Horror Books

I have no idea why there has to be New Tales of the Vampires, when this book seems to be exactly the same sort of thing as The Vampire Armand or Blood and Gold, etc. That being a detailed look at the background and history of the vampire Pandora, and again, this book is of similar quality to those two.

Pandora is an interesting character, and it is certainly a change to have a female as the focal point rather than yet another pretty boy.

I have always been interested in the character Pandora ever since first reading about her in Queen of the Damned. I caught the glimpses of her and her relationship to Marius and was so curious to find out more about her. She was intriguing to me, even with the very little that Anne wrote. So I was delighted that a book soley on Pandora was being written. The book is more of a novella, it is a quick read, but so full of information. Everything you could have possibly wanted to know about her. It delves deep into her ancient past and you get to see her before becoming immortal, meeting Marius, getting into trouble. Its fascinating. Its just great to break away from the Lestat Centric novels and into something new and refreshing. Its a great book and very informative as well. Anne really does a great amount of research when she writes anything. Especially about history, the architecture or a particular period, the style of clothing, it really goes on and on. She did a fantastic job with this book.
I'd like to say that you can read this as a stand-alone book without having to read the other Vampire Chronicles, but, though not in depth, it does go into some of the other books and might be a tad confusing for readers who have never read them. However, as to an order of reading, its not terribly important. But definitely read IWTV, TVL and QOTD, before reading this one.

This book is definitely one of my favorites from the Vampire Chronicles. I love the character. Some of Anne Rice's books are so drawn out with boring stories while Pandora seems alive. She's independent, smart, curious, mad, searching for comfort. We also get a good look at Marius, the elder vampire in charge of protecting the Queen of the Damned and her consort. I found the story riveting and a definite must-read for anyone who has read the other chronicles.

I only wish to be an honest reviewer, and as an honest reviewer I think the story Pandora was decent enough but not the best one Anne has written. To make some clarifications I'm not making any demands for an author to write a book to my standard, I'm only expressing my opinions.

I just became a huge fan of Anne's vampire books (interview, Lestat, Queen of the Damned) and loved Blood and Gold. After reading Blood and Gold (or the story of Marius) I thought the book Pandora might fill in some holes, For marius since he didn't have enough time to tell everythign about her. In the book Pandora, Pandora writes a story about her life to David Tabolt. In her big leather notebook it talks a lot about her Mortal past and her dreams of "rebirth". Almost half of the book is filled with mortal memories. Her past, unlike anyone else except Marius, has the most interesting past as a Roman lady. Her character even as a mortal and vampire is well expressed through the book, She independent, strongly intellectual, proud, clever, and free-spirited. She can be very fierce in arguments which can get pretty annoying at times. Her relationship with Marius is Errotic and loving, yet filled with arguments. Here, for those who admire Marius, Pandora reveals a lot of Marius' weaknesses more than Marius himself. He's depicted as weak (not his power, but more of his character and personality) and childish more than strong and mature which is very interesting. The book has done a good job describing some of the major conflict between Pandora and Marius, which I found sad and tragic.The book did very well with explaining how Pandora became a vampire.

To the darkside, Pandora warned that her story would be short and basic. For those who do not like short stories yet like Anne's books, I hope you'll bear with the book as you read. Pandora didn't mention about her point of view in certain events: Queen of the Damned, how she felt when she rescued marius, how she met Santinio for the second time, and attended a meeting with powerful and well known vampires. Blood and Gold, How did she meet an Asian (Indian to be more specific) male who became her fledgling and, ironically, a master. She didn't also describe her relationship with the Indian vampire. The funny part for me was, how did he turn out to enslave one of the most powreful vampire next to Marius? Also it contradicts her character, she's independent, strong, intellegent, and clever, yet she's controlled by this vampire? Maybe he was was too seductive to her but who knows. She didn't talk about the time when she killed the roman coven and met Santinio. The book never talked about how Pandora tried to search for Marius. Since Pandora's story is a short one, she didn't describe a lot about her relationship with Marius. It did however wrote about the factors that lead their relationship to break apart, but I just felt like there wasn't enough descripton about her relationship with Marius. Pandora also wrote other things that were for David Tabolt which would seem unimportant for some readers. About half of her book is about her mortal life which was well described and crucial, yet the other half ,which is about her life as a vampire, didn't really talk much about her vampire experience. The only part in the story about her vampire life that seemed important was her relationship with marius. The end of the book wasn't satisfying as well, she only talks to David Tabolt and wanted to go see Lestat (and Marius, who should be worth looking for if you're pandora). Despite these honest criticisms, Pandora did warn that her story would be short.

What Now? Do I reccomend readers to read this book? Yes and No. If you read Blood and Gold, Queen of the Damned, and Memnoch the Devil then You should read it but you might find it some-what dissapointing. If you only care about knowing Pandora, then yes I reccomend you this book. This book was written about Pandora and for Pandora, which I give credit for to Anne Rice especially how she wrote every word elegantly and dilegently.
I didn't find what I expected, but I did find more about Pandora herself and her philosophy.

This book is a masterpiece.It reveals the tale of the beautiful pandora.It is definitely a must read.

Pandora is born with the name Lydia in the Roman Republic a few years before the birth of Christ to a Senatorial family. She is tall, with rippling brown hair and gold-brown eyes. She meets Marius for the first time when he is twenty-five and she is ten, and falls in love with him. Marius has the same feelings and asks Pandora's father for her hand in marriage. Unfortunately, his proposal is rejected and the two are not to meet for many years after.

Pandora's father holds a high rank as a Senator. But when a new emperor takes power, her family is betrayed by her own brother and killed. Only Pandora and her traitorous brother survive the massacre, and she is taken to Antioch (after changing her name) by a man who was very close to her father. There she meets Marius again, fifteen odd years after they first met. Unbeknownst to her, Marius is now a vampire.

She eventually finds out what Marius has become, and also that he protects and hides the Queen and King of all Vampires. The two care for the Royal Couple together for awhile before a vampire, Akabar, tries to steal the Queen's powerful and ancient blood. Marius and Pandora prevent him from carrying out his plan. To spite Marius, Akabar drains Pandora to the point of death. In order to save her, Marius is forced to make Pandora into a vampire. The pair stay together for the next two hundred years before arguing and separating.

The next time they meet again is in a Dresden ballroom in the early to mid-1700's. Marius tries in vain to make Pandora leave her companion and fledgling, Arjun, and come back to him.

The next and last time that they meet is in 1985, when she is among thirteen vampires who survived Akasha's killing spree and gathered at Maharet's house in the Sonoma compound to battle against Akasha. Pandora remains quiet and withdrawn throughout the whole ordeal, staring out the windows and saying little, rousing herself only once to say that Akasha is trying to justify deplorable "reasons" for a holocaust.

Like many of Anne Rice's vampires, Pandora is portrayed as a morose, despairing immortal who initially wanted immortality but soon regretted her choice and turns into a dark, indifferent cynic. Lestat thinks that Pandora was troubled in some deep, fundamental way even before she became a vampire because she's the only vampire who doesn't receive visions of Maharet and Mekare in her dreams. During the confrontation in Sonoma, when Akasha directly asks Pandora to join with her or die, Pandora merely responds in a quiet, indifferent voice that she can't do what Akasha is asking of her and stoically accepts the idea of being killed.

Even after Akasha herself is destroyed and the thirteen vampires regroup in Armand's Night Island in Florida, Pandora still acts withdrawn from her fellow vampire kin, watching music videos all day long and completely ignoring Marius, who dotes on her lovingly. There is no sense of recovery or security in her as there is with the other vampires, and she departs from Night Island alone, still just as morose as ever.

enjoy...Nigel

Cujo, to me, harkens back to the time when Stephen King's writing was wilder, back then when unbridled classics such as Firestarter and The Stand were still new to the bookstores. Cujo represented a time for me when Stephen would usually put predestrian characters into extraordinary situations and just let them work their way out. Less subtle than his current books Lisey's Story and Duma Key, but more energetic. And you always have a sense that anything can and does happen. That is what's so great about Cujo.

If you've read any of the quips about Cujo online, you would know the basis of this book right from the get go. You knew that eventually there would be a wild dog trapping a woman and her child in a car. And it will indeed be in the back of your mind while reading this thriller.

But you never expected the buildup to be this solid.

You never knew Stephen could do it this masterfully. He simply took the characters and built on their stories. And these stories collided very realistically, creating a push and pull reaction that drove the story forward to that above-mentioned scenario. And then it's boom, the situation starts, wondering what would happen next. Rip roaring stuff.

And outside that struggle between the trapped and the dog were many other situations happening at the same time. Ted's struggle to keep his advertising contract, Steve Kemp's schemings, all this tension made the story all the more thrilling.

This book isn't perfect though; some parts felt really pre-fabricated and campy, like King just put them in there to build up the suspense. But, like paper tigers, you realize how these things eventually turn out to be nothing much. Well, this is fiction, so it goes in the territory. Not really anything to shout about.

If you want to read a good thriller, Cujo would be right up your alley.

Cujo- A pet to never forget

Cujo is a tedious read for those used to the more exciting and action packed Stephen King usually writes. Cujo written by the famous author Stephen King.

The book Cujo is about the real life monsters that don't have to live in the dark recesses of your closet or dreams to thrive in. There is no main character like in many of King's books the perspective alters constantly to show everything that's going on. Though in the broad prospect of things there are two main families the story follows.

The Trenton family is in the upper middle class with Vic a commercial director and his wife Donna a stay at home house wife. There pride and joy Tad or to his dad tadder has a monster in his closet which is a foreshadowing of the monster he faces latter on.

The other family is the chamber family. A poor hillbilly get'r done husband abuses his wife Charity. She stays around only for her son who his very intelligent but she worries that he will follow his father's footsteps to nowhere.

The Trenton's car is in need of repair and so they take it to Joe who repairs cars and meet the Chamber's dog Cujo. Cujo is a lovable easy going 200 lbs dog.

Of course in typical King fashion he turns Cujo into a poor retched monster. Maybe not the type your thinking of Cujo gets bitten by bats and get the nervous system attacking brain deteriorating incurable disease rabies. Well while this is happening Vic finds out that Donna is cheating on him so he leaves town.

While Donna is trying to keep her marriage together which takes up a large potion of the book dulling it so much that even when you get to the parts where Cujo is killing people it can hardly raise your attention.

Well Donna takes tad with her to get the car checked out again. Cujo has fallen to the last stages of madness and attacks. With a cruel twist of fate the car battery dies trapping Donna and her 6 yr old son to an indefinite siege in the car. After day of being trapped and with tad on the brink of death Donna faces off with Cujo armed only with a broken bat.

I would recommend that if you want to read this book that you be very persistent with your reading. The extra details can grow tedious and boring so if you're not a good reader find something else.

I am a new reader of King. I have heard about him my whole life but am only now collecting his books. I am reading them in the order they were written so Cujo was the next one on the list. I have to say I did not like this novel as much as some of the others; however, much of this was because I have been an abused wife just like the one in this book. I have been a mother who worried over her son again just like both mom's in this book. There are other parallels as well but I won't go there here. I also felt I was in the dog's head and I felt increasingly sorry for him. I understood Tad's fear of the monster in the closet and remember feeling that way as a child. I had wolfs in my closet :). I agree that this is a dark novel but I also got a truth out of it. Make the most out of each day of your life. Sometimes your life does not work out as you would have wished. Everyone probably should read this book and I am sure in a discriptive literature class the disucssions would be awesome.

This one's good to read if if you've got about 3-4 hours to kill. It is a page turner. Not because it is so good, because it's so short.

Stephen King is the sort of man people discuss in hushed
whispers, muttering of the terryfing events he unravels in
his novels, yet Cujo not only comes up short of these
expectations, but fails them completely.
Before Cujo, I had never read a Stephen King book. A few weeks ago, I decided it was time to indulge myself. I checked the book out from the school library and brought it home, already a nervous knot forming in my stomach, expecting non-stop sequences of completely unpredictable peril. Instead, I read the first dozen pages utterly bored and puzzled. The only remotely scary instance was the realization that I had 192 more pages to read until the end.
King opens the story with a small summary of a recent suicide by a lunatic named Frank Dodd who apparently molested and murdered a various assortment of girls and women in the small Maine community. The plot then shifts to a small family, the Trentons, whose four-year old son, Tad, is panic-sticken by an apparent monster in his closet. This proves irrevelent to the overall story and is used as a ruse by King to keep the reader hooked. Tad's disbelieving father Vic, is in the advertising business with his friend Roger. Vic has a lot of stress hanging over his head because the money inflow is at a low and he fears his wife, Donna has been cheating on him. King also aquaints us with some other potential victims, the Cambers, a classic country family with a young boy named Brett, whose dog is named Cujo (surprise).

I understand that in order for any well-written story, the author must introduce and set up the characters and setting. However, King does this in a rather simple, boring approach which lead me to believe I was watching a drab documentary with my grandparents.
As the tale continues, Cujo, once a kind and loving dog, becomes a ruthless monster and hunts down isolated victims around his residence. These situations prove very predictable, as it is very difficult to brainstorm various outcomes of a bloodthirsty dog and petrified people alone in a deserted country side.
The ending is without any doubt the best portion of the book, being somewhat suspenseful and emotional. The investigative team makes you want to cry out in frustration, as they do everything but fulfill their duty to the missing people. The mostly-predictable ending has a tragic twist at the end that adds heart to a heartless legend woven of attempted intrigue.
Although the book has some good life lessons, a horror novel is not supposed to focus on values, and this unneccessary focal point takes away from the overall quality of the novel. For example, King zooms in on Vic as he struggles with the realization that his family should come before his work and that carrying the burden of anxiety is not always necessary. I took away nothing from reading this disappointing novel, except that I should not base my choices on critics or acclaim, as this book was the #1 bestseller. I would not recommend this book to anyone unless they are looking for a very mild horror book and have more than enough time on their hands. I would doubt that other high-schoolers would have the time or patience to read this book for fun or enjoyment. If you are looking for a scare, I suggest you rent a movie and stay far, far, away from this disappointing book.

I've been reading a ton of young adult paranormal fiction and this is one of my favorites. This was one of the few that kept me reading with very few stops.

Uninvited is a much darker story than the typical YA vampire fare. Jordan, a troubled teen, is being visited by her ex-boyfriend Michael, now a vampire, who waits outside her window every night begging her to invite him in. This isn't a love story, though. Michael plays the role of a deadly stalker, not a romantic interest. It's pretty clear that even before Michael's undead appearance, Jordan's life was in disarray, and her friends don't seem to be much more stable. Marrone paints a compelling picture of Jordan's further spiral into darkness and depression. As dark as it is, Uninvited has a surprising ending. Recommended for those looking for a slightly different take on the young adult vampire book.

I picked up this book on a whim. I was stuck at Borders for four hours and decided to pay some attention to the bottom shelves of the Young Adults section. The title was unique and caught my eye, I'm a huge fan of vampire books so once I saw the cover I kind of assumed what it was about. The back summary made me laugh, although that might have been from exhaustion.

The book took a few chapters to gain my respect, the plot still seemed shallow and some of the slang was off. Since I'm part of the generation that coined the overuse of the word "like" I was offended to see it used so incorrectly in a sentence. While no one may be able to define the grammar of the word "like" there is some sort of logical sense in the way it must be used.

During the first few chapters I thought that extreme attention to drug use was a bit too much, but than I realized- high school is like that. I have friends going to universities everywhere that partied every weekend just like Jordan and her friends. I may not be like the characters, but people like them do exist. People that are still able to keep there life looking like it's tied in a neat little bow.

Despite my being clean from all drugs and alcohol since forever I could still relate to the social anxieties that Jordan faces. I was glad to finally see a character that was semi-friendless and mention it! I read between 4-6 books a month and I can't ever remember seeing a character face their awkwardness. I see the characters that are overly popular or friendless and "okay" with it because the hot boy falls for them. But, never this.

Though a tad unorthodox I enjoyed the ending, shedding a new light on the vampire genre.

It is a fast read though, took me about five hours while traveling on the bus, but the plot was still there and left me feeling full.

The book looked promising with it's intriguing cover, a title that references an Alanis Morissette song and of course it's the young adult genre, my absolute favorite.

But it was terrible. It dragged on and on for over one hundred pages. The main character claims to have social anxiety, yet she parties hard every night with her friends, makes out and has sex with a different guy each night and is very forward with Danny, a guy she likes at school.

As someone who suffered anxiety disorder in high school, I can tell you that's VERY unrealistic.

Long story short, by day the character goes to school, complains of being anxious and hating her friends. At 5 p.m. every night for three months she sits in her room waiting for her ex boyfriend.

The plot was so boring and fluffy. Also, I didn't understand why the ex-boyfriends motives and attitude change so suddenly. It was just a piece of crap.

I hope the author reads this and makes her follow up novel better. UGH

If you like vampire novels, read Uninvited. If you are tired of vampire novels, read Uninvited. If you never thought you'd like a vampire novel, read Uninvited.

This book tears into the common cliches of the other vampire books on the shelves these days. It's realistic, gritty, heart-wrenching, and very exciting. I couldn't put it down!

Jordan, the heroine, is in a state of deep depression after the death of her ex-boyfriend, Michael. Of course, it doesn't help that Michael visits her windowsill every night, moaning about how much they loved one another and begging her to let him in.

This is not a book about vampires, but rather, a book with vampires in it. It has more in common with a book like SPEAK, by Laurie Halse Anderson, in that it focuses intently on the inner life of a troubled adolescent. Highly recommended!

Goods:

The beggining wasn't that good but then when jack gets captured it went uphill from there. And when I went camping i'm usually bored what with this around I never got bored. Seriously i couldn't put it down. Plus I love how it wss historically correct with the vikings and all.

Bads:

I would have made it first-person (I think it's called) because I think that it just sounds better.

?'s:

Why does Thorgil have to be such a brat? Why don't the Vikings just rebel against queen Frith if she if so bad?

An amazing, wonderful book. In the beginning it's hard to get caught up in it, but once you do, you are incredibly caught up in it! The story, though obviously fantasy in some parts (Trolls, dragons, and eight-legged frost horses anyone?), is very believable and well-written. You fall in love with Jack, Thorgil, and Olaf, and feel (and agree with) Jack's every opinion and emotion.

I came across this book while searching for stories set in the medieval period and I was unsure if I'd like it or not, since I'm not much of a fantasy book reader. But after reading the entire book through, it's now one of my favorites! Nancy Farmer did an incredible job at keeping this story believable yet filled with adventure. I was so sad to arrive at the last chapter that I held off reading it for days!

I would strongly recommend this book to those who enjoy books of adventure and trial, even if fantasy isn't your favorite subject to read!

"The Sea of Trolls", by Nancy Farmer is mainly about a boy named Jack. There is an old man who is a Wizard, who knows magic and he taught Jack this magic to face his fears but his life turns when an evil nightmare makes the wizard angry. Then a band of people called the Northmen capture Jack and his little sister, Lucy, and they take them to Olaf. Olaf also captured the Wizard which he thought was good because now the Wizard could not help Jack and Lucy escape. But then something goes terribly wrong when Jack says a spell to Olaf's queen to reveal her true appearance which was not good because she threatened to kill Lucy until Jack fixes the spell. Jack then has to find a way to undo the spell and undergoes many tragedies along the way, facing dragons, troll-bears, regular terrifying trolls, giant spiders and many other creatures that get in his way of his journey. Jack had only a small amount of time to undo the spell, but would he change it in time or would the queen end up killing Lucy, Jacks little sister instead?

The Sea of Trolls is a very good book and it is one of the better books I have read. The story is very interesting and although for characters like Thorgil it may take a few chapters to like them. It (the story) is all told through the main characters eyes. the main character is an 11 year old boy named Jack. His sister is sort of a brat who gets whatever she wants but at the end she gets better. The bard is quite likable. His personality is somewhat similar to Gandalf the Grey (The Lord of The Rings.) All in all this is a must read book.

ALIENS, first released in the 80's as a military-horror that further advanced the story of ALIEN and also advanced on the idea of ALIEN propagation.

ALIENS Omnibus is a true sequel to the ALIEN movies and throws us into the void that is known as the ALIEN universe. This massive book, totaled at 384 pages brings to life the characters developed in the movie ALIENS. It begins with a female named Billie who was a victim of an overrun colony, RIM, who is thought to be insane by the general public. As such, she is institutionalized and is tormented by vicious visions of the Alien. The story is also about a war hero named Wilks who saved Billie on RIM and lost his entire squad because of the Alien threat. The military deems him insane as well, but is placed into a prison.

We learn through a series of events that the earth's military wants to breed the Aliens for biological weapons. All in all, things go very wrong and the biggest mistake in human history happens.

For fans of series, especially those who were rather disappointed with Alien:Resurrection, will be happy to know that the comic does a rather great job of story telling that makes you empathize with a lot, if not all of the characters. This book alone could become an Alien movie as it is that epic and well done.

There are a few downsides to this gigantic book, one of them being how big it is. Because it is almost 400 pages in full color, the price is a little steep. I actually bought this book off amazon which is an upside because the price was reduced by half which is the perfect price for this book. Another downside is that most of the stories were written in 1988, so the art direction isn't even close to what todays standards ask for. There is one exception, and thats in the second story, Nightmare Asylum, which features a very unique art style that almost looks like it could have been made today.

The biggest upside to this omnibus is that all of the stories relate to one another and they also don't interfere with each other's stories creating paradoxes. Because of that, the other omnibus's like Predator and Aliens vs. Predator all use the same time line and are not in different universes but are actually tied into one another. All in all, this is a great buy even though the price may be steep at a book store, amazon is the way to go for buying this omnibus, or any other omnibus made by dark horse.

The other reviews say it better than I can, but this is a great read for any fan of the first two Alien(s) films. I would also add you don't have to be a die hard comic book fan to appreciate the great stories contained with this collection.

If you loved Alien or Aliens, then you'll also love this book.

The first omnibus of Aliens collect the following series and short stories:
Aliens: Outbreak; Aliens: Nightmare Asylum; Aliens: Female War; Theory of Alien Propagation, and The Alien. The last two are short stories collected from the "Dark Horse Comics Presents: Aliens Platnium Edition".
Outbreak & Nightmare Asylum deal with the characters Billie & Wilks battling the Aliens on another planet & returning to an alien-infested Earth. Female War deals with the character Ripley going on another company's errand to bring back a specimen. As usual, our lovely heroine proves her worth on exterminating them.
"Alien: Propagation" story illustrates how the lifecycle is for the Aliens. "The Alien" story goes into further details about the mysterious "driver" of the crashed alien ship found in the movie "Alien" before the series before it became a hit.
Overall... if you are looking for a collected volume on the Aliens' saga, the omnibus of Aliens is the way to go.

It was a period of hell at Fox Studios between 1986 and 1992, James Cameron's squeal to the first "Alien" movie was a massive hit and it earn it's lead actress a Best Actress nomination from the Academy. Lighting had struck twice, a decade earlier Fox earn big bucks with the "Star Wars" trilogy, and it seemed like it was going to score another big time trilogy.

How seldom is it that dreams come true.

Fox Studios began fumbling over it's own feet. Close to a dozen scripts where written by ten different people over the next six years including scifi master William Gibson. They had to settle on a first time director and a mishmash of script, resulting in a lack-luster movie that left many fans with a bitter taste in their mouths.

During all these, a very good story was over looked.

In 1989 a new comic book company called Dark Horse, located in the sleepy suburb of Portland Oregon, scored a major licensing coup and got the rights to publish "Alien/Aliens" comic books. What they created in that year is what should have been the third and four and possible fifth alien films.

Between 89 and 90 Dark Horse published a trilogy that puts the characters of Hicks and Newt center stage, pen by veteran comic, film and television writer Mark Verheiden and illustrated by three different artist, this trilogy shifts the focus from Ripley to Hicks and Newt.

Starting ten years after the events of "Aliens" Hicks is a disillusions soldier, still stuck at the rank of corporal, and Newt is confined to mental hospital. Hick is given a chance to face his demons buy going to a newly discovered planet that had has the xenomorph monsters, the governments wants specimens but tells Hicks he can go on a rampage and kill everything on the planet after the mission is complete. Before going off on the mission Hicks gets wind of Newts confinement and up coming lobotomy. Not wanting the death of his fallow marines a decade earlier, Hicks breaks Newt out and smugglers her aboard, the mission to the alien planet takes an big turn as the Weyland-Yutani ship boarded with mercenary intercepts and captures the Marine ship, their reasoning, WY already has an Alien Queen on earth and want to keep their monopoly on a potential bio weapons market.

It all goes down hill from there.

This story arch is told across about fourteen issues divided into three parts with a lot of plot and themes mixed in these books, these aren't just straight up action or horror, it has deep themes about greed and survival and megalomania.

If Fox realized that these books excisted and adapted them, they would have a consumer gold mine on their hands.

When the relatively unknown Dark Horse comics picked up the torch for Aliens in 1989, fans of the classic sci-fi series were in for a real treat. What followed in years to come was a series of stories that were largely hit-and-miss...some of the stories were excellent, while others were mediocre at best. Others still were too bad to mention, playing on traditional comic book fatantasticism to create new spins on the Alien mythos that made purists like myself hang their heads in shame. What the Aliens Omnibus: Volume 1 collects is the greatest of all the Aliens comics...the first wave written as direct sequels to the 1986 cinema classic, "Aliens".

Long-time fans of the Dark Horse Aliens series will be happy to see these great collections in one volume. When I look back and realize that I've been following these comics for nearly 20 years, going to the comic book store with my dad when I was just a kid to pick them up, I still can't beleive that it's actually been so long. What I find more amazing is that even in my mid 20's, I can still remember half of these comics, panel-to-panel and word-to-word...which is where my utter confusion set-in.

Fans and collectors should know immediately...these comics are NOT the same comics that you read 15-20 years prior. Being that they were originally written as direct sequels to the events of Aliens, the star characters of these comics were Corporal Hicks and Newt. What we will find right away upon opening up the Omnibus is that we're not reading the tale of Hicks and Newt anymore, but of "Wilks" and "Billie" respectively.

Apparently, in 1996 Dark Horse re-released and re-mastered the original 3 stories, changing the names of certain characters, re-writing dialog and completely redrawing and re-inking many panels. The story, while realtively similar, has also been re-worked to incorporate these changes. To differentiate Newt from "Billie", Newt was redrawn with slightly more gaunt features and brunette hair. Wilks looks pretty much the same as Hicks, except for the name change. These changes precipitate quite a few inconsistencies in the rest of the stories contained in the Omnibus.

As I mentioned earlier, those of us who have already read these comics in their original form may remeber certain story elements and events that occur within the comic, and find that those events no longer happen in this Omnibus. I specifically remember Ripley being coerced into helping the Company with a plan to capture the Aliens, or they would wake either Hicks or Newt out of hypersleep to do it instead. I also recall an exchange between Newt and Ripley, in which Newt strikes Ripley across the face, demanding to know why she left her alone. So we are looking at more than cosmetic or character name changes here...we're now looking at an entirely different story altogether. Further adding to the confusion is the appearence of Billie in Female War (the third part), who now sports a blonde hair color and even goes by "Newt" in at least 1 or 2 panels.

Regardless of these heavy edits, this is a great collection of comics that Aliens fans will love. When you look at it as being an "alternate reality" to the existing Aliens mythos, it is very simple to look past all of the changes and inconsistencies with the established Alien/Aliens mvoies. Unfortunately, due to the events of Alien 3, Dark Horse felt the need to make these changes for the re-release, and this collection reflects those changes.

For those of you who have the original comics, hang on to them! Now that they've become so rare and hard to find, you're probably looking at some great collector's items in the future (even if comic books are not appreciating in value as much as they used to). For those younger fans who are not familiar with the originals, or those of you who are just discovering these classic tales, by all means pick this up! You're treated to 3 great stories, plus a very interesting follow-up tale. Sadly, this Omnibus does not collect the individual cover art for each part, which would have been a nice addition. I beleive there is an Aliens compendium of art from the comics that includes the cover art, where you may find it.

Great colors, great reading and a great price make this a must-have for Aliens fans...don't miss it!

i really liked this story- i still think about it a lot and long for a similarly interesting egyptian read- (haven't been able to find one yet unfortunately- if anyone knows of any, let me know please in the comments section- thanks)- anyhow, i miss the characters and the setting- great descriptions- i could have done with a little less sexuality and the homosexualtity parts didn't quite make sense i thought- still i really liked this book, thought it was very well-written and can't seem to forget the characters and setting she so vividly described-

A novel of love, not horror. A novel of supernatural marvel, not of fantastic gore. Anne Rice is best in her literature when she tells a love story. Here she is able to have a three or four layer love story. Deep in the past the love story is that of Ramses and Cleopatra as opposed to Antony and Cleopatra. The former should be a love story of eternal wisdom true in all times and that no one can evade, the latter a love story of mortal passion that leads to death and dies. The former becomes a passion of hatred, hateful (full of hate) love, of hate-oriented love. The latter becomes a love affair of undying passion because mortal, of undying passion because doomed. The next layers are the successive love affairs in the main two families, the Rutherfords and the Stratfords, two families that know how to cross difficulties, the rivers of life, as their names indicate. Elliott and Lawrence a long time ago. Elliott and Henry twenty years later. Alex and Julie in the present time. The genius of that is to resuscitate both Ramses and Cleopatra in those families in the 20th century. They invade this world with their old hatreds and love-affairs and invest a new layer of love affairs in this modern world. Cleopatra is the archetype of the victim of society and of history, but also of her capricious childish being that chooses to love the only man she mustn't choose, the one who is only going to be defeated by society and she will then suffer the insufferable dilemma between love and life, love and death, death and life. Ramses brings into this picture the possibility to be eternal, the detention of a power that is greater than all that mankind can imagine, the power to survive one's own mistakes and to survive in spite of one's own shortcomings, hence the necessity to become perfect in spite of the impossibility to even dream of that concept. Project such love and such power into human frail society and even frailer individuals and you have a cocktail that can only lead to a catastrophe, and it does. Then Anne Rice becomes the genius we expect her to be and she turns that human catastrophe, that human tragedy into a violent confrontation of simple material forces like a car versus a train, or the addiction to gambling and the hunger for winning in order to lose in order to re-experience the pleasure of winning leading to the exquisite pain of losing again. This absolutely masochistic dimension of human nature goes beyond human understanding and Anne Rice is the best author to express this lack of intelligibility in the intelligence of human beings. It is then a beautiful novel that deserves our attention and that should make us aware of the absolute folly of trying to go beyond our limits. Altogether Anne Rice produces a deep feeling of satisfaction with our own fate, our own lot in life. The end is surprising though because she unevenly distributes the honor of being regenerated and then we wonder why one person is left out and why the chosen two are taken out of the tragedy they deserved entirely to suffer and experience. Isn't that pure cruelty from Anne Rice, pure cruelty and undeserved advantage. Or is there another deeper pattern? Out of the three men who had had some homosexual contacts, two are killed and one is chosen. The only man in that group of four English men who had had no homosexual contact nor desire is left alive but un-chosen. It sure closes the novel on a feeling of unfairness.

Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, University Paris Dauphine, University Paris 1 Pantheon Sorbonne & University Versailles Saint Quentin en Yvelines

Rice takes a break from the bloodsuckers and heads for bandages. Of course, being a romance type writer, not a lot of rotting smelly staggering corpse mummies to be found here, just a charismatic, charming, dangerous version, instead.

Other than that, the usual setting, noble Egyptian awakened, hangs out with a woman who can't resist him, and has a horrible secret. These mummy guys crave sun, sex and all that sort of thing.

A secret potion gives the mummy his immortality and superhuman powers, and he seeks out Cleopatra, intending to revive her, but ends up creating a monster instead.

This is the second time I have read this book, as the last time was years ago. The story is different then any mummy tale I have seen to date. It deals more so with immortality then raising the dead, and the emotional turmoil that accompanies being immortal.

The Story moves quickly and the characters are very likeable. The reason I only gave the book four stars is because three quarters of the way through the book, I found the characters where not behaving quite like themselves and also because I find I'm left hanging at the end of the book. I feel robbed of the knowledge of what happens to certain characters like Alex? Elliot?

I feel the book has been left open for a sequel but so far there has been non forthcoming. With Anne Rice I guess you just can't ever tell what she will do next. Crossing my fingers, but not holding my breath.

I can't think of a more perfect book. the only flaw is that it might be nice to get a sequel, but I think it's too late now. The Mummy is a fantastic adventure story, with some romance thrown in for good measure. Ramses is found and he's not actually dead. He finds himself in early 1900's Cario, and what happens next is awesome. Even if you've never read any Anne Rice, you will not be lost, this is a stand alone novel. My husband read this book and also thought it was great, so don't be put off if you are male. Read it - you'll like it!

This book may have been something fresh and different when it was published in 1993, but now it reads like fan fiction. And not very good fan fiction at that. I've been reading the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher, which are great. After devouring four of them in a row, I decided I needed a break so I picked up Guilty Pleasures because I'd heard interesting and outrageous things about the series. But after struggling through the stale prose and thin characters, I'm not sure if I can read any more of them. Does Hamilton's style improve as the series continues? Or is it the ever increasing eroticism (which was not present in the ironically named first novel) that brings back the vampire fetishists for every new release? I may never find out. I'm back to reading the Dresden Files, where I found myself sighing with pleasure at the words written by a true novelist.

Anita Blake has become something of a household word since Guilty Pleasures was first published in 1993. The concept is interesting as Anita lives in an imaginary Earth where werewolves, vampires, zombies, and other supernatural creatures are a part of life. Anita is an "animator" who can raise the dead into zombies but she's also a part-time vampire hunter known as the "Executioner" by the fang and cape set. In this book, the chief vampire of the city demands that she help solve a series of unusually vicious murders where the victims were vampires. Anita is not inclined to help, but they mange to make her an offer she can't refuse. From there, a whole series of supernatural encounters ensue leading to a fairly tidy resolution at the end of the story.

Guilty Pleasures is an interesting attempt to blend the hard-boiled detective with gothic mythology. It's not easy for a 105-pound woman to be as tough as a Sam Spade, but Hamilton imbues her with attitude to spare and a touch of vulnerability. At times the first person narrative is a touch forced or hits a wrong note but overall the writing and tone is solid. There is plenty of suspense and action to keep readers on the edge of their seats. The murder mystery is not very well developed and the solution almost seems accidental but this didn't seriously hurt my enjoyment of the story. There weren't any characters here that I'm likely to remember for life but they were solid enough to support the story and Anita's wise guy remarks are pretty funny most of the time.

Guilty Pleasures is well named. It is indeed a guilty pleasure to read it. This book will not win respect from elite literary groups and it won't make you re-evaluate your life, but it will provide several hours of entertainment and that's fine with me. I was looking for a good horror/thriller novel and this fit the bill nicely. I'd recommend it to anyone looking for the same.

Once upon a time, before the Anita Blake series became cheap porn with well-endowed vampires and werethingies, there was "Guilty Pleasures."

Laurell K. Hamilton's breakout debut was one of the early urban fantasy stories, though by no means the best. It's an amusing, gorey story with some unusual twists, but it often seems like a goth teenager's daydreams of vampire romance and superpowers.

It takes place in an alternate universe where werecreatures and vampires live amongst us openly. Anita Blake is a vampire hunter -- known as the Executioner -- and an animator, able to raise zombies from the dead, but she isn't too fond of vampires or weres. So when a vampire comes to hire her, she turns him down. But at a bachelorette party, she soon finds herself hip-deep in vampire politics, courtesy of the sensual club-owner Jean-Claude.

Things only get more complicated when she ends up facing the Master of the City, a deceptively sweet-looking little vampire who wants answers about the murders right away. Anita is going to end up facing a dungeonful of wererats, zombies, vampire groupies... and possibly the seductive Jean-Claude.

Admittedly there's not a lot of innovation here -- there are foppish, sensual vampires in the Anne Rice style, attack zombies, an army of werecreatures, and a Buffy-style heroine. It's a bit of a horror mishmash, and Hamilton never really adds much to the equation.

Nor does she add much to the simple murder mystery that the plot revolves around -- take your basic crime thriller, and add a few supernatural characters. Bang, you're done. But Hamilton loads it down with gore, violence, mystery and some unusual twists, such as Anita visiting a "freak party" full of vampire groupies and junkies.

As for her writing, Hamilton will never win a Pulitzer, but it's sparky and colourful enough to maintain a reader's attention. However, Anita's scenes with Jean-Claude needed work. While they have a sexual snap, some of them reek too much of a fourteen-year-old goth's fantasies of vampire romance.

Despite her goddess-of-the-universe turns later in the series, Anita Blake is a more compelling character here -- flawed, blunt, and very scarred. And Jean-Claude is fascinating when he's being manipulative to everyone... and much less so when he's awkwardly flirting with Anita. All other characrers more or less range from two-dimensional (the cartoonish Nikolaos) to the bittersweetly realistic (Philip).

With no hint of what was in store, "Guilty Pleasures" is nothing more or less than what its title suggests -- a lightweight adventure story with vampires and a Buffyesque heroine.

With its Lovecraftian touches, F. Paul Wilson's Repairman Jack novels superficially appear to be horror stories, which seems kind of strange. After all, horror is not really designed for series fiction. Instead, I think it's better to think of these books as fantasy novels that use the trappings of horror. However you define it, the Repairman Jack novels continue to be a pleasure to read.

The Haunted Air is the sixth novel featuring Jack, a no-last-name sort of guy who exists on the fringes of society and is a last resort for folks who can't get justice through legal means. Jack will assist - for a price - and usually has clever ways of dealing with problems. As the Haunted Air begins, Jack has been dragged to a party by his lover Gia. A normally solitary type (outside of Gia and her daughter Vicky, he has few attachments), Jack hates being in social situations, especially if they include some "artists" whose airy pretenses conflict with Jack's more pragmatic views.

During the party, Jack and Gia are dragged to the home of a pair of psychics to help retrieve a lost item. Jack sees through the psychics immediately (he's experienced with con games), but soon the pair - a couple of young men from the tough streets of Detroit - are coming to Jack for help. The two have been targeted by another so-called psychic who thinks they're invading her territory, and that's just the beginning of their problems: there's something nasty in the basement and its powers are getting stronger.

While Jack deals with the rival psychic, he is also hired to spy on a man who may become violent during the new moon. Jack's task in this case is to keep an eye on the man during the evenings and prevent him from endangering others. As it turns out, the man is completely sane but has a far more sinister agenda than mere acts of violence. And as is often the case in Repairman Jack novels, two seemingly unrelated stories will eventually tie together.

Beyond the tale itself, there are links to other stories in the series (as well as the early Wilson novel, The Keep), so a new reader is best off starting at the beginning. (I had originally started with Gateways (book seven), so I am finally caught up to where I should be.) And not everything will be resolved in the larger stories of Repairman Jack's life. Most notably, Jack and Gia are now expecting a baby, which puts Jack's lack of a legitimate identity in crisis.

Wilson is a consistently good-to-great writer, and The Haunted Air is right at that quality level too. If you've enjoyed other works by him, this one will also please you; if you are new to Wilson, you should read this eventually but start with The Tomb first.

This here's the 4th Repairman Jack novel I've read and they just seem to be getting better. Yeah there's a formula, but there's also a bit of a continuing story that moves forward in this volume. This is an awesome series, and I'm suprised it has yet to make it to film or tv.

For those new to this series, Repairman Jack is a man who doesn't officially exist. He has gone to great lengths to have no social security number, no tax records, etc. When people have a problem, he's available to fix it. For a price. In this installment, two brothers are new in town and off to a successful start conning rich people with their psychic act. It seems that one of the more established psychics is angry about losing business to the newcomers and wants to scare the brothers off, or perhaps even kill them. Jack agrees to help them find out who's behind the attacks and put a stop to it. While Jack repairs this little problem, a lot bigger issue is brewing. The same brothers are living in a house with a very checkered past and it's now the focus of a very active haunting. The twists and turns in the plot pull Jack, his girlfriend Gia, and the two brothers into a dangerous web that threatens all of their lives.

The first half of this book is suspenseful, funny, and fast moving. The haunted house story especially had me on the edge of my seat as the brothers are forced to endure increasingly creepy phenomena. The second half slowed down a bit and some of the suspense was lessened as the nature of the primary threat became clearer. Fortunately, the story starts rolling again as it builds up to the climax. This is not really a character driven novel, but the brothers are particularly well written. They're funny and show a lot of depth as they deal with their problems. Jack may not be the deepest protagonist in literary history but he's a very satisfying action hero.

I've read several of Paul Wilson's books, and this is by far the best I've seen so far. The Haunted Air is a fine mix of action, humor, and supernatural suspense. The haunted house setting helps make the story both more familiar and compelling. I'd recommend the book to anyone looking for a good supernatural thriller.

3.5 stars. The 6th novel in the Repairman Jack series for me and my husband read just a bit bloated in the beginning. But just as we expect from F. Paul Wilson, it soon intensifies into a solid and well-rouned story that we expect from this fantastic author.

We felt that some fat could have been trimmed away in this novel, and it was the longest novel thus far. But what shines here is mostly Jack's and his girlfriend Gia's new problems. Not only does Gia get pregnant, putting Jack in a time in his life to perhaps having to give up his hidden profession, but having to go legit. Whatever will he do?

And their dealing with these problems, as well as Gia just being in the adventure, as well as the Otherness getting closer and closer to Jack and his newfound family, is what saves this novel from being mediocre. It seems that Wilson is going to milk storylines until he finally gets to this 'changing of the world' that the Otherness is to wrought in the near future. We can't wait until Wilson finally gets to that!

Even though this turned out to be a good adventure, it has been the weakest overall thus far in this series that we've read. The seances at times felt dragged out. But it was handled well by Wilson, as was also the small mysterious hints he continues to leave about the overall Otherness theme. More pieces of the Otherness puzzle are given here, but the complete story has yet to be revealed.

A good plotline to keep readers coming back for more. Ingenious.

Well worth the read. We are looking forward to the next adventure - Gateways.

The reference to The Shining in the headline is no accident. This book is Wilson's haunted house novel, much like The Shining was Stephen King's haunted novel. Both books have a Jack in them, child ghosts, and of course, a haunted abode. Both novels are also suspenseful and riveting.

Long time readers of Wilson's series will devour this book, but first-timers can pick it up and enjoy the story as a self-contained single entity.

A very impressive work by F. Paul Wilson.

I wanted to combine a good gothic book with the gothic romance I intended to read and had been on my TBR pile for a while and found this collection at a bookstore. The Oxford Book of Gothic Tales has a large collection stories by authors from times that vary from Georgian period to recent years. Some are dark and sinister, others have a mystery to discover while there are those that have only the gothic atmosphere down pat. There are quite a few popular authors here -- William Faulkner, Edgar Allan Poe, Angela Carter and Joyce Carol Oates, to name a few. There are also some stories written by "Anonymous." My favorite stories are "The Lady of the House of Love," by Angela Carter, Eden Glasgow's "Jordan's End," and Ray Russell's "Sardonicus." The stories are quite dark and are some of the best in the gothic genre. I've already read some of the stories from the authors I've enjoyed over the years (like Poe and Oates), but the ones I hadn't read made this a very enjoyable read for me. I cannot recommend this unique collection enough.

Another reviewer said this collection of stories changed their lives. It changed mine as well. It elevated my understanding of gothic literature and art and made me think critically about the popular manifestations of "goth" culture. And the most shocking tale, the one about "Countess Dracula", just happens to be true. But as Angela Carter's wonderful story "The Lady of the House of Love" shows, the gothic legacy has less to do with death and brooding and more to do with a totally different view on the world and living.

If there is one book that I would recommend regarding good Gothic fiction, it would be The Oxford Book of Gothic Tales (Oxford Books of Prose). This book has been my staple since a long time ago. To give you some idea of what you can find in this book, Part I., "Beginnings," contains such classics as "The Vindictive Monk of the Fatal Ring"; the next section, or Part II., "The Nineteenth Century," includes some outstanding stories by the customary Poe and Hawthorne, as well as "Jean-Ah Poquelin" by George Washington Cable and "Bloody Blanche" by Thomas Hardy. The selections from Part III, "The Twentieth Century," contain some outstanding examples like "The Outsider" by H.P. Lovecraft and the eerie "The Bloody Countess" by Alejandra Pizarnik. There are thirty-seven selections total, with a great introduction by the editor.

This is a wonderful anthology, giving a full historical spectrum of Gothic tales from silly early ones to chilling modern ones. I've used this as a textbook in two courses I teach in college, and students have been both amused (at blatantly Freudian overtones in 18th century stories) and horrified (especially at Pizarnek's account of Erzebet Bathory's perversions). My favorites are Carter's "Lady of the House of Love" and Cowles' "The Vampire of Kaldenstein," both of which combine eerieness with ironic humor.

This is a very interesting collection of literature. It includes writing from the late 1700s extending to the present. What makes this collection so amazing is that it not only includes stories from Poe, Lovecraft, and Hawthorne, but it also has stories taken from periodicals and anthologies long out of print. You'd never find some of this writing anywhere else, and it is truly amazing.
All of the stories do have somewhat of a dark and twisted theme, but they are all very rich.
If seriously considering this book, I highly recommend purchasing it in a hardback edition. It will last you much longer, and you'll be glad for this after reading it.

I think this was another great story in the Dead End Dating series. Lil continues to be one of my favorite characters. I'm very curious if Ty will be around in the next book but, i guess we don't have to wait long to see. The story is just a fun escape from the real world to the vampy world.

Kimberly Raye quickly became one of my favorite authors with her first installment in her Dead End Dating series, Dead End Dating: A Novel of Vampire Love (Dead End Dating, Book 1). The series falls under the genre of romantic fiction meets comedy, with a supernatural twist. Lil Marchette, the lead character in this series is an out-of-this-world super-hot super-vamp with an exquisite taste for fashion... and for men. Although love is a nearly non-existent emotion for born vampires, this 200 year old fashionista from the other world has a thriving match making service and a thriving crush on the totally off-limits totally hot, made-vamp Ty Bonner. "Your Coffin or Mine?" is chock full of the usual NYC socialite Lil Marchette antics, as our fearless heroine auditions for a reality dating series in order to beef up her client list. It is there, at an open casting call, that her feelings for Ty are truly tested. This is a fast and easy read, with non-stop laughs that will keep you wanting more. I recommend this book for anyone who enjoys a little escape from reality, fearless other-world females, and Bergdorf Blondes NYC social-clique humor.

Lil is still a fun, strong character in the third book of her Dead End Dating Series. There were several parts of this book that had me laugh out loud, and that is always a good thing. After the first book in the series, I reported that I felt this almost felt like a pale imitation of MJD's Undead series. Well, I must say I enjoyed this book much more than I did the newest Betsy book, "Undead and Uneasy". This book is so strong with its Vampire Dating Service plots and the interesting people Lil meets through her job (and via her family) that I think the series could revolve soley among those aspects, and remain a comic vampire tale. YCOM? actually messes up when it becomes lost in the 'mystery' aspects involving her kinda boyfriend Ty's disappearance. The resolution to this mystery is tired, boring, and too forced. I found myself not really caring about this afterthought of a plot. But I couldn't wait to get back to the juicy bits about Killer, the cat, and the wedding plans for her brother and soon to be sister in law. And of course any parts involving clients of Dead End Dating. This is still a fairly solid, (although lightweight) series, three novels deep. I can only hope that more of what makes this book strong, finds its way into further volumes. Ms. Raye should realize she doesn't necessarily need to follow the formula of other sucessful vampire fiction to create her own gem here.

Countess Lil's plate is full trying to keep her credit cards paid down enough to continue with her steady shopping therapy trips without humiliation, keep her parents off her back about providing pure blood grandchildren, trying to help her brother's wedding to the mortal Mandy come off while appeasing her mother who wants Lil to match said brother with another born vampire, and now, she needs to find Ty, the made vampire bounty hunter she has fallen for, albeit unwisely, and who is captive and mentally asking her for help. Vicariously feeling his pain is only added incentive to accomplish the goal, but she genuinely cares for him, even if the relationship should not be pursued. As Ty's time runs out, Lil keeps on searching, not counting the cost, much, and running into trouble.

**** Making a date with Dead End Dating means you have room in your schedule for mental fun. Lil and her cohorts keep you chuckling, even in high tension moments. Just relax and have another bite of brain candy. ****

Amanda Killgore

I was happy to see the third book in this series come out. I really enjoyed the first two, and this is just an extension of those two. Our favorite matchmaking born vampire is back and better than ever. In this fast and furious book Lil is forced to do a number of things we thought we'd never see her do; kicking butt, embarrassing herself to get off a reality TV show, helping set up her brother's wedding to a human and matchmaking the most unmatchable couples. During all of time she is working to find her lost hunky bounty hunter (Ty). This page-turner will take you moments to get through and in enjoyable from start to finish.