Occasional Demons

Occasional Demons
Rick Hautala
Cemetery Dance, June 2010
ISBN: 978-1587670954

Rick Hautala’s new collection from Cemetery Dance, Occasional Demons: almost thirty compact, visceral thrill rides full of blood, suspense, presented in quick bites that linger for a period of time far longer than it actually takes to read them.

The collection kicks off with “The Nephews,” a solid entry in the classic ghost-story-told-in-a-bar corner of the horror genre. “Toxic Shock” features a twist ending that would feel right at home in an EC comic. “Off The Cuff,” about a man with an irrational (or is it?) fear of appliances, feels like an episode of The Twilight Zone. Page after page, story after story, Hautala sets up the familiar tropes of the genre and sets them spinning with his own stylistic touches.

Even the last story, “Scared Crows,” a collaboration with Jim Connolly which features Hellboy, the Mike Mignola creation made famous in Dark Horse comics and Guillermo del Toro movies, feels right at home in the overall body of Hautala’s work. The authors do a great job of capturing the gruff, beer-swilling soul of Hellboy, but the story about a serial killer, a scarecrow, and another hole-in-the-wall bar doesn’t feel out of place – it’s a seamless addition to the overall collection.

The stories collected here span much of Hautala’s career. In his book, On Writing, Stephen King refers to the short stories he pumped out at the beginning of his career as “one reel horror movies.” It’s a perfect description of what you’ll find in Occasional Demons, it's a great batch of horror stories, and I highly recommend it for all fans of horror.