Cody Goodfellow

This book is an absolute blast, beginning to end. A non-stop monster fest filled with creeps, chills, crazy, over-the-top action, and an endless sense of invention bordering on bizarro, but with a consistency of vision that sets it apart. So dig in and find otherworldly beasts, genetic degenerates, and man-made monstrosities straight out of the pulps, all told in an intelligent, hyper-dense prose style which exposes cross-sections of its subject matter across all cultural strata and show more political spectrums. A very impressive feat. Highly recommended to fans of smart, weird, monster tales. show less

The only reason I picked up Spore by John Skipp and Cody Goodfellow was my fondness of the Splatterpunk literary movement of the 80s and 90s, of which Skipp was a major influential participant, and based on that expectation alone, Spore did not disappoint.

Spore bears a striking resemblance to Skipp’s previous work The Bridge – written at the height of Skipp’s writing relationship with coauthor Craig Spector – which was about chemical waste and pollution overtaking nature and the show more planet with an almost sentient malevolence. While Spore’s titular enemy doesn’t have the same origins, the hive-mind fungus invader’s very presence makes the novel seem like a logical spinoff of The Bridge’s environmentalist-based tone and imagery. Combine that with the book’s warts-and-all love affair with California – very reminiscent of fellow Splatterpunk author David J. Schow’s work – and Spore begins to feel like a callback to the old days of chunk-blowers and underground horror fandom.

Spore feels (at least, to me) a little more lighthearted than some might expect, but maybe that’s just another throwback to a horror genre that was more about being entertainingly gruesome than darkly foreboding. The zombie-plague aspect and far from nihilistic ending are somewhat formulaic, but if you aren’t obsessed with every book you read being a groundbreaking experience, that should keep you from enjoying this shameless attempt appeasing the gore-hound in your soul. show less

This book may offend some, and you will know who you are either from the synopsis or from the minute you open the book and see the dedication to "everyone who's had enough of thoughts and prayers." whether or not this book is for you.

Maybe God is everywhere, or nowhere at all. Maybe people believe in God because God is real or maybe God is real because people believe. One thing is for sure, prayer is not meant for the purpose of getting God to do your bidding, especially if you think you are show more on a mission to control others.
Gala isn't sure what she believes or what she is looking for when she decides to stay at a convent of sorts. What she discovers is how to believe in herself.
This was a quick and quirky read that I would recommend to anyone looking for something out of the ordinary.
3.5 stars that I will round up to 4 out of 5

I received a complimentary copy for review. show less

California creepy w frightening scenarios centering around a family w secrets and an abandoned utopian commune taken over by hivebrain zombie people w no heads - a page turner that's equal parts horror, sex, violence, and somehow believable anyway? Complete w/ freaked out characters who remain strangely likable even tho they are totally f'd up and trying to kill each other and are living out some neomarxist utopian secret government weapon experiment.