Writtenyes: Matthew Barber
Extreme horror, hardcore horror, and gore-punk are various names for a sub-genre within the horror film genre that developed in the 1980s and 1990s. Prior to this, violence and sexual misconduct in horror films were often implied rather than explicitly stated. Writers such as Jack Ketchum, Richard Lemmon, and Clive Barker changed all that, describing these acts in detail as a way to shock and disgust readers. Today, the sub-genre continues, with gore and perversion being heightened to even more gratuitous levels.
Cheryl Mullenax’s series, Necromancer Archives: Twenty Years of Absolute Terrorexplores the evolution of the extreme horror subgenre. It is not a collection. Instead, it presents a series of extreme horror stories in order of publication. The goal is to pay homage to some of the classics while introducing readers to new talent in the subgenre today. Also, while the title suggests twenty years, it represents thirty years, starting with George R.R. Martin’s story in 1976 and continuing through J.F. Gonzalez’s story in 2006. The complete series includes:
Meat House Man by George R.R. Martin
The Night They Missed the Horror Show by Joe R. Lansdale
Ronald Kelly’s Diary
Abed by Elizabeth Massey
I Am He Who Lives and Has Died… and Holds the Keys of Hell and Death by Randy Chandler and T. Winter-Damon
Xipe by Edward Lee
Ray Garton’s Bait
Painfreak by Gerard Houarner
Lover Doll by Wayne Allen Sully
Ghost Wolf by Charlee Jacob
Godflesh by Brian Hodge
Every Drop of Water by John Everson
The Blind Man in the Hangman’s House by Mehitobel Wilson
Experiments in Human Nature by Monica J. O’Rourke
Graham Masterton’s Burgers in Calais
The Rapture by Nancy Kilpatrick
“Pop Star in an Ugly Bar” by Bentley Little
The Sooner They Learn by James White
“Addict” by JF Gonzalez
While the stories Mullenax selected for the collection are certainly worth reading, it is worth noting that works by John Skipp (1980s), Poppy Z. Brite (1990s), and Bryan Smith (2000s) are not included. In addition, George RR Martin’s “Meat House People” and Joe R. Lansdale’s “The Night They Missed the Horror Show” have been reprinted many times. Those interested in the series may have read these stories before. However, there are some lesser-known gems hidden in the collection.
An unexpected gem is Graham Masterton’s “The Burger in Calais.” John Henry Dove’s truck breaks down in a typical New England town, and he has to take a job to pay for the repairs. Dove works as a cook at a local burger joint that’s beating the competition. Mind you, they don’t actually kill anyone, but something is definitely wrong after a customer finds a bullet in his burger. Now Dove has to solve the mystery meat case.
Another is Bentley Little’s “Pop Star in an Ugly Bar,” which tells the story of an unknown starlet who likes to tell the media that she really likes alternative sex and knows what extremes are. Unwittingly, the starlet begins to believe her own hype and stumbles into a sex club where perverted behavior is the norm. Now, whether she likes it or not, she will learn what extreme sex means.
weakness is Necromancer Archives: Twenty Years of Absolute Terror The emphasis on sexual horror rather than gore is prominent – which isn’t terrible, but it misrepresents the subgenre as a whole. Fans of the subgenre will be pleasantly surprised, though. There’s little missing from this collection. Both new and seasoned horror fans will find some new authors to follow as a result.
Order yours here.
score: 4/5
