Genre: Horror / Collection
Publisher: Dark Arts Books
Publication Date: 23rd Oct 2015
Pages: 256
MY REVIEW:
A copy of Synchronised
Sleepwalking by Martin Mundt was sent to Confessions of a Reviewer by the
publisher, Dark Arts Books, in exchange for an honest review. This is said
review.
So, I get an email from John Everson at Dark Arts asking
if I would be interested in a copy of Synchronised
Sleepwalking for review. I have heard of John and indeed Martin in the circles so I was interested to take a
look. When I discovered there were twenty-seven tales in this one, I was a
little put off. That means a lot of work for someone like me who reviews each
individual story.
Then in another email from John he stated: “I think it’s
a pretty special, unusual book!” Interest piqued!
Each review will be a little shorter with there being so
many but let’s see just how unusual this book really is!
Normally I give each story two ratings, a general rating
for the story and one for the horror or thrills or humour. Each story in this
collection is so different, they cannot possibly fall under one category. The
feeling I kept getting was bizarre.
So for my second rating for each story, it
is a bizarreness rating. This will include horror, thrills, humour and
weirdness. If this doesn’t make sense, I apologise but I know what I mean and
you will too when you read it. Mr Mundt will certainly get it!
A BIRD IN HAND
A flash fiction piece about a man paying a visit to his
dominatrix. When she leaves the room he has dealings
with her parrot.
Strange to say the least.
★★.5 for general.
0 for bizarreness mix.
THE GIRL WITH A MOTORCYCLE FOR A HEART
Mitch is a cop in a futuristic land where everyone is a
criminal and has their crimes from their past lives downloaded from their brain
into a device called the Rear View.
Penny has just turned eighteen and has automatically
become a criminal.
Strange one this. It has a horrific atmosphere about it.
Very dark and constricting. I liked this.
★★★★ for general.
★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
BREATHLESS
Chloe wants Brett. Problem is Brett is getting married
and doesn't cheat. Bigger problem is Chloe won't take no for an answer.
Almost paying homage to Fatal attraction, this is a tale of lust and hatred and the horror
of stalking.
Or is it? This has a wicked twist at the end.
★★★★★ for general.
★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
HE PASSED HIMSELF AWAY
A man storms into a brothel, hell bent on murder, after
being dumped by his girlfriend. He didn't bank on bumping into Cleopatra.
This is hilarious. It's horror and bizarre and funny and
brutal and sickening all rolled into one big ball. Horrific in many ways but
will leave you with a smile on your face.
★★★★★ for general.
★★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
THE PALE BLUE ZENITH OF THE SKY
A man decides to build a circular staircase in his garden
made up of books from his house.
His neighbours keep telling him it will fall down. He has
faith though.
This story has rocketed right to the very top of my favourite
short stories. This is a magical, wondrous story that had me in total awe from
beginning to end. A very simple idea but so beautifully written I challenge
anyone to read this and not smile from ear to ear when they are finished.
Wow! Just......wow!
★★★★★ for general.
★★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
CHAIR
Another strange one in which a man full of optimism who
wants to be a billionaire has to sell body parts for money and ends up as a
piece of furniture.
Bizarre in the extreme but strangely captivating at the
same time, to the point where you actually feel quite sorry for him.
★★★★ for general.
★★★ for bizarreness mix.
SKINNY BONES
A rather sad story about an ex-circus fat lady who gets
too fat for the job and has to retire. She doesn't stop getting fat either.
An ending that will make the strongest stomachs in the
world rise to bring the breakfast back.
★★★.5 for general.
★★★.5 for bizarreness mix.
LOST DOG
A tale about a lost dog, where the narrator reads from a
lost dog poster he found. Another with a stomach turning twist at the end.
Sometimes you read a story in this book and wonder if Mr
Mundt’s medication is strong enough.
This is one of those stories.
★★★★ for general.
★★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
THE ONCE-UPON-A-TIME KING
An old man tries to enter a city but is turned away at
the gates. He stays outside and starts to tell a story to a few people. The few
people turn into a few hundred people and then a few thousand people.
He claimed he used to be a King and would be again. No
one believed him. Everyone eventually believes a story teller.
This is beautiful. Such a difference from some of the
earlier stories in this collection. This is almost like a parable. You can
imagine the old man being surrounded by people totally engrossed in his story.
Almost like Jesus being surrounded by people.
The lesson in this one is that it takes an excellent
story teller to keep you engrossed in a story about an excellent story teller.
★★★★★ for general.
★★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
FLYING
A vivid description of your dream. The one where everything that could go wrong is going
wrong and you just cannot wake up.
This is written in such a way that it does convince you,
the reader, that you are in fact having the dream in the story. Very effective
and very scary.
★★★★★ for general.
★★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
THE SAGA OF EL POLLO, PART ONE: LIVE POULTRY
A man walks into a shop to buy a chicken but the store
owner refuses because the man wants to kill it immediately. Through some sense
of strange honour, the store owner relents.
Bizarre but hilarious at the same time, this is a story
of honour and dignity and the loss thereof. Brutal, bloody, but very funny,
this has set things up very nicely for part two.
★★★★★ for general.
★★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
THE SAGA OF EL POLLO, PART TWO: EL POLLO
After the murderous rampage of El Pollo in part one of
the story, the infamous Brothers have
arrived to exact their revenge on the killer chicken. They better have come
prepared.
This is the continuing saga of the most badass chicken in
the world.
Reading like the cruellest of spaghetti westerns, this
story will have you quaking in your boots the next time you have to cross paths
with a chicken! You will never know if he might be......El Pollo!
★★★★★ for general.
★★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
THE SAGA OF EL POLLO, PART THREE: THE CHICKEN KILLERS
In the concluding part if the trilogy, the end battle is
in sight as the killers arrive in town
to avenge the death of the Brothers.
El Pollo is the only one they want but they will stop at
nothing to get him.
A heart wrenching finale to what is surely one of the
most memorable legends that I have read in recent times.
Viva El Pollo!
★★★★★ for general.
★★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
STILL LIFE WITH WALLS
Jeff has had enough of the cat. He's also had enough of
his wife, his daughter and his mother in law.
All he needs is a hammer and some nails.
I was reading this story actually thinking about the
logistics of it and had to remind myself it is just a story and not to be taken
seriously.
★★★★ for general.
★★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
BOOM
Barry likes explosions. He would like to take this like
to a new extreme but cannot find a willing partner. Then he meets Bambi.
Full of sexual tension and charged with a certain
explosive tenacity, this story is both sickening and hilarious.
★★★★ for general.
★★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
THE TIME I DIDN’T MEET CHRISTOPHER WALKEN
A man walks into his local 7-11 and is caught up in the middle
of a robbery when he also comes across Christopher Walken trying to buy some
crisps.
This is another of those totally abstract stories from Mr
Mundt that has me wondering about his medication again. You know what though? I
am getting used to them and they are becoming engrossing as well as thoroughly
entertaining and very funny.
★★★★★ for general.
★★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
THAT IS THE MAN, SAID THE BOY
An old blind man and a boy are begging by the side of the
road. The boy lies to the old man. Is it for malice or for his benefit?
I think I understood this story but I am not sure. On the
one hand it was full of viciousness and one person taking advantage of the
other. On the other hand, it was beautiful to watch one person care so much for
another. Which was right?
★★★★ for general.
★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
SUMMER OF LOVE
No idea. It’s a story about drugs and people taking them
all the time.
I felt like I was spaced the entire time I read it.
★★ for general.
★★★ for bizarreness mix.
AND DEATH CAME DOWN LIKE MOONLIT FROST
A heart-warming tale of love and the effects of love,
even after death.
A chance to get your breath back in this collection and
learn that Mr Mundt’s heart seems to be in the right place. An excellent story
for the more spiritual of you out there.
★★★★ for general.
★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
THE CAMERA LOVES HER
This is the story of Wally and his fascination and love
for ex movie star, Livia Turner. He has invited her to his house under the
pretence of doing an interview.
She agrees but it all seems a bit weird.
This one I didn’t really get. It was really just Wally
and Livia having a conversation about the good old days. I didn’t really get
it, unless I missed the punch line at the end.
★★ for general.
★★ for bizarreness mix.
THE BLACK HOUSE
Mr Cody is an estate agent. He has been invited by
Derwent to try and sell his father’s house, Voss House. It is a strange
building and the request to meet at 10pm also seems strange. Mr Cody though, is
used to this sort of request from his clients. That is why he is so good at his
job.
Creepy. Very creepy. Can’t tell you much about it but
this house is haunted. Almost living. Mr Cody knows what he has to do to get
out but can’t bring himself to do it.
Excellent creepy tale that will have your skin crawling.
★★★★★ for general.
★★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
TO CONTINUE FOREVER
Alien beings descend to earth promising eternal existence
if you pass through them. Only question being, do you?
This is one of the scariest things I have ever read. It
is written in such an unassuming way that you get totally ensconced in the
story, believing everything you are reading. Much like the character telling
you the story.
This is like my ultimate fear come true. Or is it simply
a variation of one of the biggest stories, some would say biggest lies, there
has ever been?
★★★★★ for general.
★★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
HONK
Magnuson is having a really bad day. Anything that could
go wrong is going wrong. He's now stuck in traffic. If the guy behind him honks
once more he's going to kill him.
Funny, but serious and brutal tale about the simplest of
things. The guy behind who won't stop honking. Sometimes you just gotta get on
with it because sometimes, they have their reasons.
★★★★★ for general.
★★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
WET WITH ME
A young lad with a terrible drug addiction has heard
about a shop. A shop where the proprietor can help with anything. He goes to
him for help with his addiction but he needs money. A lot of money.
The only way of getting the money is to rob his father.
But his father might also know of this shop.
This is a very cool story. Very dark. You do feel
sympathy for the character but hate him at the same time. When you come to the
last pages though, you cannot help but scream for him. Excellent.
★★★★★ for general.
★★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
THE SCRIMSHAW MUSEUM
Tyler Lawton has been searching for The Scrimshaw Museum
for years. He knows he is close and his excitement is beyond belief. Will that
excitement remain when he actually finds it?
I understood everything until it got to a certain point
then I lost it. Sometimes I think I am just not smart enough to get Mr Mundt’s
work.
★★.5 for general.
★★.5 for bizarreness mix.
ANNIVERSARY
A beautiful anniversary picnic to make memories that will
last forever, on probably the most memorable anniversary for the entire world.
A poignant tale showing that some nice things do happen
on the most disastrous of days.
★★★★★ for general.
★★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
THE FALLING OF ASTRONAUTS LIKE RAIN
Astronauts falling from the sky fascinate a young boy
right throughout his childhood until he becomes old enough to be one. He wants
to know where they come from.
A lovely calm tale of death and the mysteries behind it.
This to me is an example of just how death can sometimes be taken for granted.
★★★★ for general.
★★★★ for bizarreness mix.
So there you have it. My take on the tales included
within Synchronised Sleepwalking.
My impressions? This collection will stay with me for a
long long time, for varying reasons. It possesses some of the most bizarre
stories I have ever read. It possesses probably the best short story I have
ever read in The Pale Blue Zenith of the
Sky. It possesses one of the scariest stories I have ever read in To Continue Forever. It possesses
probably the funniest trilogy of stories I have read about a super hero
chicken, El Pollo.
What it definitely shows us is the varied and mighty
impressive imagination of Martin Mundt. Sometimes horrific, sometimes funny,
sometimes beautiful, his writing is just fantastic. His pacing is perfect. His
use of language and vocabulary super and so perfectly fitting for each and
every story.
I defy anyone who picks this collection up not to get
something good from it. I absolutely loved it and I look forward to the next
collection from Mr Mundt. The man is a genius at short story writing.
Normally, my rating for a collection is made up of the
average of all scores for the individual stories. You know what though? Given
the fact this book has twenty-seven stories in it and I loved so many of them,
I cannot give it less than full marks!
Highest possible recommendation!
General rating:
★★★★★ I can give no less!
Bizarreness rating:
★★★★★ So bizarre it's.....well....bizarre!
If you would like to help support Confessions of a Reviewer,
then please consider using the links below to buy Synchronised Sleepwalking or any other books from Martin. This not
only supports me but also lets me know how many people actually like to buy
books after reading my reviews.
Thanks.
Book Synopsis:
To sleep, perchance to dream... And in dreaming lies the
danger! With Martin Mundt as your dangerous Dream Master, in the 27 tales
within, you'll visit places dark and places strange. You'll live dreams both
oddly hilarious and eerily heart-wrenching.
From a couple with a fetish for fireworks to a tower of
words that reaches to the sky and beyond... from a dominatrix with a perverted
parrot to a triptych of El Pollo tales of fowl revenge... from an ex-girlfriend
who'd make Kathy Bates' character in Misery seem like a good time girl to a
Lovecraftian descent into the darkest magic... These dreams will kidnap your
imagination and take you to places you've never dared before to see. Hide all
the sharp objects in your bedroom and prepare for some serious Sleepwalking...
Martin Mundt has published one novel: "Reanimated
Americans" with Creeping Hemlock Press; two collections of short stories,
"The Dark Underbelly of Hymns" (originally published by Delirium
Books), and "The Crawling Abattoir" (originally published by Twilight
Tales Publications), and both re-issued in 2013 by Dark Arts Books at
www.darkartsbooks.com; as well as a novella, "The Cranston Gibberer"
with Bad Moon Books.
He had three stories appear in the anthology "Candy
in the Dumpster", the first book published by Dark Arts Books in 2006. He
founded the webzine www.feralfiction.com in 2004. His play, "The Jackie
Sexknife Show", was produced by the Crooked Twilight Theatre Company in
Chicago in 2003. Seven of his short stories have received Honorable Mention in
"The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror" anthologies.
His film reviews can be found at www.Talestoterrify.com.
He won the Flash Fiction contests at the World Horror Conventions in 2005 and
2006 with stories that cannot be read in front of children.
And
for more about Martin, visit his site or find him on social media:
Website – Facebook – Twitter – Goodreads – Amazon Page
No comments:
Post a Comment