Four Fun and/or Depressing Short Horror Stories. A Review of Bad Dolls

 I really identified with the characters in each story which is kind of depressing since none of them fit into society and also have creepy things happening to them.

In one story, the bachelorette party is a bloody mess, and I do mean a bloody mess. I kept shouting "Get out!" at the protagonist. I mean, bachelorette parties are bad enough without the stabby parts.

In another, an Eight Ball, that kind you shake and then read the answer on the bottom, gets a little too pushy.

The Goblin is a fun story, and I may use that app for my own weight loss program. Or maybe not. The goblin is more aggressive then the aforementioned Eight Ball.

And then we have the bad doll. She's haunted, demonic, and mean but makes a pretty good backscratcher.

I'd like to thank myself for buying Bad Dolls and allowing myself to review it.

I Never Thought I'd Get Tired Reading About Sex, Then Along Came "A Tyranny of Desire."

 OK. So. Um...The thing is...Uh. This book is kind of like...Pay attention to the trigger warning because every word of it is true.

I'll start with the positive. The Tyranny of Desire is often very funny. Sometimes it is a little overdone. There were passages that made me wish I hadn't eaten dinner before I read them. The scene where a quicky lover poops on Puchy was the first one that made me wish I hadn't eaten a bowl of Cheerios before reading. (Yes, I eat Cheerios for dinner. Don't look at me like that.) Then she puts her poop in an insulted thermos. At that point I had to get some fresh air. I meant insulated thermos, but the thermos was probably insulted, too.

I never thought I'd say this, but there was so much sex on almost every page that I got tired of it, like eating way too much chocolate cake. (Or Cheerios. No wait. No one can eat too many Cheerios.) I also wondered how Puchy ever found a pair of pants that fit. I mean really, he'd have to have a codpiece the size of a parachute. 

So , ok, there are disturbing things in The Tyranny of Desire. Some nonconsensual sex. Underage sex. (I mean, way under age.)

The idea of personifying something that is only figural, like personifying Death, goes way back in literature. The idea of Puchy personifying Desire is classic. Despite being based on a classic idea, it's unlikely The Tyranny of Desire will be taught to English majors anytime soon.  Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe I'm an old fogie and this will go down with the likes of Shakespeare. But probably not.

Thanks to Netgalley and Flying Bed books for allowing me to lose my dinner over The Tyranny of Desire. (Really, don't eat while reading this.)

His penis is huge, but I do not think he could tie it in knots.

Dream a little dream of me, for 200 bizillion years. Sleep tight. A review of The Ferryman

 You want dystopian? This book has it. Environmental disaster? Got that, too. Science fiction? Yup. With all of that, why not a car chase? Yes! The Ferryman has an exciting car chase! Crowd scenes, riots, some passionate love making, and a honkin' big spaceship. But wait! There's more!

Okay, I'm not going to list absolutely everything that happens because that would be a book unto itself. Mr. Cronin manages to get about everything that could possibly happen in. Hey, this is a big screen event even if it's in a book. Okay, if you want more, here's more. Mistaken identity. Bad guys can be good guys and vice versa. An ingratiating robot named Bernardo. Somehow, all this stuff comes together and makes sense. 

I have to admit, sometimes I got a little confused. A lot of the characters are confused at one time or another, so it's not just me. As I said, it all comes together in the end.

Did I mention a big explosion? This novel is begging to be a movie.

Thanks to Netgalley and Ballentine Books for allowing me to read and review, and pretend I'm frozen in space with The Ferryman.

The Black Guy Dies First What?! A (humorous) history of Black People in Horror Films

 The Black Guy Dies First was so different than I thought it would be. In a good way! I have nothing against textbooks, but that's what I thought this would be. If all textbooks could be this funny, no professor would ever have a hard time getting his/her students to read assignments. You see, The Black Guy Dies First could be used in a Film Studies class, or in a Black Studies class, but it's so humorous that it's a hoot to read for pleasure. I snort-laughed three or four times per page.

Funny as it is, it also covers a lot of ground in the history of Black actors, directors, and films in the horror genre. The authors put in enough detail that it's okay to not have seen all of the films. I hadn't seen most of the films and I still got a lot out of it.

If you like history with a whole lot of humor, this is a snort-laugh + thought provoking book. Thanks to Netgalley and Saga Press for allowing me to read, review, and get a few laughs out of The Black Guy Dies First.

A Reason to be Nice to Everyone, Especially Your Employees. A Review of Murder Your Employer

 Murder Your Employer is a punny, er, funny book. You'd think a book about murder wouldn't be a load of chuckles, but this is over the top with humor. Nothing and nobody are as it seems. Once you think you have things figured out, another strange twist comes along. You think you have that figured out, and another unexpected twist comes along. And the puns! Oh my gosh! (And there is no truth to the expression, "Puns are the lowest form of humor". Shakespeare's plays are full of puns, and nobody gives him any guff...except high school students.)

Okay, so you might think it's hard to relate to people who want to kill, but the three students whose stories we follow have good reasons, and the victims are despicable enough that their comeuppances demand three cheers. Oh my, the details of the killings are so intricate that I wondered how the author (Rupert Holmes) came up with the ideas. 

I learned how to be in two places at the same time! Can't wait to try it out.

Thank you to Netgalley and Avid Reader Press for allowing me to read and review an eARC of Murder Your Employer.

That is one good looking cover. Almost makes me want to go to that university.

You might want to see this doctor's credentials. A review of The Cabinet of Dr. Leng.

  

Any book with a green mist floating out through a door is going to attract my attention. Fortunately, The Cabinet of Dr. Leng is as good as the cover. I had not read the Pendergast novels before, but the authors did a good job of cluing me into the characters and background without resorting to an info dump.

What we have here is science fiction, mystery, thriller and a character who wears the wrong clothes to the 19th Century. Okay, so that is not a major plot point, but let is serve as a warning if you plan to time travel. There are also at least three different stories going on that all come together even though they seem to have nothing to do with each other at first.

Alas, the book ends with a cliffhanger. The authors apologize for it. It's such a fascinating cliffhanger that it makes me want to read the next edition, which I will because the characters are interesting, and the major characters have depth to them.

Before I go to check my closet to see if my wardrobe is appropriate for time travel, I'd like to thank Netgalley and Grand Central Publishing for allowing me to read and review The Cabinet of Dr. Leng.