If you haven’t noticed by now I am trying my best to promote a lot of the titles being released by Deadite Press on the site. This is mainly because a lot of the writers that I have been following the past few years have signed book deals with them. This deal also includes paperbacks of some of the writer’s previous works. Simply put, they are probably one of the last horror publishers that will print paperbacks of some of the best mid-list writers that the genre has to offer. With that said, one of the biggest names they have signed is Brian Keene. Unless you have been living under a rock for the past eight or so years, you know that Keene has never written a book that I didn’t like. So why am I promoting Deadite Press and Keene’s back titles so much on the site lately? It’s simple, a lot of Brian Keene’s work that has past me by over the years is now being made available though Deadite Press at an affordable price. This has made my year.
One of those books is Tequila’s Sunrise, a collection of short stories that Brian Keene has written throughout the years all put together in one. Just like Jack’s Magic Beans (Released last month though Deadite Press.) The feature story also shares the title with the book. Tequila’s Sunrise is a fable about the mystery of the alcoholic drink which no one knows the history of how it got its name. This is Keene’s fictional idea of how the drink got its name. Now, in order to really get this story you really need to have read some of Keene’s books to understand the adventure. If you’re a fan then you know that the majority of Keene’s novels all tie into a place known as The Labyrinth. The Labyrinth is a doorway that the gods and certain people use to get from one dimensional reality to the next. Tequila’s Sunrise is the story that puts the Labyrinth into perspective from one of the earliest points in time. It takes place during the times when the Aztec empire was on the brink of being eradicated from European settlers. The story is about a young fourteen year old Aztec boy named Chalco. Chalco meets a messenger of God who gives him the power to use the Labyrinth. That power of course is Tequila. Drinking Tequila allows one to enter the labyrinth without it disrupting their psyche. Chalco is told to use the Labyrinth to go to a point in time to kill the leader of the invasion so that his people will survive. However, he is in for more than he bargained for when he breaks the rules of the Labyrinth.
The book also features seven other short stories by Brian Keene. Many of them were featured in some of his previous short story collections such as Fear of Gravity, A Little Silver Book of Streetwise Stories, Unhappy Endings, No Rest For the Wicked and small press publications and magazines. The stories included are Burying Betsy, Dust, Fade to Null, Bunnies in August, That Which Lingers, Two-Headed Alien Love Child and Golden Boy. There are some really good stories here so of which I have read before and others I read for the first time. Two-Headed Alien Love Child is a great little piece of Keene comedy while others like Bunnies in August, Burying Betsy and That Which Lingers are dark and personal stories based on some things that Keene developed based on thing that have happened in his life. I don’t want to go into to much detail on each story, as I don’t want to spoil it for those who have yet to read them. However, trust me when I say each story is great.
I Know! I sound like a broken record with each review of a Brian Keene book. I love his work and it seems no matter what he writes there is always something in each one of his titles that either scares the shit out of me, or affects me personally. What separates Keene from all the others is the talent that he has to use horror and fantasy stories and find a way to effectively reach the reader personally. In some of these stories he did that once again, while others entertained me. In my mind he was always be a true master of horror fiction, and I encourage anyone out there who has yet to discover his talents to put down that shitty Twlight novel and get ready to read some real horror. The real future of the horror fiction lies in the work of writers like Brian Keene.
– 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
