Bob Pastorella

Author's posts

Book Review: Grass by Anya Martin

Grass - Anya Martin - cover

“Martin has penned a tale of exceptionally unique vision and style, a darkly poignant story riddled with undercurrents of achingly seductive eroticism and temptation tempered by the threads of terror that permeate the book.” Anya Martin is something of a newcomer on the horror scene, but not a complete unknown. She’s been published in multiple …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thisishorror.co.uk/book-review-grass-by-anya-martin/

Book Review: Black Static, Issue 54

Black Static #54 - cover

“Very few other enterprises quite have as great handle on this aspect of horror writing as this periodical, and though there are the usual insightful columns, and reviews and interviews, it is the fiction which stands out in a publication full of highlights.” Horror is fast becoming a genre with very few set boundaries. It could …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thisishorror.co.uk/book-review-black-static-issue-54/

31 Lenses: The Appeal and Evolution of Rob Zombie as Director, Screenwriter and Producer

Rob Zombie's 31

Let’s get this out of the way right up front: I am a huge fan of Rob Zombie and Sheri Moon Zombie. My eight-year-old knows all the words to Dragula. I follow Sheri on Instagram and bought shirts from her short-lived Total Skull clothing line. I know they have a young teen daughter, are vegans, …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thisishorror.co.uk/31-lenses-the-appeal-and-evolution-of-rob-zombie-as-director-screenwriter-and-producer/

Introducing Horror to Your Little Monsters

The Babadook- reading

What are your plans for Halloween? Perhaps you have been invited to a fancy dress party with your guy or ghoul (sorry, I couldn’t resist). Or maybe you will be watching your favourite scary movie, or binge-watching all of your favourites. What about the younger members of your family? Will they be trick-or-treating? Dressing up? …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thisishorror.co.uk/introducing-horror-to-your-little-monsters/

AHS: Roanoke Chapter 3: Play by Play, Recap, and WTF

AHS- Roanoke-Chapter 3 - Kathy Bates

Evan Peters! Evan Peters! That’s my hopeful chant heading into Episode 3. I know there is a good chance you’ve heard the rumors that there will be a “major twist” mid-season, and as unhinged but linear as the storyline has gone so far, that is a worrying thought. Approximately, oh, eighty plot threads have been …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thisishorror.co.uk/ahs-roanoke-chapter-3-play-by-play-recap-and-wtf/

Book Review: The Awakening by Brett McBean

The Awakening - Brett McBean - cover

“Able to hold its own with other great coming-of-age horror novels.” The Awakening by Brett McBean is one of those books that gives the truth to the old cliché about never judging a book by its cover. It is reminiscent of the covers that proliferated during the horror boom of the 1980s. However, this novel …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thisishorror.co.uk/book-review-the-awakening-by-brett-mcbean/

Interview: Josh Malerman, Part II – Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Bird Box, and I Can Taste the Blood

Josh Malerman

This is part two of Shane Douglas Keene’s interview with Josh Malerman. Malerman is the author of the breakout debut novel, Bird Box, and has stories published in the recent anthologies Lost Signals from Perpetual Motion Machine Publishing, and in Gutted: Beautiful Horror Stories from Crystal Lake Publishing. He’s also got a story in the …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thisishorror.co.uk/interview-josh-malerman-part-ii-rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame-bird-box-and-i-can-taste-the-blood/

Book Review: Eternal Frankenstein, edited by Ross E. Lockhart

Eternal Frankenstein - cover

“These stories and characters are sewn together to create one hell of an exquisite monster.” Ross E. Lockhart and Word Horde have a reputation for putting out some wonderful anthologies, among those are The Book of Cthulhu and Giallo Fantastique. Eternal Frankenstein shines alongside them with an intensely dark and beautifully macabre mix of tales. …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thisishorror.co.uk/book-review-eternal-frankenstein-edited-by-ross-e-lockhart/

AHS: Roanoke Chapter 2: Recap, Spoilers and Predictions

AHS Little girl

So much optimism for the new season and second episode! Not for the characters, of course, they will all most likely and hopefully die a bloody death (Season 5 delivered a happy ending, this season owes us in blood). Optimism for gore and dirt and jump scares. American Horror Story has been incredibly shiny and …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thisishorror.co.uk/ahs-roanoke-chapter-2-recap-spoilers-and-predictions/

Injured Eyeballs: Who the Fuck are the Horror Mood Team? Part 2

Skywald Nightmare cover - 1

In last month’s column I looked at the birth of the black and white horror comic boom that began in the mid 60s and flourished until the early 80s. How it was started by Warren Comics, but spawned more than a few imitators, all of whom avoided the draconian Comics Code Authority because they were …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thisishorror.co.uk/injured-eyeballs-who-the-fuck-are-the-horror-mood-team-part-2/