ODD MAN OUT by James Newman

WELCOME TO THE BLACK MOUNTAIN CAMP FOR BOYS!

Summer, 1989. It is a time for splashing in the lake and exploring the wilderness, for nine teenagers to bond together and create friendships that could last the rest of their lives.
But among this group there is a young man with a secret–a secret that, in this time and place, is unthinkable to his peers.
When the others discover the truth, it will change each of them forever. They will all have blood on their hands.

This was a painful book to read.
Not only because of ‘THE SCENE’, (which was very difficult to get through, too), but because of the subject matter. I’m sure you’ve read/watched ‘THE GIRL NEXT DOOR’ by now… remember how you felt throughout that entire book/movie? THAT is why ODD MAN OUT is painful. That feeling of helplessness in the pit of (y)our stomach(s). The author’s writing made me feel like I was right there in cabin #7, but despite my screams… the story continued. Even when you think it’s over… NOPE! That’s when the questions start coming.
ODD MAN OUT is a story that is going to stick with me/us.
Sneaky, sneaky Mr. Newman ::winks::

“[Odd Man Out] pulls back the veil to reveal hatred and violence for what it truly is – far too common and simple.” – Rev. Amanda Hendler-Voss

I hope EVERYONE reads this book, and recommends it to friends. It is going to turn some people around, and that’s a good thing.

P, L & N ♥
 ~sg

5/5 Knives for ODD MAN OUT

SHOUT OUT to Rev. Amanda Hendler-Voss, born and raised right here in Detroit, MI! Woot!
She wrote the book’s AFTERWARD, (I won’t bestow the ‘Michigan Madman’ moniker on her ;)). I’ve wanted to quote her throughout this whole review! It’s beautifully written – very strong, and motivational.

 

ODD MAN OUT on Amazon, and Goodreads

James Newman on Amazon, and Goodreads

 

Bloodshot Books, the publisher of ODD MAN OUT, is gearing up for their 2017 Open Call! The submission period is from August 1-31, 2017. Full details can be found @ bloodshotbooks.wordpress.com

Bloodshot Books – Read Until You Bleed

Established March 2015 – Bloodshot Books is a micro-press specializing in horror fiction, with a dash of science fiction, suspense and thrillers.

Tacky Tie Films – Revolutionizing the way films are made & experienced.

Cover design ©2016 by Ben Baldwin

THE SEASON OF GIVING by Angel Gelique

THE SEASON OF GIVING

More Horrific Holiday Fun from Angel Gelique

Lou Reilly grew up in a strict, oppressive environment, raised by zealous religious parents who merely wanted to protect him from the sinners of the world. Sheltered to the point of isolation, Lou is unprepared to fend for himself when his parents pass away.

Bullied and tormented at his new place of employment, Lou starts suspecting that his parents were right to shield him from such harsh and hateful people. Just as Lou begins to befriend a colleague who vows to help improve his life, he is put to the ultimate test of faith. All seems hopeless.

But he won’t let the sinners win. He won’t burn in hell as his parents have warned.

Lou will make things right….

Warning: For Mature Readers (18+) Only

The Season of Giving wasn’t all horrific holiday fun – it kind of bummed me out a little bit.

I think Lou’s mom used to get together and go to lunch with Carrie White‘s mom, where they would swap “Parenting Tips for the Mentally Christian” over their watered down tea and bad fish entrees.

All alone, Lou Reilly grew up the best that he could.  He finally made a real friend,  but when a little miscommunication / misunderstanding arose between them – he obsessed over it until he convinced himself that his “friend” was actually an enemy out to destroy him, and send him to Hell in a hand-basket.

I definitely had some emotional moments while reading this – mostly anger that came with me screaming at the characters and waking my husband up. There were some ‘Oh, poor Lou’ moments, too.  One final ‘hugely cringe-worthy’ scene leads up to our (mostly) “YAY!” ending – unless you overthink it and let your mind wander past the final page of the story. If you do that, you may end up like me when Lou finally ‘make things right’ – I haven’t decided if I want to cheer for Lou, the carnage, and the sweet, wonderful revenge or if I want to just put my head down and sob.

If you’re not in the mood for something quite so… deep right now, you can start by reading Christmas Shopping first – a genuine Horrific Holiday FUN book   🙂

The Season of Giving on Amazon / Goodreads

Angel Gelique on Amazon / Goodreads

 

Cornered: 14 Stories of Bullying and Defiance

 ‘It does not necessarily take a fist to create a punch in the gut.’

‘This fourteen-story YA fiction anthology delves into the experience of being bullied—socially, emotionally, physically, psychologically, and sexually. The school hallways, walks home, and house walls are no longer the boundaries for intimidation and harassment. With the rapid-fire response time of social media and smartphones, bullying has lost all limits, and the lines among truth, lies, and real accountability have become blurred.’

Cornered includes works from

Rhoda Belleza, Kirsten Miller, Mayra Lazara Dole, Matthue Roth, Sheba Karim, Kate Ellison, Jennifer Brown,Brendan Halpin, Jamie Adoff, Elizabeth Miles, David Yoo, James Lecesne, Josh Berk, Lish McBride, Zetta Elliott

I originally had this shelved on Goodreads as ‘ya-general’, but I had to add it to my ‘ya-horror’ shelf as well. ‘Cornered’ is pretty far out of my genre comfort zone, but it horrified me on a different level.

I’ve read a lot of (IMHO) outstanding fictional books about bullying –
THE 8th by Matt Shaw, JEREMY by Matt Hickman, MY BEAUTIFUL SUICIDE by Atty Eve,  RAGE by Stephen King, and most recently RAGE by Kimberly A. Bettes. (just to name a few). I think ‘Cornered’ hurt a little deeper because the stories lacked the gratifyingly bloody revenge from the victim(s).

I have the outline prepared, so BOLO for full review & author info. 

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I came across an article I posted in 2013 when I searched for keyword word ‘bully’, and I want to share it again now. Please check it out when you have the time.

JEREMY: EVIL HAS ONE NAME by Matt Hickman

King Jeremy The Wicked

Clearly I remember
Pickin’ on the boy
Seemed a harmless little fuck
But we unleashed a lion
Gnashed his teeth
And bit the recessed lady’s breast
How could I forget

Jeremy is a pretty normal eleven year old, but things are about to change.

His parents are virtually absent in his life, and his home is a lonely place to be. He doesn’t want for material possessions, all he really wants is his parents time and affection.
Instead they spoil him with expensive gifts to compensate for not spending any time with him. His dad’s priority is his work, and he is rarely home – working late or off on another business trip. His mom considers him to be nothing but a hindrance – she doesn’t have time for that in her all-important, self-involved life. She’d rather spend time with her friends than with her own flesh and blood.

He has two best friends; Cole and Samuel. The trio have been practically inseparable since kindergarten. They stay out of any real trouble, and do well in school. They’re not considered the ‘popular kids’, but they’re not outcasts either.

Within two weeks of starting high school together – all that changed. A minor altercation in the lunchroom turned into constant bullying by two other students. The trio did their best to avoid the bullies, and Jeremy even tried to talk to his mom about the problem. He said “They’re making my life a complete misery”, and she just blew him off with a ‘boys will be boys’ attitude as she got ready to leave for a shopping trip with her friends. The very next day Jeremy and Samuel were attacked by one of the bullies, and a freak accident landed them in the hospital putting Jeremy in a coma and fighting for his life.

Jeremy was a good kid.
He didn’t mean for any of this to happen.
But something sinister rises inside him when he awakes, and for the first time in his life… he feels alive and truly powerful.

 

 

 

JEREMY: EVIL HAS ONE NAME on Amazon

Amazon Author Page of Matt Hickman

JEREMY: EVIL HAS ONE NAME on Goodreads

Goodreads Author Page of Matt Hickman

Students struggle to understand school suicide

Yet another child has succumbed to the overwhelming weight of the burdens no thirteen year old should even be aware of. My heart is breaking. No, I did not know him personally, but I have friends who did. Friends with kids of their own who knew & loved the deceased, and are trying to deal with the WHY. And, this happened in my own backyard.

Students struggle to understand school suicide

via Students struggle to understand school suicide.

I’ve been an advocate of suicide since I was thirteen myself. Having lost my mother at the same age as the victim. I’ve lost friends of all ages. I’ve almost lost myself. But – that’s not why I’m writing this. It’s about the children. Kids who should be playing sports, experiencing their first love, looking forward to Spring Break… childhood things. Kids who are being bullied, tortured and teased, beaten up and beaten down. What can we do? What can I do? Not too long ago, I watched a youtube video that a young girl made – a cry for help. She couldn’t even wait for the help to come. I’ve shed so many tears, for children I’ll never know. For lives that will never be lived. Hearts that will never be broken by a teen crush – because they’ve been broken by bullies. What can we do?

What can we do? Were you ever bullied when you were a kid? I was. Tell someone? Not me. If I would have told someone – things would have gotten worse! Not only a freak, but a tattle-tale, too! Worse bullying would have followed. But – things were different then. A bully was a bully. These days, with social media, bullying has become an art form. Gone are the days of people talking shit behind your back. Now, it’s happening in real time – live & in color. “She can’t even kill herself right! What a loser!” Holy Fuck – 342 people ‘liked’ that post! See where I’m going? I don’t have any answers. But, this is my Blog – and, tonight… I just need to vent.

I’ve found some statistics. “Twelve Facts About Bullying”. They are…
1. Over 3.2 million students are victims of bullying each year.
2. 1 in 4 teachers see nothing wrong with bullying and will only intervene 4 percent of the time.
3. Approximately 160,000 teens skip school every day because of bullying.
4. 1 in 7 students in grades K-12 is either a bully or a victim of bullying.
5. 56 percent of students have personally witnessed some type of bullying at school.
6. Over two-thirds of students believe that schools respond poorly to bullying, with a high percentage of students believing that adult help is infrequent and ineffective.
7. 71 percent of students report incidents of bullying as a problem at their school.
8. 90 percent of 4th through 8th graders report being victims of bullying.
9. 1 out 10 students drop out of school because of repeated bullying.
10. Harassment and bullying have been linked to 75 percent of school-shooting incidents.
11. Physical bullying increases in elementary school, peaks in middle school and declines in high school. Verbal abuse, on the other hand, remains constant.
12. A 2009 survey found that 9 out of 10 LGBT youth reported being verbally harassed at school in the past year because of their sexual orientation.

Like I said, I don’t know the answers. But, maybe I’ve raised some awareness.
I’m going to go call my son. Just to tell him I love him.

Help Stop Bullying

This was a Facebook post I saw on my friend ‘Cherie’s’ timeline a little bit ago, and I want to share the message. The number of suicides caused by bullying is heart-breaking. To name just one person, to put a face to this epidemic, please remember Tempest Smith.

A teacher in New York was teaching her class about bullying and gave them the following exercise to perform. She had the children take a piece of paper and told them to crumple it up, stamp on it and really mess it up but do not rip it. Then she had them unfold the paper, smooth it out and look at how scarred and dirty is was. She then told them to tell it they’re sorry. Now even though they said they were sorry and tried to fix the paper, she pointed out all the scars they left behind. And that those scars will never go away no matter how hard they tried to fix it. That is what happens when a child bully’s another child, they may say they’re sorry but the scars are there forever. The looks on the faces of the children in the classroom told her the message hit home. Pass it on or better yet, if you’re a parent or a teacher, do it with your child/children.