Cover reveal for Terror Tales of Northwest England edited by Paul Finch

This is the cover for Terror Tales of Northwest England, which will include a reprint of my story Writer's Cramp, which originally appeared in Fantasy Tales.

Terror Tales of Northwest England will be published in June by Telos and is already available for pre-order.

The Winter Hunt reviewed on The Vault of Evil

Kevin Demant, who runs the splendid Vault of Evil website, is currently writing a detailed review of Steve Lockley and Paul Lewis's The Winter Hunt:

Steve Lockley & Paul Lewis - The Winter Hunt & Other Stories (Parallel Universe, 2016)

Joe Young

Paul Finch - Introduction: Calm Waters Run Very, Very Deep

The Winter Hunt
Gabriel Restrained
Family Ties
Lullaby
The Woman On The Stairs
Never Go Back
Damp
Last Day
The Worst Part
City Of Woes
Death Knock
Playmates
De Profundis
Puca Muc
Shadows Of Paint

Blurb:
Steve Lockley and Paul Lewis, a two-man, Swansea-based writing-team (though they have written individually as well, and excellently too) are contemporary authors in the best sense of the phrase. They are also hugely respectful of and clearly motivated by some of the great work done in the past. So often their stories, at first glance, may be ‘kitchen sink’ in tone. By that, I mean they could be set on a drear council estate, or in a bus station café, or a second-hand shoe shop, or a seaside boarding house on a dull day in the off-season. But never be fooled by any of that, because these calm waters run very, very deep indeed. - From Paul Finch's introduction.

The Winter Hunt: (L. H Maynard, M. P. N. Sims & David Howe [eds.], F20, BFS, 2000). A freak snow blizzard hits Swansea. Meanwhile Angharad, a thirty year old shoe-shop assistant, is bemoaning her sorry lot. Ten years ago she sacrificed any hope of a decent future away from this hell-hole sink estate out of duty to an alcoholic Dad and hopelessly dependent kid brother, Gareth. Then there's her irresponsible boyfriend, Mark, who spends too much time hanging around with local ne'er do well, 'Monkey' Jackson, whose hobbies include stealing cars to torch in Penllergaer Woods. Jackson's antics have even made the local news. To crown it all, Gareth and Mark now come crying to her claiming their ne'er do well mate has been brutally murdered by an implacable huntsman and attendant spectral pack of hounds. With luck like Angharad's dare she not believe them?

Ideal entry point to the downbeat, Welsh Tales of Terror-meetsKitchen Sink Gothic world of Messrs. L & L. The winter huntsman is as relentless as the cowled, scythe-swinging horror in Stephen Laws' The Crawl

Gabriel Restrained: (L. H Maynard & M. P. N. Sims, [eds.], Darkness Rising Two: Night's Soft Pains, Cosmos, 2001). The Monkey's Paw gone to Hell. Duncan and Annie Matthias, God-fearing chapel goers of sixty years standing, face the most agonizing crisis of conscience. God in His infinite mercy has cured Annie of her cancer, but did he have to send an Angel to earth to do so? What to do with beautiful 'Gabriel' now he has performed this miracle? Annie insists they keep him imprisoned in the spare bedroom as insurance against the return of the disease. Duncan reluctantly agrees. But what about little Peter Daniels, the nine year old tumour boy, and his poor family? Shouldn't they, too, share in God's bounty? Gabriel duly heals the sick child, but someone close to Peter's family can't help but go running to the local press ....

Family Ties: (Charles Black [ed.] The Third Black Book of Horror, Mortbury Press, 2008). The zombie apocalypse reaches the tiny hamlet of Mumbles off Swansea Bay. While Peter is out foraging for food and medical supplies, Helen, heavily pregnant, frets inside the cottage. He really should be back by now! Her thoughts turn to the rifle. They've discussed it often enough, but would she be capable of shooting Peter's brains out if anything went wrong?

Helen drags herself down to the beach. Peter's boat has washed up ashore, the provisions abandoned in the water, but no sign of her husband. A shambling figure approaches across the sand....

The Woman On The Stairs: Janet, a stressed-out single mum, sees recently dead people - not for very long, and invariably in the company of a silent old lady, leading them up the stairwell and on to the roof of the Baron Court estate. They seem bewildered. Predictably, teenage daughter Catherine is unsympathetic to her mounting concern. Is Janet seeing ghosts or has her alcoholism reached the point where she's suffering from the DTs? Perhaps the tedium of working the supermarket checkout has finally driven her insane. And what are the paramedics doing in her front room?

To be continued

Steve Lockley and Paul Lewis's The Winter Hunt and Other Stories nears publication

Cover artwork: Joe Young

Steve Lockley and Paul Lewis's The Winter Hunt and Other Stories is nearing publication with the completion of its cover and an introduction by crime novelist and horror aficionado Paul Finch. This will be available soon as a paperback (£8.99) and an ebook (£2.99).

Cover artwork for The Winter Hunt and Other Stories by Steve Lockley and Paul Lewis

Artwork: Joe Young

Joe Young has now revealed the cover artwork he has done for Steve Lockley and Paul Lewis's collection, The Winter Hunt and Other Stories, which is soon to be published by Parallel Universe Publications, wonderfully illustrating the title story.

With an introduction by Paul Finch, this 250-page collection will include:

The Winter Hunt
Gabriel Restrained
Family Ties
Lullaby
The Woman on the Stairs
Never Go Back
Damp
Last Day
The Worst Part
City of Woes
Death Knock
Playmates
De Profundis
Puca Muc
Shadows in Paint

Paul Finch's 50th Birthday Party

Had a great night out on Saturday at Paul Finch's 50th Birthday Party at Wigan Little Theatre, Wigan. It nicely coincided with the publication of Paul's third DS Heckenburg thriller The Killing Club. After an overcast day, the sky brightened in the early evening and I had an enjoyable forty-minute drive to Wigan. Fortunately my satnav guided me straight to the venue and I was able to park up on the street only three blocks away. The first people I met when I went inside were Anna Taborska, Charles Black, Reggie Oliver, Simon Bestwick and Cate Gardner, so I felt at home straight away. The venue was packed and there was a great, celebratory atmosphere. Had some interesting conversations while I drank my non-alcoholic orange juice. It felt almost like being at a convention! Things were still going lively when I left at 11.15.

Reggie Oliver published the following two photos on facebook:

Me, Paul Finch in the background, and Cate Gardner
Photo by Reggie Oliver

Anna Taborska, Charlie Black, me, Cate Gardner and Simon Bestwick
Photo by Reggie Oliver

Wigan Little Theatre

Sacrifice by Paul Finch - review

My review for Paul Finch's new DS Heckenburg novel is now on hellnotes.

This is the second Detective Sergeant Heckenburg thriller from the hands of Paul Finch. The first, Stalkers, was published earlier this year to great applause. Thankfully, I can confirm that its sequel has more than lived up to expectations, with Heckenburg and the rest of the Serial Crimes Unit facing the challenge of a series of particularly sadistic murders based upon annual festivals. The first body is a man dressed in a Santa Clause outfit, who has been bricked up to starve to death in the days before Christmas. On Bonfire Night a man is burned to death. On Valentine’s Day a young couple are impaled by an aluminium arrow through their hearts. Worse murders are to follow, graphically described in Paul Finch’s clear, no nonsense style. Under pressure from the media, the Serial Crimes Unit are struggling with little solid information to go on even as it becomes clear that more than one killer must be responsible, especially after a horrifically grisly re-enactment of the crucifixion.
The descriptions of the towns across Britain in which the murders take place are vividly described in all their sordid detail and it’s obvious that Finch knows them and, in particular, their less salubrious areas well. Likewise, with his experience in the police, in which he served for some years, he has a first hand knowledge of low life criminals, which adds authenticity to the book. Both these, and a vivid imagination, honed in the horror genre for years, make this a crime novel which no horror fan will be disappointed with. The action scenes pack a hefty punch and are certain to set the adrenalin flowing, particularly towards its violent climax, when all hell lets loose.
Ending the book are the first thirty pages of the next Heckeburg novel, Hunted, as a taster.

The Ninth Black Book of Horror

Pleased to see that the Ninth Black Book of Horror from Mortbury Press, edited by Charles Black, is to be launched at FantasyCon this September. Unfortunately I won't be able to attend but I hope the launch goes well. Stories in it by Simon Bestwick, Kate Farrell, Paul Finch, John Forth, Tom Johnstone, Thana Niveau, Marion Pitman, John Llewellyn Probert, David A. Riley, Anna Taborska and David Williamson. I can't believe it's reached the 9th volume already!