‘Mayan Blue’ by the Sisters of Slaughter – Michelle Garza and Melissa Lason is exactly the sort of blood soaked reading experience I was expecting. Having read numerous short stories by the sisters over the last 18 months, I was expecting something dripping with gore and I wasn’t disappointed. The sisters have been plugging away for some time now with short stories in various anthologies including last years excellent ‘Fresh Meat 2015’ released by Sinister Grin Press. Anybody who is familiar with their work will be well aware of their ability to cover the pages in blood and body parts.
‘Mayan Blue’ is the sister’s first novel, and whilst it isn’t perfect, it does serve as a fantastic introduction to two writers that will be around for some time. There is a hell of a lot to like about this novel. First off; the pacing is fast, and I mean lightening quick. Novels can have a tendency sometimes to spend an awful long time building up the characters, setting the scene. I am not saying this is a bad thing, as quite often it does work, but if it ends up being at the expense of the progression of the story then count me out. I was a third of the way through this book and things were turning bad for our testosterone fuelled students out looking for their professor.
Mayan culture and myth run strongly through this book. It kind of read like a cross between Indiana Jones and Evil Dead!! If you can imagine that?! With the pacing being so fast and furious I was initially concerned that the book would run out of steam, however this wasn’t the case. As our seemingly fearless (stupid) students search for the missing professor they find themselves in a sort of Mayan purgatory full of horrors, where blood runs thick.
Like I said, the action comes thick and fast and there are some really brutal scenes throughout the book (as one would expect 😉 ). The characters were there for the taking; they make poor choices and generally behave as you would expect. It is only a matter of when, not if they become victims of the Mayan demons. The cinematic feel that this book has means it would make a terrific movie. It has a sort of 80s style horror feel to it that I really enjoyed and perhaps the stupidity of the characters was very much in line with those great horror flicks from the 80s where you would find yourself screaming at the TV “What the hell are you doing? Why would you go in there?”
I had a lot of fun with this novel, whilst relatively short, ‘Mayan Blue’ sees the Sisters of Slaughter announce themselves as a visceral and bloody force within the horror community and I am truly excited about where they are going to go to next. It was gory, as expected and the Mayan slant on the story brought about something fresh and original. The cover art for this is very special too, I am sure you will agree. More please. \m/
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Mayan Blue, Synopsis
- File Size:488 KB
- Print Length:149 pages
- Publisher:Sinister Grin Press (May 25, 2016)
- Publication Date:May 25, 2016
Xibalba, home of torture and sacrifice, is the kingdom of the lord of death. He stalked the night in the guise of a putrefied corpse, with the head of an owl and adorned with a necklace of disembodied eyes that hung from nerve cords. He commanded legions of shapeshifting creatures, spectral shamans, and corpses hungry for the flesh of the living. The Mayans feared him and his realm of horror. He sat atop his pyramid temple surrounded by his demon kings and demanded sacrifices of blood and beating hearts as tribute to him and his ghostly world.
These legends, along with those that lived in fear of them, have been dead and gone for centuries. Yet now, a doorway has been opened in Georgia. A group of college students seek their missing professor, a man who has secretly uncovered the answer to one of history’s greatest mysteries. However, what they find is more than the evidence of a hidden civilization. It’s also a gateway to a world of living nightmares.
Biography
Melissa Lason and Michelle Garza have been writing together since they were little girls. Dubbed The Sisters of Slaughter by the editors of Fireside Press. They are constantly working together on new stories in the horror and dark fantasy genres. Their work has been included in FRESH MEAT published by Sinister Grin Press, WISHFUL THINKING by Fireside Press, WIDOWMAKERS a benefit anthology of dark fiction.
Praise for Mayan Blue
“From the outset, Garza and Lason let the blood spill, plunging their small cast of characters into the depths of Mayan hell. There’s plenty of action to go around as the group is confronted with a number of horrors, from the labyrinthine and booby-trapped maze of the newly discovered Mayan temple to the angry gods and their owl-headed, sharp-clawed servants.” –Michael Hicks, Author of Convergence
“Their short works are wonderful to read. However this book proves that they can tackle longer works without missing a beat.” –Tom, GoodReads
”These two show no quarter dragging the characters–and by extension, the reader–into the depths of the Mayan version of Hell. There’s vividness to the scenes they craft that made me want to make sure I was reading in full daylight, or at least with most of the lights on.” –John Quick, Author of Consequences
Purchase Links
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