Johnny Gruesome

Johnny Gruesome
Gregory Lamberson
ISBN# 1934755451
ISBN# 9781934755457
Trade Paperback
US $15.95 / CDN $17.95
Horror

http://www.medallionpress.com/blurbs/gruesome.html

I just finished reading this book and, while it is not my usual choice of genre, I really enjoyed it. It's only Lamberson's second published novel and it is very well written, entertaining and to some degree frightening.

Seventeen year old Johnny Grissom isn't exactly a model citizen in the village of Red Hill but he never expected he'd be murded by his closest friends and his girl.

Johnny finds his way back to his body and digs himself out of his grave and takes revenge on everyone who has ever done him wrong.

I won't say too much about it because I don't want to give away any plot points, but I will say if you're in the mood for a good horror novel with vengeful zombie/spirits this is it.

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

I just finished the best book I have read this year; Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater. I couldn't put it down from the moment I opened the beautifully illustrated front cover.  

Grace, a pragmatic, strong willed and independent teenager, has watched the wolves from a distance for six years following their attack on her one cold winter's day when she was a girl.  There is one wolf, with sad yellow eyes, that she feels particularly drawn to. 

Sam doesn't just become a boy trapped in wolf skin at the first sign of winters icy chill.  He becomes a wolf, a tortured shell of his human self with wild and unpredictable instincts.  When he finally meets Grace, the girl he's been watching from the woods, he fights to stay human to be with her but winter tugs at his human skin and threatens to take him away from her forever.

The book is told from both Sam and Grace.  The transition is easy to follow and both characters are so unique and strong in their realism that there is no confusion as to who is speaking.

I highly recommend this book, not only to those with a love of the supernatural, but to anyone looking for a good fantasy with a soft romantic element.  (She's working on the sequel now!)

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Hardcover: 400 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic Press (August 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0545123267
• ISBN-13: 978-0545123266

Book Review: Dracula Doesn't Live Here Anymore

Dracula Doesn't Live Here Anymore by Brian L. Porter

This 32 page novella is a quick read but entertaining and well written. Porter keeps the reader engaged from cover to cover following Alan Dexter and his search for the truth behind the supposed "vampire murders" in Romania. The plot twists keep you guessing and I enjoyed the resolution very much. Dexter is a character I'd like to see more of and Porter has informed me I shall!  He has writen a sequal titled Kiss of Life.  

You can purchase Dracula Doesn't Live Here Anymore online at Amazon.com and for more info on Kiss of Life visit http://www.mythicapublishing.com/