Brother Bones: The Undead Avenger

Brother Bones #1

by Ron Fortier, Rob Davis (Illustrator)

He has been sent to avenge the innocent and punish the guilty. Haunting the dark steets of Cape Noire, he is BROTHER BONES, THE UNDEAD AVENGER.

Collected in this volume are seven classic tales of pulp action and adventure: The Bone Brothers; Shield & Claw; The Scales of Terror; See Spot Kill; The Root of Evil; Gorilla Dreams; and for the first time a never before published tale: Ghost Train. Put on your slouch hat and grab your twin .45 automatics, there are werewolves and monsters awaiting to challenge the most macabre hero of them all- Brother Bones!

Genres: Audiobook

178 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2008

Reviews

[J.L. Lamastus · Rating 4 out of 5]

The stories are worth five stars. But I had to knock it one for the editing, which drove me nuts. Otherwise this is a great collection and I plan to read more.

[A. Sines · Rating 4 out of 5]

(I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review.)

I have never read Mr. Fortier before. I’ve never read pulp horror before. In fact, the only familiar thing about this is the narrator. I don’t know if he chooses these types of books because he likes them or if someone’s heard him before and just knows he’s the right narrator. Whatever the case, he is the right narrator for the dark and deranged.

Having opened myself up to new writers, new genres, I have frequently been disappointed by books that feel like they are merely the second draft on the road to something great, but someone (author, editor, publisher, etc.) decided that they wanted it out to the public before the story percolated into something avid readers would really appreciate. This set of stories is definitely not one of them.

This set of stories is thick enough to sink your teeth into and dark enough to blind you to anything else until you’ve finished it in its entirety.

Although for some looking for the cozy weirdness, you may have to pass this one by. It has gore. It has weird. It has shock factor. But all of that is the seasoning on top of a well-cooked steak.

[Riju Ganguly · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the finest “new pulp” fiction published in recent times, this book from master craftsman Ron Fortier contains the following stories:
1. The Bone Brothers
2. Shield & Claw
3. Scales of Terror
4. See Spot Kill
5. The Root of Evil
6. Gorilla Dreams
7. The Ghost Train
Despite being marred by typos, these stories contain nearly everything that stood for pulp fiction once upon a time, the list being: an undead avenger, a werewolf, a Lovecraftian horror, zombies, an evil tree, a Gorilla possessing a human brain, ghosts, curvaceous damsels (in distress, causing distress, taking care of distress), honest cops, mobsters, vivid imagery & language that can animate & invigorate bodily parts with various instincts, and dark humour. More importantly, the stories are bound to propel you towards the Net to find if the fine people of Airship 27 have brought out more of such works.

Recommended.

[Melissa Levine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I asked for a free copy of this audiobook when I saw who would be narrating, Scott Bennett. I'm a big fan of his! I love his voice. The best way for me to describe it...is soothing. He sounds like he'd be a really nice guy in person, one of those that types that rarely gets mad, know what I mean?

Anyway, overall, I enjoyed this audiobook. While I struggled to 'get into' the first third, the rest of the story made up for it. I'm not sure what the problem was. Maybe it was how the side stories connected with each other and, to me, there was too much going on? Who knows?! All I know is I had a hard time following along with the characters and staying focused.

The idea/character of Brother Bones was interesting. Did the author write a book or other short stories involving him? The guy stuck in the gorilla body...yeah, I wasn't so sure about him. IDK. It's like his character didn't really fit in all that well with the other ones. Could have just been me though. I loved the synthetic man side story. That poor guy wasn't having much luck at all. One area that stood out to me was when the scientist and Dr. Satan transferred his brain into the synthetic body. The author wrote it as though it was totally easy to do--transfer a brain into a new body and get everything hooked up. Yes, I know this isn't a science fiction book or medical text, but still.

Perhaps I missed the part of how the one lady became a vampire, but I felt like there wasn't much of her in these stories even though she was also an interesting one. Either way, I could see her written into further stories.

In the end, this was a different kind of listen for me.

[Victoria Haugen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my first Bones tale, and holy crap! Very interesting - well written, and well narrated. This is a collection of shorter stories rather than a continuous full length novel, but I still loved it just the same. I'm not one to nit-pick about this aspect and that, I don't require that a story be a certain way or say a certain thing. I just go with it, and if I like it I like it. You can over-analyze everything to death and waste time instead of just "enjoying" the story.
With that said, I'm digging Bones. This is my first, and now I have to have em all, of course! One of my favorite narrators, J. Scott Bennett, is telling this one, and I have only praise for him - as usual, job well done. First heard him with Black Box Inc
by Jake Bible, and he's kept me smiling ever since!
This is a cool story. I loved it. And now I need more. You created it, now you deal with it :)
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

[George Tackes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Film noir in novel form

Combining all the elements of film noir, Ron Fortier creates characters and an entire city that thrills and captivates the reader. I don't know if I'd want to live in Cape Noire, but I certainly love to visit it. Brother Bones is just the tip of the pulp iceberg. Explore this town and meet its residents. You'll be glad you did.

[timj26 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this
With Amazing characters and tons of gory action this checks all the boxes for me
Excellent narration and very highly recommended
I received a free review audiobook and voluntarily left this review

[Mark Phillips · Rating 4 out of 5]

A dead hitman must work off his karma by avenging the innocent dead. Wearing a porcelain skull mask over his rotting visage and toting twin silver-plated .45s, Brother Bones wreaks vengeance on Cape Noire's (a stand-in for Seattle?) criminal element. One flaw with the character is that he is well-nigh invulnerable, undermining any real tension in the fight scenes. Fortier makes up for this by loading his stories with atmosphere, psychological insight, horror, pathos, and well-drawn imagery. By far the best villain is Harry Beest, a gangster who's had his brain transplanted into a 700 lb. silverback gorilla body.

Note: Although in no way necessary, reading the prequel, Cape Noire: A Beest and Beauty Tale, might enhance your appreciation for this volume.

Note: After the first paragraph, the entire first story in my Kindle edition is italicized for no apparent reason. Typos (ellipses with two dots instead of three), anachronisms (rock music blaring from a radio in the 1930s), and formatting mistakes mar an otherwise excellent book. Hiring a proofreader to review the published product and make the required corrections would be much appreciated.

[Teressa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to the Audible audio version of this book.

"This Was An Awesome Listen"

BROTHER BONES was such a great listen. Every single story was good and all were tied together with Cape Noire. The stories were pulp-ish and really good. I enjoyed them all and in fact didn't want them to end. The first story, "Shield and Claw" was excellent and I have two other favorites. One was "Scales of Terror" where Paula suspects her husband of something nefarious rather than going to work, then learns she was right. My other favorite was "Gorilla Dreams" where Beast has the body of a gorilla (a fat, cigar smoking gorilla even) with a man's brain that had been transplanted into him. "The Ghost Train" was also excellent. I'm now a fan of RON FORTIER. I love his writing style.

J. SCOTT BENNETT'S performance was over the top amazing. He does a great job with all the characters. He has terrific vocal skills and has become one of my favorite narrators. He makes this book which is already good even better.

I loved it and will look for others in this vein and by both author and reader.

"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Blast."

[Eric Troup · Rating 4 out of 5]

Knowing that a Cape Noire tabletop role playing game is just on the horizon, I decided to sink my teeth into the series from which the game is drawn. I was not at all disappointed. While some of the stories in this anthology are better than others, Ron Fortier throws every pulp trope into this book but the kitchen sink. Hey, he had to save something for the next volume, right? My one gripe with this book is the appalling number of typos throughout the book. Was the proofreader on vacation that week? I read another review of the book right before I started reading it for myself, and commented to the reviewer that I thought typos were as much a part of the "pulp experience" as anything else. Now that i.e. Seen the vast number of typos in the book, I want to erase that comment. This definitely goes above and beyond, and not in a good way. It's a shame, too, because they detract from what is otherwise a great, thrilling read. I still highly recommend the book, but now I must do so with the caveat that if you are one of those people for whom typos are a veritable scourge, you should probably stay away from this one, for the sake of your sanity.

[Leslie Fisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

As soon as I started listening to the Audible version of this book, I was instantly excited. I recognized the voice of J. Scott Bennett (who I fell in love with as a narrator after listening to Jake Bible's "Fighting Iron") and I was not disappointed with his performance of "Brother Bones." I guess this book would be considered Noir Pulp Horror, and this is not a genre I have read before, or had any desire to before. I have to say, though, that I really enjoyed this book. It is exciting, gritty, and fun. The setting, Cape Noir, reminds me of the movie, Sin City. If you enjoy this genre or are even considering branching out and trying something new, I would recommend this book. I definitely want to check out more books by this author, especially if narrated by J. Scott Bennett.

[Rabid Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an great audiobook that brings to life a character reminiscent of graphic comic books of the past. Somewhat of an antihero, Brother Bones' less than stellar origins are revealed in the first story and his avenging justice is unfurled in the subsequent tales. Each story, though individual in nature, builds depth and intricacy into the world of Brother Bones. The characters are bought to life by the narrators voice. His tone, pitch and intonation paints images in your minds eye of the characters and stories, just like reading the graphic strips in a comic book. With avenging spooks, human gorillas and demons this audiobook will keep you entertained. I received the audiobook at no cost and under no obligation

[Kristen Edgar · Rating 3 out of 5]

“This audiobook was given by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review via Audiobook Boom.”

Unfortunately, this book just couldn't keep my interest. It was alright, I just wasn't overly thrilled about it.

[Deedra · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a weird book for me.Some bits were confusing,but I am easily confused.Bones was a bad man who was taken over by 'Brother Bones' an avenging spirit.Bones kills the evil doers in a town of mostly evil doers.I liked J Scott Bennett's narration.This book was provided to me free for review.

[Michael Sigler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Other than it's fair share of spelling errors, contunuity errors, and all around editing errors, "Brother Bones" is actually a really fun crime noir anthology.