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lisagoe's review
5.0
Funny and scary and interesting to ruminate over. I heard Ian read from this and promptly bought it.
motherhorror's review
4.0
Felix Renn is my new favorite detective. He's moody, a bit of a wise ass and a total lone wolf. This collection of short stories follows our protagonist as he works some very unusual cases dealing with a dark dimension called, The Black Lands.
The first story, Temporary Monsters, indicated that I would enjoy the rest of the collection--the dialog is so perfect, witty, dry, full of sarcasm--what every good noir needs!
These stories sort of reminded me of like a very noir style of X-Files. I particularly enjoyed the first half of the story 'Ash Angles' which takes place during Christmas time--I love spooky tales around the holidays and Ian Rogers really developed that snowy, festive season layered with the perfect amount of darkness-such a great contrast.
I love, love, LOVED the BEKs (Black Eyed Kids) because those were some creepy monsters/beings we're unfamiliar with that came straight from Rogers' imagination. Really cool.
After each story, Ian tells a little "behind the scenes" tale about it and then at the end, we got a history of the Black Lands. I wish more authors would do that--Show us glimpses of the thought process and why certain stories were told. Really adds a lot to the collection and getting to know more about an author is always a plus.
I guess I gave it 4 and not 5 stars because I really wanted more from the book--this needs to be a novel so bad. I felt pulled out every time a story ended and a new one was beginning. But that's my only complaint--just that I wish these were more developed.
The first story, Temporary Monsters, indicated that I would enjoy the rest of the collection--the dialog is so perfect, witty, dry, full of sarcasm--what every good noir needs!
These stories sort of reminded me of like a very noir style of X-Files. I particularly enjoyed the first half of the story 'Ash Angles' which takes place during Christmas time--I love spooky tales around the holidays and Ian Rogers really developed that snowy, festive season layered with the perfect amount of darkness-such a great contrast.
I love, love, LOVED the BEKs (Black Eyed Kids) because those were some creepy monsters/beings we're unfamiliar with that came straight from Rogers' imagination. Really cool.
After each story, Ian tells a little "behind the scenes" tale about it and then at the end, we got a history of the Black Lands. I wish more authors would do that--Show us glimpses of the thought process and why certain stories were told. Really adds a lot to the collection and getting to know more about an author is always a plus.
I guess I gave it 4 and not 5 stars because I really wanted more from the book--this needs to be a novel so bad. I felt pulled out every time a story ended and a new one was beginning. But that's my only complaint--just that I wish these were more developed.
0hfortheloveofbooks's review
5.0
"This wasn't like walking into a horror movie, I decided. Horror movies weren't real. This was like walking into a nightmare. Nightmares weren't real either, but they felt real when you were in them."
Supernatural Noir is now apparently a genre I love. SuperNOIRtural Tales by Ian Rogers is now one of my favorite books. I had previously read his short story collection, Every House is Haunted, and was mesmerized by its darkness, sometimes bleakness, yet unrivaled beauty in the writing and the stories themselves. After falling in love with Every House is Haunted it was a no-brainer to pick up SuperNOIRtural Tales. And SuperNOIRtural Tales is just as good, albeit different. SuperNOIRtural Tales is told in first person point of view which can be tricky; usually plot takes precedence to beautiful descriptive language. Yes, most of the stories were heavily plot driven but emotion and characterization were not sacrificed.
Felix Renn is my new favorite supernatural detective. He's actually my first and only favorite supernatural detective because I've never actually read supernatural detective stories before. But I love Felix Renn regardless. I loved his sharp wit, dark humor, his sass! But he's also brave, loyal, and smart; even if he was usually in the wrong place at the wrong time. The dynamic between Felix and his ex-wife-turned-business-partner Sandra was hilarious. Their dialogue was the perfect amount of love and loathing and added some comic relief to otherwise dark situations. It was humorous but it also felt genuine which gave their relationship and the story as a whole more authenticity. Sandra is unapologetically her and definitely not afraid to put Felix in his place. But she also revealed glimpses of her sweet and tender side. In the story, Black Eyed Kids, Rogers gave his readers a real look at how Felix felt about her. That really went a long way to round him out. He is not just some flat character with witty lines, he has depth. He is occasionally lonely, scared, and vulnerable.
While Rogers characterization is spot on, his world building was fantastic! I love the Black Lands! He created this world steeped in darkness. In the span of six short stories, just 215 pages, Rogers unfolds bit by tantalizing bit the mystery, the lore, the history, the creatures of another dimension a little too close for comfort to our own. These Black Lands, the lands of perpetual night, are filled with both known horrors and horrors yet to be discovered. He explored the classic monstrosities of vampires and werewolves and gave birth to a few monsters my darkest nightmares couldn't create; namely the Whyver and those Black Eyed Kids.
The Whyver, that inhuman evil with the fire eyes was terrifying and The Brick was right up there for a favorite story but in the race for favorite supernatural abomination, the winners are the Black Eyed Kids. They were nightmare-inducing. Children are supposed to be innocent beings yet there was nothing innocent about these children. Rogers really preys on human nature with the Black Eyed Kids, that of his characters and also his readers. As decent humans, it should be that if we see a child in need or distress, we help it. But abiding by human nature may just get you horribly slaughtered if we rush to help a Black Eyed Kid. However horrifying these kids are, it was still refreshing to know they do follow rules. Not any we follow but they do have standards to meet!
So now that I've finished SuperNOIRtural Tales, I will be sitting here pining for another Felix Renn story. Short story, novel, anything. I'm ready for another trip to the Black Lands!
Supernatural Noir is now apparently a genre I love. SuperNOIRtural Tales by Ian Rogers is now one of my favorite books. I had previously read his short story collection, Every House is Haunted, and was mesmerized by its darkness, sometimes bleakness, yet unrivaled beauty in the writing and the stories themselves. After falling in love with Every House is Haunted it was a no-brainer to pick up SuperNOIRtural Tales. And SuperNOIRtural Tales is just as good, albeit different. SuperNOIRtural Tales is told in first person point of view which can be tricky; usually plot takes precedence to beautiful descriptive language. Yes, most of the stories were heavily plot driven but emotion and characterization were not sacrificed.
Felix Renn is my new favorite supernatural detective. He's actually my first and only favorite supernatural detective because I've never actually read supernatural detective stories before. But I love Felix Renn regardless. I loved his sharp wit, dark humor, his sass! But he's also brave, loyal, and smart; even if he was usually in the wrong place at the wrong time. The dynamic between Felix and his ex-wife-turned-business-partner Sandra was hilarious. Their dialogue was the perfect amount of love and loathing and added some comic relief to otherwise dark situations. It was humorous but it also felt genuine which gave their relationship and the story as a whole more authenticity. Sandra is unapologetically her and definitely not afraid to put Felix in his place. But she also revealed glimpses of her sweet and tender side. In the story, Black Eyed Kids, Rogers gave his readers a real look at how Felix felt about her. That really went a long way to round him out. He is not just some flat character with witty lines, he has depth. He is occasionally lonely, scared, and vulnerable.
While Rogers characterization is spot on, his world building was fantastic! I love the Black Lands! He created this world steeped in darkness. In the span of six short stories, just 215 pages, Rogers unfolds bit by tantalizing bit the mystery, the lore, the history, the creatures of another dimension a little too close for comfort to our own. These Black Lands, the lands of perpetual night, are filled with both known horrors and horrors yet to be discovered. He explored the classic monstrosities of vampires and werewolves and gave birth to a few monsters my darkest nightmares couldn't create; namely the Whyver and those Black Eyed Kids.
The Whyver, that inhuman evil with the fire eyes was terrifying and The Brick was right up there for a favorite story but in the race for favorite supernatural abomination, the winners are the Black Eyed Kids. They were nightmare-inducing. Children are supposed to be innocent beings yet there was nothing innocent about these children. Rogers really preys on human nature with the Black Eyed Kids, that of his characters and also his readers. As decent humans, it should be that if we see a child in need or distress, we help it. But abiding by human nature may just get you horribly slaughtered if we rush to help a Black Eyed Kid. However horrifying these kids are, it was still refreshing to know they do follow rules. Not any we follow but they do have standards to meet!
So now that I've finished SuperNOIRtural Tales, I will be sitting here pining for another Felix Renn story. Short story, novel, anything. I'm ready for another trip to the Black Lands!
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