splatterpunk

Gob & Nob by Simon McHardy

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Step right up! Come on, folks. Step right up and see Gob the Blob and Nob the Purple Avenger as they pummel and penetrate their way through all comers! You’ll never see anything like this anywhere else!
Simon McHardy has a knack for taking a ludicrous juvenile concept and hammering it out into something both literate and entertaining. Gob is a morbidly obese imbecile with a 16-inch penile conjoined twin named Nob–complete with eyes, ears, a toothy mouth, and a mind of his own–he’s the one who does most of the thinking. These two are not relatable heroes. They’re not heroes at all, come to think of it. But they’re what we get, and it’s hard to turn away from the ultraviolent, absurd mess they leave in their wake, splattered lovingly upon these pages by McHardy.
From underground deathmatch fights to a burgeoning career in snuff films, Gob & Nob almost dare us to tear our eyes away from the pages as the story insists on continuing. And then, as we reach the end, we wonder why there isn’t more while simultaneously wanting to slap ourselves for asking for that very thing.

You can pick this one up for yourself by going to http://www.godless.com or by downloading the Godless app on your preferred mobile device. The link is below:

Gob & Nob by Simon McHardy

Magick Brew by Nikki Noir

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I went into Magick Brew with high expectations. I’d previously read–and reviewed–the Black Planet collection compiling the first four novellas/novelettes in that series. She set the bar high with that one.
Magick Brew did not let me down. A morality tale reminding the reader to be careful what they wish for, this short story tells the tale of an incel who determines magic might be the only way he’ll get the girl he wants. Repeatedly striking out in his attempts to research a love spell, he almost gives up. Thankfully, for the readers, he does not. It would be a much shorter and far less interesting story if that happened.
Settle in, drink your watermelon margarita, and wait for the party to get going. You’re sure to enjoy the meal.

You can obtain your own copy of Magick Brew at http://www.godless.com or by downloading the Godless app for your Android or Apple devices. The link to this story is below:

Magick Brew (Uncensored Version) by Nikki Noir

Bloodymoon by Ryder Kinlay

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The rich really are different.
Never honeymoon in Thailand.
Those are the biggest takeaways from Kinlay’s Bloodymoon.
We meet the celebrating couple just as a plum is to be propelled from the vagina of a woman on stage into the new bride’s mouth. How can you go wrong with a story that starts like that? From there, Kylie–increasingly intoxicated–allows her husband, David, to drag her along in his wake as he seeks even greater and more taboo forms of enjoyment.
Unfortunately for Kylie, she might have married into the wrong family.
Bloodymoon is a story that starts out feeling like The Hangover only to transition into Hostel, and it’s quite an adventure getting from origin to destination.

You can obtain this short story for yourself by going to http://www.godless.com or by downloading the Godless app for Apple and Android Devices. The link for the story is below:

Bloodymoon by Ryder Kinlay

Lushbutcher (Saturday Night’s Alright for Butchering) by Lucy Leitner

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Lushbutcher expands on The Godless League in a wildly different direction from the first installment. Where John Stabberger seemed like a sane, albeit homicidal, character, Jane Lushbutcher–not her real name–seems far more indiscriminate in her targeting of drunks, and her state of mental health is questionable, to put it nicely.
With a motivation born from the combination of childhood tragedy and a mission bestowed on her by God–who speaks to her through various inanimate objects and discarded food items–she seems initially sympathetic. The execution of her single-minded objective to stop drunk drivers wherever she can find them seems to be a bit more flexible in Lushbutcher’s interpretation–as well as the perspective of her God.
There’s no denying that this is a fun, violent joyride through the seedy streets and rooftops of Pittsburgh. But with victims less cut and dried as bad guys, Lushbutcher doesn’t come across as quite as focused and relatable as Stabberger. Don’t let that turn you away from the story, though. It’s still an exciting, delirious adventure.

You can check this one out for yourself by going to http://www.godless.com or by downloading the Godless app for Android and Apple. The link for this title is below:

Godless League #2 (Lushbutcher – "Saturday Night’s Alright for Butchering") by Lucy Leitner

Fucking Scumbags Burn In Hell: Book 5 by Lucas Milliron

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Skin Deep feels like the answer to the unanswered question, “What if Nip/Tuck had included an absolute sociopath as a protagonist?”
Lucas Milliron expertly answers that question by crafting a narrative that showcases both the depravity and evil of Mike’s character but also the vulnerability and fear that serves as the substrate of who he’s become. The random glimpses into a horrifying childhood make it almost impossible to write Mike off as a two-dimensional piece of shit caricature. However, no amount of childhood trauma and abuse can make his actions throughout the story palatable or justified, and a reader can’t help but wish for Hooper to come along.
Milliron brings a different style to the Hoopiverse. He provides the reader with a frenetic, hallucinatory barrage of set pieces that manage to be simultaneously jarring and free-flowing. At no point does the reader see around the corner to what the next scene brings to the table, and that adds to the bewildering nature of this installment of the series.
As someone who can’t bear to have objects in/near my eyes, there was something viscerally unsettling about different aspects of this story.

As with the other installments of Fucking Scumbags Burn In Hell, you can obtain your own copy of this story at http://www.godless.com or on the Godless app, available for both Apple and Android users. The link to the story is below:

Skin Deep (Fucking Scumbags Burn in Hell: Book 5) by Lucas Milliron

Fucking Scumbags Burn In Hell: Book 4 by Lucy Leitner

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Karen is the fourth installment of the Fucking Scumbags Burn In Hell series, initiated by Drew Stepek. This volume was thrust upon us by Lucy Leitner. She was perhaps the perfect writer for him to next incorporate into his Hoopiverse. It’s plain to see that, as soon as Stepek allowed Leitner to take the wheel, she proceeded to plow her BMW through no less than half a dozen overweight men, women, and children in a rampage from which the reader can’t turn away.
Karen is…well…a Karen in every conceivable sense. If you don’t know what that means, I’m curious about how you’re reading this review from your space beneath the rock under which you’ve clearly been residing. Karen’s not someone you’d want to follow on Instagram, for sure, unless you’re looking for tone-deaf comparisons with concentration camps. That particular gag reminded me a great deal of Marjorie Taylor Greene, and I subsequently pictured Greene in the role of Karen for the rest of the story.
By the time Hooper comes along, you’re practically begging to see this monster receive the comeuppance you know she’s got coming. Leitner does not disappoint!

You can find this title, as well as the other amazing contributions to the Hoopiverse, by going to http://www.godless.com or by downloading the Godless app to your Android or Apple device of choice. I’ve included the link to the Hoopiverse titles below:

Fucking Scumbags Burn in Hell

Fucking Scumbags Burn In Hell: Book 3 by Drew Stepek

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The third installment of Stepek’s Fucking Scumbags Burn In Hell introduces us to the titular Poser, Sully. Through a combination of bleeding-edge technology and innate talent, Sully can hijack the bodies of the people who become his victims. Of course, he does this for a profit.
We begin by witnessing as Sully thoroughly demolishes both the fortunes and the future of a pop star with a flourish that takes Britney Spears’s apparent breakdown from 2008 and amplifies it. It seems that Sully has a knack for going above and beyond the wishes of his clients, relishing in the fact that he feels no guilt nor shame for the awful things he does while he pulls the strings from within his victims.
It’s with a grim sense of satisfaction that we see Hooper enter the scene, promising a whole new experience that Sully can’t refuse. Lulled into a false sense of security, Sully greedily marches into the trap as the reader smiles and waits for the other shoe to drop.
As with the previous two volumes in the Fucking Scumbags Burn In Hell series, Stepek provides us with a glimpse of extreme comeuppance for another of the worst of the worst.

You can obtain your own copy of The Poser by going to http://www.godless.com or by downloading the Godless app for your preferred mobile device. The link to the series of shorts is below:

Fucking Scumbags Burn in Hell

Fucking Scumbags Burn In Hell: Books 1 & 2 by Drew Stepek

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A Little Bit Country, the introduction to the terrific Fucking Scumbags Burn In Hell series, sets the bar high and showcases a uniquely cruel and sardonic portrait of Hell. It’s not supposed to be a fun place, after all. The important thing to remember is that these people belong there, and the torment awaiting them is one that would make Dante proud.
Reading about the experience of “Country” as he finds his place in the realm of the damned, I’m forced to reconsider Jean-Paul Sartre’s assertion that “Hell is other people,” and suspect that perhaps Hell is more appropriately ourselves. There is something of No Exit in this brief, humorous tale, in that Hell is not the place we expect it to be, and it’s that subverted expectation that contains the trap waiting to spring closed and provide the torture we’ve earned.
Country seems almost sympathetic at first, but I think there’s a little bit of Hooper in all of us, and the satisfaction at seeing how everything comes back around can’t be understated.

The Skid Row Slugger is an amazing follow-up to A Little Bit Country, taking more time to flesh out the newest victim than we had with Country.
While the first installment reminded me of C. S. Lewis and Chuck Palahniuk, with the portrayal of Hell as a dead-end job filled with bureaucracy and confusing rules, the follow-up feels more like a Clive Barker experience. This second tale also provides a tantalizing glimpse of how devious Hooper can be.
There’s nothing sympathetic or redeeming in the character of our protagonist. A racist, violent, and sexist LA cop isn’t exactly the sort of person I imagine anyone cheering for–but supporters were speaking up in favor of the former officers involved in the Rodney King case and every major incident since then. The Skid Row Slugger isn’t a story for those assholes, though. This is a tale written for those of us who feel that thrilling chill running up our spines when we witness a neo-Nazi punched on camera. It’s the fictional catharsis we need when we try to live our lives as civilized people who won’t resort to violence.
Again, there’s a sense of delight in reading this story, and we owe Drew Stepek a favor for giving us this cherished sense of satisfaction.

You can find both stories, along with additional installments of the Fucking Scumbags Burn In Hell series at http://www.godless.com

Links to these two stories are below:

A Little Bit Country (Fucking Scumbags Burn in Hell: Book 1) by Drew Stepek
The Skid Row Slugger (Fucking Scumbags Burn in Hell: Book 2) by Drew Stepek

The Final Gate by Wesley Southard & Lucas Mangum

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If Italian director Lucio Fulci were alive today, creating movies at 94-years-old like those he’d filmed four decades ago, this novella could be the novelization of his newest masterpiece. Southard and Mangum display a sincere and passionate love for the atmosphere, over-the-top gore, and idiosyncratically disjointed flow of Fulci’s oeuvre. That deep and abiding adoration is necessary to so accurately capture the feel of a Fulci movie with The Final Gate.
The more dedicated fans will perhaps experience a sort of wavering, rippling effect in their imaginations, seeing the face of Bob from House By the Cemetery transitioning into the much older face of Robert, the caretaker of St. Luke’s Orphanage. As pleased as we are to make his acquaintance again–and to see that he’s grown into a man who found a way to help children who were orphaned just as he was–it would seem that Bob’s encounters with supernatural horrors aren’t over. After racing into the orphanage in response to a young boy’s desperate cries for help, Robert’s story comes to an end when he enters Bryce’s darkened bedroom.
The rest of the book follows Brandon, Bryce’s older brother, and various other characters as Brandon desperately tries to make up for the mistakes of his earlier years. He hopes that by locating his younger brother and rescuing him from an orphanage that seems increasingly sinister, the deeper he digs into it, he’ll find a sense of fulfillment and redemption.
With the assistance of Jillian, his girlfriend, and Jillian’s ex-boyfriend, Dan, Brandon faces something far more mysterious and awful than he could have anticipated.
In true homage to Fulci, the authors leave you wondering who–if anyone–will survive and whether there’s any chance of a happy ending when the gates of hell are involved.
Any fans of Lucio Fulci, Dario Argento, Mario and Lamberto Bava, Ruggero Deodato, Umberto Lenzi, Bruno Mattei, and the other Italian greats should immediately pick up a copy of this book in August when it releases. No other book I’ve read has so perfectly demonstrated the Italian exploitation cinema tone the way this one has.

Abhorrent Siren by John Baltisberger

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I had the extreme pleasure of reading this book a few months ago. I immediately procured a copy once it was available on sale through http://www.godless.com because I sincerely believe that Baltisberger deserves all the support the indie horror community is able to provide.

Abhorrent Siren takes Baltisberger’s love of kaiju and elevates it to a new level beyond what readers had witnessed from previous titles like Blood & Mud and the epic poem, War of Dictates. This book is truly the love letter to the body horror and giant monster genres readers didn’t even know they needed.
It’s all too easy to get excited watching kaiju movies while never conceiving of the desperation and terror of those in the path of whatever horrifying monstrosity is lumbering their way. All too often, we witness those tales from the perspectives of individuals at a safe distance or the larger-scale perspective of the monsters themselves. Abhorrent Siren is not one of those stories. This book is Cloverfield rather than Pacific Rim. We are not on even footing with the creature slithering its slimy way North across Texas. We are not at any sort of remove from the horrific events taking place, at least not for long.
This is not to say that we aren’t provided with some perspective from those analyzing the situation and struggling to find both an explanation and a solution. Following the scientists, as they race against both the clock and the toxic mist exuded from the monstrous axolotl, to share their findings with those who might be able to do something is fascinating and rife with harrowing experiences along the way.
As we receive intimate, first-hand experiences of the body horror happening at ground level in advance of the creature’s arrival, we find ourselves equally horrified and disgusted by the transformations taking place both in mind and body. As readers, we are never allowed to forget the afflicted–while malformed and misshapen in every conceivable way–were once human beings. That constant reminder that these were once people serves to make the events all the more awful.
The author wasn’t satisfied simply to write a violent, breakneck-paced monster story. As with other material from Baltisberger, there are layers of subtext and social commentary laced within his viscerally poetic imagery. Embedded within what is a captivating–sometimes alarming–tale of grotesque, splattery horror, one will find a scathing meta-commentary on the opioid epidemic plaguing America. As we witness Barbara’s inability to escape the nightmare unfolding around her in her attempts to distance herself from the clinic, the commentary becomes all the more poignant.
Just wait until you reach the point in the story when Barbara comes home to Owen. It’s all downhill from there in the most gloriously, gratuitously disgusting way–especially after she brings another partner back with her.