Graham Masterton

So, this was a fucking blast! I have never read anything by Masterton before, and now I must read everything! The nostalgia was so perfect for me, set in the 80's he talked about the A-Team, Knight Rider all my faves as a kid. But there was also mention of big Hollywood musicals in the 1930's, which I also love. And super detailed grisly unbelievable death scenes! Love those too! I'm eclectic, fight me!

There was occult lore, theology, good vs evil on a huge scale, and a scary mirror. show more Perfection!

HUGE trigger warning for animal harm, like really huge. But you can skim/ skip those parts and not lose any important info.

Still laughing at myself for literally clutching my pearls (well my Tshirt anyway) during a few scenes in this book. Recommend this one so hard! show less

This review originally appeared at GnomeReviews.ca.

The gnomes received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. Figures of Fear is an anthology of horror short fiction by British author Graham Masterton. The collection has a few strong stories but these stories are completely overshadowed by the misogynist mess that is “Witch Compass.”

“Witch Compass” is a story about Paul, an American who made (and then lost) his fortune in Gabon. A woman in a market sells him an show more item called a witch compass. She says it will point him towards anything that he desires, all he has to do is visualize something he wants and the witch compass will lead him there.

Paul wants a woman, and not just any woman. He wants Katie, an old crush from his school days who publicly rejected him. When he asked her to get a burger in front of the rest of the class, “Katie had clamped her hand over her mouth, and widened her eyes, and then she burst out laughing.” In other words, Katie has made it fairly clear that she’s not interested.

But Paul is interested, and the witch compass leads him to Katie’s house. He knocks on the door, and when no one answers, so he lets himself in. After all, the witch compass told him to come here to get what he wants. It leads him to Katie’s bedroom.

Paul finds Katie lying naked on her bed, unconscious. He finds an empty bottle of pills and a vodka bottle beside her. Women do not generally strip down before committing suicide, but this is a male fantasy in addition to a horror story. Paul briefly considers calling for help, in an internal monologue that is so twisted that the gnomes will quote it:

“If he called the paramedics now, there was a strong possibility that they could save her. She would be grateful to him, wouldn’t she, for the rest of her life?…. There might even be a change that in the future he and Katie could get together. But if they got together now, then he could be sure of having her. Maybe just once. But even once was better than never.”

Paul doesn’t call the paramedics. Instead, he rapes Katie as she dies, cleans up his crime scene, and leaves the house. How does he feel? “Satisfied… Not fully satisfied, but it’s taken the edge off.”

The gnomes cannot recommend this book to anyone with a functioning moral compass, and would advise readers to steer clear of future books by this author.

Rating: 1 Gnomes out of 5 show less

Graham Masterton wined, dined, and romanced me with his gory, viscerally rich ‘The Devil in Grey.’ Here he makes the past cross the lines with the modern again, this time, as before, dealing with devilish spirits up to no good.

The plot is traditional type of ghost story, with possession, unexplained deaths, haunted houses, and mysterious ‘drawings’ to places and people of the characters. Sure, there’s nothing really new here, but it’s fun anyway.

Pacing doesn’t hurt the book, show more either. Spooks and chills are delivered without haste, action is tight and well delivered, violence is sudden, shocking, strong, and the ending is one that lasts in the readers mind even when the book is read, closed, and locked away on the shelf.

Characters are gripping and emotionally driven, particularly the wife Ellie. Since Craig is the one going through all the ghostly drama, I suppose Masterton chose to show so much through the wife’s eyes as she is a spectator and informant of sort for the reader to get the overall picture. Well done!

When violence strikes, it’s bloody, traditional Masterton style. The book isn’t creepy, but it is intriguing. The beginning starts off with action that’s not directly related to the plot but nail-grinding nonetheless, giving adequate back story to why Craig comes to Valhalla to begin with. The middle keeps flourishing and branching out, growing stronger as each scene feeds the next, wrapping up with an ending that left me pleased, content, but also a bit sad and ‘stumped.’

I’m a sucker for haunted houses, or even just old mansions/run down places that have such strong mysterious atmosphere a picture of Sherlock Holmes may as well be hanging on the walls. This one didn’t let me down in the least, going over inch by inch of the place, using the dark corners and demented rooms to its advantage.

Even though I hold minor qualms with how the ending turned out (not bad writing, just personal grimaces), I rate this book highly. Masterton’s writing style is crafty and addictive, his approach solid and strong, creating an end product that’s both memorable and enjoyable.

Find it, buy it, let your mind soak it up. One can never have too many haunted house stories, especially when the story surrounds manipulative, cruel ghosts who come back from the grave for reasons one would never originally expect. show less

I thoroughly enjoyed this latest from Masterton. One of the best books about "hauntings" that I've ever read. I liked the different take on it and the Middle East mythology. Not a lot of character depth in this one, but I just didn't care. The creepiness and gore made up for it. Were there some flaws? Of course, but again, I didn't care. This one just worked for me.