Japan loves its creepy urban legends, almost as much as it loves publishing manga about that same sinister lore. "Hauntress," by writer/artist Minetaro Mochizuki is a great example. Originally published in 1993 under the title "Zashiki Onna," "Hauntress" is the cautionary tale of college student Hiroshi Mori, who unwittingly opens the door to horror when he's awakened one night to frantic pounding on his next-door neighbor's door. When Hiroshi looks out his door in the apartm

My second collection of short stories, "Scream for Me," releases on October 28. Between now and then, I thought it would be fun to share some sneak peeks and behind-the-scenes information about some of the stories. In "The Not Deer," an adolescent boy, still mourning his father's death by suicide, takes a fateful trip to the heart of the Appalachian Mountains with his mother and her new boyfriend. Here, the family's idyllic visit to the lush forests of North Carolina quickly

In 1959, a team of nine Russian college students set off on a cross-country ski trip across the Ural Mountains in Siberia. They embarked in late January, and were expected to return by mid-February. When that deadline came and passed, rescue crews were dispatched, and made a grim discovery. All nine students were dead, their frozen, mutilated bodies discovered partially clothed along the mountain pass that was eventually renamed for their leader, Igor Dyatlov. They'd died aft

In a not-so-distant future a group of middle-schoolers on a school field trip find themselves stranded and alone, fending for themselves, when the spaceship they're traveling aboard is struck by a meteor shower. That's the set up for the three-volume manga series "Leviathan" by author/artist Shiro Kuroi. As the story opens, a crew of deep space scavengers board the derelict remains of the "Leviathan," an expansive spaceship (that literally looks like a cruise ship) that years

Although set in the early 1900s, "Darkroom Phantoms," the upcoming historical horror novel by Valerie B. Williams, tells a story that's in many ways still timely and relevant today. In it, Caroline McAllister works alongside her husband, Andrew, in their thriving photography business. It's an unusual profession for a woman of her time, and even more so considering when Caroline views her subjects through the lens of her antique camera, she is able to see ghosts. It's a gift s

The Catacombs of Paris are among the world's most infamous tourist attractions. Built in the 1770s as a way to reduce overflowing cemeteries in the city, the catacombs are estimated to hold the remains of more than six million people. The elaborate presentation of bones throughout the catacombs makes it a place of distinctive and macabre beauty, attracting an average of half a million visitors annually. Among these are May and Jason, the central characters in Sarah Jules's la

My second collection of horror short stories, Scream for Me, featuring gorgeously creepy cover art by Brianna Raine, will be available on October 28. The ebook is available as of today for pre-order, so secure your copy now! A sideshow performer learns the terrifying secret of her carnival's new act. A serial predator discovers his hidden burial ground holds more than just the dead. In the American Old West, a pair of former soldiers discover the greatest danger is often foun

Thirteen-year-old Tucker's mom is working the late shift, so he invites his friends over for pizza and movies. With a fresh bag of candy and some creepy VHS tapes he found at a yard sale, it should be a good time...except his friends aren't coming. Something else is. Eleven stories by 11 authors, each bringing a new horror to Tucker's night at home alone. ​ ​​ Includes my short story "Building A Mystery" ​​ A trio of friends in the late 1990s set off to see the Lilith Fair co

If you're looking for a timely, thought-provoking horror story that serves as satirical criticism about feminist roles and representation in the post-"Me Too" movement era, "The Green Cooter" by Asher Darks ain't it. If, however, you're looking for a short, raunchy, tongue-in-cheek tale about a party girl who finds her private parts playing host to a sentient green cosmic entity with an insatiable appetite for human flesh, well, then you're in luck. I've come to know Darks th

Watched "Buffet Infinity" last night. I knew getting into it that it was going to be avant garde and weird, so I tried to approach it with an open mind. For those unfamiliar, "Buffet Infinity" is a cosmic horror movie that's told primarily through television commercials and news clips. What starts off innocently, if not at times, humorously enough, soon evolves into a darker, more insidious tale about strange events and disappearances in an other average, everyday Canadian to

It's not every day that I write a review on 11 books simultaneously. With manga series, it makes it a little easier, but with a complex story like the one in "My Dearest Self with Malice Aforethought," written by Hajime Inoryu and illustrated by Shota Ito, it's still a daunting task. This psychological thriller series is filled with enough twists and turns to keep you guessing at every page. The central characters are all unreliable, including the narrator himself, a college-

As a horror movie fan, I love to see some of the franchises I loved in years past being rediscovered by today's audiences, and enjoying a Renaissance of sorts in terms of popularity. With the upcoming streaming series "Crystal Lake" tackling a new perspective on the over-trodden "Friday the 13th" story, and recent new entries into the "Scream," "Evil Dead," and "Resident Evil" film series, it's not only fun to see fresh life breathed into old favorites, but to catch up with f

Author Lula Von Goth lets you know out of the gate that her story, "Whenever You Touch Dead Things, You Must Always Wash Your Hands" is both filled with rage and based in part on past relationships in her own life, particularly with her father. The main character, Beth, is a strange, shy, socially awkward teen. She lives in squalor with her abusive, alcoholic father, a widow who isn't shy about telling his lonely daughter about all of her dead mother's faults and shortcomings

How unlucky can one man be? And is misfortune really no more than happenstance, a series of ill-fated circumstances, or could there be something more sinister at play? These questions have plagued George Rockwell, the main character in "The Harbinger" by Kyle Rolantis, since he was a young boy. When George and his childhood friend sneak into an old barn George's father has forbidden them to enter, they discover nothing inside except a raven flying through the rafters. The rav

"The Rotting Room" by Viggy Parr Hampton was my favorite read from last year, so I'm not going to lie. To me, she's one of the top voices in indie horror, but not only that: she's one of the most imaginative and versatile authors around. Her latest release, "Ripped Up The Middle in Two," is no exception. The story, in part, taps into the fiercely debated public conversation surrounding Lindsay Clancy's murder trial. While the timing is unintentional on Parr Hampton's part, an

One part "The House on Haunted Hill," and one part "The Biggest Loser," the titular camp in author J. Rudolph's novel promises its guests not just weight loss, but a complete life makeover, rebuilding overweight participants into lean, mean, healthy machines. With advertisements promising Michelin-star quality dining, luxurious amenities, state-of-the-art fitness training, and a scenic, isolated setting, it sounds too good to be true. Thus when main character Alana qualifies

Arguably one of the best cinematic representations of vampires was 2013's "Only Lovers Left Alive," starring Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swinton respectively as Adam and Eve, a pair of star-crossed bloodsuckers whose paths keep crossing and intertwining over the centuries. It's a quiet, brooding, introspective study on the tolls of an immortal lifetime not just on the individual doomed to endure it, but on those with whom they build and foster genuine relationships. At first, "P

I hate spiders. Thus, when confronted by the cover for "Red Inside" by Bridgett Nelson, which features an arachnid of unusually large proportions bursting out of a child's screaming mouth, my initial reaction as a reader was not just "nope" but "Hell, nah!" But I kept hearing good things about it, so despite my initial, knee-jerk reaction, I decided I'd give it a chance and check the story out. As it turns out, I'm really glad I did. While the book didn't change my mind about

Ah, adolescence, a time when we're caught between childhood and adulthood, when we first begin to test the limits of our dependence on parents and our burgeoning autonomy. We begin to cross boundaries, break rules, and resist our parents' guidance and governance. And when they double-down on rules, despite our heartfelt rebellion, the headbutting begins. "Crudely Drawn" by Heather Ann Lawson begins under just such inauspicious circumstances: a teenaged girl named Baylor, angr

Don't let the title of Angel Van Atta's new release, "Their Fragile Males Egos," fool you. This collection of short stories, some new, others previously published, are all about women. While male characters occupy space in these pages, it's the female leads who take centerstage in eleven twisted tales of domestic abuse, physical assault, childhood trauma, psychological torture, and vengeful female empowerment. Each story is both brutal and bleak, and Van Atta writes with a di