Pain Cages

by Paul Kane

Reminiscent of Stephen King’s classic, bestselling book Different Seasons, Paul Kane gives us an unforgettable collection of four novella-size stories. Each story is refreshingly original and delivers an emotional impact that is rarely seen in today’s literature. Dark and moody, clever and well-written… Pain Cages is speculative fiction at its best.



PAIN CAGES - Our protagonist Chris is in a little bit of a situation, in that he's been kidnapped and locked in a hanging cage. He's not alone, as there are several other cages with varying occupants surrounding him.

HALFLIFE - documents what happens to teenage werewolves when they grow up and are forced to deal with the consequences of their misguided youth. A hunter stalks the secretive group of middle-aged lycans, picking them off one by one without any hint of his reasoning.

SIGNS OF LIFE - revolves around a passenger train derailment and how it affects each survivor. The scenes are spliced with horoscopes, the signs determined by which character will be focused on in the upcoming passage.

THE LAZARUS CONDITION - focuses on Matthew, a man trying to put the pieces of his past back together. A brilliant tale, weaving trauma, distress, religion and death into an intricate tapestry affecting our hero and all of the supporting characters.

Genres: Horror

Nook

First published August 6, 2011

About the author

Paul Kane has been writing professionally for almost fifteen years. His genre journalism has appeared in such magazines as Fangoria, SFX and Rue Morgue, and his non-fiction books are the critically acclaimed The Hellraiser Films and Their Legacy and Voices in the Dark. His award-winning short fiction has appeared in magazines and anthologies on both sides of the Atlantic (as well as being broadcast on BBC Radio 2), and has been collected in Alone (In the Dark), Touching the Flame, FunnyBones, Peripheral Visions, Shadow Writer, The Butterfly Man and Other Stories, The Spaces Between and GHOSTS. His novella Signs of Life reached the shortlist of the British Fantasy Awards 2006, The Lazarus Condition was introduced by Mick Garris - creator of Masters of Horror - RED featured artwork from Dave (The Graveyard Book) McKean and Pain Cages was introduced by Stephen Volk (The Awakening).

As Special Publications Editor of the British Fantasy Society he worked with authors like Brian Aldiss, Ramsey Campbell, Muriel Gray and Robert Silverberg, he is the co-editor of Hellbound Hearts for Pocket Books (Simon and Schuster), an anthology of original stories inspired by Clive Barker's mythos - featuring contributions from the likes of Christopher Golden and Mike Mignola, Kelley Armstrong and Richard Christian Matheson - The Mammoth Book of Body Horror (Constable & Robinson) - featuring Stephen King, James Herbert and Robert Bloch - and the Poe-inspired Beyond Rue Morgue (for Titan).

In 2008 his zombie story 'Dead Time' was turned into an episode of the Lionsgate/NBC TV series Fear Itself, adapted by Steve Niles (30 Days of Night) and directed by Darren Lynn Bousman (SAW II-IV). He also scripted The Opportunity which premiered at Cannes in 2009, The Weeping Woman - starring Fright Night's Stephen Jeffreys - and Wind Chimes (directed by Brad '7th Dimension' Watson. He is the author of the novels Of Darkness and Light, The Gemini Factor and the bestselling Arrowhead trilogy (Arrowhead, Broken Arrow and Arrowland), a post-apocalyptic reworking of the Robin Hood mythology gathered together as the sell-out Hooded Man omnibus. His latest novels are Lunar (which is set to be turned into a feature film) and the short Y.A. book The Rainbow Man (as P.B. Kane). He currently lives in Derbyshire, UK, with his wife - the author Marie O'Regan - his family, and a black cat called Mina. You can find out more at his website www.shadow-writer.co.uk which has featured Guest Writers such as Neil Gaiman, Charlaine Harris, Dean Koontz, John Connolly and Guillermo del Toro.

Reviews

[Andy · Rating 2 out of 5]

First two stories were OK. The first was not a surprise ending to me; I saw it coming. But that may be due to my professional training. The second was an enjoyable premise and executed well. The third was a slog; tedious to read, not at all engaging, and seemingly an exercise to see if the author could write horoscopes that summarized each plot section. Of the four, the last story was the best in terms of plot and writing. Except for the beginning of the first story, these are NOT frightening stories at all. And the typos really detract significantly from the work.

[Deidre · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not very horrifying, I have to agree with others. I kind of enjoyed the last one. I shall say no more in case I ruin it for someone else okay, I was waiting for something like the dead would replace the living or something horror like, but the surprise ending was that it was just like it sounded, kind of sweet.

[Mark Matthews · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pain Cages is 4 novellas, but the 'title track' alone is worth the purchase. This is great storytelling, and the darkness is painted on the characters in deeper and deeper shades that had me looking forward to each chance I had to read on.

In Pain Cages, the character is perhaps psychotic, yet the cage he is trapped in feels so real you can touch the metal, and his plunge into insanity is felt up close and personal. To me, this is what horror and dark fiction is meant to be: a metaphor for the already dark journey of an intriquing character who you care about.

Next up is a character who is just like you or me. Okay, maybe more like me, depending, but still, it's hard to fall in love when you are dealing with the savage within, being hunted, and you have to feed.

Third was a zodiac story that felt more like experimental fiction and didn't grab me the same, but the book ends with a wonderful Lazarus story where some of the dead are returning for justice and unfinished business. This premise is treated with great storytelling and is a fine end to this worthy collection.

[Andy Angel · Rating 5 out of 5]

A collection of four excellent horror novellas and not a weak story among them!
Difficult to review without giving away twists or plotlines so all I'll say is

PAIN CAGES - This is the story that really marks Paul Kane out as the natural successor to Clive Barker. A cleverly written tale with a kicker at the end that I never guessed. Would have not looked out of place in the aforementioned Mr. Barker's Books of Blood.

HALFLIFE - a tale of the hunter and the hunted - gripping!

SIGNS OF LIFE - strangers and starsigns on a train

THE LAZARUS CONDITION - Matthew comes home to visit his Mum - seven years after he's died.
For me this was the strongest story in the collection, interesting characters and ideas and a narrative that leads you along but keeps you guessing. Very moving at times

[Brandy Hunt · Rating 2 out of 5]

The stories in this anthology are okay, but they do not come across as horrific. I wish I could say more without completely spoiling the stories in the anthology, but not once was I scared or delighted by what I read. The stories are solid and interested, but I feel just not enough ooomph. It struck me as something you might find on someone's coffee table -- the cover looks nice, but no one has read it.

[Terri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent stories! Kane has written each of the four stories with different themes and if they were published under four separate names you wouldn't connect the writer, THAT is a good author in my opinion!
I'm not going to give away any of the details because that's not what a review is about, I'm only going to say its well worth reading! I really enjoyed it!

[Mackenzie Baquiran · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting and thought provoking

The stories were very thought provoking. Not my typical genre but interesting enough to keep going. I'm not a huge short story fan and I would have liked a little more from each story.

[Susan McReynolds · Rating 4 out of 5]

great stories!