Hey guys and gals! It’s your old pal Skull sharing the good news of Daniel Braum’s new release Strange Constellations! Published by Cemetery Dance, this great collection of stories is already making waves in the Amazon book category rankings and getting positive reviews. The stories I’ve read so far are amazing and I’ll have a review up soon on Damaged Skull Writer and Reviewer, Hellnotes, Goodreads, Twitter, and Facebook. Until then, stay cool and keep reading independent horror!
DEMO REELS and ARTHOUSE MADNESS
Vince A. Liaguno
2/25/2025
Raw Dog Screaming Press
Reviewed by Brian “Skull” Lewis
Hey there horror fans, it’s your old pal Skull returning from the grave to clue you in about a most excellent collection of dark verse from Bram Stoker Award winner, Vince A. Liaguno! Just released by Raw Dog Screaming Press, Demo Reels and Arthouse Madness is a rollercoaster that’s ready to take readers on a wild ride through the dark side. So, buckle up buttercup, and hang on tight!
This a great collection of diverse dark verse that delivers a funky movie house vibe with its fan letter to horror flicks. “Summer Camp, Parts I and II” is a great example of this with playful verse about all the crazy goings on at camps we’re familiar with through the magic of cinema. “Epoch Rewound” transmits images of the 1980’s into our heads, the ones now referred to as “Pop Culture” but to those of us who were there, we were just walking though the endless malls, using lots of hair spray, and playing Trivial Pursuit. Many of the poems in Demo Reels and Arthouse Madness are about deep topics, but Liaguno presents them artfully, mixing in clips of pretty things to camouflage the horror chattering across dusty screens in musty abandoned theaters.
“Chatroom Hustler” opens the show by launching us into the dark side of online sex. “Ghosts of the Disco” transports us to the 1980’s dance clubs of NYC pumping with the sparkling, simmering, sexy intoxication of being out in a safe space. Unfortunately, the hot sweaty sex gives way to paralyzing fear and chilling terror in the 90’s. There’s a killer on the loose that’s silent and deadly. It doesn’t discriminate, but many neighbors do. This poem is followed by the sad and sweet, “Awaiting You” where a lover waits for their missing partner as the place they’re waiting is slowly revealed.
“Maternity Ward” is a poem that hit me like a well-aimed kidney punch and I’m pretty sure there are many readers like me who will read it and feel a sharp “click!” as it locks into place. Liaguno achieves the perfect blend of abstract and specific, so that he can be telling your story, too, of a parent you wanted to love and feel loved by. Instead, we ended up tossed along the wayside, only to be greedily snatched back up again by someone who refused to let us go and be ourselves. They often said, “I’m only trying to help/protect you!” but didn’t know how or were twisted by previous life experiences and maimed us instead.
Did you ever play the license plate game as a kid? Your family’s on a road trip and the adults tried to keep us busy by having us look for plates from each of the 50 states. New York and Pennsylvania are pretty easy, Louisiana a lot harder, and whoever sees an Alaska plate gets a candy bar! Liaguno plays a similar but much darker game with us in his poem “Missing Adults” where every license plate is a clue along with the back of a milk carton description. Winning this game is not for the faint of heart because connecting the clues brings about a chilling conclusion you can’t unsee once it’s in your head.
So, there is your peek into the darkness, my friends! Damaged Skull Writer and Reviewer’s rating of Demo Reels and Arthouse Madness-a collection of dark verse by Vince A. Liaguno is a blazing FIVE STARS. This is a fabulously cool collection that showcases Liaguno’s ability to mix big handfuls of pop icon imagery into his work without it seeming forced. You come upon it as you’re reading along, feeling that tingle of recognition, but not seeing the whole picture yet. So, we continue walking down that dark city street until everything hits us with the fizzing pop of celluloid burning and a brilliant flash of the marquee lights, changing everything forever.
To purchase Demo Reels and Arthouse Madness, please visit Raw Dog Screaming Press at: www.RawDogScreaming.com They have a lot of excellent titles available, including: Fever Dreams of a Parasite by Pedro Iniguez, and Beyond The Bounds of Infinity a diverse Lovecraftian horror anthology edited by Vaughn A. Jackson and Stephanie Pearre, which is amazing. Check out my review!
To learn more about award-winning poet, writer, anthologist and editor Vince A. Liaguno, please check out his site: www.vinceliaguno.com and be sure to dig the mind-blowing book trailer featured there! Vince is also on Facebook: www.facebook.com/vinceliaguno , Instagram@vinceliaguno, Goodreads, and Twitter/X
About your reviewer:
When darkness falls Brian James Lewis transforms into his undead alter ego, Skull, and burns the midnight oil reading and reviewing recent arrivals to his lair, the Skullcave. You can catch up with him on social media at: https://facebook.com/DamagedSkullWriterandReviewer where he’d really appreciate some follows to get more exposure for Indy horror writers and presses!
You can also find him on: X/Twitter@skullsnflames76
And we’re also on Goodreads and leave reviews on Amazon under the mortal’s name Brian James Lewis
Until next time, be well, stay safe, and keep reading independent horror!
Vince A. Liaguno
Hello fans of diverse horror! It’s your old pal Skull celebrating the RAW DOG SCREAMIMG PRESS book birthday of “Fever Dreams of a Parasite” by excellent writer and poet, Pedro Iniguez. This collection is a wild collage of Latin culture, traditions, and things that go bump in the night. Sometimes a ghost is a ghost and sometimes it’s ICE grabbing innocent people under the cover of night.
FEVER DREAMS OF A PARASITE is insanely well written and perfect for the times we are going through right now. Readers will connect with Iniguez’s characters and be able to see something they’ve looked at before with different eyes, maybe for the first time. There is a lot of evil in our world that’s not always easy to define. This is where the storyteller is both a guide and a shaman. Enter the FEVER DREAMS OF A PARASITE for view behind the veil. Currently available from RAW DOG SCREAMING PRESS at http://www.RawDogScreaming.com or from your preferred book retailer in both physical or kindle/e-book formats.
HAPPY BUNNY AND OTHER MISCHIEFS
Rebecca Gransden
October 30, 2024
Cardboard Wall Empire
Reviewed by Brian “Skull” Lewis
Hello again, all you horror fiends! It’s your old pal Skull with Happy Bunny and other Mischiefs, a new short story collection from Rebecca Gransden. Behind the grainy security camera footage cover readers will find themselves immersed in a Bizarro universe made up of fourteen stories that strike like an angry scorpion on LSD that’s been hiding in your sleeping bag. Gransden has the uncanny ability of turning the everyday into something terrifying in just a few short pages. So, if you’re looking for weird, follow me into the darkness…
Things kick of with, Turducken: Confirm Humanity. If you’re not familiar with what a turducken is, look it up for the best understanding of what this feisty little tale is trying to illustrate. When this multi-layered creature escapes a transport, it decides to do its best to fit in and create a delightful feast of what it finds in the wild. The guests are certainly in for a surprise!
In Canon Fodder we meet a person who enjoys inducing riots by shooting money out of a confetti canon in busy public spaces. She enjoys the injuries, violence, and deaths caused by the frantic scrabble for cash. But when a rival gang decides that she’s just a little too good at what she does, they come up with a grisly final assignment.
As a former professional driver of 18-wheelers and delivery vans, I’m not a big fan of sharing the road with self-driving cars. They may be presented to the media as the next great thing, but brothers Yuri and Dimos find out how terrifying these vehicles are (and who’s really in control) in the story Slug Slick.
Not even municipal street cleaners are safe in their noble but filthy profession. They have to be alert for the dangers of Disco Rice! Most of the workers just do their time, clock out, and leave the grossness behind. But a few twisted individuals have formed The Disco Rice Club and taken obsession to a whole new level of strange.
In Sparrow Eyes, two couples and a friend head out to a holiday camp where they plan to party hearty and maybe do a little swinging. But something in the woods is waiting for them. It has needs, too, and if the group doesn’t do what it wants, this could be their last trip.
Happy Bunny and Other Mischiefs is a unique collection of stories that refuses to be pigeon-holed into a single category, and I think that’s a good thing. Damaged Skull Writer and Reviewer rates Rebecca Gransden’s latest collection 4.5 Stars! Be prepared for sudden plunges directly into the action and some entertaining names for characters such as “Gary Hotdog”, “Tall Jim”, and “Fuck It Cat”. These stories may shock you, and some speak out against important topics like child abuse and social media overload, but you sure as hell won’t be bored. Dare to think for yourself and get yourself a copy of Happy Bunny and Other Mischiefs! You’ll be glad you did.
Cardboard Wall Empire is an independent press that has published a large amount of Rebecca Gransden’s books. My favorite so far is Creepy Sheen, which you can read my review of at www.damagedskullwriterandreviewer.com . There are also some selections from Leo X. Robertson available. You can purchase Cardboard Wall Empire books from Amazon.com or your favorite bookseller. New projects are in the works, so stay tuned!
About your reviewer:
When darkness falls. Brian James Lewis becomes his alter ego, Skull, and burns the midnight oil reading and reviewing recent arrivals to his lair, the Skullcave! You can catch up with him on social media at: https://facebook.com/DamagedSkullWriterandReviewer where he’d really appreciate some follows to get more exposure for Indy horror writers and presses!
You can also find him on: X/Twitter@skullsnflames76
And we’re also on Goodreads and leave reviews on Amazon under the mortal’s name Brian James Lewis
To follow Damaged Skull Writer and Reviewer, please visit: www.damagedskullwriterandreviewer.com Thanks!
Until next time, be well, stay safe, and keep reading independent horror!
photo credit: “Fallout Shelter-No Days Off” Brian James Lewis
ERRANT ROOTS
Sonora Taylor
10/15/2024
Raw Dog Screaming Press
Reviewed by Brian “Skull” Lewis
Greetings fellow Horror fiends, it’s your old pal Skull with a nifty new read from Raw Dog Screaming Press! Volume 6 in the Selected Papers from The Consortium For The Study of Anomalous Phenomena, ERRANT ROOTS, by one of my favorite Horror authors, Sonora Taylor, packs a big punch. Behind that splendid cover by Lynne Hansen, this novella almost looks like a Victorian era handbook of etiquette, but readers will soon find out that the Croft family’s traditions are anything but polite.
When Dierdre Croft finds out that she and her boyfriend Tom are pregnant, she does what most women do: tell her mom. Harriet is pretty cool about it, avoiding the old school “living in sin” speech in favor of congratulating her daughter. Tom is a caring, standup guy who’s just as excited for the baby as Diedre is. But then, seemingly out of the blue, Harriet insists that they all go see the family that she left behind 24 years ago, to announce the upcoming child and have a gender reveal party.
Dierdre goes along with the plan to make her mother happy, even though she has the feeling that something is wrong about this sudden visit to people she doesn’t even know. Why drive out to the middle of nowhere when they could just as easily have a baby shower in a nice city restaurant? Tom also feels upset when his family is excluded from the proceedings. His discomfort only increases when all the residents of Grandma’s house are female and they don’t seem to like him very much.
Grandmother Yvonne is a regal looking woman, who is clearly not someone to mess with. Her eyes burn with madness as she reveals some of the secrets and rituals surrounding the Croft family tree which is in fact a huge Oak tree that all the women of the family must serve and maintain as per the book of rules and traditions drafted up by their great grandmother, Josephine. Dierdre shares many coincidental elements of her pregnancy with Josephine, Yvonne, and Harriet, including the age she’ll be giving birth. To the Croft family this means that Dierdre is the chosen one to continue something called The Daylight Branch which requires some rather gruesome traditions “for the strength of the line.”
But an isolated family that self-governs with no outside interference from the government or local law enforcement is not immune from jealousy, anger, and dark thoughts. Once things start going horribly wrong at the gender reveal party, it doesn’t take long for the sanity train to go screaming off the rails. As it picks up speed, surprises galore are revealed with every twist and turn. The way things turn out will shock both readers and the book’s characters, who thought they knew how the ceremonies went. But when you’re at the mercy of someone who claims to be doing what’s best for the family, hell can break loose at any time.
Whew! Great writing by Sonora Taylor and thanks to Raw Dog Screaming Press for requesting a review of this awesome addition to the Selected Papers from The Consortium For The Study Of Anomalous Phenomena volumes. Damaged Skull Writer and Reviewer rates Errant Roots 5 STARS*****! Once again, Taylor continues her tradition of bringing fine work into the world. Errant Roots is for anyone who’s ever dealt with a difficult or toxic family, especially those that do their dirty work in private, making you look bad when trying to expose them. No thanks to many of the agencies who are supposed to help, but don’t. Bringing a child into the world should be a wonderful, joyous occasion, not a one-way ticket to misery. Eden Royce contributes a solid and thought-provoking afterword that wraps things up nicely. For those with sensitivity concerns there is a list at the rear of the book for consultation before reading.
Sonora Taylor is an award-winning author of several books including Someone to Share My Nightmares, Seeing Things, and Little Paranoias. She also co-edited Diet Riot: A Fatterpunk Anthology with Nico Bell.This collection is one of my favorites because of its strong body positive theme. All the stories feature strong, sexy, and diverse plus-size people who are the heroes (not helpless targets or villains) and gives the bird to naysayers and shade throwers. To find out more about Sonora Taylor, visit her at: https://sonorataylor.com
Raw Dog Screaming Press is an independent publisher of horror stories and poetry with a solid focus on diversity in what they print and who writes it. They are a force for good in the world and care about the creatives they work with. Be sure to check them out at: www.rawdogscreaming.com
About your reviewer:
When darkness falls Brian James Lewis becomes his alter ego, Skull, and burns the midnight oil reading and reviewing recent arrivals to his lair, the Skullcave! You can catch up with him on social media at: https://facebook.com/DamagedSkullWriterandReviewer where he’d really appreciate some follows to get more exposure for Indy horror writers and presses!
You can also find him on: X/Twitter@skullsnflames76
And we’re also on Goodreads and leave reviews on Amazon under the mortal’s name Brian James Lewis
Sonora Taylor
H.P. LOVECRAFT’S COMMONPLACE BOOK
Illustrated by Michael Bukowski
Lethe Press
8/3/2024
Reviewed by Brian “Skull” Lewis
Hello awesome readers, it’s your old pal Skull with a book that I’m honestly, kind of in love with: H.P. Lovecraft’s Commonplace Book recently released by the rather awesome Lethe Press! Serious Lovecraft fans may be familiar with this little volume of his collected thoughts and ideas, but I’m willing to bet you haven’t seen it looking like this edition that is wonderfully illustrated by Michael Bukowski. I mean, when I opened the package and this purple-skinned beauty slid out, I immediately sat down and gave it my full attention. Check out the cover pic and the Odd nocturnal ritual. Beasts dance & march to musick image! The book is like this ALL the way through!
As a writer myself, I enjoy books like this that give readers a peek behind the wizard’s curtain. They let readers see story ideas, what interested their favorite author, and maybe offer some memorable quotes. But, let’s be honest, most of those books are exceptionally dry, which means that only diehard fans are going to work their way through them. Bukowski’s art pulls you into the Lethe Press edition of H.P. Lovecraft’s Commonplace Book and makes you want to see what’s on the next page, and the next one after that. There’s a perfect balance between the illustrations and Lovecraft’s words that drives things forward nicely. Speaking of which, the font and colorful ink choice really make the words pop. I love that Lovecraft’s original introduction has been included and that he’d just like an “admirably neat typed copy” from R.H. Barlow, Esq. Also included is a nifty little piece of artwork by Lovecraft: a sketch showing a side profile of the mighty CTHULU for a possible future sculpture. How about that for coolness?
H.P. Lovecraft’s Commonplace Book from Lethe Press is a treasure trove of ideas, quotes, and notes about unique happenings and other writers. Lovecraft also included a cool reading list of weird fiction that he was collecting for an article. It contains familiar names like H.G. Wells and Algernon Blackwood and many others that I will be looking into. One of Lovecraft’s quotes that stood out to me was: “Life is more horrible than death.” While folks who read those insanely cheerful self-help books that spew paragraphs about what “super-duper great people” they are might disagree, they need to realize that these words came from a man who was plagued by nightmares, insomnia, and poor health for the majority of his life. Yes, that’s what fueled much of his work, but it wasn’t any picnic for Lovecraft who died early and only realized fame posthumously.
What does your old pal Skull think? I don’t think it’ll surprise anyone that Damaged Skull Writer and Reviewer rates H.P. Lovecraft’s Commonplace Book, the Lethe Press edition illustrated by Michael Bukowski a cosmic 5 STARS! It is a wonderful volume that both celebrates its creator and the fantastic art of Michael Bukowski who also included a little Dungeons & Dragons magic in some of these illustrations. Bukowski also took time to edit out offensive material that Lovecraft unfortunately included in some of his work. It is a new day and one to celebrate our diversity, not be afraid of what we don’t understand.
For more information about Lethe Press or to purchase a copy of this book, please go to: www.lethepressbooks.com
For more information about Michael Bukowski, you can check out his detailed profile on the Lethe Press site or go right over to: www.lastchanceillustrations.wordpress.com
or visit: www.yog.blogsoth.blogspot.com
About the reviewer:
When darkness falls Brian James Lewis becomes his alter ego, Skull, and burns the midnight oil reading and reviewing recent arrivals to his lair, the Skullcave! You can catch up with him on social media at: https://facebook.com/DamagedSkullWriterandReviewer where he’d really appreciate some follows to get more exposure for Indy horror writers and presses!
You can also find him on: X/Twitter@skullsnflames76
And we’re also on Goodreads and leave reviews on Amazon under the mortal’s name Brian James Lewis
Hello horror fans, it’s your old pal Skull with some cool news in the horror writing and reading community! I was lucky enough to be invited to the virtual release party for the new themed horror anthology, The Rack and a good time was had by all. Editor Tom Deady and Parasite Steve were the masters of ceremonies and many of the contributors spoke about their stories as well as the books that inspired them when they were spinning those creaky, squeaky wire racks at their local newsstands, drugstores, or libraries during the 1980’s. Stephen King and Ray Bradbury were frequently mentioned, but so were some less famous names. It was great to hear from the authors which included Christa Carmen, Tom Deady, Kristin Dearborn, Candace Nola, Errick Nunnally, Cynthia Pelayo, and Mercedes Yardley. While I’d love to go into serious detail about what each author had to say, this article would be very long and not ready for quite some time. The main takeaway is that The Rack is a richly diverse collection of stories both in contributing authors and the wide variety of their stories
Other features of the evening were the swag giveaway opportunities for non-authors to win nifty prizes like pens, journals, stickers, and even t-shirts with The Rack cover art on them. These mega-cool items were awarded to attendees who were able to name the author of The Rack story that Tom read aloud. The first person to do so won some great stuff! There was also a fun show and tell of favorite and unique books in the authors’ personal collections, featuring the funky, pulpy paperback covers of the 80’s along with a few books that never made it back to the library, presented by Errick Nunnally, that had a great story of their own. As the evening wound down, there were reading suggestions from many of the authors, and a discussion about who delivered and who just had nifty covers. We wrapped with a round up of what each contributing author was also doing. Overall, a great evening!
While your old pal Skull wasn’t an active participant, I truly enjoyed putting voices and faces to authors whose work I’ve read previously such Christa Carmen, Candace Nola, and Mercedes Yardley. I also dug meeting authors I wasn’t as familiar with, like Errick Nunnally. Can’t wait to read his story! Tom Deady is a very cool guy, and I’m cheered and inspired to know that he didn’t really get into writing horror until his 50’s because that’s where I am, working on making a comeback after mental health issues and disabilities crushed me like a bug in 2019. But this isn’t about me, it’s about a brand-new horror anthology with retro vibes that kicks ass. Damaged Skull Writer and Reviewer will be doing a review ASAP, but until then go get yourself a copy of THE RACK and start reading!
Write LOUDLY so our voices can be heard!
The Only Crime Is Getting Caught
Brooklyn-based print lit zine, 2x year
Editor / Publisher / Scrivener
Short fiction, non-fiction and poetry
Where brevity meets depth, and verse sparks change.
Work by Michael Bukowski
Horror Author by Day, ER Doctor by Night
Poetry, Stories, and Other Musings With Spilt Ink
a journal of literature & art
For Horror Addicts, By Horror Addicts.
Musings and books from a grunty overthinker
A Literary Journal for Musicians and for Writers Inspired by Music
a speculative fiction magazine
Find your reading or writing escape
Essays Exploring Craft and the Writing Life
Time-travel & dark romance stories with a guaranteed happy ending.
Where the strange and unusual are welcome.
Damaged Skull Writer 
You must be logged in to post a comment.