Matt is spooked by Zoe O'Farrell and her Ouija (review)

 

Ouija

Zoe Lee O’Farrell (@zooloo2008)

Reviewed by Matt @Cleric20 Adcock

“Jon went back into his room, grabbed his phone and opened WhatsApp. He found the group chat, and quickly typed,

 

Guys, dunno bout you, but weird stuff has happened! Sum1 is trying 2 spk 2 me!!!!!!!!

 

He hoped someone would be online so they could all talk about it, but no answer came.”

Very little can prepare you for Zoe Lee O’Farrell’s grim debut novel. You might know the old adage - don’t play with Ouija boards cos bad things will happen, but you really haven’t witnessed anything quite like this… 

O’Farrell writes with an immediacy and winning style, her suspense-laden tale might seem familiar but it’s wall-to-wall nerve-jangling which will delight those looking for a sinister thrill ride! Meet a likable bunch of teens who decide to try a Ouija board in a supposedly haunted school - itself the site of a massacre… What’s the worst that could happen huh?

What follows is a nightmare for all of them, the characters are believable and O’Farrell is obviously fluent in ‘teen text banter’ - the group is riddled with exactly the sort of relationship tension, drama, and showboating that young people have been engaging in forever. 

As a demonic entity is unleashed and the body count rises, the question begins to form ‘who will survive - and what will be left of them?’ This isn’t a book for the faint of heart.

If you needed a reason not to dabble with a Ouija board - this book will do the job with its deliciously dark plot that contains some seriously disturbing scenes - the type that will stay with you long after you’ve finished it.

Out of a potential 5 - you have to go with a Darkmatters:

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(5 - Freak-em-up demonic slasher fun doesn't get much better!)

So, is Zoe an absolute psycho? I don’t think so, as I had the joy of bumping into her at a writers' event and we seemed to hit it off ok, apart from very differing views of football… Here are her answers to the Darkmatters questions - which are some of my favs since I started doing this  (respect on the Arnie answer) -  so you can get to know her a bit more too:

Matt: If you were a superhero – what powers would you have and who or what would be your nemesis?    

Zoe: Gosh start with a hard question why don't you!!!! Erm.....I mean do I even want to be a hero, why not a villain? It's always the hero that wins out....ok will think about this......thinking................ thinking................... thinking.......... I think I would want to be able to create more time in the day for me to get what I want done whether it be spend time with my mini me, reading, gaming or building my business. My nemesis, easy, all the asses that take up too much for my time for negative reasons......

Matt: What is the most disturbing fictional scene you’ve ever read or watched in a book/film of any genre? 

Zoe: I heard about that Human Centipede film, which I have avoided. I get a bit creeped out more with the way things are filmed, like when they do that twitchy shit on the Ring for example. But I had to turn off Old People the other day, it was just a bit too unsettling for me and it takes A LOT to unsettle me!    

Matt: If you were hired to throw a parade of any scale or theme through the centre of London what type of parade would it be?  

Zoe: I am going to go crazy, I would have an Arnold Schwarzenegger parade, try and get the main man there! There would be Arnie quotes on the floats. His films would be showcased in order of best to....well best (but ignoring that shite Terminator film which has no right to be there). Oh, come on you know it was going to happen! 

Matt: You’re in a strange town with £100,000 that you have to spend in a single evening – talk me through what you get up to…  

Zoe: Sorry you don't have the security clearance for that 

Matt: Who inspires you most (can be living or dead)?  

Zoe: There are many people in, in the book world there are a couple of authors who I adore, but my main champion is an author called Carol Wyer, she inspires me daily and her stories keep me going. She is a rock star. 

In life, my dad did, life wasn't always easy for him or us, but he grafted and he always looked for the best in people. 

Matt: There’s a masked assailant with a gun to your head, who is most likely

to be under the mask?  

Zoe: How long have you got? 

'even got a spooky smile...'

 

Matt: What is the meaning of life?  

Zoe: To appreciate what you have and who you have. 

Matt: What was the best gift you’ve ever been given?  

Zoe: Well I am going to be really cheesy and say my mini me, but then it is like arguing with a mini me at the same time. LOL, so depends on what day you ask me - JOKING! 

Aside from the beautiful creation, I think the best gift (and again I am going full power of cheese) I was given was by my Nan, the first book I remember - Lord of The Rings - The Fellowship, as that sparked my love of reading - I was about 6...... 

Matt: If you could have a demon servant – what would you get it to do for you?  

Zoe: Well to be honest, the mood I am in while I write this I think I would go pretty dark and pull a Hellraiser, and get them to bring the freaky deaky chains from nowhere..... bit dark?

Matt: What would you like written on your tombstone? 

Zoe: Finally! 

Matt: Any final words you like to add...

Zoe: Thank you so much to everyone who has read my book and this Q&A! 

Here's the 'official' Author Bio for Zoe:

Zoé O’Farrell grew up in Watford but left the town life to live by the sea down at the White Cliffs

of Dover. She spends her days working with numbers before escaping in the evening to the world of words

and movies. Her go-to relaxation is watching a scary movie or reading a terrifying book!

She is a book blogger and tour organiser just to keep her extra busy. When she is not reading or

writing, you can usually find her watching Watford FC or at a gig. Failing that she can be found

rolling her eyes at her husband as he acts the same age as her spitfire of a Mini-Me whilst

separating her two cats.

Ouija is her debut novel.

Follow her at:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ZoeOFarrellAuthor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zooloosbookdiary/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/zooloo2008

Website : https://zooloosbookdiary.co.uk/

Buy OUIJA here

>>> Imagine a world where the earth is becoming hell?

Click below to find out in my dark sci-fi novel...

Matt has been waiting for these VISITORS (review) and Owen Knight

The Visitors

Owen W Knight (@OwenKnightUK)

Reviewed by Matt Adcock (@cleric20)

“We have considered your report and accept many of your recommendations. We thank you for alerting us to the possibility that the Visitors might have negative intentions towards us as a species. You questioned the benefits to us, the human race. We believe these are self-evident and will assist us in creating a better world.”

You join us at a time that will be known as ‘The Great Reset’. An alien race has made contact with us and frankly, things will never be the same again. The main protagonists here include Peter (who actually saved the world fourteen years ago – but that is another story) and his sister Emily. These two bright young things are key, along with some other strangers who cross their paths due to oddly coded invitations – potentially to the future of the human race.

This group must travel to the hidden village of Templewood, home to the Sect, a secretive organisation intent on global power, who see themselves as ‘God’s Authority on Earth’ no less.  

As the clock ticks and the stakes get ever higher, can the fact that the Sect have infiltrated many Governments and are actively collaborating with the will of the Visitors lead to the promise of a glorious future – or something far more sinister?

I’m a big fan of speculative fiction and very much enjoyed Knight’s last book The Green Man. We he tackles the well-worn plot of alien invaders bringing gifts of advanced scientific and genetic discoveries. It put me in mind of the fun ‘80s TV show ‘V’ starring Marc Singer on the side of the humans and Jane Badler as the untrustworthy visitor Diana (below)… 

Anyway, the problem with aliens with superior technology is often the price that they’ll ask for sharing it with us. And whilst in The Visitors the gifts they bring will potentially provide enormous benefits for humanity, the plot deals with the fallout for us in terms of how they will also facilitate the Sect's bid for global power.

Can the Visitors be trusted? Why are the ‘borrowing’ humans to do we know not what with before sending them back? Will the Sect blindly follow the Visitors’ wishes or usurp them for their own ends and if so, how can Peter, Emily and the crew possibly save us from what might happen next?

This is a thinking person’s sci-fi, where politics and ramifications of decisions are explored more through discussion than laser gun action. There is something wonderfully British about this book with the heroes often stopping for cups of tea and the like.

I can heartily recommend this allegorical tale – which feels very timely – and look forward to what wonders Knight might bring us in the future!

As Abba once sang: ‘And now they've come to take me, come to break me, and yet it isn't unexpected. I have been waiting for these visitors…’

Out of a potential 5 - you have to go with a Darkmatters:

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(5 - This time it's not war, but it's fascinating!)

Get your copy of The Visitors - Buy Link 

I asked Owen some questions so you can get a glimpse into his mind - here are his answers (i'm at least 80% sure he hasn't been taken over by an alien...)

Matt: If scientists ever managed to create a giant mecha version of you – who or what would be your nemesis?

Owen: Rust caused by red wine.

Matt: What is the most disturbing fictional scene you’ve ever read or watched in a book/film of any genre?

Owen: The sense of threat in the scene where Frank (Dennis Hopper) inhales amyl nitrite through a mask to enhance his pleasure from violence in David Lynch’s film Blue Velvet.

Matt: If aliens took over your body - how would people realise?

Owen: My eyes would turn amber (read The Visitors).

Matt: You’re in a strange town with £100,000 that you have to spend in a single evening – talk me through what you get up to…

Owen: I’d spend the evening booking a year away in exotic places where I can meet local people and get insights into their lives.

'the mind behind the Visitors'

Matt: Who inspires you most (can be living or dead)?

Owen: So many… Arthur Rimbaud, J.G. Ballard, David Foster Wallace, Thomas Pynchon, B. S. Johnson. Alasdair Gray, Andrew Michael Hurley…

Matt: There’s a masked assailant with a gun to your head, who is most likely to be under the mask?

Owen: Someone I have mistreated in one of my books. An anonymous alien, perhaps, or the Green Man.

Matt: What is truth?

Owen: I continue to seek the answer.

Matt: What was the best gift you’ve ever been given?

Owen: The gift of insight. To be able to build a story from by linking unconnected ideas.

Matt: If you could have a sidekick robot – what would it be able to do for you?

Owen: Randomly generate heterogeneous ideas that I could link and use in my next novel. Rather like a tennis ball machine.

Matt: What would you like written on your tombstone?

Owen: ‘I have found the portal to the real world and could be gone a while.’

Matt: Any final words you like to add...

Owen: Football clubs are now investing in how to speed up players’ thought processes and reaction times. I can think of few greater gifts to a writer than to be able to think, analyse and make connections faster. If The Visitors bring me a gift, I hope it is a quantum algorithm process to do just this.

>>> Imagine a world where the earth is becoming hell?

Click below to find out in my dark sci-fi novel...

10 Visions of Hell: HELLRAISER Films 1-10

10 Visions of Hell: HELLRAISER Films 1-10

Reaction from Matt Adcock (@cleric20)

As the US gets the new Hellraiser reboot (but we UK types have to wait as the powers of darkness deem us worthy to also receive it) – here is a Darkmatters ranking of the existing films from the original and best – down to some sent from the pits of ‘straight to video’ hell itself…

So Matt’s personal ranking from best to worst is thus:

Hellraiser (1987) Rotten Tomatoes: 70%

Dir. Clive ‘I wrote the book’ Barker  (you might also know him from Nightbreed 1990) 

This is the OG, a sexually deviant tale of life, love and inadvertently opening a portal to hell… Thrill seeker Frank (Sean Chapman) is the human who summons the Cenobites and kicks off a deliciously twisted ‘chain’ of events. The main protagonist is Frank’s sister-in-law / illicit lover Julia (Clare Higgins) and then there’s poor innocent Kirsty (Ashley Laurence), who tries to stand against the tide of evil. Hellraiser changed the game when it was released – not just unleashing one of the most iconic horror icons of all time in Pinhead but also delivering a superbly grotesque (and rather British) film, which hasn’t been matched by any of the 9 sequels.

Will the 2022 Hellraiser meet the challenge – it’ll have to be pretty epic… 

Reason to watch: The sexual charge between Frank and Julia is electric, the lengths of darkness it inspires are horrific!

Out of a potential 5 - you have to go with a Darkmatters:

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Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988) Rotten Tomatoes: 50%

Dir. Tony Randel (you might know him from Dinocroc vs Supergator 2010) 

Following on pretty much immediately from the excellent original, Hellbound sees young Kirsty (Ashley Laurence) now in a mental institution. The Channard institute to be precise and its dodgy director Dr. Channard (Kenneth Cranham), who is fascinated by the whole demonic S&M potential of the puzzle box. Kirsty and fellow patient Tiffany (Imogen Boorman) get dragged to hell with a Cenobite Channard and undead Julia all piling in for a chain-snapping hellish battle-royale showdown.

Reason to watch: There is some excellent stop-motion monster work that whilst a little dated is absolutely bonkers to watch.

Out of a potential 5 - you have to go with a Darkmatters:

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Hellraiser Judgement (2018) Rotten Tomatoes: 36%

Dir. Gary J. Tunnicliffe (you might know him from Hansel & Gretel 2002) 

This is a highly controversial placing on the list as opinion on Hellraiser Judgement is very mixed. But there’s not accounting for taste and this one I liked because it actually expands on the Cenobite lore using The Scarlet Gospels and the Hellraiser comics to bring more heavenly / hellish workings of Leviathan and introducing the Auditor who has dominion over the recently deceased. Caught up in this bizarre afterlife bureaucracy are detectives Sean and David Carter plus Christine Egerton who are tracking a grisly serial killer. Things get hellish when the Cenobites get caught up in their affairs.

Reason to watch: At one point an angel and Pinhead have a confrontation.

Out of a potential 5 - you have to go with a Darkmatters:

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Hellraiser: Deader (2005) Rotten Tomatoes: 13%

Dir. Rick Bota (you might know from his much worse 2 other Hellraiser films)

I’m a fan of actress Kari Wuhrer so having her in the lead here as a journalist investigating a nasty cult that can somehow resurrect the dead means this one is very watchable. Deader would have worked as a weird standalone horror (which it was gonna be before it got ‘Hellraisered-up’ to make a vehicle to clunkily include Pinhead (Doug Bradley) and his Ceno-pals). It’s grim in a kind of Se7en or The Cell kind of vibe and definitely worth seeking out if a fan of that kind of stuff.  

Reason to watch: The Budapest underground train here has a fetish carriage where you can get drugs, a lap dance and generally hang out with the city’s weirdo element.

Out of a potential 5 - you have to go with a Darkmatters:

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Hellraiser: Bloodline (1996) Rotten Tomatoes: 24%

Dirs. Kevin Yagher, Joe Chappelle (you might know him from Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers 1995)

This was the final Hellraiser to get a cinema release (and even then not over here in the UK). It’s an odd mix of Cenobites in 2127 in SPACE, 18th-century French mischief with toymaker Paul L'Merchant (Bruce Ramsay) whose claim to fame is being the creator of the Lemarchand Configuration itself and 1990’s weirdness – remember that building from the end of Hellraiser III: Hell On Earth – yeah that is back with John Merchant (also Bruce Ramsay). Then, centuries later, in SPACE Phillip Merchant (yep Ramsay again) prepares a trap for the Cenobites.

Reason to watch: This one at least has plenty of Cenobite action, and a Cenodog!

Out of a potential 5 - you have to go with a Darkmatters:

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Hellraiser III: Hell On Earth (1992) Rotten Tomatoes: 40%

Dir. Anthony Hickox (you might know him from Waxwork 1988)

I can vividly remember seeing this on the big screen in ’92 with pals and us all being very disappointed by this effort which radically changes direction from the first two – and makes the Cenobites into almost horror comedy oddball slashers. Having rewatched it for this post, there are some fun bits and Pinhead gets some Freddy Krueger style lines but whoever came up with CD Head and Video Camera Face Cenobites deserves to suffer for their flippancy. Most rankings (including Rotten Tomatoes) put this one higher up the list but I just can’t…

Reason to watch: Possibly one of the most iconic Pinhead scenes see him spout ‘I am the way’ in a church with a stained glass window. It should have been the cover!

Out of a potential 5 - you have to go with a Darkmatters:

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Hellraiser: Inferno (2006) Rotten Tomatoes: 17%

Dir. Scott Derrickson (you might know him from Doctor Strange)

Here we are in Los Angeles where some detective (Craig Sheffer) might be in hell. Pinhead (Doug Bradley) taunts him as ritual murders pile up. Who is the oddly named Engineer? Does anyone actually care?

Reason to watch: At one point two policemen get their heads morphed together to become a kind of chuckle brothers of the Cenobite world.

Out of a potential 5 - you have to go with a Darkmatters:

öö 

Hellraiser: Hellseeker (2002) Rotten Tomatoes: 0%

Dir. Rick Bota (you might know from his much better ‘Hellraiser: Deader’ 2005)

So, there’s this pretty dodgy guy who’s married Kirsty from the first Hellraiser film – they have a car crash almost as soon as the film starts and after that spooky things happen… Trudging along rehashing a ‘is he really an amnesiac or faking it’ plot borrowed from every daytime TV detective show – he sees fairly horrible visions every now and then – sometimes they even have Cenobites in them. 

Reason to watch: The main guy is a wrongun who wouldn’t be out of place in an Irvine Welsh book – and his comeuppance when it finally comes is the best 10 seconds of the film.

Out of a potential 5 - you have to go with a Darkmatters:

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Hellraiser: Hellworld (2005) Rotten Tomatoes: 0%

Dir. Rick Bota (you might know him from other Hellraiser films and ‘Damaged’ 2014)

As a huge gamer, fan of both Henry Cavill and Lance Henriksen – hopes were set a bit too high for this sequel. It features the fun notion of there being a Hellraiser online game in which if you win – by virtually opening the lament configuration – you win tickets to an IRL Hellraiser party!? Alas the plot is off-the-peg slasher, the Cenobites are limited to small cameos and it just gets unforgivably dull. I’d still play a PS5 Hellraiser game tho!!

Reason to watch: There are some Hellraiser easter eggs scattered throughout and Henriksen is always great to watch even in a rubbish film.

Out of a potential 5 - you have to go with a Darkmatters:

ö1/2

Hellraiser: Revelations (2011) Rotten Tomatoes: 0%

Dir. Víctor García (you might know him from ‘The Damned’ 2013)

If you’re still reading – it’s probably either that you’re extremely Hellraiser-curious or you were somebody involved in making this cheap knockoff for Dimension films so they could keep the rights to the franchise.

This is the tale of how two college friends unwittingly release Pinhead’s retarded brother – sorry I’m being told it is supposed to be the actual Pinhead (this time played by Stephan Smith Collins) and a couple of other hell minions. Hookers get murdered, people wear each other’s skin, family violence happens as infidelities are revealed – and Hellraiser fans everywhere weep… Like so many of the sequels – there is something almost watchable in there somewhere but it's fumbled badly.

Reason to watch: Pinhead seems to hit on one of the mothers as he creepily applauds ‘dark sexual desires’ in front of her kids - classy guy.

Out of a potential 5 - you have to go with a Darkmatters:

ö1/2

That's all folks...

>>> Imagine a world where the earth is becoming hell?

Click below to find out in my dark sci-fi novel...

Matt teams up with the Exiles (review)

Exiles

 

Daniel Blythe (@danblythewriter) 

 

Reviewed by Matt Adcock (@cleric20)

 

“ She could smell burning flesh. She didn’t know if it was her own.

She was screaming inside. Beth knew the scene from a thousand safety visuals.

In her mind she saw the ship, a vast slab covered in twinkling lights, a flying mega-

city, now in flames. Burning itself to death.… ”

Strap in for launch - we’re off to a distant galaxy where young Bethany Aurelia Kane, Sister in the Chapter of Continual Progress, Citizen of the Galactic Collective, has cheated death. Now, the fun begins as she has to fight for her life.

Crash landing on The Edge (a penal colony - not the guy from U2) in an escape pod launched from a great starship, Beth finds herself stranded on a planet light years from civilisation - but she isn’t alone. 

Here, in a kind of YA nod to Alien 3 are a group of young prisoners who have converted a scientific base into a makeshift home. These delinquents have survived against the odds by planting crops, sourcing fresh water, and establishing electrical power – aided by a contingent of mechanised Drones.

So far, so good - but The Edge isn’t a hospitable place and storms, power failures, illness and death are just a few of the challenges the teenage exiles battle. As Beth accustoms herself to her new life on The Edge, she has to overcome her fears, learn new skills and earn the respect of leader Zach, the arrogant Colm, the resentful Mia and the others. But when a terrible, violent event shatters the colony’s existence, it seems nothing will ever be the same. Who among them is a killer? And just how isolated are they really?…

As the clock ticks towards a final revelation, Beth needs all her new skills and resourcefulness to stop The Edge from plunging into anarchy. And she has her own secret too – one which will prove decisive in the battle for survival…

Modestly describing itself as ‘A stunning YA dystopian novel’ on amazon Exiles is a fun read which should appeal to sci-fi fans of all ages. Blythe brings a host of great ideas to this murdery space mystery and it you’ll soon be lapping up the intrigue that befalls the characters. Beth is a wickedly cool heroine who gets some great lines - my personal fav being the short but sweet message ‘for you and all creatures like you’ she gives when confronting an unexpected enemy.

The tension between the convicts and Beth is well worked. Suspicion and danger that feels like a tribute to Lord of the Flies or Lost - Blythe mines the dark recesses of human fear and anger to bring things to a suitably exciting climax.

Exiles is great, bordering on the ‘stunning’ but certainly an easy book to recommend without hesitation! Let’s hope Blythe returns to this universe at some future point!!

Out of a potential 5 - you have to go with a Darkmatters:

öööö1/2

(4.5 - Exiles is a full-on murder-in-space adventure - jump in...)

Get your copy of Exiles - Buy Link 

WHO IS DANIEL BLYTHE?

Daniel Blythe was born in Maidstone and attended Maidstone Grammar School and St John's College, Oxford, then Christ Church University, Canterbury. As well as being a writer he has worked as a tour guide, a languages tutor, a translator, a Lifelong Learning development worker and a tutor of Creative Writing.

He is the author of several novels for children and adults, as well as a writer of non-fiction on subjects as diverse as popular music, politics, collecting gadgets and games, parenting and the history of robotics. He has written several of the official Doctor Who books licensed by the BBC, including Autonomy. Daniel's first book with a teenage narrator was The Cut, which was followed by further novels Losing Faith and This is the Day. In 2012 his first supernatural fantasy novel for young readers, Shadow Runners, was published. Emerald Greene and the Witch Stones (for age 9-12) was published in 2015 and a sequel Emerald Greene: Instruments of Darkness in 2017. He has written shorter 'reluctant reader' books called New Dawn, I Spy (nominated for the Leicester Reading Rampage Award 2018), Fascination, Kill Order, Hope and Truth and Kiss the Sky.

Daniel has worked as a visiting author in over 400 schools, and has taught on the MA in Creative Writing at Sheffield Hallam University. He now mentors, advises and edits writers of all ages through Cornerstones UK and the Faber Academy and is a regular judge on the Novel Slam for the 'Off The Shelf' festival. Daniel lives in the Peak District, with his wife and their two student children.

 

 

Follow him at:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/danielblythewriter/

Twitter : https://twitter.com/danblythewriter

Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/danblythewriter/

This review is part of the most excellent ZOOLOOBOOKTOURSCREW...

>>> Imagine a world where the earth is becoming hell?

Click below to find out in my dark sci-fi novel...

Arcana believe it... Starfolk (review) with Martha Dunlop

 

The Starfolk Arcana 

Martha Dunlop (@MarthaDunlop)

Reviewed by Matt Adcock (@Cleric20)

“The energy materialised next to her as a dazzling light being. He had blond hair that reached his waist, his eyes were a clear violet, and his ears rose into delicate points…”

Prepare for a fantasy romance that will take you on a highly charged magical journey – meet Beth and Johan – star(folk) crossed lovers who’ve spent lifetimes being pulled apart. Now, they’re ready to fight for their love as destiny calls them. But even as these two soulmates draw closer but one woman stands in their way.

Beth has psychic senses and finds people around her are also cards in a new ‘Starfolk’ tarot deck she buys – it seems that destiny is having fun with her.

Jonan has waited an eternity to be with the woman who haunts his dreams. When he finally finds his soulmate it seems that his nemesis named Amelia is determined to stand in his way.

Spinning tales of supernatural threats to her adoring fan base, she builds a personality cult through fear of the paranormal. As her power grows, she does her best to scare Beth away from Jonan and plans to reclaim him for herself.

Drawn together by deeply buried memories from before birth, the soul connection between the characters opens windows into both their histories and their destiny.

I enjoyed The Starfolk Arcana, Dunlop writes with a spookily compelling style, bringing characters to life effectively and using local knowledge of St Albans to bring smiles to those who know the area.

Having read some fantasies that have great ideas but don’t deliver on the art of storytelling this is a refreshing book that brings the complete supernatural package to the party.

I had the pleasure of meeting Martha through the Society of Authors group that I chair. So I asked her some Q’s so you can get to know her a bit better:

Hi Matt, thank you so much for welcoming me onto your blog!

Matt: If you were granted the powers of a master magic wielder who or what would be your nemesis?

Martha: If I was a magic wielder, I would illuminate and heal people, animals and situations, to help people find their way to their best futures. In my Starfolk books, Amelia is a celebrity who controls people by whipping up fear of the paranormal. She would be my nemesis, because that ability to drag people into the depths and surround them with negativity makes everything harder. So she would be my polar opposite.

Matt: What is the most life-affirming thing you’ve ever read or watched in a book/film of any genre?

Martha: Honestly, Outlander. Diana Gabaldon puts her characters through the most awful traumas, but they are so resilient, and they use their challenges to become stronger and more connected.

When I need strength, I watch Outlander.

Matt: If you were hired to throw a parade of any scale or theme through the centre of London what type of parade would it be?

Martha: It would be a tarot parade! We would dress up as the fabulous archetypes from the tarot and people would give and receive readings along the way. The road would be lined with gongs, singing bowls and sound healers and we would dance, sing, and explore all the stages of human experience as illustrated in the deck. And, of course, we would buy more decks! It would be amazing!

Matt: You are blessed with a supernatural power to bless the world, what does that look like for you?

Martha: I would choose healing. Being able to heal people physically and emotionally would be incredible.

Matt: Who or what inspires you most (can be living or dead)?

Martha: Honestly, stories of all kinds. Books, songs, theatre, films, stories that have that extra something, that lift you out of yourself and put you into a new world, seeding something inside you. In that moment it feels like anything is possible. That sense of pure potential is so magical.

'boo! scared ya - it's me Martha'

Matt: There’s a masked assailant with a gun to your head, who is most likely to be under the mask?

Martha: It’s got to be the character in my book without a name. My protagonists call him the Brute. My antagonist, Amelia, calls him the Sheep. He does a lot of bad things in Amelia’s name, but turns out to be one of her biggest victims. We do find out his name in the end, but it takes a long time. He must be fed up of everything I’ve put him through by now!

Matt: What is the meaning of life?

Martha: Learning. I believe we’re here to learn how to become our best selves, moving through our challenges to find our authentic, magical and non-defensive selves.

Matt: What was the best gift you’ve ever been given?

Martha: My Mum overheard little-girl Martha telling her friend that the best present she could receive was a signed hardback of The BFG. So my Mum wrote to Roald Dahl and guess what I got for Christmas!

Matt: If you could create a sidekick familiar – what would it be able to do for you?

Martha: My familiar is definitely my Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and he’d get insanely jealous if he had to share me. We communicate very well, but if I could give him the ability to help me, I’d create a telepathic link with him and allow him to use his significant charm to soften situations up for me and report back!

Matt: What would you like written on your tombstone?

Martha: Martha Dunlop. Creator of worlds.

Matt: Any final words you like to add...

Martha: All my books, are on Kindle Unlimited, and I also have a Starfolk Prequel short Story, Starfolk Illusions, which is free to my newsletter subscribers. If you’d like to sign up to receive it, go to

www.marthadunlop.com, hit subscribe, and enjoy!

Thanks again for having me on your blog!

Out of a potential 5 - you have to go with a Darkmatters:

öööö

(4 - Starfolking is the new tarot craze...)

Buy your copy of  The Startfolk Arcana here: AMAZON LINK

Still reading?  In the mood for something chilling? May I recommend this new anthology for which I had the pleasure of writing the foreword for and submitting a short story that is included. Proceeds go to charity too so jump in (click the image below):

Matt is creeped out by The Innocents

The Innocents (15)

Dir. Eskil Vogt 

Reviewed by Matt Adcock (@cleric20)

“We don’t need you, we can stop him, we have to…”

 

Children can certainly be scary, and I don’t mean in the ‘drain your money and energy; way that parents experience. Here we have some actually menacing kids building on a horror staple – from the old school creepiness in The Village of the Damned, callous antics of the Children of the Corn and the heart-breaking murderousness of the classic Let the Right One In (My Review).

 

Here we meet young Ida (Rakel Lenora Fløttum), a pre-teen who has just moved into a new apartment complex with her parents (Ellen Dorrit Pedersen and Morten Svartveit) and autistic elder sister Anna (Alva Brynsmo Ramstad). Things start off building up the sense of the mundane existence of newcomers, but things take a turn when Ida makes a new pal, Ben (Sam Ashraf), and realises that he has a form of telekinesis.

Things start small and innocent enough – making bottle tops change direction when dropped etc but the children keep this discovery a secret from the grownups around them. It seems that there are other children in the same tower block with supernatural abilities too and initially it even seems beneficial when it helps Anna start to begin to find a way to speak.

The Innocents builds up slowly, an incident of horrible cruelty to a cat, a violent retaliation for bullying, but before long there is a body count and some horrific happenings.

What unfolds is a fascinating treatise on the cruel secrets’ children harbor and what they might do if given the power to hurt those around them. Don’t come expecting action or a fast pace, Director Vogt takes plenty of time to turn the screw of the situation but the pay-off is excellent and a breath-taking quiet climax that takes place under the very noses of the adults around them.

The Innocents is an exceptional film that deserves to build a reputation as a cult classic, a new kind of nightmare that takes existing tropes and energizes them to deliver something memorable.

Out of a potential 5, you have to go with a Darkmatters:

öööö

(4 - X-Kids can be cruel too…)

Awesomeness öööö – some scenes will stay with you

Laughs ö – not much funny business 

Horror öööö – burst of grimness 

Spiritual Enlightenment öö - not so innocent

Imagine a world where the earth is becoming hell?

Click below to find out about my dark sci-fi novel...