Spider Season

Spider Season by Billy Hanson

Okay, I have to be totally honest with you guys and tell you that I about lost it when Billy Hanson contacted me and asked me if I would like to review his book.  In case you guys aren’t aware, Billy Hanson wrote two of the Grimm Tales of Terror issues in volume four this past year.  He wrote The Wyoming Incident and The War of the Worlds.  Two very excellent issues.  What was really cool is somehow he saw my reviews of those issues and then hit me up through my website to see if I would be interested in his book, Spider Season.  Ummm, HELL YEAH!!!!
 
SO, here I am about to tell you about this book.  First, it is a collection of short stories, all written by Hanson himself.  As you all know, I love short horror stories.  And I was beyond thrilled when one of the writers from my all-time favorite comic book series contacted me to let me know he had put a book together of his own short stories.  Hanson is truly talented and I feel like this collection of horror tales highlights his love for both short stories and the horror genre itself.
 
Here we have ten short stories, three of them are even actually screenplays, which was something new, fun and different.  I don’t usually read screenplays so, it gave a different feel to those three stories.  You got more of an idea how they would be viewed as a movie rather than only what you create in your own imagination.  It was kinda cool to have a different format for the a few of the stories.
 
While there were a few stories that I considered REALLY good, the entire collection was fantastic and fun to read. Each story is unique and fascinating.  There’s practically something for everybody.  That’s one of the reasons I love collections of short stories so much.  One tale, titled ‘The Clearing’ was a spectacular story of suspense and tension.  Another one called ‘She Was Perfect’ was a PERFECT 10/10 on the creep-o-meter.  He’s got another one entitled ‘Paris with the Lights Turned Low’ which is a fabulous revenge/whodunnit tale.  And there’s even one that is fairly realistic according to my true crime shows, the story titled ‘Music from the Gun Room’.
 
It’s obvious that Hanson has a love for short horror stories.  As you flip through each page, the words jump out at you, grab you by ears and pull you along for the terrifying ride.  Hanson is not only a writer but also a filmmaker, projects ranging from music videos to comics to books to films and more, including the acclaimed adaptation of Stephen King story 'Survivor Type'.  The man has got some skills people.  If you get the opportunity, you really should grab this book.  It reads very quickly and the stories are even somewhat reminiscent of the classic The Twilight Zone episodes.
 
You can get your copy HERE.
 
RATINGS
5/5 Stars

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