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Stranger Danger
Sentient highways and subway systems. A man with an iPad grafted to his face. Killer torture-bots fueled by human fear. These are but a few of the themes running rampant throughout these two novellas packed into one ultra-violent, apocalyptic book from Bizarro virtuosos Kevin Strange and Danger Slater! Roadvolution by Danger Slater. Computerface by Kevin Strange. Don't miss the best mash-up since Vanilla Ice sang Ninja Rap with the Stranger Danger!
- GenresHorrorBizarro Fiction
214 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 13, 2014
2 people are currently reading
252 people want to read
About the author
Kevin Strange
41 books188 followersKevin Strange is a two time nominee of the Wonderland Book Award for excellence in bizarro fiction, recipient of the 2014 editor's choice award in the Lewis and Clark college literary magazine The Peppermint Rooster Review and his short story THE TWINS was listed on TangentOnline.com's 2015 year end recommended reading list.
He is the author of 18 books, and the writer/director of 7 films. He loves schlocky B-movies, cult fiction and Iron Maiden records.
He is the author of 18 books, and the writer/director of 7 films. He loves schlocky B-movies, cult fiction and Iron Maiden records.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
April 26, 2020
did you ever wonder what a "danger slater" looks like??? it looks like this:
hard to argue with commands like that!!
i am on it, sir!
review:
so this book has two novellas in it: computerface by kevin strange and roadvolution by danger slater. ergo: stranger danger.
computerface is about a man who managed to survive the robot uprising more or less intact, except for a pesky ipad welded to his face, making it very difficult to explain to fellow trigger-happy survivors that he is not, in fact, a robot himself. but it's okay, because in his former life, he was kind of a dick. but not Philip K Dick, who also makes an appearance.
plenty of killer robot action and children reduced to bloodspray and regret and an overlooked note as devastating as that one that went under angel clare's rug. d'oh!
here are some examples of the fine writing:
-"You look like a giant baby who ate a bag of dicks and babies."
-As he landed back on the ground, he slammed the soggy bodies against the floor, picked them back up and smashed them again and again, until they were little more than messy smears, their shrieking madness ending long before the final blow was administered.
-With this, everything changes."
-He needed more meat for his blades.
-Every one of the awful machines had one thing in common: they were designed to drive humans insane.
-"Do you need a wheelchair because you're fat or because you're gay?"
roadvolution is about what happens when that irish blessing of "may the road rise up to meet you" is adapted to "may the road rise up to eat you." ditto for the lincoln tunnel. and the george washington bridge. it is the deadliest of commutes, where a punk rockabilly chick and a stuff-obsessed douchebag will try to overcome both the dangers of the road's rage and the scathing criticism they hurl at each other to live to fight another day.
here are some examples of the fine writing:
-FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK! MY POOR, POOR CAR!
-"We're the scabies scuffing our way across the skins of things far greater than ourselves."
-Her rib cage erupts outward like a pinata; viscera, poop and other assorted innards spilling from her torso like Mexican candy. The organs and guts and all that other pink gooey shit that once made her alive are now splattered across the dirt like an impressionist painting.
-"I did it!" I shout, "I killed the commute!"
-The Lincoln Tunnel dives back into the ground with the ease of a dolphin dipping back into the water, kicking its tail up as it disappears beneath the soil.
-It's too fucking hot out right now to worry about my carbon footprint.
there is a bonus story in here, also by kevin strange called loch ness lay which claims to be an "excerpt," although i'm not sure how that can be, since it seems complete as it is. however - it is an amazingly brutal piece of monsterporn, and while my heart will always belong to champy and the champy porn i have read: Fucked by the Lake Monster and Fucked by the Lake Monster 2: What Cums Next?, this one wins the award for goriest porn ever. because holy shit.
you're gonna have to read that one yourself - if i type out quotes, i will definitely puke.
AND THAT'S MY REVIEW OF THS BOOK!
come to my blog!
hard to argue with commands like that!!
i am on it, sir!
review:
so this book has two novellas in it: computerface by kevin strange and roadvolution by danger slater. ergo: stranger danger.
computerface is about a man who managed to survive the robot uprising more or less intact, except for a pesky ipad welded to his face, making it very difficult to explain to fellow trigger-happy survivors that he is not, in fact, a robot himself. but it's okay, because in his former life, he was kind of a dick. but not Philip K Dick, who also makes an appearance.
plenty of killer robot action and children reduced to bloodspray and regret and an overlooked note as devastating as that one that went under angel clare's rug. d'oh!
here are some examples of the fine writing:
-"You look like a giant baby who ate a bag of dicks and babies."
-As he landed back on the ground, he slammed the soggy bodies against the floor, picked them back up and smashed them again and again, until they were little more than messy smears, their shrieking madness ending long before the final blow was administered.
-With this, everything changes."
-He needed more meat for his blades.
-Every one of the awful machines had one thing in common: they were designed to drive humans insane.
-"Do you need a wheelchair because you're fat or because you're gay?"
roadvolution is about what happens when that irish blessing of "may the road rise up to meet you" is adapted to "may the road rise up to eat you." ditto for the lincoln tunnel. and the george washington bridge. it is the deadliest of commutes, where a punk rockabilly chick and a stuff-obsessed douchebag will try to overcome both the dangers of the road's rage and the scathing criticism they hurl at each other to live to fight another day.
here are some examples of the fine writing:
-FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK! MY POOR, POOR CAR!
-"We're the scabies scuffing our way across the skins of things far greater than ourselves."
-Her rib cage erupts outward like a pinata; viscera, poop and other assorted innards spilling from her torso like Mexican candy. The organs and guts and all that other pink gooey shit that once made her alive are now splattered across the dirt like an impressionist painting.
-"I did it!" I shout, "I killed the commute!"
-The Lincoln Tunnel dives back into the ground with the ease of a dolphin dipping back into the water, kicking its tail up as it disappears beneath the soil.
-It's too fucking hot out right now to worry about my carbon footprint.
there is a bonus story in here, also by kevin strange called loch ness lay which claims to be an "excerpt," although i'm not sure how that can be, since it seems complete as it is. however - it is an amazingly brutal piece of monsterporn, and while my heart will always belong to champy and the champy porn i have read: Fucked by the Lake Monster and Fucked by the Lake Monster 2: What Cums Next?, this one wins the award for goriest porn ever. because holy shit.
you're gonna have to read that one yourself - if i type out quotes, i will definitely puke.
AND THAT'S MY REVIEW OF THS BOOK!
come to my blog!
August 8, 2014
Contrary to what you might expect based on other books with the same title (just search it here on GR), Stranger Danger is not a manual on how to avoid being kidnapped and/or molested. Rather, Stranger Danger is comprised of two novelettes by two authors of rising fame from the bizarro fringe of StrangeHouse Books and Rooster Republic Press. As such, their dual offerings ARE the kidnapper/molester, but it is not your body so much as your mind that they are after....
I'll be reviewing both stories separately, in the order presented.
"Computerface" centers on the trials and tribulations of its titular protagonist, following the unfortunate fellow from his origins as an obese Internet mogul to his fate as the iPad-masked savior of the coming war between man and machine. More than just another rehash of the whole Terminator/Matrix mythos, what emerges is a surprisingly unique foray down the well-trod paths of sci-fi and splatterpunk.
I'll admit, I wasn't sure about this one at first. There were a few passages that maaaybe could've used a bit more work (IMHO), with so much going on that it wasn't always clear who was doing what, but as the ball got rolling and things picked up steam, it became damn near impossible to avoid getting sucked into the brutally frenetic plot. In the end, I was won over by Strange's imaginative take on the tired old humans vs. robots premise. Not my favorite Strange story ever, but then it's awfully hard to compete with Cotton Candy.
Some might consider the ending a bit abrupt, but sometimes that's just the way the computer crumbles, especially with so many magnetic bolts, buzz saws, and giant robo appendages flying everywhere.
3 1/2 stars
In "Roadvolution", a punk rock girl and a corporate stiff are thrown together following their chance encounter in a traffic jam. The George Washington Bridge AND the Lincoln Tunnel both rise up and begin wreaking havoc on the city, and THAT's when things start getting weird! As we've come to expect from the boy wonder of bizarro, Slater delivers a hilariously action-packed story, using his characters and the absurd situations they find themselves in to explore the fundamental questions of existence.
Slater writes with a loquacious exuberance that cannot be tamed by any editor's pen. As a result, his prose tends to be very verbose at points, but his obvious love of language is usually quite sufficient to carry him through. If you enjoyed Love Me and DangerRAMA, you will not be disappointed with this.
4 1/2 stars
Overall, I'm giving Stranger Danger 4 solid stars, because no matter how hard I try to criticize these stories, no matter how I clutch at straws in the interests of producing a more "balanced" and "objective" review, there is simply too much humor, wit, and sheer inventiveness on display here to rate it any lower. If you're into bizarro fiction or just curious to see what it's all about, you could do A LOT worse than Kevin Strange and Danger Slater, so getting a taste of both these guys in a single awesome book is really quite the treat. Highly recommended to old fans and newcomers alike.
For more from these two and similar authors, I'd recommend Tall Tales with Short Cocks Vol. 3 (featuring Strange's "An Otherwise Ordinary Kind of Life") and Tall Tales with Short Cocks Vol. 4 (featuring Slater's "My Tapir"), both available from Rooster Republic Press.
I'll be reviewing both stories separately, in the order presented.
"Computerface" centers on the trials and tribulations of its titular protagonist, following the unfortunate fellow from his origins as an obese Internet mogul to his fate as the iPad-masked savior of the coming war between man and machine. More than just another rehash of the whole Terminator/Matrix mythos, what emerges is a surprisingly unique foray down the well-trod paths of sci-fi and splatterpunk.
I'll admit, I wasn't sure about this one at first. There were a few passages that maaaybe could've used a bit more work (IMHO), with so much going on that it wasn't always clear who was doing what, but as the ball got rolling and things picked up steam, it became damn near impossible to avoid getting sucked into the brutally frenetic plot. In the end, I was won over by Strange's imaginative take on the tired old humans vs. robots premise. Not my favorite Strange story ever, but then it's awfully hard to compete with Cotton Candy.
Some might consider the ending a bit abrupt, but sometimes that's just the way the computer crumbles, especially with so many magnetic bolts, buzz saws, and giant robo appendages flying everywhere.
3 1/2 stars
In "Roadvolution", a punk rock girl and a corporate stiff are thrown together following their chance encounter in a traffic jam. The George Washington Bridge AND the Lincoln Tunnel both rise up and begin wreaking havoc on the city, and THAT's when things start getting weird! As we've come to expect from the boy wonder of bizarro, Slater delivers a hilariously action-packed story, using his characters and the absurd situations they find themselves in to explore the fundamental questions of existence.
Slater writes with a loquacious exuberance that cannot be tamed by any editor's pen. As a result, his prose tends to be very verbose at points, but his obvious love of language is usually quite sufficient to carry him through. If you enjoyed Love Me and DangerRAMA, you will not be disappointed with this.
4 1/2 stars
Overall, I'm giving Stranger Danger 4 solid stars, because no matter how hard I try to criticize these stories, no matter how I clutch at straws in the interests of producing a more "balanced" and "objective" review, there is simply too much humor, wit, and sheer inventiveness on display here to rate it any lower. If you're into bizarro fiction or just curious to see what it's all about, you could do A LOT worse than Kevin Strange and Danger Slater, so getting a taste of both these guys in a single awesome book is really quite the treat. Highly recommended to old fans and newcomers alike.
For more from these two and similar authors, I'd recommend Tall Tales with Short Cocks Vol. 3 (featuring Strange's "An Otherwise Ordinary Kind of Life") and Tall Tales with Short Cocks Vol. 4 (featuring Slater's "My Tapir"), both available from Rooster Republic Press.
May 20, 2014
If this book were to ask me to suck its dick, I totally would.
July 19, 2014
This is not a review.
Not exactly.
You see, that’s my name on the cover there. I’m the author of this book, along with a dude who calls himself Kevin Strange. Now, I only wrote half of the book. The second half. There’s two novellas in here. Two completely autonomous stories. Two ideas from two men sandwiched (some may say unnecessarily) together based on the fact that our names kind of rhyme.
What I am going to do here is share with you my thoughts on Kevin’s side of the book, see what parallels happened to coincidentally form between our two stories, and speak a little about the creative process. Perhaps I’ll make a few jokes along the way. Maybe I won’t. I don’t know what’s going to happen. The thing you are currently reading, from where I’m sitting at this moment in time, I haven’t written it yet. By the time I post this up on Goodreads, it’ll be done. As for now, it’s just a blank page. I’m about to spoil that.
Like I said, this isn’t a review. It’s more like an essay. It’s going to be long and boring, as essays are wont to be, but perhaps if I can be charming and authentic enough, there might be something in here that maybe maybe maybe MAAAYBEEE might convince you to drop a few of your hard-earned dollars on this book I helped create. If not, then you can go ahead and FUCK OFF AND DIE A MILLION DEATHS BY DROWNING YOURSELF IN A SWIMMING POOL FULL OF DICKS!
*ahem*
So if you don’t know, this book grew out of a conversation between Kevin and I from waaaaaaaaaaaaay back in September of 2013. Here is that message in its entirety:
Danger: I'm gonna pitch to you an idea I had. 2 bizarro/horror novellas, roughly 20,000 words each. One by Kevin Strange. One by Danger Slater. Packaged together under one cover. Title: STRANGER DANGER.
Kevin: Hahaha. Love it.
And that was it. That was all it took to get this ball rolling. I had no relationship with Strange prior to that conversation, aside from the fact that we run in somewhat similar literary circles. We weren’t “friends” though. We’re friends now, but we weren’t then. I sent him that message half in jest. I mean, if he said “love it” and never mentioned it again, that would been the end of it. I would’ve carried on with my merry life. But, to Kevin’s credit, he’s the kind of guy who can immediately recognize an inspired idea and, without hesitation, charge headlong into it. Sure, when approaching your art like that, there will be missteps along the way. But at the same time, at least there will be NO regrets when the day is through. It’s a trait I greatly admire. So instead of blowing me off, as he easily could have, he instead began discussing themes with me.
End result: We never *quite* settled on a cohesive theme. Just a general ‘apocalypse’ tone. And with that, we began writing. 8 months later, this book was released.
So let me talk about Kevin Strange’s Computerface.
I actually didn’t get to read the finalized version of this until the book was released publicly. I’m going to attempt to give you my unbiased option here, but let’s be honest, my name is on this book and if you think I’m gonna give anything I’m attached to less than 5 stars, then you’re out of your fucking mind.
So here’s a quote I’m gonna pull from Comptuerface that pretty much summed it up for me:
"Should one be kind to his toaster or microwave oven?"
I’m going to say this about Kevin Strange’s writing, if you haven’t read any of it yet, you are doing yourself a serious disservice. This dude can write. He writes in one of those ways where the prose seems effortless. Where the words on the page are suited perfectly to the actions they depict. No wasted lines. No unnecessary paragraphs. I don't have this ability when I write. I usually need a heavy editor to chop my grandiloquent phraseology down to size. (Case in point, I just used the term 'grandiloquent phraseology') I get lost in it; fall deep into the trap of language. You’ll see once you get to my half of this shitshow, how our writing styles differ. I LABOR over words. I pile more and more words on every sentence like fixins at a frozen yogurt bar. It’s an exhaustive process. And I can’t speak to Kevin’s method, nor can I assume I know the things that go through his head as he creates - but the end result, for him, is EXTREMELY organic. There’s no ‘author’ intruding into the story. Just a fast-paced engrossing little tale about the robot apocalypse and the iPad faced mutant who may or may not be mankind’s savior.
Now, although Strange approaches his prose in a no-nonsense manner, this isn’t to say his writing is without its winks and nods. There are a number of pop-culture references that help shape this tale, such as main character seemingly based off of Harry Knowles, and minor appearances from both Philip K. Dick and Dr. Michio Kaku. Influences here seem to range from Terminator to A.I. to The Matrix to Maximum Overdrive to even The Monster Squad – BUT – none of this ever comes across as trite or played out. It’s apparent the world presented in Computerface draws its influence from these various sources, but mixed up in Kevin Strange’s brain and repurposed to this particular story, it is a wholly original affair. The tropes give it structure; Kevin’s imagination gives it life.
As far as the story goes, it might be one of the FUNNEST books I’ve read in years! Kevin Strange knows how to fucking entertain! I mean, there’s no pretention here. And no dull moments of quiet contemplation. Of course there’s a character arc for Harry/Computerface, but it’s not revealed through long interior monologues and droning pseudo-existential bullshit (for that, please see my half of the book) It’s just a shit-ton of crazy action scenes, so full of adjectives and verbs, I could imagine Strange leaping onto his chair while writing it, screaming at the monitor ‘MAN THIS IS SO FUCKING COOL!’ There’s no way he wasn’t squealing with sadistic glee as he dreamed up all the different kinds torturous machines that he had eviscerate the human race. It a gory, exhilarating, (sometimes) silly, and fully-realized world we’re thrown into. I loved Computerface. And I’m not just saying that because my name sits next to his on the book jacket. I woulda read the shit out this story even if I had never introduced myself to this dude.
I had a lot of fun writing my half of this story too. I didn't talk too much about it here, and you know what? I'm not going to. Look at some of the other reviews floating around if you want to know what it's about. Or better yet, send me a message and I'll pontificate endlessly about all my influences and how much of a genius I think I am until I convince you that I'm the Truman-fucking-Capote of stories about giant sentient roadways that want to kill everyone. Yeah, that's what my half of this book is about. Murderous living roads. Sounds stupid? Well, in a way it is. This book, if anything, is a testament to the power of stupid ideas. Or rather, ideas that some people out there might call stupid. "You guys wrote a book solely because your names sound funny together?" you say. "YES, motherfucker!" I reply. "Can you think of a better reason?" So before you brush us off, I want you to remember this: All it takes to change the world is one idea. Now, I know this book probably isn't that idea. But then again, the only truly 'bad' ideas are the ones you didn't follow through with.
I’m proud to call Kevin the Stranger to my Danger.
Not exactly.
You see, that’s my name on the cover there. I’m the author of this book, along with a dude who calls himself Kevin Strange. Now, I only wrote half of the book. The second half. There’s two novellas in here. Two completely autonomous stories. Two ideas from two men sandwiched (some may say unnecessarily) together based on the fact that our names kind of rhyme.
What I am going to do here is share with you my thoughts on Kevin’s side of the book, see what parallels happened to coincidentally form between our two stories, and speak a little about the creative process. Perhaps I’ll make a few jokes along the way. Maybe I won’t. I don’t know what’s going to happen. The thing you are currently reading, from where I’m sitting at this moment in time, I haven’t written it yet. By the time I post this up on Goodreads, it’ll be done. As for now, it’s just a blank page. I’m about to spoil that.
Like I said, this isn’t a review. It’s more like an essay. It’s going to be long and boring, as essays are wont to be, but perhaps if I can be charming and authentic enough, there might be something in here that maybe maybe maybe MAAAYBEEE might convince you to drop a few of your hard-earned dollars on this book I helped create. If not, then you can go ahead and FUCK OFF AND DIE A MILLION DEATHS BY DROWNING YOURSELF IN A SWIMMING POOL FULL OF DICKS!
*ahem*
So if you don’t know, this book grew out of a conversation between Kevin and I from waaaaaaaaaaaaay back in September of 2013. Here is that message in its entirety:
Danger: I'm gonna pitch to you an idea I had. 2 bizarro/horror novellas, roughly 20,000 words each. One by Kevin Strange. One by Danger Slater. Packaged together under one cover. Title: STRANGER DANGER.
Kevin: Hahaha. Love it.
And that was it. That was all it took to get this ball rolling. I had no relationship with Strange prior to that conversation, aside from the fact that we run in somewhat similar literary circles. We weren’t “friends” though. We’re friends now, but we weren’t then. I sent him that message half in jest. I mean, if he said “love it” and never mentioned it again, that would been the end of it. I would’ve carried on with my merry life. But, to Kevin’s credit, he’s the kind of guy who can immediately recognize an inspired idea and, without hesitation, charge headlong into it. Sure, when approaching your art like that, there will be missteps along the way. But at the same time, at least there will be NO regrets when the day is through. It’s a trait I greatly admire. So instead of blowing me off, as he easily could have, he instead began discussing themes with me.
End result: We never *quite* settled on a cohesive theme. Just a general ‘apocalypse’ tone. And with that, we began writing. 8 months later, this book was released.
So let me talk about Kevin Strange’s Computerface.
I actually didn’t get to read the finalized version of this until the book was released publicly. I’m going to attempt to give you my unbiased option here, but let’s be honest, my name is on this book and if you think I’m gonna give anything I’m attached to less than 5 stars, then you’re out of your fucking mind.
So here’s a quote I’m gonna pull from Comptuerface that pretty much summed it up for me:
"Should one be kind to his toaster or microwave oven?"
I’m going to say this about Kevin Strange’s writing, if you haven’t read any of it yet, you are doing yourself a serious disservice. This dude can write. He writes in one of those ways where the prose seems effortless. Where the words on the page are suited perfectly to the actions they depict. No wasted lines. No unnecessary paragraphs. I don't have this ability when I write. I usually need a heavy editor to chop my grandiloquent phraseology down to size. (Case in point, I just used the term 'grandiloquent phraseology') I get lost in it; fall deep into the trap of language. You’ll see once you get to my half of this shitshow, how our writing styles differ. I LABOR over words. I pile more and more words on every sentence like fixins at a frozen yogurt bar. It’s an exhaustive process. And I can’t speak to Kevin’s method, nor can I assume I know the things that go through his head as he creates - but the end result, for him, is EXTREMELY organic. There’s no ‘author’ intruding into the story. Just a fast-paced engrossing little tale about the robot apocalypse and the iPad faced mutant who may or may not be mankind’s savior.
Now, although Strange approaches his prose in a no-nonsense manner, this isn’t to say his writing is without its winks and nods. There are a number of pop-culture references that help shape this tale, such as main character seemingly based off of Harry Knowles, and minor appearances from both Philip K. Dick and Dr. Michio Kaku. Influences here seem to range from Terminator to A.I. to The Matrix to Maximum Overdrive to even The Monster Squad – BUT – none of this ever comes across as trite or played out. It’s apparent the world presented in Computerface draws its influence from these various sources, but mixed up in Kevin Strange’s brain and repurposed to this particular story, it is a wholly original affair. The tropes give it structure; Kevin’s imagination gives it life.
As far as the story goes, it might be one of the FUNNEST books I’ve read in years! Kevin Strange knows how to fucking entertain! I mean, there’s no pretention here. And no dull moments of quiet contemplation. Of course there’s a character arc for Harry/Computerface, but it’s not revealed through long interior monologues and droning pseudo-existential bullshit (for that, please see my half of the book) It’s just a shit-ton of crazy action scenes, so full of adjectives and verbs, I could imagine Strange leaping onto his chair while writing it, screaming at the monitor ‘MAN THIS IS SO FUCKING COOL!’ There’s no way he wasn’t squealing with sadistic glee as he dreamed up all the different kinds torturous machines that he had eviscerate the human race. It a gory, exhilarating, (sometimes) silly, and fully-realized world we’re thrown into. I loved Computerface. And I’m not just saying that because my name sits next to his on the book jacket. I woulda read the shit out this story even if I had never introduced myself to this dude.
I had a lot of fun writing my half of this story too. I didn't talk too much about it here, and you know what? I'm not going to. Look at some of the other reviews floating around if you want to know what it's about. Or better yet, send me a message and I'll pontificate endlessly about all my influences and how much of a genius I think I am until I convince you that I'm the Truman-fucking-Capote of stories about giant sentient roadways that want to kill everyone. Yeah, that's what my half of this book is about. Murderous living roads. Sounds stupid? Well, in a way it is. This book, if anything, is a testament to the power of stupid ideas. Or rather, ideas that some people out there might call stupid. "You guys wrote a book solely because your names sound funny together?" you say. "YES, motherfucker!" I reply. "Can you think of a better reason?" So before you brush us off, I want you to remember this: All it takes to change the world is one idea. Now, I know this book probably isn't that idea. But then again, the only truly 'bad' ideas are the ones you didn't follow through with.
I’m proud to call Kevin the Stranger to my Danger.
May 25, 2014
Okay, so I think everyone knows I’ve lost, like, a million reviews by trying to do them on my phone and losing them during the uploading process. Not this time, though! I’m outsmarting the machines! I’m using a word processor now, baby! Which roundabout brings me to my first point- I’m reviewing Kevin’s story first (in which only a few outsmart the machines), and then Danger’s. Sound good? Here we go:
COMPUTERFACE by Kevin Strange
Overall rating: 4 1/2 stars
Plotline: 4 stars (and only cause I don’t like robots)
Pacing: 5 stars
Character development: 5 stars
Quality of writing: 5 stars
Threshers: 0 stars (way to haunt my nightmares, dude…thanks for that!)
The only reason this isn’t getting 5 stars is because I don’t like robots. Sorry, Kevin. It’s just this thing I have. And your robots were downright NASTY!
So, the plotline here is that a fat, nasty jag off named Harry runs a movie review website. He receives a secret bundle in the mail one day, which just so happens to be an incredibly important piece of information that Harry really should have shared with the world (it had Phillip K. Dick in it! WHY wouldn’t you show off a video of Phillip K. Dick???). Okay, it wasn’t really PKD, but still. Harry’s reaction was *ahem* a bit cowardly, to say the least.
Fast forward two years. Now, we are in the midst of chaos! We’re waking up in this new world with Computerface, who is neither man nor machine, but rather a combination of both. He just so happened to meld with a I-pad (no, not the way I melded to my phone). This is like…well, he has a fucking I-pad mixed in with his brain matter and his face is a mere glowing green skull on the device’s screen. And that is his best feature. ‘Cause inside that I-pad? Well, lets just say that I-pad has the co-ordinates of a ‘promised land’ where humans can escape all the killer machines that have taken over the world. Oh, yeah…I guess I forgot to mention that there was a machine uprising, huh? Well, these fucking machines are CRAY-CRAY! Like, they feed of human fear, man! How crazy is that??? There’s a Thresher, which is like a giant blender of humans. And the retrievers that shoot you with a dart, and cause all your limbs to…well, I guess I better leave something to the imagination, right?
There are a few stragglers trying to get by here and there, but overall, the human population is pretty damn doomed. The few left are searching for ‘The Quiet Land,’ and if they don’t find it soon, humanity is done for. FUCKING DONE FOR! Enter Computerface. He seems to be the exact thing this scraggly bunch of soldiers need. But is who is the real Computerface? And does he know what his ‘memory chip’ tells the soldiers, or is he holding a deeper truth? And what in the fuck happened to Harry????
This story absolutely roars by. Constant fighting, no one is safe for even a moment. So, as you can imagine, the pacing is on point. Strange gives his characters quite a bit of depth for a novella, and by the end, I really did not expect what came, although in reality, it most likely would be the outcome. Overall, a gem of a story that has a nice twist ending.
ROADVOLUTION by Danger_Slater
Overall rating: 5 stars
Plotline: 4 stars
Pacing: 5 stars
Character development: 5 stars (although most of the real development comes at the end)
Writing Quality: 5 stars
Giant Road Monster: 0 stars (FUCK that thing!)
So the story here is that we’ve got the stereotypical asshole douche bag, Marc. He thinks he’s the bees knees ‘cause he’s got a cool car and some suits. But when he gets stuck in a traffic jam beside a punker chick named Libby Borden. He has no idea that his life is about to change forever. He berates Libby for a while, expounding all the reasons he’s better than she is when his attention is diverted by a looming presence…what the hell? What is that? Is that…no…it couldn’t be!
Uh…yeah it could- it’s the goddamned George Washington Bridge. And it wants to fucking eat you! Marc and Libby get the hell up outta dodge, a flee on foot while the roads become sentient all around town and begin wreaking some biblical style havoc. But Libby, always the resourceful, caring person she is, saves Marc’s ass when he starts crying like a little bitch. They end up with a rag-tag batch of (hopefully) survivors, consisting of a few highway workers that may know a little more than they are letting on, and some yuppie woman with a child named Allegra. Allegra. Like the allergy medicine. People with all their kids and weird names and shit *grumble grumble*…
Where were we? Oh yeah, okay, so these ‘survivors’ are fleeing this massive conglomeration of roadways that are merging (no pun intended) together intro one gnarly beast of a monster. Like, one that I would NEVER wanna face on a video game or some shit. I’d break the controller! But these folks are fighting against all odds, and who would have ever guessed that Marc would be the one to finally man up and try and save his crew? The ending to this one is quite a bit different than Computerface, and it was a good ending to the book overall.
As for the writing, I fucking love Danger’s use of alliteration. Its something I’ve become accustomed to in his writing, and I must say he’s kinda a master at it. He also uses quite a few awesome metaphors and is very clever with his wordplay. Once again, the pacing of this one was perfect as well.
So…what do I have to say about the book as a whole? Well, let’s just say, it was pretty perfect. I mean, you’re getting not one, but TWO giant monster stories in one book. Does it get any better? And while both of the stories are great in their own right, they have a Captain Planet type “When the Powers Combine” thing goin’ on. They play off of each other very well, and the gentler end to Slater’s piece perfectly compliments the rather harsh ending of Kevin’s story.
Besides being totally kick-ass stories, it’s a fucking tag team of KEVIN STRANGE and DANGER_SLATER!!! If that alone isn’t enough to sell you this book, I don’t know what would be. This is like, the greatest pairing since peanut butter and jelly. Or giant roads and vicious robots.
Plus, you get two embarrassingly cool author pics/bios. How cool is that? Pretty fucking cool- now go read this book before you bring upon the Age of Machines or a Roadvolution!
COMPUTERFACE by Kevin Strange
Overall rating: 4 1/2 stars
Plotline: 4 stars (and only cause I don’t like robots)
Pacing: 5 stars
Character development: 5 stars
Quality of writing: 5 stars
Threshers: 0 stars (way to haunt my nightmares, dude…thanks for that!)
The only reason this isn’t getting 5 stars is because I don’t like robots. Sorry, Kevin. It’s just this thing I have. And your robots were downright NASTY!
So, the plotline here is that a fat, nasty jag off named Harry runs a movie review website. He receives a secret bundle in the mail one day, which just so happens to be an incredibly important piece of information that Harry really should have shared with the world (it had Phillip K. Dick in it! WHY wouldn’t you show off a video of Phillip K. Dick???). Okay, it wasn’t really PKD, but still. Harry’s reaction was *ahem* a bit cowardly, to say the least.
Fast forward two years. Now, we are in the midst of chaos! We’re waking up in this new world with Computerface, who is neither man nor machine, but rather a combination of both. He just so happened to meld with a I-pad (no, not the way I melded to my phone). This is like…well, he has a fucking I-pad mixed in with his brain matter and his face is a mere glowing green skull on the device’s screen. And that is his best feature. ‘Cause inside that I-pad? Well, lets just say that I-pad has the co-ordinates of a ‘promised land’ where humans can escape all the killer machines that have taken over the world. Oh, yeah…I guess I forgot to mention that there was a machine uprising, huh? Well, these fucking machines are CRAY-CRAY! Like, they feed of human fear, man! How crazy is that??? There’s a Thresher, which is like a giant blender of humans. And the retrievers that shoot you with a dart, and cause all your limbs to…well, I guess I better leave something to the imagination, right?
There are a few stragglers trying to get by here and there, but overall, the human population is pretty damn doomed. The few left are searching for ‘The Quiet Land,’ and if they don’t find it soon, humanity is done for. FUCKING DONE FOR! Enter Computerface. He seems to be the exact thing this scraggly bunch of soldiers need. But is who is the real Computerface? And does he know what his ‘memory chip’ tells the soldiers, or is he holding a deeper truth? And what in the fuck happened to Harry????
This story absolutely roars by. Constant fighting, no one is safe for even a moment. So, as you can imagine, the pacing is on point. Strange gives his characters quite a bit of depth for a novella, and by the end, I really did not expect what came, although in reality, it most likely would be the outcome. Overall, a gem of a story that has a nice twist ending.
ROADVOLUTION by Danger_Slater
Overall rating: 5 stars
Plotline: 4 stars
Pacing: 5 stars
Character development: 5 stars (although most of the real development comes at the end)
Writing Quality: 5 stars
Giant Road Monster: 0 stars (FUCK that thing!)
So the story here is that we’ve got the stereotypical asshole douche bag, Marc. He thinks he’s the bees knees ‘cause he’s got a cool car and some suits. But when he gets stuck in a traffic jam beside a punker chick named Libby Borden. He has no idea that his life is about to change forever. He berates Libby for a while, expounding all the reasons he’s better than she is when his attention is diverted by a looming presence…what the hell? What is that? Is that…no…it couldn’t be!
Uh…yeah it could- it’s the goddamned George Washington Bridge. And it wants to fucking eat you! Marc and Libby get the hell up outta dodge, a flee on foot while the roads become sentient all around town and begin wreaking some biblical style havoc. But Libby, always the resourceful, caring person she is, saves Marc’s ass when he starts crying like a little bitch. They end up with a rag-tag batch of (hopefully) survivors, consisting of a few highway workers that may know a little more than they are letting on, and some yuppie woman with a child named Allegra. Allegra. Like the allergy medicine. People with all their kids and weird names and shit *grumble grumble*…
Where were we? Oh yeah, okay, so these ‘survivors’ are fleeing this massive conglomeration of roadways that are merging (no pun intended) together intro one gnarly beast of a monster. Like, one that I would NEVER wanna face on a video game or some shit. I’d break the controller! But these folks are fighting against all odds, and who would have ever guessed that Marc would be the one to finally man up and try and save his crew? The ending to this one is quite a bit different than Computerface, and it was a good ending to the book overall.
As for the writing, I fucking love Danger’s use of alliteration. Its something I’ve become accustomed to in his writing, and I must say he’s kinda a master at it. He also uses quite a few awesome metaphors and is very clever with his wordplay. Once again, the pacing of this one was perfect as well.
So…what do I have to say about the book as a whole? Well, let’s just say, it was pretty perfect. I mean, you’re getting not one, but TWO giant monster stories in one book. Does it get any better? And while both of the stories are great in their own right, they have a Captain Planet type “When the Powers Combine” thing goin’ on. They play off of each other very well, and the gentler end to Slater’s piece perfectly compliments the rather harsh ending of Kevin’s story.
Besides being totally kick-ass stories, it’s a fucking tag team of KEVIN STRANGE and DANGER_SLATER!!! If that alone isn’t enough to sell you this book, I don’t know what would be. This is like, the greatest pairing since peanut butter and jelly. Or giant roads and vicious robots.
Plus, you get two embarrassingly cool author pics/bios. How cool is that? Pretty fucking cool- now go read this book before you bring upon the Age of Machines or a Roadvolution!
June 8, 2014
Two very different visions of technological apocalypse from two different writers, both a hell of a lot of fun. The two novellas paired interestingly together. Though either could easily have stood on it's own, it was interesting to juxtapose the two different writing styles and approaches to the similar topic. Regardless, it's clear that technology is going to kill us all. It's probably good if you get the print version instead of the ebook. In fact, you should probably start backing away from the computer now. Hope you have some canned food in the basement.
June 18, 2014
Now this is a double feature that would make Joe Bob Briggs proud! In this, we see the evolution of three things: Kevin Strange's style, Danger Slater's style and the Strangehouse Books mold to date. I definitely got the feeling from the start that Strangehouse had upgraded in every way, from cover design to a sleeker kind of storytelling. Now, let's see how the two stories fared on their own merits:
Things I liked about Computer Face by Kevin Strange:
- It features Harry Knowles of Aint It Cool News as the protagonist.
- Strange seems to be moving into more dramatic territory with this one. True, there are laughs, but they don't dominate or obscure the focus. Plot is king in this one.
- Cameos by Chef and the baby headed roaches from McHumans!!!!
Things I liked about Roadvolution by Danger Slater:
- Danger definitely stretched his vocabulary to new lengths. Auger, incarnadine, bitumen.
- The scene where the main character tries to show his fondness for punk rocker Libby by giving her five hundred dollars, and what she chooses to do with said gift. It's a great scene that really accentuates the differing ethics of both characters.
Things I liked about Stranger/Danger:
- Stranger
- Danger
If this is a sign of where Strangehouse is headed, I'd love to see the road map!
Things I liked about Computer Face by Kevin Strange:
- It features Harry Knowles of Aint It Cool News as the protagonist.
- Strange seems to be moving into more dramatic territory with this one. True, there are laughs, but they don't dominate or obscure the focus. Plot is king in this one.
- Cameos by Chef and the baby headed roaches from McHumans!!!!
Things I liked about Roadvolution by Danger Slater:
- Danger definitely stretched his vocabulary to new lengths. Auger, incarnadine, bitumen.
- The scene where the main character tries to show his fondness for punk rocker Libby by giving her five hundred dollars, and what she chooses to do with said gift. It's a great scene that really accentuates the differing ethics of both characters.
Things I liked about Stranger/Danger:
- Stranger
- Danger
If this is a sign of where Strangehouse is headed, I'd love to see the road map!
June 15, 2014
STRANGER DANGER is like the Seinfeld of books. It's a book about nothing in particular and the title only alludes to the stars of the show and nothing else. That's right, there are no strangers and no children are in danger. Instead, writers Kevin Strange and Danger_Slater have teamed up to put out a book if only because their names combined make for a cool title. Cheesy? Perhaps. But it can only work because both authors are established talents in this small community of weird story writers.
The first novella, COMPUTERFACE, by Kevin Strange puts the best parts of Strange's style on display while not getting no fancy. This is full throttle Kevin Strange that you've come to know from his other novels, novellas and short stories. The little guys take on the world and use their power against them to defeat them. It's that simple at the core but injected with the passion and heart from the pen of Kevin Strange to tell the tale as only he can. This is nice because in it's stripped down style, it still bleed the voice you expect and admire from the Strange One.
ROADVOLUTION by Danger_Slater is the apocalyptic tale of highways and byways of New Jersey come to life to lay waste to man. One part zombie story, one part Godzilla story and all Danger_Slater. Slater may be, in this reviewers opinion, one of the most underrated storytellers out there now in any genre. To pinpoint his style would be maddening. He can write across the gamut and do it low brow and high literature at the same time. To read him is to marvel at the possibility that words have when molded by his brain.
Put these two stories together and try to find a theme? Well it's not about the dangers of kidnapping, that's for sure. There is a technology gone wrong theme here if you needed something to grasp hold of. But why bother? Just grab this book and read two great stories by two great writers. That's what it's all about in the end, isn't it?
The first novella, COMPUTERFACE, by Kevin Strange puts the best parts of Strange's style on display while not getting no fancy. This is full throttle Kevin Strange that you've come to know from his other novels, novellas and short stories. The little guys take on the world and use their power against them to defeat them. It's that simple at the core but injected with the passion and heart from the pen of Kevin Strange to tell the tale as only he can. This is nice because in it's stripped down style, it still bleed the voice you expect and admire from the Strange One.
ROADVOLUTION by Danger_Slater is the apocalyptic tale of highways and byways of New Jersey come to life to lay waste to man. One part zombie story, one part Godzilla story and all Danger_Slater. Slater may be, in this reviewers opinion, one of the most underrated storytellers out there now in any genre. To pinpoint his style would be maddening. He can write across the gamut and do it low brow and high literature at the same time. To read him is to marvel at the possibility that words have when molded by his brain.
Put these two stories together and try to find a theme? Well it's not about the dangers of kidnapping, that's for sure. There is a technology gone wrong theme here if you needed something to grasp hold of. But why bother? Just grab this book and read two great stories by two great writers. That's what it's all about in the end, isn't it?
June 3, 2014
They did it. They fucking did it.
They turned a pun, a combination of their names, and made it into this.
That's why I really love Bizarro Fiction and its "variants": Any idea can be put to paper, any joke, any pun. It's the execution that matters, and these guys just KNOW how to do it.
First off, we get Kevin Strange's "Computerface". A blitz of a story, it's over just as we are starting to dig it. Almost a "Terminator" homage, "Computerface" tells the story of a robot uprising. Ok, we've all read this before. But the way Strange tells this story (and every story he has written, actually) in a completely unique way. It's cliché, but cliché done Kevin Strange way, which is fine by me.
Then, we get to Danger Slater's "Roadvolution". A seemingly "normal" disaster story, where the roads of New York and New Jersey (and implicitly, the world) sprung into life and cause mayhem and death all around them. And in this world, we see the prototypical punk chick, the prototypical corporate drone, the prototypical buff guy. Well, not really. Nothing here is exactly prototypical. Slater has a way with words, he crafts each sentence with such care, it's mind boggling. And the ending completely blew me away. It was beautiful, and weird, and fucking awesome.
Buy this book. Seriously.
They turned a pun, a combination of their names, and made it into this.
That's why I really love Bizarro Fiction and its "variants": Any idea can be put to paper, any joke, any pun. It's the execution that matters, and these guys just KNOW how to do it.
First off, we get Kevin Strange's "Computerface". A blitz of a story, it's over just as we are starting to dig it. Almost a "Terminator" homage, "Computerface" tells the story of a robot uprising. Ok, we've all read this before. But the way Strange tells this story (and every story he has written, actually) in a completely unique way. It's cliché, but cliché done Kevin Strange way, which is fine by me.
Then, we get to Danger Slater's "Roadvolution". A seemingly "normal" disaster story, where the roads of New York and New Jersey (and implicitly, the world) sprung into life and cause mayhem and death all around them. And in this world, we see the prototypical punk chick, the prototypical corporate drone, the prototypical buff guy. Well, not really. Nothing here is exactly prototypical. Slater has a way with words, he crafts each sentence with such care, it's mind boggling. And the ending completely blew me away. It was beautiful, and weird, and fucking awesome.
Buy this book. Seriously.
June 3, 2014
When we think of advances in technology, we think of progress. But is there a point where new technology becomes a burden on society? No, I’m not referring to the occasional annoyances of people using cell phones in movie theaters or texting while driving; I’m talking about the point where new technologies pose a true threat to our American way of life.
The new Bizarro Sci-Fi double novella “Stranger Danger,” published by StrangeHouse Books, and written by Kevin Strange and Danger_ Slater, addresses technology gone awry in futuristic worlds where humanity has become too complacent and too accepting of new technology, reminiscent of how people have already embraced the concept of Google Glass and have suddenly forgotten the lessons learned by Steve Martin’s character in ‘The Jerk’ when he invented the Opti-Grab.
Both novellas also share the theme of using an affluent anti-hero as the main character, often blurring the fine line between antagonist and protagonist. The main characters of both stories immediately recognize the threat of new technology, but they experience difficultly overcoming their own egos and sense of self-preservation in order to eventually work with others to obtain a permanent solution.
Kevin Strange’s story ‘Computerface’ leads off the double feature. In Strange’s vision of the future, robots are so advanced that they can perform most of the labor needed to maintain a working society, while people have more time for leisure activities, like collecting pop culture memorabilia of the early 21st Century (which I understand will soon be considered the Golden Age of Popular Culture, thanks mainly to reality shows and amateur talent competitions).
In the story, Harry is just such a collector and he maintains a popular and profitable website called AngryDorks(dot)com - [BTW, I checked and saw that that web address is available for purchase, so if you buy it you may be fulfilling a Strange prophecy].
Being at the cutting edge of burgeoning pop culture, Harry is able to predict that these working robots will be a nuisance once their artificial intelligence becomes so advanced that they revolt against their menial roles in society. Thus, Harry liquidates his assets and builds an underground bunker to save himself from the impending robot apocalypse, stocking the bunker with thousands of DVDs and tons of food.
End of story, right? Harry lives happily ever after, right? I know I would. But the lonely fool ventures out of the safety of his bunker and finds himself in the middle of a war against technology. Robots are building battle bots and letting them loose on the people who oppressed them. Self-centered Harry eventually ends up with an iPad infused to his face and then realizes that neither the robots nor his fellow humans trust him.
As always, Kevin is a master at creating exciting battle sequences, which usually take up the bulk of his stories (and that’s a good thing, believe me). He’s also excellent at creating plot twists which keep his stories entertaining and interesting. ‘Computerface’ contains more plot twists and fight sequences than the lengthiest of mystery, suspense or action novels.
The second half of the “Stranger Danger” book is comprised of Danger_Slater’s story entitled ‘Roadvolution.’ Slater’s writing style and his main character Marc reminded me of Bret Ellis’s ‘American Psycho,’ but set on a road trip to self-discovery. In Slater’s story, however, the proverbial road proves to be a far more life-changing experience for his travelers than either Jack Kerouac’s ‘On the Road’ or Robert M. Pirsig’s ‘Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.’
Yes, life on the road can be both frightening and dangerous for travelers on a journey of self-discovery, especially if chemicals in the asphalt suddenly cause the infrastructure to come alive and begin crushing vehicles and passengers. If you think the potholes in your town are bad, wait until you read Slater’s bizarro indictment of the nation’s crumbling roads and bridges. Not even New Jersey Governor Chris Christie could stop the traffic disruptions on the George Washington Bridge as described in Slater’s terrifying tale.
‘Roadvolution’ opens with our self-absorbed nouveau riche anti-hero Marc stuck in traffic and expressing a bit of road rage against the punk poseur in the clunker car next to him. They both exchange words after Marc demands that she turn the volume down on an Iggy Pop classic.
Marc soon realizes that the traffic tie-up that he finds himself imbedded within apparently begins at the George Washington Bridge, even though he is miles from the bridge and the radio in his Mercedes is not picking up the local traffic report. He makes this determination when he sees the animated bridge towering toward him, consuming all the vehicles in its path.
Just before Marc learns the true meaning of road rage, the punkster ends up pulling him out of his luxury German-engineered vehicle and dragging him to safety in his Brooks Brothers suit. Armed with some jack hammers, the diametric duo later joins some fellow survivors on a quest to discover the secret of the avenging asphalt (whose fault did you say it was, likely asked Marc).
Without giving anything away, I asked myself at the end of the book whether the chemicals in the concrete were really as dangerous as the chemicals spewing from the exhausts of commuting cars every day. Upon further pondering of this question, I smiled when I thought about the characters’ decision to go green.
In conclusion, you should consider “Stranger Danger” to be like a fresh pack of Doublemint Gum: If you buy this latest offering from StrangeHouse Books, you’ll double your pleasure and double your fun!
The new Bizarro Sci-Fi double novella “Stranger Danger,” published by StrangeHouse Books, and written by Kevin Strange and Danger_ Slater, addresses technology gone awry in futuristic worlds where humanity has become too complacent and too accepting of new technology, reminiscent of how people have already embraced the concept of Google Glass and have suddenly forgotten the lessons learned by Steve Martin’s character in ‘The Jerk’ when he invented the Opti-Grab.
Both novellas also share the theme of using an affluent anti-hero as the main character, often blurring the fine line between antagonist and protagonist. The main characters of both stories immediately recognize the threat of new technology, but they experience difficultly overcoming their own egos and sense of self-preservation in order to eventually work with others to obtain a permanent solution.
Kevin Strange’s story ‘Computerface’ leads off the double feature. In Strange’s vision of the future, robots are so advanced that they can perform most of the labor needed to maintain a working society, while people have more time for leisure activities, like collecting pop culture memorabilia of the early 21st Century (which I understand will soon be considered the Golden Age of Popular Culture, thanks mainly to reality shows and amateur talent competitions).
In the story, Harry is just such a collector and he maintains a popular and profitable website called AngryDorks(dot)com - [BTW, I checked and saw that that web address is available for purchase, so if you buy it you may be fulfilling a Strange prophecy].
Being at the cutting edge of burgeoning pop culture, Harry is able to predict that these working robots will be a nuisance once their artificial intelligence becomes so advanced that they revolt against their menial roles in society. Thus, Harry liquidates his assets and builds an underground bunker to save himself from the impending robot apocalypse, stocking the bunker with thousands of DVDs and tons of food.
End of story, right? Harry lives happily ever after, right? I know I would. But the lonely fool ventures out of the safety of his bunker and finds himself in the middle of a war against technology. Robots are building battle bots and letting them loose on the people who oppressed them. Self-centered Harry eventually ends up with an iPad infused to his face and then realizes that neither the robots nor his fellow humans trust him.
As always, Kevin is a master at creating exciting battle sequences, which usually take up the bulk of his stories (and that’s a good thing, believe me). He’s also excellent at creating plot twists which keep his stories entertaining and interesting. ‘Computerface’ contains more plot twists and fight sequences than the lengthiest of mystery, suspense or action novels.
The second half of the “Stranger Danger” book is comprised of Danger_Slater’s story entitled ‘Roadvolution.’ Slater’s writing style and his main character Marc reminded me of Bret Ellis’s ‘American Psycho,’ but set on a road trip to self-discovery. In Slater’s story, however, the proverbial road proves to be a far more life-changing experience for his travelers than either Jack Kerouac’s ‘On the Road’ or Robert M. Pirsig’s ‘Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.’
Yes, life on the road can be both frightening and dangerous for travelers on a journey of self-discovery, especially if chemicals in the asphalt suddenly cause the infrastructure to come alive and begin crushing vehicles and passengers. If you think the potholes in your town are bad, wait until you read Slater’s bizarro indictment of the nation’s crumbling roads and bridges. Not even New Jersey Governor Chris Christie could stop the traffic disruptions on the George Washington Bridge as described in Slater’s terrifying tale.
‘Roadvolution’ opens with our self-absorbed nouveau riche anti-hero Marc stuck in traffic and expressing a bit of road rage against the punk poseur in the clunker car next to him. They both exchange words after Marc demands that she turn the volume down on an Iggy Pop classic.
Marc soon realizes that the traffic tie-up that he finds himself imbedded within apparently begins at the George Washington Bridge, even though he is miles from the bridge and the radio in his Mercedes is not picking up the local traffic report. He makes this determination when he sees the animated bridge towering toward him, consuming all the vehicles in its path.
Just before Marc learns the true meaning of road rage, the punkster ends up pulling him out of his luxury German-engineered vehicle and dragging him to safety in his Brooks Brothers suit. Armed with some jack hammers, the diametric duo later joins some fellow survivors on a quest to discover the secret of the avenging asphalt (whose fault did you say it was, likely asked Marc).
Without giving anything away, I asked myself at the end of the book whether the chemicals in the concrete were really as dangerous as the chemicals spewing from the exhausts of commuting cars every day. Upon further pondering of this question, I smiled when I thought about the characters’ decision to go green.
In conclusion, you should consider “Stranger Danger” to be like a fresh pack of Doublemint Gum: If you buy this latest offering from StrangeHouse Books, you’ll double your pleasure and double your fun!
January 11, 2015
Anyone who reads bizarro fiction knows the names of Danger Slater and Kevin Strange. They're both known for writing some really awesome stuff. I, for one, am a fan of both of them, so I was pretty excited to read their double novella.
First up was Kevin Strange's Computerface. The basic story of Computerface is something you may have seen before either in movies, or books. Machines have taken over, and they are destroying all of humanity. But that is just a bare bones plot element. This is Kevin Strange, he doesn't put out books that are like anything you have read before. The actual story of Computerface is about a man who wakes up with no memory of who he is and where he is. He is immediately thrust into a situation he doesn't understand, where a machine is trying to slaughter a woman. Even though he saves the day, he is accused of being one of the machines. This mistake comes from the fact that unbeknownst to him, he has an Ipad grafted to his face. Strange takes this bizarre Sci Fi scenario and makes it as terrifying as he possibly could. His robots are fueled by the pain and torment of humans, and he has created some very nightmare inducing killing machines. I really enjoyed the progression of main character Computerface as we learn with him who he was, how he became what he is, and what he ended up being. Fans of Strange's other work will find a nice little surprise at the end.
The second half of this book, Danger Slater's novella Roadvoltution, takes another familiar scenario, but quickly turns it into something original. Essentially it's a survival horror story, but this time the monster is our roads, bridges and tunnels. As the roads rise up and bite each other like vampires we have a miss-matched group trying to stay alive while the concrete and pavement monsters kill anything in their paths. Slater does a great job with the would be survivors of this story. His characters are quirky and entertaining, and very real life.
Both of these novellas are excellent. Kevin Strange and Danger Slater are putting out exciting and entertaining work. If you like anything else these two have put out then you will definitely like Stranger/Danger.
First up was Kevin Strange's Computerface. The basic story of Computerface is something you may have seen before either in movies, or books. Machines have taken over, and they are destroying all of humanity. But that is just a bare bones plot element. This is Kevin Strange, he doesn't put out books that are like anything you have read before. The actual story of Computerface is about a man who wakes up with no memory of who he is and where he is. He is immediately thrust into a situation he doesn't understand, where a machine is trying to slaughter a woman. Even though he saves the day, he is accused of being one of the machines. This mistake comes from the fact that unbeknownst to him, he has an Ipad grafted to his face. Strange takes this bizarre Sci Fi scenario and makes it as terrifying as he possibly could. His robots are fueled by the pain and torment of humans, and he has created some very nightmare inducing killing machines. I really enjoyed the progression of main character Computerface as we learn with him who he was, how he became what he is, and what he ended up being. Fans of Strange's other work will find a nice little surprise at the end.
The second half of this book, Danger Slater's novella Roadvoltution, takes another familiar scenario, but quickly turns it into something original. Essentially it's a survival horror story, but this time the monster is our roads, bridges and tunnels. As the roads rise up and bite each other like vampires we have a miss-matched group trying to stay alive while the concrete and pavement monsters kill anything in their paths. Slater does a great job with the would be survivors of this story. His characters are quirky and entertaining, and very real life.
Both of these novellas are excellent. Kevin Strange and Danger Slater are putting out exciting and entertaining work. If you like anything else these two have put out then you will definitely like Stranger/Danger.
July 25, 2014
Stranger Danger is a two-novella book with two versions of the bizarro apocalypse.
In Kevin Strange's Computerface, an asshole movie critic wakes up to discover that his face has, in fact, been replaced by an iPad. And, oh by the way, robots have completely taken over the world. The few remaining humans left are battling for their lives, while the robots are insistent on torturing them in the most sadistic way possible.
Strange's vision of the world is remarkably clear and detailed--you can feel the earth crumbling around you as giant robots squash everything in their paths. This is an epic journey, filled with action and gore, told at a frantic pace.
Danger Slater's Roadvolution starts with the inner monologue of an arrogant corporate clone, Marc, drooling over his car. But his confidence is about to go down the shitter when every highway, bridge, and tunnel on the east coast becomes a sentient machine of ass kicking, determined to destroy mankind. Marc teams up with a punk rocker chick who he hate/loves, a mechanic named Beowulf, and a few other misfits, the group scrambling to survive.
This one has all the humor and style I've come to expect from Slater from books like Love Me and DangeRAMA. Dude could write a diner menu and I'd read it. Luckily, instead he's written a compelling take on the apocalypse with a wacky cast of characters. And an ending I didn't seem coming at all, but was really cool.
Anyway, Stranger Danger is immensely entertaining, original, and highly recommended.
In Kevin Strange's Computerface, an asshole movie critic wakes up to discover that his face has, in fact, been replaced by an iPad. And, oh by the way, robots have completely taken over the world. The few remaining humans left are battling for their lives, while the robots are insistent on torturing them in the most sadistic way possible.
Strange's vision of the world is remarkably clear and detailed--you can feel the earth crumbling around you as giant robots squash everything in their paths. This is an epic journey, filled with action and gore, told at a frantic pace.
Danger Slater's Roadvolution starts with the inner monologue of an arrogant corporate clone, Marc, drooling over his car. But his confidence is about to go down the shitter when every highway, bridge, and tunnel on the east coast becomes a sentient machine of ass kicking, determined to destroy mankind. Marc teams up with a punk rocker chick who he hate/loves, a mechanic named Beowulf, and a few other misfits, the group scrambling to survive.
This one has all the humor and style I've come to expect from Slater from books like Love Me and DangeRAMA. Dude could write a diner menu and I'd read it. Luckily, instead he's written a compelling take on the apocalypse with a wacky cast of characters. And an ending I didn't seem coming at all, but was really cool.
Anyway, Stranger Danger is immensely entertaining, original, and highly recommended.
January 28, 2015
Computerface
I enjoyed this more than the second story in the book. This one started off one way then took a crazy urn off into left field which was awesome. I don't think I'm giving away much to say that it follows the Machines v. Humans trope that I first saw in The Terminator setting but it did enough interesting things that it definitely stood out on its own.
I admit that there was one minor facet to the story that didn't make logical sense but it wasn't a pivotal part of the plot so I was able to easily gloss over it and enjoy the story (immensely). Computerface was of course a very interesting character but I thought that several of the supporting characters were quite well developed for such a relatively low page count.
There were enough twists and surprises that I was enthralled the entire time I was reading. There was also a lot of thought put into the back story of how the world ended up where it did which I really appreciated. Personally I thought that it was very nearly just weird sci-fi, the only thing that really made it bizarro for me was Computerface's schlong being mentioned multiple times. I will most certainly continue to pick up Kevin's work in the future.
Road-Volution
I have to admit that the thing that stuck with me the annoying-ass narrator. I know that it was part of the point but he really pissed me off. In my opinion the constant whining was a turn-off but I really enjoyed how the very imaginiative way that the world seemed to come to an end.
There was some character development, about what I'd expect from a shorter work. Overall I enjoyed the style and will definitely try reading more from Slater in the future.
I enjoyed this more than the second story in the book. This one started off one way then took a crazy urn off into left field which was awesome. I don't think I'm giving away much to say that it follows the Machines v. Humans trope that I first saw in The Terminator setting but it did enough interesting things that it definitely stood out on its own.
I admit that there was one minor facet to the story that didn't make logical sense but it wasn't a pivotal part of the plot so I was able to easily gloss over it and enjoy the story (immensely). Computerface was of course a very interesting character but I thought that several of the supporting characters were quite well developed for such a relatively low page count.
There were enough twists and surprises that I was enthralled the entire time I was reading. There was also a lot of thought put into the back story of how the world ended up where it did which I really appreciated. Personally I thought that it was very nearly just weird sci-fi, the only thing that really made it bizarro for me was Computerface's schlong being mentioned multiple times. I will most certainly continue to pick up Kevin's work in the future.
Road-Volution
I have to admit that the thing that stuck with me the annoying-ass narrator. I know that it was part of the point but he really pissed me off. In my opinion the constant whining was a turn-off but I really enjoyed how the very imaginiative way that the world seemed to come to an end.
There was some character development, about what I'd expect from a shorter work. Overall I enjoyed the style and will definitely try reading more from Slater in the future.
September 11, 2014
Another amazing StrangeHouse book! Kevin Strange's "Computerface" is sheer lunacy about a future in which the robots have revolted against the humans and they decide that they really enjoy war. A lot. Humanity's only hope is Computerface, who used to be a fat-slob internet "reviewer" before he got plastic surgery in order to look like a god among men. Oh yeah, and he has an iPad fused to his face. Plus, fans of Strange's work will notice that the ending ties in with another of his novellas. Keep an eye out. (Also, keep an eye out for a character that is kinda-sorta named after me, a fellow named Brundy.)
If you thought that was crazy, brace yourself for Danger_Slater's "Roadvolution," which comes off as one of those crazy rant songs from the Dead Milkmen as written by Weird Al and narrated by Ty Burrell. It's kind of like a zombie apocalypse story, but if you replace the zombies with the roads of America. Yeah, wrap your mind around THAT concept. For all its insanity, though, it has a very beautiful ending.
You have the option to buy one or the other novella, but I would highly recommend just getting this book with both of them in it. It's the perfect combo.
If you thought that was crazy, brace yourself for Danger_Slater's "Roadvolution," which comes off as one of those crazy rant songs from the Dead Milkmen as written by Weird Al and narrated by Ty Burrell. It's kind of like a zombie apocalypse story, but if you replace the zombies with the roads of America. Yeah, wrap your mind around THAT concept. For all its insanity, though, it has a very beautiful ending.
You have the option to buy one or the other novella, but I would highly recommend just getting this book with both of them in it. It's the perfect combo.
March 7, 2015
Two really enjoyable novellas! 'ComputerFace' by Kevin Strange and 'Roadvalution' by Danger Slater.
Both are apocalyptic tales of humankind being destroyed by their own creations - Robots in one case and Roads in the other.
Both actually made me think about the Battlestar Galactica reboot with its themes of Robots turning against their creators as well as that what has happened will happen again.
Once of the things I love about Bizarro fiction is that many times, you think you know where the story is going, and then like in Tarantino's From Dusk to Dawn, it goes from something seemingly normal to a sharp new place. I particularly got that feeling in 'Roadvalution'.
I thought the stories complimented each other and was very satisfied
Both are apocalyptic tales of humankind being destroyed by their own creations - Robots in one case and Roads in the other.
Both actually made me think about the Battlestar Galactica reboot with its themes of Robots turning against their creators as well as that what has happened will happen again.
Once of the things I love about Bizarro fiction is that many times, you think you know where the story is going, and then like in Tarantino's From Dusk to Dawn, it goes from something seemingly normal to a sharp new place. I particularly got that feeling in 'Roadvalution'.
I thought the stories complimented each other and was very satisfied
February 24, 2015
ROADVOLUTION BY DANGER SLATER
"Like a newborn fisting it's way into the world"
"A breath like fire from the ever burgeoning sun licks my face like a date rapist"
"It's no BMWZ4 roadster but I suppose it's better than getting eaten alive by a highway overpass"
"Our existence is a pollution. A poison. Stealing apiece of this world for ourselves, until that moment we pollute no more. Invisible in the end"
There is this guy, I think his name was Marc or Mark, he drives this sweet gas guzzling Sexy vehicle and definitely leaves the toilet seat up. Now, I'm going to let you in on a secret, when I read this book, it read like a movie to me and I pictured this lead guy as Nic Cage. I mean, why not? He's a macho guy, this is a very fitting role.
The leading lady enters the scene, her name is Libby Borden (I picture her as Katy Perry, in her first major role)
"like a vampire bat tipsy after sipping too much wino blood" with brakes on her car "so high-pitched it only flirts with the threshold of my humbly human perception as it slices its way through my spinal cord like a wantonly swung samurai sword " All the sudden the roads come to life and things start to get weird. Libby And Marc or Mark, even though they can't stand each other are forced to fight to survive the highway-to-hell-apocalypse-situation side by side.....I see comedy spin off here guys...
I'm not going to write any spoilers in case you are one of the billion or so people who haven't read this yet, but a bunch of crazy and somewhat disgusting events transpire. They also meet some interesting people along their journey to find out why the roads have starting eating people on what I'm pretty sure was an otherwise normal Tuesday afternoon. All and all, this is a great book and you should read it with your book groups and prayer circles.
"Like a newborn fisting it's way into the world"
"A breath like fire from the ever burgeoning sun licks my face like a date rapist"
"It's no BMWZ4 roadster but I suppose it's better than getting eaten alive by a highway overpass"
"Our existence is a pollution. A poison. Stealing apiece of this world for ourselves, until that moment we pollute no more. Invisible in the end"
There is this guy, I think his name was Marc or Mark, he drives this sweet gas guzzling Sexy vehicle and definitely leaves the toilet seat up. Now, I'm going to let you in on a secret, when I read this book, it read like a movie to me and I pictured this lead guy as Nic Cage. I mean, why not? He's a macho guy, this is a very fitting role.
The leading lady enters the scene, her name is Libby Borden (I picture her as Katy Perry, in her first major role)
"like a vampire bat tipsy after sipping too much wino blood" with brakes on her car "so high-pitched it only flirts with the threshold of my humbly human perception as it slices its way through my spinal cord like a wantonly swung samurai sword " All the sudden the roads come to life and things start to get weird. Libby And Marc or Mark, even though they can't stand each other are forced to fight to survive the highway-to-hell-apocalypse-situation side by side.....I see comedy spin off here guys...
I'm not going to write any spoilers in case you are one of the billion or so people who haven't read this yet, but a bunch of crazy and somewhat disgusting events transpire. They also meet some interesting people along their journey to find out why the roads have starting eating people on what I'm pretty sure was an otherwise normal Tuesday afternoon. All and all, this is a great book and you should read it with your book groups and prayer circles.
September 3, 2014
Stranger Danger consists of two novellas written by two very different writers with similar themes: human "progress" run amok. Kevin Strange's story, Computerface opens the book, and like most of Strange's stories it's fun and fast paced with plenty of action. In Computerface, a selfish impresario of a successful website dedicated to rating and reviewing movies finds his comfortable world turned upside down at the dawn of a robot apocalypse. Strange's dystopian landscape is beautifully rendered with plenty of giant robots, and violence galore. And if you follow Strange's work, you'll notice a certain Ricky and Chef makes an appearance, yeah, Computerface is nuts.
Roadvolution by Danger Slater is the second novella, and kicks off with a qoute from Jack Kerouac, and in the greater scheme of the story the qoute fit perfectly. The story revolves around four very different people forced to band together, and survive when their roads and highways come to life as kaiju beasts. The story is told from the perspective of a young, ladder climbing yuppie who must put aside his material wants for a better purpose, and help his reluctant new friends.
What was so great was Danger's ability to take an otherwise despicable character, and make him likeable, and even relatable. This was the first sort of full length work I've read from Danger Slater, besides his stories in the Tall Tales...series from Rooster Republic, which were hilarious, but Roadvolution, though there was plenty of humor, had a bittersweet absurd ending that has solidified me personally as a fan. Loved Roadvolution!
You'll have a blast with Stranger Danger!
Roadvolution by Danger Slater is the second novella, and kicks off with a qoute from Jack Kerouac, and in the greater scheme of the story the qoute fit perfectly. The story revolves around four very different people forced to band together, and survive when their roads and highways come to life as kaiju beasts. The story is told from the perspective of a young, ladder climbing yuppie who must put aside his material wants for a better purpose, and help his reluctant new friends.
What was so great was Danger's ability to take an otherwise despicable character, and make him likeable, and even relatable. This was the first sort of full length work I've read from Danger Slater, besides his stories in the Tall Tales...series from Rooster Republic, which were hilarious, but Roadvolution, though there was plenty of humor, had a bittersweet absurd ending that has solidified me personally as a fan. Loved Roadvolution!
You'll have a blast with Stranger Danger!
January 19, 2015
This is a no-brainer for any fan of Kevin Strange or Danger Slater. Both novellas are fun and hilarious, and any high-concept bizarro fan needs this. 4 stars.
July 6, 2014
Review pending.
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