Today we are pleased to review two short stories by Joel Andre. Mr. Andre is currently on tour with Partners in Crime. This time he has two books, Brutal and Perfection.

Review

I found the primary character in this book to be very dark, but very real. I could tell there were real emotions behind his actions, and I truly felt the fear that Mr. Andre tried to create on the page. The story was very brief, but left me wanting much more. There were loose ends, and I felt that this was just the first chapter in a much broader overall story. With the plot that goes on, this would definitely be aimed at the young adult/adult market. I think it would definitely be NC-17. But for a horror story, it really grabbed me and kept me there.

Synopsis:

One dark and warm October night in the heart of Arizona, a group of friends are out for an evening of fun. It was a night for celebration, and to draw them away from the world.

As they drink the night away, a dark and handsome stranger watches them in the distance. His observations going unnoticed as the girls focus on their own conversation.

Too drunk to make it home on their own, the stranger offers the group a ride home in his taxi. Reluctantly, the girls agree.

What follows is a dark and brutal act of revenge decades in the making.

Review

This story while equally brutal in it’s telling, struck me as more along the lines of a more horrific outer limits or twlight zone. Like Brutal, Mr. Andre leaves you at the end of the story wanting and desiring more. I want to know what the story is behind these people, I want to know why they are doing what they are doing, and yes, in a strange twisted way, I want to see what else they have in store for people.

Again, I’d give this one a young adults/adults rating of NC-17 just due to the overall content of the story. Both stories can easily be read in one sitting, but you might want to leave the light on afterwards.

Synopsis:

Carol and Tammy Long have fought a constant battle with their weight all their lives. When a stranger on the television offers an amazing new diet plan with a weight loss success rate of 100 percent, Tammy feels like it was an answer to their prayers.

As the pair ventures off to the Verde Valley Weight Loss Clinic things start to take a darker turn. The owner Kathy Black gives them a new take on the classic idea of perfection.

Now, placed in a medical facility where they are constantly monitored, the women learn there is something wrong with perfection.

About the Author

Joel M. Andre was born January 13, 1981. At a young age he was fascinated with the written word. It was at fourteen that Poe blew his mind, and Andre began to dabble with darker poetry.

Between the years of 1999 and 2007 Joel was featured in various poetry anthologies and publications. In 2008 he released his first collection,Pray the Rain Never EndsImage Blocked.

Knowing there was something deeper and darker inside of his soul, Joel decided to take a stab at commercialism. Releasing the dark tongue in cheek, A Death at the North PoleImage Blocked, created a dark world among the death of Kris Kringle. Ultimately providing a tale of redemption.

October of 2008 saw Joel release his second book, Kill 4 MeImage Blocked. A tale in which a woman is haunted by a vengeful spirit through text messages and instant messaging.

Taking some time off and doing a lot of soul searching, Joel took things in a new direction and dabbled in the Fantasy Genre with, The Pentacle of Light. The tale dealing with five major races battling for control of Earth, and the acceptance of their God.

Finally, after missing his detective Lauren Bruni, he released the book The Return in October 2009, this time moving the action from the North Pole and placing it in the small Arizona community he was raised in.

Andre’s latest book is The Black Chronicles: Cry of the Fallen about a dead man who seeks revenge on the woman that tormented him in peaceful Northern Arizona.

Currently, he resides in Chandler, AZ.
You can visit his website at www.joelmandre.info

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 13th, 2012 at 11:14 pm and is filed under Books, Fiction, Horror. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.