Coffinmaker’s Blues: Collected Writings on Terror by Stephen Volk

(Electric Dreamhouse, 2019)

Reviewed by Geoff Ryman

I was sent this book to review by the publishers at the author’s request.

When I was 12, like Stephen King, I graduated from Famous Monsters of Filmland to another newsstand journal, Castle of Frankenstein. The photos may not have been as good, and the text looked like it had been typed not typeset, but it was a satisfying read. Contributors like Lin Carter or Richard Lupoff wrote like horror films and fiction had value.

Coffinmaker’s Blues by Stephen Volk may feel for some like a collection of good blogposts. For me, the collection re-created the sensation of reading my favourite mag—respectful writing about something people disrespect.

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Review from BSFA Review 17 - Download your copy here.