Rating: 
Summary: Variety of horror stories/thekid9 didn't read Death Artist
Review: "The Death Artist" is a collection of twelve short stories from Dennis Etchison. Normally known for editing collections of horror stories from other authors, this book is a collection of short stories written by Mr. Etchison between 1980 and 2000.Overall, the book is average horror with most of it being psychological horror. While psychological horror is not particularly a favorite of mine, there were a few excellent stories. "When They Gave Us Memory" is very reminiscent of and in the same vein as a Twilight Zone episode. "Call Home" and "The Dead Cop" are also entertaining stories. However, there are a few stories which have little substance and does more to confuse the reader than make them think. "Deadtime Story" tended to linger for too long and the conclusion was not satisfying. "The Scar" didn't drag as it was short, but the ending was confusing. Overall, the book is worth a read, but be prepared to take the good with the bad. Regarding thekid9's comments: I don't know what facts I need to check. I never said that Etchison wasn't an established author or that he hasn't been writing for a number of years (I mentioned that Death Artist was a collection of some of his works from the past 20 years). I agree that he got his start by writing short stories. However, several of his recent (last 15 years) published works were ones where he served as the editor. He has written a few novels, most of which seemed to be short stories that were stretched into a book-length story. No matter how big a fan of Etchison you are, the Death Artist was not an excellent (five star) short story collection as evidenced my other reviews in addition to mine. Maybe the other collections mentioned by thekid9 were five star books (I haven't read them), but this one definitely was not.
Rating: 
Summary: A superb collection
Review: Dennis Etchison is one of horror's true unsung heroes (despite the fact that an anthology he just edited, The Museum of Horrors, won another World Fantasy Award for him). His writing is difficult to access, but like a true poet Mr. Etchison manages to weave together bizarre but beautiful stories that reach deep down into one's soul. That might sound like hyperbole, but it's not...certainly not for me, anyway. In "The Dead Cop" we find a man slowly losing himself as Los Angeles itself succumbs to rioting. As the city tears itself apart, so does our protagonist, who searches for meaning behind the death of his son. ...P>Yes, his writing is a bit vague for those who want easy answers, but if you're willing to give each of his tales the time they deserve, you'll find a great deal of power in this book.
Rating:
Summary: A superb collection
Review: Dennis Etchison is one of horror's true unsung heroes (despite the fact that an anthology he just edited, The Museum of Horrors, won another World Fantasy Award for him). His writing is difficult to access, but like a true poet Mr. Etchison manages to weave together bizarre but beautiful stories that reach deep down into one's soul. That might sound like hyperbole, but it's not...certainly not for me, anyway. In "The Dead Cop" we find a man slowly losing himself as Los Angeles itself succumbs to rioting. As the city tears itself apart, so does our protagonist, who searches for meaning behind the death of his son. ...P>Yes, his writing is a bit vague for those who want easy answers, but if you're willing to give each of his tales the time they deserve, you'll find a great deal of power in this book.
Rating:
Summary: DDodd should check his facts!
Review: Dennis Etchison made his name writing short stories in the 70's and 80's. If you have never heard of or read his collections "The Dark Country," "Red Dreams," or "The Blood Kiss," it is your loss. All three titles were published in the 80's as hardcover Scream Press publications, illustrated by J.K. Potter.
Rating:
Summary: DDodd should check his facts!
Review: Dennis Etchison made his name writing short stories in the 70's and 80's. If you have never heard of or read his collections "The Dark Country," "Red Dreams," or "The Blood Kiss," it is your loss. All three titles were published in the 80's as hardcover Scream Press publications, illustrated by J.K. Potter.
Rating: 
Summary: boring !!! Let me tell you how I really feel.
Review: Get ready the adjectives are gonna fly! I've been a fan of horror books, films, comic books ect. since I was a child(I'm 39 now) I've read countless authors, but this particular author has always dissapointed me...I've bought all of Dennis Etchison's books. I had fallen prey after reading the raving blurbs on the covers by other more successful writers. (possibly trying to boost the career of their less successful friend) BIG MISTAKE! Don't be fooled!... Now...don't get me wrong this guy is a good writer he has many awards under his belt. BIG DEAL!... that's probably because of connections(just look at the academy awards ,the grammy's, emmy' ect,) people owe him favors(or they just feel sorry)...Who knows? and who cares?! His stories are sorrowfully lacking in good ideas(they're boring, incondite, trite psychological horror gibberish and most importantly NOT SCARY!!!) and sometimes not even horror, and they almost always have lousy endings. So do yourself a favor, let those horror authors and judges who seem to think this man walks on water, enjoy Mr. Etchison at their own leisure and move on to more rewarding fruitful ground. Try Simon Clark's-Blood Crazy, Fritz Leiber's-Conjure Wife, Ramsey Campbell's-The Parasite, Thomas Tryon's-Harvest Home,The Other, Jack Ketchum's-The Lost, Richard Matheson's- Hunted Past Reason, Charles L. Grant's- In a Dark Dream, Montague R. James's- Casting the Runes , Robert R.McCammon's-Swan Song, Bentley Little's- Dominion, anything by Owl Goingback, Graham Masterson's -The Manitou,The Djinn, Thomas Tessier's-Fog Heart,phantom,The Nightwalker, f. Paul Wilson's-Nightworld,The Tomb,SIBS
even a guilty pleasure like Rick Hautala's-Little Brothers,or anything by him...if you want something scary and fun to read.
Rating: 
Summary: Terrifying Horror at its best
Review: I came across Dennis Etchison's 'The Death Artist' one day in my bookstore. I picked it up based on the title and editorial reviews becaus I had never read Etchison's work before. Now that I have read it, I am not sure I will ever be the same. Each tale takes reality and twists it in perverse and astounding ways. The author takes the simple everyday things and makes them terrifying. Each story deftly plays a psychological game with your mind and will change how you see things. He reminded me a lot of Stephen King in the short story form in that his ability to take daily life and turn it into one of the darkest things you will ever encounter. I only thought a couple of the stories in this anthology could be stronger...but by no means were any of them poor.
If your a horror fan who wants to see how a master does it...pick up 'The Death Artist'.
Rating: 
Summary: boring, boring,
Review: Some of the stories were fair, but after a while, you could pretty well tell how they were going to end. Some of them seemed to have no real "story" and I was left feeling 'and????' He seems to have some kind of formula. Very predictable. The stories would probably translate well into a twighlite zone kind of thing. Frankly, I will not be reading any more of his books, if this is the best he can do.
Rating:
Summary: boring, boring,
Review: Some of the stories were fair, but after a while, you could pretty well tell how they were going to end. Some of them seemed to have no real "story" and I was left feeling 'and????' He seems to have some kind of formula. Very predictable. The stories would probably translate well into a twighlite zone kind of thing. Frankly, I will not be reading any more of his books, if this is the best he can do.
Rating:
Summary: Etchison is a master
Review: These stories leave some very ominous things to the imagination.
Not all of them are great-the protagonist of "Call Home" is a
complete idiot and deserves everything he gets-but stories like "The Dog Park" and "When They Gave Us Memory" make up for
any weaknesses. You can get lost in the beauty of Etchison's prose and you should,if you love to read...
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