Tag: Horror

Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Gen Lit, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: The Caldecott Chronicles No.1 by R.G. Bullet (Short Story)

by The Lit Bitch1 Comment on Review: The Caldecott Chronicles No.1 by R.G. Bullet (Short Story)

Sweet succulent brains, that is what the undead are looking for in The Caldecott Chronicles by RG Bullet. Though the word ‘zombie’ is never used in the short story it is clear, the 32nd Earl of Rothshire and his home are under siege…from the undead….the zombies are coming! BRAINS!

Since this is more of a short story, my review will not be as lengthy. The author was kind enough to give me an ARC of the short story, since he knows I am a huge Victorian/Gothic lit fan. I was really excited to start reading it when my e-copy of the story arrived.

This is only the first installment and I understand the entire chronicles will be available sometime this month (Nov) according to the author’s website. 

The gruesome siege is recounted by the Earl, who is often quirky and humorous…..there’s just something about a proper, old fashion, English gentleman recounting how to kill the undead with this trusty Purdey shotgun.

The Earl’s home (Caldecott Estates) is in the picturesque area of the English countryside known as the Cotswolds. Set in 1899, the late Victorian social ideals and culture are beautifully brought to life in the Earl’s narrative.  Continue reading “Review: The Caldecott Chronicles No.1 by R.G. Bullet (Short Story)” →

Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Funny, Gen Lit, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: Pride Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame Smith

by The Lit Bitch3 Comments on Review: Pride Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame Smith

The satirical novel by Seth Grahame-Smith and of course Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, has been gaining a very large cult following of readers. I was very hesitant to read this novel as I worried the zombies element would somehow desecrate the timeless tale.

I have read many other PP spinoffs over the years and often found myself disappointed. I had to go into this book with an open mind and know that it would NEVER be the same as the original and was really meant to be something more light-hearted and funny rather than a serious novel.

There has lately been a huge resurgence in the interest of zombies (like so many other supernatural characters)—I have enjoyed many hours of the Plants vs. Zombies video game and confess hearing the zombies chant ‘brains’ and growl is nothing short of hysterical. So in essence I was intrigued and decided to pick up the book and being with an open mind and was pleasantly surprised by the entire tale. Continue reading “Review: Pride Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame Smith” →

Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Gen Lit, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: Dracula by Bram Stoker

by The Lit Bitch3 Comments on Review: Dracula by Bram Stoker

I finally finished reading the PadWorx interactive e-book (Bram Stoker’s Dracula) and can I just say, it was amazing. I have read Dracula before so I love the story but the interactive book added a whole new element.

Lately bloggers and the media have been talking about e-readers and e-books, some have suggested that e-books and readers will soon dominate the market. When I got my iPad I knew that I could download books for it but I never dreamed that I would have a hard time going back to a paperback book. Having books at my fingertips is wonderful, and when there are books like this one by PadWorx it’s hard to go back to a regular book.

When I first saw the App for Dracula I thought it was going to be a little cheesy and for $5.00 I thought it was on the ‘expensive’ side specially when I can download just the text version for free…..however the App quickly changed my mind.

For those of you who have read Dracula know that it is a long book though it reads quickly because it is an epistolary novel (a book written in letter or journal form). However, there are times that the novel itself drags a bit and sometimes it can be difficult to follow. When I first read Dracula I had a hard time figuring out what was going on until about 100 pages in, then it finally made sense. With the interactive version, it does help the reader follow a long better. Continue reading “Review: Dracula by Bram Stoker” →

Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Gen Lit, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: Drood by Dan Simmons

by The Lit Bitch5 Comments on Review: Drood by Dan Simmons

I recently picked up this book (Drood by Dan Simmons) in anticipation for Halloween. I wanted to read something that was scary and suspenseful with a historic Victorian London flair. This book started as a generally promising suspense/horror story but ended up being a huge disappointment. I’ll admit when I first started it I was completely hooked and into it but sadly as the weeks went by I had to force myself to finish it.

The book is written from the famous English author Wilkie Collins (famous works include The Woman in White and The Moonstone) perspective. Collins often collaborated with the famous Charles Dickens in real life. The witty humor which the Collin’s character brings to the novel is great, I often found myself LOL-ing all over the place and I especially loved the ‘Other Wilkie’ interaction (or lack there of) throughout the novel.

Simmons definitely nailed the Victorian writing style which added a sense of authenticity to the story as his sentences were long, wordy, and with a flair for the eccentric. He also seemed to really ‘get’ Collins’ character and used lots of Gothic fiction elements (ghosts, psychological breakdown, impending doom, drug use etc).

Simmons does a fantastic job recreating a gritty, dirty, creepy, horrifying turn of the century London. When Dickens and Collins venture out into the city slums looking for Drood, the imagery and description is by far one of the best I have read. I really felt like I was there walking right a long side Collins. The suspense and psychological cluster (*(^ that follows though it a little hard to sort out. Continue reading “Review: Drood by Dan Simmons” →