Maynard and Sims are a duo of horror writers that work very well together when it comes to writing some of the best horror fiction out there. Together they have published four books with Leisure Press and their latest venture, Night Souls, only adds to their greatness of tales and mayhem that they have been sharing with fans these past few years.
Night Souls is the second book in their Department 18 novel series. The first book, Black Cathedral, had the crew of Department 18 taking on a demon-like entity that took hold of a whole island. Night Souls had them dealing with a whole new level of evil.
There is a race superior to the human race on Earth. Since the beginning of human existence, a race known as the Spiraci or as they are called in the book, Breathers. They are a vampire-like creature that feeds on human souls by inserting their long talons into their victims to feed. For centuries, they have stayed hidden from the world, only taking victims to feed on by acquiring them though the slave trade and third world countries. They have the ability to shape shift and turn into shadows. They hide their true form under a veil of their human form which makes them fit in with the rest of the world as part of the human race. However, one of their own has broken the code of co-existence after his father’s death. John Holly, A powerful Breather is in the midst of genetically mutating his kid with human specimens, where the Breathers will be free of feeding on humans and can announce themselves as the dominant species on earth. However, as members of Department 18 are either killed off or injured by John Holly and his clan, the surviving members, along with a lone Breather, and a group of others intent on keeping the old ways the same must find a way to put their differences aside and figure out a way to stop John Holly from making his plan a realty.
Maynard and Sims are notorious for taking their readers on a dark ride into the unknown. Night Souls is no different from any of their other stories, however I must admit that of all their books, this one is by far my favorite. It is one of those books that start off as mystery where you are basically along for the ride right from the start and the plot thickens and the twists begin as you turn the pages. The first fifty pages reintroduce some of the characters from Black Cathedral as well as introduce the new players in this novel. However, once you get past the development of the characters and story, the high-paced action and horror are non-stop and the mystery surrounding the story will have you turning the pages late into the night.
I have been waiting for this book since Mick Sims dropped me an e-mail letting me know that Leonard Maynard and he planned to write a few novels involving the characters from Department 18. I was a huge fan of Black Cathedral and am an even bigger fan of Night Souls. Maynard and Sims know what their doing when it comes to the supernatural and suspense. With Night Souls, they have created a new take on the vampire without really implying that it was their goal to do so. Vampire novels seem to be the in thing to be reading these days, but the problem with them is that they are the same old boring vampires that we all know about. Here, we get a fresh take on the lure of what many can perceive as being vampires, yet the Spiraci are a breed all their own. Maynard and Sims give us a fresh story altogether here, one that I highly recommend. The only problem I have with the book is that it ended, and now I have to wait for the next adventure that the crew of Department 18 will begin next.
– Horror Bob
- Interview with J.R. Bookwalter - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Andrew J. Rausch - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Rick Popko and Dan West - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Director Stevan Mena (Malevolence) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Screenwriter Jeffery Reddick (Day of the Dead 2007) - January 22, 2015
- Teleconference interview with Mick Garris (Masters of Horror) - January 22, 2015
- A Day at the Morgue with Corri English (Unrest) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Writer/Director Nacho Cerda (The Abandoned, Aftermath) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actress Thora Birch (Dark Corners, The Hole, American Beauty) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actor Jason Behr, Plus Skinwalkers Press Coverage - January 22, 2015
