Night as A Catalyst by Chad Lutzke

Chad Lutzke is a new voice in the caverns of horror.  An unassuming voice, that does not scream or holler but simple states its piece in an assured and steady tone and waits for your reaction.  His work tends to be on the bite-sized end of things, rarely more than two pages but they're often fun and with a poignant thought as punctuation.  With his self-published debut, Night As A Catalyst, he gives us a double-fistful of horror.

We open with "One Up A Tree," wherein two old friends try to recapture some of their old and fading chemistry via a weekend in the woods, but when they find themselves lost and trespassing, things take a very interesting and violent turn.  "Collecting Cats" is a short tale of a good Samaritan, who is sought out by the wounded cats of his neighborhood but when he finds out what exactly has been doing the wounding, things get strange. "Moving Made Easy" is one of my favorites and presents one of the most unique angles on teleportation as I've encountered.  "Birthday Suit" is a coming-of-age tale that is swaddled in Serling and Bradbury.  It works quite well and packs an end punch that will leave a mark.

"Apple Sauce" tackles an urban legend, and "Chow" is a familiar tale but with a nasty streak. "Quilted" is a short one with an image that will stay for a while.  "Deprivation" while one of the longest pieces in the volume, is one of the best.  It's about breaking down and falling apart, in more than one way.  The stories here are good, and while a few of them walk familiar ground, they offer a fresh enough voice to allow that fact to pass.  I've been lucky enough to read some of Chad's newer material and he's only getting better. 

Night As A Catalyst can be obtained through Amazon or by contacting the author himself.  

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JOHN BODEN 

As beautiful as the night can be, it often plays a role in something more foreboding, supplying the catalyst for things both terrifying and imaginative. Utilizing this hallowed time of the day, author Chad Lutzke has written and compiled 18 stories, with creature features, sleep deprivation, hiding the undead, revenge, cannibalism, morbid habits, and executions of karma being just a handful of the themes covered in this book. Read on and discover what the mind produces when using the night as a catalyst.

Purchase a copy from Amazon UK 

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