First things first, with a title like Bullets, Teeth and Fists, how can you go wrong? Then, add to that the fact that this is the third volume in a series and you realize you really have stumbled across a hidden gem. This was another book I was sent by Blackthorn Book Tours, the second actually and I was extremely anxious to get to it. I knew from the start that it was a collection of short stories but, I had no idea what I was getting into. These stories aren’t all your normal, run-of-the-mill short horror stories. Some display the classic earmarks of terror that every horror lover lives for while others are more abstract and shall we say, creative in inducing those hairs on the back of your neck to stand up, your bottom jaw to hang open and your fingers to prepare to turn the page in anticipation before you’re even halfway done reading it. Bullets, Teeth and Fists 3 is a fantastic collection of everything, something for every kind of horror fanatic. Every twisted tale careful crafted to lure you in and keep you there, holding you hostage amongst the words, your only escape is the satisfaction of getting to the end and finding out what lies in store. And as that sense of relief sets in, the very next piece of fiction takes you for another morbid ride. I was a little bummed when I found out this was the third book in the series and I was just hearing about it. After reading this one, I am DEFINITELY going to want to get the first two, without a doubt. This author, Jason Beech, has his own style which incorporates the best qualities of horror and fiction. He doesn’t always give you the answer, sometimes he lets your wheels spin…and perhaps, sometimes, it’s better to not know what happens past a certain point. One thing I want to say that just kept rattling around in my head as I was reading through this book was how much it seemed like an adult version of Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark. While certainly not all campfire type stories, they do have a certain ebb and flow as you move swiftly through the pages. I found it to be fun and refreshing, not to mention a very enjoyable approach to horror writing. I am quite the lover of short horror stories and I certainly love whole collections and series done by individual authors. I think it’s because you get to see the vast imagination of the author while they still stay within one genre. Yes, it takes a lot of skill to bring an entire novel to fruition but, to create a collection of short stories and have them be a strong representative sample of the immense talent along the horror spectrum that you, as the author, possess, I find that to be quite an accomplishment as well. RATINGS 5/5 Stars Buy Bullets, Teeth and Fists 3 HERE You can buy any Jason’s work from Amazon and read his work at Spelk Fiction, Shotgun Honey, Close to the Bone, The Flash Fiction Offensive, Punk Noir Magazine, Punk Noir, and Pulp Metal Magazine. Website: jdbeech.wordpress.com Twitter: @beech_jason Facebook: Messy Business
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Thanks to the gracious and wonderful people at Blackthorn Book Tours, I was afforded the opportunity to read what I consider to be an amazing piece of writing with genius spread all the way through. In the book Hot Splices, we get a glimpse into the other side of life as a film student and/or film junkie…addict, if you will. This story brings to life a belief and faith in a group of Film Gods, their impact on the students of film, the makers of film and the actual filming material itself. Throughout the entire book there are a multitude of film references. Some are obvious and most anyone could pick up on. Others are more obscure and require a little more attention. Either way, the amount of film knowledge possessed by the author is astounding. As I said, some of the film references are very easy to get, others are like little Easter Eggs hidden within the text of the novel. And here’s something very different. I found this little tidbit to be quite fascinating. These film students, past and present, all gather in a communal house called The Tower. Each generation kind of has their own space, you could say. But what they all use this particular space for…is Flixing. Flixing is when they take one single frame of film and suck on it. When they do that the chemicals from the frame melt into their bodies and they start kind of “tripping” in a way, like LSD, except that in their trip, they are part of the movie they are sucking on. They can pick certain scenes from movies and live them, in a way. Now, just like with any serious drug use, there are sign that these people are taking the flixing to a whole new level. They all get these marks on their bodies, like the perforated edges of movie film on those big rolls that theaters use. Those perforation marks on their bodies are like the track marks of the addicts of flixing. Plus, we even have film mythology. This was an incredible part of the story to me because it was like the glue that pulled everything together. This was also where the curiosity and mystery lie in the story. There’s a set of films, included in this set is a probable snuff film. The filmmaker has been long gone but, the myth still lives on. That myth being that if you watch this set of films in a particular order it will induce psychosis and everyone viewing will freak out and become killers. Totally a fantastic idea for a horror novel, maybe even a movie…? Then, there’s the vivid descriptions of the violence and the sexual encounters, the descriptions of the flixing trips, it’s all so bright and shocking, jaw dropping at some points, at others you feel the fear and suspense pulling you into the pages of the story, as if the text can reach out and grab you by the back of the neck and drag you into the page. Some of the violence is totally gnarly and at times, it’s even intertwined with very tantalizing sexual encounters. These encounters are written in a very visual way, as any good writer should be able to do, yet, at the same time, they have a very technological, scientific, astrological type imagery that is created. But, believe me, the sex is done is a classy way to where it’s still hot and steamy but also incorporates the horror aspect in a spectacular way as to make you get the full film going experience but, completely in text form. All of this builds to an ultimately dramatic ending, wickedly and vividly described with spellbinding excitement and action laced with raw animalistic emotion. Truly in a class of its own, Hot Splices has successfully SPLICED itself into my memory and will stay there for a long, long time. I even think it’s one of those books that you can definitely read a second or third time and probably pick up on things you may have missed previously. So, well worth the read. Mike Watt has taken what could have been just simple subject matter and catapulted it into a realm of deep complexity and sinister dreams. I would highly recommend this to any film lover and to any horror lover, for the two are rarely combined so well. RATINGS 5/5 Stars Big thanks to Blackthorn Book Tours and Mike Watt! Visit Mike Watt at the following sites: mikewatt.me www.happycloudpublishing.com Buy Hot Splices Here Visit Blackthorn Book Tours Here |
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