Andy Graham Author

Author of dark fiction and fantasy, dystopia, horror.

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One Book Interview #21 – Israel Finn (Author)

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After a hiatus of a couple of weeks, a few book reviews and other such literary shenanigans, the One Book Interview is back in its regular slot (and a few of our old favourites are back in the book choices).

This week, I’m very happy to have a factory worker, a delivery driver, a singer/songwriter, a sailor, and various other professionals all hiding in the past of a storyteller writing out of southern California.

Good people of the Internet, the horror author that is Israel Finn.

Name one book:

1 – everyone should read

Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl. It’s poignant, philosophical, entertaining, and still highly relevant in this day and age. If more people were to look out through the eyes of that wonderful young girl, perhaps some of the hatred might subside in the world.

2 – you would take with you if you were going to be marooned on Mars

The Martian by Andy Weir. Duh!

3 – you took a chance on and were pleasantly surprised by

Bird Box by Josh Malerman. Josh was relatively unknown as an author when the novel came out but I’d heard good things. I found out before I read it that he was the lead singer of one of my favorite bands, The High Strung, so I was even more intrigued. After reading it, he immediately became one of my favorite authors as well. Bird Box is a fresh, original horror story that filled me full of dread and kept me feverishly turning pages until the end. It’s one of the best horror novels out there.

4 – you’ve written that is your favourite

My collection of dark fiction, Dreaming At the Top of My Lungs. I’ve written others, but it’s the first one I felt was worthy of being published. And I’d say I made the right decision, because it’s been very well received. And several of the stories in the book are near and dear to my heart, as they’ve become with many of my readers.

5 – that has influenced you most as a person

Again, I’d have to say Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl, and for the reasons I mentioned before.

6 – that has influenced you most as a professional

Okay, I’m going to bend the rules here and mention two books. On the art side of things, I’ll say The Stand by Stephen King. I’d been writing off and on for years before I read it, but that novel helped me to find my own voice as a writer. On the craft side, I’ve got to go with something I read recently called Thrill Me: Essays On Fiction by Benjamin Percy. I’ve read a ton of books on writing, many of which were wonderful. But Percy’s book is the best I’ve ever read. He puts things across in such a concise, down-to-earth way that you can’t help but have your eyes opened to the hows and whys of fiction writing.

7 – of yours that prospective readers should start with if they want to get to know your work and where they can get it.

Dreaming At the Top of My Lungs, which (so far) is my only release. Here’s a nifty little link that includes several retailers:

You can find Isreal at: www.israelfinn.com

Israel Finn is a horror, dark fantasy, and speculative fiction writer, and a winner of the 80th Annual Writer’s Digest Short Story Competition.

He’s had a life-long love affair with books, and was weaned on authors such as Kurt Vonnegut, Ray Bradbury, Richard Matheson, Arthur C. Clarke and H.G. Wells. Books were always strewn everywhere about the big white house in the Midwest where he grew up.

Later, he discovered Robert McCammon, Dean Koontz, F. Paul Wilson, Dan Simmons, Ramsey Campbell, and Stephen King, as well as several others, and the die was indelibly cast.

 

 

Hell Cat of the Holt by Mark Cassell

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I said that I had more book reviews in the pipeline, and here’s the next – Mark Cassell’s novella Hell Cat of the Holt.

Let’s get the disclaimers out of the way:

1 – I received a free copy of the book. Since finishing it, I’ve bought a copy. (As I’ve mentioned before, we need to support the arts – musicians, authors, artists and so on. If you don’t, they won’t be many of us left before long.)

2 – Confessions of a Reviewer who are organising this for Mark are also organising a promo tour for my latest book.

3 – I am a ‘friend’ of Mark on social media, despite having never met or spoken to him. (Odd how this is now ‘normal’.)

None of those have influenced my review and what follows is an honest opinion.

So, before we get to the review, what’s it about?

Shy accountant Anne returns to the village of Mabley Holt to piece together her life after a family tragedy. When her cat vanishes, and a neighbour claims to speak with his dead wife, she soon learns there’s more to the village than any resident dares admit. In search of her beloved pet, she discovers not only family secrets but also revelations of a local legend.

The verdict?

It’s great. Buy it. Now.

The novella actually struck me as two stories in one. The first part of the book is able to stand alone as a short story. This section really stood out for me. It’s tight and punchy and has a great twist. The beauty of the twist was that I knew something was coming, but didn’t spot it until it hit. When I reread it, I could see the hints that led up to the climax.

The rest of the novella builds on this back story. It’s fast-paced and creepy. It’s got demons, supernatural beasts, blood, gore, guts and enough unsettling sections for most readers interested in dark fiction/ horror. The characters are believable. The plot’s well thought out and has some unexpected turns that keep it interesting.

I like the way the author weaves in characters and cameos from the rest of his work. I appreciate this style of writing isn’t to everyone’s tastes, but I enjoy spotting the references and connections. It’s cleverly done and not obtrusive.

Downsides? It gets a little too descriptive in places, in particular towards the end. I’d have preferred sparser prose and maybe a little more dialogue to keep the pace quicker as the story builds to its conclusion. (As much of a conclusion as you get in an ever-expanding world of stories.)

The more of the stories you’ve read in the author’s Shadow Fabric Mythos, the more you’ll get out of this novella. That being said, this book works perfectly well as a stand alone novella and serves as a good introduction to his work. Plus, you also get a bonus short story at the end that provides further background to the Hell Cat story.

Highly Recommended.

Five stars.

Now go buy it.

if you’re interested in reading the words behind the words, i.e. what Mark reads when he’s not writing, you can check out his interview below.

One Book Interview #20 – Mark Cassell (Author)

 

One Book Interview #20 – Mark Cassell (Author)

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One of the great things about running this interview series is that I get to interview people whose books I’ve enjoyed. This is one such interview.

This week’s author is a best seller, a man constantly expanding the ‘mythos’ his stories live in. And, never mind the books, he has an inexhaustible supply of memes, GIFS, and cartoons that range from dark to downright hysterical. (Seriously, if you’re not friends with this guy on FB or Twitter, find him and befriend him now. He’s not overly fussy, I believe.)

Good people of the Internet – the Scribe of the Witchblade, the Stitcher-in-Chief, the Meme-Master himself – Mark Cassell.

Name one book:

1 – everyone should read

My shout here goes to any reader who likes the idea of Russian and British secret services using psychic investigators and spies. Written over 30 years ago, Brian Lumley’s Necroscope still tops my list of all-time favourites, and it’s still a book I’m happy to read again and again.

At just over 500 pages, the novel can be a heavy going at first but sets us up for a thrilling ride through Romanian history and ancient lore. The lovable protagonist, Harry Keogh, has some remarkable talents and is dragged through a story that combines time travel and secret agents with some truly vicious undead creatures.

2 – you would take with you if you were going to be marooned on Mars

Clive Barker’s Imajica, without doubt. At over 1,100 pages long, I reckon it would keep me occupied long enough to survive until Schwarzenegger finds a way to pump oxygen onto the planet.

I believe this is Barker’s finest novel. The epic story follows three vastly different people in search of a universal mystery, travelling through worlds both close to us and far into fantasy-realms. It weaves an intricate story, superbly balancing love and death, horror and fantasies, and makes us question divinity as well as our own obsessions.

3 – you took a chance on and were pleasantly surprised by

Yann Martel’s Life of Pi, and it equally surprises me to discover this book was released back in 2001. Yet to this day, it remains one of my favourites and it’s not even in my typical go-to genre. Expertly written, the story took me on a journey that lasted a day or two while poor Pi himself stayed on that lifeboat for 227 days…with a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker.

Oh, and as clever as I thought the screen adaptation was, it was nowhere near as remarkable.

4 – you’ve written that is your favourite

May I suggest the one I’ve just released? It’s called Hell Cat of the Holt, a novella in the Shadow Fabric mythos. I can honestly say I’m having a whole stack of fun linking – indeed stitching – much of the already-written mythos with this new story.

The tale follows a shy accountant named Anne, who returns to the village of Mabley Holt to piece together her life after a family tragedy. When her cat vanishes, and a neighbour claims to speak with his dead wife, she soon learns there’s more to the village than any resident dares admit. In search of her beloved pet, she discovers not only family secrets but also revelations of a local legend. As she treads an unsteady path between folklore and fact, her confidence in where she grew up begins to crumble. Into hell.

5 – that has influenced you most as a person

As far as books go, I can’t really answer that. However, how about a short story? And again, here I am mentioning Brian Lumley. His “The Thief Immortal” tells the life story of a man named Klaus August Scharme who has the unusual gift of stealing the years from any living thing and adding them to his own. I read it something like 20 years ago, and it remains with me to this day.

It made me realise how insignificant the human race is compared to all the other living creatures on this planet.

6 – that has influenced you most as a professional

I suspect this is going to be such a typical answer: Stephen King’s On Writing. Throughout my journey as a writer, I’ve read many how-to books yet this one is incredibly relatable. I found it almost conversational while informative, whereas many others are simply regurgitated bullet-points.

No matter how you feel about that guy’s writing, you can’t deny he’s up there with the literary Masters throughout history.

7 – of yours that prospective readers should start with if they want to get to know your work and where they can get it.

My debut, The Shadow Fabric, a novel of demons, devices, and deceit.

We follow Leo, a man who remembers little of his past. Desperate for a new life, he snatches up the first job to come along. On his second day he witnesses a murder, and the Shadow Fabric – a malevolent force that controls the darkness – takes the body and vanishes with it. Uncovering secrets long hidden from humankind, Leo’s memory unravels. Not only haunted by the past, a sinister presence within the darkness threatens his existence and he soon doubts everything and everyone… including himself.

At the time, the story was going to be a standalone novel, but leftover scribbles became published stories in anthologies and ezines. And now, as I’ve already mentioned, I’ve just released a novella.

I’ve recently sold three more mythos stories to anthologies set for release in the coming months. Atop that, I’m in talks with a company about creating a Shadow Fabric card game, and also with a Nottingham-based metal band about possible lyrics. I can’t say much more on either of those, but we’ll see.

What I can say is how truly stunned I am at how it seems to be unravelling. I’m humbled, in fact. And there’s still a much larger story to tell in the Shadow Fabric mythos.

You can find Mark at: www.beneath.co.uk

Mark Cassell lives in a rural part of the UK and often dreams of dystopian futures, peculiar creatures, and flitting shadows. Primarily a horror writer, his steampunk, dark fantasy, and SF stories have featured in numerous anthologies and ezines. His best-selling debut novel, The Shadow Fabric, is closely followed by the popular short story collection, Sinister Stitches, and are both only a fraction of an expanding mythos.

 

 

 

 

 

 

One Book Interview #19 – Jason Parent (Author)

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Hot on the heels of last week’s 18th birthday celebration, the One Book Interview is back to business as usual. Today, I’m very happy to be taking part in a book tour for an exciting author by the name of Jason Parent. His new book  A Life Removed is out now. I had the pleasure of reading an advance copy not so long ago. You can find out what I thought of it tomorrow, but for now, here is a taste of what Jason likes to read when he’s not writing. (Interestingly, three of his choices made the top twelve list in last week’s 18th birthday book summary.)

Good people of the Internet – Jason Parent.

Name one book:

1 – everyone should read

The Stand, by Stephen King – It is a genre-defining tale of good versus evil that should be required reading.

2 – you would take with you if you were going to be marooned on Mars

The Martian, by Andy Weir – I’d need some chance of being able to grow potatoes. Of course, I’d probably also need potatoes.

3 – you took a chance on and were pleasantly surprised by

Robert McCammon’s Matthew Corbett series. Historical fiction, not quite horror or my usual cup of tea, but altogether perfect.

4 – you’ve written that is your favourite

My books vary so much in genre and tone that my answer to this question changes daily. But so as not to cop out, I think Wrathbone and Other Stories is one of my best works.

5 – that has influenced you most as a person

Tucker Max’s I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell. The book never answers the question whether beer is, in fact, served in Hell, so I have made it a life-long ambition to drink as much beer as possible before I get there. I’m guessing it’s all mimosas and umbrella drinks down under the earth.

6 – that has influenced you most as a professional

Not Tucker Max’s books. Stephen King’s On Writing has made me re-examine my craft.

7 – of yours that prospective readers should start with if they want to get to know your work and where they can get it.

That depends on how dark they want to go. I have a couple of novellas priced at $0.99 to allow potential readers to give me a try. But my novels are all stand-alones, so my latest, A Life Removed is as good a start as any (and happens to be set earliest chronologically).

You can find Jason at: www.authorjasonparent.com

In his head, Jason Parent lives in many places, but in the real world, he calls New England his home. The region offers an abundance of settings for his writing and many wonderful places in which to write them. He currently resides in Southeastern Massachusetts with his cuddly corgi named Calypso.

In a prior life, Jason spent most of his time in front of a judge . . . as a civil litigator. When he finally tired of Latin phrases no one knew how to pronounce and explaining to people that real lawsuits are not started, tried and finalized within the 60-minute timeframe they see on TV (it’s harassing the witness; no one throws vicious woodland creatures at them), he traded in his cheap suits for flip flops and designer stubble. The flops got repossessed the next day, and he’s back in the legal field . . . sorta. But that’s another story.

When he’s not working, Jason likes to kayak, catch a movie, travel any place that will let him enter, and play just about any sport (except that ball tied to the pole thing where you basically just whack the ball until it twists in a knot or takes somebody’s head off – he misses the appeal). And read and write, of course. He does that too sometimes.

One Book Interview #14 – Mike Watson (Author)

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Stephen King has spoken about ‘unearthing stories’, or ‘digging them up’. So this week, the One Book Interview has a geologist turned author. (It’s a terrible intro, I know. Almost a dad joke. Apologies, Mike.)

Good people of the Internet – Mike Watson

Name one book:

1 – everyone should read

There is one book I thoroughly enjoyed reading several years ago. I won’t say it was life-changing, but it was a refreshing change from books I had been reading. It is The Name of the Wind, a fantasy by Patrick Rothfuss. Since then I’ve read the sequel and now the third in The Kingkiller Chronicle is about to come out.

2 – you would take with you if you were going to be marooned on Mars

I think the typical answer is The Bible.

3 – you took a chance on and were pleasantly surprised by

I’m going to have to repeat the book mentioned above. (The Name of the Wind) I’d never heard of the author before hearing him speak at a writer’s conference. It was his debut novel that went on to be on the New York Times bestselling list.

4 – you’ve written that is your favourite

My favorite book and the one most well received is the second in The Jack Trader Adventure series, Treasure of the Anasazi. It’s a thriller/adventure that takes place in southwest Colorado near the town of Durango in association with the cliff dwellings at the Mesa Verde National Park. The entire series has settings in that area.

5 – that has influenced you most as a person

As a person, The Bible. As a writer, rather than a specific book, probably the science fiction genre. Growing up I think I read every science fiction book in the library. I still love the classics of H.G. Wells, Jules Verne, and Edgar Rice Burroughs.

6 – that has influenced you most as a professional

The books I read the most of these days are action/adventure/thriller. My favorite writer of these is Clive Cussler, which I hope has influenced my writing.

7 – of yours that prospective readers should start with if they want to get to know your work and where they can get it.

Any in the Jack Trader Adventure series are typical of my writing style, and all are stand-alone, but if someone would like to read the first in the series, it is The Nestorian Alliance. Similar, but different, think Indiana Jones.

You can find Mike at: www.adventurewithmike.com

Michael R. Watson, is a writer and self-employed geologist and surveyor, living with his wife in a rural setting of south central Kansas. In his own words:

“In recent years, I have taken a new direction, writing the post-apocalyptic Aftershock series. I have just started book three while beta readers are looking at book two. Book one, Paradise, is currently on Amazon. A chain reaction of earthquakes, possibly triggered by fracking and wastewater disposal, have reached into the mid-continent, causing disaster, panic, and chaos. Beware of the helping hand.”

 

One Book Interview #13 – William King (Author)

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The One Book Interview is lucky to have featured two bestselling authors in a row #11 – Elicia Hyder and #12 – Garry Rodgers. The problem is, how do you follow that? How about a million selling author who has a thirty-year career behind him and is still going strong? That’ll do.

Good people of the Internet – William King.

Name one book:

1 – everyone should read

Your Money or Your Life by Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin. I first picked it up in my late 30s when I was struggling with my finances as a freelance writer and it completely changed the way I thought about money, time and what financial independence means. Some of the financial advice seems a bit dated , but the basic concept, of measuring the amount of life energy we spend to acquire a certain amount of money, and the way we exchange that life energy for possessions is a very sound one. This is a book that’s more about how you approach life than financial planning. It has provided a compass for navigating a lot of big decisions.

2 – you would take with you if you were going to be marooned on Mars

How to Breathe in a Very Thin Atmosphere! Failing that, The Lord of the Rings. It blew my mind when I first read it aged eleven. (I know, I am showing my age there with that hippy phrase.) It remains readable every time I go back to it, which is every couple of years. It’s big enough to provide a lot of reading to. The story is a great and very human story. The world building sets the benchmark for how to do it.

3 – you took a chance on and were pleasantly surprised by

Oliver Twist. As a teenager, I was one of those boys who read nothing but popular pulpish fiction. I found the Victorian classics very reader resistant. Dickens I associated with stodgy TV series forced down my throat in childhood. For some reason, possibly familiarity, I decided to give it a try one day. I struggled with the prose a bit to begin with, but the story drew me in, and Dickens portrayal of a sort of phantasmagoric dark London has haunted me ever since. As with Lord of the Rings this is a book I go back to every few years.

4 – you’ve written that is your favourite

Hard to say. I like all of them, for different reasons. If I had to pick one, it would be The Inquiry Agent. It is completely atypical of my work, being a historical detective novel set in the 1840s, but it captures a number of my obsessions. I love the period, have done since I studied it at University.

5 – that has influenced you most as a person

On The Road by Jack Kerouac. I read it at a very impressionable age and it infected me with the glamour of travel and the beatnik lifestyle. I read it now and all I can think of is how irresponsible Dean and Sal and their friends are, but back in my 70s Scottish housing estate, it was like reading a manual for how to live sent from another planet. It’s probably responsible for everything from my career choices to living in Prague.

6 – that has influenced you most as a professional

Trial and Error by Jack Woodford. Woodford was a pulp professional, a product of the Chicago of Ben Hecht and The Front Page, who became a Hollywood scriptwriter back in the 30s. His advice to writers has never been bettered and it’s pretty timeless. I struggled for years with finishing a novel then I read his chapters on how to do so. That was all it took. I’ve used variants of his method ever since and I’ve finished upwards of forty books.

7 – of yours that prospective readers should start with if they want to get to know your work and where they can get it.

Flesh to Shadow, the first Kormak omnibus. It contains the first three volumes of my sword and sorcery saga about a professional monster hunter. You can purchase it at Amazon or pick it up for free by signing up for my mailing list.

You can find William at: www.williamking.me

 

William King is the million-selling author of almost forty published novels,the creator of Gotrek and Felix for Games Workshop’s Warhammer line. He wrote the World of Warcraft novel, Illidan. He is also an Origin’s Award winning game designer.