William I. Lengeman III

Earth vs. the Sci-Fi Filmmakers: 20 Interviews
by Tom Weaver
McFarland & Company, 2005
Reviewed by William I. Lengeman III
(First published in Apex Digest)

All hail the great Tom Weaver, a writer who has probably done as much as anyone to document the history of genre film, particularly in the science fiction, fantasy and horror genres.

The Life of Riley
By Alexander C. Irvine
Subterranean Press, 2005
Reviewed by William I. Lengeman III
(First published in Apex Digest)

When I first picked up this slim volume I wondered if perhaps Irvine - best known for his debut novel, A Scattering of Jades - had tried his hand at a young adult book. Not so, but it's refreshing nonetheless to confront a genre novel these days that couldn't also double as a door stop.

The Backwoods
By Edward Lee
Leisure Books, 2005
Reviewed by William I. Lengeman III
(First published in Apex Digest)

Things are going well for Patricia White, a successful Washington, DC attorney married to a restaurant critic. This being a horror novel, though, it's obvious that things can't go well for long - and they don't.

The Shadow at the Bottom of the World
by Thomas Ligotti
Cold Spring Press, 2005
Reviewed by William I. Lengeman III
(First published in Apex Digest)

Stylistically speaking, the field of horror, dark fantasy, supernatural or weird fiction (or whatever it's called these days) is a pretty broad one. Those readers conditioned to yarns filled with contemporary characters - some of whom might even be sympathetic - snappy patter, plenty of action, buckets of blood and gore, liberal doses of T&A and numerous pop culture references might not know what to make of Thomas Ligotti, whose fiction contains very little of the above mentioned.