Being a child of the 80s I grew up watching teen slasher movies such as Halloween, Friday the 13th, Scream, to name but a few. They weren’t always great but they are always a fun watch. When I read the blurb on Grady Hendrix new book I thought that it would be right up my street - and it does not disappoint. 

From page 1 this book ports me back to my childhood days - I became all nostalgic, I felt like a kid again sitting in front of my TV in the dark waiting for the scares and blood curdling screams. 

The premise - what happens after these horrific events when there is only one survivor, how do they go about their lives after their horrible experiences and often life debilitating injuries. They do counselling of course, group counselling to be more specific. The counselling group consists of 6 Final Girls. When one is brutally murdered the rest of the girls panic and begin to run for their lives. Someone is hunting them, taking them out one by one…but who. 

I usually take a few weeks to get through a book but I just couldn’t put this down; I found myself neglecting my wife and kid, forgetting to eat and sleep to read just one more page - I got through its 400 pages in just a couple of days. 

Hendrix just drags you, kicking and screaming, into his world where horror movie slasher type events happen and the last person standing is usually the Final Girl. He injects new vigour and energy into a tired genre that is in the midst of a resurgence (Scream 5 will be hitting us soon). I thoroughly believe Grady will further fuel our insatiable need for slasher flicks for today’s generation with this amazing book. You suspect everyone, is it someone, singular, or a group of people after the Final Girls. As soon as I thought I’d figured it out I was quickly knocked for 6 and had to rethink my whole viewpoint. 

I simply didn’t want the story to end, I loved it. Here is another one that has been picked up for a Hollywood makeover as HBO look to bring this to us in the form of a series - I for one, cannot wait to sit in the dark with my popcorn to dive right in. 

Top marks for this one 5 out of 5 and perhaps, in true slasher style, we will see a sequel in the future - I hope so ​

Bill is a pilot of over 20 years. He is widely respected and loyal to his family, friends and the airline he works for. His day is a regular one, he gets up, dressed and kisses his family before heading off to work. His day takes a stark turn when he receives a call from a man who has taken his family hostage. To ensure their survival he just has to do everything they ask of him. 

There are one hundred and forty-three other passengers onboard. What you don't know is that thirty minutes before the flight your pilot's family was kidnapped. For his family to live, everyone on your plane must die. 

The story has 3 main arcs; the pilot, the pilots family, and the FBI search. Newman uses her extensive knowledge of airport and flying procedures to tell the reader a rip-roaring adventure akin to Hollywood blockbusters such as Die Hard and Speed. As with all books/movies like this the reader/ viewer knows what they are going to get - bombs, guns, fight scenes, rousing speeches, emotional heart tugging and cheese, lots and lots of cheese. 

The book reads more like a movie script than a novel - perhaps that is why it has already been optioned by a major studio…will I watch the movie; of course I will .  Because of this style though the story suffers, there is little back story as to the terrorists motives which is really an attempt to dehumanise the bad guys. Everyone is a hero, willing to put their lives on the line against the terrorists, and there seems to be an unreal acceptance of what is happening rather than the stark, terrifying reality. 

Nonetheless, it is a fun read, plenty of action which keeps the readers interest throughout as you try to figure out how everyone is going to get out of this nightmare scenario. Not the best book I have ever read but if you are looking for a mindless action thriller that doesn’t require too much thought then this is the book for you 

Just finished this brilliant book after an epic reading marathon - Paula Hawkins ‘A Slow Burning Fire’ is simply un-put-down-able. There aren’t enough superlatives. The story is chilling, poignant, evocative and gripping and the characters are so relatable to the point where you really care what happens to them. A heartbreaking and terrifying sub-plot keeps you engaged and turning the page. 

A complex array of characters with an interwoven story with twists and turns that come together in deeply satisfying climax - you will never see it coming but once it does you have that ‘oh yeah’ moment. 

Spoiler free I promise: from page one the author gets straight to it, no waffle, we open with a girl walking down the canal covered in blood and a neighbour finding a body of a brutally murdered man on a houseboat - the prime suspect is obvious right…As with all great whodunnits all is not what it seems. 

At first glance the characters seem unconnected but as the story unfolds we see deception, betrayal, and a huge family secret; the dark and twisted connections become clearer and you begin to realise that the culprit could be anybody…even the obvious. You will of course have to wait til the very end for that sweet release of knowing. 

The highlight for me is Laura she is charming and broken, tough as nails and fragile - you can’t help but like her and hope that the story moves in her favour. 

This is like a classic whodunnit which will keep you gripped to the very end, a perfect summer read. You will need to channel your inner Poirot/ Marple to untangle this rich and intricate plot to figure it all out. Fans of her previous mega-hit ‘Girl on a ‘Train’ and her follow up ‘Into The Water’ will be sure to thoroughly enjoy Paula’s new novel. 

A very solid 4 out of 5 stars and therefore a recommended read - one I am sure you will in turn recommend to your friends and family. ​

In the absence of a bloody, big-budget prologue, a text crawl and accompanying voiceover from Josephine “Joe” Allister (Marci Miller) gets us up to speed on how badly the brown chunky stuff has hit the fan since a deadly pathogen caused a huge area in the US to be walled off and those within fight to survive on a daily basis. Food, fuel and medicine is in increasingly short supply and the Allisters have holed up in a rundown house while they plan their next move.

If, of course, there is a next move. Daughter Mia is on a rickety life support machine and it’s looking like it’s only a matter of time before she turns into one of the zombies who are slowly reducing the already sparse population of the non-infected. Son Josh (Danny Ruiz) is trying his best to be like his action man dad Ethan (Jason Tobias, who co-wrote and co-directed with Geoff Reisner) but can’t pull the trigger when faced with the slavering undead. As for Joe herself, she’s none too happy with the decisions Ethan is making and is thinking the best course of action may be for the two of them to part company.

So far, so doomy. Things don’t get any better when marauders led by the grizzled Desiree Morrow (Susan Moore Harmon) come a-calling, using human shields to gain entry to the place, leading to a shootout which results in a stand-off between a wounded Desiree and Joe and a mission for Ethan and Desiree’s son Lincoln (Justin Dray) to pick up the supplies everyone needs at a nearby camp.

In spite of its inability to throw money at the screen, the first act still manages to create the image of a world gone wild with some pleasingly scuzzy locations and gruesome touches such as the scarecrow-like bodies strung up outside the Allister’s place as a warning to anyone with looting on their minds. The action’s well staged too, the fights and gunplay clearly defined and impactful in terms of feeling the blows and the bullets.

Unfortunately, once the film settles into the main thrust of the plot, it all becomes far less interesting. The story flits between the battle of wills between Joe and Desiree, the Westernesque quest of Ethan to do what a man’s gotta do (complete with unwilling accomplice) and various flashbacks to fill in some more of the blanks as to how we got here in the first place, which takes the urgency out of the situation somewhat.

This is a genuine shame as the performances, in general, are rather decent but the script doesn’t always serve the acting talent on display. Miller and Harmon snarl effectively at each other and there’s the expected back and forth about who the real bad guys might be depending on your point of view but this, like so much else in FEAR, slows the proceedings down until the film can finally play its cannibalistic trump card and character arcs can be satisfied.

At 101 minutes, it’s overstretched. There’s nothing wrong with allowing the tale to breathe and to give the players their opportunity to shine but the philosophising could almost certainly have been trimmed without losing any of its point. We also get a sappy, overlong bar scene in which Joe and Ethan meet as if they’re not already a married couple and an ending which loses some of its drama by the very fact that it over eggs the final showdown, topped with a comeback for one of the characters which offsets at least some of the previous gloominess but also feels a little unearned.

That isn’t to say that there aren’t good ideas here but they’re often undone by the sluggish pacing, the lack of a budget to create any genuinely striking set-pieces or dialogue which is a little too on the nose to land as effectively as it could. Did I hear a line from Aliens towards the end? Nice nod, and it fits the scene, but reminding me of one of the greatest sci-fi horror movies ever perhaps wasn’t the greatest idea when attempting to keep the viewer focused on the climax.

To have a film grab me for its first twenty-five minutes and then steadily lose me over the rest of it was incredibly frustrating and I spent a lot of that time hoping it would pull something special out to win me back but Forget Everything And Run ultimately left me wondering what might have been with a little more cash to play with and a slightly less ponderous script. There’s little wrong with the vision and the ambition but as an action horror it’s short of the mark, despite some neatly mounted skirmishes and the odd queasy chill.

When I started this book I didn’t know what to expect. It starts off a regular horror story. Creepy guy presenting horror movies, a horrible death then morphs into more of a cop story/crime thriller which tricks you into not expecting the real horror that follows. I finished this book in two sittings. The best thing I loved about this book was that there was no way to see where this was going. Whether it was going to be scary monsters, the occult or just a regular human killer.



In between some of the imaginatively put together gore the author also includes a dark sense of humour that had me laughing out loud in front of people like a crazy person.

I love that it wasn’t a straight forward gore fest, there was a lot of backstory and we got to really know some characters and their past sins. I also loved the way the author portrayed the town like he’d really lived there all his life and knew all the good and especially bad places. If you ever went to an old school drive-in you will be having flashbacks whilst reading this.

Be prepared because once you get past the half way mark in this book there is no stopping until it’s done.

If you’re looking for a book that pretty much includes everything from humour to thriller to horror this is the book for you.

Kayleigh Marie Edwards has been entertaining and chilling audiences with her own eclectic mix of horror and comedy. Now, for the first time, this popular author has collected her works together, reviewing and revising each one to bring you the definitive versions of her unique tales. From murderous children to nightmarish trips to an ill-fated zombie apocalypse, Corpsing will send you running for the light switch, but smiling as you do it.

Women in Horror month has just passed us by and I’m incredibly lazy/busy. I thought I’d make an effort and actively read a female writer.

I’ve known Kayleigh since I first started writing in 2010, so we’ve followed one another’s successes from our time on the forums of Spinetinglers to the present day. Even then, I knew she had a quirky voice, a true horror fan that writes for herself first.

Corpsing is her first collection of previously published short stories and gives the reader an eclectic mix of murder and mayhem with a tongue firmly in cheek. From killer trees, to bad mushroom trips, monsters under the bed and the chaos as the zombie apocalypse unfolds at a secure mental facility.

There’s a dark vein of humour that runs throughout; a mischievous glint that twinkles in the corner of each page, which when done right in horror, provides the reader with a comic relief tilts the story and adds to the chaos. There’s an eclectic mix of tales here, which shows her range as she sweeps from bizarro, to comedy, then back to weird, with a brief detour to gruesomeness.

​Kayleigh is definitively a voice to listen out for in the future, and I can’t wait to read something longer from her. Funny AND scary is a rare combination.

Take a tour through the horror paperback novels of the 1970s and 80s . . . if you dare. Page through dozens and dozens of amazing book covers featuring well-dressed skeletons, evil dolls, and knife-wielding killer crabs! Read shocking plot summaries that invoke devil worship, satanic children, and haunted real estate! Horror author and vintage paperback book collector Grady Hendrix offers killer commentary and witty insight on these trashy thrillers that tried so hard to be the next Exorcist or Rosemary’s Baby. It’s an affectionate, nostalgic, and unflinchingly funny celebration of the horror fiction boom of two iconic decades, complete with story summaries and artist and author profiles. You’ll find familiar authors, like V. C. Andrews and R. L. Stine, and many more who’ve faded into obscurity. Plus recommendations for which of these forgotten treasures are well worth your reading time and which should stay buried.

Buy this book.

I should leave the review at that, but I should try and convince you a little more, just in case. But the chances are, if you’re a reading this, then you’re a horror fan. And Paperbacks from Hell is for horror fans.

So, go and buy this book.

If you’re in any way nostalgic about the horror you read growing up, chances are, you’ll find a morsel of that within these pages; a scrap of trivia, or nugget of information that you weren’t aware of. Something that’ll make you smile. Hendrix has extensively researched his subject matter (I’m talking years, a lifetime probably), and it shows. You can feel his enthusiasm bubbling up at the turn of every page.

As well as revisiting old tales I once read and loved, I discovered books I wished I’d read during my youth. The horror market for me growing up was a vast and wild plain, often the stuff I found as a spotty teenager was stuff I simply stumbled across at second-hand shops and car boot sales, books that I discovered instead of sought out. Grady Hendrix has been collecting these titles, like some great cryptozoological hunter, and organised them under different chapters, sectioning off the history, different sub genres, publishers, prolific authors and the famed artists whose work helped grabbed the reader in the first place.

Hendrix is funny, sometimes injecting a caustic wit whilst still showing he respects the subject matter as he waxes lyrical about the good, the bad and the ugly. He knows these books like the back of his hand and it shows. Every page is a love letter to the craft, to the discover of new works by old story tellers and to the entire industry itself.

Included throughout is page after page of gloriously lurid artwork in full colour, each beautiful and disturbing in their own right.

Paperbacks from Hell is like discovering photos from your childhood that you never know existed. If you’re after a weighty tome that will inform, educate and entertain you on a subject you love greatly, this is a trip to hell that’ll be worth it.

Selected from indie publishers and magazines such as Weirdpunk Books, Necro Publications, Splatterpunk Zine, Corner Bar Magazine, Carrion Blue and Raw Dog Screaming Press, these stories represent the state of the art of extreme horror fiction. Whether extreme in theme or with gore galore, these disturbing tales will be hard to forget even though you may wish you could.

Yes, there will be blood. Lots of it. Gore galore and plenty of the gushy stuff. But you'll also find tales less graphic but with hardcore attitudes, transgressive stories you're not sure you should be reading, stories showing you things you shouldn't see.

Back again with another tome of collected horror. Let’s visit my favourites from the latest collection by

55 ways I’d prefer not to die by Michael A Arnzen is pretty much what it says on the tin, as 55 scenarios of gruesome deaths are discussed and dissected in a series of humorous shorts.

Ownership by Wraith James White is an effed up gory sex horror, which has to be read to believed. Bulging cocks literally fuck people to death in a visceral, blood spattering orgy of BDSM and what the fuckness. I’d worry if this arouses you.

The Bed of Crimson Joy by Jasper Bark. A haunted bed? Why not? An older couple find themselves troubled by an ominous four-poster. Utterly haunting and original.

Please Subscribe by Adam Cesare explores the dangers of baring your soul of the internet, and how bullying can destroy those weak of spirit and how the screen we stare into isn’t just a one-way mirror. What we put online might seem harmless, but every keystroke has its consequence.

Bacne by Tim Miller. A bad case of toxic zits gradually gets worse and worse for warehouse worker Jerry. Labels on things are important and remember health and safety first; before it you regret it.

The Girl who loved Bruce Campbell by Crista Carmen. A die hard Evil Dead fan finds herself under siege by trio of drug fuelled, psychotic maniacs, deciding to take her survival into her own hands, taking inspiration from her favourite horror hero. Bloody good fun.

A mixed bag of tales; the great ones making up for the weaker ones. As usual, Joe Hempel delivers a fine and engaging performance that captures the listener from the get go.