Fear the Fever [Paperback]

Bulletin: We now rejoin the infamous Hot Blood Series, already in progress. fasten your seatbelts -- this is escapism to the extreme. Let's not beat around the bush. This series consists of erotic horror. Erotic, as in Sexy. Horror, as in grotesque disfigurement, torture, and death. It's not "quiet horror." This might not be your cup of poison tea, says your humble reviewer. If it isn't, that's perfectly okay. Otherwise, should you feel adventurous, be advised -- these stories are, as they say, not for the squeamish. Or prudish. Or easily embarrassed. They're not stories you want people to read over your shoulder in the break room or on the bus. These stories exist to tickle your fancy and your funny bone, to present human foibles in up-close-and-personal, oh-so-revealing detail, and -- can we talk? -- to arouse you with a wink and a nudge. They are not politically correct, sensitive, or subtle. I hope I'm making myself clear.

They are so entertaining, however, that several have sold to Showtime's erotic horror series, "The Hunger."

While the stories in FEAR THE FEVER are not all hits, you'll certainly like the twisted triangle in Lucy Taylor's "The Five Percent People" and Patricia D. Cacek's Bram Stoker Award winning "Metalica," with its very needy protagonist. Tom Piccirilli's "Call It" is lean and mean, and Nat Gertler's "Restin' Piece" walks the walk of the tall-tale with ease. And if Graham Masterton's Stoker-nominated, Showtime-filmed "The Secret Shih Tan" is not the most elegantly gruesome tale I've ever read, it's a close second or third. This story anchors the collection with a panache that's hard to beat -- it's worth the price by itself, so the other good stories are pure gravy.

Strong entries from Wendy Rathbone, Elsa Rutherford, Alan Brennert, and J.N. Williamson are bound to hold your interest throughout the volume.

Another superb anthology for those of us who seek a little more edge in our fiction.

A Hot-Blood Series book which will tap that fever deep inside you, the one that lusts for blood with your other hearty appetites. This addition to the Hot Blood series is not to be missed, even better (if possible) than the previous 'Seeds Of Fear'. Beginning with Lucy Taylor's 'The Five Percent People' and ending with Graham Masterton's stunning 'The Secret Shih Tan', you won't find one boring moment in this tasty collection of horrific delights.

Here's the line up:

'The Five Percent People' by Lucy Taylor

'Feeding The Beast' by Bruce Jones

'Purple Hearts And Other Wounds' by Stephen Woodworth

'The Sinister Woods' by Wendy Rathbone

'Love Letters From The Rain Forest' by Jack Ketchum and Edward Lee

'Orifice' by John F.D. Taff

'Sole Man' by Lois Gresh

'The Portrait' by Jeff Gelb

'Two Hands Are Better Than One' by J.N. Williamson

'Untamed $ex' by James Crawford

'Metalica' by Patricia D. Cacek

'Call It' by Tom Piccirilli

'Daddy's Dirty Books' by Michael Garrett

'Restin Piece' by Nat Gertler

'Flesh And Blood' by Elsa Rutherford

'Fantasies' by Alan Brennert

'The Secret Shih Tan' by Graham Masterton

It's really hard to pick my favorites out of this collection, but a few would have to be 'The Secret Shih Tan', a story of a long lost cookbook and recipes that are forbidden for a reason. Bruce Jones writes a unique werewolf romp in 'Feeding The Beast', and John F.D. Tuff gives us a squishy, gruesome kind of love in his story 'Orifice'. J.N. Williamson brings us into a eerily p0rnographic art gallery with a psychic twist, in 'Two Hands Are Better Than One'. There's a bit of dark, necrophiliac humor in Nat Gertler's 'Restin Piece', and a languid feeling of old-fashioned gentility gone sour in Elsa Rutherford's 'Flesh And Blood'. And my favorite, 'Untamed $ex' by James Crawford, will take you on a truly animalistic romp of pain and pleasure.

At the end of the book are short bios for each of the contributing authors, like many of the other Hot Blood books. This collection is a definite 'must have' if you like a little blood with your $ex, or a little romance with your horror. Either way, this book is a gory treat that should be gobbled up, preferably with a nightcap before bedtime. Enjoy!

Combining horror and erotic thrills makes for a great before-bed read. This isn't the kind of book that will keep you reading all night... you can read one story and then turn over and go to sleep, content with what you've just read. It's not heart racing eroticism nor is it a horror that will make you afraid to close your eyes. It can be disturbing and thought provoking, and can capture your imagination, but I do not believe it will leave you lusting for the characters or jumping at every noise.