Mike Davis

Dear lord. Johnstone just cranked out the insane hits, didn't he? We open with a foul mouthed kid telling his parents he hates then while they vacation in the islands. Then voodoo magic sand monsters happen and so does a whole lot else. Honestly it was a fun read but also just insane, as usual. Worth it.

Well well well. This is my first time reading an ARC and honestly, it couldn't have gone better. This was a wonderful read that covers the aspects of nuclear war, nuclear energy, the horrors of war and the like. Very comprehensive and contained account of what went on, how it was achieved and the steps to get there in the end in the development of an atomic bomb. Truly written in a way that kept me reading to the point I went over on a break at work. Whoops, but that's the magic that History Brought Alive wove here. Truly this book couldn't have come out at a better time, with interest in the Manhattan Project being renewed in a way. You cannot go wrong if you even have a vague interest in the subject matter. The lives of those that worked on the project were definitely forever changed and this book does ask you the hard questions about the weapon and the scope of what happened to the world after it was completed.

You know I finished this a while ago and didn't leave a review. So here goes nothing. This book is probably Johnstones best horror novel I have read so far. He does have a magic to his horror novels I've never seen before and it is charming in it's own way. It's very campy, and reads like a movie almost. Basic premise is man returns to his hometown with his daughter, something is wrong in the town and they uncover a mystery with the help of some locals. A few key scenes do stand out for me, and it has its moments where it slows down, and let's you breathe for maybe one or two pages. Overall it is a fun and ridiculous read about a town taken over by evil, animated toy soldiers on two sides of an unknown war(?), the humans caught in the crossfire and their plight to fix things. If you're in the mood for some silly fun and a cliche but ridiculous premise with some extreme bits (incest). You'd like this one I think. Now I went in head first with this being my first Johnstone and that was probably a mistake in a way. His devils books are where I should have started. Also don't read Night Mask it sucks.

This was an unexpected treat. The representation and prose is very good. As the characters and story develop, things remain interesting. It never lets up but gives the characters time to breathe while on their journey. The characters are well written and relatable, and it does pose some interesting thoughts and ideas to the reader. I am sometimes hesitant to read anything Lovecraftian or cosmic horror in nature, if that is the correct genre of course, because they tend to be a little boring sometimes. This was the opposite. I recommend this book to anyone curious enough to venture into unknown territory.

Wayne, you've gained a fan!

Honestly, I was intrigued by the mix of western and cosmic horror, and I was not disappointed. This tale did not let up, kept moving along and had some very choice dialogue. Stinker was also a small but wonderful delight. I do feel some of the writing was a little loose, and moved quickly but that added to the charm for me, overall. It was an easy read, and something to cozy up with if you're even remotely a fan of cosmic horror or westerns. It was a nice mix of the two, and it's mythology was very coherent and interesting as well. All in all, decadent and creepy.

This was a very interesting and fun read. The first part is well done, short, concise and in a way, funny. Mark yearning, essentially for an adventure made it rather endearing, and I can't think of the last time I read a story about treasure hunting. The second story made me laugh a little and of course I wasn't happy about what he did to Proberta, but she seemed the type not to mess with either. The writing was easy to follow and kept things moving forward, no dilly-dallying at all. Bethany Browning has definitely gotten my attention and a new fan. The chemistry between characters was well written and realistic, which I personally enjoy. Regardless, great read for those who are fans of short but well written fiction!

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Absolutely wonderful. Very well paced and hilarious, with extremely well written characters that feel like real people. This has everything a good book needs. A tragic story with an all star cast. Seriously worth the time invested. Night is written in a way that made him feel relatable, and Tex was also just great. The wise mentor teaching the next generation and all that. Haven't had this much fun with a book in... well a while.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Absolutely phenomenal. Well paced, very funny and very cute. Fascinating world building too. This was recommended to me by my husband and wow he was right. I laughed, I cried and just fell in love with these characters. Sometimes if someone wants to use a platform to send a message, using humor and a little absurdity can make it easier to digest. This book did open my own eyes a bit more on the themes involved, and made me think about my own self in some ways. Wish I could give it more stars. Bravo, encore!

This was excellent. My partner recommended this to me a while ago, and I was working through my backlog/some arcs and quite frankly one I had to DNF because it got gross. This one however was a good break from that. The characters are well written, the story is very coherent, keeps moving and has a great pace. It's also one of those books where it gets wild, then everything makes sense in the end. You do get a sense of how people with some of these disorders might navigate life, and it's really a great reminder that they are people too. I did however guess the twist during a dog walk haha. But either way, worth your time and money. It gets surreal and sometimes that's okay. It made me appreciate myself a little more and made me realize we are all... sometimes not okay, and that's okay. Bravo, Elton! Bravo.

I had seen the movie a long time ago and this was of course similar but with more detail on how Dren was created. The characters are also fleshed out more and have more room to breathe. I understand when adapting to a movie it is not always perfect, and in this case the book was better. It gave me more than I expected in a surprising way.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily

This was a fascinating concept and a fun world to explore. I dug the main character and her mannerisms. Her investigation method was also something that made a lot of sense to me. All in all, enjoyable and wholesome.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I did not expect this kind of perspective from Cosmic horror. This was fascinating albeit a little bit dragging in parts. Overall it wasn't amazing but it isn't the worst either. This is a good absurdist take on perhaps what the end of the world might be like for those that serve. Fun and engaging but some of the office scenes did feel like too much filler.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Now, originally I had nothing to say about this book because I was rather appalled at first. After thinking on it for a long time I have come to realize this book is beautiful. The problem with fiction like this is that immediately, of course, you're offended and grossed out. Therefore, those that review books like this do not give them a fair review. This story is about finding your people, finding where you fit in, finding a home even. I read this quite a while ago, and it has stuck with me since then, but not for the reasons of the gore and horrific acts depicted. I felt like I was missing something about it, so on occasion I would go back and skim through to a sentence I remembered or phrase that was said, and each time I would be surprised I missed the meaning behind the words before. I understand that this book would not be for everyone, and you will focus on the more gross parts, but that is by design. Chandler knew exactly what he was doing with this book, and he has definitely succeeded. It took myself a while to realize what the story was about, but I am glad that in the end I have realized that through this lens Chandler has chosen, it is a bold choice but also it feels like the correct one.
~Mike

This was very good for the most part. It had elements of the King in Yellow mixed in, which was well done when handled correctly. The ones that stand out are The Tunnel and Lost at Last. Both were well told, good pacing, and both in their own right were a nicely contained story. This collection isn't exact quality throughout, and I understand the reason for that is explained in the notes at the end. However a little more quality control could have helped this one along. Overall, fun and enjoyable.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Wow. Wow. Wow. This book absolutely floored me. I was not quite sure what to expect in the terms of the story and characters, but man was this good. I'm not going to give any sort of synopsis at all. Just read it. Seriously. Just read it.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Wow! Okay. Wow! Okay....wow. This was a refreshing read. It has everything I love, too. Scifi, romance, cosmic horror. I dunno if I'm good at this review thing, however the authors command over language was impeccable. It slowly built, the characters were great, and I am absolutely floored. When it got to the moment, and if you read it you'll know what I am talking about, it is a descent much like a rollercoaster, and man does it have a long drop. The stakes kept raising, but not in any sort of ridiculous manner. I just did not know what to expect, and was surprised, again! The love story was also well told, the relationship between London and Temple seeming realistic and very much adorable.
This was a well told story, and it was probably one of my favorites this year. Thank you A.L. for breaking my heart, you are truly a good storyteller.

Thank you BookSirens for this opportunity to read The Scientist, The Spaceman and The Stars Between Them.

This was a departure for me. Now, I have read extreme horror in the past and I did enjoy some of it. The biggest draw for me is how absurd a book can be, and yet somehow also profound. Those that read books like this one straight aren't in on the joke. Now with that said, this book did...something I guess? It did not end how I expected, and it did keep me reading to see what would happen next. Stephen and his tumultuous relationship with his mother was effective in that it was upsetting. I get the message the book is putting out, and it is a good one. Getting past all of the “worse” parts, it does have an odd beauty to it. This really was a book I did not think I would enjoy. Yes, it is vile and yes it is absolutely the most unique in the sense of the violence and torture scenes that I have read. There is a fair amount of coprophagia in it, so trigger warning to those that cannot handle such activities. The writer here does a good job of ramping up, then we get to the surreal parts and then we kind of shift tone to a power struggle which was a fantastic contrast between Steven and his mother earlier, where she is the head honcho, and then he has to do the same with the Guernsey that seemed to be leading said cows. All in all, this was fine actually. Baby in a Blender is still the best and worst thing I've read so far in this genre though. Matthew, I just want to say you have infringed on my rights as a human and thank you. <3

Very interesting take on the genre. The characters were well done and the ramp up to the main event was well paced. Super fun and trippy. Well written, snappy and very much an odd adventure, which I am always here for.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Read this years ago, so I am re-reading the book that started the Pinhead craze, and it still holds up. Wonderful storytelling, excellent descriptions and honestly the characters don't fall as flat as they kind of do in the film. I understand the film is an adaptation, however the book fleshes them out (pun intended) more so. This is still a favorite of mine, and always will be.