Much more comedy than horror, this is my first Christopher Moore read and I had fun with it. The tale is unique and his style refreshing. More Moore will follow. 4 stars

Now this is my cup of tea! Laymon has his own style, seems to write without inhibition, kind of like Bukowski (though without the autobiographical basis I would imagine). Island is great fun, and a slew of used Laymon books are now headed my way. 4 1/2 stars

Moore's strength is character development, and he's got a great cast assembled here. Stupidest Angel is a quicker read and lacks the meat of Dirty Job, but still a solidly entertaining read. 3 stars.

Read the three 30 Days of Night mass market volumes some months ago and thought I'd add them since they are genre relevant. I like these novels better than the graphic novels. The writing is somewhat uneven, but the main character is easy to empathathize with and adds a human element to this modern day vampire tale. 3 1/2 stars.

After an exciting peak with volume 2, Eternal Damnation, the 3rd installment falls somewhat flat. The scope and shocks try to up the ante, but without the effectiveness of the previous volume. This is still a decent tale, and while best to read in order, each of the three volumes is a fairly stand alone novel. 3 stars.

Although associated with the horror fiction genre, Headhunter is more of a dark crime novel. There are some mildly gruesome bits, and several unsettling and tense scenes. I was impressed by the writing throughout, especially the stunning climax. It does get convoluted at times, but stick with it for a satisfying payoff. I will follow up with more Michael Slade soon. Solid 4 star effort.

Are diminishing returns setting in or is this a lesser Laymon? This one started to lose momentum about half-way through, then Laymon switched gears and introduced some new characters. This was rather unorthodox, but effectively set the train rolling again. I let this one eke out 3 1/2 stars.

Solid action adventure with good characters. I liked the setting of NY museum. Fans of The Tomb and Crichton will dig this. The pacing built up speed to a satisfying conclusion and an epilogue which sets up an intriguing sequel. Solid 3 1/2 stars.

More straight-up horror than trademark Laymon lunacy, I liked the idea of behavior modifying black rain and the pacing skipped right along, what the heck: 4 stars.

At first I was both impressed and involved with the writing of Gary Braunbeck. Characters were well developed and the book had an emotional heft to it. As things moved from the real world to the fantastic, I kind of lost interest. The extended question and answer sessions took the remaining wind from my sails. 3 stars.

No doubt Piccirilli can write. He creates memorable characters, interesting dialogue, and fleshes out an essential American Gothic vibe. the only shortcoming here is lack of plot. Our hero is in prison when his sister dies. Following his release, he returns home to get to the bottom of her mysterious demise. That's about it. 3 1/2 stars for style and mood.

While still very entertaining, In the Dark was not as joyously over-the-top as some of my previous Laymon experiences. The first half is relatively tame, and just when I let my guard down, wham! Laymon sucker punched me good! Couldn't get over MoG writing on Jane while she slept and her not waking up. Minor quibble aside, In the Dark merits 3 1/2 stars from me.

Lucked out getting this cheap. The Mailman is a great villain, somewhat in the S. King tradition. Unlike King, this is pared down to straight plot, no messing around. I want to go 4, but for consistency sake should award 3 1/2 stars.

I liked this sequel slightly better City Infernal. The writing was more polished with more thought behind the plot. Lee must have had a great time creating this vision of hell, although the explanations interrupt the story flow at times. I go a stout 3 1/2 stars

After a slow start, the suspense really started to build and I was completely on board well past the halfway point. Unfortunately, the characters (except for Jack) didn't grow on me and they seemed to have it a bit easy. Innovative slant on traditional vampire legend and good set up warrant 3 stars.

It took me 50+ pages to get into this, but once in, I was hooked. This is not a horror tale, although there are strong elements of violence and madness. Piccirilli is a serious talent and some of his prose just jumps off the page. Witty, clever, taut and devastating, if not for my problem getting into the flow early, I would have awarded more than 4 stars.

If not for the unlikeable yuppie group of characters, this would have been higher rated. It's relatively short, but the action is well-paced and exciting, with gripping moments of true horror. I want to like Ketchum, so he gets one more chance with "Girl Next Door". 3 1/2 stars.

After 100+ pages of not very much happening, I had my doubts, but then things started to happen. The snowball of suspense started rolling, gathering steam as it went. Massie writes some good characters and has great control of her plot. The finish was very appropriate. 3 1/2 stars.

After your standard opening, Deep in the Darkness subtly grabbed me and didn't let go. I kept turning page after page wanting to know what the main character would do next. I found this novel original, fascinating, and ultimately horrific. Even though I figured out part of the conclusion ahead of time, the ending still blew me away. This is the stuff: 5 stars!

I can see why this didn't skyrocket Laymon to fame and fortune. Pedophilia and demon/beast sex isn't really mainstream stuff. While the ideas are pure Laymon, his style isn't quite developed in this his first novel. Worthwhile for fans, but not where you want to start if you're new to Laymon. 3 1/2 stars.