nick_borrelli's reviews
474 reviews

First off, let me say that I’m usually not a fan of short story collections. I would rather sink my teeth into a 300-500 page book where I can get into a story and live it for a few weeks, than the immediacy and instant gratification of reading a short story. So when I found out that Staring Into the Abyss by Richard Thomas was a short story collection, I had my misgivings to say the least. I am pleased to say that Staring into the Abyss may have changed my attitude toward the short story format, it’s that good. There are 20 stories that span a number of different styles and genres. Yes there are straight-up horror stories, but smattered among the 20 gems are also stories that have obvious science-fiction and fantasy themes. Take for instance the story Stillness which pays an obvious homage to Vincent Price’s The Last Man on Earth. Then there is Maker of Flight about a mysterious mechanical bird maker locked in a room where his only task is to make a certain number of toy birds every day. For what purpose and for who, you’ll have to read it to find out. But of course, this is a horror collection by and large. And there are plenty of intense and downright horrific stories here to satisfy any horror reader’s cravings. Committed tells the story of a video-gamer with serious anger-management issues. Steel-Toed Boots is an especially disturbing entry describing what happens when a wife decides to find out what is really going on when her husband goes out at night for a couple of beers. Splintered shares some insights into a situation that many people find themselves in: a relationship that just isn’t working anymore for one party. His girlfriend has an interesting way of addressing the problem and you’ll be both disturbed and delighted by how it turns out. These are just some of the horror treasures that you’ll find in this fine collection. The thing that I most enjoyed about these stories was the way Thomas told them through the characters’ own eyes as if you were seeing things in real time as they happened. The style of his writing really captured my attention. There was an almost poetic quality to the writing as well. Thomas used a lot of staccato sentences and sometimes fragmented thoughts as opposed to spelling out each and every detail of the story. I thought that this style worked very well and added to my enjoyment of the stories as a whole. My final thought on Staring at the Abyss is that it is truly aptly-titled in the respect that these stories come across as describing the human-condition at its worst and best. These are stories where the characters are forced to look at their lives (some of which have not been lived on the straight and narrow) and come to a final resolution that is both real and intense. If you are looking for a collection of stories that won’t take very long to read but will leave you forever changed, then Richard Thomas has a treat for you. It is called Staring into the Abyss and you should pick it up and read it. Hopefully you will enjoy it as much as I did.

If you only read one horror book in your life, read this one! Forget about the cheesy "made for tv" miniseries that was made back in the early 90's. That was a travesty and did not do this amazing book the justice that it deserved. I read IT first when I was 16 years-old and then again 25 years later. I remember even though the hardcover was over 1,000 pages, I tore through it in one week during the summer of 1987. My thoughts when I read it all those years ago were that this was a monumental book that would always be one of my favorites as long as I lived. Reading it again after 25 years has only reinforced those thoughts. This is a story of a group of kids who seem to be the only ones who know about and can see an unspeakable evil entity who is killing children in their hometown of Derry Maine. This entity (who's name is revealed as Pennywise to the kids), terrorizes the community for a number of years until the group of kids seemingly banishes him forever (or so they think). There's one problem: terrible things start happening again in the town of Derry Maine as these kids have now become adults and have families of their own. They soon realize that they must regroup, travel back to their old hometown, and fight Pennywise in one last showdown where nothing is certain - especially their own survival. I absolutely loved this book and to this day it remains in my list of top 5 books of all-time. I guarantee that if you read it, you will not want to put it down until the end. Keep a light on though, just a warning!

I won this book recently in a Goodreads giveaway. The Ark is a science fiction story by a fairly new author named Thomas Slagle. The story revolves around a group of colonists who are fleeing Earth to potentially colonize a new habitable world. Yes, this type of story has been done over and over but what made Slagle's tale different is that the story is mainly focused on all of the different characters' personal stories rather than the actual journey itself. We get an insight into human behavior and the diversity of the colonists' religious views. So it is a different tact that Slagle takes and for me, it worked. I was reminded of the Canterbury Tales at certain points and frankly I almost forgot that I was reading a science-fiction book. I recommend this to anyone who enjoys sci-fi, but also enjoys good characterization. The back-stories are quite good. Weighing in at 150 pages or so, it will also be a quick read that I think would be a pleasant one for any reader.

THE best retelling of the Arthurian legend with a close second to Mary Stewart's Merlin trilogy. I have read countless versions of the story of King Arthur but Bradley's is by far my favorite. Told from the women's perspective (Morgaine, Igraine etc..) it really shed a different and unique light on the well-known tale. I remember reading it about 15 years ago and being surprised because it looked initially to me like a romance novel. I was pushed to read it by a number of people and finally broke down. I'm glad that I did because Bradley's writing is crisp, vivid, and her depictions of the military battles were on a par with the best historians and novelists who have covered this subject. Please don't judge this book by the dainty cover, this is a tremendous book that ranks among my favorites. If you are looking for a great read that doesn't make you feel like you wasted your money and you are a fan of anything Arthurian, pick this up and read it today. It won't disappoint you.

I have a very short list of books that I would say are near-perfect in their greatness. Stephen King's IT comes to mind, as well as Dune by Frank Herbert and A Canticle for Liebowitz by Walter M. Miller. I Am Legend by Richard Matheson is so brilliant that it is hard to put into words. At roughly 170 pages or so, it is not a long story but the action that takes place in that 170 pages is intense and so compelling that you want to read this book in one sitting. I beg you please do NOT shy away from reading this book because of the awful Will Smith movie. That movie bears little to no resemblance to the story contained within this brilliant book. I read it in one night (with the lights on) and it made me realize what great storytelling can be when it is done right. This book will haunt you, will scare you, but most of all will leave you with a feeling that you wish it didn't have to end.

Skystone by Jack Whyte is an interesting take on the King Arthur legend. Most of the tales of King Arthur focus on the mystical aspect. What Whyte attempts to do in this the first book of the Camulod Chronicles is to tell the tale from a straight-forward historical perspective. He weaves a realistic story about what could have actually taken place if the story were stripped of its magical elements. The story is told through the eyes of Roman army officer Publius Varrus and his commander in battle Caius Brittanicus. After an almost fatal injury that Publius suffers on the battlefield, he decides to return home and join his former commander at his villa in Aquae Sulis in southestern England. Publius and Caius soon form a plan to create a functioning and totally self-sufficient military village. The story takes off from there and is a really unique way of retelling this age-old story. By the end of the book we also get an insight into how the sword Excalibur came to be. A fantastic book and series that is worth diving into.

This book was all the rage when it was first released, but boy it has not aged well. The three star rating is basically due to the fact that it feels really dated because of the cold war aspects to the story. Harry Keough is a Necroscope, which means for all intents and purposes, he can communicate with the undead. Harry works for a secret branch of the U.S. government that is trying to infiltrate and discover what they suspect is going on with their Russian counter-parts in the KGB. It seem they also have a secret branch that is breeding vampires in an attempt to gain the upper hand against the Americans. The story is really good if say you were reading it in 1989. The problem is that the bulk of the story relies on the cold war angle, which anyone born after the year 1992 isn't going to connect with. If you can put aside the dated feel, then by all means give it a whirl. I just couldn't do it.

I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway and I have to say that it was more than I expected it would be. My wife even picked it up and read it after I was finished because she thought the title and cover were funny. A very quick read and as far as Young Adult books go, it was quite entertaining. My only qualm was that the supernatural aspect and tension could have been built up a little more, but other than that I enjoyed it. Way better than any of the Twilight books..

I've been a fan of John Marco's writing since his first book of the Tyrants and Kings Series - The Jackal of Nar. While the Jackal of Nar and the rest of that series was in-your-face, smash mouth military fantasy, The Eyes of God is something much deeper and more character-oriented. A definite departure for Marco, but one that shows his incredible talent and flexibility for writing deeply personal stories as well as action packed ones. Lukien the Bronze Knight is torn between his love for his king Akeela and also Akeela's soon-to-be queen Cassandra. The story takes many twists and turns as Lukien battles with the inner-turmoil of knowing that he will alienate and possibly lose forever one of the two people who he loves most in the world. But this book isn't just about love and human behavior, not by a long shot. Once the story gets ramped up, there is plenty of action to keep you on the edge of your seat. Not enough credit is given to John Marco as one of the leading writers in fantasy today. While the Sandersons and the Weeks of the world get all of the pub, John Marco simply writes amazing fantasy. Hopefully some day he will get the credit that he deserves, but until then, I will continue to trumpet his talent and continue to read his books.