News Round-up Week Ending 20 January 2023

Here’s a small selection of the horror and genre news that caught our eye during the last week …

Out now from Crystal Lake Publishing and writer Elena Gomel, Nightwood

All fairy tales were history once. Ally is a Ukrainian bride who married a wealthy Californian, Carl Morris. Everything is strange in her new home: the shadowy redwoods, the peculiar neighbors, and the mystery surrounding the death of Carl’s first wife. But Ally is determined to leave her own tragic past behind and to be a good wife and a good American. Escaping darkness is not so easy, however. Ally discovers that her house is situated on the borders of Nightwood, where fairy tales become nightmares and nightmares become reality. And the ruler of Nightwood has plans of his own.

When Carl is abducted by a forest monster, Ally follows him into the land where the Red, Black, and White Horsemen drag the sun in their wake. There she is taken prisoner by the ghoulish Little Mother and is forced to labor in a filthy farmyard filled with deformed human livestock. But Little Mother is not the most terrifying creature in Nightwood. The Ogre, squatting in the Castle with no Windows, is poised to invade our world. He has Carl; and he wants Ally. Unexpectedly joined by new friends, Ally escapes to embark on a perilous journey across a dying land filled with mythical beasts and creatures from fairy tales. To save Carl, Ally will have to brave the horrors of Nightwood and uncover the shattering secret of her own identity. Available now in paperback and eBook, you can pick up your copy here.

Arriving 9 March from writer Michael Clark and Brigids Gate Press, Hell on High

Prepare for adventure as Juliana, a nineteen-year-old Brazilian, finds herself forced to run from an occult overlord, leaving her sister in peril. Temporarily safe, Juliana works to save money for Vilma’s rescue—and along the way, meets Patrick, a rich-boy mountain climber with friends in high places. Angus Addison wants to see his corporate flag on the summit of Mount Everest—carried there by the first woman in history—but the Himalayas are no joke. Failure could cost both sisters their lives. Juliana weighs the risks and rewards—for even if she raises the cash, she still must figure a way to free Vilma from the same man she ran from—a man known to his disciples as ‘The Farmer’. Available for pre-order now at a promotional price of 99c/82p, with a paperback edition to follow, you can guarantee your copy here.

Coming 28 January from writer Priscilla Bettis and Demain Publishing, Vampire of the Midnight Sun

Priscilla Bettis draws on real life experiences in the Alaska wilderness (grizzlies) and the Texas plains (wildfires) to pen these two short stories.
In ‘Vampire of the Midnight Sun,’ Frasier and his best friend, Billy, are stranded in the Alaskan wilderness after a rafting accident: grizzlies, arctic water, frozen nights, soggy tundra, no food, no matches, no civilization. And no one is coming to rescue them. Plus Billy is convinced he’s a vampire. It’s a five-day hike to civilization. Billy claims he can only go three days without human blood. Will the men survive the harsh Alaskan elements? If so, can Frasier survive Billy’s vampiric delusions, or will Frasier have to take his best friend’s life in order to save his own?

In ‘The Fire Witch and the Cowboy,’ Henderson is the yellow-bellied coward of Dusty Bend, Texas. His wife is ashamed of him. Kids tease him. And he’s terrified of wildfires. But when a wildfire threatens Dusty Bend, it is Henderson who brokers a deal between the townfolk and the wealthy but formidable Widow Vandermeer, to use her resources in order to fight the fire. “There will be sacrifices,” she says. If the widow learns Henderson’s decades-old secret, he might be the sacrifice. Will Henderson grab his wife and run, leaving town while he can? Or will he stay and risk falling into Widow Vandermeer’s clutches? Available for pre-order now in eBook, with a paperback edition to follow, you can guarantee your copy here.

Book of Evil, the new graphic novel from writer Scott Snyder and artist Jock, Out now on Comxiology Originals from Best Jackett Press

The kids venture out in search of the truth behind the Book of Evil. Is it even real? And even if it is, will they reach it before their all-too-deadly pursuers catch up? Part of the Comixology Originals line of exclusive digital content only available on Comixology and Kindle. Read for free as part of your subscription to Comixology Unlimited, Kindle Unlimited or Amazon Prime. Also available for purchase via Comixology, Kindle and in print via Dark Horse Books. Available now in digital and paperback editions, you can grab your copy here.

Out now from author Chad Farmer and D & T Publishing, Into This World

Warren, after being estranged from his evil and sadistic cult mother Rune (who believes in aliens) and a brainwashed sister, attempts to lead a normal life with his wife and soon-to-be-born son. However, things don’t go as planned when Alamathea kidnaps the newborn baby. Warren is forced to once again face the family he once fled from. Rune has otherworldly plans for her grandson which involve an “elite extra-terrestrial” race. Now Warren must fight for his and his son’s life against and an unknown and terrifying agenda. Available now on Godless, and coming soon to other sellers, you can pick up your copy here.

New from author L. Stephenson, Candles, Bullets and Dead Skin, a pocket-sized collection of short fiction

From the author of The Goners comes a pocket-sized collection, featuring the best of his previously published works so far. Outside of Stephenson’s debut slasher novella, his stories tackled subjects such as ableism, gender identity and shockingly true acts of violence. Available now in eBook and paperback editions, you can pick up your copy here.

KEV HARRISON