A few days behind schedule (not our fault – illness at the printing factory) Black Static 7 is now on its way to subscribers and contributors. We hope you enjoy it. Register for the forum and let us know!

Cover and all original art is by David Gentry (click the image to see it bigger) and it is full of dark and troubling things:

Stories by Bruce Holland Rogers, Trent Hergenrader, Eric Gregory, Daniel Kaysen, Tony Richards, Alison J. Littlewood, David Sakmyster.

Regular editorial by Stephen Volk, Christopher Fowler, Mike O’Driscoll.

White Noise news compiled by Peter Tennant.

Blood Spectrum by Tony Lee: DVD reviews covering Who Saw Her Die?, Lost Boys 2: The Tribe, The Wizard of Gore, Shutter (2008), BTK, Dante 01, Chemical Wedding, Day of the Dead (2008), Dead Space: Downfall, Vexille, The Happening, Tin Man, The Flock, P2, The Vanguard, Outpost, Solstice, The Short Films of David Lynch, Eraserhead, Caligula Imperial Edition, Days of Darkness, Bone Dry, Timber Falls, Reservoir Dogs Collector’s Edition, The Guard Post, The Dead Girl, Salò (reissue), plus easy to enter competitions to win a lot of these. NB: you don’t have to wait till your copy arrives to enter: the competitions are on the forum already. (Open to active subscribers only.)

Case Notes by Peter Tennant: book reviews, featurettes and interviews covering new titles by Gary Braunbeck, Sarah Pinborough, Gord Rollo, Brian Keene, John Everson, Edward Lee, Thomas Ligotti, Stephen Gregory, Suzy McKee Charnas, Nicholas Pekearo, Tim Lebbon. Interviews with Leisure’s Don D’Auria and Tim Lebbon.

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Tags: Alison J Littlewood • Black Static • books • Brian Keene • Bruce Holland Rogers • Christopher Fowler • Daniel Kaysen • David Gentry • David Sakmyster • Don D'Auria • DVD • Edward Lee • Eric Gregory • Gary Braunbeck • Gord Rollo • Horror • Interviews • John Everson • Mike O'Driscoll • Nicholas Pekearo • Peter Tennant • reviews • Sarah Pinborough • Stephen Gregory • Stephen Volk • stories • Suzy McKee Charnas • Thomas Ligotti • Tim Lebbon • Tony Lee • Tony Richards • Trent Hergenrader

HOME BEFORE DARK: THE COLLECTED CEDAR HILL STORIES, VOLUME 2 by GARY A. BRAUNBECK
Earthling Publications hardback, 429pp, $45

This was my first encounter with the work of American horror writer Gary A. Braunbeck but, barring death and taxes, it won’t be the last. Assembled together here are nineteen short stories and novellas, with connecting material about the inhabitants and places to be found in the imaginary locale of Cedar Hill, which is similar to Bradbury’s magical Green Town as regards the wonders to be encountered within its environs, but with a slightly more sinister cast.

It’s difficult to know where to begin with reviewing this book. The temptation is to just turn to the entry for ‘marvellous’ in Roget’s and copy out whatever’s printed there, Braunbeck is that good. There’s a maturity here, a depth of feeling and genuine compassion that elevates it above most other genre fiction and on occasion into that rare stratum occupied by genius. The stories here will make you laugh and make you cry; they’ll disgust you and leave you feeling as limp and useless as last week’s used dishcloth. There are no bad stories here, just some that are not as good as others.

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Tags: Black Static • Book Reviews • Gary Braunbeck • Home Before Dark • Peter Tennant