Night of the Living Book Club

March 2012 Selection

2012-02-21T15:30:00.002-08:00

The March 2012 Selection: Hater by David Moody

Sunday March, 18th 5 pm.

"Hater" tells the story of Danny McCoyne, an everyman forced to contend with a world gone mad. For reasons unknown, vast numbers of the human population suddenly become irrationally violent, killing all who cross their path.

February 2012 Selection

2012-01-10T17:01:00.000-08:00

The February 2012 Selection: Ghost Road Blues by Jonathan Maberry

The next official meeting with happen on Sunday, February 19th at 5 pm.

Thirty years have gone by since a serial killer sheared a bloody swath through Pine Deep, Pennsylvania. Now, a month before Halloween, an ancient evil arrives, seeking to shred the very soul of the rapidly fracturing community.

1st QTR 2012 selections

2012-01-09T09:35:00.000-08:00

Tentative list of the next few selections. Suggestions welcome

Night of the Living Book Club

- horror fiction book club

3^rd Sunday at 5pm

Feb 19^th

Ghost Road Blues

By Jonathan Maberry

9780786018154

Mar 18^th

Hater

By David Moody

9780312608088

Apr 15^th

The Strain

By Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan

9780061558245

Alternates:

Patient Zero

By Jonathan Maberry

9780312382858

Hell House

By Richard Matheson

9780312868857

Club re-start

2012-01-06T16:22:00.000-08:00

The book club was on a hiatus due to my changing work schedule. It is back. Officially won't start until February 2012 on the 3rd Sunday of the month at Books Inc. Mountain View, CA 5:00 pm.

If there is any interest I will have an unofficial meeting this month on the 3rd Sunday, January 23rd at 5:00 pm. We can discuss future book choices and past favorites.

End of book club for now.

2011-10-09T16:26:00.000-07:00

Due to work schedule changes, the book club has come to an end.

December 2011 Selection

2011-10-06T09:32:00.000-07:00

December 2011 Selection: Frankenstein: Prodigal Son by Dean Koontz

Every city has its secrets. But none as terrible as this. He is Deucalion, a tattooed man of mysterious origin, a sleight-of-reality artist who has traveled the centuries with a secret worse than death. He arrives in New Orleans as a serial killer stalks the streets, a killer who carefully selects his victims for the humanity that is missing in himself. Deucalion's path will lead him to cool, tough police detective Carson O'Connor and her devoted partner, Michael Maddison, who are tracking the slayer but will soon discover signs of something far more terrifying: an entire race""of killers who are much more-and less-than human and, deadliest of all, their deranged, near-immortal maker: Victor Helios-once known as Frankenstein.

November 2011 Selection

2011-10-05T09:27:00.000-07:00

November 2011 Selection: A Dark Matter by Peter Straub

The charismatic and cunning Spenser Mallon is a campus guru in the 1960s, attracting the devotion and demanding sexual favors of his young acolytes. After he invites his most fervent followers to attend a secret ritual in a local meadow, the only thing that remains is a gruesomely dismembered body and the shattered souls of all who were present.Years later, one man attempts to understand what happened to his wife and to his friends by writing a book about this horrible night, and it's through this process that they begin to examine the unspeakable events that have bound them in ways they cannot fathom, but that have haunted every one of them through their lives. As each of the old friends tries to come to grips with the darkness of the past, they find themselves face-to-face with the evil triggered so many years earlier.

October 2011 selection

2011-09-07T18:50:00.000-07:00

The next meeting will be on October 4th. We wil be discussing Flesh Eaters by Joe McKinney.

Eleanor has a problem -- she must get her husband and daughter and a group of survivors to the quarantine zone without being overwhelmed by the zombies that infest the water that the group is adrift on. McKinney, author of the wildly successful "Dead City," dramatizes the widespread zombie plague in the bloody, terrifying prequel to "Apocalypse of the Dead."

Book selections for the 4th QTR 2011

2011-08-05T18:54:00.000-07:00

3rd QTR horror book selection:

Oct 4th
Flesh Eaters
by McKinney, Joe

Nov 1st - on my birthday again
A Dark Matter
by Straub, Peter

Dec 6th
Frankenstein: Prodigal Son
by Koontz, Dean

September 2011 selection

2011-08-05T18:37:00.000-07:00

The next meeting wil be on September 6th. Meeting will be held on the first Tuesday of the month. We will be discussing Phantoms by Dean Koontz.

In an all-new afterword, Koontz explains the impact this novel has had on his career. One of his most chilling bestsellers--a tale of an abandoned town and the unimaginable truth behind its silence--was the basis for the 1998 motion picture starring Peter O'Toole and Ben Affleck, with the screenplay written by Koontz.

Meeting date change

2011-08-04T18:44:00.000-07:00

The meeting date has permanently changed to the first Tuesday of the month.

August 2011 selection

2011-07-08T18:32:00.000-07:00

The next meeting will be on August 1st. We will be discussing Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn.

After eight years, the murders of two preteen girls--timed nearly a year apart--bring reporter Camille Preaker back to her hometown. As she works to uncover the truth about these violent crimes, Camille finds herself forced to unravel the psychological puzzle of her own past.

July 2011 selection

2011-06-07T18:21:00.000-07:00

The next meeting will be July 5th, Tuesday. We will be discussing Mr. Shivers by Robert Jackson Bennett.

It is the time of the Great Depression. Thousands have left their homes looking for a better life, a new life. But Marcus Connelly is not one of them. He searches for one thing, and one thing only: Revenge. Because out there, riding the rails, stalking the camps, is the scarred vagrant who murdered Connelly's daughter. One man must face a dark truth and answer the question - how much is he willing to sacrifice for his satisfaction?

Book selections for the 3rd QTR 2011

2011-05-05T18:14:00.000-07:00

3rd QTR horror book selection:

July 5th
Mr. Shivers
by Bennett, Robert Jackson

August 1st
Sharp Objects
by Flynn, Gillian

September 6th
Phantoms
by Koontz, Dean

June 2011 selection

2011-05-04T17:52:00.000-07:00

The next meeting will be on June 6th. We will be discussing Misery by Stephen King.

After an automobile accident, novelist Paul Sheldon meets his biggest fan. Annie Wilkes is his nurse-and captor. Now, she wants Paul to write his greatest work-just for her. She has a lot of ways to spur him on. One is a needle. Another is an ax. And if they don't work, she can get really nasty...

May 2011 selection

2011-04-05T17:47:00.000-07:00

The next meeting will be on May 2nd. We will be discussing The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson.

The classic supernatural thriller by an author who helped define the genre First published in 1959, Shirley Jackson's "The Haunting of Hill House" has been hailed as a perfect work of unnerving terror. It is the story of four seekers who arrive at a notoriously unfriendly pile called Hill House: Dr. Montague, an occult scholar looking for solid evidence of a "haunting"; Theodora, his lighthearted assistant; Eleanor, a friendless, fragile young woman well acquainted with poltergeists; and Luke, the future heir of Hill House. At first, their stay seems destined to be merely a spooky encounter with inexplicable phenomena. But Hill House is gathering its powers-and soon it will choose one of them to make its own.

April 2011 selection

2011-03-31T17:03:00.000-07:00

The next meeting will be on April 4th. We will be discussing Creepers by Davis Morrell.

On a cold October night, five people gather in a run-down motel on the Jersey shore and prepare to break into the Paragon Hotel. The once-magnificent structure is now boarded up and marked for demolition.They are "creepers": urban explorers with a passion for investigating abandoned buildings and their dying secrets. Reporter Frank Balenger joins them to profile this highly illegal activity for the "New York Times." But he isn't looking for just another story, and soon after they enter the rat-infested tunnel leading to the hotel, he gets more than he bargained for. Danger, fear, and death await the creepers in a place ravaged by time and redolent of evil.

March 2011 meeting

2011-03-07T16:51:00.000-08:00

Tonight, March 7th. We will be discussing Necroscope by Brian Lumley at Books Inc. Mountain View, CA.

Book selections for the 2nd QTR 2011

2011-02-11T13:25:00.000-08:00

Here is the list of horror books for the 2nd QTR.

April 2011
Creepers by David Morrell

May 2011
The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

June 2011
Misery by Stephen King

March 2011 selection

2011-02-11T13:23:00.000-08:00

The next meeting will be on March 7th. We will be discussing Necroscope by Brian Lumley.

In the Balkan mountains of Rumania, a terrible evil is growing. Long buried in hallowed ground, bound by earth and silver, the master vampire schemes and plots. Trapped in unlife, neither dead nor living, Thibor Ferenczy hungers for freedom and revenge. The vampire's human tool is Boris Dragosani, part of a super-secret Soviet spy agency. Dragosani is an avid pupil, eager to plumb the depthless evil of the vampire's mind. Ferenczy teaches Dragosani the awful skills of the necromancer, gives him the ability to rip secrets from the mind and bodies of the dead. Dragosani works not for Ferenczy's freedom but world domination. he will rule the world with knowledge raped from the dead. His only opponent: Harry Koegh, champion of the dead and the living. To protect Harry, the dead will do anything--even rise from their graves!

February 2011 meeting

2011-02-07T14:45:00.000-08:00

Tonight, February 7th, we will be discussing Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill.

Aging death-metal rock legend Judas Coyne is a collector of the macabre: a cookbook for cannibals...a used hangman's noose...a snuff film. But nothing he possesses is as unique or as dreadful as his latest purchase off the Internet: a one-of-a-kind curiosity that arrives at his door in a black heart-shaped box...a musty dead man's suit still inhabited by the spirit of its late owner. And now everywhere Judas Coyne goes, the old man is there--watching, waiting, dangling a razor blade on a chain from his bony hand.

Future book choices

2011-01-03T12:57:00.001-08:00

Here is a list of possible future choices, subject to availability. The next group of three for the 2nd quarter of 2011 will be decided by February 7th.

American Gods by Neil Gaiman - 624p
Misery by Stephen King - 352p
The Green Mile by Stephen King - 544p
The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris - 367p
Creepers by David Morrell - 388p
Boy’s Life by Robert R. McCammon - 608p
Audrey’s Door by Sarah Langan - 412p
The Killer Inside Me by Jim Thompson - 256p
The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson - 182p
The Alienst by Caleb Carr - 498p
Midnight by Dean Koontz - 496p
Hideaway by Dean Koontz - 413p
Ghost Road Blues by Jonathan Maberry - 472p

Additional suggestions are welcome.

January 2011 meeting

2011-01-03T12:41:00.000-08:00

Tonight, January 3rd, will be the first meeting for 2011. We will discuss Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin.

Rosemary and Guy Woodhouse, an ordinary young couple, settle into a New York City apartment, unaware that the elderly neighbors and their bizarre group of friends have taken a disturbing interest in them. But by the time Rosemary discovers the horrifying truth, it may be far too late.

2011 Horror Reading Challenge

2010-12-21T19:39:00.000-08:00

I am adding a second reading challenge that promotes the horror genre. Hopefully, this will help anyone new to the genre. This challenge will coincide with the book club meetings. This will be less difficult to acquire books for than the 2011 BSA Reading Challenge.

2011 Horror Reading Challenge:
Levels
Troubled: 4 books
Haunted: 8 books
Disturbed: 12 books
Tormented: 18 books
Tortured: 24 books

Questions, comments, or suggestions are always welcome. Have fun!

Rules:
Read by December 31st, 2011.
No more than 2 books from any single author.

2011 BSA Reading Challenge update

2010-12-16T23:31:00.000-08:00

Due to possible availability issues, I re-classified the challenge categories.
I added levels based availability to acquire and difficulty to completed.
Check BSA Reading Challenge Information.

Bram Stoker Award for First Novel availability

2010-12-16T23:14:00.000-08:00

Well, no surprise that most of the BSA for First Novel are not available new after checking with Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Most titles are easily found on many used book sources.

I will re-classify parts of the 2011 Reading Challenge due to the availability issues.

Bram Stoker Award for Novel availability

2010-12-16T14:36:00.000-08:00

I checked Amazon and Barnes & Noble for challenge title availability. Good news. The BSA for Novel is feasible with new books. Some years are more difficult. 1990, 1995, and 2000 there was only one title available. Except for a few, many of the other choices are readily available used from many sources.

I will be checking availability for the BSA for First Novel challenge soon. I expect that to more difficult.

Working with book club selections and challenge

2010-12-16T14:24:00.000-08:00

In the months to come I will try to select some but not all titles for the book club from the challenge choices. Always subject to availability.

Book Club Meetings

2010-12-15T22:47:00.000-08:00

Night of the Living Book Club started as a physical book club and still meets on the 1st Monday of the month at 7:30 PM. Hosted by Books Inc. in Mountain View, CA.

Future selections for 2011:
Jan 01/03/11 - Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin
Feb 02/07/11 - Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill
Mar 03/07/11 - Necroscope by Brian Lumley

2011 BSA Reading Challenge

2010-12-15T19:53:00.000-08:00

2011 BSA Reading Challenge. I am setting-up a personal reading challenge that I'm sharing and is open to anyone. Both main challenges + mini challenges = about a book a week. This is my personal goal . We will see how it goes as time progresses. This will be a difficult challenge due to availability of books, most will need to come from used resources.

Overview
This is a horror book club. I used the Bram Stoker Awards for list generation.
Read by December 31st, 2011.
Challenges
Horror Levels: Fan, Enthusiast, Devotee, Disciple, Zealot, and Psychopath.

Fan
BSA Novel
Pick 1 title from each year from the novel category, winners or nominees. 23 titles.

Enthusiast
BSA Novel
All novel category winners. 1987 - 2009. 25 titles. 2 years have ties.

Devotee
BSA First Novel
Pick 1 title from each year from the first novel category, winners or nominees. 23 titles

Disciple
BSA First Novel
All first novel category winners. 1987 - 2009. 25 titles. 2 years have ties.

Add Dedicated prefix by reading one mini challenge
Add Committed prefix by reading all mini challenges

Extra mini challenges:
King MC- Read at least 2 additional Stephen King books.
Barker MC- Read at least 2 additional Clive Barker books.
Koontz MC- Read at least 2 additional Dean Koontz books.

Zealot
become Committed in both Novel and First Novel

Rules:
To join, leave a comment. The challenge(s) will run from January 1, 2011 through December 31, 2011.
Books do NOT have to be selected in advance. There may be an availability issue on older titles.
Read in any order.
Mini challenge titles can NOT be Bram Stoker Award winners or nominees.

Finally, read ALL of the BSA Novel or First Novel selections, with no time limit = Psychopath.

Questions, comments, or suggestions are always welcome. Have fun!