Supporting authors everywhere….

Posted on May 17, 2012 by

WARNING

I am not nor will I be the last to post on this matter, but I want it to be known that Doubleshot Reviews supports all authors and we do NOT want to hear about them getting scammed like what has happened to quite a few authors recently and in the past. Editor Anthony Giangregorio of Open Casket Press and Living Dead Press was given the privilege and the trust of working with an author and their work, the end result being serious changes in their story (changes that were not submitted to the author for approval), comments that can very easily be viewed as threatening and a variety of other incidents.

Below you will find a few links to blogs discussing this matter and giving great detail as to what occurred. The first being Mandy DeGeit’s post When Publishing Goes Wrong…Starring Undead Press This is the post that seems to have truly set this whirlwind of events into full swing, but let it be known that this is by far the first time something like this has happened.

On the same day that Mandy’s post went live, another author Alyn Day put in her $0.02 on Open Casket Press in the post Suffering in Silence. 

The day after these posts went live LitReactor responded with Publisher of Anthology Screws Over Writer: A Cautionary Tale, authors, Jon F Merz  and Lincoln Crisler chime in with A Writer’s Best Defense (Merz) and Undead Press: They’ll Add Shit to Your Story (Crisler)

These are but a few who are speaking out against this man and I’m sure their voices will continue to be heard.

Protect yourself and your work …stay away from this “publisher”

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Skin Trade by Tonia Brown

Posted on May 12, 2012 by

Amazon paperback/Kindle

The Great Undead Uprising of 1870 devastated the western frontier and destroyed the Indian Nations. Though the Army was able to contain the menace before it could devour the entire country, the United States lost claim to her western territories as the survivors fled to the relative safety of the east coast. Samantha Martin is among the rare folks traveling west, seeking asylum within the infected territories. Running from a past that threatens to consume her, the young Sam dons the mantle of a male and hides in an all boys’ workhouse that borders these Badlands. From there she is thrust into the service of the skin trade; the terrible deed of trapping and skinning zombies for profit. The work is grueling and perilous, but along the way she finds out what it takes to be a man, why she misses being a woman, but most of all she learns what it means to be human. Can Sam keep her masquerade up long enough to flee the Badlands, or will the outlaws that rule the western frontier find out she’s female before she can escape?

Ever want to read about the horror that occurs in a world where the undead walk? Oh, you’ve read a lot of zombie books? You know what happens? Hmmm, well…guess again, because Tonia Brown’s Skin Trade, shows a new way of living with the undead and it’s messed up! Just imagine the already intense horror of living in a world of the undead, now add in that you are attempting to hide that you’re actually a girl all while being kidnapped, skinning the flesh of the undead, seducing your captors in order to gain trust and hoping and praying your mentor shows up in time to save you. Pretty crazy stuff, huh?

Well that, and so much more, is what we are given when entering the Skin Trade. The characters are excellently written with great dialogue that is both witty and thought provoking, at times. Our main character, Sam, is a strong young woman who has been forced to endure much more than any young lady should no matter the time period or the fact that the world has been completely turned upside down with the undead. The dynamic between the various characters was excellently portrayed as characters usually are when under the pen of Tonia Brown and the change in the dynamic is nearly tangible as Sam learns more about those she encounters.

Highly detailed and described, the universe of Skin Trade is horrific and brutal. Great lengths are taking to give a vivid and detail description of the landscape and actions of those living in the Badlands. Skin Trade is definitely not a book for the feint of heart.

So the verdict is, Tonia Brown’s Skin Trade is a “knock down drag your doggie through the dirt, pour lemon juice on a papercut” hellava ride.

Definitely Doubleshot Reviews approved.

Skin Trade can be purchased for Kindle and paperback through Amazon by clicking the cover image above. Barnes & Noble fans (paperback only at the moment) can go (HERE).

Learn more about the author by reading her blog The Backseat Writer and by following her on Twitter: @ToniaBrown1

Espresso rating: QUAD

 

Posted in Zombies, Horror | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Crystallophobia – Fear of Glass (Series of Fears #1)

Posted on May 9, 2012 by

Amazon Kindle

In the small town of Streinersburg, Ohio a normal Tuesday morning begins, but it doesn’t stay that way. As the workers of Walker’s Glass — a struggling factory — settle in to their daily routine, all hell breaks loose when there is an explosion.

Millions of shards of glass are blasted through the factory, cutting and killing all the workers. As help arrives, something terrifying starts happening… The bodies start to come back to life. Soon a horde of zombies ravenous for human flesh are walking the streets of Streinersburg, shimmering in the sunlight as they look for their next meal.

The town must find a way to survive as they all ask the same question: What was in the glass and where did it come from?

From the minds of Jim Bronyaur and Rebecca Besser comes a new series that explores some of our darkest – and strangest fears. Everyone has a fear. Some have many, but we all have a fear that curls our toes, causes our breath to catch in our throat, freezes us to the spot. It’s usually referred to as a phobia and the authors of Crystallophobia – Fear of Glass (Series of Fears #1) are setting out to explore these fears starting with Crystallophobia, the fear of glass.

Our story is set in a tiny town in Ohio. It’s a typical morning, some townsfolk getting their cuppa joe at the local diner, children preparing themselves for a visit with the grandparents after school and, as with any small town, some gossip going on with the neighbors after sending their husbands off to work in the glass factory. What happens next and why it happened is the mystery. The glass factory explodes peppering all the workers with tiny sparkling shards of glass killing them…the catch? These dead men begin to get up and eat the living who have come to help them. Imagine a hoard of sparkling zombies ripping and tearing at your neighbor…creepy, huh? (Now before you think…”oh great! more sparkling monsters”, allow me to let you in on a secret. These zombies are mean, they eat, they kill and they are not “vegetarian” zombies (no offense meant toward vegetarians))

The characters in Crystallophobia – Fear of Glass (Series of Fears #1) are excellent. Very realistic and believable for a small town society. There were some characters I totally related to and some I just wanted to be or, at least, be friends with. Rebecca and Jim take us on an edge of your seat journey through the town ravaging, rampaging and causing great destruction. Gorey details and visual imagery are used to make one cringe in disgust.

I definitely recommend Crystallophobia – Fear of Glass (Series of Fears #1) it is an excellent start to what could very well be a fantastic series.

You, too, can begin your adventure exploring your deepest, darkest fears by picking up a copy of Crystallophobia – Fear of Glass (Series of Fears #1) via Amazon for Kindle by clicking the cover image above or for Barnes & Noble nook owners go (HERE)

Learn more about Rebecca Besser and her other work by visiting The Official Website of Author Rebecca Besser or stalking her tweets on Twitter: @BeccaBesser. Similarly visit Jim Bronyaur’s site titled Jim’s World of Horror & Music & Stuff and he’s also on Twitter: @jimbronyaur

Espresso rating: Triple with a splash of milk

Posted in Horror, Series | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Junkie Quatrain by Peter Clines

Posted on May 4, 2012 by

Amazon Kindle/Audible.com

Four short stories. Each one’s a different type of post-apocalypse story. Survival horror. Ethical horror. Adventure horror. And one where the protagonist barely notices the apocalypse has happened. Each one stands alone and (hopefully) makes for a fun little read. 

But if you read two or three or all four, you’ll see several events from different perspectives. And if you look close you’ll even get a few scattered clues which might even come together to form a conspiracy.

Do you like thrilling suspense? Mystery? The Undead? Interested in how people survive in an apocalyptic world? Well then you need to stop reading right here and just trust Doubleshot Reviews and go pick up a copy of The Junkie Quatrain by Ex-Heroes/Ex-Patriots author Peter Clines. Go ahead, I’ll wait…………

Ok, got your copy? GREAT! Now pick any one of the 4 stories and read it, then roll a die and pick the next story and continue as such. You’re thinking I’m crazy right about now, aren’t you?  Well, I am a bit touched in the head, but not about The Junkie Quatrain. These stories can be read in any order and can even be read as a stand alone tale, but when put together they tell the tale of  mixed group of characters surviving/manipulating/scientifically studying the apocalypse. Nearly all the characters at some point come into contact with each other, some effecting certain lives more than others.

Just to give a little whetting of the whistle, because I am NOT giving away anything in this review. We meet a tough hardened woman who seems better suited to surviving alone rather than with others, a thoroughly professional killer, a scientist/researcher who has his own agenda and a group of scavengers who just happen upon the wrong building to raid. The tension is tangible at times and the mystery and intrigue continue throughout each story as I tried to figure out on my own how everything fits together.

I actually look forward to reading The Junkie Quatrain again and in a different order to see how things might change in how I perceive them. This book is a DEFINITE must have and since I know you have already grabbed your copy….roll the dice, sit back with your cuppa and enjoy the carnage.

Pick up your copy of The Junkie Quatrain over at Amazon  for Kindle or in audio book through Audible.com by clicking the cover image above. Or for nook owners head (HERE) for Barnes & Noble purchases. All other eReading devices can visit Smashwords  (HERE)  for the proper version needed

Espresso rating: Quad

Posted in Horror, Suspense, Thriller | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Permuted Press HUGE $0.99 eBook Sale!

Posted on May 3, 2012 by

Titles below are just $0.99 in eBook format until…well, they are not sure when the madness will end,  so grab them now!

Don’t have an eBook reader? Read eBooks on your phone, PC, or Mac with this free software.

Dead Earth: Green DawnSeason of RotBuck Alice and the Actor RobotDown the Road: On the Last DayRoses of Blood on Barbwire VinesThe UndeadElements of the ApocalypseThe DeadStories for the End of the WorldRoads Less TraveledThe DesertNew Zed OrderDomain of the DeadThe Undead SituationAmong the Living

Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments

Cemetery Club by J.G. Faherty

Posted on April 22, 2012 by

Amazon Kindle/paperback

20 years ago four friends awoke an ancient evil, and only the Cemetery Club can stop it before the whole town ends up dead. Or worse.

Rocky Point is a small town with a violent history – mass graves, illegal medical experiments and brutal murders dating back centuries. Of course, when Cory, Marisol, John and Todd form the Cemetery Club, they know none of this. They’ve found the coolest place to party after school – an old crypt. But then things start to go bad. People get killed and the Cemetery Club knows the cause: malevolent creatures that turn people into zombies. When no one believes them, they descend into the infested tunnels below the town and somehow manage to stop the cannibalistic deaths.

Now, twenty years later, the horror is beginning again. The Cemetery Club must reunite to defeat the menace once and for all. The problem is they can’t remember how they did it the first time.

It’s a race against time to find the true source of evil infesting Rocky Point, as the Cemetery Club ventures into the cryptic maze, to face their demons in a final showdown.

Cemetery Club by J.G. Faherty is what some might consider a “buddy book” A group of high school friends who do almost everything together, especially hanging out drinking and smoking in their clubhouse, which just happens to be a crypt in a cemetery…hence, Cemetery Club. As per usual, they get themselves involved in something that they shouldn’t have, but unfortunately this something isn’t just your typical HS hijinks. What happens next leads one boy to spend 20 years in a mental institution. Supernatural forces are at hand and they are back bringing the Cemetery Club members back together again to, yet again, defeat this horrible foe.

Some might compare Cemetery Club to Stephen King’s IT and I can definitely see the comparison, but I, personally, enjoyed this tale a bit more. (I know, blasphemy) The characters were well described. We see flashbacks into the various characters past and when compared to their present lives we get a detailed enough idea of how who they were in the past compares to who they grew up to be. The setting is basically any small town in America (I can’t recall the actual location at the moment) The action is well done. I wouldn’t say it is overly gruesome but it is definitely tangible. The creatures are vividly described and have a definite creep factor to their presence, which I loved.

Honestly there is really only one aspect of this book that….well it annoyed me. While I hate to say it annoyed me and then not go into any form of detail, I cannot go any further because to do so would be to give away something and I don’t want to do that to any potential readers, because what bothered me might not bother you.

Learn more about J.G. Faherty over at his website aptly named: Official Website of J.G. Faherty. To pick up your own copy of Cemetery Club click the cover image above for Amazon Kindle or paperback copies. Barnes & Noble nook owners, as well as, paperback copies can click (HERE)

Espresso rating: Triple with a splash of milk

Posted in Horror, Suspense, Thriller, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Scars on the Face of God: The Devil’s Bible by C.G. Bauer

Posted on April 20, 2012 by

Amazon Kindle/paperback

Hex signs protect every barn and outbuilding. The local tannery spews its poison on the land and in the river. And babies disappear at birth. An orphan and one-time felon who earned his nickname “from the sound a crowbar makes when it hits a man’s head,” Wump Hozer is now the custodian of Our Lady of the Innocents parish in Three Bridges, PA. Wump is old and tired. He’s fought all his life against the tannery’s waste, against God, and against the blind eyes of his good neighbors. Nowadays he tries to ignore the old monsignor’s exploits with the young women of the parish and the strangeness surrounding the local orphanage, and does what good he can for his wife, the church, the sisters who run the orphanage, and the poor orphans themselves. Childhood memories and strange presentments begin to plague Wump when a brick wall unearthed at the site of a new restaurant collapses, and raw sewage carries hundreds of bones into the pit left behind. It looks like the Devil’s made Three Bridges his new playground. A blasphemous bible tells Wump why.

Like a good character driven story? One with lots and backstory and so many twists and turns you aren’t sure if you’re coming or going? Then you will enjoy Scars on the Face of God: The Devil’s Bible. The story takes place through the eyes of Wump (Ever wonder what the sound is a tire iron makes hitting a human skull? Now you know)  Wump has had a hard life and he’s tired, he tries his best to be a good man to make up for his past wrongs. He has a good job working as custodial for the local parish, but some odd things continue to happen and Wump seems to be right in the middle of it all. The town has a horrible little secret and Wump is about to learn the entire story.

Honestly, I don’t want to say too much about Scars on the Face of God: The Devil’s Bible because even though I have read it I think I need to go back and read it again. It’s one of those tales that has so many hidden tidbits scattered throughout it that you’re definitely going to miss things during the first read through. Trust me that this is an excellent tale of mystery and religion mixed with a touch of horror. The main character is flawed, making him all the more believable and the surrounding characters play fantastically against Wump.  The setting is simple, but well developed in that as you are reading the sights, sounds and odors are vivid enough that you could swear you just smelled dog poo. (Yes, I said dog poo)

A definite must read for all who enjoy a thrilling and mysterious well told story that can truly make you sit down and ponder the sort of life you lead and where it might take you over time.

Pick up your copy of this fantastic tale, Scars on the Face of God: The Devil’s Bible, for paperback and Kindle via Amazon by clicking the cover image above. Have a nook from  Barnes & Noble? Click (HERE)  (nook only, no paperback)  For all other eBook forms head over to Smashwords (HERE)

The authors website is currently being overhauled from what I have read, but keep your eyes on http://cgbauer.net/ for future updates from C.G. Bauer

Espresso rating: Triple with splash of milk

Posted in Mystery, Suspense, Thriller | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment