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Three Moves of Doom: Weird Horror From Inside The Squared Circle
WELCOME GRAPPLING FANS!
TONIGHT, in a no-holds-barred contest, Orford Parish Books presents a triple-threat match involving three of weird fiction’s most distinctive up and coming writers, with each taking a shot at the world of professional wrestling:
MATTHEW M. BARTLETT puts us in the head of a man trying to escape the horrors of his crumbling town, only to find that his new home by the sea features a peculiar nightly wrestling contest that may be worse than what he ran from in the first place!
JOSEPH PASTULA flips through a stack of old wrestling magazines in search of a mysterious grappler with an unforgettably sinister reputation, and learns far more than anyone would ever want to about the Great Hakai!
TOM BREEN sits ringside at a death match tournament in rural Delaware, where one wrestler finally discovers that there’s something even more brutal than being hit with a nail-studded bat and flung into coils of barbed wire!
THREE GREAT MAIN EVENTS, BUT ONLY ONE WINNER: TERROR!
TONIGHT, in a no-holds-barred contest, Orford Parish Books presents a triple-threat match involving three of weird fiction’s most distinctive up and coming writers, with each taking a shot at the world of professional wrestling:
MATTHEW M. BARTLETT puts us in the head of a man trying to escape the horrors of his crumbling town, only to find that his new home by the sea features a peculiar nightly wrestling contest that may be worse than what he ran from in the first place!
JOSEPH PASTULA flips through a stack of old wrestling magazines in search of a mysterious grappler with an unforgettably sinister reputation, and learns far more than anyone would ever want to about the Great Hakai!
TOM BREEN sits ringside at a death match tournament in rural Delaware, where one wrestler finally discovers that there’s something even more brutal than being hit with a nail-studded bat and flung into coils of barbed wire!
THREE GREAT MAIN EVENTS, BUT ONLY ONE WINNER: TERROR!
- GenresHorror
Kindle Edition
First published September 10, 2016
1 person is currently reading
33 people want to read
About the author
Matthew M. Bartlett
71 books322 followersMatthew M. Bartlett was born in Hartford, Connecticut in 1970. He writes dark and strange fiction at his home in Western Massachusetts, where he lives with his wife Katie and an unknown number of cats.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
December 6, 2016
Presented in a magazine style format the chapbook "Three Moves of Doom: Weird Horror from Inside the Squared Circle" edited by Herb Garble has the following contents:
01 - Editors Note
04 - "The Dark Match" - Matthew Bartlett
18 - "A Severance of Roots" - Joseph Pastula
29 - "The Vision of James Lee Dawson, King of the Death Matches" - Tom Breen
01 - Editors Note
04 - "The Dark Match" - Matthew Bartlett
18 - "A Severance of Roots" - Joseph Pastula
29 - "The Vision of James Lee Dawson, King of the Death Matches" - Tom Breen
May 8, 2017
Surprisingly impressive blend of wrestling bravado, dark humor, nostalgic obsessions, and outré horror. The writing crisp and evocative, with just the right balance of elements throughout the three included tales. Very well done, very recommended.
November 24, 2017
I'm not a fan of wrestling but I thought that I'd give this book a go as I am a big fan of all the writers involved and I'm glad I did. The writing and storylines were good enough that you don't need any knowledge of wrestling to be able to enjoy this, each story was compelling in their own weird way. This book was a quick and fun read and further proof that all Orford Parish Books are nothing less than fantastic!
January 5, 2018
(Portions of this review originally appeared on my website, the Conqueror Weird.)
Orford Parish Books had already taken on weirder themes with great success when I heard that their next book was going to be about wrestling. As expected, they delivered on all fronts with a book that is at turns horrifying, hilarious, poignant, and just flat-out bizarre.
We jump right into the (mat) action with Matthew M. Bartlett’s “The Dark Match”. It tells of an unnamed man desperately fleeing his hometown of Leeds (and we all know what goes on there!) for the relative safety of a seaside town named Hulse (Bartlett names it in an interview, but not in the story). There he meets a bizarre old man who proceeds to tell him a remarkably grisly story of Hulse’s underground late-night wrestling shows. After the story is finished, our narrator realizes Hulse may not be as safe as he thought. The tale has an intense conclusion that leaves the reader disturbed.
Bartlett’s in fine form here, with his signature brand of surreal horror on full display and an eerie, rapturous prose that draws the reader across the page. It’s also nice to see a change of scenery from Leeds (as much as I love it!) with the decrepit seaside town that this story takes place in. I hope we see a lot more of Hulse in the future! This is a very strong start.
Then we have Joseph Pastula’s truly gruesome “A Severance of Roots”, a shudder-worthy title I didn’t realize the meaning of until writing this post. Our narrator finds an obscure mention of a particularly brutal wrestler called “the Great Hakai” and goes to great lengths to find out more about them. To say anything more would be to spoil the story and its effect. While there is no supernatural element, or even a direct threat to the narrators, the story is possibly the most unsettling in the book. The last paragraph, which isn’t even really a twist, left a cold feeling in my stomach. It mimics the horror of looking back at some terrible past event, the sharp shock of an unexpected monstrosity. I often get this sensation when reading Ambrose Bierce, who could write a horror story like no-one else. In a surprise knockout this entry wins my favorite of the book, despite the incredibly high caliber set by the other two entries.
Finally, we have “The Vision of James Lee Dawson, King of the Death Matches” by Tom Breen. This forms a nice middle ground between the quiet horror of “A Severance of Roots” and the balls-to-the-walls surrealism of “The Dark Match”. It follows a grizzled wrestling veteran to one of his last matches. His eerily quiet opponent, however, isn’t interested in the script. This is probably the biggest treat for those who actually watch and enjoy wrestling. It provides the thrill of the match with the horror promised by the book, and Breen’s characteristically sharp sentences are perfect in their succinctness (another Bierce-like trait). This also has a surreal scene, one of the most utterly strange images in the book (and “The Dark Match” is in this book, so that’s saying something) and a powerful defining image for this slim volume. The ending itself is quite poignant. It rounds things out wonderfully.
There’s another one of the darkly comic faux introductions OPB has become known for (this one attempting to answer the question “Is wrestling real?”), some funny fake bios, and incredibly creepy/hilarious interstitial material taking the form of 1950s-style ads. The services and products advertised are truly bizarre, and (like the bonus content found in Old Gory) add something special to the book.
Wrestling fan or not (and I’m not!), this book is for everyone. Really. I genuinely think anyone can enjoy this book. There’s compelling characters (“The Vision of James Lee Dawson, King of the Deathmatch”), chilling scenarios (“A Severance of Roots”), complete insanity (“The Dark Match”), and some comedy thrown in to lighten the mood (introduction/interstitial material/author bios). It’s an excellent volume that belongs on every shelf.
Orford Parish Books had already taken on weirder themes with great success when I heard that their next book was going to be about wrestling. As expected, they delivered on all fronts with a book that is at turns horrifying, hilarious, poignant, and just flat-out bizarre.
We jump right into the (mat) action with Matthew M. Bartlett’s “The Dark Match”. It tells of an unnamed man desperately fleeing his hometown of Leeds (and we all know what goes on there!) for the relative safety of a seaside town named Hulse (Bartlett names it in an interview, but not in the story). There he meets a bizarre old man who proceeds to tell him a remarkably grisly story of Hulse’s underground late-night wrestling shows. After the story is finished, our narrator realizes Hulse may not be as safe as he thought. The tale has an intense conclusion that leaves the reader disturbed.
Bartlett’s in fine form here, with his signature brand of surreal horror on full display and an eerie, rapturous prose that draws the reader across the page. It’s also nice to see a change of scenery from Leeds (as much as I love it!) with the decrepit seaside town that this story takes place in. I hope we see a lot more of Hulse in the future! This is a very strong start.
Then we have Joseph Pastula’s truly gruesome “A Severance of Roots”, a shudder-worthy title I didn’t realize the meaning of until writing this post. Our narrator finds an obscure mention of a particularly brutal wrestler called “the Great Hakai” and goes to great lengths to find out more about them. To say anything more would be to spoil the story and its effect. While there is no supernatural element, or even a direct threat to the narrators, the story is possibly the most unsettling in the book. The last paragraph, which isn’t even really a twist, left a cold feeling in my stomach. It mimics the horror of looking back at some terrible past event, the sharp shock of an unexpected monstrosity. I often get this sensation when reading Ambrose Bierce, who could write a horror story like no-one else. In a surprise knockout this entry wins my favorite of the book, despite the incredibly high caliber set by the other two entries.
Finally, we have “The Vision of James Lee Dawson, King of the Death Matches” by Tom Breen. This forms a nice middle ground between the quiet horror of “A Severance of Roots” and the balls-to-the-walls surrealism of “The Dark Match”. It follows a grizzled wrestling veteran to one of his last matches. His eerily quiet opponent, however, isn’t interested in the script. This is probably the biggest treat for those who actually watch and enjoy wrestling. It provides the thrill of the match with the horror promised by the book, and Breen’s characteristically sharp sentences are perfect in their succinctness (another Bierce-like trait). This also has a surreal scene, one of the most utterly strange images in the book (and “The Dark Match” is in this book, so that’s saying something) and a powerful defining image for this slim volume. The ending itself is quite poignant. It rounds things out wonderfully.
There’s another one of the darkly comic faux introductions OPB has become known for (this one attempting to answer the question “Is wrestling real?”), some funny fake bios, and incredibly creepy/hilarious interstitial material taking the form of 1950s-style ads. The services and products advertised are truly bizarre, and (like the bonus content found in Old Gory) add something special to the book.
Wrestling fan or not (and I’m not!), this book is for everyone. Really. I genuinely think anyone can enjoy this book. There’s compelling characters (“The Vision of James Lee Dawson, King of the Deathmatch”), chilling scenarios (“A Severance of Roots”), complete insanity (“The Dark Match”), and some comedy thrown in to lighten the mood (introduction/interstitial material/author bios). It’s an excellent volume that belongs on every shelf.
December 7, 2016
I'm a fan of both wrestling and weird fiction and I enjoyed the hell out of this book. Different tones between the stories and all three are fun to read.
First, it should go without saying that wrestling is scripted, but just in case, wrestling is scripted. The matches often feature lots of improvisation but the endings are predetermined. Don't call it fake though, those are real people putting on incredible -- and incredibly dangerous -- athletic performances in an attempt to tell a compelling story.
The book leads off with Matthew M. Bartlett's entry, "The Dark Match." A man from Leeds, MA attempts to leave that devil-haunted town and the life he lead there behind, but finds himself in a place that doesn't seem much more wholesome. Most of the story comes in the form of a monologue by a former wrestler, recounting a nightmarish late-night match he attended years ago. In this most gruesome of the three stories here, squeamishly surreal violence is surrounded by an atmosphere of detailed, can't-look-away creepy weirdness, much like the stories in his collections "Gateways to Abomination" and "Creeping Waves." Wonderfully queasy.
Next is "A Severance of Roots" by Joseph Pastula, and here wrestling history and wrestling fandom itself are major parts of the story. You don't have to know wrestling personalities or trivia to enjoy it, anyone who has ever been a serious fan of just about anything will appreciate the narrator's zeal in tracking down obscure information on the subject he loves. "A Severance of Roots" is quieter and more subtle than "The Dark Match," and is the more unsettling for it. Pastula increases the unease slowly but steadily, building to a genuinely chilling conclusion.
Tom Breen's "The Vision of James Lee Dawson, King of the Death Matches" rounds out the book and, like "A Severance of Roots," is very fluent in wrestling terms and the behind-the-scenes reality of the matches, in this case an ultraviolent death match tournament. This is a real type of match, resembling stunt exhibitions and carnival geek shows more than actual wrestling. And there is always blood. Lots of blood. Breen's story follows an older veteran of the scene and his terrifying match with an opponent who doesn't seem human and has no interest in following the scripted match. An exciting story with believable characters and lots of tension. Not as outright grotesque as "The Dark Match" nor as quietly eerie as "A Severance of Roots," but probably my favorite story of the three.
Also in the book are an editor's note and two pages of faux ads, very much like one would read in an old wrestling magazine or comic book. Some ads are a little hard to read but all are worth it, they are hilarious and add a nice lighter element to what is essentially a very dark book. Another winner from Orford Parish Books.
First, it should go without saying that wrestling is scripted, but just in case, wrestling is scripted. The matches often feature lots of improvisation but the endings are predetermined. Don't call it fake though, those are real people putting on incredible -- and incredibly dangerous -- athletic performances in an attempt to tell a compelling story.
The book leads off with Matthew M. Bartlett's entry, "The Dark Match." A man from Leeds, MA attempts to leave that devil-haunted town and the life he lead there behind, but finds himself in a place that doesn't seem much more wholesome. Most of the story comes in the form of a monologue by a former wrestler, recounting a nightmarish late-night match he attended years ago. In this most gruesome of the three stories here, squeamishly surreal violence is surrounded by an atmosphere of detailed, can't-look-away creepy weirdness, much like the stories in his collections "Gateways to Abomination" and "Creeping Waves." Wonderfully queasy.
Next is "A Severance of Roots" by Joseph Pastula, and here wrestling history and wrestling fandom itself are major parts of the story. You don't have to know wrestling personalities or trivia to enjoy it, anyone who has ever been a serious fan of just about anything will appreciate the narrator's zeal in tracking down obscure information on the subject he loves. "A Severance of Roots" is quieter and more subtle than "The Dark Match," and is the more unsettling for it. Pastula increases the unease slowly but steadily, building to a genuinely chilling conclusion.
Tom Breen's "The Vision of James Lee Dawson, King of the Death Matches" rounds out the book and, like "A Severance of Roots," is very fluent in wrestling terms and the behind-the-scenes reality of the matches, in this case an ultraviolent death match tournament. This is a real type of match, resembling stunt exhibitions and carnival geek shows more than actual wrestling. And there is always blood. Lots of blood. Breen's story follows an older veteran of the scene and his terrifying match with an opponent who doesn't seem human and has no interest in following the scripted match. An exciting story with believable characters and lots of tension. Not as outright grotesque as "The Dark Match" nor as quietly eerie as "A Severance of Roots," but probably my favorite story of the three.
Also in the book are an editor's note and two pages of faux ads, very much like one would read in an old wrestling magazine or comic book. Some ads are a little hard to read but all are worth it, they are hilarious and add a nice lighter element to what is essentially a very dark book. Another winner from Orford Parish Books.
September 21, 2020
I wanted to read this as it combined my old school wresting fandom with my love of pulpy stories. I was also interested in trying Bartlett’s work. He led to ones off with a story that was only okay in my opinion. I enjoyed Pastula’s a great deal more and absolutely loved Bremen’s which brought the collection to a close. If you love horror and wrestling, you’ll probably enjoy this collection!
July 27, 2018
Just excellent. Funny, disturbing, and weird all the way through. My favorite is Joseph Pastula's quiet but ultra-disturbing centerpiece "A Severance of Roots", which sent chills down my spine at midday. Highly recommended.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews