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Nightmare, Issue 53 (February 2017)

Nightmare, Issue 53 (February 2017)

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Nightmare_53_February_2017-smallQuiet horror is a genre that’s a hard sell these days. It’s rarely cinematic, so that you don’t see a lot of film adaptations. And it can be something of an acquired taste. Thankfully, there are some high-profile markets that will take a risk on this sub-genre and, as the February issue of Nightmare demonstrates, those risks can yield darkly wondrous rewards.

We begin with “The Garbage Doll” by Jessica Amanda Salmonson. Dolls are always a creepy and the story is tinged with a sense of regret that comes with age. The dreamlike narrative style might be off-putting to some, but if you read it just before bedtime, you may find yourself wondering where the story ends and your own dreams begin.

“The Dying Season” by Lynda E. Rucker combines the “town with a secret” trope with the “gaslit wife” trope to form an unsettling narrative, where both the reader and the protagonist never quite know what’s going on, even if both agree that getting the hell out of that town is the best course of action.

“Youth Will be Served” by Andrew Fox is another “town with a secret” story, although this secret is only known by a handful of people. Taken as a story about the horrors of growing old, gentrification, or just the sacrifices we’re willing to make for others (and how those sacrifices often benefit us as well), this is a great slow-burn horror/mystery piece.

Once again, Nightmare chooses to save the best for last with “Word Doll” by Jeffrey Ford. Again, dolls are always creepy, but here the author really digs into the concept of dolls and what it means to play with them. There are no simple animated killer toys in this one, but rather something less tangible (and thus more difficult to fight). Unlike so many dark fantasy stories, the “mythology” built up in this story is utterly fascinating.

As with all Nightmare issues, you can certainly read all of the stories online for free, but these publications only survive with financial support, so it’s really better if you drop $2.99 for a copy at www.nightmare-magazine.com/issues/feb-2017-issue-53.

We last covered Nightmare magazine with issue 52.

Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Issue #216 (January 5, 2017)

Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Issue #216 (January 5, 2017)

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Beneath Ceaseless Skies 216How did the crew at Beneath Ceaseless Skies choose to welcome the new year? With a pair of quiet yet powerful fantasy stories.

The first one, “Wooden Boxes Lined with the Tongues of Doves” by Claire Humphrey, starts with the old trope of a sorcerer’s apprentice, but quickly steers into an unexpected and disturbing direction. Claire Humphrey plays nicely with the unreliable narrator perspective as the horrifying conclusion becomes clear to the reader, even if it’s never explicitly stated.

“Think of Winter” by Eleanna Castroianni does a fair bit of world-building, despite the fact that we are never taken outside of the cathedral where the point-of-view character lives. While an initial reading suggests that there are only two characters in this story, the magic cards provide commentary in the form of stilted haiku that elevate them to a character in their own right. Congratulations to Ms. Castroianni on her first published story; she’s off to a great start.

The cover art, “The Sacred Flames” by Jinxu Du, doesn’t connect to either story, but does give a nice “entering a world of grand adventure” feel.

Sure, you can check out both stories (as well as a podcast of “Wooden Boxes Lined with the Tongues of Doves”) for free at www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/issues/issue-216, but these publications only survive through financial support. So why not drop ninety-nine cents and actually pay for it?

We last covered Beneath Ceaseless Skies with issue #215.

Nightmare, Issue 52 (January 2017)

Nightmare, Issue 52 (January 2017)

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Nightmare Magazine January 2017-smallThe first Nightmare issue of 2017 opens with a cover by Adobe Stock artist annamei titled, “Conceptual illustration of broken doll with buttons.” Sadly, no creepy dolls in this issue, but there are plenty of other staples of the horror genre on display.

It starts with “Loneliness Is in Your Blood” by Cadwell Turnbull, a different sort of vampire tale. The author not only twists expectations by choosing a non-European vampire legend as a springboard, but also uses a second person perspective with surprising effectiveness.

The subverted expectations continue with “The H8TE” by Lilliam Rivera. While she borrows lightly from the zombie tropes that we all know by heart, the story speaks much more to the fears of children of addicts than the fears about the apocalypse. My favorite zombie stories (of which there are precious few) have been the ones that show how society would likely continue to function just fine if the dead began to walk, essentially showing off how we can accustom ourselves to any horrible situation.

Passing into the second half of the issue, we have “Redcap” by Carrie Vaughn, which initially comes off as another of those dark fairy tale stories that you’ve already read a hundred times. But as it progresses, you realize that the author is talking about more than mythic symbols of puberty or some other college thesis fodder. “Redcap” is a horror story that directly discusses the nature of horror and, in a roundabout way, why we read horror stories or watch horror movies in the first place.

“Redcap” sets a pretty high bar for this issue, and yet the editors save the best for last with “Blood Mangoes” by Ashok Banker. Set in a dystopian environment that just happens to be a real place that exists in the modern world, “Blood Mangoes” follows the old-school horror formula of “being careful what you wish for” to a resolution that will satisfy both gross-out horror fans and admirers of the quiet horror style. A tough balance that’s pulled off beautifully.

If you want to check out this issue, head to www.nightmare-magazine.com/issues/jan-2017-issue-52. And while you CAN read all of these stories online for free, these magazines only survive with financial support. So why not drop $2.99 for the issue and ensure that this amazing series continues for years to come?

See more detail on the issue here. We last covered Nightmare with issue 51.

Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Volume 62, Issues 1/2 (January/February 2017)

Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Volume 62, Issues 1/2 (January/February 2017)

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AHM_JanFeb2017So this issue marks the beginning of a new publication schedule for the Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, as it switches to a completely bi-monthly schedule (as opposed to mostly monthly with a couple double-sized issues). But don’t fret; the page count in each issue has been doubled, meaning that you’ll still be getting the same number of pages per year, just delivered less often.

The snowy scene on the cover, courtesy Aga Es, clues us in that this is the winter issue. Of course, only two of the stories within reference winter in any way (and one of them is a bit of cheat, but more on that when we get there), but it’s still a nice dozen stories to keep you entertained on a snowy night.

We start with “Chin Yong-Yun Stays at Home” by S.J. Rozan, which is a wonderful opener for any fans of Nero Wolfe and other armchair detectives. While this is probably my favorite story of the dozen, don’t quit reading with this one.

“Christmas 1953” by Dennis McFadden is the first of two stories with a winter theme and is probably the most difficult to follow of all the selections in this issue. Of course, this is to be expected as it deals with traumatic memories and how they alter our perception of the present.

“Futures Off at Closing” by John H. Dirckx is a mystery that benefits from having a quirky detective with a unique perspective. As with so many quirky detective stories, the satisfaction comes from following the protagonist’s thought process more than actually trying to work out the puzzle.

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Red Sonja 0

Red Sonja 0

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red-sonja-0Red Sonja first appeared in the pages of Conan the Barbarian back in the 1970s. Her distinct red hair, iconic chain mail bikini, and total indifference to absurdity quickly made her a fan-favorite. She next appeared in a string of solo adventures for Marvel Feature before getting promoted to her own series. Unfortunately, stories about a woman in a bikini fighting psychedelic monsters just became too silly and sexist as the She-Devil with a Sword made her way into the 1980s. A few years back, some hack wrote a bunch of articles for Black Gate about the glory days of Red Sonja, lamenting that she would never again be as crazy or as fun as she was in her 70s heyday.

Never say never.

Amy Chu and Carlos Gomez are heading up a new Red Sonja series in 2017 and, as a sort of pre-holiday treat, they’re offering a sixteen-page intro story at the super-low price of 25 damned cents. That’s cheaper than a lot of the original Red Sonja issues ran and I’m pretty sure they’re losing money due to printing costs alone. But they’re hoping that potential new readers will risk a quarter on a story that motivates them to stick around for the regular series. Will this gambit pay off? Time will tell.

The issue starts off with a splash page of Red Sonja running up a crumbling stairway, sword drawn in either hand, threatening a Godzilla-sized demon. It’s a badass introduction to our heroine. Or it would be, except for the fact that our first view of the She-Devil with a Sword is an upskirt shot. And Sonja’s not wearing panties. And that’s why I won’t be including panel shots with this review.

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Sasquatch, Chupacabra, and Haunted Puppets: Beasts by Brendan Detzner

Sasquatch, Chupacabra, and Haunted Puppets: Beasts by Brendan Detzner

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Beasts by Brendan DetznerFar from being a review, what I want to offer you is a warning. If you find yourself in possession of this collection, take precautions to limit the number of stories you finish in one sitting. One or two should be safe. Any more than that and your view of the world around you will begin to … shift. Perhaps you think you’ll avoid misadventure by perusing only the more sedate “normal” selections in this volume.

So which stories in this collection are normal?

Can’t you guess? Consider:

In The Fall – Are monsters born or made? In a struggle between the supernatural and the mad, can there be any doubt who will win every time?

The Chupacabra Versus Sasquatch Variations 1-9 – No matter the time or place, two ancient foes continue to fight, having long forgotten why.

Spirits of the Wind – They are never far and, though we rarely see them, they are always watching us. Always waiting to touch our lives.

A Day And Two Nights When I Was Twenty – Of course, they’re not always content to lightly touch our lives. Sometimes, they want to give us a push.

The Return of Uncle Hungry’s Pizza Time Fun Band – At least clowns can wash away their make-up when the celebrations are finished. For puppets, the smiles stay forever painted in place. And when all the parties are finished, what horrid things they have to say to each other.

I-65 – One of the ironies of rage is that we think our vision is most clear, but that’s when things are most often not what they seem. And forgiveness is not always enough to dispel that illusion.

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There Is No Lovely End by Patty Templeton

There Is No Lovely End by Patty Templeton

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There is no Lovely End-smallRegular readers of Black Gate will no doubt have noticed the return of infrequent interviewer Patty Templeton. For those who were wondering why Ms. Templeton wasn’t conducting more of her fantastic interviews with an eclectic rogues gallery of writers, the reason was, quite simply, that she was too busy writing a novel of her own. There Is No Lovely End was published back in July and has been garnering universally positive reviews. Here’s another one.

The book starts in pre-Civil War America and follows the lives of several seemingly unrelated characters whose lives will all eventually come crashing together in one disastrous night. Not all of these characters will survive to the end. In fact, one of them dies very early in the story, but continues to move events forward as a ghost. These early chapters can be a bit disorienting as the reader jumps from one subplot to another, each with its own main character and supporting cast. But once you get a feel for each character, the jumping about is much easier to follow and gives the story a frantic pace (which would otherwise be difficult, considering that it takes place over a 32-year period).

Hennet Daniels has undertaken a decades-long hunt for the medicine man who inadvertently poisoned his brother. Sarah Pardee is coping as best she can with a loveless marriage to a man who cares more about his dead daughter than his living wife. Graham Johnson is a suicidal newsman who falls hopelessly in love with a remorseless psychopath. Hester Garlan is a remorseless psychopath, searching for the lost son whom she believes has stolen her psychic abilities. Nathan Garlan is a young man trying to cope with his ability to speak with the dead.

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Lawrence Santoro (1942-2014)

Lawrence Santoro (1942-2014)

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Larry and his wife, Tycelia
Larry and his wife, Tycelia

Lawrence Santoro passed away this past Friday. He was a two-time Bram Stoker nominee: once for his novella, “God Screamed and Screamed, Then I Ate Him,” in 2001; again for his audio play adaptation of Gene Wolfe’s “The Tree Is My Hat” in 2008. Two collections of his short fiction, Just North of Nowhere and Drink for the Thirst to Come, provide a great overview of his fantastic work. For the last two years, he’s hosted the horror fiction podcast series, Tales to Terrify.

Those are the highlights, the reasons why a casual reader of Black Gate might recognize Larry’s name. But I’ve been living and writing in Chicago for the last ten years and so I knew him for other reasons. Larry often read at local open mic events and was a fixture at some of them. Larry had a background in theater and he brought all his skill and that amazing voice to every performance. No microphones were ever needed when it was his turn to read and his larger-than-life performances were perfectly suited to the nightmarish tall tales; imagine if Lake Woebegone had a dark side and you’d get an idea of his fictional town of Bluffton. Tony C. Smith at Tales to Terrify provides a nice tribute to Larry, including a previously-unreleased performance by him.

There’s a brief overview of the amazing life Larry led before he ever wrote so much as a poem. At reading events, he was always encouraging other writers to keep writing, as well as offering advice on where to get their stories published. While Tales to Terrify has featured a number of big-name authors, Larry also made certain that it featured at least as many fledgling writers.

Larry leaves behind not just an impressive body of work, but a writing community made stronger by his presence and saddened by his passing.

Rocket Girl: Times Squared

Rocket Girl: Times Squared

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Rocket Girl volume 1One of the chief appeals of this comic, for me at least, is nostalgia. The story moves between two bygone eras: the 1980s and the future. I grew up in the 1980s and, like a lot of people my age, had almost as solid of an idea of what the future looked like as the present. In 1986, we all knew about the future. We’d been seeing it for decades on television and in the movies, after all. The future was filled with steel and plastic, robots and flying cars, bright colors and hope. Sure, there were some stories out there where the future turned out horrible, but we understood these as cautionary tales, warnings about the problems we’d avoid to guarantee that amazing era of endless innovation. We knew that 2013 would be so different from 1986 that anyone stepping through a time machine would think he’d set foot on an alien world. Even the slang would be different. But, for better or worse, that future is now past.

So, Rocket Girl starts in 1986, where a team of young quantum engineers (just run with it) are testing their Q-engine (which, for the story, is essentially a McGuffin device), when Dayoung Johansson, teen police officer from the year 2013, appears and places them all under arrest for crimes against time. Then she passes out.

As the story progresses, we get further clues to the exact nature of the “crimes” that have been perpetrated (or which will be perpetrated, given your point of view), with the implication that Dayoung’s actions in 1986 will either completely erase the 2013 she knew or unintentionally ensure that it happens. Meanwhile, as long as she’s in 1986 New York, she decides to use her futuristic technology (including her standard-issue rocketpack) to fight the crime and corruption that infests the city. Curiously, helping innocent people is not misinterpreted, she is not labeled a freak, and people treat her like a hero. It’s been a while since we’ve seen something that upbeat in a comic book.

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Witch Doctor: Under the Knife

Witch Doctor: Under the Knife

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Witch Doctor - Under the KnifeWhat if Dr. Gregory House had become Sorceror Supreme instead of Dr. Stephen Strange? If you’re familiar with both those names, chances are you’ve just clicked off this page to order your own copy of Witch Doctor: Under the Knife. If you never watched House and never read Doctor Strange, don’t worry … this isn’t one of those parody books that requires preliminary reading.

Dr. Vincent Morrow is a practicing physician whose specialty is supernatural medicine. Demonic possession, vampiric infection, pregnant faerie folk … Vincent Morrow’s the guy you call. What the doctor lacks in bedside manner, he makes up with a knowledge of the occult so vast that it sounds like he’s making it up as he goes along (which hardly ever turns out to be the case). How exactly is interspecies breeding possible with the Deep Ones? What is the medical definition of a soul and how do you treat someone who’s born without one? What kind of scalpel does one use to remove a demonic parasite? (Hint: It’s the kind you have to pull out of a stone.) The answers combine traditional folklore with modern medical terminology.

The strength of this series is in the sheer overload of fresh ideas and new perspectives on old storylines. Of course, we all know the key features of a vampire (big teeth, aversion to holy symbols, allergy to sunlight), but there’s just something fascinating about watching a doctor run through each characteristic and reason out how it evolved in what is essentially a supernatural parasite. An old-school paranormal investigator would use some sort magic sphere to track down a faerie trading changelings for human babies, but Dr. Morrow opts instead for a CDC-style database that pinpoints each incident, then traces it back to an origin point as if it were an influenza outbreak rather than a supernatural phenomenon. And it’s fun, after all the other crazy stuff that happens in chapters one and two, to see him get genuinely bothered by the interordinal hybridization of Deep Ones mating with humans, not because it’s disgusting, but because it’s medically impossible.

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