A quick recap on my review policy - I only review books that I a) finish and b) enjoy. I mention this because I realise I’ve produced a string of glowing reviews lately, and you may fairly be wondering ‘is there anything this kid doesn’t like?’. To which the answer is ‘yes, lots’, but I tend not to write about it. Also, it just so happens that the last few titles I’ve picked up have at least thoroughly entertained me and at best utterly blown my mind.
 
Skullcrack City has not broken that pattern. Skullcrack City is bloody fantastic.
 
It’s also surprisingly hard to write about why. Some of that at least is down to the plot, which is very twisty indeed and I don’t want to spoil, with at least two utterly gigantic twists at roughly the third and two thirds mark that send the narrative hurtling off in a new direction, effectively re-aligning the genre of the piece in the process. In addition, genre is very tricky - it’s basically a pulp cyberpunk sci-fi magical realism crime caper drug/conspiracy thriller near future dystopian horror. It is also, as you may have surmised, gonzo as fuck.
 
It’s another one of those rare novels where just about everything works right, all the many, many moving parts and genre influences blending into a super smooth and potent brew. It’s one of those cocktails that goes down so easy that it’s only as you approach the bottom of the third one that you realise how lethally drunk you are - and by then, of course, it’s too late. By then, you’re strapped in and along for the ride.
 
It’s also, as again you may have gathered, paced at a breakneck level. As a writer, I found myself thinking ‘he’s going to run out of plot at this rate’, and then the story would take a massive narrative left turn, and suddenly a whole new vista would open up before you. This is not done in a cheap manner, by the way; every twist, no matter how huge, has just enough foreshadowing to feel earned within the story. Indeed, there’s nothing at all to distract you from the madcap tale unfolding in your mind - the prose is as slick and readable and just plain enjoyable as you could wish for, shot through with both an escalating anxiety and tension (courtesy of the narrator) and a lovely wry humor that compliments, rather than distracts from, the ever increasing pressure of the story.
 
And what a story! The writer throws concepts and ideas at the reader at an incredible rate, trusting to his own ability to communicate, and his audience's intelligence and willingness to keep up. It works magnificently, and leads to what amounts to, amongst other things, a crazy taxi thrill ride through an amazingly well realised near future dystopia. I was frequently left in a state of both joy and admiration at the sheer tonnage of brilliant ideas on casual display here - all in service to the story, not an ounce of wasted world building for it’s own sake.
 
Skullcrack City is an exhilarating, explosive, brilliant novel, and I highly recommend it to simply anyone who likes fun. Brilliant.
 
Kit Power 
7/5/16

Purchase Skullcrack City on Amazon 

With this second novelette, Fracassi comes out swinging again.  A splintered family outing to the local pool is the somewhat normal setting for a story that ends up as far from typical as it can be.  A woman who happens to be the mother of two children but really just wants to do her own thing, takes them to the pool for some sun and fun. The brooding teenage Abby is the only one who seems to care and dote on her younger brother, Gary.  Once at the pool they begin their childish rituals. Wading and splashing, talking with friends, but unknown the them there is a crack at the bottom of the pool. A crack in the bottom of the world and what is about to enter is monstrous.

Again, as with his other chapbook, the characters are richly drawn and quite like someone you probably know.  The everyday events are tinted with a gray of unease as we watch the simple things slowly bind and mutate into a terrifying beast of a tale. One that leaves you dripping and scared on the cold concrete edge of the pool. 
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Both of these books are available from the fine folks at Dunham's Manor Press.

 
The prolific and talented Adam Millard is back, this time with a rolloking action horror tale set in a seaside town. DISCLAIMER The publisher of this novel, The Sinister Horror Company, also published my debut novel GodBomb! That said, my normal review rules apply - I only review books that I a) finish and b) enjoy.
 
The Bad Game was simply a joy from start to finish. It’s got all the hallmarks of quality I’ve come to expect from Millard’s work - superb pacing, believable and well rounded characters that are economically drawn, and a gloriously fun premise. I found the style overall to be played a bit straighter than some of his more aggressively humorous work (like, say, Larry), but there’s still a joy in storytelling that comes through in the infectiously readable prose and occasional sarcastic aside.
 
I particularly enjoyed the characters of Jamie and Scottie in this book. Jamie was a kid I found to be almost too relatable - nerdy, hooked on classic arcade gaming, with the typical small town bully problem, allied with the wider issues of being a teenager, no prospects, no obvious way out… yeah, I’m pretty much hardwired to like this kid.
 
Similarly, Scottie I found to be a flawed but deeply sympathetic character, with genuine humanity and pathos, even before his deeper backstory was revealed. This is a book firmly in the pulp/splatterpunk tradition, but Millard still takes the time and care to craft characters you like, enjoy, and root for.
 
Likewise, once the plot starts rolling, it basically doesn’t stop. Millard does a superb job of both raising the stakes and propelling events forward to a satisfying and gripping climax. There is brutal violence and gore a-plenty, but also a deep rooted sense of fun,and yes, love - love for genre, and love for story.
 
Ultimately, that loves runs throughout this novel. Yes, it’s fast paced, pulpy fun, with a plot straight out of a classic 80’s horror movie. It’s also a novel with great characters, some genuinely touching moments, and ultimately, lots of heart. Highly recommended.
 
KP

As a book reviewer you encounter books of many different styles, some good, some bad, some generic, some not so, and some that defy you place a label on them.  It is one of the reasons   why you go on, the eternal quest for a book that piques your interest in a sea of banality.  It happens not as often as you would like, and when it does you get a real buzz, you want to tell everyone how good it is, you want everyone to read it, and you want everyone to agree that it is the best book ever.  Then you get a book like Clown Wars: Blood & Aspic, a book that doesn't so much as defy the reader from putting a label on it, it is more a case of the book stuffing all the labels in its clown sized pants and daring you to pull a label out from one of its pockets.  

Bizarre, grim, and darkly funny, Clown Wars is an ambitious novel that honks its big red nose at the readers expectations.