Righteous Blood by Cliff Burns
01/08/2003 . Source: Sue Davies 

pub: PS Publishing. 177 page hardback. Price: £ 8.00 (UK), $14.00 (US). ISBN: 1-902-880-46-3 (softcover); 1-902-880-47-1 (hardback).

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A pair of stories under one title:-

RIGHTEOUS BLOOD: A vagrant has a comfortable lifestyle hidden in the garage of a well-off suburban family.

When the family seems to be breaking down he realises he could be in danger of losing his comfortable billet and takes drastic action to secure his future. The family don't realise that their existence and happiness has been smoothed over by this apparent guardian angel.

KEPT: The second story to begin with, appears to be in the style of Stephen King's 'Misery'. Following an abortive one-night stand, a vengeful woman holds an innocent man captive. All is not as it seems.

Maxine, movie camera in hand, is recording the man's agony for her movie. She is also the caretaker of an apartment block that is home to an increasingly bizarre range of residents.

The story becomes gradually more horrific, made more intense by the awareness that you have no obvious heroine or hero to root for because, like Maxine, her captive is also not what he initially appears to be.

A gruesome horror story that requires a strong stomach this story is very graphic and would not normally be my personal choice of reading. It puts you in a strange position as reader and its conclusion is as surreal as the rest of the story.

Both are novellas coming in at 76 and 96 pages respectively. They both pack an awful lot into those pages, which should give pause to those novelists who take so long to get going.

Each one features a journey of the soul in which we travel with our protagonist to the depths of Hell itself. They are not comfortable and I was left with many questions at the end. They are thoughtful but not laboured. Are these people angels or devils and who will judge them?

Not Science Fiction but a fantastic journey nevertheless.

This is a limited edition so snap it up.

Sue Davies