Post by angelac on Feb 16, 2017 11:20:07 GMT -6
From the Description
Streetwise Romeo and Juliet meets Stephen King’s Firestarter.
HER MAMA ALWAYS SAID SHE WAS SPECIAL.
HIS DADDY CALLED HIM A DEMON.
BUT EVEN MONSTERS CAN FALL IN LOVE.
Montessa Tovar is walking home alone when she is abducted by Lu, a serial killer with unusual talents and a grudge against the world. But in time, the victim becomes the executioner as ‘Apocalyptic’ Montessa and her doomed ‘Nuclear’ Lulu crisscross the country in a bloody firestorm of revenge. Montessa carries on the proud tradition of Joe Hill, Clive Barker, and Laird Barron.
Publication Date: February 26, 2016
Publisher: Crystal Lake Publishing
Publication Length: 168 pages
I received a copy of this book from the publisher for review purposes. This is in no way reflected in my opinion of this novella. I did not receive any form of compensation for my review.
When I received a challenge from a reading group to read a book by a woman author for Women In Horror Month I thought 'Let's kill two birds with one stone' and pulled this one out of my review queue. I'm so glad I did because this novella blew me away! Apocalyptic Montessa and Nuclear Lulu: A Tale of Atomic Love is a love letter between a serial killer and his victim/trainee. The love story between Montessa and Lu is heart-felt and touching, while their killing spree is gory and twisted. I found myself caring for them and rooting for them to get away instead of relishing their bloody end the way I would with most serial killer books. Not an easy thing to accomplish! By the time I finished the last page of this brilliant story I had added all of Mercedes M. Yardley's books to my wish list and become a die-hard fan. I can't recommend this one highly enough!! A fast paced and phenomenally written 5 star read.
About the Author
Mercedes M. Yardley is a dark fantasist who wears stilettos, red lipstick, and poisonous flowers in her hair. She is the author of the short story collection Beautiful Sorrows, the novellas Apocalyptic Montessa and Nuclear Lulu: A Tale of Atomic Love and Little Dead Red, and the novels Nameless: The Darkness Comes and Pretty Little Dead Girls: A Novel of Murder and Whimsy. She often speaks at conferences and teaches workshops on several subjects, including personal branding and how to write a novel in stolen moments. Mercedes lives and works in Sin City with her family and menagerie of Strange and Unusual Pets.
You can reach her at abrokenlaptop.com or follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and GoodReads
Praise
"MERCEDES WRITES WITH SUCH POWER, CONVICTION, BEAUTY, and sadness that as you read her work you will experience one of those rare occasions where the pillars of your soul begin to shake, and as frightening as it will be to lose yourself to her talents, it will also be heavenly and unforgettable, and so, so, worth it..." - Lee Thompson, author of When We Join Jesus in Hell
"Quite possibly the best book I've read all year." - MAJA, THE NOCTURNAL LIBRARY on Pretty Little Dead Girls
"Mercedes writes with a fluidity and accessibility that instantly draws you in. The characters are by no stretch heroes, and this makes them all the more compelling to the reader. The story plays out like a gleefully twisted dear diary, and moves along at a pace which makes turning the pages almost effortless. There's an intimacy to this book that makes you feel like you're being spoken to individually, and a turn of phrase which is simultaneously dramatic, witty and poetic in equal measure." - James Walley
"Praise for her earlier work compared to favorably to Joe Hill and, with Nameless, she proves again why this is. Mercedes has a strong, unique voice that brings her brand of dark fiction straight into the reader's mind. She has an effortless, dynamic turn of phrase which feels natural at all times." - Jay Faulkner
"This is a book that doesn't shy away from the dark and disturbing choices that we, as humans, make. Life is precious, and yet sometimes we seem to accept our own mortality far too easily. Suicide is not an easy subject to write about, but the author writes about it with sensitivity as it's a pivotal moment for so much that happens in this story." - LITERAL ADDICTION's Vivacious Valkyrie - Marta
"Fans of Mercedes M. Yardley's work will have no trouble gobbling up her first novel-length work, and it is definitely good news that there will be two more books forthcoming in the series. Although it's an urban fantasy novel, it involves demon hunting, and there's plenty of action and fight scenes to go around, the novel is inflected with Mercedes's unique voice, which shines through in each of her works, and sets this one apart from the pack." - Reviewed by Hellnote's Dark Eva