Shakespeare Saturday: Something rich and strange...

You could be forgiven for thinking that Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu was all about Will.i.am Shakespeare - it has been published in the 400th anniversary year of his death, after all. But it would be only half the book it is if it wasn't for H P Lovecraft's creations, and today just happens to be Lovecraft's 126th birthday.

In other news, a new review of Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu has been posted online. It's a 4 out of 5 review, so that's good, but before reading it you should be aware of a few things. First of all it contains some quite significant spoilers. Secondly, if contains some quite egregious errors; for example, it attributes James Lovegrove's story to Edward Hamilton (whoever he is) and claims that Guy Haley's story is based on As You Like It (which is isn't)! 

Thirdly, it follows what I call the American School Book Report format. What I mean by this is that the reviewer precises each story in turn, giving away vital plot points willy-nilly, and spoiling any surprises for the reader. That is until she runs out of steam and then just mentions the rest of the stories in passing. Very strange, and does not make for a good review. So, I would suggest, if you're interested in reading the review at all, wait until you've read the book for yourself, and then post your review online too. (Amazon would be good.) ;-)

To review, or not to review, that is the question! (The answer is 'To review', by the way.)

Cthulhu Thursday: Dreaming in Darkness

What's that you've got there, Cthulhu? Come on, boy, what is it?

A hardback copy of Dreaming in Darkness, you say? Why, that's a rare find and no mistake.

And what's that you've found? A story by me in there?

Why yes, I did write a novella called The Serpent's Egg that saw print back in 2013 in Dreaming in Darkness, but I hadn't actually seen a physical copy of the book until last weekend, when Adrian Chamberlin kindly gave me one at the Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu book launch. I believe there are only about 50 in existence.

So there you go...

One Amazon reviewer on The Serpent's Egg:

"With particularly strong resemblances to the likes of 'The Wicker Man' (1973) or indeed 'The Shadow Over Innsmouth' (1936), Green's story gradually builds upon a worrying layer of mistrust with the community in which his narrator is staying. And it's from this small nugget of an idea that the tale snowballs into a tension rich occult story; unveiling a veritable avalanche of horror and Lovecraftian weirdness in the last few chapters to end the tale on a tremendous action-packed finale."

Warhammer Wednesday: Still available to buy

I've not had anything out with the Black Library for quite a while, but three of my novels are still available to buy in eBook format.

So if Space Marines are your thing, why not check out Iron Hands? Or if you prefer your action to be old school and Old World, you can download both Magestorm (awesome wizard on wizard action) and The Dead and the Damned (my first novel).

Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu - The First Review!

The first review of Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu is in and it's a doozy*! 9 out of 10 stars!

You can read the full review for yourself here, and you can pick up a copy of the anthology here.

* Although I don't agree with the comment about Graham McNeill's Macbeth-inspired story Something Wicked This Way Comes.

Thought for the Day

"My books are like water; those of the great geniuses are wine. Everybody drinks water." 

~ Mark Twain

Shakespeare Sunday: Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu official book launch

Yesterday, Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu was well and truly launched at the Forbidden Planet Megastore in London.

There were books...

There were cakes...

The Bard himself was in attendance, as was a minion of Cthulhu...

And there were authors and artists and loyal supporters there too...

And then, with the stars were no longer in alignment, it was time to retire to a local hostelry and quaff flagons of foaming ale...

Thank you to all the authors and artists who made the effort to be there (despite train breakdowns and clashes with Nine Worlds Geekfest) and thank you to everyone who came along in support, as well as to buy books.

And lastly, a big thank you to Mark and everyone at the store who helped out (and an even bigger thank you for the biscuits and the water) and also to Danie who arranged it all in the first place.

If you're dropping by Forbidden Planet anytime soon, they have some signed copies of Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu in stock at the moment, but they're not going to hang around for long!

You can see more photos from the event here.

Short Story Saturday: Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu launches today at the Forbidden Planet Megastore in London!

It's seems to have taken aeons to arrive, but the stars are now in alignment and the day you've been waiting for is here at last!

That's right, Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu launches today, at 1.00pm (GMT), at the Forbidden Planet Megastore in London. Contributors who will be in attendance include Jonathan Oliver, Andrew Lane, Ian Edginton, Adrian Chamberlin,Ed Fortune, Malcolm Barter, Tony Hough, Neil Roberts, and yours truly. 

As well as having the chance to meet all these luminaries of the genre world, you will also be able to have your photograph taken with the Bard - disguised as Cthulhu, if you so desire - and there will be cake!

Hopefully I'll see some of you there.