tobin_elliott's reviews
489 reviews

I don't know if there's a specific word to describe the feeling I'm currently experiencing, having just finished my second Patrick McNulty read... it's the feeling of excitement, knowing I've found yet another indie horror author who is a freaking master of his trade, and that I now know I have to read everything the guy's written.

But that's the feeling I'm feeling right now.

This book...what do I even say about this? McNulty takes the clunky "family inherits haunted property, finds out how bad it is" trope that's so ridiculously overdone that I absolutely avoid that kind of storyline at all costs now, and he mostly ignores every aspect of it and makes it his own. So, that's the first plus.

Then, he crafts a story that's so simple it shouldn't actually be enough story to fill a novel...and he fills a novel with a perfectly paced, well-written, intelligent storyline that builds and builds and then explodes. Second plus.

There's very few authors that I read lately that I have trouble setting their books aside. I can read a couple of pages, or a couple of chapters, and yeah, the story's still gonna be there whenever I pick up the book again. But this one had me very reluctantly setting the book down and thinking about the story all the time before I could pick it back up again. I blasted through this in two sittings. Third plus.

I am officially a fan now. This book was absolutely phenomenal.

It's funny how a book can come along at exactly the right time...twice.

I picked this up only because a customer in the bookstore where I work had brought it up with a few other books, saw the price ($16 for 80 slim pages), and told me they were passing on that one. I hadn't even known of the book's existence prior to that moment, but it stood out as something I might like to read. I set it aside and purchased it that day.

Then it sat on my shelf, in the order with all my other TBR books. And it's time came this morning, which is good, because I've been struggling lately with my writing.

And this eminently quotable little book? It gave me the kick in the butt I've needed, by also giving me a different perspective that I also needed.

This is a good book.

I am not a steampunk fan by any means. It's just not a genre or plot device that does much for me. 

Having said that, after reading some posts and observations from the author in various places online, I was intrigued enough to give this one a shot, and I'm so glad I did. I think, if there's a single word that this novel boils down to for me, it's entrancing.

There's a few layers to this story. Yes, there's the titular Robot Gentleman, Santos, that in Cardona's skilled hands, remains very much a mystery, a puzzle to be observed, but never truly solved. And while he's a mechanical being in a time when mechanical beings didn't exist (pretty much the definition of steampunk), Cardona has a light, intriguing touch with this element.

Of course, the bright light here is Violeta, who is mesmerizing to read about. She leaps off the pages and it's her observations of Santos that truly elevate this story.

And then there's the story. The pace is languid (until the final third, then it completely shifts into high gear) and, while the plot elements begin to align, not a lot happens, but Cardona keeps everything fascinating with her lyrical, gorgeous narrative style. I will say, the author rarely spells things out plainly, choosing instead to come at each situation, each interaction from an oblique angle, letting things happen and allowing the reader to puzzle out what just occurred.

I don't know that I've ever read anyone who writes quite like Cardona, and it took me a bit to align with her style, but once I did, I loved it. She suffuses the story with gorgeous observations, smirking opinions, and a casual eroticism that has to be read to be believed.

All in all, just a really good story, really well written, and enjoyable.

Not one of the real standout Savage adventures, beyond the expansion of Johnny's vocabulary for the first time, and giving Doc more real estate in his NYC building. The Canadian aspects are...as to be expected. Snow. Ice. Oh, and snow. Though Toronto gets a mention, despite everyone seeming to be French Canadian. Sacre bleu, m'sieu!

Other than that, it's pretty much standard big dumb manly man fun. No stinky girls allowed, unless you can shoot...

There's not much more to be said about this fourth volume that hasn't been said about the previous three, except...it's Frazetta...of course the entire book is going to be beautiful.

Well, I wasn't expecting THAT.

In Sept 2024, I was one of the guys selling my wares at dReadCon 2024. My table neighbour was another horror author, and supremely nice guy, Patrick McNulty. During the lulls, we got to talking, and he managed to pique my curiousity for his stuff. It didn't hurt that the covers were also eye-catching as heck too,

I ended up picking up all three of his Monsters & Mayhem Collection. The sheer volume of my TBR pile means that I couldn't get near them until now, almost six months later. 

And this first one? Absolutely grabbed me. There's so much done right here.

It's actually a very simple story, variations of which we've seen from HALLOWEEN to ALIEN, from 30 DAYS OF NIGHT to THE SHINING...a small group of people are cut off an alone against a vicious adversary. And because we've seen this story so many times, it takes some effort to make it work.

McNulty takes the effort. After a fantastic opening to inform the reader of how bad that adversary can be, the author pretty much drops all the horror elements right out of the story for the rest of the first half of the book. Instead, he wisely and carefully eases us into the complicated life of the Jackson family, the mom and dad, and the son and daughter. He drops us into their van as they head to a Christmas vacation none of them want, and he drops us into their lives, taking care to make every one of them very real, very relatable characters that we care for.

And then, pretty much right at the halfway point, McNulty, in a shocking little scene, brings all the horror roaring back in, puts the pedal down, and doesn't let up for the entire second half.

Let me just say, because of the work he does in the first half? Yeah, he's going to tear your guts out in the second half.

This book has all the best elements of King and Ketchum at their best, with note-perfect dialogue that's realistic and never forced, monsters that are terrifying, and a fantastic set up that never has to resort to silliness or dumb decisions to move the plot along (a particular irritation for me, especially with certain authors ...coughNickCuttercough...).

Seriously, I enjoyed this from the first sentence to the last. Fun. Nasty. Quick paced. Well written. And scary as hell.

HIGHLY recommended.

This one has a lot of quick doodles and sketches, which I loved. It shows an entirely different side of Frazetta, and this was the one that began showing some linkages between what he was doing, and the wider sandbox where Bernie Wrightson (on the linework side) and Boris Vallejo (on the painting side) would also play.

And while they could at times be remarkably similar in style, no one could ever match Frazetta. This book is evidence of that, as well.

Volume two of Frazetta's stunning work. His stuff is simply magical. There's such dynamic movement in these images. But it's also the colour palette, and the slightly indistinct faces that allow the viewer to read into them, to imagine them in all their fearsome evil, or incredible beauty.

Frazetta's in a category all his own.

Y'know, it kinda irritates me that I just start each new Dresden story now, and fall in love so quickly. I know others complain that things aren't necessarily getting tied up, or that it's more of the same high action, breathless storytelling.

It is all that, but it's also what you come to a Dresden book for, so I don't understand the complaints. Will the storylines eventually get tied up? Unless the author meets an untimely end, I have faith that it will. Other than that, I'm along for the ride.

In this one, Butcher creates one of his best new characters. Hades. I'll say nothing more, but hot damn, that chapter crackled. 

And the "Parkour, bitch." line literally drew a snort.

This is entertainment at it's best. I love this series.

This first collection of Frazetta's earliest work, up to about 1974 is, as to be expected, simply gorgeous. Seeing these images—some sketches, most finished paintings—makes me feel like that twelve year old kid walking around in a bookstore, and seeing both my first Conan book, and my first Frazetta painting. And, telling the absolute truth, I bought that book for the cover.

Turns out, I loved the Robert E. Howard stories inside as well, but that cover still pulls up visceral memories for me.

Frazetta was a huge influence on my youth, and remains so today, fifty years later. 

Great book. I'm looking forward to the other volumes.