David James Keaton

"A CULT CLASSIC WAITING ON ITS CULT."-William Boyle, author of City of Margins Recently fired from his job, Dave sets out on a manic, misguided quest for answers up the food chain of law enforcement corruption and down the increasingly bizarre Florida coastline. Battling cops, biker gangs, backwoods Bigfoot hunters, and getting tangled in tourist traps (both figurative and literal), he eventually stumbles onto a conspiracy involving body cameras, love locks, and a grand psychological experiment which may reveal the revolving doors and invisible walls of the nation's prison system.

She Was Found in a Guitar Case

HEAD CLEANER is a hugely original blend of thriller, science fiction, and horror that takes our love of nostalgia to task for its morbid obsessions with dead media and dead-end jobs: Clerks meets Black Mirror (with a little Groundhog Day and Russian Doll thrown in for good measure): The last Blockbuster video store in the United States is hanging on by a thread. And after a crazy night attempting to track down a lost VCR rental to collect the record-setting and internet-famous late fee, three employees, idealistic Eva, cinephile Jerry, and their tyrannical manager Randy, discover that this machine may actually have the power to change the endings of popular films, which, depending on the historical basis of the film, might also be changing the real world around them. Or could this just be an elaborate, increasingly deadly prank? When they begin receiving videotapes and voicemails seemingly depicting their deaths, Eva, Jerry, and Randy scramble to keep the VCR from falling into the wrong hands. And as one action-packed evening begins to seemingly repeat itself (or does it?), scores are settled and unwanted confessions begin to fly, until a Final Girl finally unravels a grand psychological experiment orchestrated at the highest levels of a crumbling social media empire.

Head Cleaner

Max Booth Iii

The toppings: Terror and torment. The crust: Stuffed with dread and despair. And the sauce: Well, the sauce is always red. Whether you're in the mood for a Chicago-style deep dish of darkness, or prefer a New York wide slice of thin-crusted carnage, or if you just have a hankering for the cheap, cheesy charms of cardboard-crusted, delivered-to-your-door devilry; we have just the slice for you. Bring your most monstrous of appetites, because we're serving suspense and horrors both chillingly cosmic and morbidly mundane from acclaimed horror authors such as Brian Evenson, Jessica McHugh, and Cody Goodfellow, as well as up-and-coming literary threats like Craig Wallwork, Sheri White, and Tony McMillen. Tales From the Crust, stories you can devour in thirty minutes or less or the next one's free. Whatever that means.

Tales from the Crust: An Anthology of Pizza Horror

Jeff Strand

Adam Cesare

Jack Bantry

Robert Essig

Jason Parent

Adam Howe

Kristopher Triana

Charles Austin Muir

Scott Emerson

Tony Knighton

The Behrg

Pete Kahle

George Cotronis

MP Johnson

Lilith Morgan 

Jorge Palacios

Monica J. O'Rourke 

Clare de Lune 

"Not for the faint of heart or weak of stomach, the 19 stories in this new best-of annual anthology feature episodes of graphic gore and violence—including torture, dismemberment, self-mutilation, and home abortion—that are designed to push buttons as well as boundaries...strictly for hardcore horror fans."—Publishers Weekly Excerpt from the Introduction: Editors Randy Chandler and Cheryl Mullenax put the call out to horror writers and editors of extreme stories, the hardcore stuff that breaks boundaries and trashes taboos, the transgressive tales you can't "unread" (as Chuck Palahniuk says). We staked out our territory and nailed this to the wall to guide us: YEAR'S BEST HARDEST HORROR Not your mama's best-of horror annual. This stuff comes from the edge of the abyss, stories you read at your own risk because you feel the abyss looking right back into you through the tainted lens of each twisted tale. Some of the stories you'll find here are loaded with very graphic descriptions of violence, sex and depravities, while others may contain only one shocking moment of brutality. In others, the hardcore aspect may be less graphic and subtler than you might expect. Some of these quieter tales offer the reader some time to recover from the more disturbing ones preceding. Most of the stories collected here are from small and specialty press anthologies, with a few from periodicals, like the prestigious Splatterpunk Zine in the UK and Thuglit here in the US. Bizarro is also represented with a couple of tales from the unlikely anthology Blood For You: A Literary Tribute To GG Allin from Weirdpunk Books. (If you're not familiar with the late GG Allin, you can find snippets from some of his outrageous and obscene punk shows online, which will increase your appreciation of those two tales.) So for now, forget about that neighbor you suspect is a serial killer, don't worry about the drunk driver that could take you out on your next trip to the store, push those troubling news stories to the back of your mind and immerse yourself in the imaginary horrors at hand. But don't be surprised if you sense something dark staring back at you from between the lines. That is to be expected when you enter these forbidding realms. With any luck, you may find something useful to help you survive the approaching Apocalypse. TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction: The Year That Was "Worth the Having" by Michael Paul Gonzalez "Awakening" by Jeff Strand "Readings Off The Charts" by Adam Cesare "Reborn" by The Behrg "What's Worst" by David James Keaton "Dead End" by Kristopher Triana "What You Wish For" by Lilith Morgan "King Shits" by Charles Austin Muir "Cleanup On Aisle 3" by Adam Howe "Bath Salt Fetus" by Jorge Palacios "Bored With Brutality" by MP Johnson "Exposed" by Monica J. O'Rourke "Eleanor" by Jason Parent "The Scavengers" by Tony Knighton "The Most Important Miracle" by Scott Emerson "Hungry For Control" by Clare de Lune "Clarissa" by Robert Essig & Jack Bantry "Where The Sun Don't Shine" by Pete Kahle "Blackbird Lullaby" by George Cotronis

Year's Best Hardcore Horror Volume 1

Christopher Davis

Jim Wilsky

Gareth Sparks

Aiden Thorn

10 Stories inspired by the American West from authors around the world.Vol. 1 Issue 1. Fall 2014Featuring stories from:Paul LorelloJim WilskyDawn VogelAidan ThornDavid James KeatonTom PittsCoy HallRobert Lowell RussellGareth SparkChristopher Daviscover art by J.T. Lindroos

Western Digest

The Big Adios

Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Lou Reed

Dirty Boulevard

Told from the perspective of a sluggish employee of a "Zombie Bed & Breakfast" tourist trap, this horrific love letter (and middle finger) to the zombie world, chronicles the daily workings of a staged zombie assault and rehearsal of an apocalyptic scenario. Filled with tons of zombie movie innuendos and laugh-out-loud jokes, you'll be holding your insides in with one hand and the book in the other. You'll never see the zombie genre the same way again. Zombie Bed and Breakfast (Zee Bee & Bee) is a love letter to the world of zombie movies. Keaton's mischievous wit pitsClerks-esque misfits against the most horrifying foes: bed and breakfast patrons. It's a hilarious look at zombies and the nerds who love to talk about them." - BookedPodcast.com

Zombie Bed & Breakfast (Zee Bee & Bee)

Our Pool Party Bus Forever Days. Previously uncollected stories, from 2010 to the present. Crime, lit, and horror fiction, all invoking the road. Reminders that despite the mythical reputation of driving, the hazards of spending time behind (or under) a wheel are clear. Inside, you'll find road rage, road rash, and roadkill, as well as misguided road trips and reckless roadwork. And, of course, the requisite car chases through dangerous turns, past the highway memorials that sprout like weeds in their wake. Take the road less traveled. You might find a body.

Road Stories

Our Pool Party Bus Forever Days

A collection of horror fiction that's both a love letter and a middle finger to the zombie saturation of our culture. It's the backlash to the backlash, as zombies are finally unfashionable enough to be cool again. Inside, you will rehearse end-of-the-world scenarios with the staff of a tourist trap, follow an undead love triangle struggling to survive a tipping point of post-modern, pop-culture references, and enjoy one small apocalypse after another as the living continue to adapt to a new world of the dead, where they'll finally discover who is hungrier. Don't let these poor souls dine in vain.

Stealing Propeller Hats from the Dead

Fish Bites Cop! Stories To Bash Authorities is a whole trunk of surprises. A collection of horror, dark crime, pulp, and slipstream lampoonery that gleefully rips on police officers, security guards, organized religion, firefighters, police officers, bounty hunters, dyslexic paramedics with dog complexes, police officers, military, middle management, and even more police officers. Bad Cop movies are usually just bad cop movies. It's time they paid for it. EDITORIAL REVIEWS "Bizarre and hysterically twisted, these stories crisscross between the satirical and the pulpy at a maddening pace. I endorse this crazy-ass book! Wild ride. David James Keaton is a writer to keep an eye on." --Frank Bill, author of Donnybrook and Crimes in Southern Indiana "This is exquisite writing and fast-paced storytelling--the peanut butter and chocolate of fiction. Bet you can't read just one." --Stephen Graham Jones, author of The Last Final Girl and Growing Up Dead in Texas "If you're a cop, have ever known a cop, or been arrested by one, or even if you're just one of those people who are scared of cops, FISH BITES COP! is the collection you must read. Also if you like watching, catching, or eating fish. Or cops." --Scott Phillips, author of The Adjustment and The Ice Harvest "Don't expect any nice-making from David James Keaton. FISH BITES COP! is full of people acting badly, and it's as fun to watch them self-destruct as it is to watch a ten-car pileup on the interstate. Trust me: you'll enjoy your couple of hours rubbernecking." --Kyle Minor, author of In the Devil's Territory "David James Keaton by his own confession has a problem with authority. You might say he has a hard-0n for cops, a hard-0n of the nightstick variety he brandishes with abandon, gleefully bashing cliches with his own savvy brand of literary mayhem. Keaton goes Dirty Harry on the cop shop of conventional crime fiction. Heads roll, donuts get gored. It's so good it should be illegal." --Randy Chandler, author of Dime Detective and Bad Juju "Keaton's at his manic best in this collection, populated by prize winners and barn burners, each one coated in his special brand of pulp sauce. These are stories to read by the bonfire as the world burns. In the worlds Keaton conjures here, spinning with barely repressed anarchy, that's the general drift." --Court Merrigan, author of Moondog Over the Mekong "David James Keaton holds the lovechild of convention and expectations down to the hard, concrete floor, puts his hand over its mouth, and slits its throat. Each of the stories in this collection help sop up the blood, his hands wiped cleaned by the time the last story is wrought and reeking of his touch." --Michael Czyzniejewski, author of Chicago Stories "With a command of contemporary slang force-bred with imagery, Keaton is one of the strongest voices in American fiction today. The first story alone is one I will read forever." --Jason Stuart, author of Raise a Holler "Reading these stories feels like the guys in the garage at the St. Valentine's Day Massacre probably felt as the bullets struck them. They will rip you up, tear you apart, and when you're done, you'll be exhausted with emotion but know that you've been in the presence of greatness." --Les Edgerton, author of The Rapist "Quite simply, David James Keaton is a twisted genius, and you read his work at your own risk, risk of a neural or moral melt-down. Keaton's stories are as sickly exuberant and gargantuan as gothic dirigibles, tall tales of teleportation into urban myth and mystery, post-truth, anti-reality, they break every rule of regular fiction and good taste." --Chuck Kinder, author of Last Mountain Dancer "It's Technicolor Noir." --Charlie Trout, reporter for the Pittsburgh Pulp Exchange

Fish Bites Cop! Stories To Bash Authorities

Steve Brewer

Jessica McHugh

Brent Nichols

Will Viharo

Sarah L. Johnson

Coffin Hop Press

Scott S. Phillips

Laurie Zottmann

It's A Weird Winter Wonderland

Edward M. Erdelac

Randy Chandler

Ben Cheetham

DEADCORE: 4 HARDCORE ZOMBIE NOVELLAS Join authors Randy Chandler, Ben Cheetham, Edward M. Erdelac, and David James Keaton as they unleash the carnage while breathing new life, and death, into the zombie genre. FANGORIA MAGAZINE REVIEW "As the book’s title indicates, DEADCORE achieves all extremes. Violent, perverse, depraved—and, as such, quite recommended." THE STORIES DEAD JUJU BY RANDY CHANDLER He's the mystery man on the news. Where he shows up, the shit goes down. The dead are rising, the immigration issue has reached the boiling point, the living are screwed, and unspeakable acts are being performed upon all involved. In this tale of Zombies Gone Wild, yes the dead walk but just where the hell are they going and why? Dead Juju gives you the hardcore truth, if you're ghoul enough to handle it. NIGHT OF THE JIKININKI BY EDWARD M. ERDELAC After a comet is observed in the western sky of feudal Japan, a murdered inmate rises from the dead and attacks his fellow prisoners. Three disparate men: a casteless bandit, a mad, child-eating monk, and a renowned but sadistic samurai band together to escape the walled and moat-surrounded prison as it fills with the walking and ravenous dead. ZEE BEE & BEE (A.K.A. PROPELLER HATS FOR THE DEAD) BY DAVID JAMES KEATON At a "Zombie Bed & Breakfast" tourist trap, guests pay for the thrill of a staged zombie assault during an apocalyptic scenario, acted out by sluggish hotel workers who are well-versed in the zombie genre. But soon the script doesn't go as planned, the guests become uncooperative, and the actors are taking their roles very seriously these days. ZOMBIE SAFARI BY BEN CHEETHAM Survivors of a zombie apocalypse have carved out new existences on islands, only visiting the mainland to hunt zombies. But things start to go wrong. Zombies don't die as they should. Hunters go missing. A trip that's supposed to be fun turns into a struggle for survival as four men make a discovery that causes them to question not only what it means to be a zombie, but what it means to be human.

4 Hardcore Zombie Novellas

Deadcore

The Last Projector

Rob Hart

Reed Farrel Coleman

Mystery Tribune

Dan Fiore

Teresa Sweeney

Aaron Fox-Lerner

Shawn Corridan

Summer 2017 edition of Mystery Tribune Magazine features a curated collection of the short stories, essays, book reviews and interviews by some of the best voices in mystery and suspense as well as exciting fine art photography. The issue features stories by Aaron Fox-Lerner, Dan J. Fiore, Rob Hart, David James Keaton, and Teresa Sweeney. Acclaimed author Reed Farrel Coleman writes about his journey to become a PI novelist from his early days as a poet. Featuring other essays, interviews and reviews by Shawn Corridan, Elena Avanzas Álvarez, Staurt Neville and Richie Narvaez, the Summer 2017 issue is furnished with surreal photography collections from Tommy Ingberg, Heather Byington and more. An elegantly crafted 180 page quarterly issue, and with a beautiful layout designed for optimal reading experience, our Summer 2017 issue will make a perfect companion or gift for avid mystery readers or fans of literary crime fiction.

Summer 2017

Mystery Tribune / Issue No2

A risible struggle between love and subversion of the western genre, PIG IRON takes place in the desert town of Aqua Fría after the wells have run dry, where crazed townsfolk drink whiskey instead of water, priming their bodies, as well as their situation, for combustion. Myths are exploded, horses are treated with little respect, atheist preachers hurl Bible quotes without irony, and villains and heroes sweat booze as their time runs out. They have three days before they die of dehydration. Only three days to search for illusive treasure, right perceived wrongs, and battle murderous hallucinations. With a glossary of western terminology, real and imagined, this violent yarn is Deadwood meets A Clockwork Orange, with a shot of "wry."

Pig Iron

Tim Waggoner

Jack Ketchum

Meg Elison

Gil Valle

Red Room is a magazine of extreme horror and hardcore dark crime, full color and fully illustrated. FICTION BY Jack Ketchum, Meg Elison, Tim Waggoner, David James Keaton, Larry Hinkle, Tom Barlow, Nick Manzolillo, Josh Scott Wilson, and Gil Valle. "The Phantom Video Stream" by Nick Manzolillo sets the tone with red-room atmospherics in the story of a man who discovers a hidden channel streaming from what may be another reality. Tim Waggoner's "Are You Crazy?" answers its own question in shocking Waggoner style. Larry Hinkle's "Meat Cute" opens with "Stop staring at her tits!" and ends with a coldblooded revelation. Short and not so sweet. Tom Barlow's "Selfie" demonstrates that two heads aren't always better than one, not when they're spitting images. Meg Elison's "The Middle Child" takes an unflinching look at fame and greed and the mania underlying video virality. In "Sick Jokes" Josh Scott Wilson takes political incorrectness to new heights--and depths. David James Keaton, aka DJK, takes us for a ride into brutal biker mayhem that hits like a jackhammer in "The Flowery." Some tattoos ain't cool. Jack Ketchum reprises "Megan's Law," a disturbing look at what can happen when a child molester moves into a concerned dad's neighborhood. If you've never read this classic, you're in for a creepy treat, and if you have then you know it's definitely worth rereading. Plus, an exclusive excerpt from the NYPD's "Cannibal Cop" Gil Valle's upcoming Comet Press release of his first novel A Gathering of Evil, which parallels the message-board fantasies that landed him in jail. FEATURES Duane Bradley takes an irresistible look at the Video Nasties and the uproar those "obscene" video cassettes caused in the UK back in the 1980s. Ben Arzate reviews a formerly out-of-print classic horror novel, which is making a howling comeback. Patrick King reviews one of the best of the recent horror movie releases. Red Room interviews the phenomenal Meg Elison, and David L. Tamarin interviews Gil Valle, getting him to open up about his incarceration by the "thought police." Red Room regular Barfly Bob taste-tests the World's Most F**ked Up adult beverages. A surreal, behind the scenes glimpse at the Red Room headquarters with rogue reporter Brian J. McCarthy.

Red Room Issue 1: Magazine of Extreme Horror and Hardcore Dark Crime

Tom Piccirilli

Tim Curran

Simon Wood

John Everson

Comet Press presents 13 stories from authors of dark crime, suspense, and horror. Ultra violent, hardboiled, with an unhealthy dose of the macabre, The Death Panel is a no-holds-barred, in-your-face hard ride to hell. HORROR WORLD REVIEW "These noir themed plotlines in the stories presented in The Death Panel are like a deep breath of fresh air; it’s nice to break with convention occasionally and these stories do so wonderfully. I found myself glued to this book, and when finished, I wanted to read more, it was that enjoyable. So if you’re looking for something a little different to read in your horror fiction, a book with stories that are edgy and cool as all hell, then pick up The Death Panel, and then be prepared to be blown away by some of the best genre short story fiction written in the last few years. Yes, this book is that good." MONSTER LIBRARIAN REVIEW "If you are a horror fan who wants to expand your horizons, I highly recommend picking up The Death Panel." BOOKGASM REVIEW "With sharp writing and a crisp design to match, the anthology makes a strong case for 2009’s best. It’s only Comet Press’ third release, but already, the small-press label has distinguished itself as a reliable name brand. Pick it up, if you’ve got the balls." —Rod Lott

Murder, Mayhem, and Madness

The Death Panel

Jay Stringer

Steve Cavanagh

Lori Rader-Day

Laura McHugh

Alex Segura

John Rector

Michael Kardos

Lili Wright

Andrew Case

Jon McGoran

Dana King

James R. Tuck

Nick Kolakowski

Chris Holm

Josh Stallings

James W. Ziskin

Terry Shames

Bill Crider

E.A. Aymar

Kris Calvin

Scott Loring Sanders

Dave White

The Anthony-nominated collection of crime stories without guns—the collection we didn't want to be necessary—is back for Volume 2. Two dozen more crime writers have come together to raise their voices and take pen in hand to call for a sensible and reasoned debate about guns in America. As the mass shootings continue, the avoidable accidents, the suicides, the gun violence that consumes our country rolls on unabated and unaddressed by our leadership other than to say, “Now is not the time to discuss it,” these crime writers have chosen to start the dialogue. In stories of crime, mystery and suspense these authors have left the guns out to show for a short while that we can do without them and the plot doesn’t fall apart. Maybe, in a small way, we can show that the American way of life doesn’t cease to be, either. Not anti-gun, Unloaded Vol. 2 is pro-reason. These authors comprise gun owners and non-owners, voters on both sides of the political aisle. The cause that unites us all is the desire to see the senseless killing stop and to be able to have the discussion without the divisive language, vitriol and name calling that too often accompanies this debate. The top priority in these stories is to entertain with thrilling action and suspense that readers know and love about a crime story. To do so without guns leads to some creative leaps from writers who spin tales of simians on the loose, androids with buried secrets, punk rock shows and tattoo shops. Bestselling authors like Chris Holm, Lori Rader-Day, Bill Crider, Laura McHugh, James Ziskin and John Rector along with many more join together to call for an end to the needless violence and a start to a reasoned debate. With a forward by legendary Sara Paretsky, Unloaded Vol. 2 is a book we wish wasn’t needed. But staying silent is no longer an option. Proceeds go to the non-profit States United To Prevent Gun Violence. Praise for UNLOADED VOLUME 2: “[A collection of] entertaining and often thought-provoking stories.” —Publishers Weekly

More Crime Writers Writing Without Guns

Unloaded Volume 2

David James Keaton

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