Happy Sunday, my friends! I have some amazing books to tell you all about.
First, we are going to visit my favorite book setting of all time when we venture to Wuthering Heights, then we are going to head through ten interwoven stories, followed by a solar event that could actually happen and end with a bit of Lovecraftian shenanigans.
Let’s get into them.
CATHERINE THE GHOST
By Kathe Koja
WUTHERING HEIGHTS has had my heart since around 2010. So, when I saw that there was story from Catherine’s ghost’s perspective, say less and gimme the book. Friends, I was not disappointed.
Catherine’s returned to the Heights and so has her daughter, but Mr. Heathcliff is bitter and hateful and makes everyone around him feel his pain and wrath. Imagine a cliff notes version of Catherine’s life while watching her daughter under the oppression of the only man she truly loved.
One has to remember; this is not a story of typical love. It’s about real love. True, haunting, obsessive love. What are you willing to do for the man/woman of your soul? Not dreams because they are real. Are you willing to die for them? To wait for them in the next life? That’s what we find out here.
And let’s be honest, this story pisses us off. Koja captures that emotion so perfectly with this novella. That unattainable double obsession that is dark and all-consuming but truly beautiful. The want, no strike that, the need to belong to each other fully and not just in words.
My favorite line: “…Edgar could not have loved me as much in eighty years as Heathcliff did every day…”
Koja gives us a return to the Heights and Catherine a voice she never had in the past. It will leave your heart aching for a love that is unattainable. A Top Five of the year.
A DOUBLE HIGHLY RECOMMEND 10/5.
CYBERPUNK ZOMBIE JIHAD
By Mark Zibel
Zibel snagged me as a fan last year with SHITHOLE, USA and let me tell you, CYBERPUNK ZOMBIE JIHAD does not disappoint. In this re-release that includes a new novelette, Zibel shows us that he will not be ignored. Ten stories all interweaved with Easter eggs and whatnot... you know, let’s just jump in.
Cyberpunk Zombie Jihad - Madd0x N1x0n is a lead singer, revolutionary, and … oh yeah, a zombie. The higher ups are on his trail, and will they become zombie food?
Notes on mother’s Propagation on Angels - How do you make angels? Will you believe in them? Are the angels hiding something important?
Down the Stream - Row, row, row your boat, life is but a dream as our narrator soon finds out.
Commercial Break - A reminder to sign up for service when you turn 18.
Slice-and-grab - Frank has been called back out to the field with Kyle. Will 20 years of being a desk jockey slow his reflexes? Only one stakeout to find out.
Frankenstein Apocalypse - Lloyd and Marie are wandering a Mexican wasteland and run into each other. But things feel familiar. This is a sadder ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND in a way.
Svoboda Ploti - Denny gets out of the Institution and goes straight to a halfway house. When Denny must go undercover, his freedom and sanity are on the line.
Commercial Break # 2 - A moment to go over rules, regulations, and consequences.
Anarchy-erotic - Camille has lost the want for a lot of things in life. Sometimes moving on isn’t always for everyone or the best option.
A Man Walks Into a Bar… - … with a pig, a mission, and a story that is unbelievable.
I See Red - Madd0x N1x0n has some parting words for us.
Corporate Rat Bastards - A low level executive has realized at 30, he may need some training to be promoted in his job. He didn’t realize what a rat race it would become.
The way Zibel intertwines these stories and links them with political topics (not in your face politics) is amazing! Not a single story is not a top tier story. I’m not sure how this one has flown under so many radars, but you should correct that ASAP.
A HIGHLY, HIGHLY RECOMMEND 5/5.
SOLAR FLARE Vol. 1: Season One: Fort Myers
By James Haick
For 157 pages, this graphic novel caused me an insane amount of anxiety. Not because it was terribly written or a drag to get through, but because it could happen and the depth of the characters.
A solar flare affects all the electrical systems on Earth plunging it into the dark ages. Jake Clifford must get his group of friends and travel from Florida to Tennessee to rescue his daughter. The problem is a big one and it happens to be his uncle combined with his militia group, who assume it is all happening thanks to an EMP.
Scary and bringing us an all too real possibility, this is one series I will for sure continuing.
A HIGHLY, HIGHLY RECOMMEND 5/5.
THE THING ON THE DOOR STEP Part 1
Written by Simon Birks
Illustrated by Willi Roberts
Part one of the short story written by H.P. Lovecraft. The opening is in an insane asylum where a character takes revenge on a character, but we are unsure why. The reader is left with a sense of confusion, and it follows through the rest of Part One. Who is Edward Derby and why would he take the revenge in such a brutal way?
A well done start to a three-part comic graphic novel. The cliff hanger (it’s obvious there is one as it’s three parts) makes the reader want to immediately pick up the next issue.
A definite recommend 4/5.
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