A new review, and a nice one, too!

Norm’s Top Of The TBR Pile: Vendetta by James A. Moore
Norm Rubenstein
A happy 2009 to you all. I don’t know how you all spent your New Year’s holiday this year, but I spent a nice portion of mine reading an incredible new book that’s about to be released by the Morning Star imprint of Larry Roberts’ Bloodletting Press. The book in question is James A Moore’s Vendetta.
Those who have actually seen, or better yet, actually held a copy of Morning Star’s inaugural release, Greg Gifune’s Judas Goat, know how unique and stunning the design, layout, and actual physical book produced by this young imprint are. A look at the dazzling cover art for Vendetta by the gifted Alan M. Clark is sufficient evidence that this forthcoming book will maintain the exceedingly high standards that Larry Roberts originated with Morning Star’s initial release. Vendetta is listed as being a novella, but at one hundred and thirty five action-packed pages, the book could easily be considered a short novel.
What is so exciting about Vendetta is that not only is it a new book by the ultra-talented author James A. Moore – and not only is it a new Jonathan Crowley book by James A. Moore (part of the BLP/Morning Star “Jonathan Crowley Library”) - but that it is the book where Jonathan Crowley, to borrow an apt phrase from the film NETWORK’s Howard Beale (as brilliantly written by the Academy Award winning Paddy Chayefsky), finally decides that he is “mad as hell, and not going to take it anymore” and really lets loose!
For those unfamiliar with author Moore’s brilliant creation, Jonathan Crowley, he is one of the Horror Genre’s most unforgettable, original, and compelling characters. Jonathan Crowley could be said to appear to be a man with short brown hair and wearing rimless glasses, a man not yet into middle age – a … man, and nothing more. But, take a bit of a closer look, or be unlucky enough to actually, personally encounter Jonathan Crowley yourself and you’ll soon learn that first looks really can be most deceiving. Crowley is a lot older than he appears, and far, far more dangerous.
Jonathan Crowley possesses certain supernatural powers, including a mystical automobile that makes Knight Rider’s “Kitt” seem like nothing more than an overgrown Tonka-toy. Crowley also possesses a great deal of arcane knowledge, which serves him well in his “profession”. A bit similar to F. Paul Wilson’s Repairman Jack, Jonathan Crowley “helps” people in serious trouble; serious trouble with the supernatural. He is known as “The Hunter” – and heaven help you if you are the one he is looking for! He hunts … Evil.
Author Moore’s stories featuring Jonathan Crowley have all been exciting, breathless, edge-of-your-seat adventures of the best kind, and superbly entertaining. Vendetta somehow manages to take things up even another notch. It is a stand-alone novella, in that you need not have read any of the previous Crowley adventures in order to enjoy Vendetta in full, and is thus a rousing introduction to the character and his history.
Crowley is normally one of the most levelheaded, detached, and unemotional persons in existence. Crowley’s impassivity and pragmatism are normally some of his strong points, and both help him stay alive and give him an important edge when dealing with such creatures as ghosts and demons. However, Crowley is still human … well, at least in large part. He once had a loving wife, Elizabeth, and three young children, Jeremy, Wendy, and Theresa. All were horribly tortured to death in front of him, while he was helpless, tortured and crucified himself, and could only watch in impotent horror, forty-one years ago. (Told you he is older than he seems!) Now, even back some forty-one years ago, Jonathan Crowley was a formidable and fearsome foe, Thus, whatever could render him harmless and force him to watch as those he loved more dearly than his own life were hideously tortured and murdered must be an awesome power. Indeed, the entity that did this is a very powerful demon who had met and been thwarted by Crowley twice previously. Crowley had twice defeated this demon and banished it back to Hell, but the demon had sworn to get revenge upon The Hunter, and in their third meeting, after five long years of planning, did so, at great cost to Crowley. Jonathan Crowley has been searching for this particular demon throughout the intervening four-plus decades relentlessly, but without success.
In Vendetta, author Moore shows us what happens when Crowley, who is enmeshed in working upon two different (and most interesting) cases, suddenly is given a clue that leads him to a fourth and final showdown with his nemesis, the murderer of his family. Suddenly, Crowley’s detachment disappears and the white-hot, molten emotion of revenge takes hold of The Hunter. However, in a brilliant twist of author Moore’s, in the intervening years, the demon has given up a portion of its power to become mortal – and being mortal, being able to actually experience human emotions - has changed the creature, now primarily human, and who now has his own loving wife and children. Has the change been substantial enough that the demon has now become a real human being with a conscience and soul, and will Crowley’s need for revenge transform him onto the very kind of soulless monster that he has fought against all these years?
The novella grabs you on its first page and never lets the reader go, or even catch his/her breath. There are intriguing sub-plots involving the actual cases Crowley has been called in to investigate. One involves the ghost of Tim Daniels, who Crowley had helped four years ago when he had been murdered at age ten. This young ghost suddenly, and inconveniently, starts to contact Jonathan to ask him to help his poor surviving mother, who he claims is in danger of coming to harm via a malevolent supernatural force that has taken up residence in the family home. Crowley, who has far more personal and pressing business elsewhere, gets pulled into investigating this incident as well, and as is usual when Crowley becomes involved, things are never as they seem. The writing in Vendetta is consistently great and the characters are complex, variegated, and interesting persons that hold your attention. Author Moore is also accomplished at resolving all the various strands that he introduces and manages to bring multiple storylines to satisfying resolutions by the end of the novella.
Here we are, only one week into 2009, and Vendetta is certainly going to be heading my list of “favorite” and “best of” novellas for 2009. This is truly a “must-read” book. Indeed, I’ve a message for the collectors among us who buy a copy of these limited edition books merely to keep them, unopened, in their collections (and you all know who you are!): This is one novella that you better decide to open and read – or buy a second copy to act as your “reading copy” as it is just too good of a book to consider not reading.
Truly, Vendetta is the very first book of 2009 that makes my recommendation – buy this book and make sure to place it on the very top of your TBR Pile!
Rating: five stars

Merry Christmas, Mr. Crowley

Jonathan Crowley's Christmas came and went this week, courtesy of Cemetery Dance Publications, who asked me for a holiday short story on very short notice. What they got was "Home for the Holidays," a cheerful tale of Crowley, a miserably lonely man and the ghosts said gentleman summoned every year. Chronologically, the tale would settle nicely between "Little Boy Blue" and "Vendetta."

Cover art for the digital download (free from CD) was provided by my buddy Glenn Chadbourne, who remains one of the absolute best.

If you caught it, I hope you enjoyed the show.

Happy New Year, may 2009 see you happy, healthy and prosperous!

Jim Moore