The Year of Cemetery Dance 2018

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Dana Jean

Dirty Pirate Hooker, The Return
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Apr 11, 2006
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I just want to say that Dana Jean and I share the same birthday, January 18th. We share several traits but she got all the best ones. She's my Sister-from-another-Mother and I love her to pieces. Which I keep in jars. Much like Uncle Stevie does. Bwahahahahaaaaa!!
and right back atcha! We've been board sisters for so long!
 

Dana Jean

Dirty Pirate Hooker, The Return
Moderator
Apr 11, 2006
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You can buy their 'grab bags' when they offer them up for sale. Get on their mailing list so you will be alerted when the next one(s) happen. This is probably the best way (and cheapest!) for you to experience their books initially.
I love their grab bags. Love them. I have gotten some brilliant books from a grab bag. I've ordered a new one where they assure us there is no way we could have these books on our bookcase as they haven't been printed yet (at time of ordering anyway.) -- I would order a bazillion grab bags if I knew I would get new stuff.

So, I have to wait a year, or two even, to order a bag unless they specifically say it's new items because I can get so many repeats of things. And around xmas, if they offer a bag, I may or may not order a grab bag to put under the tree.
 

Doc Creed

Well-Known Member
Nov 18, 2015
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Next up:

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I'd like to read this one. Have you read Bumpty Bumpty Bump, or whatever it's called? It is a compendium of all Stephen king minutiae. I saw information about it on Amazon.
 

Dana Jean

Dirty Pirate Hooker, The Return
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Apr 11, 2006
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37. Reading Stephen King

edited by Brian James Freeman

About the Book:

"Stephen King has inspired millions of readers with his writing for more than four decades , and this special volume of essays gathers together some of his high-profile fans to discuss why they love reading the works of Stephen King.

Many of these fans are acclaimed authors of fiction in their own right. Some of them have written insightful books about Stephen King’s work, exploring how King’s natural storytelling gift has allowed him to create stories that reach people in every language around the world. A few of them have even written, produced, and directed movie adaptations of King's most acclaimed works.

In this book you will join Clive Barker, Stewart O'Nan, Richard Chizmar, Frank Darabont, Stephen Spignesi, Justin Brooks, Tony Magistrale, Michael R. Collings, Rocky Wood, Robin Furth, Kevin Quigley, Hans-Ake Lilja, Billy Chizmar, Jack Ketchum, Bev Vincent, Mick Garris, and Jay Franco as they discuss their love of reading Stephen King...
Table of Contents:
"Sometimes You Go Back" by Stewart O'Nan
"Christine" by Richard Chizmar
"The Art of Stephen King" by Frank Darabont
"Spock's Not The Only One Who Can Mind Meld: Stephen King and the Telepathy of Writing" by Stephen Spignesi
"Disappearing Down That Rabbit Hole" by Justin Brooks
"The Politics of Being Stephen King" by Tony Magistrale
"The Adventure of Reading Stephen King" by Michael R. Collings
"Reading the Lost Works of Stephen King" by Rocky Wood
"Twins and Twining in Stephen King's Dark Tower Series" by Robin Furth
"King Since Scribner" by Kevin Quigley
"Being a Non-US Stephen King Fan" by Hans-Ake Lilja
"The Role of Religion in Stephen King's Desperation" by Billy Chizmar
"From A Buick 8" by Jack Ketchum
"Living in a Web of Mystery" by Bev Vincent
"The One That Got Away" by Mick Garris
"My Accidental Obsession" by Jay Franco
"Stephen King Celebration" by Clive Barker"



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My Thoughts:

Cover art is by Ray Russotto and it's a great caricature. I wish it was on a t-shirt. It probably is.

The contents of the book is packed with essays regarding a love for Stephen King. All these authors spoke for all of us. Interesting insights and anecdotes. A big helping of food-for-thought.

The only other thing I'll add is an open letter to Mick Garris:


Dearest Mr. Garris:

I will read your script for The Talisman. I will give you the praise and love you deserve. Totally platonic of course.

I want you to know, while the powers-that-be may be blind to the brilliance I know you brought to this work, Joe Blow Constant Reader (me) will see and appreciate that brilliance, right here and now.

Shoot me an email. Or we can FaceTime. What fun! We'll talk. Okay, you'll talk. I'll just sit there with a moronic look on my face and nod a lot. And my mouth will dry out and my lip with sort of curl up and stick to my teeth -- that is a smile, not insanity.

With the utmost respect,

Dana Jean
 
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Dana Jean

Dirty Pirate Hooker, The Return
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Apr 11, 2006
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38. Vampyrrhic Rites

by Simon Clark

About the Book:

"Vampyrrhic Rites is the long-awaited sequel to Vampyrrhic by Simon Clark — this time, we've got more vampires, more blood, and more sheer terror!
Lazarus Deep is a lake that sits like a blot of darkness in the valley.


Eighteen-year-old Dylan Adams is on the verge of leaving his hometown for a life in the city, but his plans are dramatically changed when his old school friend Luke Spencer goes missing. A search finds nothing. All anyone knows is that he was last seen at Lazarus Deep. Then, in the dead of the night, Dylan's old friend comes calling. But he's not the same boy that everyone once knew.

Once more David Leppington, Bernice Mochardi and Electra Charnwood are drawn together to face the vampiric creatures that are Nosferatu: the undead. The desolate North Yorkshire Moors have held their secret for more than a thousand years. Now it is the turn of Lazarus Deep.

This is no beauty spot, and bathing is strictly prohibited."

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My Thoughts:

Terrific cover art by Alan M. Clark. He seems to be one of Cemetery Dance's featured go-to artists and I can see why.

Simon Clark does a very nice job submerging us into this tale of Vampires (pun intended). I had some moments I stopped to question some things, but seeing as this is a second entry in a series following Vampyrrhic, I'm thinking many of my questions would have been sufficiently answered had I been able to read that first book. Even though I jumped in with this second tale in the series, the questions weren't serious enough to take me out of the story and this book nicely stood alone.

Interesting story and premise. First time I've read about Norse Gods and Vampires together in the same place, so that was fun. The only thing that did do a devilish dance in my head had to do with Grandfather Clocks.

In the story in an old house called Lazarus Wake, a man is found in a coma by a group of people days after going into said coma, and that was the result of a couple weeks worth of Vampires working on controlling his mind.

A Grandfather Clock in the house became an important thing -- we are directed to focus on it many times. It's chiming, it's tick-tocking, the actual time it shows -- who the hell wound the clock? I have a grandfather clock and it needs wound at least every week. So, who maintained this clock so beautifully?

Rowan: Am I going insane? They are trying to control me, make me do things I don't want to do.
Vampires: Roooooowan, lissssssten. Come to us. Lead us in our God war. Invite us into your home. Oh, and by the way, wind the clock.
Rowan: nooooooooo. Not that! no clock maintenance!!!! *thunk, thud, coma*


I know, petty of me right? I'm sorry. With everything going on, we were time and time again forced to pay attention to that clock.

And with so many serious things to worry about like, oh, I don't know, starving, dehydrating, mind control and being bled dry by pale rotting creatures, I applaud his dedication to making sure that Grandfather Clock kept time. Those beastly timepieces are demanding taskmasters.

Mostly good characters, interesting plot, writing mechanics top notch. I liked it.
 
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Dana Jean

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39. Triage

by Jack Ketchum, Richard Laymon, Edward

About the Book:

"Brand new, never-before-published, full-length novellas of terror, suspense, weirdness, and erotic darkness by three of the hottest writers in the field!

All three novellas start with the same premise... a stranger walks into a place of business, pulls out a gun, and opens fire...

Triage is an exploration of mankind's dark side, and all copies are signed by Jack Ketchum, Edward Lee, and Matt Johnson."

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My Thoughts:

Gail Cross gives us a fitting cover for this trio of tales.

And I really liked this book. All three authors did a great job with their very different stories that all, as the synopsis above states, incorporate the same premise -- each story almost verbatim contains a scene and its characters involved in an on-the-job shooting. They took that premise and gave us unique, creative stories. A more successful Desperation/Regulators type connection in my opinion.

I think my favorite was Edward Lee's contribution, In the Year of Our Lord: 2202 -- at least it is the one that is staying with me.
 
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Dana Jean

Dirty Pirate Hooker, The Return
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Apr 11, 2006
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40. A Chapbook for Burnt-Out Priests, Rabbis and Ministers

by Ray Bradbury

About the Book:

"A Chapbook for Burnt-Out Priests, Rabbis and Ministers by Ray Bradbury is a major publishing event!

An exclusive, brand new hardcover collection containing new poetry, fiction, essays, and other oddities and fancies.

A stunning and thought-provoking volume—just in time for the new century—featuring classic Bradbury creations, all having to do with the Cosmos, the Universe,

Visitations, Annunciations, First and Last Suppers, early Sabbaths and much, much more.

This Cemetery Dance Publications edition is the only edition available anywhere in the world!"

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My Thoughts:

Phil Parks gives us a fun little cover here, well done.

Ray is one of my favorite authors-- when he talks about Mars and fantastical worlds hiding in plain sight.

This collection of various writings, while interesting, was not my cup o' noodles. People who love all things Ray will eat this up. I did find it different than what I am used to from Ray and I appreciate stepping out of my Bradbury box into something new. I'm also happy that his works have found their way into the common sense of every day life. He was an important and influential writer.
 
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Dana Jean

Dirty Pirate Hooker, The Return
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Apr 11, 2006
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41. Johnny Halloween: Tales of the Dark Season

by Norman Partridge

About the Book:

"Norman Partridge's Halloween novel, Dark Harvest, was chosen as one of Publishers Weekly's 100 Best Books of 2006. A Bram Stoker Award winner and World Fantasy nominee, Partridge's rapid-fire tale of a small town trapped by its own shadows welcomed a wholly original creation, the October Boy, earning the author comparisons to Stephen King, Ray Bradbury, and Shirley Jackson.

Now Partridge revisits Halloween with a collection featuring a half-dozen stories celebrating frights both past and present. In “The Jack o' Lantern,” a brand new Dark Harvest novelette, the October Boy races against a remorseless döppelganger bent on carving a deadly path through the town's annual ritual of death and rebirth. “Johnny Halloween” features a sheriff battling both a walking ghost and his own haunted conscience. In “Three Doors,” a scarred war hero hunts his past with the help of a magic prosthetic hand, while “Satan's Army” is a real Partridge rarity previously available only in a long sold-out lettered edition from another press.

But there's more to this holiday celebration besides fiction. “The Man Who Killed Halloween” is an extensive essay about growing up during the late sixties in the town where the Zodiac Killer began his murderous spree. In an introduction that explores monsters both fictional and real, Partridge recalls what it was like to live in a community menaced by a serial killer and examines how the Zodiac's reign of terror shaped him as a writer.

Halloween night awaits. Join a master storyteller as he explores the layers of darkness that separate all-too-human evil from the supernatural. Let Norman Partridge lead you on seven journeys through the most dangerous night of the year, where no one is safe…and everyone is suspect."


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My Thoughts:

Alex McVey (with digital effects by Zach McCain) produced this beautiful little cover.

I enjoyed this collection. Quick read because each entry just really grabbed me up.

His own hometown connection to and remembrances of the Zodiac killer was fascinating and well written.

My favorite story would be The Jack O'Lantern: A Dark Harvest Tale. A definite Shirley Jackson Lottery homage.

Good writer, I'd like to read more of his work.
 
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Dana Jean

Dirty Pirate Hooker, The Return
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Apr 11, 2006
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42. Shivers IV

edited by Richard Chizmar, various authors

About the Book:

"Cemetery Dance Publications is proud to announce the fourth entry in this award nominated and bestselling anthology series! Shivers IV contains twenty short stories from today's hottest writers, including William F. Nolan, Ed Gorman, Brian Hodge, Tim Lebbon, Al Sarrantonio, Ray Garton, T.M. Wright, Brian Keene, Kealan Patrick Burke, and many others!

Featuring original dark fiction with a handful of rare reprints, Shivers IV is available only as a beautiful perfect-bound trade paperback."

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My Thoughts:

Gail Cross once again brings us the cover to this terrific collection of stories. I was really blown away by this one, story after story delivered.

Shout outs for me would be Kealan Patrick Burke's Prohibited. Last Exit for the Lost by Tim Lebbon. LZ-116: Das Fliegenschloss by Stephen Mark Rainey. Gemma Files's Jack-knife.

I could go on and on pretty much just listing the whole book of authors and their stories. This was the best of the best of the best choices for this Shivers edition.
 
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RichardX

Well-Known Member
Sep 26, 2006
1,737
4,434
I'm a big fan of CD. So it pains me to criticize them, but man oh man do they have a major case of the slows. My experience has been to order something, plan on it taking years to receive it, forget about it, at some point check, find out it is still pending, wait some more. One day in a far distant future it will show up out of the blue. I wonder how often customers have moved or died before receiving their book? I know in these times we all want instant gratification, but CD really could test the patience of a monk. It seems to be getting worse rather than better. Any other business that operated like this would be in big trouble. Again, I"m a fan of the product, but it can be frustrating. Particularly when the "updates" are few, often outdated, and very generalized (e.g. "2018").