Dark Isles

Toady by Mark Morris back in print

2006-10-02T13:41:20Z

Mark Morris' first novel, Toady, has been republished in paperback by UK independent outfit Humdrumming.

Welcome to the Horror Club: a world of werewolves and poltergeists, psychopaths and shape changers, the unquiet and the living dead.

A fantasy world, of course, for Richard, Robin and Nigel, the club’s members, are ordinary boys from ordinary families, who just happen to share a taste for the macabre in films and videos, books and comics. And then they admit a fourth member to their club - Toady, a far from ordinary boy with a taste for the macabre inn real life. From the moment he lures the others into a nerve-jangling seance in a house with a chilling reputation, their lives are blighted by worse horror than they have ever imagined.

In a fusion of nightmare and reality, terror stalks the familiar streets of a sleepy seaside town and waits to invade the safest home. The pervasive stain of evil spreads like ripples on a pond, leaving a trail of sacrilege and death in its wake. One by one the members of the Horror Club are overcome and forced into a netherworld, halfway between illusion and reality. It is up to the final member to fight alone against the evil they have unleashed - until, in the final battle, he is joined by an unexpected ally...

2006 British Fantasy Awards: The Winners

2006-09-25T09:10:04Z

This past weekend saw the 2006 British Fantasy Society FantasyCon in Nottingham. One of the highlights of the weekend was the annual BFS Awards. Congratulations to all of the winners!

Best Novel: The August Derleth Award
Neil Gaiman, ANANSI BOYS

Best Novella:
Stuart Young, THE MASK BEHIND THE FACE

Best Anthology:
Allen Ashley, THE ELASTIC BOOK OF NUMBERS

Best Collection:
Joe Hill, TWENTIETH CENTURY GHOSTS

Best Short Fiction:
Joe Hill, BEST NEW HORROR

Best Artist :
Les Edwards

Best Small Press:
Peter Crowther, PS PUBLISHING

Karl Edward Wagner Special Award:
Stephen Jones

The Glass Books of the Dream Eaters by GW Dahlquist

2006-09-20T13:58:25Z

Penguin Books are trying something new with the UK release of Dahlquist's novel, The Glass Books of the Dream Eaters. Beginning in early October, subscribers will receive one "chapter" each week in a "handsome...paperback at least 64-pages in length". The ten-installment set will be limited to 5,000 copies and is selling for £25 direct from Penguin.

You can find out more at the Glass Books website.

A spy, a killer and an imposter. Three extraordinary heroes.

Cities are places where adventures happen even to those for whom adventuring is not considered a respectable pursuit…

When Miss Temple finds her engagement broken off without suitable explanation by her fiancé Roger Bascombe, she is given a choice: turn away from polite society or turn adventuress and discover the reason for her rejection. Deciding to secretly follow her former lover, Miss Temple finds herself a trespasser at a masked ball. There, strange and unspeakable acts involving electricity and books of glass (not to mention a murder) take place and Miss Temple almost loses both her virtue and her life.

Joined in her adventures by a foreign surgeon and an assassin, Miss Temple seeks to uncover the conspiracy that lies at the heart of the glass books, and, in the process, learns quite how disrespectable – and life threatening – adventuring can be…

This is an exclusive, limited edition subscription set of ten instalments. You will receive the first instalment in early October 2006 and the last in December 2006. Beware your wildest dreams…

Judge Dredd: Origins

2006-09-16T22:28:16Z

This week's prog (1505) of the Galaxy's Greatest Comic, 2000AD, sees the beginning of a brand new Judge Dredd Mega-Epic, slated to run until February 2007. The first part of Origins can be found at your local newsagent now.

Charles L Grant: September 12, 1942 - September 15, 2006

2006-09-16T18:00:38Z

Horror legend Charles L Grant has passed away in his home, with his family, following a heart attack on September 15, 2006. The Dark Isles team would like to offer their condolences to Charles' wife, Kathy Ptacek, and all his family and friends.

Rest in peace.

World War Z by Max Brooks

2006-09-16T17:54:59Z

September 14th saw the publication of Max Brooks' second zombie novel, World War Z - An Oral History of the Zombie War.

It began with rumours from China about another pandemic. The reports were fragmentary and confused. A world still reeling from bird flu and limited nuclear exchanges had had enough of apocalypse. Most people just wanted to rebuild their lives. Then the cases started to multiply and what had looked like the stirrings of a criminal underclass, even the beginnings of a revolution, soon revealed itself to be much, much worse. Faced with a future of mindless, man-eating horror, humanity was forced to accept the logic of world government and face events that tested our sanity and our sense of reality. Maybe, Brooks argues, the zombies brought us back to life. Based on extensive interviews with survivors and key players in the ten-year fight-back against the horde, "World War Z" brings the very finest traditions of American journalism to bear on what is surely the most incredible story in the history of civilisation.

The UK edition, published by Duckworth Publishers, is now available everywhere.

The Impelled & Other Head Trips by Gary Fry

2006-09-15T11:24:12Z

Gary Fry, best known, perhaps, as the man behind Gray Friar Press has released his first fiction book through Crowswing Books.

The Impelled & Other Head Trips contains eighteen tales of terror, including a brand new novella written especially for the collection and sports the Robert Sammelin artwork above on the front cover. The book is available now direct from the publisher, from various online retailers, and will be available at next weekend's FantasyCon in Nottingham.

PS Publishing - Coming soon

2006-09-14T13:34:06Z

PS Publishing's top man, Peter Crowther, recently sent out an email update, which contained a huge amount of news. For the full release, you can check the company's website. Of immediate interest:

The following novels are available now, or will be for the forthcoming FantasyCon:
- R. Andrew Heidel's Desperate Moon
- David Herter's On The Overgrown Path
- T.M Wright's I Am The Bird

Following closely, before the end of the year, collectors can expect to see:
- Jack Dann's Promised Land
- Robert Reed's Flavors of my Genius
- Chris Roberson's The Voyage of Night Shining White
- Steven Utley's Where or When
- Ian McLeod's Past Magic
- Richard Parks's Hereafter, And After
- Robert Eldric's The Mermaids
- Conrad Williams' The Scalding Rooms
- Robert Charles Wilson's Julian
- Zoran Živković's Twelve Collections & The Teashop
- Postscripts #9

Fans of Peter's work will also be glad to hear that the second entry in his Forever Twilight series should be completed, barring any major distractions, by the end of the month.

New domain name

2006-09-14T13:23:38Z

darkisles.co.uk is finally here. You'll note that it currently routes you right back here, but we're currently working on a brand new news site to replace the LiveJournal blog in the coming weeks. In the meantime, update your bookmarks and send us your news at the new address: news@darkisles.co.uk.

Pulse in the UK

2006-09-07T15:22:11Z

This week sees the release in UK cinemas of the latest J-horror remake, Pulse, a remake of 2001's Kairo. Starring Veronica Mars' Kristen Bell and Lost's Ian (Boone) Somerhalder, the film is described on the IMDb as:

"When their computer hacker friend accidentally channels a mysterious wireless signal, a group of co-eds rally to stop a terrifying evil from taking over the world."

The film opens nationwide tomorrow.

Stephen King's UK Tour

2006-09-06T21:43:53Z

Stephen King will be touring the UK in November to promote his forthcoming novel, Lisey's Story. So far there are four dates, with two confirmed times and locations, presumably with the other dates to be confirmed at a later time.

Tuesday 7th November - Borders Books & Music, Oxford Street, London (1:00pm-2:00pm)
Wednesday 8th November - TBC
Thursday 9th November - Asda supermarket in Watford (5:00pm-6:00pm)
Friday 10th November - TBC

British Fantasy Society Awards 2006 Shortlist

2006-09-06T13:42:17Z

A bit late with this piece of news, but for those who don't already know, the shortlist for this years BFS Awards is as follows:

British Fantasy Award for Best Novel: The August Derleth Award
Ramsey Campbell, SECRET STORIES
Mark Chadbourn, THE HOUNDS OF AVALON
Hal Duncan, VELLUM: THE BOOK OF ALL HOURS 1
Neil Gaiman, ANANSI BOYS
George R. R. Martin, A FEAST FOR CROWS
Mark Morris, NOWHERE NEAR AN ANGEL

British Fantasy Award for Best Novella:
Guy Adams, DEADEAT
Jeffrey Ford, THE COSMOLOGY OF THE WIDER WORLD
Joe Hill, VOLUNTARY COMMITTAL
Paul Kane, SIGNS OF LIFE
Paul Meloy, DYING IN THE ARMS OF JEAN HARLOW (THE
COMING OF THE AUTOSCOPES)
Sean Wright, DARK TALES OF SPACE AND TIME
Stuart Young, THE MASK BEHIND THE FACE

British Fantasy Award for Best Anthology:
Allen Ashley, THE ELASTIC BOOK OF NUMBERS
Peter Crowther, FOURBODINGS
Gary Fry, POE’S PROGENY
Stephen Jones, THE MAMMOTH BOOK OF BEST NEW HORROR 16
Stephen Jones, DON’T TURN OUT THE LIGHT

British Fantasy Award for Best Collection:
Leigh Brackett, SEA-KINGS OF MARS & OTHER WORLDLY STORIES
Simon Clark, HOTEL MIDNIGHT
Joe Hill, 20TH CENTURY GHOSTS
Andrew Hook, BEYOND EACH BLUE HORIZON
Tim Lees, THE LIFE TO COME
Stuart Young, THE MASK BEHIND THE FACE AND OTHER STORIES

British Fantasy Award Best Short Fiction:
Ramsey Campbell, JUST BEHIND YOU
Joe Hill, BEST NEW HORROR
Paul Kane, HOMELAND
John Lucas, APPROACHING ZERO
Will McIntosh, SOFT APOCALYPSE
Marie O’Regan, CAN YOU SEE ME?
Sean Wright, THE NUMBERIST

British Fantasy Award for Best Artist :
Clive Barker
Randy Broecker
Les Edwards
Dominic Harman
Richard Marchand
Robert Sammelin

British Fantasy Award for Best Small Press:
Andy Cox, TTA PRESS
Peter Crowther, PS PUBLISHING
Andrew Hook, ELASTIC PRESS
D. F. Lewis, NEMONYMOUS
Christopher Teague, PENDRAGON PRESS

Death's Dominion by Simon Clark

2006-09-01T11:24:21Z

Leisure Books are providing a sneak preview of one of their November horror books now.

You can read an excerpt from Simon Clark's Death's Dominion here.

Breeding Ground by Sarah Pinborough

2006-09-01T11:21:41Z

Leisure Books have released their September horror book selections, which include British author Sarah Pinborough's Breeding Ground.

Life was good for Matt and Chloe. They were in love and looking forward to their new baby. But what Chloe gave birth to isn't a baby. It isn't even human. It's an entirely new species that uses humans only for food—and as hosts for their young.

As Matt soon learns, though, he is not alone in his terror. Women all over town have begun to give birth to these hideous creatures, spidery nightmares that live to kill—and feed. As the infestation spreads and the countryside is reduced to a series of web-shrouded ghost towns, will the survivors find a way to fight back? Or is it only a matter of time before all of mankind is reduced to a…Breeding Ground.

You should be able to order the book directly from Leisure, or from amazon.co.uk.

The Unblemished by Conrad Williams

2006-08-31T21:54:13Z

Paul Miller of Earthling Publications reports that the next book in their popular Halloween series is well on schedule to be in your hands before the big day. Manchester-based author Conrad Williams' The Unblemished is this years book.

According to the publisher's site:

A blood-crazed lover of amputee victims.
A mother determined to protect her only daughter no matter the cost.
A serial killer who believes he is the rightful son and heir to a horrific, ancient dynasty.
And one dying man who must make a stand against a horde of vengeful monsters who knew the shadows of London before the city even had a name.
This Halloween, if they catch you, you will beg for death...

Dark Isles will have a review of this latest addition to Earthling's line-up in the coming weeks.

John Connolly's The Book of Lost Things

2006-08-30T13:58:04Z

John Connolly's late August newsletter contained a number of news items that may be of interest to fans of the man's work. His latest novel, The Book of Lost Things, is currently available throughout Ireland, and should be appearing in on bookshelves across the UK between now and September 10th, its official release date. US fans will have to wait until November 7th before the book starts appearing over there.

You can find out more about The Book of Lost Things at John's website, or on the specially-created microsite. John will be on tour across Ireland and the UK in the coming months, and you can see a complete tour schedule here.

On an unrelated note, fans of John's Charlie Parker novels will be pleased to know that the next book in the series, The Unquiet, will be released worldwide in May 2007. Look out for a follow-up to last year's Voices from the Dark CD. More information as we get it.

Welcome to the Dark Isles

2006-08-25T23:20:41Z

Welcome to the birth of a brand new resource for fans of horror and dark fiction. Here at Dark Isles, we aim to concentrate on what's happening in the genre in Britain and Ireland. Our aim is to provide up-to-date news of book and film releases, upcoming television series, and events happening around the British Isles. We're also aiming at a more global audience with the aim to produce reviews of some of the forthcoming big releases from UK authors, publishers and filmmakers, as well as interviews with the very talented creators.

In the coming weeks, the LiveJournal style will morph into a new website, dedicated to bringing you everything you need to know about horror and dark fiction in this little part of the world. Feel free to add us to your friends list, and drop us a line at darkisles@googlemail.com and let us know your news, or let us know what you think of what we're doing, and how we might improve our service.

Thanks for coming along.