Sep 8 2014

Books and Boos Press Debuts ‘Insanity Tales’ this Halloween Season

Publishing news from the Books & Boos Press website.

Books & Boos Press is excited to announce our October release of Insanity Tales, due out just in time for the Halloween season. This anthology contains short stories from David Daniel, Stacey Longo, Dale T. Phillips, and Ursula Wong, and a short novella by Vlad Vaslyn. Longo also edited the collection.

All of the stories in the anthology are new, with the exception of one from Longo (“Old Man’s Winter”), which was expanded and changed from an earlier version. Each story in Insanity Tales features a character whose actions could very well be perceived as crazy—and in some cases, they are.

The table of contents for Insanity Tales is as follows:

Foreword by Jonathan Maberry

“Memory Unit” by David Daniel

“Dark Water” by Ursula Wong

“Jack-o’-Lantern” by Dale T. Phillips

“Old Man’s Winter” by Stacey Longo

“Scalper” by David Daniel

“Never Alone” by Ursula Wong

“Chupacabra Moon” by Dale T. Phillips

“Color Him Crazy” by Stacey Longo

“The Sleep Artist” by Vlad V.

David Daniel is the author of eleven novels and more than a hundred short stories, and has won a Private Eye Writers of America Award (for The Heaven Stone) and was a Shamus Award finalist. Stacey Longo is the author of Ordinary Boy (due out May 2015) and Secret Things: Twelve Tales to Terrify, and was a featured author on the 2014 Connecticut Authors Trail. Dale T. Phillips is the author of four novels (A Memory of Grief, A Fall From Grace), over thirty short stories, and has appeared on stage, television, and in an independent feature film, Throg. Vlad V. is the author of The Button, Yorick and Brachman’s Underworld. He is a freelance writer and former newspaper correspondent for the Lowell Sun and Fitchburg Sentinel & Enterprise. Ursula Wong is the author of Purple Trees, is a regional winner of the flash fiction contest sponsored by the New Hampshire Writer’s Project, and leads the NHWP Nashua chapter. Books & Boos Press is honored to be able to work with such a talented group of writers.

Sep 7 2014

The 6th Annual Connecticut Authors Trail Finale with Mar Jennings

Mar Jennings. Photo by Jason Harris.

The 6^th Annual Connecticut Authors Trail celebrated its finale on Thursday, September 4, 2014. The featured speaker was TV personality Mar Jennings, author of Life on Mar’s: Creating Casual Luxury. Giving a lively presentation from the stage of the Cabaret Theater at Mohegan Sun, Jennings gave advice and tips on creating a warm and inviting environment inside and outside the home. Sharing beautiful photos of his own home and garden in Westport, CT, Jennings shared his six principles for decorating a room, including repeating patterns and incorporating nature into the décor. He answered questions from the audience about personal interior decorating preferences and the best flea markets to shop in the area.

Many of the other authors who were featured on the Author Trail this year were in attendance for the finale. Mystery writer Liz Mugavero (Kneading to Die), historian Quincy Abbot (From Schoolboy to Soldier), and horror writer Stacey Longo (Secret Things) were all on hand with copies of their books. Libraries participating in the 2014 Connecticut Authors Trail kindly donated raffle baskets, and readers who attended the authors’ presentations throughout the state were given tickets to enter in the raffles. Mohegan Sun generously provided appetizers for the event.

To learn more about the authors who appeared on the Trail this year, please visit http://connecticutauthorstrail.org.

Sep 3 2014

Author Stacey Longo to be Involved with the Connecticut Authors Trail Finale at Mohegan Sun

Author Stacey Longo during her CT Author Trail appearance at the Saxton B. Little Library in Columbia. Photo by Jason Harris.

Author Stacey Longo during her CT Authors Trail appearance at the Saxton B. Little Free Library in Columbia. Photo by Jason Harris.

Author Stacey Longo joins other Connecticut authors at the Connecticut Authors Trail finale being held Thursday, Sept. 4, from 6:15 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Mohegan Sun Cabaret Theatre. She will be selling and signing copies of her books, Secret Things and Pookie and the Lost & Found Friend.

Aug 29 2014

‘Saw’ Cuts Its Way Back into Theaters this Halloween to Celebrate 10th Anniversary

Horror Film Which Ignited Blockbuster Franchise Will Be Available in Theaters for One Week Only Starting October 31

This Halloween, Lionsgate will celebrate the 10^th anniversary of the theatrical release of Saw, the film that kicked off the most successful horror franchise in history, by bringing it back to theaters nationwide for one week only. The film will open on Friday, October 31^st, with select screenings beginning Thursday night, October 30^th. The seven Saw films grossed $874 million at the box office worldwide and were hailed by the Guinness Book of World Records as the “Most Successful Horror Franchise” of all time.

“The launch of Saw was a signature event in Lionsgate’s history, establishing our first franchise and paving the way for our growth into a global studio,” said Lionsgate President of Acquisitions & Co-Productions Jason Constantine. “We are excited for our fans to revisit the twisted magic that first blew their minds on Halloween 2004.”

“As part of Saw’s 10^th anniversary, we’re thrilled to give new fans and audiences the opportunity to experience this film on the big screen for the very first time,” added Saw’s producers Oren Koules and Mark Burg.

Saw was the first collaboration for co-creators James Wan, who directed the film, and Leigh Whannell, who wrote the screenplay. Together, they also created the successful Insidious franchise, and Wan has gone on to direct such high-profile films as The Conjuring and the upcoming Fast & Furious 7.

Directed by Wan from a script penned by Whannell, Saw is a psychological thriller focusing on two men who wake up in a secure lair of a serial killer, with a dead body lying between them. The killer, nicknamed “Jigsaw,” leaves them tape recorded messages with details of how to make it out alive. The only way for one man to make it out alive is to do the unthinkable. The two men desperately try to find a way out, while also trying to figure out who’s behind their kidnapping. The film, which was released over Halloween weekend on October 29, was produced by Gregg Hoffman, Oren Koules, and Mark Burg.

Aug 26 2014

Pictures from the Connecticut Horrorfest

By Jason Harris

Ryan Emerson and Joe Rubin of Vinegar Syndrome.

Ryan Emerson and Brandon Upson of Vinegar Syndrome.

Beetlejuice and Lydia.

Irone Singleton of The Walking Dead.

Alex from A Clockwork Orange.

Authors Stacey Longo and G. Elmer Munson at the Books & Boos table.

Lady Pinhead.

Jennifer Lynn Warren of American Horror Story.

Author Stacey Longo with a cosplayer.

Author F.M. Longo.

Cerina Vincent of Cabin Fever.

Theshay West and Moses Moseley of The Walking Dead.

A Clockwork Orange cosplay.

Stacey Longo with Lady Pinhead.

Aug 24 2014

Movie Review: ‘Man with the Screaming Brain’

By Stacey Longo

If you’re a big Bruce Campbell fan like me, you’ll probably be tempted to watch Man with the Screaming Brain (2005). Written and directed by and starring Campbell, it sounds like a safe bet. I mean, Bubba Ho Tep was funny, right?

Let me gently remind you that nobody can be funny ALL of the time. And for the first thirty minutes of this movie, you will find yourself thinking this very same thought several hundred times.

Campbell plays William Cole, a shady corporate industrialist traveling in Bulgaria to set up a tax scam. He’s traveling with his wife Jackie Cole, played stiltingly by Antoinette Byron, who might be wearing that hideous blond wig in the hopes that nobody will recognize her in this stinker.

Bruce Campbell is trying too hard to play the obnoxious American, and the result is boring and unfunny at the start. The banter between Campbell, Byron, and Russian cab driver Yegor (played by Vladimir Kolev) is forced and hokey. The relief comes when a mysterious Gypsy woman murders the three of them, but it takes much too long to get to this major plot point.

Good news for the Coles and Yegor: there’s a mad scientist in the neighborhood looking for hapless victims to conduct experiments on. Said scientist transplants Yegor’s brain in to William Cole’s body, presumably with the expectation that hilarity will ensue. We are treated to ten minutes of Cole and Yegor battling for control of Cole’s body, until they realize they were both murdered by the same woman, and decide to work together to hunt her down. In the meantime, Jackie Cole’s brain is transplanted in to a robot. I wish I could tell you I was making this sucky plot up, but sadly, this is really what the movie is about. My heart breaks for all of the Campbell fans out there who will try to stab out their own eyeballs with knitting needles in an effort to stop watching this crapfest.

The highlight of this movie is Ted Raimi, who plays the mad scientist’s assistant, Pavel. It’ll warm your heart to see that he’s still finding work, and that he isn’t the worst thing about this movie (that honor goes to the Jackie robot, which malfunctions much easier than any terminator I’ve ever seen in the movies, and at the worst possible times). Raimi is—dare I say it?—actually kind of entertaining in this role, and helps make the film almost bearable. Almost.

Overall, this movie reminded me of a hilarious comedy with Lily Tomlin and Steve Martin battling for control of a body that I saw once. Only All of Me (1984) was funny. Man with the Screaming Brain, with the standout exception of Ted Raimi, is not.

Aug 22 2014

Two Chances to Visit Books and Boos this Weekend

Books & Boos, which closed its physical location at the end of May, is continuing to do events like it was doing when the bookstore was still open. This weekend will give people two opportunities to visit the traveling bookstore.

The first opportunity to visit the bookstore will be Saturday at the Connecticut Horrorfest. Along with used books, people will be able to meet authors Stacey Longo and G. Elmer Munson and get them to sign one of their books. The horrorfest takes place at the Courtyard Waterbury Marriott located at 63 Grand Street in Waterbury, CT. It runs from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The second opportunity happens on Sunday when Books & Boos takes part in the Open Air Market and Festival at the Wadsworth Mansion in Middletown, Connecticut. This will be the bookstore’s second appearance at this event, which runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Wadsworth Mansion is located at 421 Wadsworth St. in Middletown, CT. Longo will also be signing her books at this event as well. She is joined by authors Dan Foley, Dale T. Phillips, and Joseph Ross.

Aug 12 2014

Remembering Our Friend, Robin Williams

By Stacey Longo

The death of comedic genius Robin Williams hits especially hard, because he was a part of all of our lives. My parents’ generation remembers him getting his start as an alien on Mork & Mindy. Gen-Xers remember him as an inspirational teacher in Dead Poets Society, an inspirational therapist in Good Will Hunting, and an inspirational doctor in Patch Adams. For younger generations—for all of us—he will always be Aladdin’s genie. The loss of Robin Williams hurts as much as losing an old friend.

As children, my sister and I laughed right along with my parents at Mork & Mindy, though we didn’t always get the jokes. For us, the monumental moment when Robin Williams really became somebody in our minds was watching his poignant portrayal of the title character in The World According to Garp. Williams’s work in this film showcased his ability not only to be funny, but to be able to portray the struggles and achievements that we all face: hope, betrayal, loss, and redemption. His talent was limitless.

Robin Williams was so interwoven into our daily lives that it will take time to adjust to his absence. Besides his numerous film roles, he sometimes popped up on popular television shows like Saturday Night Live, Happy Days, The Larry Sanders Show, and Friends, among others. Imagine my delight when watching my favorite holiday special, A Wish For Wings That Work, and realizing the voice of the kiwi was someone very familiar to me. Robin Williams was like a well-worn blanket, something to wrap us in comfort on a rainy day.

His death, a suspected suicide, is unthinkable. How could this funnyman, who brought such joy to so many people, kill himself? For those who suffer from depression, it’s particularly hard: if Robin Williams couldn’t handle it, how can I? His drug problems were well documented—his cameo in Bob Woodward’s scandalous Wired: The Short Life and Fast Times of John Belushi was the first indication I saw, about 30 years ago. Williams also made no secret at his attempts, successes, and failures at sobriety, an open book for all to read. Those left behind have to wonder: how could someone so good at making us laugh be so unhappy inside?

It’s a question to which we will never have an answer. Though angry at his method of death, this is not how I choose to remember the beloved comedian. I’m sorry he was so miserable that he felt suicide was the best answer. But I am thankful for the sweet entertainment, the moving portrayals, and above all, the laughs he gave me while he lived.

As a blue genie once said, a woman appreciates a man who can make her laugh. And Robin Williams did that for me, countless times.

Aug 7 2014

CT Authors Trail Brings Author Stacey Longo to Columbia Library

By Jason Harris

This past Tuesday evening author Stacey Longo read a story from her current collection, Secret Things, to a responsive crowd at the Saxton B Little Public Library in Columbia, CT. She even read the prologue of her recently sold novel, Ordinary Boy, which will be published by Dark Alley Press in early 2015.

There will be a second chance to meet Longo when all the authors on the trail participate at the finale event to be held at the Mohegan Sun Cabaret on Thursday, Sept. 4 from 6:15 to 9 p.m. Find out more here.

Find out about the Connecticut Authors Trail here.

Aug 4 2014

Pictures from Southcoast Toy and Comic Show 2014

By Jason Harris

Actors Mark Dodson (Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, Gremlins) and Orli Shoshan (Star Wars: Attack of the Clones, Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith)