“From acclaimed author David Herter, a new novel in the tradition of Ray Bradbury’s SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES and Tim Powers’s LAST CALL….
Halloween, 1931. The metropolis of Grenton. On the ruined canals, a clock tolls midnight. Willis H. O’Brien, the father of stop motion animation, seeks the base elements of a new animation. And Henri Mordaunt, the undying Phantasmagoria magician, will soon provide them. An uncanny bargain is struck, leading to betrayal and dire retribution, and an act of cinematic alchemy that echoes down the history of fantastic film.
Halloween, 1977. For thirteen-year-old Will and his best friend Jim — amateur animators and Famous Monsters of Filmland fanatics — summer darkens into mysterious autumn, with a black balloon prowling the skies of their suburban neighborhood, and supernatural images haunting the frames of their latest 8 mm epic, heralding doom. Everything leads to the edge of Grenton’s ruined canals, and the faded cinema palace where STAR WARS has been showing non-stop since late May, a gateway into the mysteries of Grenton’s past, and to a secret history playing out on either side of the silver screen….”
Earthling Publications‘ fifth release of their Halloween Series October Dark just might be their best one yet. As with all of Earthling’s books, it is an impeccable release. Signed and numbered as the previous ones, my edition also had a little surprise. A page of the edited manuscript. This edition was a little late and I think Paul Miller included this as his way of saying sorry and thank you for your patience. A nice touch from a great publisher
For Famous Monsters fans this book will strike a nerve. What monster kid didn’t worship our filmmaking heroes or want to make our own monster movies? Only one problem, in this tale the movie magic is real. You will get no details or spoilers from me, you have to read this book if you are a Monster Kid.
This is the first book by David Herter I have read, I will be definitely looking into his back catalog. In the grand tradition of Ray Bradbury’s “Something Wicked This Way Comes”, October Dark is an epic tale of the wonders and magic of youth with a dark side. The words and pages fly by like so many leaves on an autumn wind. Definitely one of the best books of the year and will require a second reading in the near future.
If you love Halloween, monster movies, FM Magazine and classic movie makers you will absolutely love this book. Use the above link to order directly from Earthling Publications, you will not be disappointed and I give this one of my highest recommendations.
[...] A little something my fellow Famous Monster lovers will enjoy. A book trailer for David Herter’s Halloween masterpiece October Dark, done by the author himself. You can find my review here. [...]