Nathaniel Lambert

Full disclosure: I have a story in this one.

However, when I went back to an old post I wrote about it on my blog, I was reminded there was an error in the Table of Contents attributing my story to someone else. Putting two and two together, I suspect that same error, made years ago, has filtered down to this day, explaining why I'm not a listed author.

And I love it! Here's why: Because though I honestly believe this is a five-star anthology, I was only going to give it four, just to keep myself honest. But unfettered with any credit, I'm going for five.

Some of you might remember Necrotic Tissue, one of the best horror magazines out there. It burned bright for a couple of years and then was gone. A labor of love for Editor R. Scott McCoy and his yeoman crew, Necrotic Tissue was known best among writers for not only giving everyone a chance, but doing their very best to pay "professional" rates -- and yes, I'm including the cool T-shirts they gave out. (I would have written for one of those alone.)

Necrotic Tissue was also known among writers for providing reasons why every story was rejected beyond "it just wasn't right for us," or more commonly, nothing at all. What I mean is, you were assured that they had read your story. If they didn't accept it, they told you why, which gave you hope to write something later that might be accepted.

Every issue of Necrotic Tissue included both short and longer form stories, as well as sprinkled throughout what were known as 100-word "bytes," that is, stories that were exactly 100 words, no more, no less, including the titles. Not as easy as it sounds. Trust me.

The Malpractice Anthology takes almost the form of an issue of Necrotic Tissue, in that it includes both short stories as well as 100-worders, except there's a theme to this one, that of a place called Bloom Memorial Hospital, where anything . . . and I mean ANYTHING . . . can and does take place.

So, if asking some of the most imaginative minds working today to come up with a horrific hospital tale sounds like your cup of tea -- and you KNOW that it is -- purchase or download your copy today.

If you like horror, you'll be glad you did.… (meer)

When I was first approached about this book, my immediate instinct was to run and hide under my bed. You see, I'm not a huge fan of zombies. They tend to freak me out and invade my dreams. In general, as a rule, I stay away from things that have zombies in them. As in most cases there are exceptions to every rule and It's Okay To Be A Zombie is one of them. I found this book to be cleverly written and hugely entertaining. Nathaniel Lambert gives the reader reasons why it's not your fault that your a dead, decaying corpse still walking around. Why you should embrace your new life as the walking dead. As a non-zombie lover I enjoyed this book. The illustrations in it are great too. They are very colorful and fun to look at. This book is marketed as a Unchildren's book. It's great for teenagers and adults. However I think it would be okay to read to children depending on the child. The pictures aren't too graphic but they do show things like body parts falling off. Just remember this is zombie book so use your own discretion. If you love zombies or know someone that does, I think this would be a great book to add to your collection or to give to the zombie lover in your life.… (meer)

"It's Okay to be a Zombie" is subtitled "An Unchildren's Book". Which means, and let's make no mistake, that's it's not for children, at least not little ones.

My 6-year-old and I hunkered down to read what appeared to be a cute and childish spin on Zombies. My son, after all, wrote a story in his first grade class this year called "Zombie's are Coming" (to be fair, I don't believe he spelled any of the words as I have them in quotes). "It's Okay" went as expected initially: crudely and cutely drawn little zombies happily falling into pools of government super-sludge.

Then things get very unchildren-y at about page 11 when the zombie's arm "finally succumbs to necrosis and falls off." On page 12, the zombie uses that arm to "bludgeon someone to death."

Yeah...not so good for the 6-year-old.

My 10 and 13-year-olds thought it was kind of funny and cute. But keep in mind this is a picture book.

If you're into dark humor then you and your older children would enjoy this feel-good story of being a zombie, right before sharing "Dawn of the Dead" on demand.

However keep this away from the little dudes.

I received this as part of the Goodreads First Reads program.… (meer)