Horror Books

B.P.R.D. stands for the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense, a secret U.S. agency that protects the world from supernatural threats. It is a spin-off title from Mike Magnolia's popular Hellboy comic book series, and details the adventures of the agency's other "special" operatives.

The team includes Abe Sapien, a blue-skinned gill-man with a mysterious past; Liz Sherman, a neurotic pyrokinetic; Johann Kraus, a German psychic whose body was destroyed while his spirit was visiting the astral plane; and Roger the Homunculus, a medieval golem with tremendous strength and a child-like personality.

"The Hollow Earth" storyline serves as a general introduction to the B.P.R.D team for those readers unfamiliar with the Hellboy mythos. It does a good job of showing how Hellboy's resignation affects each member. The bureau just brings the newly-disembodied medium, Johann, into the group while Abe Sapien debates quitting the team and taking Roger with him. Meanwhile, Liz Sherman has taken a sabbatical, traveling to the mystical realm of Agarta in the hopes of learning to tame the fire within her.

Outside events soon bring everyone together, however, as an attack on the monastery Liz is staying at prompts her to send a psychic S.O.S. to her friend Abe. The bureau quickly mobilizes and sends the team out on a search and rescue mission that leads them into the very bowels of the earth. This is a very good story. Each member's unique strengths are highlighted, and the group dynamic is set up very well.

This collection also features two shorter stories. The first, "The Killer in My Head" features Lobster Johnson (a grim 1930s paranormal investigator first introduced in "Hellboy: The Conqueror Worm"). Several prominent scientists are found dead inside locked rooms and our hero has to solve the mystery. The second, "Abe Sapien Versus Science" is a short vignette that shows Abe filling the void left by Hellboy by rescuing Roger from the perpetual prodding of the bureau's scientists, mirroring Hellboy's actions years ago when he rescued Abe from the same thing.

Also included is the rare Abe Sapien one-shot, "The Drums of the Dead", written by Brian McDonald and drawn by Derek Thompson. This is a story about the mysterious and deadly happenings aboard cargo and fishing ships along the oceanic trade routes between America and Africa. The artwork is very dark, which mirrors the mood of the story. The plot is simple, but action packed and delivers an emotional punch as well.

while i would prefer to read solely about hellboy himself, reading about the bprd is entertaining. the stories contained in this volume fit well into the hellboy mythos. while the art is not mignola's, it has it's own flair to it that sets the mood. the writing is good of course, and the title story and the others hold up well to what has been published in the past. i would of course urge any fan of hellboy and his universe to pick this one up if they have not already. if you are looking to read something different and are a fan of comics, this will hold you over, and i guarantee you will be hooked.

B.P.R.D. stands for "Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense," an extragovernmental agency that polices the supernatural in the world of Mike Mignola's Hellboy. Think The X-Files meets The X-Men.
"Hollow Earth," the first story in the volume, is tale of Johann Kraus' first adventure with the team, a mission to rescue pyrokinetic Liz Sherman from a swarm of Stanislav Szukalski-inspired subterraneans. The tale is pivotal in Mignola's mythos in that one can see the characters attempting to fill the void created by Hellboy's departure from the Bureau.
As a sort of epilogue to "Hollow Earth," the volume includes the origin of Johann Kraus, the story of the Chengdou Disaster, in newspaper format.
My favorite piece is "The Killer in My Skull," a tale of 1938 New York City, starring my favorite Mignola character, Lobster Johnson. Lobster Johnson is the goggle-wearing, .45-totin', The Shadow-like crime fighter of the series.
Then it's back to the future so that the reader gets a glimpse of what the "R" in BPRD stands for. In "Abe Sapien versus Science," Abe Sapien rescues Roger the homunculus from the scientific pokings-and-proddings of BPRD scientists in much the same way that Hellboy rescued Abe himself from their curious clutches years earlier.
The final story "Drum of The Dead" features Abe Sapien and Gabriel Omatta, a former seminarian who sees dead people for the Bureau, in a supernatural tale of sharks, more sharks, and the Middle Passage.
In an age when one finds it necessary to take out a loan from the bank to buy comic books on a regular basis, this compilation of stories is a great pick for anyone wishing to enjoy great stories bundled together in one reasonably priced package.

B.P.R.D. stands for "Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense," an extragovernmental agency that polices the supernatural in the world of Mike Mignola's Hellboy. Think The X-Files meets The X-Man.
"Hollow Earth," the first story in the volume, is tale of Johann Kraus' first adventure with the team, a mission to rescue pyrokinetic Liz Sherman from a swarm of Stanislav Szukalski-inspired subterraneans. The tale is pivotal in Mignola's mythos in that one can see the characters attempting to fill the void created by Hellboy's departure from the Bureau.
As a sort of epilogue to "Hollow Earth," the volume includes the origin of Johann Kraus, the story of the Chengdou Disaster, in newspaper format.
My favorite piece is "The Killer in My Skull," a tale of 1938 New York City, starring my favorite Mignola character, Lobster Johnson. Lobster Johnson is the goggle-wearing, .45-totin', The Shadow-like crime fighter of the series.
Back to the future, the reader gets a glimpse of what the "R" in BPRD stands for. In "Abe Sapien versus Science," Abe Sapien rescues Roger the homunculus from the scientific pokings-and-proddings of BPRD scientists in much the same way that Hellboy rescued Abe himself from their curious clutches years earlier.
The final story "Drum of The Dead" features Abe Sapien and Gabriel Omatta, a former seminarian who sees dead people for the Bureau, in a supernatural tale of sharks, more sharks, and the Middle Passage.
In an age when one finds it necessary to take out a loan from the bank to buy comic books on a regular basis, this compilation of stories is a great pick for anyone wishing to enjoy great stories bundled together in one reasonably priced package.

I am happy to read Mignola BPRD type tales whenever he comes up with them, or the cows come home, whichever comes last. These are Hellboyless, but have some other characters. A homunculus, and a ghost man who wears a suit so that he can interact with the physical environment, and a new field leader hard bitten, deformed military man type.

Some of this is to show the relationships between the characters, and how the BPRD humans are increasingly alienating them. It shows how Hellboy rescues Abe from test after test after test, and then Abe does the same thing for Roger the Homunculus, from the very same scientists, a couple of decades later.

They also have to rescue Liz, who appears in a sending, after being gone yet again, for a couple of years.

Victor Frankenstein's creation had murdered members of his family and strangled to death his fiance on their wedding night fulfilling his threat to "be with you on your wedding night" and warned Victor, "You are my creator but I am your master." As Victor centered his life around creating the monster, he would later center it around hunting down and killing his creation. This manhunt would expend Victor's life and prove his efforts futile to catch an untouchable and nameless monster. This novel is full of enduring themes of ambition, friendship, and the conflict between the two, psychology, oppression and rebellion, the dangers of scientific and intellectual advancement, and societal injustice. The writing itself isn't great but it's the story and the themes that make this a great classic.

Shelley wrote this book influenced by the period of time in which she lived, the Romantic Period. This was the response to the previous time, the Age of Enlightenment. In the Age of Enlightenment, reasoning was deemed of utmost importance and people thought that there were natural laws and that reason plus these natural laws would equal progress. By progress, they meant not only advancement, but unlimited advancement, that society would continue to move closer and closer to perfection. In Frankenstein, we see the result of so much logic and reason- the creation of a monster. In the story there seems to be no natural laws governing the world.

When I think of what natural laws would govern the world, Justice comes to mind as the most important. Throughout this whole story, justice is so dearly lacking. Injustice leads to more injustice. The monster is born into unforgiving circumstances that were not his fault. His creator rejects him immediately. Throughout his life, the monster found himself rejected by everyone for the repulsive looks his creator gave him. The monster even suffered rejection of the impoverished family he ardently and sacrificially helped. When he saved a girl from drowning, her father shot him. The monster yearned desperately for a mate of his kind, which Victor denied him for fear the two would breed an entire race of fiends or that she, too would reject him and there would be two fiends. Decide this debate between the monster and Victor for yourself. Even if Victor was right to deny him a mate, it was still an injustice for the monster. After all, the monster could not help the disadvantages he was born into and he strove mightily to be virtuous. He exercised his will and responsibility strongly, but to no avail. The poor thing begs for just one friend and he is denied this. The innocent Justine (a play on the word "Justice") is executed for the monster's crime; the monster eventually slays several innocent people he doesn't even know. Injustice is what moves the plot of this book.

Shelley's novel disputes the importance and promise of natural laws, reasoning, and the idea of progress. It introduces emotion and intuition. Frankenstein studied laboriously but failed because he left the monster emotionally neglected and rejected. When Victor first learns of the murder of an innocent member of his family, he intuitively knows it was the doing of the monster- he offers no reasoning or deduction as to how he knows. The monster hounds Victor and seems to supernatually know where he is at all times.

One of the many interpretations of Frankenstein is that it was a product of the Romantic Period, which was a response to the Age of Enlightenment.

yep. uh huh. you bet. this book was nice. i red it.

Seeing as how I didn't like Frakenstein very much at all, this book kept me at least fairly interested in the novel.

The novel is very long, repetitive, and extremely slow at times, and the book helps make it a lot faster, and reviews the main plot so the complicated sentence structure of the book is easier to decode.

Also, Cliffs notes tells about the literary messages of the novel, hard to figure out unless you know about romanticism, and explains most of the olden-style vocabulary.

Finally, there is an excellent character web that explains all the relationships.

All in all, helped me a lot with the novel.

Most interpretations of this novel are flawed because they are based Victor Frankenstein's own opinions, which are not confirmed by any other character or by the outcome of the narrative. Victor's grim view of his own career and particularly his creature commences at the moment when the creature comes to life and fails, like any artist's work, to meet the creator's high hopes. By his own admission, Victor has deprived himself of sleep and nourishment, not to mention even the slightest social intercourse such as letters to his family might have provided. He is on the verge of a physical and nervous breakdown which overtakes him on the very next day and from which he does not recover for many months. In this condition, when he sees the creature suddenly open its eye and move, and somewhat later smile upon its creator and reach out towards him, its ugliness appalls him, for the labor is now complete and all imperfections are irremediable.
Mere ugliness is the sole flaw which Victor notices in his work, but that is sufficient to drive him from it and thus to allow it to escape. This mistake is ultimately to blame for the creature's learning to hate mankind. Since Victor has been so obsessively preoccupied with the task of conferring life upon dead matter, he has made no provision for the next step, and the creature is allowed to wander abroad without supervision or care. Victor is totally unaware of its innocence until after its goodness has been crushed by yet more human prejudice against physical ugliness. Indeed, Victor does not hear his creature's side of the story until after the innocent William has died, and it would be surprising indeed if the brother's grief and self-reproach left him capable of recognizing the creature's innocence of evil intent in the death of William. We know, however, that he did not intend to kill the child in spite of the world's having thoroughly educated him in brutality and hatred. On the contrary, even at that late date he intended to make William his friend.
Yet Victor cannot accept his true responsibility for having failed to provide for his creature as his own parents had provided for him. Rather, his heavy sense of guilt induces him to shift the blame to the science which led him to create the being in the first place. Just as he calls science ``unlawful'' for taking him away from the calm and serene enjoyment of his family even though it is clear that his own obsessive-compulsive nature is at fault, so he also blames science for bringing the creature into the world whereas its evil was not innate but learned. Parental irresponsibility is simply too heavy a burden for Victor to carry.
Critics, however, accept his assessment of the situation, especially that aspect of his interpretation which arises when, by a flash of lightning, he catches sight of the creature in the storm and supposes it to be the murderer of William. The fact that this guess is in fact correct is probably why its rashness is not more generally recognized, and once we accept this piece of the speech, the rest of it follows although it is nothing but the most violent hysteria. Beginning with the naive assumption that ``nothing in human shape'' could have committed so heinous a crime (for Victor hasn't had the benefit of the twentieth-century press), he says that the creature had to be guilty, declaring in defiance of all his scientific training that ``the very existence of the thought was an inescapable proof of the fact.'' And from this reckless reasoning he moves on to the fanciful view of the creature as ``my own spirit let loose from the grave and forced to kill all that I held dear,'' as if the creature were a kind of doppleganger sent to punish its creator for the crime of having defied the laws of nature by calling it into existence.
The fact that by understanding those laws Victor has created a being not only more agile and enduring than mankind but also full of goodness is somehow lost sight of, and Victor's own self-loathing is allowed to drive the critics' supernatural interpretation of the events. It is even rare to find any admission that the creature is guilty of only two deliberate crimes: framing Justine and murdering Elizabeth. The creature's narrative is sufficient to account for every single detail of its behavior, and yet the idea that it is some sort of preternatural vampire stubbornly refuses to be displaced. It is time to accept the idea that Victor Frankenstein is deranged and that his life has not been ruined by science but rather by his own frenzy, obsessions, and impracticality.

I enjoyed this book and recommend it to anyone interested in the history of horror comics. The omission of EC comics and Warren magazines is appropriate as they are archived and written about so many other places. All the other positive aspects of this book have been covered in other reviews and most of the negatives are slightly unfair or simply a matter of opinion.

My one complaint is this; for a book where the editor tells us how striking and brilliant the art work is, it is printed rather poorly. I did not expect, or want, the book in color. I DID expect the pages not to be shrunken to the point where the lettering and many panels are hard to make out. I would have happily shelled out and additional $10 to $15 for the same book with clearly printed pages.

The artwork was great with the recreation of the comic in readable and good text form. The use of printing the stories in black and white added and enhance the reading for the reader.

Now if they could only put out a publication of the collections of mysteries in space, and the complete collection of WEIRD SCIENCE (only vol 1 and 2 are available at this time).

It's great to have so many comics all bound together, but they're all black and white (I'm sure some of them were originally in color). They're also much smaller than they were in their original comic book format, making it a bit of a stretch to read. However it was fairly cheap, and the lightweight paper is nice.

The Mammoth Book of Best Horror Comics is a steal when you compare pages (540+) and story selections (48) to the overall price. The comics are presented in black and white (as any good horror comic should be). Editor Peter Normanjon also does a nice job of dividing the tales up by decades guiding the reader along from the 50's through present day with a nice introduction page to each tale.

Some of my favorites in the bunch include:
*DREAD END - a nice giant monster tale and there's a bonus modernizing retelling with actual photographs substituting for artwork
*Fatal Scalpel and Dungeon of Doom - both have a Twilight Zone feel
*Sea of Graves - gave me goosebumps when I first read it as a child
*Home Lies - a simple story where the ending cathes you off guard
*Purgation - probably the best visual story in the lot, some of the artwork actually creeped me out...the people behind this should make movies
*Killer Planet - reads and looks like it could have been from an issue of Heavy Metal
*The Graveswellers - another story that uses actual photographs over illustrations

The only minor problem with this collection is the absence (and it is addressed) of more widespread comics from EC (Tales from the Crypt) or Eerie. As a child these were always my favorites. However this Mammoth collection does a great job of introducing readers to the wide variety of horror comics that have been published over the last 50 years. It's a great place to start your appreciation of Horror stories, and the price can't be beat for the amount of reading (and scares) that await you.

Having read some of the negative reviews before, I was almost sure that I would get what I hoped for - but now I see that this book offers so much more...!

Sure the book could have a bigger print in colour - and I would certainly be willing to pay a lot for this book in an edition comparable to the MARVEL OMNIBUSSES.
But as it is, the book is an affordable option to get a really wide perspective on horror comics from pre-code to postmodern.

So here are some words to the complainers:

Claiming that this is not "the best" in horror comics is kid stuff!
Sure, it's stupid to put a word like "best" on any kind of compilation or anthology - but it's actually more stupid to actually search for a concept like that.

The strong point about this book is that there is no E.C. and no MARVEL and no DC to be found in these pages.
I mean, if you are looking for those classics - go and get them from the countless sources that offer them. You can get a complete E.C. library, and if you are seriously interested in horror comics, you absolutely should.
MARVEL and DC are already busy reprinting their ESSENTIALS and SHOWCASES and OMNIBUSSES and whatnots - so there is a good chance that within the next years you can get a big lot of what they have ever published.

This mammoth book here fills the gap that really hurts - i.e. the countless comics by short-lived, small, independent or sold out publishers I have never even heard about.
That is really rare stuff, and it turns me on to get such a low-price opportunity to lay my eyes on titles like BLACK CAT MYSTERY or CHILLING TALES.
In fact I don't expect them to be "good" or (for god's sake) "the best".
I expect them to grant me a glimpse of the history of pop-culture, and this is what I get here.
And then even getting stories from the 80s and 90s, when I really lost horror comics out of sight - wow, what a treat...!!!

If you actually intend to buy only one book of horror comics in your life - or if you have so little money that you can only afford one book a year - well, I definitely say:
Go and buy any copy of HAUNT OF FEAR or VAULT OF HORROR instead of this book.
Just as I would advise you to watch SUSPIRIA or TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE, if you want to watch just one horror movie this year.

But if you really dig Horror in all its forms - and if you spend a lot of dough on classics and new stuff, the good the bad and the ugly releases to broaden your horizon and to find the gems among the rubble - then this book is DEFINITELY one you should buy!!!

This book is one to devour and enjoy - not to ruminate over.
It's for lovers - not for calculators.

Even years later, there are lines from this book that still haunt me. I never did get around to seeing the movie version of this book, but I only hope it was as spine-tingling as the story. Duncan is true to her characters all the way through as she deals with a group of familiar and understandable teenagers who simply aren't happy with their teacher. Through a logical plot that is still driven by its characters, Duncan takes the reader through the plotting, the accident, and the terrifying guilt that follows.

I'm probably one of the few people out there who didn't have to read this for Jr. High English. Overall, I found it to be just as relevant in 2008 as it was in 1978, illustrating the power of idiots in numbers. As the old proverb goes, everything is just fun and games until someone loses an eye.

Lois Duncan's novel, Killing Mr. Griffin, is one of the best novels I have ever read. The book leaves you at the edge of your seat throughout the whole story. The story begins when five high school students plan revenge on a teacher, Mr. Griffin, due to his strict grading. After leaving him in solitary to scare him, Mr. Griffin is found dead from his health illness - Angina, a heart condition caused from being in stressful situations. The students then try to cover up their joke-gone-wrong and keep the unintentional murder secret. The story shows the maturing of the majority of the five students, such as, not falling victim to peer-pressure. The story also teaches the characters that not all friends are going to be true friends. In my opinion, Killing Mr. Griffin is a must read novel for anyone that has or has had a teacher that grades strictly. I would also personally recommend this book to a reader that loves suspense.

I had a hard time believing that Mr. Griffin's students would go so far as to kidnap him, even if they meant it as a joke. Yes, the idea was that of Mark, a psychopath (the book even describes him as such), but even so, he did not strike me as being anywhere near charismatic enough to persuade any of his classmates to kidnap a teacher.

Susan was clearly meant to be the novel's heroine, but quite frankly, I wanted to smack her. She was supposed to be smart; why couldn't she see that the Popular Crowd's sudden acceptance of her was entirely self-serving? Why did she allow herself to be used as a decoy in Mr. Griffin's kidnapping?

Lois Duncan's strength has always been in creating believable characters in even the most outlandish circumstances..but in this novel, she fails to do so.

This book is my favorite book!! Scary, Lois Duncans best book out of his series.....Surprising, until the end you don't know what happens!! I LOVE THIS BOOK!! I was only 12 when i read this book and i LOVED it!!

Excellant book on the story of withces. How one women overcame adv ersity and predujuat in her own coven. She meets and decides to trust a Warlock and the story is exciting and wants you to read more of it

I'm always thrilled when I find a new writer who a) I think is amazing; b) who is writing a series, which I love; c) there are several books to the series before I find them; and d) whose writing gets better with each book. That describes Kelley Armstrong perfectly.

The Women of the Otherworld series is slightly different in that the narrator of each book changes. Some narrators have more than one book, but there are several. Armstrong does a good job of introducing the narrator at least a book in advance and then also characters from the other books show up. For example, Elena is the narrator in the first two books, Paige shows up in book 2, Paige is the narrator of books 3 and 4 but Elena is in both of those, though not as the focus of the story.

Industrial Magic is the second book narrated by Paige Winterborne, a witch. In this book, she and her boyfriend, sorcerer Lucas, are asked by Lucas' father (a powerful Sorcerer leader) to investigate why supernatural teens are being killed. That's all I can really tell you without spoiling the story for you.

What I CAN tell you is that the story is suspenseful yet is character-driven, there a couple of new characters that you'll enjoy and one thing that is highly implausible - but then isn't the entire concept?

Overall, I'd say this is the best of The Women of the Otherworld and I can't wait to read the next!

The book was fast paced. It drew me into the story and I stayed. The unfortunate thing about this series of books is that I have read through them too fast. Great reading and entertainment.

I regulary read all sorts of fantasy and love a good vampire story. Unfortunately, when I read Kelley Armstrong's books I feel as if I'm just passing time until a good book is published. I have read several of her books because some of the characters and ideas intrigued me, but each story has left me wanting.

Kelley Armstrong has a good thing going here. I love that the Women of the Otherworld series encompasses more than just one race of supernatural being. It started out with my personal favorite, werewolves. Then it branched off into witches as the focus moved to one of the supporting characters in the second werewolf installment. With the series full of different types of supernaturals (vampires, half demons, Celtic deities, shamans, etc.), it could go on almost indefinitely and I hope it does! The writing is smooth, the dialogue rings true, the plots are well worked, and I'm always satisfied when its over. I recommend this series and all of the first four books I've read so far to anyone who likes a lot of plot, a little romance, and a whole bunch of fun all wrapped into one entertaining read.

John Constantine knows that he needs to build up Swamp Thing's metaphysical and magical might, to face the trials that are to come.

He faces multiple antagonists here, including some vampires that have a quite clever way to keep out of the son, and a slightly odd werewolf.

In this tale, Swamp Thing begins to find out the extent of what he is (with the help of the first appearance of John Constantine). The Swamp Thing movies sucked, the Constantine movie sucked; if you want great horror fiction, look no further.

This is the third trade collecting Alan Moore's groundbreaking run on the character, and is noteable because it introduces John Constantine, who would prove integral to the remainder of Moore's run. However, if you're looking for the snarky magician that was a hallmark of Ennis, Ellis and Azzarello's run, look elsewhere. Part of this is because John is regulated to a supporting character, who really exists to introduce Swamp Thing to the various menances that he will confront along the way. The nature of good horror is to disturb us, to make us feel uncomfortable, and Moore does this in spades. If you don't believe me, check out the story in which he ties cycles of the moon to a woman's menustral cycle.

The saga continues with this third volume in the collected works of Alan Moore's helming of the Swamp Thing comic series spanning issues 35 through 42. Although this middle arc is seemingly lacking in a grand storyline of sorts - important ground is covered with the Swamp Thing discovering new abilities (mainly his ability to abandon his physical body and re-generate a new one), introducing some new characters, espousing on social issues and oodles of horror mainstays (vampires, werewolves, zombies) doing battle with ol' Swampy himself. As far as contributing to the overall story arc this volume is somewhat lacking, but nonetheless makes for a very entertaining read all the way through.

The third collection of the Moore-Bissette-Totleben run on "Swamp Thing" proves to (so far, I haven't read the whole series yet) the most chilling of the run, as the Swamp Thing begins to understand the extent of his power as the Earth elemental, while encountering all manner of horrors, including the first appearance of DC-Vertigo mainstay, John Constantine.

The strength of this collection lies in the unusual approach to some pretty basic horror icons. "The Nukeface Papers" introduces an urban-legend brought to life, while at the same time raising the specter of the dumping of nuclear waste. In "Still Waters", Swamp Thing does battle with a group of vampires that have taken to living underwater, and the hellish offspring they have produced. In "The Curse", Swamp Thing encounters a werewolf with a tragic twist. And in "Southern Change", Swamp Thing must battle the poltergeists of the past, as an old plantation becomes the set of a soap opera set in the Antebellum South, and the cast become vehicles for the unresolved tragedy of slavery.

And through most of this is Constantine, his abrasive manipulation and sense of guilt fully formed (although looking more like musician Sting under Bissette and Totleben's are then later artists depict him). Constantine knows something is coming, and he knows he needs to make Swamp Thing ready for it. But, in what has become typical of the character, Constantine sees no particular reason to simply tell anyone what he's up too. Thus, the bond between Swamp Thing and Constantine is built on necessity and mistrust, which reverberates to this day.

While Moore is matchless in his ability to think outside the box, these ideas would mean nothing if not for Bissette's and Totleben's depictions. The image of a group of vampires draining on a swimmer, and then diving deeper into a city long ago submerged is chilling. The deformed Nukeface, long ago addicted to waste, and rotting from the inside out, is appropriately sobering and nauseating. Slavery, always a disturbing topic, is made more disturbing as modern people are forced into roles that are morally repugnant to them, and forced to live out the past, while corpses of long dead slaves rise from the ground. It's harder to think of a more perfect fusion of writing and art in this medium.

This represents the best comic books have to offer. Fans would be foolish not to at least give these stories a try.

The House Next Door I love Anne River Siddons and have read most of her books. This one left me with a bad feeling. It is not what I expected from this author. I don't like "creepy" books but kept thinking it had to get better. For me, it didn't. There were too many sad things that happened in that house or because of that house. I don't need a happy ending but this ending was beyond awful for me. As soon as I finished this book I gave it away and this is a first for me. I keep every Anne Rivers Siddons book so that I can re-read it. Not this one!

I really like A.R.S., and although this book kept my attention for the most part, I found parts rather tedious. It wasn't "oh my god I can't sleep" creepy, but actually creepy in a way it was almost believable. The ending, however, left much to be desired. It was like she got tired writing.

Some the the reviewers of the book have not been so intrigued by it's suspense but I was, I liked that it wasn't your normal run of the mill mystery novel. It gave me more than the average who dun it. I admit I was not on the edge of my seat but I was genuinely intrigued by the characters and the mystery that surrounded them and how they dealt with the things that happened in the 'house next door' and what it eventually did to them. The ending was very unusual.

I first picked up this book in 1983. Twenty-five years later, I can tell you that this book is one of my favorite horror stories.

Anne Rivers Siddon lulls you into a false security, using home and hearth- a false normalcy - and then smacks you with such supreme horror it rocks you. Her secret,I have noticed, is to allow you to believe that honor, faith in love, and hope in friendships will conquer all. Then she takes a small thread with a pointy fingernail and unravels it with absolute glee!

I would recommend this book to anyone wanting a great summer read! (Just make sure the house next door isn't under construction.)

In this story houses don't have to have previous owners to be haunted. Anne Rivers Siddons suggests, like Shirley Jackson, that some houses are intrinsically evil and able to prey upon the weaknesses of unsuspecting humans. No motive is necessary, only the opportunity.

The story is a little dated in its setting (Atlanta in the last third of the 20th Century) but story of the house along with the author's discussion of the worth of a small, graceful life, merits reading. The story is well-paced and the suspense tightens inexorably. This is not a story of gore but treachery, human weakness and how difficult bravery can be.

Okay, I can see the split happening here. Nevermore fans hate this book and vice versa. I'm a Witch's Canyon fan for a few reasons. Put simply:

Mariotte knows the nuances that make the show work. He can handle English flawlessly while creating a story and script you can see the actors do and hear them say. His side characters are real people (there are women in this book that are actually realistic, something I can't say for any of the women in Nevermore and considering that probably 80% of the fans are chicks, me included, this matters), the plot is interesting and well-crafted. Any new things he makes up for the book fit in with the show mythology without clashing, unlike the other guy. Witch's Canyon reads like a long episode.
For those that don't care about nuances and subtlety and only want a story with monsters, I can see Nevermore being preferred but for anyone who wants more of the show itself and cares if the book is true to the characters and mythology of the show, avoid Nevermore and read Witch's Canyon.

I was very, very cautious when purchasing this book. I felted aboslutely betrayed by Nevermore and was not too trusting with this book.
Boy am I glad that I got it! It felt like I was a bystander inside one of the Brother's weekly horror movies. I rarely get scared when reading books anymore amd while I was up late babysitting- I got the heebie-jeebees!
The ghosts scared me and when the widow was locked in the house my heart was actually racing for her! I totally recommend this book for the Supernatural fan, or anyone else!

Reading this book, I get the definite feeling that the author needed to actually watch the tv show Supernatural. The story was a little labored and Dean and Sam Winchester, didn't really come across as Dean and Sam. Anyone that has watched Supernatural will understand that statement. For my money, "Nevermore" by Keith DeCandido was just like watching an episode of Supernatural. He really got in the heads of Dean and Sam and that came across in his storytelling!

I thought that Witches Canyon was better than Nevermore, like alot of other reviews I see posted here. It captured the series much better with the whole supernatural theme. The main bad guy in Nevermore was a living breathing human. I finished the book because I had nothing better to do at the time. I'm looking forward to other Supernatural books if they are as good as this one.

If you want a book that has the characters you love, some well-written new ones, action, horror, and suspense, this is your book.

Not for the faint of heart, this comic tells the tale of a Marvel Universe gone terribly wrong where all your favorite hero's (and villians) are now turned into zombies w/ an unstopplable appetite. Witness these "marvel zombies" scheme up plans to find more food at the same time w/o killing each other. All in all good chessy fun.

The only "down side" to this book is that it does not really have much depth to it. But there is plenty of great scenes and sub stories that sparked the creation of "Dead Days" and "Marvel Zombies 2."

You want to read a superhero story that makes you cringe every couple of pages while giving you an entirely new angle of superheroes? This is perfect for you.



::Spoiler::
I died a little inside when the Silver Surfer was eaten

Very interesting take on the Marvel Universe. It was kinda cool to see your favorite heroes in a different light.

I got Marvel Zombies today and I just got done reading it. Marvel Zombies is a very short read. I was hoping it would have been longer because the action and violence are pretty good. The beginning is well but the book gets repetitve. The Zombies speak to each other which makes them seem too human. The story should have focused on a group of survivors instead of super powered Zombies. The survivors could have been led by a super hero like the Punisher or Nick Fury. It seemed like they threw in any character that popped into their head. Having the greatest Marvel Heroes turn into zombies is a good idea but they just didn't pull it off. I hate it when they talk about flesh being so good because it's sounds very cheesy. Anyways, I was hoping for more.

The first issue of the mini-series covers everything the reader needs to know, so the rest is just there to build up to the completely senseless ending. I guess the only "rule" in this universe is that, if a Marvel zombie wants to eat you, it can. It doesn't matter if you are invulnerable, inhuman, bloodless or (insert your word here), you are going to be zombified. The story is a novelty, but the ending sets the stage for an endless series of sequels that will be more of the same. Where's Stan Lee when you need him?

I pick up ghost road blues on a fluke from wally world i needed a book because i was going underway for 2 months I read the book in a week and a half. Honestly, I was engulf by it I know Jonanthan Mayberry wrote non fiction books (not prior to these books) but he is a great story teller. Usally first time fiction writer with this large of a cast (and a trilogy at that) all of things don't mesh together and you end up being a critic and pick out all the things thing don't match up just right, but I can say that ever happened it flowed great, barely any boring parts that you have to suffer through. I loved all the chacthers in this book and hated those who needed to be. I love this story and i hope for a spin off or something. I would recommand these books to anybody who likes vampires, werewolfes, horror fiction.

After reading this 3-book series telling the story of Pine Deep, Jonathon Maberry has, in my mind, dethroned Stephen King as THE master of the horror genre . Maberry's character development and attention to detail immediately makes the reader feel an attachment to, and an emotional investment in, the characters and the town itself. There is never a dull moment in this series. I hated to see it end. Needless to say, I have a new favorite author and I cannot wait to read more from Mr. Mayberry!

As a fan of Stephen King, I thought no one could sway me from my belief that the King's hold on the most ingenious of imaginations would ever be topped. Then I read BAD MOON RISING, by Jonathan Maberry and I am swayed! The residents of Pine Deep, Pennsylvania have no idea the horror that awaits them on Halloween night just as I had no idea the nightmares that would result from reading such a lavish tale of dark terror, violence, love and death. But that's always the result from reading a good tale of horror, so I didn't mind. Still amid the violence and death, one of my favorite sentences is a very simple description that says a mouthful. "His smile never faded as the minutes of night dropped like cigarette ash on the ground around him." If you love the legends of vampires, werewolves, avenging angels, as much as you enjoy strong characters then you will love this novel, and you will want the story to continue. This is the third book in a trilogy, we can only hope the author decides to revisit Pine Deep and continue the tale with a fourth.

For some strange reason, I prefer horror novels over anything else. As people like me know, the novels in this genre more likely than not - suck. However, I loved this trilogy. The characters are interesting and diverse. Maberry is an excellent writer.

Having finally picked up and read, "Ghost Road Blues", I found myself hooked on the characters and having to know what happens to them after then end of the book. So I bought Jonathan Maberry's last two books in the series, "Dead Man's Song" and "Bad Moon Rising". While he gives a lot of life to his characters, I felt he easily could have summed up the story in two novels, rather than three. In places the plot line started to drag and go on just too long. All in all, it was a good read though and I'll definitely be watching for more from this author in the future.