Spectral Press: Reviews Section

[Perpetual Man]

As I will probably be reviewing a number of books by this particular publisher I thought it might be a good idea to group them under one title. It also allows anyone else who might read one of the titles somewhere to post.*

Spectral Press is a small publishing house that was set up a few years ago, and initially specialised in publishing chapbooks. These are small stories of about 20 odd pages, and in the case of Spectral have a subtle horror/mysterious (well Spectral I guess) overtone.

The chapbooks are rather hard to get hold of as they sell out and are limited edition.

But more recently Spectral have expanded publishing novellas (although some look as long as novels to me) many by notable up and coming names in the genre)

The books have been published to some acclaim, most notably Whitstable by Stephen Volk.

I'll try and find some of my older reviews from around the internet and add them to the thread, but it'll probably mean the Chapbooks won't appear in publication order.

As far as the review (when I am writing them) I will assure you of my honest - I'll rate them on a standard 1-5 scale, but in the interest of full disclosure I am, and have been for a long time, very good friends with the man behind Spectral, Simon Marshall-Jones.

*If they spot the thread.

 

[Perpetual Man]

King Death (Chap Book IV)
by Paul Finch

5/5​

I feel slightly guilty in reviewing this chap book when I have not reviewed the previous publications - even more so as I always intended to...

Spectral Press is (at the moment) a small independent publishing company with a big heart and aspirations and seem to be making a solid impact on the scene, making it something to watch.

Their output, for the moment, is limited to chapbooks - stories of about 20+ pages, all with a slightly spectral bent.

King Death is, as stated the fourth book released to date, it seems to be the least ghostly of the first four, but is(only just) my favourite.

Set during the reign of King Edward III of England, it tells the tale of a single man, using the decimation of the plague to make his own selfish advantage.

In such a short story there is limited room for character development, but Finch keeps the cast small, basically two characters, the main character Rodric a veteran of countless campaigns and a young boy he encounters on his travels. But it is not these two characters that so illuminated the chapbook for me, it was the description of the landscape, the plague ravaged country that really sold the book.

There is a genuine feel of a land fallen into decay as people are viciously claimed by something that could only have been seen as the wrath of god. There is a sense of hopelessness and a constant darkness that evokes the feeling of a time that has to be seen as one of the darkest in Europe's history.

That Finch manages to capture this in just 22 pages is a testament to his skill as a writer.

The last line though, sells the whole thing, and just keeps it within the realms of Spectral Presses remit.

 

[Perpetual Man]

Rough Music (Chapbook V)
by Simon Kurt Unsworth

4/5​

Another excellent book Chap Book from Spectral Press and another one of those reviews that I would have given four and a half stars had I been able.

It is also one of those stories that is hard to talk about without giving too much away.

It is the story of a man and his wife. Of his trying to reconnect after a period of infidelity.

But it is also the story of a man that is haunted by strange figures that only he can see performing a play for him every night, accompanied by cacophonous 'music' that they play.

It is a very well written and engaging story that drew me in almost immediately and I wanted to see just what was going to happen next and how it all drew together. I had almost worked it all out before I finished the story but it did not make it any less enjoyable, in fact in some ways it might have added to the pay off, that delicious feeling when every thing comes together as it should.

It is the kind of tale that deserves to be read in one sitting, and the size of this makes it more than possible, I think that the only reason I read it in three is because personal circumstances dictate my life that way at the moment.(Probably the same reason it took me over three months to read it).

But it was an excellent read, one I would not hesitate to recommend, a tale of strangeness and wonder, but one which surpasses the supernatural when it might just be a story of guilt and revenge, perhaps even justice.

 

[Perpetual Man]

The Eyes of Water (Chapbook VI)
by Alison Littlewood

4/5
​

This is a story that borders very carefully the area between reality and unreality. Despite it's size - it is only a chapbook after all it paints a larger picture without saying too much. Without using too many words Littlewood gives you another to paint the definition yourself, no small feat.

From the what we are given we are able to see a friendship that goes back to childhood; friends that grew up together and although they are different and to some degree went their separate ways it is the kind of bond that when they do meet up, they just pick up where they left off no matter how long has passed in between.

While one of the friends is a risk taking go lucky daredevil the other is slightly more staid.

Rick is exploring the intricate water filled cave systems in Mexico, cenotés those places where the Mayans once sacrificed humans to their gods.

It is there that Alex expects to meet his old friend once more and it is their that he discovers he has to identify his body.

What follows is a story that could be a man experiencing intense grief, or it could be something more supernatural.

The book is incredibly well written (like most of the Spectral Press output), draw you in and in this particular case did not let go. I fully expected it to take me a few days to read (just don't have the time at the moment), but by a few words I knew I was going to do it in one sitting.

 

[Perpetual Man]

What Gets Left Behind
by Mark West (Chapbook VII)

4/5​

Another excellent chapbook from Spectral Press that is well written and gripping. Anything that you sit down to read and think I'll just read a page or two and end up finishing in one sitting has to have a lot going for it. In fact I should be glad that it is not longer...

This is the story of a man coming to terms with loss, a horrific tragedy he was party two when he was twelve years old, and some thirty years later has now gone home to lay those ghosts to rest...

West invokes the feel of the early eighties, when the boys are twelve excellently, and I guess that appeals to be because with just a few words he brought everything back perfectly. It was the time I grew up in myself and he nailed it.

For me though, perhaps somewhat ironically, it was the end when the spectral elements of the story come into play that the tale lost something. Not that it was not well written, but rather that the story did not seem to need it (of course then it would have been outside of the Spectral Press area)

All in all though, another excellent read.

 

[Perpetual Man]

The Way of the Leaves (Chapbook VIII)
by David Tallerman

4/5

In many ways I found this to be a simple (in a good way), intimate story. It reminded me of my own childhood to a degree. Being brought up in the country, with the sudden freedom to explore and those things that can be found hidden away.

In my case I had a small gang of friends to explore with, here though it is two like minded souls, the outsiders who enjoy reading and doing those things that might be considered boring by others.

Exploring the land around them, and all the mysteries that it holds. Until they suddenly discover a Barrow, one that no one seems to talk about, but it is what it holds that is the true revelation.

It is one of those stories that hides the end in plain sight, virtually from the start but it is only toward the end that you realise just where it is going, completing the story in a very satisfying and logical manner.

The characters are kept to a minimum, which makes the ones that do appear to be well drawn and identifiable, but it is the grandmother who nearly steals the show in her brief appearance. I did work out the end, but only a few paragraphs before it was revealed.

All in all another entertaining and well produced book from the publisher, who seems to be hitting the mark every time.

 

[Perpetual Man]

Creakers (Chapbook IX)
by Paul Kane

4/5

As with many tales that deal with familiar themes it is not always the story that matters but the way in which it is told. And this is one that is one that is done with style, drawing the reader in and keeping them enthralled until the final page.

Ray is a man who makes a living from buying older houses, doing them up and selling them on for a profit. Sometimes you get an old house that is filled with strange sounds, just the mysterious creaks that come from a house settling at the end of the day. And these houses are known as Creakers.

So it is that Ray returns to the house he grew up in, following the passing of his mother to find that it is one such Creaker only... just what is causing the noises...

Kane creates a near perfect atmosphere very quickly, allowing the house to come alive, but there is more to it than just a house settling, and he plays on your expectations very well, with some nice set-pieces that work brilliantly. More so is the nebulous nature of what he has to confront there. Supernatural? Repressed memories coming to the fore? Or a bit of both?

In many ways it is up to the reader to decide....