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House of Blood #2
Queen of Blood
It was known as the House of Blood. It sat at the entrance to a netherworld of unimaginable torture and terror. Very few who entered its front door lived to ever again see the outside world. But a few did survive. They thought they had found a way to destroy the house of horrors…but they were wrong. A new house has arisen. A new mistress now wields its unholy power—and she wants revenge. She will not rest until those who dared to challenge her and her former master are made to pay with their very souls!
321 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published March 31, 2008
19 people are currently reading
358 people want to read
About the author
Bryan Smith
103 books759 followersBryan Smith is the Splatterpunk Award-winning author of more than forty horror and crime books, including 68 Kill, the cult classic Depraved and its sequels, as well as The Killing Kind, Slowly We Rot, The Freakshow, and many more. Bestselling horror author Brian Keene called Slowly We Rot, "The best zombie novel I've ever read."
68 Kill was adapted into a motion picture directed by Trent Haaga and starring Matthew Gray Gubler of the long-running CBS series Criminal Minds. 68 Kill won the Midnighters Award at the SXSW film festival in 2017 and was released to wide acclaim, including positive reviews in The New York Times and Bloody Disgusting.
Bryan also co-scripted an original Harley Quinn story for the House of Horrors anthology from DC Comics. He has worked with renowned horror publishers in both the mass market and small press spheres, including Leisure Books, Samhain Publishing, Grindhouse Press, Death’s Head Press, and more. His works are available wherever books are sold, with select titles also available in German and Italian.
68 Kill was adapted into a motion picture directed by Trent Haaga and starring Matthew Gray Gubler of the long-running CBS series Criminal Minds. 68 Kill won the Midnighters Award at the SXSW film festival in 2017 and was released to wide acclaim, including positive reviews in The New York Times and Bloody Disgusting.
Bryan also co-scripted an original Harley Quinn story for the House of Horrors anthology from DC Comics. He has worked with renowned horror publishers in both the mass market and small press spheres, including Leisure Books, Samhain Publishing, Grindhouse Press, Death’s Head Press, and more. His works are available wherever books are sold, with select titles also available in German and Italian.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
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July 2, 2015This is copy 31 of 60 signed and numbered copies.
February 17, 2022
DNF'd @ p. 37
Maybe I would have at least continued this if I had managed to read book one?
Maybe I would have at least continued this if I had managed to read book one?
July 24, 2008
I started this book without knowing that it was a sequel, and that may have tempered my ability to fully enjoy this book. I have not Read “House of Blood” which comes before this. Apparently, having read “House of Blood” is vital to even beginning to enjoy this book.
Short Summary: Several survivors from the House of Blood are running around and hiding from the remnants of the clan of torturers and magic users they overthrew. Ms. Wickman has taken over the House of Blood and is apparently continuing the torture and exploits of the first book, she also has sent bad guys to track down the survivors. There is an appearance of “The order of the Dragon” who apparently want the head of the House of Blood done in, though no one really understands why. So they all go around killing people until everyone who’s still alive ends up back at the House of Blood for a show down.
I really don’t know what to say about this book… there wasn’t a good character to root for, and everyone seemed a bit stupid to be honest. It really didn’t bother me when anyone died, other than the fact that none of the deaths really had any impact other than to add gore to the book. I assume I was supposed to have trailing feelings for the characters from the first book, but since I haven’t read it I can say that they certainly weren’t developed in this book. There is a lot of magic that wasn’t really explained, several references to the multiple gods of death, and an entire city of torture was built apparently in some sort of Baba-Yaga version of a farm house. People who died in the first book are brought back to life, but that isn’t fully explored, non-magical people are apparently now magical… and the order of the dragon isn’t explained at all, nor their reasoning for getting rid of the head of the House of Blood, since they are a bunch of torturers too.
As far as the writing goes… there were some problems, first of all, the use of pronouns was out of whack… at times we’d switch to a new person and go for 2 to 3 pages before they are named and we know who he’s talking about… then at other times he’s restate the person’s name every sentence, when a pronoun like “he” would have made the reader much happier to read. Descriptions of gore were spot on, but descriptions of people and places were a bit sparse…the main description of the women is of their hair and figure… but they change hair color so often that at times it confuses you as to who he’s talking about. There is no synopsis of what occurred in the first book, so you have to go from clues that are dropped here and there. Also relationships are never defined so various characters act as if they know each other, but as a reader (if you haven’t read the first one) you have no idea what the relationship is.
Final opinion – If you read and really enjoyed the first book, you might like this one. If you haven’t read the first book, don’t bother reading this, it cannot function as a stand alone book. The characters are all very flat and not very engaging. The plot is weak and haphazard. I really don’t think I would recommend this to any of my friends, and this book gave me no desire to pick up and read the original.
Short Summary: Several survivors from the House of Blood are running around and hiding from the remnants of the clan of torturers and magic users they overthrew. Ms. Wickman has taken over the House of Blood and is apparently continuing the torture and exploits of the first book, she also has sent bad guys to track down the survivors. There is an appearance of “The order of the Dragon” who apparently want the head of the House of Blood done in, though no one really understands why. So they all go around killing people until everyone who’s still alive ends up back at the House of Blood for a show down.
I really don’t know what to say about this book… there wasn’t a good character to root for, and everyone seemed a bit stupid to be honest. It really didn’t bother me when anyone died, other than the fact that none of the deaths really had any impact other than to add gore to the book. I assume I was supposed to have trailing feelings for the characters from the first book, but since I haven’t read it I can say that they certainly weren’t developed in this book. There is a lot of magic that wasn’t really explained, several references to the multiple gods of death, and an entire city of torture was built apparently in some sort of Baba-Yaga version of a farm house. People who died in the first book are brought back to life, but that isn’t fully explored, non-magical people are apparently now magical… and the order of the dragon isn’t explained at all, nor their reasoning for getting rid of the head of the House of Blood, since they are a bunch of torturers too.
As far as the writing goes… there were some problems, first of all, the use of pronouns was out of whack… at times we’d switch to a new person and go for 2 to 3 pages before they are named and we know who he’s talking about… then at other times he’s restate the person’s name every sentence, when a pronoun like “he” would have made the reader much happier to read. Descriptions of gore were spot on, but descriptions of people and places were a bit sparse…the main description of the women is of their hair and figure… but they change hair color so often that at times it confuses you as to who he’s talking about. There is no synopsis of what occurred in the first book, so you have to go from clues that are dropped here and there. Also relationships are never defined so various characters act as if they know each other, but as a reader (if you haven’t read the first one) you have no idea what the relationship is.
Final opinion – If you read and really enjoyed the first book, you might like this one. If you haven’t read the first book, don’t bother reading this, it cannot function as a stand alone book. The characters are all very flat and not very engaging. The plot is weak and haphazard. I really don’t think I would recommend this to any of my friends, and this book gave me no desire to pick up and read the original.
March 7, 2018
Well, this was the most horror I’ve ever seen packed into one book. So much so, that I began to get bored with it. “Yeah, yeah, ‘torn apart by machine gun fire’ … ‘knife pressed against his throat’ … yawn.”
I prefer my horror with a little more grace and finesse, though, so this will be my last Bryan Smith book. I’d read two others (but not House of Blood, the book for which this is the sequel).
Also, I’m sensing a theme. The ones I’ve read all have these horrible women characters -- ruthless and brutal. It’s not exactly woman-hating, and not exactly “girl-power” either. He just seems to like to make female characters that are “evil bitches.” And this particular book is chuck full of ‘em! And now I think I’ve had my fill of “evil bitches” for a lifetime; thanks.
Also, the shallow introspection that passes for profundity in this book reminds me of when I was eighteen and thought I was a deep thinker.
Oh, and everyone’s naked all the time. Maybe if people had pockets to put their hands in, they wouldn’t get them chopped off so much.
It’s an easy read, I was entertained, and I can understand why a lot of horror fans would enjoy his books but this isn’t mature stuff for mature readers.
I feel like I can fairly say I’m aware of Bryan Smith’s work now, but I think this will be it for me.
I prefer my horror with a little more grace and finesse, though, so this will be my last Bryan Smith book. I’d read two others (but not House of Blood, the book for which this is the sequel).
Also, I’m sensing a theme. The ones I’ve read all have these horrible women characters -- ruthless and brutal. It’s not exactly woman-hating, and not exactly “girl-power” either. He just seems to like to make female characters that are “evil bitches.” And this particular book is chuck full of ‘em! And now I think I’ve had my fill of “evil bitches” for a lifetime; thanks.
Also, the shallow introspection that passes for profundity in this book reminds me of when I was eighteen and thought I was a deep thinker.
Oh, and everyone’s naked all the time. Maybe if people had pockets to put their hands in, they wouldn’t get them chopped off so much.
It’s an easy read, I was entertained, and I can understand why a lot of horror fans would enjoy his books but this isn’t mature stuff for mature readers.
I feel like I can fairly say I’m aware of Bryan Smith’s work now, but I think this will be it for me.
August 4, 2019
Not one of his best. Torture porn here. Has a old Grindhouse film feel to it. Part 1 was better.
September 23, 2008
Two years ago something so horrible happened that it will give you nightmares forever. A group of friends entered the House of Blood. It all was said and done only two people survived. Dream Weaver and Chad Robbins may be the lucky ones to have survived the House of Blood but they have never been the same since. Dream and Chad thought they were done with the master but they were wrong. A new evil has arisen and it’s out for revenge. Ms. Wickman despises the weak but oh how she loves to hear them scream and beg for mercy. Nothing’s worse than a woman’s scorn.
I never read House of Blood so I can’t compare the master to Ms. Wickman but from what I read of Ms. Wickman, I definitely thought she was one mean woman if you can call her that. She will bring you down as well as help you up just so she can torture you all over again. Queen of Blood has all the makings of a good horror book. It has the scary factor, creepiness, gore and it will give you nightmares. So if you want to be scared out of your wits than you need to read Queen of Blood.
I never read House of Blood so I can’t compare the master to Ms. Wickman but from what I read of Ms. Wickman, I definitely thought she was one mean woman if you can call her that. She will bring you down as well as help you up just so she can torture you all over again. Queen of Blood has all the makings of a good horror book. It has the scary factor, creepiness, gore and it will give you nightmares. So if you want to be scared out of your wits than you need to read Queen of Blood.
July 17, 2019
If ultraviolence and hypersex are your thing, then this will be right up your alley. There's lots of sex and gore in this one, which is no surprise considering it's the sequel to House of Blood. It's a lot of fun, but as with its predecessor, I have some issues with it. This one feels overloaded, like it's trying to fit too much in, and sometimes what makes it in seems like unnecessary padding. Also, some of the characters are treated like chess pieces, except sometimes Smith grows bored with them and kills them off when he doesn't know what else to do with them. The ending feels kind of phoned in, too. I know it sounds like I didn't like the book, but that's not the case. I enjoyed it. There is a lot of fun to be had in here, especially near the beginning of the book. Your mileage may vary.
January 4, 2009
Overview: Survivors from a sadistic torture cult return to battle (or join up with) the new incarnation of that cult.
I have to admit extreme horror is not my cup of tea. I'm not a fan of the voyeuristic, vicarious cruelty the sub-genre presents. Another problem is that when books start out "extreme" or over the top, there is nowhere left for them to go but down into a grotesque, outlandish cartoonishness.
So I would not have picked this one up if it had not come as one of the Leisure Horror Book Club offerings. There were some nice imaginative touches in this book and it was fast reading, but overall, I'd say it's for fans of the sub-genre only.
I have to admit extreme horror is not my cup of tea. I'm not a fan of the voyeuristic, vicarious cruelty the sub-genre presents. Another problem is that when books start out "extreme" or over the top, there is nowhere left for them to go but down into a grotesque, outlandish cartoonishness.
So I would not have picked this one up if it had not come as one of the Leisure Horror Book Club offerings. There were some nice imaginative touches in this book and it was fast reading, but overall, I'd say it's for fans of the sub-genre only.
November 4, 2011
This is a pretty strong sequel to the House of Blood. It takes place a few years after the events in the first book and offers a satisfying mix of craziness and gore and fun and, of course, oodles of blood. Also quite an amount of lesbianism on top of the usual sado-masochism. Fun read, I'd recommend it.
January 28, 2015
Meh... the book was okay. The characters seemed kinda flat.
Granted I haven't read the first one because I just picked this one up at a used bookstore.
If I find the first one I'll read it, if I don't oh well.
Granted I haven't read the first one because I just picked this one up at a used bookstore.
If I find the first one I'll read it, if I don't oh well.
December 16, 2024
So, I'm dumb and mistakenly read "Queen of Blood" before "House of Blood". Normally I wouldn't do this, but I'd ordered a selection of books on eBay, looking to expand my Leisure collection, and didn't realize my error until I'd opened the book. Normally I'd set it down and correct my mistake, read the first one first, but this time I just went with it. So, take this review with a grain of salt, I suppose.
"Queen of Blood" is a wild, rambunctious tale of splattery supernatural horror. The body count is high, as you'd expect from a Bryan Smith novel, and there are lots of crude, vulgar, patience-challenged characters, one more vicious than the next. They're all heading towards the domain of the Queen of Blood, victor of the previous book's battles.
I think I prefer Smith's non-supernatural stories best. So far I've not come across one that hit me as hard as "The Killing Kind," though I'm happy to keep looking. He's a fun writer, and I know going into one of his books that my ability to hold down lunch will be challenged and I'll meet plenty of disturbing yet captivating characters.
It's most enjoyable when Smith gives you a lead who's nice and decent on the surface, and then spends a few hundred pages having that cool exterior challenged, as the protagonist is dragged through the mud along with the more savage characters.
"Queen of Blood" is a wild, rambunctious tale of splattery supernatural horror. The body count is high, as you'd expect from a Bryan Smith novel, and there are lots of crude, vulgar, patience-challenged characters, one more vicious than the next. They're all heading towards the domain of the Queen of Blood, victor of the previous book's battles.
I think I prefer Smith's non-supernatural stories best. So far I've not come across one that hit me as hard as "The Killing Kind," though I'm happy to keep looking. He's a fun writer, and I know going into one of his books that my ability to hold down lunch will be challenged and I'll meet plenty of disturbing yet captivating characters.
It's most enjoyable when Smith gives you a lead who's nice and decent on the surface, and then spends a few hundred pages having that cool exterior challenged, as the protagonist is dragged through the mud along with the more savage characters.
July 28, 2018
I haven't read the previous novel in this series and I don't think I'll bother. Queen of Blood seems to be about some of the surviving characters from the first instalment and how they get involved somehow with a new "house of blood". None of them are the sort of characters you want to root for or engage with. Death is administered in every way possible - shooting, stabbing, bludgeoning, magical exploding, and so on. It all becomes a bit tedious. When I first discovered horror in my teens I may have been impressed, but I need a bit more now. I've read other Bryan Smith novels and enjoyed them, but this one didn't do it for me.
March 5, 2018
I had no idea this was book 2 of a series, I don't think it makes a difference. This was like reading a low budget movie that you regret watching..haha
Through the entire book you will question the authors mental state and if you don't then you might want to question your own.
I'm giving it two stars because the cover and title are cool. (I need to stop picking up books based on that)
Through the entire book you will question the authors mental state and if you don't then you might want to question your own.
I'm giving it two stars because the cover and title are cool. (I need to stop picking up books based on that)
April 14, 2022
I like a good gory story and this one had it, but I was not thrilled with the main characters in it. Talk about broken people the only one, who was half way normal was Jim and that was because he was a mystery as to who he was. If you have a weak stomach or torture is not thing then avoid this book. Oh and by the way there is one before this one and one after.
February 12, 2017
Excellent sequel to House of Blood. Bryan Smith in my opinion is one of the most underrated authors out there. He has shock value, but not overly shocking. Great details and never fails to deliver a good story. Very original.
July 6, 2021
The Master of Horror Strikes Again
Bryan Smith once again gives life to depraved entities that have no business existing, yet hide amongst us in human skins. If you're a fan of all things sick and twisted, Mr. Smith has definitely got you covered.
Bryan Smith once again gives life to depraved entities that have no business existing, yet hide amongst us in human skins. If you're a fan of all things sick and twisted, Mr. Smith has definitely got you covered.
April 23, 2018
Dream Weaver continues from the previous book (House of Blood). Giselle takes over from the previous book as well. It didn't feel like the characters/story was going anywhere though with this one.
February 17, 2020
Excellent novel. Bryan Smith never fails to make the reader engaged. Little bit of a twist ending, but excellent non the less.
October 29, 2021
A huge drop from the first one. That one was wild and unique and this just felt repetitive and predictable. Also, please get a better editor. There were a ton of errors throughout this thing.
December 16, 2010
Este livro é um sério candidato a líder da categoria dos piores que li nos últimos tempos. Pretendendo ser um livro do género terror, o mais aterrorizante na obra é o seu pouco carácter literário. Escrito de uma forma confusa, com diversas linhas narrativas convergentes que sofrem mais plot twists que uma espiral de adn numa centrifugadora, socorre-se de uma certa sexualização banal e perversa para tentar manter o interesse do leitor. Confesso que quando cheguei ao final do livro só consegui perceber que havia muitas mortes sangrentas ou sádicas, três ou quatro usurpações de poder, um romance bem sucedido com final feliz e uma série de conspirações que não davam em nada.
Boa parte do livro remete à primeira obra da série. Se for da qualidade desta sequela, nem vale a pena perder tempo com a leitura. Mas estou a ser injusto. Este livro tem duas coisas boas: a capa e uma certa visceralidade promissora que se perde na banalidade da linguagem literária do autor.
Boa parte do livro remete à primeira obra da série. Se for da qualidade desta sequela, nem vale a pena perder tempo com a leitura. Mas estou a ser injusto. Este livro tem duas coisas boas: a capa e uma certa visceralidade promissora que se perde na banalidade da linguagem literária do autor.
July 27, 2016
This was a VERY good sequel to House of Blood! I wondered how he would handle this second installment and how he would reintegrate certain characters, and I was not disappointed. It's not predictable and has the gore and gruesome details I've come to expect from a Smith novel. This "second helping" was worth the extra calories (And, by that, I mean the late night and sleep lost, because I could not put it down!).
April 10, 2008
Interesting book, I love stories dealing with the supernatural and this has it in spades. It does redefine the whole concept of cartoon violence as a lot of it is over the top. This is not a book for everyone but I enjoyed it.
June 8, 2008
This was an OK follow up to House Of Blood. Not as gripping or engrossing as the first novel, but it is still a decent ride. Quite a few of the characters from the first novel are carried over into the sequel. Some of them are pretty unexpected.
January 27, 2013
A good sequel to House of Blood. Takes many of the characters in different directions then what they were in the first book. Lots of violence and sex stuff in this one, more so then the first book. Not bad story. I wouldn't have minded seeing a third book be written in this series.
July 28, 2013
A new house of horror arises, and its mistress hunts the victims who escaped the Master of the first house. I did not think this sequel was as good as House of Blood, the first book in this series, but it was a decent read.
August 2, 2015
Good Sequel
It's been years since I read the house of blood but the book was good. It was really put down loved the book. I love Marcy she was a breath of fresh air. Loved the battles scene and the Gore !! Great book
It's been years since I read the house of blood but the book was good. It was really put down loved the book. I love Marcy she was a breath of fresh air. Loved the battles scene and the Gore !! Great book
January 18, 2012
Really didn't like this book. Put it down, not to be picked up again.
October 11, 2012
Meh was thinking it was haunted house and it turned out to be supernatural erotica with lots of slasher blood stuff
March 4, 2013
Very entertaining sequel to House Of Blood.
April 2, 2013
Oh. So everyone's a lesbian sadist who's good with a gun. 'kay.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews