SHIVERS

SHIVERS. William Schoell. Cemetery Dance.

Forgive another shameless plug, but here is another of my classic horror novels in epub format for the first time. The publisher is Cemetery Dance, and the cover was designed by Kealan Patrick Burke.

In Shivers, Steven Everson goes on a search for his missing brother, Joey, and discovers that many, many more people have gone missing in Manhattan than usual. A detective, a lonely alcoholic woman, a scientist, an older woman who claimed she was Joey's lover, and several others are embroiled in a horrific plot that leads to the frightening deaths of several of these individuals, who seem to be controlled by a powerful force no one can see and whose origin is unknown. Steven's investigation leads him down to hidden vaults beneath the New York City subways, where he uncovers the terrifying truth.

Shivers is available for Amazon kindle and other ebook readers and applications.

TRIGGER MORTIS -- A James Bond Novel

TRIGGER MORTIS. A James Bond novel. Anthony Horowitz. 2015; HarperCollins.

Trigger Mortis takes place after the events of Ian Fleming's Goldfinger. James Bond is back in London co-habiting with the apparently happily bisexual Pussy Galore. Both of them are aware that this will not be a long-lasting romance, and in a scene that is somewhat comical Pussy meets up with her next lover a few chapters into the book. Then Bond is ordered to become an undercover auto racer in order to save the life of speedster Lancey Smith, who has been targeted by those nasty Russians of SMERSH. Meanwhile Bond also encounters a sinister Korean man named Jason Sin, who seems to be in league with SMERSH and unveils a diabolical plan to wipe out half of Manhattan. Sin's origin includes the horrifying true-life massacre at No Gun Ri -- in which hundreds of innocent refugees, mostly women and children and the elderly -- were mowed down by U.S. soldiers with orders to kill (although some claim this was an unfortunate "accident"), an event that had a devastating impact on the few survivors. Bond's female helpmate in this is the unfortunately named Jeopardy Lane (ugh!). Horowitz has done a good job of updating Bond and exploring his psychology while remaining faithful to the 1950's period, and there is plenty of action, hair-breath escapes and death traps, and a finale thrilling enough to please any serious 007 fan.

Verdict: Excellent James Bond adventure! ***1/2.