Title: Dust of the Dead

Author: John Palisano

Release date: Originally released June 2nd, 2015, Re-released May 30th, 2022

Huge thanks to Marco from Seildelman & Company for sending me a digital copy to read!

‘Dust of the Dead’ is my third or fourth release from John that I’ve read and it’s been great to see just how wide and varied his storytelling scope is.

With this one, Palisano gives us his take on the zombie trope, and while I’m the first to admit I’ve struggled to enjoy much zombie literature (or screen based stuff) over the last number of years, I’m always up to give something a go if they’re trying something new or something I find exciting.

That is the case here.

What I liked: The story follows Mike, a member of the Reclamation Crew, a team sent in to dispatch those who’ve crossed over and come back to life. At first, Mike is a nervous wreck, unsure of where he fits in with the more experienced team members, but as his time with them increases, he becomes ‘one of the boys’ and Palisano makes sure to keep the mood light and banter-filled.

But, this is a horror book and things take a turn. This comes in the form of the dead drying out and turning to dust and much to the dismay of those living, the dust can now infect and transform you.

The first few transformations were great, giving the readers some startling moments and John doesn’t hold back with the gore and brutality. We get to connect with the crew and as they begin to die off, you do feel a sense of loss and sadness over characters who you’ve come to root for.

The ending does a worthy job of acting as an ending, but also keeping things open for a sequel and that is something John discusses in the foreword of this new edition.

What I didn’t like: The biggest issue here for readers will be how well your shelf life for zombie based fiction is. If you’re completely off the enjoyment train of the undead, you’ll most likely not be jumping on this one, but if you still love zombie stuff or are even on the fence, I’d suggest you give this one a go.

Why you should buy this: Palisano is an easy writer for readers. I don’t mean that in a bad way, what I mean is that he tells a story with a capable and friendly writing voice, one that sucks you in quick and makes you feel familiar. It’s like snuggling up with a warm blanket and knowing you have no distractions for hours ahead. ‘Dust of the Dead’ is a really engaging reimagining of a familiar narrative and John does a great job of making this one his own.

4/5

Title: The Hungry Earth

Author: Nicholas Kaufmann

Release date: October 5th, 2021

Huge shout out to my buddy Shane aka bookzrkool on Instagram for kicking me in the butt about reading this one. It had been on my radar but it was his review and subsequent messages about how awesome it was that had me bump this waaaayyy up my TBR!

Way back in 1995, a movie came out that scared me to my core. ‘Outbreak’ rocketed into our tiny theatre in Nakusp and I watched it with the growing sense that I could never touch the surface of anything ever again. Of course, years went by and now Covid has hit and the same fear I had during that movie permeates my life throughout this pandemic.

But, Kaufmann has decided to up the ante with inducing fear and decided to focus the story on the horrendous reality of what fungus and their spores can do and in short order. I’ve always been weary about fungi and now this novel has taken that worry and ramped it up.

What I liked: The story follows small town doctor Laura, who, after several unexpected deaths, begins to unravel the reality of what is truly happening. Aided by her former significant other, Booker, the two discover that a massive fungus has taken hold in the community garden and begins to control each host body as the spores infect more and more.

I really enjoyed the pacing of this one and Kaufmann does a great job of keeping things concise and to the point, while also painting expansive scenes throughout. This book says its only 186 pages long, but the heft and meat of the story feels like you’ve just read a 1,000 page book stopper.

The characters are great, even the ones purposefully done to annoy you or anger you and the way that the resolution occurs was fantastic. It had me smiling and it didn’t feel forced or too far-fetched.

What I didn’t like: I will say, even though I really enjoyed the characters (even the incredibly annoying one from the development company), I think the post-credit style scene that was included was almost unnecessary. If there is going to be a further entry and this is becoming a series, then fine, necessary, but personally it didn’t to much for me.

Why you should buy this: I personally struggle to want to read zombie books and I’m also staying far away from virus type books, so this was a refreshing take and look at mass infection/people under control and becoming mindless beings. Kaufmann really ramps things up and throughout, even with the idea of hope and potential for success, does a great job of constantly pumping the breaks and making things bleak at all the right moments.

This was a blast!

4/5

Hello and welcome to the very first 3Q’s feature!

Before we dive into it, I just wanted to give you a brief idea on the ‘why’ of 3Q’s.

Last week was vacation time for us. Usually, our vacations revolve around two aspects – either we drive out to BC to see family and do stuff or they drive out here to us and we do stuff. As the world creeps away from complete Covid closures and more travel opens up and becomes an option, things may change for us, but for right now, we stayed in our wheelhouse and for this time – we drove out to BC.

My sister lives in Trail, BC, about two hours from where we grew up. The drive from our place to hers is right around 1000 kms (or 620 miles) and we split it up over two days. While we chat and try our best to reduce travel boredom, there are times when everyone is simply sitting quietly and it was one of these times where my mind wandered about what I could do coming up to continue to support writers.

Two years ago, I did a daily author shout out, where each day I shared three or four books from each author and it seemed to be a fun thing.

While driving out there, I figured, what if I had authors answer a few questions and gave them some support and maybe helped get some new readers eyes on their works. So, I reached out to about thirty authors, hoping to get ten or so to respond. I think right now, 27 have responded haha! So, this will be an ongoing feature. How long? Not sure. But think of it like the ‘Under the Dome’ TV Series for now. Started out as a limited feature, then got a second season, then who knows? Cancelled? I don’t remember. I watched season one then quit when it kept going. We’ll see what happens with this one!

Anyways – without further wait – the first 3Q’s feature is the phenomenal David Sodergren. David has been an instrumental aspect of my writing progression and I’ve even been lucky enough to co-author a novel with him (The Navajo Nightmare). He’s been my editor for five or so years and hopefully, in the near future, a second book from the two of us will see the light of day!

David hails from Scotland and when not writing, we often see him tweeting on Twitter about his best friend, Boris the pug, or his latest movie watched.

So, David – thanks for doing this! Let’s begin!

Steve: What does your writing time look like? Do you try and write at the same time each day? Do you have a word count you attempt to hit?

David: Generally I get up on my days off from the day job, take the dog out, watch a movie, and then write from about 10 til 4. Having said that, I sometimes do my best writing late at night, though gone are the days when I could stay up until 3 in the morning. I’m too old for that malarkey now! Word counts are of no interest to me. Anyone can hit several thousand words a day, but it doesn’t matter if the words aren’t good. The same applies to the overall word count of a book. I never go in with a preconceived notion of how long a book is gonna be. 25k, 50k, 75k… it’ll be as long as it needs to be to tell the story. 

Steve: Out of all your releases, do you have a character you could write about forever?

David: Yes, it’s that pug that appears in all my books (except one!). Whether it’s on a sinister island in Thailand, in the Wild West, or in contemporary Scotland, that goofy little guy gets around. Maybe one day I’ll base a whole book around him, who knows? 

Steve: Tell me about your newest release (novel/story/poem/novella) and why someone should read it!

David: My newest release is the gore-soaked and romantic folk-horror fairy tale THE HAAR, and you should read it because Steve Stred said it was good. If that’s not enough for you (totally understandable, I wouldn’t trust Steve either), then you should read it because there isn’t enough horror with elderly female protagonists out there, especially ones that feature penis-dissolving sea monsters. I’ve seen it described as ‘The Golden Girls meets Society’ and ‘The Notebook crossed with Basket Case’, and that should tell you all you need to know. 

Steve: Bonus Question! Did you have a favorite wrestler as a kid?

David: I had several favourite wrestlers, but Shawn Michaels was number one. Not so much when he was in The Rockers, but once he threw Marty Jannetty through the Barbershop window and became a heel, he became my favourite. His entrance music was just the best!

Thank you so much David! This was great!

If you want to find more about David or give him a follow;

Twitter: https://twitter.com/paperbacksnpugs

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paperbacksandpugs/

Website: https://paperbacksandpugs.wordpress.com/

Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/David-Sodergren/e/B07H1MB4MT/

Title: In Search of the Nobility, TX Wildman

Author: Elford Alley

Release date: June 7, 2016

I’m not sure if I’m on my own here, but one thing I love is when you go into a book thinking one thing and it ends up going somewhere completely different.

There’s a few books that come to mind immediately, but in this case – none of them went as far in the other directions as Elford Alley’s ‘In Search of the Nobility, Tx Wildman.’

Based off the title and the original cover art this book had when I snagged it, I was expecting this to be a straight-up creature feature about people searching for bigfoot and things going south. So much so, that when I came across this book, I DM’s Hunter Shea to see if he’d read it, as I know he loves bigfoot/sasquatch fiction.

It turns out, this book is a much more introspective piece, and in parts incredibly moving, focusing on two men from very different backgrounds, both of whom want to leave this world with some sort of legacy.

What I liked: The story follows James Cushing, Grade-A dill-hole and host of a “monster hunting” show. Of course everything on it is fake and he hates the show and where he’s at in his life. When the show heads to Texas and they encounter Maverick Casey, a lifelong Bigfoot hunter, Cushing sees a bit of himself in the old man and it’s this connection that pushes the narrative from that moment forward.

Alley does a great job of making the reader loathe and connect with both Casey and Cushing, and as things play out and more layers are peeled back and exposed, Alley doesn’t ease up. No, instead he grinds into both characters, making things go from bad to worse.

The biggest aspect here that I ultimately adored, was that the crux of the book is Casey and his final search for the Wildman and we in fact, never actually go searching for him. It was a bold decision and one that works really well. I struggled over whether to include that bit of info in this review, but decided upon doing it, as it really sets this book apart from other stories in this subgenre.

What I didn’t like: I think the only thing that didn’t really click for me was some of Casey’s issues. I won’t share those here, but I think I would’ve had more of a compassionate lens on him if he reached out to those he loved.

Why you should buy this: Alley does a fantastic job of creating an intriguing character based thriller. As each part moves along, the writing succeeds in pulling the reader along and the narrative grows stronger with the story.

This was really well done and a true unexpected gem.

5/5