|
I've been fortunate to have read many of Laurie's books. She writes some quick horror stories that are sure to grip you and keep you wondering. Here are some reviews of her books for you to check out.  A Real Slasher By Laurie Bowler 9 pages: Quickie Incessant voices in your head, telling you what to do… no medicine, no time, no a thing will stop those voices from screaming for the death of people around you. Jamie Cummings can’t stop the voices in his head. The voices are the same ones that his dad had and they urge him daily to kill people. So far Jamie has tried everything to get rid of the voices but to no avail. On the eve of Halloween, he plans a little payback for the people who have negatively impacted his life and finally give into the voices, making his first kill. A Real Slasher is a horrific story of one person’s madness and how it drives him to hurt the people around him. No one would know by looking at Jamie that he was anything other than a normal person, but the voices taunt and tease him with the power that could be his when he takes that first life. It becomes too much for him to bear. It isn’t the dark shadows or evil markings that show the horrible side of Jamie. So what happens is so unexpected. His victims don’t understand how or why they are a part of his fantasy. If you love horror stories with gruesome violence and a hint of revenge, you will love A Real Slasher! It is a perfect story for the Halloween season with the shared ghost stories around the campfire. Just be sure to not sleep deeply!!  Bloodthirsty Gruesome Tales By Laurie Bowler 31 pages: Quickie A compilation of short stories perfect for the Halloween holiday! Sand Monsters: Monsters who look like hills of sand watch the humans on the beach. One night a young monster could no longer watch and decides to taste the threat he has been long denied…human flesh. Scared Of The Dark: Melissa is a young girl trapped night after night in a frightening nightmare world; held by day in a psychiatric unit for the crimes committed by another. Does Melissa face the monsters even knowing in her heart that she is innocent? Or can she stay awake and fight those evil creatures? The Torturous Family: Going to live with her extended family after the death of her father, should be a comfort to Bridgette, but her family was stranger than most. They had a preoccupation with the shed and the back garden. And when curiosity gets the better of Bridgette, she is going to wish she hid in her bed. Wendigo: People are missing from the town that Richard is staying in. One night he is awakened to see strange creatures wandering the streets and makes a plan to capture and kill them. The Wendigo are a Native American myth come to life like zombies to eat the flesh of the living and through the eating of the bodies, trap the souls forever. Can Richard save the town or will he become a Wendigo? Bloodthirsty Gruesome Tales is a quick horror filled read that will have you screaming out in your sleep! From the beach to the family home, no one is safe from the evil that seeks you out! Each short story was told beautifully with just enough gore to make you question your sanity and surprise to make you fear the dark! I highly recommend Bloodthirsty Gruesome Tales for all horror fanatics! It will keep you awake at night!  Death Bite By Laurie Bowler 25 pages: Quickie Flesh eaters have taken over the world. No one is safe because once they bite you; you become a flesh eater too. Watch out! It is a Zombie apocalypse. Jason, Alex, Marissa, Jessica, and Jake are one group of non-flesh eaters who are trying to keep humanity safe. They are armed to the teeth with guns because the easiest way to get rid of a flesh eater is with a bullet to the brain. The team must reach the hospital to get medicine to keep the survivors safe and protected. Each time they go out, could be their last and they know that they are all that stands between the flesh eaters and the few remaining humans left alive. Death Bite is a scary story that really could happen! I could imagine that the government would have a secret weapon that they would use to stop wars, but of course not realize that it actually changes the people into something worse! Realizing their mistake, the government has developed a new weapon to take out the flesh eaters but the government’s weapon doesn’t distinguish between flesh eaters or non-flesh eaters… when the bomb hits, all flesh melts causing a painful death. I identified with Jessica and Marissa as women who have faced their worst nightmare… their children becoming flesh eaters… and learning how to fight to stay alive. Death Bite is a quick read filled with action and graphic gore! Flesh eaters wandering around with organs hanging out, trying to capture the non-flesh eaters. Then there is the understanding that no one is safe…including the team because if they get bit, they will face a bullet to the brain rather than turning. Or if you get caught in the mist from the government’s bomb, you will literally melt to death. But to protect our world, a few good men and women must step up and fight. Death Bite is the story of five courageous people who face a daunting task.  Death Bite 2 By Laurie Bowler 24 pages: Quickie After our world is destroyed by a chemical that turns people into flesh eating zombies, a few brave souls survive to protect humanity and provide medical care to the survivors. Jessica, Jake and Alex have survived the raid on the medical center to get the necessary antibiotics and other medicines needed for another group of rag-tag survivors who have ill people in their safe house. During the last mission, two of their group died by the hands of the flesh eaters and the bomb-mist that melts all living flesh. Now with only Jessica, Jake and Alex left to get the supplies to the safe house, their lives are even more in danger. The safe house was well-known by Jake. He had spoken to the leader many times and only wanted to help them out. But what Jake finds is another horror beyond he has ever experienced. The flesh eaters had broken into the safe house, killing Jake’s friend and leaving only fifteen people left alive. Of the survivors, only Andrew, Tatalia, JT, Marie and Red are able to fire weapons to keep the flesh eaters out. Tatalia has lost her mind. The flesh eaters that she has been fighting are her family and while she understands that they are no longer the people she knew, she isn’t willing to end their lives. Tatalia thinks that with experiments and modern medicine, she can find a way to fix them. But her mind cracks under the strain of keeping everyone safe and when Jake, Alex and Jessica arrive…Tatalia decides that they might be just what are needed! She is going to make them food for the flesh eaters. Now it is survival of the fittest! Death Bite 2 is the second story in this gruesome new world. Humanity is gone and only pockets of resistance remain. But even in this story, we learn that humanity is much harsher than anything that the flesh eaters do… It is humanity that started this horrible accident and keeps allowing more and more people to die. I really recommend that you read the first story, prior to reading Death Bite 2. It will help you make more sense of the characters, their fight and the history behind this horror. Laurie Bowler also leaves the story open for a third installment that I can’t wait to read!! Death Bite 2 is a perfect story for Halloween night and will make you jump with fright!  Volcan Knights By Laurie Bowler 95 pages: Quickie Humanity has another thing to be protected from…shadows that suck the soul out of the person, leaving behind an empty skin. But we also have a group of protectors to keep humanity safe…The Volcan Knights. The Knights are humans who have been changed into shadow warriors with wings that set out to destroy the evil Devourers and keep mankind safe. Zera has lost her memory after a horrible accident which claimed the life of her daughter. She has no memory of the people in her life other than her daughter. But the first face she sees when she wakes up is her boss, Sam. There is something about Sam that calls to her heart and she must first learn the truth about herself and the accident before she can really begin to live again. Sam is the leader of the Volcan Knights, avengers who are the only protection that humanity has against the Devourers. Sam knows Zera’s history but with her memory loss, he is afraid to push too hard to force her memories to return, for fear of losing her for good. Volcan Knights is an interesting romance story that teaches us that there is more to the shadows than just darkness. Zera is unique as the only female Volcan and her blood has the ability to change the Devourers to solid figures rather than just the shadows that they exist as. Zera and Sam have a wonderful love but with Zera’s memory loss, she must fight her way back to becoming a part of his life. The characters were exciting and really wanted to do the right thing, even if it hurt them. I loved the whole group of Volcan Knights and can’t wait to read more about the rest of the team finding their true loves. Ethan’s sense of humor was catching and made me want to know more about him. Volcan Knights takes the idea of evil to a new level as people go missing leaving behind empty skins as their souls are used by the Devourers. If you like a romantic story with a unique twist, you will enjoy Volcan Knights!  Vanquished By Laurie Bowler 121 pages: Novel Sixteen year old Ashley Green has been blacking out and having premonitions which make others think she is strange. So Ashley and her adoptive mother, Emma, move to a new town to start over. Ashley has always felt different. She witnessed the death of her best friend but was unable to convince anyone of what might happen, so her friend died. In her new town, Ashley meets William Ruffield at school and immediately connects with him. William Ruffield is a confident and sexy guy who has eyes only for Ashley. He introduces her to two of his friends, Mary and Rebecca. William’s feelings for Ashley go way back. In a previous life time, they were lovers and mates. Together with Mary and Rebecca they have been reincarnated in order to protect the world from the ultimate evil. But Ashley has no memory of her previous lives or how to use her powers. Vanquished is an interesting read filled with unique characters and story line. Magical powers enable Ashley, Mary, Rebecca and William to fight against the evil that is trying to kill them. But there are traitors all around them. The surprising twists to Vanquished intrigue the reader. It surprises you where the enemy is and how it can affect their lives. Vanquished reminded me of the Twilight books with the story line of young love and life mates. The characters are teenagers who fall in love and fight to keep their love alive amidst the problems surrounding them. They find true love and are willing to risk it all in order to have a relationship. While this story is about teenagers, the sex scenes are more mature than many younger readers, so I wouldn’t recommend it to young readers. Vanquished makes you believe in true love!  The Depth of Darkness By Laurie Bowler 151 pages: Novella Protecting the world is a large task but someone has to do it! Patty Deville is human who works for the Realm and has been learning a little magic. Now she learns that there is more to her than meets the eye and she must give it all she has to save the world. Patty was a foundling child who was adopted by a nice human couple. But when Patty discovers a magical tome in her backyard, she unlocks her own magical powers and reaches out to the Realm for instruction. I loved Patty’s optimistic outlook. No matter how rough her life was, she always tried to see the best. Even with learning that she was made to take out her former friend, Lilly who is hell-bent on destroying the world. Luke Granger is a vampire who is assigned to secretly watch over Patty and protect her. But strong feelings begin to develop between them, although a relationship between a vampire and a witch is outlawed. Luke is a funny, sweet guy who takes his job very seriously. He doesn’t really understand Patty but is willing to do anything to protect her and make sure that she is happy. He even is willing to go against the rules and offers to turn her. The Depth of Darkness is a thrilling read! The world that Laurie Bowler creates is one filled with magic and mayhem! Vampires, magic, and mythical creatures abound. The mystery surrounding Patty’s creation and final outcome kept me surprised and excited. I still want to know about all her many parts. However, my heart broke along with Patty’s own when she found all the earlier creations that didn’t last. It showed me just how much depth the Realm was willing to go to in order to save the world. I really loved the creatures named the Meniagier. They seemed like large dogs with their slimy kisses and pack mentality, except that Patty could ride them! I would love to have one for my own!! The romance in The Depth of Darkness was sweet without being overwhelming. Luke and Patty make a strong couple and both were willing to put the needs of the other first. I was glad that Darcy was able to find someone else and quit being so nasty to Patty. Love doesn’t always follow a natural course and just because Darcy knew Luke for longer, doesn’t mean that he would love her more. I highly recommend The Depth of Darkness to all fantasy readers who love an exciting read, filled with epic battles and unique characters. Each piece of the puzzle will keep you interested and digging for more!  Serena Embracing Darkness By Laurie Bowler 225 pages: Novel What would you do for revenge? What would you do to keep the people you love safe? Serena Taylor has a secret life that she has hidden from her husband, Jake and her two children. But when she has the opportunity to visit her mother and escape from her marriage, she takes advantage of that time to take a little revenge on the man she believed had taken her mother from her life. Just like Serena is doing, fleeing from a less than satisfactory life, her mother had done the same many years ago, leaving behind Serena and her brother, Ben to blame themselves. Now Serena has a chance to extract revenge on her step-father, Mitch and her mother but will her life ever be the same? Serena is a vampire which is the big secret that she has been hiding from everyone! She was turned unwillingly only to have the vampire who sired her commit suicide. She knows nothing of the Vampire code or rules of conduct and when she sets out to kill Mitch, she unleashes a mess because of her ignorance. Tim is an old vampire who has his own secrets but he can’t help trying to save Serena from the mess she has made. He takes her under his wing and teaches Serena what she needs to know to survive and in turn, falls for her. But the danger is larger than either of them suspect and the consequences of Serena’s vampiric nature is more than they bargained for. Serena Embracing Darkness is a fast paced mystery where the reader is constantly finding unexpected secrets that change the story! When I began the story, I had no idea just how differently my feelings would become towards the characters and their lives. Serena and her mother seem like two money grubbing women who want nothing but a big bank account, but we quickly learn that they have more to their character than what we first see. The depth of the love between Tim and Serena is amazing. We come to learn about a lifetime of love and it makes you want to believe in fate and true love. Serena Embracing Darkness is filled with interesting characters that move the plot and capture the reader’s attention. We learn so much about Serena’s family, especially her brother, Ben and can’t believe that this family has kept so many hidden secrets! But the humans are nothing about keeping secrets or being interesting….the Vampires are just as exciting!! From Henry’s sparkling wit and John’s wiliness to hit on all the women…we find characters that are filled with depth and passion. If you enjoy a book filled with exciting characters, major action and many secrets you are going to love Serena Embracing Darkness. Maybe you will even take a second look at that hair stylist when she never seems to age or change… after all, the Vampires could be closer than you think!  Order of Blood By Laurie Bowler 128 pages: Novel Targeted by an evil vampire, Marinette (Nessy) must face her worst enemy and find the strength to remain sane as she is hunted and tortured. Marinette is the daughter of the Gulons, a cat shifter race that has killed many vampires who prey on humans. Her father is the leader of the Gulons and the target for revenge by the King of the Vampires, Hervidor Tellis. He has devised a plan that will hurt Abram, Nessy’s father, where it hurts the most, in his love for his daughter. Hervidor Tellis is married but has become bored with his vampire wife, Scarlet. He would like nothing more to see her dead and exact his revenge with making Nessy his new queen. Hervidor also has plans for his mortal friend Charles Eaves, who is a scientist and doesn’t believe in vampires. Order of the Blood is the prequel to the Moon Rising series by Laurie Bowler. Order of the Blood provides the reader with the background of how Marinette becomes targeted by Hervidor. If you haven’t read the Moon Rising series, Order of the Blood will still be a great read! But if you have read the series, Order of the Blood will provide the reader with interesting information on Marinette’s origins. I actually read the three Moon Rising books before Order of the Blood and enjoyed it much more that way. This way I was kept in suspense. Nessy is a strong willed woman who while is smitten with Hervidor at first, learns to stand up to him and fights for what she believes is right. Charles becomes an important part of the Moon Rising series and learning about his origins is important. If you like a vampire story with a twist, I highly recommend that you read Order of the Blood and the Moon Rising series. You won’t be disappointed!  Moon Rising By Laurie Bowler 142 pages: Novella Every girl dreams of her prince and the day she marries. But for Marinette, her fiancé changes her life in ways that she never dreamed of. Marinette (Nessy) was turned into a vampire by her fiancé, Hervidor, and kept locked away in his basement, tortured because she wouldn’t drink from a human. Upon escaping Hervidor, Nessy runs into Charles Eaves, another bossy vampire, and learns that all vampires are not the same. Nessy has never given in to her thirst to drink from a human, no matter how she was taunted and tortured. She has survived off the blood of rats. Nessy is not a normal vampire but a mixture of vampire and human…and something else. Charles was once under the control of Hervidor but broke that bond and now leads his own family with compassion and guidance. Charles’ vampire family does not drink from humans but rather are supplied with tainted blood that would kill humans but is enough to sustain vampires. Charles has been so lonely, never having found his mate, even while all those around him have found love and companionship. But when he rescues Nessy, he finds the love that he wants. Hera is Nessy’s cousin and a Gulon, a cat shifter, bred to kill vampires and protect the humans from harm. He found Nessy when she was a prisoner and gave her the strength of will to escape. Now he acts as a protector and teacher, because Nessy is more than a human and vampire. She is also a Gulon and was meant to lead the Gulon army. Moon Rising is the first in a series of books about this unique vampire world. I really enjoyed the differences between the historic vampires and this world. Having a natural enemy in the Gulons was a nice twist that allows for the clash between the two cultures and between Nessy’s feelings. She was meant to be a bridge between the fighting and lead all the cultures to a better place. I was awestruck by Nessy’s inherent goodness. She had defied everyone even under torture, never becoming the true evil that they were. In each and every instance, she is willing to put her family and love before herself, risking her own death each time. The love that she finds with Charles is sweet and deep. I look forward to finding out more about their relationship and the challenges that they face as they bring a new world order to the lives of Gulons and Vampires. If you love a fast paced, action packed story filled with strong characters that have high morals and compassion, I recommend Moon Rising to you! Moon Rising brings to life a new world where shape shifters, humans and vampires fight for control and more importantly, where they learn to get along for the betterment of everyone.  Locum By Laurie Bowler 11 pages: Quickie Listening to her grandmother’s stories, a young lady decides to find out if what grandma said was real and forever changes her life! Latina Horror has the big C and realizes that she has only a few weeks left to live. To determine if her grandmother was telling the truth, she sets out on a mission to visit a public house (bar) and find out if vampires are real. Armed with holy water and stakes, Latina spies the old place which looks to be falling down. When she enters and meets the bartender, her life is forever changed. Everything she had learned about vampires is a lie. They are not the romantic figures of romance novels. They are in fact stinky and not that attractive. Let alone, they can’t cut their nails without them growing back immediately into little sharp points. Trick, the bartender, can smell the death on her and offers her a chance for immortality as his mate but Latina is not looking for a cure for cancer. She just wanted the truth and has now found it. But Trick won’t let her leave and her life changes forever when they drain her dry. Locum is a short story that introduces you to a new world of vampires. They are more like the Dracula of old rather than the characters of Twilight fame. These vampires are staying in this run down bar, which smells rather than enjoying their life and get a laugh out of a human coming in to “find out” about them. Maybe they are in awe that she isn’t the missish type but Latina certainly interests Trick. But the story leaves you wanting more. After only 11 pages, you want to know what happens after Latina wakes up as a vampire and how her world has changed or better yet, maybe she will change the vampire world! After all, the dusty outdated bar isn’t a fun place to stay! If you love a short read filled with a witty character with a smart mouth and are looking for a different world of vampires, read Locum and start an adventure with Lantina Horror.  Locum 2 By Laurie Bowler 9 pages: Quickie Let’s return to the local pub in England where Latina Horror found out that vampires were real, but not at all what she expected. Latina Horror was dying and happy to finally be able to join her grandmother in heaven. However, she was interested in finding out about a story of her grandmother’s more and went in search of vampires in a local pub. Not only did she find vampires, but she became one! Trick is a stinky disgusting vampire who looks like he has never seen a bottle of shampoo or nail clippers. But when he meets Latina, he decides that he wants her to be his eternal mate and gives her the death bite that changes her into a vampire. Locum 2 is the second installment in the story of Latina Horror. It really shouldn’t be read alone because without the previous short story, the reader won’t understand about Latina’s life and choice to be in this strange pub so near to the end of her life. Laurie Bowler also teases the reader about Locum 3 which she is currently working on and I would love to read to see more information about Latina and how she handles the new change. If you are a horror fan who enjoys a different type of vampire story, I recommend that you read Locum 2 and see what Hollywood had gotten wrong about vampires!  Golden Horizons By Laurie Bowler 121 pages: Novella Nessy has never wanted to be the Vampire Queen. She has always wanted to be free to be with Charles, her mate and forever love. Golden Horizons is the third and final book in the Vampire/Gulon (Shifter) series written by Laurie Bowler. Nessy and Charles must once again face a threat to their very existence. This time it isn’t the vampires who are after them but a rogue group of Gulons who have the nature of vampires but the looks of Gulons. These rogues are attacking the human village and causing a scare. The frightened humans are beginning to ask questions about the mysterious family that lives in the large house on the hill. Will the vampires be “outed” or will the family be forced to move? But Nessy feels responsible for the humans and will take on the rogues in order to save the town. Golden Horizons brings the reader back to the familiar setting and characters from the previous books. But this time, the deception is even harder to find. Nessy can’t trust anyone as she sets out to protect her family. Yet when she meets another half-breed like herself, she finds a connection that could jeopardize her relationship with Charles. Hera and Melody are married while they have been accepted by both the vampires and Gulons, Hera is considering being changed so that he can become a vampire and be with Melody forever. Charles’ brother and his mysterious witchy wife drop by for a visit and become embroiled in the problems surrounding Nessy and Charles. Golden Horizons brings the story to a closure in a positive way. I thought the end of the second book, Sunrise to Sunset, was the end of the story. It appeared that Nessy and Charles had defeated the bad vampire clans and were on their way to happiness with a huge diamond ring and engagement. But Golden Horizons shows that true love doesn’t have to go smoothly… at least not if you are a part vampire/human/Gulon mixed species who became the Queen of the Vampires as well as a tribal leader to the Gulon. The surprises will keep you guessing in Golden Horizons and the ending will satisfy readers who want happy endings.  Hacked Up
By Laurie Bowler 23 pages: Quickie In order to escape someone who is bent on terrorizing her, Allie Bates moves to the country and finds much more than she bargains for! Allie has been receiving threatening texts and voicemails. She just doesn’t feel safe in the city anymore and decides that it is time for a change. She finds this cute but abandoned home to live in and begins to fix it up. So many different stories abound about why this adorable home is abandoned and covered in dust…murder, ghosts, but Allie is determined to start over. When she begins to hear noises of people in pain, she goes over to meet her only neighbor, Lincoln. Lincoln is a disgusting guy but at first seems friendly enough, until he decides that Allie would make a good toy. After capturing her and binding her to a table, Lincoln’s fun begins. He is insane and has a need to carve people up, which he demonstrates on Henry, one of his previous victims. Allie tries her best to get away, begs and pleads for release but Lincoln doesn’t care. Hacked Up is a horror filled rollercoaster! Allie is trying to escape from one mad man and finds herself captured by another. Lincoln is truly deranged. He carves off parts of his toys and leaves the dead and mutilated hanging around his home. I was rooting for Allie all the way and couldn’t believe how she never gave up. No matter what punishments Lincoln inflicted on her, she tried to find a way to escape. Hacked up is a perfect story for a dark and stormy night. It reminded me of the Saw movies where people were forced to make choices and risk their lives. Let me warn you that this story is not for the faint of heart or stomach and certainly does not have a happy ending. It is a true horrific tale, perfect for the Halloween season! Comments are closed.
|
Melissa KeirGator Girl Extraordinaire Archives
October 2023
|
RSS Feed