Black Leather Required

Library Journal
An interesting mix of splatterpunk and more traditional horror is featured in this excellent collection of 12 stories and one short play. The usual zombies, monsters, and things that creep are served up in such a fresh style that even jaded readers won't be able to second-guess Schow. Especially effective in the gore category are "Pitt Night at the Lewistone Boneyard," in which a man's dead relatives return to change his life, and "Bad Guy Hats," wherein violence begets more violence. Some of the tamer stories show a more delicate touch. Liberal doses of sex, violence, and even cannibalism are integral to the stories, yet these elements may offend squeamish readers. Yet Schow is so fine a writer, so imaginative a storyteller, that he deserves a place in all contemporary fiction collections. Horror fans not acquainted with his work will be delighted. Recommended.-Eric W. Johnson, Teikyo Post Univ. Lib., Waterbury, Ct.


Genre: Horror