some twisted dreams and when horror stories like that give me dreams that are "weird" then that means the book has done its job at keeping me spooked! 

The last 30% of the book was a blood/gore infested crazy hellish ride that made me grab my gore suit as when the blood started flying I wanted to make sure that I was covered from head to toe! 

Attached is the author, Glenn Rolfe, profile page from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6939496.Glenn_Rolfe

Attached is the author, Glenn Rolfe, profile page from Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Glenn-Rolfe/e/B00AXYEBTY

Attached is my review from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2996066773

Dracula by Bram Stoker

 

🧛🧛🧛🧛🧛

Five "Fangtastic" Vamps!

Classic Vampire Story!

I am not going to do a taste within on this story as everyone should know what this story is about but I will give out a few thoughts. 

Thoughts:

This was my second re-read of this book, but when I first read it back in 2017 I was just mesmerized by the storyline and the spookiness of the story itself. This book was also the first book I had ever read that was written in the form of a diary. I have to say that it was also the first book that I had read with that type of old writing style as well so it took some time getting use to how the book was written, but this time I just slipped right back into the storyline. 

The author, Bram Stoker just slowly pulls you into the story and the creepy buildup of what the character Jonathan Harker has to endure as he stays with the Count is just loaded with trepidation of what is going to happen next. I read the book a little slower this time to absorb the happenings with Harker and his tale of his stay in the castle. 

I was more spooked out this time around for some reason with reading the book slow and the part of the story where the Count is climbing the wall still freaks me out. I don't know why really but I still get the "heebie-jeebies" when I read it. I can just imagine the horror felt by Harker as he has to deal with everything and I slipped into that time era as well while reading the book this time as I became more in-tune with the emotions of what Harker was experiencing. 

This book is definitely a timeless horror classic! This book is considered the great-great grandfather of all vampire books and it is a book that should be read by all vampire/horror fans. 

Highly Recommend!

Attached is the author, Bram Stoker, profile page from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6988.Bram_Stoker

Attached is my review from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1844337456

Shadow Detective (Books 1-3) by William Massa

 

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Five "Shadow Supernatural" Stars

I am going to set out the individual books with a taste then do overall thoughts for all three books.

Book 1: Cursed City

Mike Raven is a monster hunter and when a beautiful woman (Celeste) walks into his office needing help with the supernatural then how can he refuse? Mike doesn't realize though just how much trouble he will be getting into by helping Celeste, but he finds out quickly that trouble just seems to be his middle name as demons are underfoot and Mike needs to show them who is really the boss of his city. Mike also hooks up with Detective Jane Archer who he has to convince that there are otherworldly creatures roaming the earth. 

Book 2: Soul Catcher

Mike is back for another round of supernatural activity and this time he is up against a vindictive and vengeful ghost that will do anything to go after the Mike's love interest (Jane Archer). Once again Mike has to use all of his powers to keep the spooks at bay and to keep his wits about him as he goes full throttle on the ghost and the other supernatural baddies a/k/a vampires that pop up in this installment. 

Book 3: Blood Rain

Mike's love interest (Jane Archer) has been turned into a vampire in this installment and Mike will have to figure out how he wants to take her out as there are quite a bit of emotional play to be had as she roams the city feeding on the citizens. Mike will have a battle on his hands as he comes to terms with his old flame cruising the city nightlife and causing blood to flow. 

Overall thoughts for all three books:

This was my first introduction to this author and this is what set me on the "Massa" book road as when I first read this omnibus back in early 2020 I was impressed with how the writing style just flowed along and the fast pace of these books just kept me glued to my kindle. 

I love the character, Mike Raven as he doesn't shy away from danger and if anything dives head first into whatever situation that he finds himself in. The action is furious within these first three books and it stays heated throughout the whole omnibus.

Side Note: 

I am now continuing on with the rest of the series and right now I am reading Books 4-6 and will continue to finish out the series as I own the rest of the books. I have missed Mike Raven and his action packed ways, so it is time to get back to kicking some ass with the Shadow Detective series! 

Attached is the author, William Massa, profile page from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7351982.William_Massa

Attached is the author, William Massa, profile page from Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/William-Massa/e/B00G5D8ITQ

Attached is my review from Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2854755614