I am not new to Clive Barker's novels or his writing style, so I knew what I was getting into when I started The Damnation Game. It is a novel about a man, Joseph Whitehead, who hires a boxer out of prison, Marty, to protect him and provide bodyguard services. Marty does not know what he is getting into, and after a few weeks he learns that there are things he should leave alone, and horrors he never needed to be party to.
 
Marty was an interesting character. A man, just out of prison, who knows he probably still belongs in prison, and who isn't that bad of a man. He is in prison, because like a lot of people, he made a bad decision that ruined his life. He was a gambler, and he needed money, which just so happens to be the same thing that got Joseph Whitehead into trouble. There are games of chance that shouldn't be played, and there are men who shouldn't be played against. Into the picture arrives the Last European. A man full of mysteries, and a man who holds Joseph's life in his hands.
 
Marty finds that things are not what they seem in the Whitehead household, and he struggles to get answers. He also struggles to find out what his job is, partly because he isn't being told the truth, nor is he being given answers when he asks how he is supposed to protect a man who doesn't seem to want to be protected.
 
There were parts of this novel that seemed to be all over the place. There were several characters and several timelines, and they, at one point, became confusing. The main character, Marty, is a man who has scruples, and yet he doesn't seem to have a reason to continue what he is doing. While many of Barker's characters are full of different ideas and ideologies, the characters in this novel weren't as well-developed as they could have been. Marty was a little flat, and throughout he questioned things over and over, often asking the same questions. Whitehead was a man looking for life, but no one really knows why. Is he afraid of the afterlife, or is he afraid of what his corpse might be used to do? The Last European is almost immortal, and yet he wants to both live and die because everything around him has died. The reader never really finds out what his goal is. Whitehead's daughter, Carys, is a heroin addict, and she is only addicted because her father wanted a way to control her. Yet, now she finds heroin to be a crutch she can't live without. Then there is Breer, a dead man who has disturbing conquests and goals that he can't seem to reach.
 
While not the best book I've read by Barker, I did enjoy it. I will forever be in love with the Cenobites and Books of Blood, but I wanted to branch out and read more by Barker. I can't wait to read more by him, in fact I have two more of his books on my to be read bookshelves. I was reminded a little of author Edward Lee while reading The Damnation Game, and wonder if Lee took some ideas from Barker, as they both involve characters with issue revolving around sex (disgust by, or addictive need).
 
I could go either way recommending this. Read it because Clive Barker is pretty awesome, or don't because it is not his best work.

_Tara Caldwell's debut novel is now out on Amazon (link at bottom of page). She is a mother of two teenagers and a call center employee with a "worthless" STEM degree and a pile of student loans. She enjoys theater, reading, and of course writing. She writes because she has ideas that won’t leave her alone until she puts them on a page. Her debut novel is titled Surviving Utopia.

What is the first book that made you cry?
Rilla of Ingleside. When Walter dies I remember choking up in the car on my way to my grandmother's house. It hit me harder than any fictional death had ever hit me before. I was maybe 11 years old. 
 
What was an early experience where you learned that language had power?
I read before I was two, and I understood that language had power even then.
 
What’s your favorite under-appreciated novel?
His Majesty’s Dragon and the rest of the Temeraire series by Naomi Novik. I love the writing style, it’s reminiscent of Jane Austen, and who doesn’t love a talking dragon who’s better at calculus than you are?
 
Does writing energize or exhaust you?
It energizes me, definitely. Writing is powerful, but I am not to be disturbed while writing.

If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?
Go on and write and publish that book, what are you waiting for? It took me several years and several tries to write Surviving Utopia, mostly because I lacked confidence, and then took four years to publish it just because I was afraid of the reception.

What’s the most difficult thing about writing characters in the LGBTQ+ genre?
Well, I never was a gay teenage boy in the 1990s, so writing from that point of view was extremely difficult. I was a closeted bisexual, though, so I got my ideas from that experience and I hope it mirrors Puck’s journey.

Do you feel that LGBTQ+ fiction is for everyone to read, regardless of their gender or sexual orientation? Why or why not?
Yes, it is for everyone. The more experiences we read about outside of our own self, the more we understand the world around us.

Have you read anything that made you think differently about fiction?
My first foray into scifi/fantasy, Dragonsinger by Anne McCaffrey, made me discover a whole new world of fiction. Her works also normalized queerness for me.

What was your hardest scene to write?
Definitely the scene where Star is knocked around and gets concussed. This may surprise people, because this book is filled with heavier material, but something about that scene just got to me.
 
Does your family support your career as a writer?
Absolutely. My kids think it’s cool and my parents are over the moon that I actually published. My stepmother downloaded and read it all the first night it was on Amazon and my mom bought copies for the whole family.
 
What question do you wish I had asked and what is the answer to that question?
It would be “What was your inspiration for the story?” It was a dream I had about a pair of twins, and it evolved over the years into what Surviving Utopia is now.

Tell us a little bit about your book.
 
It’s about twins, Puck and Ciara, who both fall in love with the new football player. While they’re wrapped up in Dane, they fail to notice that something is very badly wrong with their best friend, Star, whom they’ve been best friends with since kindergarten. All four of the kids are troubled in various ways, and bad things happen to almost everyone. The book should have been titled Trigger Warning.

Bio:
Tara Caldwell lives in Madison, WI, but grew up in small town Florence, AL. She has two teenagers, Dean and Sebastian Ferguson, and two cats. She enjoys theatre and has acted in, stage managed, assistant directed, and even directed numerous plays, including her favorite, A Christmas Story, which she both stage managed and directed in different years. She has been writing creatively since grade school and finished her first novel in seventh grade, although it never saw the light of day. She plans to write the sequel to Surviving Utopia this winter.
 
Twitter Handle bunnydeville
Facebook Page Tara Caldwell, Author
 Buy Surviving Utopia at www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0BCZWZYVR/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0
 

I recently had the privilege of interviewing Stephanie M. Wytovich. Stephanie M. Wytovich is an author and poet who teaches her craft to new and intermediate authors wanting to develop their skills. Her upcoming book Writing Poetry in the Dark, which is a craft book for speculative poetry, so definitely more on the information, academic, and leaning toward the professional development side of things, will be available in October and you can preorder or wait and buy this book at rawdogscreaming.com.

Does writing energize or exhaust you?
This is a tricky one to answer. In the past, it used to energize me, and to some degree it still does, but since I’ve made writing my career, some days it’s just like any other job and that initial magic is sometimes hard to find (not always, but sometimes). I will say, however, that I do always feel energized after I finish something (or even if I’ve just made progress on something), and my love for the craft has never waned. Even when it’s exhausting or frustrating at times, I could never see myself doing anything else.

What are common traps for aspiring writers?
Writing to trends. I say this because by the time you finish something and are ready to submit it, not to mention the amount of time it will take to be read, put on the market, and then eventually published, the trend is often over. I think it’s always better to write the stories you want to and are interested in rather than trying to jump on a bandwagon. 

Have you ever gotten reader’s block?
Totally! I’m usually reading upward of 5-7 books at a time, and I’ve found that when I’m really having a hard time sticking to something, I always turn to poetry or to graphic novels. For me, they’re easier to digest, and because I can read them faster, it helps me get out of reading slumps a bit easier.

Do you think someone could be a writer if they don’t feel emotions strongly? Especially as this relates to poetry.
I think poetry can be a lot of things, so I don’t necessarily think it has to exist through an emotional lens, although I think that it so often leans into that. For instance, I fell in love with poetry as a child who read Shel Silverstein (Falling Up, A Light in the Attic) and Alvin Schwartz (Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark) voraciously, and their poems are macabre, funny, and sometimes an (intentionally) unpleasant yet satisfying mixture of both. That’s one of the things I love most about the form: its flexible.

If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?
Don’t get caught up in what everyone else is doing. The energy that’s spent worrying about others, or being jealous, or fighting imposter syndrome is better directed towards self-care, making art that you care about, and focusing on your own path to personal betterment.

What was the best money you ever spent as a writer?
My annual membership to the HWA (Horror Writers Association). I attended my first World Horror Convention in 2012 and it wasn’t long after that I sought out active membership with the organization. What they’ve given me in terms of support, promotion, kindness, and opportunity has been invaluable, and that’s not even including all the wonderful people I’ve met through them.

Do you view writing as a kind of spiritual practice?
Writing in general? No. But poetry? Yes, absolutely. I approach poetry differently than I do my fiction or nonfiction writing, and I do feel there is something ethereal and otherworldly that surfaces with poetry (and with art and music) that I don’t necessarily feel with prose. It’s like I’m tapping into something both inside and outside myself that I can’t see or understand, and, in some ways, it very much feels like channeling at times. When I’m writing prose, that experience is more planned and structured, but poetry feels wild and filled with possibility. It’s probably why I always end up gravitating to it more.

What period of your life do you find you write about most often? (child, teenager, young adult)
It depends on the project, honestly. For instance, I recently finished a collection that is all about motherhood and I both started and finished it a few months postpartum. My last collection, The Apocalyptic Mannequin was a book about the state of the world, climate change, and a dystopian future, and it came out a few months before COVID became a serious threat in late 2019/early 2020. I don’t write to trends, but I do listen to my fears and what my body tells me, and I usually ride my instinct from there.

What did you edit out of this book?
Nothing since the book is a collection of essays written by contemporary poets currently working in the field. I hand-selected each poet for their knowledge about the topics they specifically wrote about, so there wasn’t really anything that was edited out on a large scale.

For more on Writing Poetry in the Dark, click here.

What is your favorite book?
My favorite book is We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson. I love it for its magic, violence, and depiction of sisterhood, womanhood, and domestic horror.

Are mentorships useful for authors? How?
Absolutely. I feel fortunate to have worked with so many different mentors (official and unofficial) through my time studying at Seton Hill University, and since then, I’ve worked as a mentor for others in the field to give back and support my community. Getting that type of one-on-one attention, both on you and your work, is wonderful because you’re free to ask questions, seek answers, try new things, and experiment in a way that you might feel unsure of in a larger group. The whole experience is tailored to improving your weakness, exploring your strengths, and helping you elevate yourself and the work on the page.

Define what Speculative Poetry is to you?
Speculative Poetry is poetry that explores and works within the genres of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Typically, there is something otherworldly, supernatural, uncanny, or atypical in the piece and it’s focusing in on the weird, the odd, and/or the horrifying.

Is poetry hard to write?
I think that all writing requires hard work, dedication, and practice; it’s certainly not something that’s ever come easily to me. I also think that everyone is capable of writing poetry if they’re willing to put in the time studying it, reading it, and working at the form.
Do you have a favorite poem?
I’m quite fond of “Her Kind” by Anne Sexton

Why do you think it is important to read poetry?
If anyone is looking to be a writer, the first thing they need to do is become a reader. With poetry, especially, you’re looking at a bunch of different forms, approaches, styles, and voices, and the flexibility and experimental nature of the form is vastly different from prose. It’s important to read, and to read diversely among genres to see what’s out there, find your voice, and see what types of poems resonate with you. You’ll be able to build a better foundation if you have some ground to stand on.

Tell us a little bit about your books.
Sure! I have a lot of unusual interests I enjoy exploring in my writing. I write fiction, nonfiction, and poetry, and I’ve tackled topics surrounding folklore, madness, mourning, religion, the occult, and the erotic. My work usually has a feminist bent to it that focuses on gender, the body, identity, and violence, and I love exploring and analyzing domestic spaces (re: the haunted house), antique medical and funerary practices, and the history and practice of witchcraft.

Tell us a little bit about yourself and why you write.
I’ve always been a reader, and growing up, it only felt natural to want to eventually try my hand at creating stories of my own, especially because I’ve always kind of lived in my head. Writing grounded me in a way that nothing else seemed able to, and it became both my safe place and my creative outlet as a kid. As I got older, I knew I wanted to pursue it seriously, so I went and got my BA in English Literature and Art History, and then went on to obtain my MFA in Writing Popular Fiction (with a focus on horror).

These days, I write because it quiets my mind, because it makes me happy, because I feel fulfilled and purposeful when I do it, but most importantly, it’s just want I’ve always felt driven to do. Even when I don’t feel like writing, I know writing will make me feel better, so in a lot of ways it’s became a form of self-care in addition to being a career and a job that pays the bills. More importantly though, writing is the first thing I think about when I wake up and the last thing I think about when I go to sleep. Stories are just in my blood and I can’t ever imagine doing anything else with my life. 

Author Bio:
Stephanie M. Wytovich is an American poet, novelist, and essayist. Her work has been showcased in numerous magazines and anthologies such as Weird Tales, Nightmare Magazine, Southwest Review, Year's Best Hardcore Horror: Volume 2, The Best Horror of the Year: Volume 8, as well as many others.

Wytovich is the Poetry Editor for Raw Dog Screaming Press, and an adjunct at Western Connecticut State University, Southern New Hampshire University, and Point Park University. She is a recipient of the Elizabeth Matchett Stover Memorial Award, the 2021 Ladies of Horror Fiction Writers Grant, and has received the Rocky Wood Memorial Scholarship for non-fiction writing.

Wytovich is a member of the Science Fiction Poetry Association, an active member of the Horror Writers Association, and a graduate of Seton Hill University’s MFA program for Writing Popular Fiction. Her Bram Stoker Award-winning poetry collection, Brothel, earned a home with Raw Dog Screaming Press alongside Hysteria: A Collection of Madness, Mourning Jewelry, An Exorcism of Angels, Sheet Music to My Acoustic Nightmare, and most recently, The Apocalyptic Mannequin. Her debut novel, The Eighth, is published with Dark Regions Press.

Follow Wytovich at http://stephaniewytovich.blogspot.com/ and on Twitter and Instagram @SWytovich​ and @thehauntedbookshelf. You can also find her essays, nonfiction, and class offerings on LitReactor.

Social Media:
LinkTree: https://linktr.ee/swytovich
Twitter: @SWytovich
Instagram: @Swytovich and @thehauntedbookshelf

http://stephaniemwytovich.com (Website)

The Lobster is an odd little movie, with a running time of an hour and fifty minutes. It is about a society that pressures everyone to have love and marry, or to be turned into an animal. They animal is their choice, but most of them choose to be a dog, because that is the first thing that comes to their minds. The lone people go to a hotel, that seems more like a prison, and they only get forty-five days to find love, or be turned into an animal. This movie starts off with a man, who has just lost his wife, heading to the hotel. This is not a choice he gets to make, it is either be married or coupled, or go to the hotel, or become an animal.
 
After a time at the hotel our young man realizes he has only a few days to find a match, or he will be turned into an animal. He chooses a woman who no one else wants to be with, but their life is harsh, and she is absolutely not a good match. She is a horrible human, and we don’t know, but we can hope she gets what she deserves.
 
So, he ends up going on the run. While out, he is found by another group, who is the total opposite, they seem to abhor love and don’t want people getting close to each other. In fact they have serious punishments for people who do.
 
This was an odd film, but it does make one question what it means to be in love. Also, what does it mean to fall in love, and how do those who don’t find a single other to spend their lives with live. Things throughout the movie continue to get stranger and stranger, as our main character falls in love with a woman who is punished for loving him.
 
Eventually this movie comes to an unexpected and unfulfilled ending. It feels like there should be more, and one wonders about the backstory of some of the characters, what makes them who they are. Why are some so against love, while others seem to embrace it.
 
The most interesting thing about this whole film was the lack of emotions throughout. There is one woman in the movie who is overwhelmed by her emotions, and she loves biscuits, but everyone else has an almost flat affect, which makes me wonder if it is a societal thing, or if it is the way these people have been raised. How long has this been going on? Why did it start? And of course, if you had to become an animal because you couldn’t find love, what kind of animal would you choose?
 
A weird movie overall, but not a bad one. One might have to watch it multiple times to get all of the weird little nuances throughout, but I mostly enjoyed it.

I recently reached out to interview author BT Shapiro. He is a husband, father, and author who recently released a new book. In this interview he discusses books, writing, and why he decided to write and release this book.

BT Shapiro is an award-winning writer and filmmaker based in Huntsville, AL. The
inspiration for his works run the gamut from Shakespeare to Clive Barker. He is a lifelong fan of
horror and a loving father to two beautiful kids and husband to one foxy wife.

Check out his interview below.

What is the most difficult part of your artistic process?
Sitting down and doing it. I am busy being a stay-at-home dad and house hubby and all the stuff that goes with it. I find that if I ever decide to not do something, it’s writing that will fall by the wayside first.

Does writing energize or exhaust you?
It’s a little of both. I find it is a great release for some of the darker feeling within me, allowing me to lighten my load of negative emotions on a day to day basis. So, in that way it’s energizing. While I’m sitting down and turning all of that darkness into what I hope is a finely crafted tale, though? It’s completely exhausting.

How do you select the names of your characters?
A good amount of my characters are unnamed. That’s because I’m rubbish with names. When I do have names, they’re usually little Easter eggs. For instance, in the story "Prima," all of the characters are named after famous ballet dancers.

What was your hardest scene to write?
"Journal of a War Artist" was probably the hardest individual story, because it involved a bit of research about World War I and a war artist’s role in the war, as well as learning about what a black soldier would experience during the early 1900s.

What is your writing Kryptonite?
I feel like I’ll never have the attention span to write a novel. I’ve tried over and over again, but I find I’m most comfortable in short form works.

How long on average does it take you to write a book?
Anywhere from six months to a year.

Did you ever consider writing under a pseudonym?
BT Shapiro is a semi-pseudonym. I used to write under the name Ben Shapiro, but sharing a name with an already established person that you are diametrically opposed to is kind of the pits, hence the switch to BT. I do plan on releasing some work under a pseudonym in the future.

If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?
Don’t listen to that teacher that made fun of your story in elementary school and keep writing. (I agree with this. I had a teacher tell me I would never write a successful book and that I should give up - and this was in college)

How did publishing your first book change your process of writing?
I think I’m pickier with what I release these days. My first two books were all poetry and I just haphazardly picked poems on certain themes regardless of quality. Now, I tend to only put my strongest stuff out.

What was the best money you ever spent as a writer?
I can tell you right now, it certainly wasn’t on Amazon ads or any other spam ads. Spent a lot of money for no sales.

What authors did you dislike at first but grew into?
Thomas Hardy. I found his work really hard to get into until I found an annotated copy The Mayor of Casterbridge. Once I started in on the footnotes and learned historical context of his work I was hooked.

What’s your favorite under-appreciated novel?
Does House of Falling Leaves count as under-appreciated? I think a lot of people disliked it for what it was attempting to do with the novel format, but it is a brilliant book and a story well told and worth the work to read.

What is the first book that made you cry?
I think it was Cujo. I was probably in eighth grade at the time and the ending of that book destroyed me. (I agree with him here, Cujo broke me)

What is your favorite childhood book?
It was this little book of what would be called Dad Jokes today. No idea what the title was, but I loved it.

What is your book about?
It’s about 150 pages. Ha cha cha. No, really, it’s a collection of short stories from the past fourteen months, which covers the period from when I had my mental breakdown at the end of 2020 until right before my 41st birthday in April. It has horror of all kinds, from body horror to existential horror. It really is a wild ride.

Why did you decide to write this specific book?
Honestly? It was a form of healing.

What makes this book important to you?
It really does show my journey from my lowest of lows to a point where I feel like I’m on my feet again. It’s probably my rawest and most honest book.

What do you want your readers to take away after reading this book?
That even in the darkest, grimmest corners of the world; the places where even demons fear to tread; there is hope and beauty to be found.

Up From The Depths Synopsis: Imagine a world where pulling a simple skin tag can cause one to unravel, where origami can save your life, where the secrets of the universe are revealed at its very end. This is the world of terror and wonder you are about to enter with Up From The Depths, the first short story collection from BT Shapiro, award-winning screenwriter and filmmaker. Open the cover if you dare.

You can visit BT Shapiro's page at btshapiro.com/

You can buy his latest book at the link below:
www.amazon.com/dp/B0B2VKCRS1?fbclid=IwAR18JK3QRqxIv2OsYR_jt6DBjRymAFoOGsRIEp1ifo960fhjHvLJyP5jMfg&ref_=d6k_applink_bb_dls

Survive the Night by Riley Sager follows a young college student, Charlie, as she gets a ride to go home to Ohio. She posts on a bulletin board and meets Josh, a young man who is a complete stranger to her. She isn't sure she should trust him, especially since her best friend, Maddie, was murdered by a man two months earlier, but she knows she has to get away. Charlie leaves her boyfriend, Robbie, behind as she gets into the car with Josh and heads towards the night of her life - in a bad way.

********SPOILERS FROM HERE DOWN**********

Charlie must be the dumbest characters I have ever read in a story. She not only gets in the car with a stranger for a ride at nine at night, but she does this knowing he could be the man who murdered her best friend, Maddie. She was with Maddie just before she disappeared and saw the killer, but she can't recognize him. Charlie does everything she can to be a murder victim herself - including not seeking help when she is in the same room with a cop and hanging up when she gets in touch with the police by phone. She also continually seems to have zero sense of survival as the only time survival bursts in is the end of the book. She does all of the stupid things she can to be a murder victim. Then the reader learns that the entire book may not have happened.

The ending of the book is the "real" Charlie sitting in a theater watching a movie that was created about this one night of her life. The reader then learns that not everything that they just read had happened. What the hell man? This is just like a reader reading a book to find that the entire thing was a dream, or that the entire thing was the fantasy created by a young man with a snow globe. It was so incredibly frustrating and I wish I had given up on this book BEFORE I eve started it. I should have looked through other reviews to see what people said.

There was nothing in this book that could have made it a good story. While the writing was not terrible, this is the third or fourth book of Sager's that I have read and the only one that I liked at all was Final Girls. All of the other books of his that I have read have terribly written female leads.

I do not recommend this book, it was possibly one of the most annoying books I have read in at least three weeks.

So, I was recently able to watch the new CANDYMAN movie and I have to say... I did not like it. The nuance of the original was not there in this movie. It did rely a lot on the older story of the original movie a little bit, but I did not understand what the point was of this movie.

A lot of people state in their observations and reviews that this movie tried too hard to be politically correct or "woke," and I agree. There was a lot throughout about how race relates to living with or without money, and hoe the police treat both those well off and not, and people based on their skin color. I feel this movie lost itself and the idea of who and what the Candyman was. Also, it lost what Tony Todd created in the character. The ending left a lot to be desired in regards to the character of the Candyman, and what he stood for - vengeance and power (both related to race and not).

As a horror film the deaths could be creative, but they were hidden for suspense, which did not always work. There was a good scene with teenage girls in a school bathroom, but the rest was just okay. This was a movie that fell flat, and in the end, what was the point. Maybe I missed something but this didn't really seem to relate to the story of the original Candyman. And Tony Todd was so misused in this movie.

And now life stuff -

I am headed to Phoenix for Phoenix Fan Fusion. You can find me at booth B720. I will have copies of my first three zombie books, my humorous cat book, and some bookmarks that I've created. Even if you do not have the funds to buy anything - come say hi! I always like to meet future and current fans!

Then next month things start to get busy again in my work life. If you do not know, I work as an adjunct English Professor, and graphic designer for a theater. I am going through all of my classes and editing and redoing the courses, so that will take a lot of time. I also have a couple of posters and art to create for the theater before October. This summer I teach two five week classes and in the fall I teach four classes. I am trying to figure out life and have four books that I am working on completing. So, I am busy, but I haven't forgotten that I have a fourth and final book promised to you, the readers. I plan on having that book completely written by the end of November. I have a book in the submission process that I should hear a yes or no on by the end of September. I am working on a book about stupid things people say when someone dies, and hope to have that finished by the end of October. The last book I am working on is a dark comedy about Lucifer.

If you have a story about something stupid someone said when a loved one, friend, or pet died, and do not mind sharing that with me, please feel free. Just let me know if you want your name published or if you want to remain anonymous.

I will try to keep everyone updated. I will also try to publish more news and reviews on this blog. Life gets in the way sometimes.

Link for Phoenix Fan Fusion -
www.phoenixfanfusion.com/

Fiona and Jane by Jean Chen Ho is the story of two women who have been friends since they were young and who grow up together to continue interweaving themselves in each others lives.

I did not like this book. This novel is the story of Fiona and the story of Jane, and is told from the alternating viewpoints of each woman. The stories go back and forth in time and they do not really seem to connect to each other in any way except they are told from the points of view of Fiona and Jane. Neither character seems to have anything to connect the reader to them, and this is not because of their culture but because they do not ever seem to be fully developed. The reader gets glimpses into their individual lives, but they do not really get a finished version of any story.

Jane seems angry throughout the book and she does not seem to have any goals in life. We read about her teenage years, dating history as a possible bisexual, and a little glimpse into her friendship with Won, and her relationship with her mother. However, Jane is shallow and we never know what her life goals are. In her forties she uses words like "bounce" when leaving, which turned me off totally to her character. I understand that people in their forties do use the slang of their youth, but still, I did not understand what the point of her character was. Then there was the character of Fiona.

Fiona wanted to be and eventually becomes a lawyer, but her life too seems to be flat and boring. The most interesting part of her life is when she is young and learns of her father and how her mother became pregnant with her at the age of sixteen. Her name was originally Ona and she had a great relationship with her grandparents until she learned the truth about how her mother met her father. Fiona goes through several relationships and there is not really any development to her character. I have no idea what either of the main characters desires are, nor do I know what the purpose of this book is.

I say this last part because this book is supposedly about the ongoing and in and out lives of Fiona and Jane as they grow older and develop, but each story seemed less about their friendship and more about the author having a desire to write this book. This book did not showcase their relationship, nor did it show the struggles of the two characters as their lives changed and developed. It really has nothing to do with their friendship changing or growing or ending. This book has almost nothing to do with a friendship and almost everything to do with two women living separate lives and nothing intertwines.

I understand that this is a debut novel for this author, and I hate being this cynical when reading a debut, but this novel did not really have much to do with the synopsis. I did read this quickly, but I cannot recommend this novel and I hope the author has a better book in her future.

I know that everyone has their favorite Batman and villains, for me I will always enjoy Michael Keaton as Batman and the villains in both of these movies. For those who enjoyed The Batman, you will likely not agree with much of what I say in this review, and that is fine.

I had many issues with this version of the film, so I think I am going to start with the characters.

Robert Pattenson as Bruce Wayne/Batman was not great. I have never sat through a movie where the main character had so few lines and most of the plot was driven by their brooding personality. Most of his lines didn't even add to the story, and I really didn't get a sense of either Batman or Bruce Wayne. I didn't know who was the defining character and it wasn't clear to me if Wayne was even a popular figure in this version of Gotham. For Zoe Kravitz I did not hate her cat woman, but it didn't seem to me that she had the depth of cat persona that is necessary to showcase her personality. However, she was better than Anne Hathaway's version as she was only "cat" because she was a cat burglar. I wanted more from Zoe's character and less homicidal maniac - which seemed unrealistic to her. Basically every character needed more, and the Riddler was a joke. As an incel who hates everyone because he received an unfair life due to being an orphan, he could have been so much more developed, but no - this version of the Riddler was underdeveloped and I just didn't care. The only character that stood out was Penguin - but only because I was astonished that this was Colin Farrell! He was one hundred percent unrecognizable.

Another issue I had was with the story. Why on earth would Bruce Wayne's father go to a mobster to get help with a problem? This was not only unrealistic to me in regards to everything I know about the Batman story lines that I had a hard time with the entire plot due to this. Also, the backstory of their murder was not done well. To be murdered by the joker or a rogue criminal was interesting, to be killed because of a gangster not getting what he wanted, that was too simple. In regards to his parents, I also wanted more detail on the murder/suicide of his grandparents, and the mental health issues faced by his mother. How did his mother's issues affect his childhood, or did it? Was she gone for any of his childhood or was she healthy and okay by this point? Were her issues reflected in Batman's need to become a vigilante? All of this should have been explored to further develop everything in the story.

Lastly, this version of Gotham was not interesting to me. I don't understand why the city was so incredibly dirty and dark. I understand that the movie was supposed to have more of a noir feel, but for me it was just unfortunate and I didn't care about the why or the who because I didn't care about the city itself. I needed to feel more of a connection to the people to care about who was dying and why. A revenge story on top of a revenge story does not make an interesting story and there has to be something for the person watching to want to root for. I didn't care if Batman solved the case. I didn't care about the villain (and they are one of the most interesting parts of the Batman story). I didn't care about anything.

So, while I know some people really enjoyed this version of Batman, I thought it all fell flat, and I was uninterested. I doubt that if there is another one I will go watch it. Yes, I know Jim Carrey's Riddler was not for everyone, but at least he was entertaining. This version of the Riddler was just sad and dull. I can't say I recommend this version of Batman

Constantine von Hoffman is the author of the recently published John Henry the Revelator. The premise of John Henry the Revelator is  - what if the first superhero was Black. More specifically what if he was a Black teenager in 1930s America, when Jim Crow is flying high. So, what would it take to balance the scales of justice? A miracle. Meet Mo Crawford of Tuskegee, Alabama. Fifteen years old, nearly seven-feet tall, totally bulletproof, and more interested in being a farmer than anyone's savior.

Questions about John Henry the Revelator:

Why did you decide to write this specific book?
I had the idea to write a book about the battles to pass a Federal anti-lynching law (we still don’t have one). I was researching the idea when the question of what if the first superhero was Black jumped up in my brain. Then all these scenes and characters started showing up. I feel like the book told me to write it.

What makes this book important to you?
I hope it can in some way add to someone’s understanding of race in America. The Constitution originally counted enslaved Black people as only 3/5th of a person and, even though slavery ended, we still treat them as only 3/5th of a person. Their lives are at significantly higher risk in any interaction with the police. They receive worse care from our medical system. They are hired less often and paid less money. A 2017 Boston Globe story found that white households in Boston had an average net worth of $250,000. For Black households that number was $8. Every time the Globe prints that they include the phrase “this is not a typo.”  After World War II the GI Benefits law excluded Black soldiers. Racism is destroying this nation. I’m a writer and this novel is my very small effort to fight racism.

What do you want your readers to take away after reading this book?
I would love it if some white readers learned something more about the history and horror of racism in America. I would also love it if a Black reader felt they had read an honest depiction of racism in America.

Fun Questions about writing, reading, and being an author:

What is the first book that made you cry?
Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry. The death of Deets still gets me every time.
 
Does writing energize or exhaust you?
A little of both. I can feel really exhausted after a lot of writing, but I also feel really good.
 
What is your writing Kryptonite?
Depression, the Quicker Letter Downer ©! It will eat me alive.
 
Did you ever consider writing under a pseudonym?
I seriously thought about changing my name to Cornelius Byrne at one point because I was sick of being connected to my father all the time. If I ever do need a pseudonym, that’s the one I’ll use.
 
If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?
Just write, everything is a draft. Don’t obsess about getting it right the first time.
 
How did publishing your first book change your process of writing?
I know I can do it now. A book no longer feels like Mount Everest. Also, I learned to write whatever scene was interesting to me at the moment. It doesn’t have to be written in order (As a writer, the author of this blog never writes in order).
 
What was the best money you ever spent as a writer?
About $15 for a Pilot Metropolitan fountain pen. The way I work is by first writing in long hand on yellow legal pads (the writer of this blog always writer her first draft longhand in notebooks!!!). This prevents me from going back to re-write. I write until I get to some point that feels substantial and then transfer it onto the computer. I didn’t try a fountain pen until I was in my late 40s but when I did…wow. For the first time writing by hand felt right.
 
What authors did you dislike at first but grew into?
I’m going to flip this – I really liked Isaac Asimov when I was 12-14. Now, I feel like it’s a real accomplishment if his characters make it all the way to two-dimensional.
 
What’s your favorite under-appreciated novel?
Kalpa Imperial: The Greatest Empire That Never Was by Angélica Gorodischer, who I just found out died February 5th (she was 94). She’s Argentinian and Kalpa was her first book to be translated into English (by Ursula K. Leguin, no less). It’s an incredible impressionistic novel that tells the story of an empire in small scenes that may or not be connected to each other. It is epic in scope and narrow in focus (and short, it may be 200 pages). It’s magical realism with an emphasis on magical.
           
How do you select the names of your characters?
Some I just go into my email spam and look at the names there. Some I look at my bookshelf and take a first name from one writer and the last name from another. I also keep a list of names that I think of or come across and inspire me: Neon Mary’s bones lit up whenever she felt a wind blowing across the wizards’ graveyard.
 
What was your hardest scene to write?
Killing a character I’d really come to love (Oh, I've been there, done that). I didn’t know they’d have to die when they first walked into my book, but it became clear later on. And it’s a gruesome death. That said, I started writing a horror story and I love, love, love killing off the characters in it.
 
What is your favorite childhood book?
Harold and The Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson. It’s an amazing book about creativity and imagination. I still read it regularly.
 
What is the most difficult part of your artistic process?
Focusing on one thing. I have a huge list of stories, many of which I’ve started, and I have a real hard time knowing which one I should be working on. As a result, a short story can take way longer to write than it needs to.
 
How long on average does it take you to write a book?
Judging by my first novel – about 30 years. I wrote a third of it in the mid-1990s and then got scared of going any farther. What scared me is that it’s a first-person narrative of a Black man and all I could see were the mistakes I could make. But the damn thing wouldn’t leave me alone. So, I went back to it in 2015 and finished the first draft in 2016 and the final in 2018. However, I wrote a novella in six months, so I hope the next one won’t take as long.

I, personally, look forward to what your next journey (book or story) will result in.
 
About Constantine von Hoffman:
After 25 years as a journalist, I spent a decade creating artisanal marketing content for large corporations. I am currently working as manservant to three elderly dogs and writing strange stories when they allow me the time.
 
https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/constantine-von-hoffman/john-henry-the-revelator/
 
From the review: “The characters, particularly Moses, are well drawn, and aspects of Moses’ journey, such as the way it’s covered in the media and his efforts to translate his grassroots movement into a political one … may remind readers of events in our own time. Overall, it’s a complex work that engages with an era that feels simultaneously remote and frightfully contemporary.”