Stacking The Shelves & What I'm Reading

Stacking The Shelves is a weekly meme being hosted by Tynga's Reviews, while Mailbox Monday is being hosted by The Reading Fever this month (see Mailbox Monday for each month's host). Both memes are all about sharing the books you've added to your shelves - physical and virtual, borrowed and bought. It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Book Journey, and it's focused on what's in your hands, as opposed to what's on your shelf.

With an eye towards my plans for the next few months, I'm still trying to hold off on adding too much to the TBR pile, but I did pick up a few new titles:

Metal on Ice: Tales from Canada's Hard Rock and Heavy Metal Heroes

by Sean Kelly

Paperback, 208 pages

Expected publication: Oct 8th, 2013 by Dundurn



Acquired via NetGalley - Helix, Anvil, Coney Hatch, Killer Dwarfs, Harem Scarem, and Honeymoon Suite? 'Nuff said!







Appalachian Undead

edited by Jason Sizemore

Paperback, 212 pages

Published July 27th 2013 by Apex Book Company



Acquired via Apex Book Company, along with Jason's companion short, Mountain Dead.









Second Chance

by David D. Levine

eBook, 65 pages

Published July 11th, 2013 by Book View Café



Won via the Librarything early reviewers program.

Sudden Death Overtime: A Story of Hockey and Vampires

by Steve Vernon

eBook, 122pages

Published July 9th, 2013 by CreateSpace



A review request from a fellow Canuck, described as Slapshot meets 30 Days of Night.

You Are Sloth!

by Steve Lowe

Paperback, 150 pages

Published July 1st, 2013 by Eraserhead Press



No matter how towering my review pile is, I always find it hard to refuse a new Bizarro title.

As for what we're reading, the team has reviews coming up over the next 2 weeks for:

What's topping your shelves this week?

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Interview with Tamara Romero (Bizarro author of Her Fingers)

Tamara Romero comes to the New Bizarro Author Series (NBAS) hosted by Eraserhead Press of weird fiction. It showcases strange fiction by unknown authors who may not get a chance with other publishing companies.



About the Book:

A red-haired witch with steel fingers, dragged unconscious from the currents of the Adrenaline River. An isolated researcher suffering from a disease called, the Gag. Covens of stoned witches dancing to techno in the forest. A punk whose specialty is replacing body parts with metal replicas. Sleepwalkers who don't want to wake. Trees hiding a filthy secret--the result of a perverse dictator's mind. A pink spy-swan, monitoring every move. A lyrical, dark and charming bizarro story of intrigue and discovery from a dimension just beyond ours





About Author:

Tamara Romero was born in Barcelona. She has worked as a TV producer, a bartender in a metal bar, a press manger for comics publishing house, and a writer and freelance editor at an erotic film company. Now she writes weird fiction and goes to the movies. This is her first book. Her book also has a discussion going on now at ireadoddbook.com.





Our very own Donald Armfield sat down for a chat with Tamara, to talk about Her Fingers, her writing, and more . . .



Q. This didn't seam like the typical bizzaro read, was this story originally a fantasy?



If something can be called a typical anything, then it’s not very exciting. The point is to surprise and confound. I wrote this four years before I even learned about bizarro. When I was told it qualified, I was more than happy to agree.



Q. How did you find you way to the strange grounds of Bizarro Fiction?



First: Goodreads. That site is fantastic to find out about new books. And then I went and met these people in Portland, Oregon, in the strange netherworld of inventive invective and crazy coffin vision and felt right at home.



Q. Do you kinda have an infatuation with witches, or just decided to write about one?



For legal reasons, I cannot answer this question. BUT! when I wrote Her Fingers I had just ended reading The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley and I loved the character of Morgana Le Fey. She was a big influence for my witch, Misadora. Now I have my own coven.











Q. What's is a couple of the strangest things you have ever read?



The weirdest fiction you’ll ever read is usually found in government forms and applications. And terms and conditions on the back of metro tickets give me the giggles. Completely useless for publication, but whaddareyougonnado. As for novels, one of the strangest texts I’ve read is Veniss Underground by Jeff Vandermeer. I loved that novel!







Q. An erotic film company, I love erotica reads lately did you enjoy that job?



I did, actually! My job was mostly related to erotic books (not movies): writing, editing… I don’t read erotica at all anymore, but one of my favorite novels happens to be Story of O.



Q. How about something funny, straight out bizarre off the top of your head?



I ain’t no right wing or left wing or in the middle I am a real fed up American and call it as I see it.



Q. What helps you get in the mood for writing?



A bottle of gin for breakfast.



Q. Whats next for Tamara Romero?



A bottle of gin. And also supporting Her Fingers out there and writing some new short fiction. I’m also working on a detectives novel. Awkward detectives.

A huge thanks to Tamara for stopping by!

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Vegan Zombie Apocalypse by Wol-vriey (REVIEW)

Vegan Zombie Apocalypse by Wol-vriey

Paperback, First, 322 pages

Published April 16th 2013 by Burning Bulb Publishing





Synopsis:



Fear not mankind, the omniscient God Necro proclaims that your tasty brains will be safe from the ravenous undead during the impending zombie apocalypse. Unfortunately for most of you, however, the enlightened zombie hoard plans to herd you like cattle on their potato plantations and use your fertile bodies to grow their specialized blood veggies.



Only by prostrating yourself before the Great Necro can you join forces with other faithful necros and defend humanity from the ever encroaching zombie invasion. But it won’t be easy, especially if you’ve just escaped from the vegfarm – and you already have the cattle brand on your forehead and the telltale potato vines sprouting from your body.



Bounty-hunting zombinators, flying cleaver-laden helicopters and cockrockets, will soon be hot on your trail as you race toward the Promised Land and the sanctuary that is known as the Republic of Texas.



Not only is “Vegan Zombie Apocalypse” one of the most bizarre stories ever conceived, but its universal appeal should extend far beyond its bizarro fan base. Enthusiasts of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror, and especially zombie fiction lovers, should relish this book, even though it ventures into the dark realm of the extraordinarily grotesque at times… many times actually.







Review:



The world in Wolvie's mind, population Zombie. He does it again - Wol-vriey drops a zombie story without the boring "eat brains" cliché. Instead we have Vegan Zombies who feed on blood potatoes, grown in Vegfarms.



As the story unfolds, a multikey is stolen, and the even more bizarre comes into play. Zombies with zippered private parts, doors in the shape of female sexual organs, sex with maggots, and even a Humansauras.



Fans of Wol-vriey will be struck again with wonders and new readers . . . I suggest you hang on for one hell of a ride.

(as posted by Donald on Goodreads)

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Stacking The Shelves & What I'm Reading

Stacking The Shelves is a weekly meme being hosted by Tynga's Reviews, while Mailbox Monday is being hosted by MariReads this month (see Mailbox Monday for each month's host). Both memes are all about sharing the books you've added to your shelves - physical and virtual, borrowed and bought. It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Book Journey, and it's focused on what's in your hands, as opposed to what's on your shelf.

A whopping stack of review titles this week:

          

          

          

As for what I'm reading, I have reviews coming up over the next 2 weeks for:

          

What's topping your shelves this week?

CassaStorm by Alex J. Cavanaugh, Burning the Middle Ground by L. Andrew Cooper, Chimera: A Jim Chapel Mission by David Wellington, Dateline: Atlantis by Lynn Voedisch, The Diabolist by Layton Green, Perfect Flaw by Robin Blankenship, Gods and Monsters: Unclean Spirits by Chuck Wendig, Southern Haunts: Spirits That Walk Among Us by Alexander S. Brown, Vampires Don't Sparkle by Michael West

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Bradley Sands Talks Bizarro (INTERVIEW & REVIEW)

Please join us this morning in extending a warm welcome to Bizarro author Bradley Sands, a gentleman who writes absurdist comedies that demolish the walls of reality. The author of half a dozen books and multiple short stories, not to mention the editor of Donald Armfield's The Alpha Wolf Bent Me Over, he sat down to chat with none other than Donald himself, who also shares a few reviews of Bradley's work.

What kind of mood do you like to be in, when you are writing, Music chioice if any, What do you drink, etc?

A good mood, obviously. Not depressed. Sometimes music is too distracting. Other times I like to listen to fast-paced instrumental music. Vocals usually distract me too much unless they’re in a language that I don’t understand. Right now Front Line Assembly’s AirMech has been working out well for me. It’s a video game soundtrack. As far as what I like to drink while writing: water. I always drink coffee before I start though.

Besides the word "Bizarro," what do you consider your writing style?

I give a lot of focus and attention to my writing style. As far as genres, I write absurdist humor. Black comedies. Lately I’ve been fond of using teenage protagonists, so my writing has been a bit young adult-y if you define young adult books by the age of their characters.

What is your favorite of the books you wrote?

Rico Slade Will Fucking Kill You. He’s also my favorite character. It’s fun to satirize action movies. There should be more stuff coming up with him in the future.

What is next for Bradley Sands?

I’m working on a novel called Dodgeball High. It’s about a teenager who moves to a new town and starts at a new school, which he discovers is entirely devoted to learning about and playing dodgeball.

Do you still do editing for Bust Down The Door and Eat All the Chickens.... and are there any other works you edited recently

Bust Down the Door and Eat All the Chickens isn’t publishing issues anymore (it was a literary journal that published absurd and surreal stories). I work as a freelance editor as well as a staff editor for Eraserhead Press, where I edit the New Bizarro Author Series. I’m working with a few authors at the moment. The details about my freelancing can be read here: http://www.bradleysands.com

αωαωαωαωαωαωαω

TV Snorted My Brain

by Bradley Sands



I remember when TV was in my daily routine now I could go without. Before it snorted my brain.



Plastic zombies, talking thingabobs like a Marilyn Monroe ass hair, an adventure with a remote control and more smunnies you could shake a carrot at. Its all tied together with Bradley Sands laugh out loud romp.



Kinda reminded me of Stay Tuned with Jack Ritter (RIP). Was waiting for his appearance at some points as the story unfolded.



A boys farther dies and leaves behind a remote control that controls TV Land. The becomes King and New Dad takes over the adventure for the holy Grail and a little sister with a pink Magic wand. "Little bunnies playing with squeaky toys" beware of those magic words.



More laughs from the man who brought us Rico Slade, the man who ruins orgies the one and only Bradley Sands.

αωαωαωαωαωαωαω

Please Do Not Shoot Me in the Face: A Novel

by Bradley Sands



Please Don't Shoot Me In The Face is bigger than the Bible, the best book you'll ever read and that's quote from Little Boy Detective Frankie Nougat.



Bradley Sands ask us to read this novel, that wants to be a novel and find the theme. Or heck with it and have some laughs. From the case of the missing heart to the Cheesequake Smash-Up and ending the novel (or is it?) with the bizarre story of Apocalypse Ninja you will remember the bizarro man himself Bradley' Sands.



Overall my favorite part of Novel, or my most favorite of the three novellas is cheesequake smash-up. A video game like no other with a cast of characters from hit TV show The Office, but with a Mr. Sands dialogue and description.

αωαωαωαωαωαωαω

Sorry I Ruined Your Orgy

by Bradley Sands



Bradley Sands is a Bizarro author with such titles; Rico Slade Will Fucking Kill You, Please Don't Shoot Me In the Face. Including others. And this book of flash fiction with laughs of bizarre tales that will leave you with a taste for more.



Temporomandibular, Giraffes and a strange Lunch Date with Adolf Hitler. A Texas Cowboy, alligators in space. Is just some of the things that Sands uses to tie knots of laughter with.



All these short fiction pieces are worth a read. Some of my favorites are: The two stories of the time traveling giraffe, The Lunch Date, The Laundry Room and Scenes from the life of a Greeting Card Designer.

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