Review: Suburban Hell by Maureen Kilmer

Dig that groovy cover, y'all!
(But please ignore my thumb.)

Suburban Hell by Maureen Kilmer 

My rating: 4 of 5 stars*
*3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

About the book:

A Chicago cul-de-sac is about to get a new neighbor...of the demonic kind.

Amy Foster considers herself lucky. After she left the city and moved to the suburbs, she found her place quickly with neighbors Liz, Jess, and Melissa, snarking together from the outskirts of the PTA crowd. One night during their monthly wine get-together, the crew concoct a plan for a clubhouse She Shed in Liz’s backyard—a space for just them, no spouses or kids allowed.

But the night after they christen the She Shed, things start to feel . . . off. They didn’t expect Liz’s little home-improvement project to release a demonic force that turns their quiet enclave into something out of a nightmare. And that’s before the homeowners’ association gets wind of it.

Even the calmest moms can’t justify the strange burn marks, self-moving dolls, and horrible smells surrounding their possessed friend, Liz. Together, Amy, Jess, and Melissa must fight the evil spirit to save Liz and the neighborhood . . . before the suburbs go completely to hell.

*    *    *

Tuneage ~ Cannons

Cannons has been around for a little over a decade but they're relatively new to me. Allmusic's Marcy Donelson describes their sound as a "...blend of shimmery electro-pop and sultry dance-rock," which pretty much nails it. As Cannons formed in L.A., it's apt that their music conjures up images of twilight drives on California's Pacific Coast Highway.

The first Cannons tune I recall hearing is Bad Dream, from their album Fever Dream. If the hypnotic beat weren't enough to capture my attention, the lyrics were:

I been living in a bad, bad dream
Sleepwalking through a sad scene 

I mean, #relateable.

 

Review: The Haunting of Velkwood by Gwendolyn Kiste

The Haunting of Velkwood by Gwendolyn Kiste
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

About the book:

From Bram Stoker Award­–winning author Gwendolyn Kiste comes a chilling novel about three childhood friends who miraculously survive the night everyone in their suburban neighborhood turned into ghosts—perfect for fans of Yellowjackets.

The Velkwood Vicinity was the topic of occult theorists, tabloid one-hour documentaries, and even some pseudo-scientific investigations as the block of homes disappeared behind a near-impenetrable veil that only three survivors could enter—and only one has in the past twenty years, until now.

Talitha Velkwood has avoided anything to do with the tragedy that took her mother and eight-year-old sister, drifting from one job to another, never settling anywhere or with anyone, feeling as trapped by her past as if she was still there in the small town she so desperately wanted to escape from. When a new researcher tracks her down and offers to pay her to come back to enter the vicinity, Talitha claims she’s just doing it for the money. Of all the crackpot theories over the years, no one has discovered what happened the night Talitha, her estranged, former best friend Brett, and Grace, escaped their homes twenty years ago. Will she finally get the answers she’s been looking for all these years, or is this just another dead end?

Award-winning author Gwendolyn Kiste has created a suburban ghost story about a small town that trapped three young women who must confront the past if they’re going to have a future.

*    *    *

I won an uncorrected Advance Reader Copy of this book from Saga Press, via Goodreads Giveaway--thanks so much! Here are my thoughts:

A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)*

One frigid December night, about three years ago, I exited the office I worked in at the time, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It was waaaaay past quitting time, and I was wiped out and starving, and I just wanted to get my commute over with so I could get home and collapse with copious quantities of comfort foods, already. But across the way, something caught my eye. I went toward the colorful motion and about a long block later found myself in front of the ABC building. The ground level lights were all off. In one glass wall was mounted a monitor and speakers so passersby could enjoy whatever ABC was currently airing--and in that moment, it was about ten minutes into A Charlie Brown Christmas. For the next twenty minutes I stood outside in the freezing cold, smiling through the program and the memories of when I was a kid watching it on CBS. (OK, and maybe I sniffled a little during Linus' monologue near the end.) The only thing that could’ve made that night better would’ve been the right man’s hand holding mine as we shared those chilly twenty minutes...and maybe some spiked hot chocolate.

Well, there probably isn’t a “right man” for me, and ABC no longer holds the rights to the special, so it won't be airing on network TV this year. But I can make myself a spiked hot chocolate whenever I want (I've concocted a fabulous recipe), and you can click here to learn where you can tune into the magic of Christmas (spoiler alert--PBS for the win!).

*This is a slightly expanded crosspost from my tumblr blog.

Spook Out! Day 31-ish ~ Stayin' Spooked

Youse guys, I had a blasty-blast doing the blogfest this year--I hope you enjoyed exploring the new, the old, and the outright bizarre with me.

But I just hate saying goodbye to Spook Out! So long, have a nice year, maybe see you next October, if I survive till then. Wham, bam, spook off, ma'am. So callous, so cruel. Can't bear it. So here are a few other fun things that can help keep you feeling spooky after all the Halloween candy's gone...

Spook Out! Day 31 ~ Zombieland: Double Tap (2019)

Amazon Says...

"Through comic mayhem from the White House to the heartland, four slayers face off against new kinds of evolved zombies and new human survivors."

I Say...
And how!!!!!

Horror Type...
Zombies, Horror Comedy, Post-Apocalyptic

Main Players...
Woody Harrelson as Tallahassee (Gnarly Elvis Lover)

Jesse Eisenberg as Columbus (Puppy Dog Rule-Maker)

Emma Stone as Wichita (Bad-Note-Leaver)

Abigail Breslin as Little Rock (Restless Teen)

I liked...

***SO FRIGGING MUCH***

• the shoot-em-up opening credits, that really set the tone for the rest of the movie
• the laughs, the gags, the bits, the throwaways, the visual jokes--man, this mfr was even funnier than the first Z-land flick, but also,
• the zombie scares, which are played straight and, in some scenes, legit scary
• the new zombie classifications
• how relationships, both romantic and familial, are explored and developed
• the doppelgängers! (so to speak)
• the specTACular zombie battle in the third act, DANG!

The Meh...
The only "meh" for me is that I don't know if we're getting another movie in this franchise. PLEASE OH PLEASE LET THERE BE ANOTHER ONE!!!!!

Would I recommend it...?

HECK to the YEAH! Lah-lah-lah-LOVE THIS MOOOVEEEEEEE! For me, it's the perfect combination of action, romance, comedy, and horror, with exactly the right amount of violence and gore to give it some Halloween bite (pun intended!). Not sure if sensitives will mind the aforementioned violence and gore--IMO, it's not gratuitous (for the kind of movie this is) and while it has scary moments, they're not terrifying, just...pleasantly chilling. (That's a thing, right? Pleasantly chilling?) (Well, it is for me...)

Miscellany...

• I've gotta shout out Zoey Deutch (Madison), Rosario Dawson (Nevada), and Luke Wilson (Albuquerque) for their work here--bravi, y'all!
• Watch the end credits all the way through. Trust me on this.

Ratings...

My Grade: A

Rotten Tomatoes Scores: Tomatometer=68%, Audience Score=88%

Details, Schmeetails...

I Watched Zombieland: Double Tap on Amazon (the Rotten Tomatoes page linked above provides links to other streaming platforms)

Check it out on IMDb

Learn more about it on Wikipedia (Contains Spoilers)

This concludes Day 31

(and indeed, the blogfest!)

of

Thanks to all who joined me

on this year's journey,

and please do come back next year...

IF YOU DARE

Spook Out! Day 30 ~ The Wretched (2020)

Hulu Says...

"A rebellious teenage boy embarks on a gutsy crusade to stop the terrifying evil he suspects has possessed his neighbor in this bone-chilling occult thriller."

I Say...
That's about right.

Horror Type...
Supernatural Horror, Creature Feature

Main Players...

John-Paul Howard as Ben Shaw (Troubled Teen)

Piper Curda as Mallory (Sassy Teen)

Zarah Mahler as Abbie (Neighbor From Hell)

I liked...

• how the scares start coming from the jump, and keep on coming
• the artfully articulated Wretch in all her gory glory
• how some character-types who are traditionally left unharmed in other horror movies enjoy no special protections here (which is to say, I didn't enjoy what happened to them, but I was impressed by how the directors dared to break through established conventions)
• that the dad of the piece eventually listened to his son, though Ben gave every indication of being a very unreliable narrator indeed
• the Sixth Sense-like twist in the third act. Nicely done, youse guys--I suppose I should've seen it coming, but I totally didn't...

The Meh...

• I'd have liked more intel/background on what, exactly, that Wretch-beastie is (she's referred to as a witch, but she strikes me as something different, something...more)
• It's got some '80s brat-pack movie tropes (a hot girl who's kind of a bitch, rich guys who're dicks to the protagonist, an embarrassing moment in a swimming pool, etc.) which contrast weirdly with the heavier themes of the film and detract from its intensity 

Would I recommend it...?

Yeah, it's got loads of great scares with gruesome effects for Halloween, takes some risks, and does some things I haven't seen horror movies dare to do, of late. It's not for the faint of heart. Trigger Warnings for: babies, kids, and animals in peril, lotsa violence, and did I mention the gore?

Miscellany...

The Wretched was released to VOD and drive-in theaters during the Covid 19 pandemic and has been "...the closest thing to a box office hit this summer." Bravo, y'all!

Ratings...

My Grade: B+

Rotten Tomatoes Scores: Tomatometer=74%, Audience Score=45%

Details, Schmeetails...

I Watched The Wretched on Hulu (the Rotten Tomatoes page linked above provides links to other streaming platforms)

Check it out on IMDb

Learn more about it on Wikipedia (Contains Spoilers)

This concludes Day 30 of

Thanks for reading and come back tomorrow...

IF YOU DARE