Reviewing the "Rewind or Die" Series: Books 3 and 4

I'm still holding on to my quest of reading and reviewing the complete “Rewind or Die” series for the Otherland Newsletter; a sum total of 23 retro-horror paperbacks (I recently realized that the series isn't even complete yet, so it's still counting!) inspired by 70s, 80s and 90s horror movies. Ever since I first found out about this series I am dreaming about these colorful little books with amazing cover art and extremely over the top storylines. Tongue-in-cheek, bizarro, absurd, gore-splatter, wild ride or pulpy are terms that come to mind describing this incredibly fun series that I will happily read and discuss for you guys in the near future. 

On a last note; you will not find all of the series in the Otherland Newsletter as initially planned, but I will still have here the complete series. Still, the "Rewind or Die" books are availabe at the Otherland Bookstore, of course, they will even send it home to you if you can't or don't want to leave home. Just drop them a line if you live in Germany. 

So, here we go with Number 3 and 4 (here you can find the reviews to the first two books!) 

Imagine your local movie rental store back in the '70s, '80s, and '90s - remember all those fantastic covers. Remember taking those movies home and watching in awe as the stories unfolded in nasty rainbows of gore, remember the atmosphere and textures. Remember the blood.

Benny Rose, the Cannibal King by Hailey Piper

THE PERFECT NEIGHBORHOOD: SILENCE, SMILES, NOT A CHILD IN SIGHT...

 

The town of Blackwood has only one urban legend, only one monster to beware - Benny Rose. They say that he was burnt alive during an explosion of Blackwood Mercy Hospital where he worked in the morgue… They say he only comes on Halloween when he feasts on children… They say he gets smarter each time... But on Halloween 1987 four friends will learn the hard way that he isn't just a legend!!

There is no doubt that Hailey Piper can write! In Benny Rose she captivated, entertained, unsettled and disgusted me - all at once. Unfortunately, I feel like her skills are a little wasted on this pulp story, as I feel it's not very original and on the basis of the spectacular title and cover I was expecting something groundbreaking. And yes, this is supposed to be a retro-themed series that reinterprets 80s horror for today's readers, still there's one storyline that I personally think we should be over with by this time in 2021 and don't really like seeing in horror fiction; like a whole group of people who can’t help being what they are being the baddies. I don’t like that very much, but hey, I guess that’s my problem. I can't tell you more, because it would spoil.

Still, Benny Rose is a really good book: Piper packs vivid characters, silliness, nausea and a gripping tale in mere 159 pages. Plus, the ending is seriously PHENOMENAL.

Off to number four now!

Cirque Berserk by Jessica Guess

SO THRILLING YOU'LL LOSE YOUR HEAD!

 

Good grief, I actually really liked this one!

It starts off with a group of high school students who, following some kind of lame senior event that bored them, decide to go to the deserted local carnival, Cirque Berserk. It is deserted because thirty years ago some teenagers went postal, leaving many visitors dead and afterwards disappeared without a trace. What REALLY happened back then? Back to our teenagers today; it takes no genius to guess that they are about to experience quite a night, and in fact, I was pretty sure from the beginning that this will be a formulaic read and I only need to guess the order in which the teenies are going to be eliminated.

I was wrong though, Cirque Berserk offers its readers a unique twist on the "annoying teenagers go somewhere they shouldn't have" genre. It's all here, really - shameless 80s horror clichés, bullies dressed in neon colors, magical books... And more than anything, a wonderful soundtrack which helps you picture certain scenes like in a cheesy movie. The more I think about it, the more I like this book actually, a silly and delightful surprise. I have nothing to criticize for once.

So, off to number 5 we go!