The high concept for the novel is simplicity itself: A spineless magazine employee, Davey Owen, loses his girlfriend, and in a combination of curiosity and despair, he visits a New York Times Square peep show called “Live Girls.” The performers at the peep show are vampires though, and they have big plans for Davey. The repercussions of Davey’s new “relationship” with the illicit vampire-run sex business affect the other people in his life. He meets a few new folks too.

Besides Davey, Live Girls includes the following characters: Walter Benedek is a newspaper reporter whose sister and niece have been killed by Vernon, Walter’s brother-in-law. (Vernon became involved with the vampires at Live Girls before Davey.) Beth is Davey’s ex-girlfriend, who has left him because she prefers to get beat up by her junkie boyfriend.  Chad Wilkes is Davey’s nemesis at the office, who gets the promotion that Davey deserves. And Casey is Davey’s loyal friend, co-worker, and would-be lover.

The other characters in Live Girls are more minor, like the obnoxious boss-lady who sexually harasses Davey, and the owner of a gun store who has helped Davey research some magazine articles in the past. The vampires also have unique personalities, but I’d prefer not to spoil the novel by going into any detail about those characters.

The horror in the book is unabashedly erotic and gruesome. If you’re offended by graphic sex scenes put to paper, this isn’t the right book for you. If you’re squeamish about blood and violence, stay away. If you’re looking for sympathetic vampires who sparkle in the sunlight or who long to have their unnatural lives ended, you’ll need to look elsewhere.

On the other hand, if you like vampires who are evil, and heroes who are overpowered by the forces of darkness, Live Girls is a gem of a book. Ray Garton is a fine craftsman and a compelling storyteller. Live Girls maintains enough suspense and the characters are interesting enough that the book will be a short read for most horror fans, because they likely won’t put it down until they’ve finished reading it.

Live Girls is now one of my favorite vampire novels, largely because of the strength of the characterization and the smooth, competent writing style.

1. The Crazies Blu-ray Review – Matt Fini reviews the release of the recent remake of George Romero’s The Crazies on Blu-ray. I’m not as big a fan of the original movie as the reviewer, but he makes some good points about how the new version could have been improved. His review of the actual quality of the Blu-ray itself was a welcome addition also.
2. Summer Horror Reading

1. The Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks – Even though it came out in 2003, The Zombie Survival Guide is still a best seller. Do my customers know about an impending zombie apocalypse or something? Probably not. The popularity of this book probably has more to do with the clever idea and the good writing. But if you’re ordinary person who is worried about what to do during a zombie outbreak, then you’ll find this book useful And Max Brooks is Mel Brooks’s son.
2. World War Z by Max Brooks – This isn’t really a novel. It’s actually a collection of short stories set in a single setting where the zombies rose and were eventually more-or-less defeated in the titular war on zombies. It’s an excellent follow-up to Brooks’s first zombie book, and the writing is outstanding. The audio version of World War Z is also well worth listening to, with readings from notables like Alan Alda and Rob Reiner, among others.
3. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth-Grahame Smith – 85% of the text in this book is the same as the text in Austen’s original novel Pride and Prejudice. But oh what a difference the other 15% makes. We read Pride and Prejudice and Zombies as a horror book club selection one month, and it was well-liked by all our members. (And yes, we do have members who love Jane Austen.) Beware of the many attempts to cash in on the popularity of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies; they’re not all of the same high quality. Although Seth-Graham Smith’s new book, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, is likely a worthy successor.
4. The Walking Dead – The paperback collections of Robert Kirkman’s excellent comic book series The Walking Dead fly off the shelves as soon as they come in. Each edition collects six issues of the comic book, which is a zombie movie as an ongoing series with no ending. We expect sales of this one to continue to grow, especially now that AMC is creating The Walking Dead as an ongoing television series. (And Frank Darabont’s in charge of this one, so it should be great.)
5. ZEO: How to Get A(Head) in Business by Scott Kenemore – This isn’t the first book about zombies that Scott Kenemore has written. The Zen of Zombie is also a popular seller at the store. But ZEO seems to be more popular. Is it possible that people are really so desperate for good advice on how to run a business that the only real wisdom they can find is in a spoof book? I think so. The career advice in this one actually made more than a little bit of sense to me. What that says about me, I’m not sure.
6. Marvel Zombies by Robert Kirkman – The collected editions of these comics still sell out constantly. In case you’re not familiar with the series, it takes a look at what would happen in the Marvel Universe if a zombie apocalypse happened there. So we get treated to zombie versions of the Hulk, Spider-Man, Wolverine, and all of the other Marvel superheroes. I think this would make a great movie (definitely better than either of the dull Fantastic Four movies I sat through, anyway).
7. The Best of All Flesh by James Lowder – Before zombie anthologies became common, James Lowder was editing collections of short fiction as a companion to Eden Studios’ roleplaying game All Flesh Must Be Eaten. These anthologies are all out of print now, but this collection picks out Lowder’s favorites from the three volumes. RPG companies are not always known for the high quality of their fiction publications, but The Best of All Flesh stands head and shoulders over most other zombie short fiction anthologies.

Visit us Eerie Books, 205 N. Ballard, Wylie, TX between 2pm and 6pm in order to buy any of these tiles. We’d love to meet you.

For more information about zombies and zombie books, check out some of these resources:

• All Things Zombie
• “Night of the Living Wonks”

That’s all for today. Will blog more tomorrow.

I’m not from Philadelphia, and I’ve never been to Philadelphia, but I LOVE Philly cheesesteaks. In fact, it’s one of my favorite foods. And I’ve found no restaurant in the DFW metroplex that serves a better cheesesteak than Fred’s. That’s right; I’m saying that Fred’s Downtown Philly has the best Philly cheesesteaks in the Dallas Fort Worth area. (Anyone who wants to lay claim to serving a better cheesesteak sandwich is welcome to contact me and invite me over for a sample of their competing cheesesteak.)

According to Fred’s site (Yes, there really is a Fred.) he was born in Philadelphia and moved to Dallas in 1982. So he ought to know something about cheesesteaks. He opened his first location in 1995 in Plano, but the location where I eat is quite a bit newer than that. I think it’s been open for a couple of years, tops.

On their website,they point out that their business is family owned and operated, and that the service you get there is the kind of service you’d expect from a family owned restaurant. I can vouch for that. I’ve eaten there at least once a month since Fred’s cheesesteak restaurant opened, and the service has always been friendly and casual.

Fred’s is not a big restaurant. The place only has 9 tables, and if it’s busy, almost all of them are occupied. We often get cheesesteaks to go and bring them back to the house to eat. I always order their #4, which is the double meat, double cheese steak sandwich. I used to order the 10″ sandwich, but my weight is pretty out of control right now. So I’ve switched to the smaller 6″ version of the sandwich, and it’s filling enough.

Besides cheesesteaks, Fred’s also serves hoagies: cheese, turkey, Italian, cappacola, pastrami, and salami. They also serve several different burgers: mushroom, bacon, and pizza. They also have a vegetarian menu, which includes veggie burgers, sandwiches, and salads. I hate to admit it, but I’ve never had anything on the menu but the cheesesteaks; they’re SO good that I wouldn’t want to waste a trip there eating something else.

Fred’s Downtown Philly has a fridge full of sodas and water, and they also sell fountain drinks. If you have a sweet tooth, they sell TastyKakes. And they offer chips and french fries as sides to their sandwiches. The most expensive sandwich on their menu is $8.85, and that’s the Po Fred, which has both steak and Italian sausage on it. Most of their sandwiches average five dollars for the six inch versions, and seven dollars or so for the ten inch portions.

If you decide to give them a try, tell them that Randy Ray from Eerie Books sent you.

In addition to that site, Mr. Clifton has also done some work on another new microsite of ours, Stephen King Movies. This is only a one page site right now, but as far as we know, it’s pretty close to a complete list of all of the movies and tv shows that have been based on the works of Stephen King. This new site is the kind of site we could probably expand on indefinitely, but we’re going to see how well it does as a really highly-focused, narrow content, one page website first before expanding on the content. Mr. Clifton does include his opinions on some of the best and some of the worst Stephen King movies, and I tend to agree with him on those too, thinking that Kubrick’s version of The Shining is one of the most effective horror movies ever made.

And if you’re looking to buy some horror stories to read, or if you’re interested in Stephen King’s new novel, Under the Dome, then we can help you out there at the store. Just come on by. We’ve been matching the Wal-mart $9 price as an unadvertised special there in the store, and the book has been flying off the shelves. I’ve already finished it, and I think it’s possibly one of Stephen King’s best novels ever.

I also recently finished reading The Rising by Brian Keene. It’s a brutal experience, one of the goriest and most disgusting books I’ve ever read. I loved it. If you like gruesome horror, then this is a book that will not disappoint you.

Hardback Horror Fiction Bestsellers

1. My Rotten Life (Nathan Abercrombie, Accidental Zombie) by David Lubar
2. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
3. Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill

Paperback Horror Fiction Bestsellers

1. My Work is Not Yet Done by Thomas Ligotti
2. Twilight of the Dead by Travis Adkins
3. The Dark by Ellen Datlow
4. Hunting Ground by Patricia Briggs
5. One Silent Night by Sherrilyn Kenyon
6. House of Leaves by Mark Danielewski
8. Grave Sight by Charlaine Harris
9. Dean Koontz’s Frankenstein: Dead and Alive by Dean Koontz
10. Jake’s Wake by John Skipp

Nonfiction Horror Bestsellers

1. Nightmare USA: The Untold Story of the Exploitation Independents by Stephen Thrower
2. How to Cosplay by Graphic Sha
3. The Zombie Handbook: How to Identify the Living Dead and Survive the Coming Zombie Apocalypse by Rob Sacchetto
   
4. Death by Stupidity: The 1001 Most Ridiculous, Bizarre and Astonishingly Idiotic Ways People Have Kicked the Bucket by David Southwell
5. How to be a Villain: Evil Laughs, Secret Lairs, Master Plans, and More!!! by Neil Zawacki and James Dignan

If you’re not already doing so, please follow us on Twitter at @horrorbooks.

1. Local independent bookstores offer a better selection of books than Wal-mart. I operate a small, niche bookstore with only about 1000 square feet of space, but I’d estimate that we carry 5000 different titles. (And we’re an all-horror bookstore.) A typical Wal-mart carries only about 200 titles.
2. The employees at your local independent bookstore have usually read some of the books on their shelves. I won’t hire someone to even help me part-time at the store without insisting that they read at least one book a month. Most independent bookstore owners are probably more strict than that. Some of the folks working at Wal-mart might be very well-read indeed, but I wouldn’t go there looking for a book recommendation, because I think that number is probably relatively small.
3. You can actually find a customer service person to talk to at your local independent bookstore. Depending on the size of your local independent bookstore, you’ll probably be receiving customer service directly from the manager or owner of the store. If not, you’ll be dealing with someone who reports directly to the manager or the owner. But in either case, you’ll be able to find someone to talk to about what you need almost immediately. Have you ever tried finding an employee at Wal-mart when you need one?
4. Local independent bookstores tend to be quiet and not crowded. I hate noise. I hate crowds. I’d prefer not to suffer through both at Wal-mart in order to buy my books. Does that mean I might pay a little bit more? Well, yeah, maybe. But on the other hand, books (even at full price) are the cheapest entertainment you can find.
5. Local independent bookstores offer programming related to books. When’s the last time your local Wal-mart hosted a lecture from a visiting author? Or a book club meeting? How often does your local Wal-mart offer storytime for the kids? Or open mike poetry night? Or writing workshops?
6. Some local independent bookstores offer used and new books. You can’t buy used books at Wal-mart, but at my bookstore, I have all of our used paperbacks on special for $1.50 per copy. You can buy a copy of Stephen King’s The Stand for $1.50, and you’ve got commercial free entertainment every night for a whole week. That’s not even 20 cents per night. Compare that with the cost of going to the theater, renting a movie, or even paying your cable bill.
7. Staff picks can provide you with lots of ideas for new reading. Almost all independent bookstores have a section in their store where the staff’s favorite books are featured. Personalized recommendations like this aren’t available at Wal-mart. And if you come to my store, and tell me that you really enjoyed reading The Rising by Brian Keene, then I’m going to suggest that you take a look at Monster Planet by David Wellington. Wal-mart probably doesn’t even carry those two titles, much less have employees who can make the connection between what you already like and what you might also like.
8. Local money stays local. I live and work in the same place, and when you buy books from me, you’re helping to support the local economy. And I also buy local as much as I possibly can, which also helps keep money circulating through our town’s economy. Buy from Wal-mart if you want to support the Bentonville, Arkansas economy.

There are my 8 reasons to buy books from your local independent bookstore instead of from Wal-mart. Can you think of some reasons I missed that we should add to this list?

On a related, but different, subject, we’re reading Some of Your Blood for next month’s book club meeting. Theodore Sturgeon wrote the book ages ago, but it’s available in a beautiful edition from Millipede Press. We have several copies now available at the store. Our reading of My Work is Not Yet Done has been postponed until the November meeting, but that’s going to be a pretty special one for us, as we’re going to have autographed copies of the book available. And Thomas Ligotti autographs are not easy to come by.

Also coming in November is a Christmas zombie book called It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Zombies. The book isn’t in stock yet, but it will be next month, and it looks funny. If you enjoyed Zombie Haiku or Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, then it should be right up your alley.

And if you haven’t read The Walking Dead series of graphic novels yet, you’re really missing out. It’s consistently our top selling book, month-in and month-out.

Finally, if you want to discuss horror books and horror literature, we do have a sister site with a horror literature forum. Come talk to us about what you’re reading there.

If this is the first you’ve heard about Death Troopers, here’s the skinny: Death Troopers is the first adult Star Wars horror novel. Joe Shreiber wrote the novel, and the plot concerns an Imperial prison ship and a virus where the dead return to life. That’s right–it’s a zombie novel set in the Star Wars universe. Reminds me of peanut butter and chocolate: two great tastes that taste great together.

Please drop by the store to pick up your $15 copy of Death Troopers. For a limited time, I’m also going to take orders for the book online. Email me at randyray at gmail dot com if you’re interested in having a copy shipped directly to your home or office. We don’t normally offer online ordering, but in the case of Death Troopers, we’re making an exception.

• Any of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight books – get ‘em while they last!
• Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris – this one retails for $25.95 in hardcover, but we’re selling it for $19.99.
• The Tenant by Roland Topor is normally $13, but it’s on sale now for just $9.99.
• The Face That Must Die by Ramsey Campbell retails for $14, but it’s on sale for just $11.99.
• The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman retails for $17.99, but we have it on sale for $13.99.
• Criminal Macabre by Steve Niles retails for $12.95, but we’re making it available for $9.99

We have other horror books on sale throughout the store. We’re also making all of our gaming products available at a discount of 20% off too.

Come get your discounted books while they last.