TTMC

THE BLACK BOOK OF HORROR;

volumes 1, 2 and3.

Excellent horror anthologies edited by Charles Black and availble from : http://www.freewebs.com/mortburypress/

The Black Book of Horror, reviewed by Coral King

It is testament to Charles Black's integrity and experience that he has secured a veritable galaxy of small press stars to appear in The Black Book of Horror, his debut anthology, published by Mortbury Press.

For those who believe that the heyday of the horror anthology is passed, be prepared to be brought bang up to date with this tempting selection of terror, suitable for dipping into at will, or consuming wholesale.

The overall "feel" of the volume is decidedly nostalgic, comparing favourably in presentation with the old style classic anthologies, Pan and Fontana. However the content is as fresh and original as one could hope to expect from the cream of modern horror writers.

There are eighteen stories covering all aspects of the genre, tastefully laid out so as to provide the reader with ever changing emotional stimuli, ranging from the "ghostly" to the downright gory.

The collection opens with "Crows", a marvellously well crafted haunted house tale by Frank Nicholas. Atmospheric and suspenseful, the tension heightening by such seamless increments as to leave the reader positively breathless. A fantastic beginning.

Then for those who enjoy a laugh with their fright, "The Older Man", by Gary Fry, provides humourous spookiness in the form of a ghostly bedroom farce, relayed with aplomb in Mr Fry's uniquely stylish modern prose. The hilariously grotesque "Size Matters", by John L Probert, is guaranteed to make one laugh uproariously whilst simultaneously cringing with disgust.

Possibly the most gruesome tale in the collection is also distinctive for being the shortest. D F Lewis's "A Pie With Thick Gravy", packs so much horror into so small a story that the effect is truly stunning, transforming an everyday food item into...well, just don't read it at dinner.

Science fiction and horror are not always an easy blend, but in "The Sound of Muzak", by Sean Parker, the two are powerfully homogenised to produce a story with the wide, thought provoking expanses of classic SF, and the shockingly all-to-present fear engendered by an horrific mutating virus of unknown origin.

The editor has concluded with a little something of his own devising; a delight of a modern demon summoning tale, with a finishing twist of grand irony worthy of the Old Masters of classic horror fiction.

These tales, along with those written by well respected authors Gary McMahon, Mark Samuels, Paul Finch, and more, make up an absolute marvel of an anthology. It actually IS a must for all horror fans. It would be as well to keep an eye on Charles Black, and the folk at Mortbury Press, for if their next publication is of an equal quality, it will prove an equally top- notch read.




The Second Black Book Of Horror
Selected by Charles Black
After a great deal of speculation as to whether the Second Black Book of Horror would live up to the positive impact of it’s predecessor, it’s now possible to state quite plainly that editor Charles Black has discovered a winning formula that ensures the second anthology retains all the magic of the first.
The second edition is lighter by some hundred or so pages, yet keeps a core of contributory writers common to both anthologies, with the addition of several new authors. Literary alchemist Black also has the pleasure of introducing a new story contributed by Eddy C Bertin.
Again D F Lewis, Roger Pile and David Sutton produce that solid foundation of excellently crafted horror which is essential to the Black Book’s success. Particularly in this edition, David Riley’s Now And Forever More breathes superb new life in to the classic "country village with a dark secret" tale. The book is worth it’s cover price for this story alone. Steve Goodwin’s The Cold Harvest also has a country village theme, this time told with a good deal of wry humour from the point of view of a child.
By contrast, John Llewellyn Probert, usually know for his uproarious humour, has produced In Sickness And In Health, a piece that even with Probert’s quirkiness cannot be described as anything less than deadly serious.
Tales blending traditional themes with modern styling that actually work feature heavily in the Black Books. Julia Lufford’s The Meal is an irresistible woodland monster story with a salacious piquancy that leaves one wishing for more. Also, in Craig Herbertson’s On The Couch, the standard haunted furniture theme is intelligently and sensitively re-upholstered into a fantastic mad professor story that manages to be both exciting and comfortable at one sitting.
All told, Paul Mudie’s distinctive cover art, together with the refreshing lack of reams and reams of notes, dedications, thanks and explanations that are the usual bill of fayre for this type of publication, will keep this series feeling new, different and exciting for as many editions as Mr Black should care to publish. The sheer quality of the writings within stand on their own merit, with nothing but the gloriously nasty Pan-style back cover blurbs to distract one from the true pleasure of the anthology - the stories.
Coral.

A magazine full of horrific stories, verse and art co-edited by Rog Pile and Steve Goodwin. Details of availability can be found at:

http://www.myspace.com/filthycreations 

Science Fiction ezine edited by Trudi Topham, full of stories, articles, reviews and interviews on the best of modern and classic SF.

www.myspace.com/pantechniconezine

A bizarre roller-coaster of an adventure novel, half blastingly modern prose and half morality play, from author/scriptwriter Jeremy C Shipp.

www.myspace.com/jeremywriter

Following on from his debut novel, "Vacation", Jeremy C Shipp has released a collection of his short fiction, possibly the more powerful for being concentrated into smaller blasts! Jeremy skates his way across styles, genres, indeed all preconceived notions of modern literature and produces some of the oddest, most intense, and certainly the most consumingly readable fiction to be marketed anywhere right now.