Johnny Gruesome
Written by: Gregory Lamberson
Published by: Medallion Press (October 1, 2008)
Page Count: 400
ISBN-10: 1934755451
ISBN-13: 978-1934755457
Where to buy:
Medallion Press, Amazon, and other fine retailersPublishers Comments:
The upstate village of Red Hill is about to learn the meaning of fear.Johnny Grissom, nicknamed “Johnny Gruesome” by his high school classmates, is a heavy-metal hellion who loves to party, watch horror movies, and get into fights. His best friend, Eric, admires him, and his girlfriend, Karen, loves him.
One winter night, Johnny’s car, the Death Mobile, is discovered submerged beneath the icy surface of Willow Creek, with Johnny’s waterlogged corpse inside. The residents of Red Hill believe that Johnny’s death was accidental.
Then the murders begin—horrible acts of violent vengeance that hint at a deepening mystery and terror yet to come. A headless body is discovered at the high school. A priest is forced to confront his own misdeeds. And a mortician encounters the impossible.
One by one, Johnny’s enemies meet a grisly demise, as the sound of a car engine and maniacal laughter fill the night. The students at Red Hill High School fear for their lives—especially Johnny’s closest friends, who harbor a dark secret.
If people thought Johnny had a bad attitude when he was alive, wait until they encounter him when he’s dead!
Johnny Gruesome is a valentine to E.C. Comics, Marvel’s Tomb of Dracula, and such gory 1980s splatter flicks as Re-Animator and Return of the Living Dead. The novel is a horror fan’s nightmare come true!
About the Author:
Two-time Bram Stoker Award nominee Gregory Lamberson is an author and filmmaker who loves to scare people. Rave reviews of his work have appeared in Fangoria, Rue Morgue, and Publishers Weekly. All of his books are available in print and as e-books, and audio books are on the way.Lamberson created and edited the popular horror entertainment website Fear Zone for two years, and is one of the organizers of the Buffalo Screams Horror Film Festival. He is an Active member of the Horror Writers Association and International Thriller Writers.
Hello Ghouls and Boils,
This evening we present a spooktacular book by author Greg Lamberson. I was given this book as a prize from the Book Bloggers and Publishers Online Conference. Funny enough, I have been friends with Greg on Facebook for some time now. So I am happy we could review this one! I passed it on to our resident undead/monster expert for a read! So without further ado, I will let Alanna tell you all about it. Enjoy, my fiends!
Abstrusely,
Sarah L. Covert
When the original Leatherface, Gunnar Hansen, gives a book an endorsement I am opening it up without hesitation. To find that Herschell Gordon Lewis stated “Johnny Gruesome is a rarity… I wish I had written it.” I am even more thrilled. Unlike the other titles I have read and written about, this one I walked into with certain expectations.
The cover of Johnny Gruesome reflects the interests of author Gregory Lamberson at the time he wrote this, one of them being 1980s slasher movies. As a fan of the genre myself, I looked forward to seeing what he could script for my ocular input. The book took me back in time in a fun way and had me reveling in heavy metal and suspense, the fun things that keep a reader like me turning pages. I wish the term “slash fiction” could be used for this book, but it has other connotations that would cause misunderstandings, but suffice it to say, this is a slasher film in print, and any reader that is into Judas Priest and horror franchises will most likely enjoy this as well.
I am glad I got a chance to read this, after looking up the title from Lamberson’s website Slime Guy (where I have found the Lewis quote), I saw that this story had grander plans than being a paperback. I highly recommend a look through, as I cannot even begin to list everything he has on there and give a sufficient enough description.
Gunnar Hansen is quoted on the cover that the book ” has a frightening sense of detail that makes it all the more horrific”; he is likely referring to the scientific details that Lamberson uses; a good one is described in Johnny’s autopsy that is reiterated later (the information is true, I looked them up; after the funeral home scene, I’m not getting embalmed *gah*).
Final Thoughts:
Johnny Gruesome will be a fun read for people who enjoy 80s movies and like an undead revenge story. The high school background, small town environment, jocks, everything about it makes for a page-turner with a typical but satisfying ending. I highly recommend this for any fans that do a lot of traveling by air; this should make the waits less wretched. I give this book a 4 out of 5.Alanna Quinn, Minion(Reviewer)
