I may have brought it up a time or two before, but I have a bit of a fascination with film adaptations of Stephen King’s works. I haven’t seen all of them by any means (considering that would probably take more time than I have remaining on Earth), but I’ve seen a decent chunk of … More Revisiting Stephen King’s Storm of the Century (1999)
There’s kind of a funny story behind how I ended up reading and reviewing this book, a story that illustrates pretty clearly the fact that I have read so many books over the course of my life that I’ve forgotten which books I’ve read and which ones I haven’t. So a while back, I was … More Books: Mrs. God by Peter Straub
Richard Laymon, who passed away in 2001, was a prolific writer of “splatterpunk” novels, a couple of which were put out by Leisure Books in the 1990s. Along with other contemporary writers like Jack Ketchum and Edward Lee, Laymon laced his stories with extreme violence and gore, as well as graphic sexual content that verged … More Books: Come Out Tonight by Richard Laymon
I’ve been a huge fan of Guillermo del Toro since the first film of his that I saw, which was either The Devil’s Backbone from 2001, or Pan’s Labyrinth from 2006. There’s just something about his particular vision of the beautiful grotesque, his sense of wonder that comes across in his stories even when they’re … More Movies: Cronos (1993)
I had been itching to get around to seeing Ghostwatch for ages, since I had long noticed it on so many “Best Haunted House Movie” lists and since I had heard a little bit about the uproar it caused when it was aired. If you don’t know, Ghostwatch was broadcast by the BBC on Halloween night 1992, and it … More Movies: Ghostwatch (1992)
Stir of Echoes is one of those horror movies I always bring up when someone asks me what I think some of the most underrated horror films of all time are; directed by David Koepp and starring Kevin Bacon, the 1999 movie is based pretty loosely on Richard Matheson’s short novel, which came out in … More Book vs. Movie: Stir of Echoes
The late Jack Ketchum (whose real name was Dallas Mayr) is an author I’ve always been a big fan of; his work isn’t for everyone, as it’s usually quite graphic, and focuses on the worst aspects of humanity, delving deep into the depravity lurking in the hearts of men. The Girl Next Door, based on … More Books: Red by Jack Ketchum
1997’s Asylum by Patrick McGrath was a novel that was recommended to me by a viewer of my book review videos on YouTube, and though I had heard the author’s name before, this was the first novel of his that I read. McGrath is a British writer, and Asylum is essentially a bleak, gothic thriller … More Books: Asylum by Patrick McGrath
The film adaptation of The Shining and the well-publicized blood feud between Stephen King and Stanley Kubrick has been the subject of nearly endless internet debate, but for some reason it’s a subject I’m obsessively fascinated by and often get into long, rambling conversations about, which is why I decided to unburden myself in written … More A Tale of Two Shinings
Scott Smith has only published a couple of novels in his writing career, but luckily for him (and us), they’re both fantastic. I read and reviewed his 2006 novel The Ruins not too long ago (he also wrote the screenplay for the solid 2008 film adaptation), but I had never read his debut, the 1993 … More Books: A Simple Plan by Scott Smith
The Scare Salon 