The Devil's Wine

Rating:
Summary: In a word? Raw.
Review: The forward by Tom Piccirilli tells us that this is horror writers, writing poetry, not necessarily about horror. Oh really? I was intrigued... And when I finished reading, I was impressed. This collection takes some of the best horror writers out of the shadows they so love and exposes their inner most thoughts, heartbroken entrails, and offers a tiny peek into their very own nightmares, as well as a few visits to the lighter side of their insanity.

This multi-layered journey is unnerving and yet enthralling - it's very difficult to read from these authors without expecting it to turn ugly, take that twist, or dive into darkness... and it was actually very refreshing to visit another side of them. Within these pages I found a few lines I jotted down because they were so powerful, thought provoking, crazy, or simply amusing. Among those were:

"...you lie on the threshold of your etc" [Graham Masterton, 'Marriage']

"Don't talk to me about endings, Dare the beginnings" [Jack Ketchum, '7/69']

And though they're not necessarily horror, there are some horror poems scattered about - amidst the blank verse, sonnets, and random poetry in these pages. Some of my personal favorites, of all the poetry [not just horror] were:

'Audience Participation,' by Joe Haldeman - boy wouldn't we all like this to happen to those pesky loudmouths in the theater?

'Poe's Grave,' by Steve Rasnic Tem - He is not dead...

'Conversation,' by Peter Crowther - Death and Time discuss who needs whom

'Only Two Legs and No Silk,' by TM Wright - a whimsical little ditty about spiders, you can almost hear the spiders yelling 'Whoopee!'

'7/69,' by Jack Ketchum - who knew that he could make you ponder sea turtles!

'Four Female Voices in an Empty Room,' by Edward Lee - ghosts on tape?

'Tryptic o' Terror,' by Elizabeth Massie - great little limericks about ghost, vampires, and monsters...

'Horror is Dead, Long Live Horror,' by Jay Bonansinga - creepy ode to the death of fictional horror and the rise of factual

'The Three Evils,' by Tamara Thorne - hear no, see no, speak no... you have a big mouth !

While I thoroughly enjoyed this collection, to be honest, it is not for everyone. For poetry lovers and/or fans of these authors, it's a great collection that belongs on your shelf. You will smile at what you see here! A nice, solid, iambic pentameter 5

For those that don't like poetry, or have only read a few of these authors - you should check it out. If for no other reasons than the uniqueness of it, as it gives you a look inside the rotted, visceral minds of those that bring us our nightmares. Or as Tom Piccirilli put it in the forward:
It's a heady brew, the devil's wine.
Take a sip and find out for yourself.
... for you i give it a 4