Verses From A Deeply Darkened Mind – Book Review

Verses From A Deeply Darkened Mind

by Mary Genevieve Fortier
JWK Fiction

I have to confess, I’m not a big fan of traditional poetry. Reason being is most of the symbolism and metaphors are missed by me and in the end, I’m usually left with a bunch of nice sounding words that don’t make much sense (did you ever try reading Milton’s Paradise Lost? Ugh!). That is why I have always liked Edgar Allan Poe. His poems were stories that I could easily digest and understand. Now I can add Mary G Fortier to my ‘poets I love’ list. This collection contains dark, visceral tales of terror with accentuating rhyme, cadence and word crafting, allowing me to truly enjoy the terror spilling from its pages.  

Mystical doorways in the woods, creepy church goers, and macabre figures knocking at your entrance in the deep, dark hours of the night, are reasons to keep me awake and to keep on reading. I chose to read a few each night in order to quench my thirst for the macabre and fulfill my own dark passions. There are several B&W art pieces accompanying select poems throughout the book by a host of fantastic artists. If you’re in need of a haunting experience into the ethereal world of the dead and those left behind to ponder, then “Verses…” is an excellent collection. Those with a proclivity for creepy horror will be thrilled by these rhythmic tales of terror. Read them by firelight or lamplight and enter the oblique nightmare world of this modern poet, a definitive horror poet’s omnibus to add to your reading repertoire.

Traditional Paperback only: https://www.amazon.com/Verses-Deeply-Darkened-Genevieve-Fortier/dp/9492558025

 

Darker Tales from the Den – Dona Fox – Book review

Darker Tales from the Den – Dona Fox – Book review

JWK Fiction

Dona Fox has a certain style to her stories that can catch you by surprise. There comes a point when you realize what is going on, but it’s too late to brace yourself or to look away. These are dark, macabre stories about people in bad situations that only seem to get worse as the night goes on. The top tales in the collection leave a lasting sting or dull thud of heartache, either way a welcome experience for the horror reader. I picked a few of my favorite tales here to say a few words about.

Something bad crawls out of the dark attic in The Chill and Willey Snake dragging long forgotten family secrets in tow.

Bruised Cardamom begins with a poignant description on the death watch of a woman, Mrs. Macy, true in its words and gut wrenching to anyone that has watched a loved one die.  The description of the woman shredding tissues and curling them into little balls as she’s waiting in fear for death is unsettling. A line that struck me… “How many boxes of tissue does it take to die? How meaningless are paper tears?” The volunteer stays with her into the night learning a deep dark secret in this outstanding tale.

In One Historic Night, one friend invites another into his twisted Nazi fanatic world and drags him down to the depths of madness.

Shypoke’s Tears, which I had read before in the anthology, Ghosts Revenge, (JWK Fiction) is a short piece with a big punch. From the first paragraph a transgression is taking place in the characters and it’s a thrill to see the outcome.

In The Calais Curse, we visit the French Resistance of the German occupancy. This tale is a haunting centerpiece of the collection as a young woman begins a process too free her grandmother from her nightmares. The story started out a little loose and all over the place but stick with it and it settles into streamline tale where a tragic, moving ending is revealed.

Li Gran Toy Zombi is a creepy tale I first read in the Toys in the Attic anthology and was happy to revisit here. It takes place in New Orleans, 1977, and if you’re thinking Voodoo Curses you are correct and in for a devilish treat.

Crystal Bones on Gossamer Wings is a fitting finale for the collection as the tale is written in deep first-person as were the earlier stories in the book. Dona’ s greatest storytelling aspect is when she immerses the reader in that strong character voice. Those stories are distinctly superior to the more standard narrated tales. There are shades of Joe R. Lansdale in those stories where the reader shares each thought, vision, and reaction as it happens in the character’s head. When she combines that voice with her astute perception of life, death, and human suffering, she delivers haunting horror fiction.

Darker Tales From The Den – Dona Fox – Paperback and Kindle

 

 

Ghosts: Revenge – ghost story collection FREE!

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I have a brand new short-story accepted into the Ghosts: Redemption Anthology, the follow-up to the highly successful Ghosts: Revenge Anthology of 2015.

My story, “Gray is a Life” will be in the new collection of horror tales coming out very shortly.

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In the meanwhile, you can get the first book of the series, Ghosts: Revenge  for FREE on Amazon Kindle if you act now!

It’s only available for 3 days!!
4/7 – 4/9

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Ghosts: Revenge

Anthology of ghost stories from JWK Fiction which includes my story, The Obsidian Box.
plus many other fantastic stories concerning angry spirits by some fantastic authors!

get it for free now:
http://www.amazon.com/Ghosts-Revenge-James-Ward-Kirk-ebook/dp/B00UO3CRDQ

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Toys in the Attic – Anthology Book Review

Toys in the Attic 

Anthology – JWK Fiction
Edited by Mary Gwenivieve Fortier

“Into the Attic” is a short poem that suitably opens the wonderfully themed anthology, Toys in the Attic. It’s followed by an introduction for the theme, tempting the reader to journey up the steps into that dark and dusty place at the peak of the home where forgotten playthings wait in the shadows. Both are written by the talented Mary Gwenivieve Fortier and they set the mood for what lies ahead; toys that are monsters and monstrous toys, sinister fun for the horror fan. The horror comes in poetry, prose, limericks and short tales. The poems are not the poems of days gone by but modern tales, easier to read and more blatant than a Frost or Whitman. The first striking poem is “Aiding Evil” by Lemmy Rushmore, where a dollhouse removed from the attic portends the fates of the family in the real house. It was followed by a short story concerning a dollhouse titled “Light in the Attic,” by Essel Pratt where the character starts on the outside looking into the toy windows only to have at some point experienced a paradigm shift and is then looking out of the dollhouse windows and doors. “Magic Macabre” by Sheldon Woodbury was a finely written story and a pleasure to read. The disappearance of an aging magician leads a man back to his childhood home where he discovers a magic kit in a trunk that had been waiting there for him since he was a child.

“Tea Time for the Innocents,” by Nicola Nicoli was a horrifying tale concerning a child’s tea set carefully laid out in the attic of a man’s new home and a creepy ghost girl host that needs living children to attend her little tea party. “The Pig in the House” by Alex S. Johnson was unnerving, as a young girl finds a dollhouse with figures that represent everyone in her family plus one extra, of a Pig. Josh Brown had a haunting tale about a view-master toy in which he saw his wife’s death among the images. This one reminded me of a Twilight Zone episode. John Palisano had an interesting story about the early video game system, the Atticus 2000 titled, “The Waiting.” This mystery story and was a good deviation from the horror tales. Right away you sense a difference in the writing style. “Gronk the Gruesome” by Thomas M Malafarina was another of my favorites for its nostalgic sense of old toys, 50s sci-fi and childhood wishes, when a man finds an old robotic monster toy in the attic of a former grade school bully.

Tim Wellman‘s, “The Last Turn” displayed shades of Jumanji but had its own feel. I was impressed with Chad Lutzke’s story, “Calm Before the Storm.” It had the restraint and class of a veteran writer of an earlier time, reminiscent of Ambrose Bierce or Robert Bloch. “Etched in Blood” was a chilling tale of an evil child trapped in an etch-a-sketch by Lori R. Lopez. “Maggie and the Zeotrope” by Krista Clark Grabowski was a well rounded story that relayed the short life of a child and her wicked step-mother. “Jacks” by Nicholas Day was a great short tale with excellent pacing. Dona Fox had a wonderful tale concerning a toy snake taken from a voodoo priestess grave in New Orleans many years ago in, “Li Gran Toy Zombi.” It’s always a chilling pleasure to read her stories. The anthology ends with an eerie tale by David Shutz II, concerning a toy phone.

There were some great poems and artwork included in the book along with the top notch stories I highlighted here. An enjoyable read over all. See if your favorite childhood toy has taken up residence in “the Attic” and what evil deeds it will unleash upon those who discover them.

kindle or paperback versions
Available at Amazon: Toys in the Attic

 

 

All aboard, Terror Train

All aboard, Terror Train

From NYC to Chattanooga, through winding paths and cityscapes, it grinds the rails and shatters the dead of night. It comes, stopping at stations along the way, to steal the screaming souls of the living and the dead and transport them to hell… Terror Train

Come along for the ride, if you dare!

I am proud to announce the release of Terror Train from JWK Fiction, a collection of horror stories sharing the title’s theme – they all take place on, or are concurrent to a train. Includes the short story by (me) Michael Thomas-Knight, Steel Deliverance.

Best of all I share this space with noted writers and wordsmiths such as:

William F. Nolan, Roger Cowin and William Cook.

I love themed anthologies and having grown up in a town that had a railway running through it, I had witnessed death on the rails more than once. This is one of my favorite themes and I’m thrilled to have my story, “Steel Deliverance” accepted into this publication.

If you are so inclined, check out these horrific tales on locomotive rails, a collection that is sure to terrify and entertain, take the journey with us, on the Terror Train.

Terror Train – Amazon kindle format

Terror Train traditional paperback

Available from JWK Fiction

Edited by Krista Clark Grabowski and A Henry Keene

Cover art by Stephen Cooney

Full author list:
Roger Cowin
Charie D. La Marr
Michael Thomas-Knight
Mark Rigney
Stephen Alexander
Mike Jansen
Justin Hunter
Mary Genevieve Fortier
Jeremy Mays
Murphy Edwards
Dennis Banning
Brigitte Kephart
Brian Barnett
Mathias Jansson
Abdul-Qaadir Taariq Bakari-Muhammad
Aaron Besson
Stephen Alexander
Jim Goforth
Dona Fox
Tony Bowman
Rie Sheridan Rose
Dale Hollin 
David S. Pointer
Stuart Keane
William Cook
Shenoa Carroll-Bradd
Stephen Alexander & Roger Cowin
A. P. Gilbert
Shane Koch
William F. Nolan
Teri Skultety
E.S. Wynn
Lori R. Lopez
Thomas M. Malafarina
Leigh M. Lane 
Alex S. Johnson

Plus Dedications and Appreciations by Keene and Grabowski

 

My New story published in the Cellar Door II Anthology

My story The Gates of Lament published in Cellar Door II Anthology from JWK Fiction.

An evil hides in the dark basement of Walter Elwood‘s home. It is up to Sherriff Dalton to expose that evil, but he never expects something so vile, so sinister, and so violent. Now awakened, the evil threatens to rip his small town apart. It is up to Sherriff Dalton and Walter Elwood to defeat it and send it back to hell.

In this story, I attempted to write a ‘mini-epic’ in a small amount of space. It contains many characters, it’s all consuming, and it’s extremely nasty on both, a psychological level and physical level. I am pleased with the escalating tension and the explosive climax.

‘The Gates of Lament’ by Michael Thomas-Knight
Now available in,
Cellar Door II Anthology

Available at Amazon.com
Kindle edition
Paperback edition

It also features horrific poetry, flash fiction, art, and short stories, with the central theme of a cellar door by these fantastic contributors: Alex S. Johnson, Mathias Jansson, Dona Fox, DJ Tyrer, Robert E. Petras, K. Z. Morano,  Essel Pratt, Dale Hollin, Mike Jansen, Neil Baker, Michael Thomas-Knight, Greg McWhorter, David Eccles, Matt Cowan, M. J. Sydney, David Perlmutter, Lee Forsythe, Justin Hunter, K. Trap Jones, Lori Safranek, Suzy Saylor, Patrick Lacey, Kevin Rodgers, Matthew Wilson, Michael Randolph, Gary Murphy, Adam Blampied, Jason Wolfgang Gehler. Edited by James Ward Kirk.