John Everson

My introduction to Everson's work, and I will definitely be reading more. Not a light read, but I enjoyed it immensely. Quite bloody and gory, but unlike many horror novels that I've read, it actually has a plot behind all that killing.

In a sleepy town, the old haunted hotel has started functioning again as an asylum for battered and insane pregnant women. But a few residents from the town are not so sure that the women are mad or that the place is actually an asylum. Filled with characters that you either love or hate, but are along with the whole time, and an excellent plot twist at the end. A well done novel, and a great read!… (meer)

Be careful what you wish for. Not because you just might get it, but because you may not have the stomach to fork over the price of that wish being granted.
Austin is miserable in his marriage. Half the time his wife is giving him the silent treatment and the rest of the time he probably wishes she would instead of picking at everything he does. Who could blame him for spending more time at the bar since he dreads gong home?
When he meets Regina, a seductive stranger on one such night and tells her he wishes his wife would die, he doesn't really expect it to happen. When it does, his wildest nightmares could not have conjured the price he is expected to pay for this favor. Regina has friends in low places and Austin will have a hell of a time when they come to collect.
I received an advance copy for review.… (meer)

When Mike is offered a job shoring up a ramshackle old house to make it safe enough to walk through so that it can be turned into a Halloween attraction, he is not overly excited by the idea. For the last 50 years or so, rumors have circulated that this house is haunted. Not having worked steady for quite a while and in need of money he reluctantly agrees. There are strange happenings as soon as he starts working but for some reason a befuddled Mike doesn't quit his job. It kind of bothered me when Mike was not the least bit suspicious when a couple of random girls showed up to hang out at the house with him, and that he didn't seem to find it odd that he could be talking to them one minute and turn around and they were gone. It was just a bit too obvious and predictable for me. Towards the last half of the book there is lots of blood and gore for those of you who like the gross out factor but I just didn't find it to be as frightening as I had hoped.

I received an advance copy for review.… (meer)

This was a creepy ride into the devil's lair!

A small backstory:

Austin is just tired of his wife, Angie, as she is constantly harping at him. He tells a woman (Regina) in a bar one night that he wished his wife was dead, but when Austin is introduced to the neighbor next door he realizes that it was the same woman from the bar.

When Austin's wife does end up dead, Regina just sweeps in to take care of Austin and his baby daughter. Austin doesn't really want a relationship since his wife just died, but Regina is persistent as she doesn't give him an opportunity to say "no" as she practically moves in with him. What Austin doesn't know is that Regina has "devilish" plans for not only him but his baby daughter and she will do anything to fulfill her plan.

Who is Regina? What are her plans for Austin and the baby? No spoilers here as you will just have to read the book!

Thoughts:

This book was filled with dread and tons of erotic horror as Regina leads Austin down a road of devil worship.

The story made me think of Regina as a spider and she weaved a web of deceit, pulling Austin into her web then slowly dragging him along the spider web to be devoured into her world of deception.

Author, John Everson, went deep into the bowels of hell with this book and the writing style just flows along at a crisp, fast pace! Giving this book four "Devilish" stars!… (meer)