Books - good stuff & scary shit

I was in the bookstore yesterday and came across this book display on an end cap as a staff pick. I've heard of the graphic novel/comic book series--pretty sure my son (who collects graphic novels/comic books the way I collect other genre books) has several of them in his room. Plus I was pretty sure this was the second book in a series, and I had the first one. I was wrong. Right (co)author, wrong book. But really right writing.

The book I thought this one followed was: Criminal Macabre - A Cal McDonald Mystery by Steve Niles and Ben Templesmith. I did a lame-ish review of that book last march.

There was a second book, Guns, Drugs, and Monsters: A Cal McDonald Mystery, that I have to go hunt down.

Anywhoo. This book? 30 Days of Night? Scary shit. I started reading it last night and decided that maybe that wasn't the smartest thing to do. This book should be read in the bright light of day. lol. The gore starts pretty early by page 7 we have the second detailed death:

"The Station was destroyed
Gus's head--eyes permanently frozen in a rictus of wide-eye confusion and horror, mouth open as if silently protesting the situation--was left o a pike, gore splattering the snow around it, like a twisted message for us of our impending doom. ..." "...Repairs would take months. But there was no repairing Gus. The rest of him was in parts scattered in the snow."

I feel a glom of this author's entire backlist, coming on...

I'd ask my son to lend me the comics/graphic novels, but that will just send him on a whine-fest about how I have a hate-on for Daredevil, and sure I read everyone else except the blind guy and why won't I just read Daredevil Yellow? "It has a romance in it, you'd love it." blah-blah-blah. Then I'll start to see that damn Daredevil graph novel just hanging around the apartment in very conspicuous places, like bait. lol.

I've been having a real crisis finding good, engaging reading. I've put aside more unfinished books that I can remember. At this point I think the computer at the main big box bookstore has my name red flagged because of all the refunds. :-P At least returning a library book can be done without guilt. But let's talk about a couple of successes. Right now, I'm almost finished Steven King's On Writing. Excellent book, been in the tbr pile forever; but not 'entertainment' per se. A non-writer would enjoy this book as it's part memoir.

About a month ago, I finally read Catherine Mulvany's Run No More. This one has been languishing in my tbr pile since its release back in 2004. I really, really enjoyed it. It wasn't a perfect read, somewhere in the last 3rd, I'm pretty sure I had a few issues, but I can't remember what they were, and they weren't that serious, since this book is a keeper. Not run of the mill romance stuff.

I went looking to see if she had a back list and found she had another release last year, Shadows All Around Her. I don't recall hearing any buzz about this one, unlike RNM, but it still sounds interesting enough to try and track down.

There's nothing listed on her website regarding upcoming releases though. Which would be a bummer. Come to think of it, I don't think Ms. Mulvany has much of an online presence. I could be wrong, maybe she's hanging in places I don't venture, or under another name. But I can't help thinking that 'buzz' really helped bring the first book to many peeps attention, good story-telling did the rest. But there was not build up, or teaser for the second book. All that goodwill/name recognition essentially wasted. Word to the wise.

Oooookay, back on subject....

Another recommendation, Phillip Carlo's Smiling Wolf. A missing journalist, a grieving father, an arthritic detective with connections to the mob, BDSM sex clubs and vampires. What's not to love. *gg* I'd read more of this author.

That's it. I'm going to the gym, then I'll grab a coffee and do some writing. I want to make good progress on the wip for the long weekend, especially with my son up at his friends cottage all weekend, I'll be blissfully uninterrupted for 4 whole days.

Later, gators,