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Dancing on the Edge of a Blade: The Extended Director’s Cut

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Seasoned homicide detective Leonard “Rummy” Rumbold has finally met his match: a mysterious dancing killer who eviscerates his female prey while dancing to pop songs. Pressured by the police department and the press to find the man responsible for these crimes, Rummy begins a no-holds-barred investigation into the macabre slayings, a journey into darkness that includes dance lessons from one of New York’s finest instructors and the assistance of the only woman who has survived the killer’s attack.

Can Detective Rumbold find his rhythm and stop this madness before the killer strikes again?

Book 19 in the Rewind-or-Die series: imagine your local movie rental store back in the ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s, remember all those fantastic covers. Remember taking those movies home and watching in awe as the stories unfolded in nasty rainbows of gore, remember the atmosphere and textures. Remember the blood.

86 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 12, 2020

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85 people want to read

About the author

Todd Rigney

9 books29 followers
Author of the acclaimed coming-of-age horror novel FOUND, which was adapted into an award-winning independent film by groundbreaking director Scott Schirmer. Other books include M'RTH, TWELVE, TASTE LEVEL ZERO, and DANCING ON THE EDGE OF A BLADE. His story "Old Glory" was adapted into the Shudder exclusive GLORIOUS in 2022. STIMULATE THE GOBLIN coming soon.

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5 stars
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10 (34%)
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
Profile Image for inciminci.
631 reviews273 followers
January 25, 2022
Detective Leonard Rumble, called Rummy by everyone, is a grumpy police officer who just has no rhythm in his blood. His latest case, a series of femicides committed by a couple of really strange murderers, will not only put his patience to the test, but also his dancing skills.

This book is absurd and hilarious and Todd Rigney takes every possible exploitation topic to exploit them some more. I’m not sure I’m a fan of his style- the narrator talking directly to the characters or to the reader - but other than that the idea is simply genius and the music/dance descriptions particularly enjoyable. Plus, it’s rare a book can rock such a galactic ending, I really wish I could see those final moves!
The final scenes hint that there might be a sequel and I’d love that!
Profile Image for A.
107 reviews14 followers
January 20, 2022
First I fell in love with the cover. Then I fell in love with the synopsis. A dancing killer in a skin tight pink leotard sounded too good to be true. Well, the first half of the story definitely lived up to my high expectations. Set in gritty 1980s New York City, this reminded me of some of the grimy horror films I watched in my youth, such as Maniac. The kill scenes were excellent, very well described and to the point. It left me tempted to stick on some Kraftwerk. Sadly things began to falter in the second half and the ending was a little too funky for my liking! That being said, this is a solid four stars from me!
Profile Image for J.D..
593 reviews21 followers
September 30, 2021
Detective Rumbold is looking for one more big victory before he retires. What better way than to take down a dancing serial killer targeting pretty women in New York!

With no leads, Rumbold is forced to do some unconventional detective work to find the killer. But he may not live long enough to retire afterwards.

A humor based slasher / detective story that did get gory at times, but also bordered on silly.

I found the narration (3rd person) to be a bit strange and hard to get used to. I did however like the movie type setup with scene sections added in.

Overall it was a fun and wacky short read.


Profile Image for ChelseaRenee Lovell.
161 reviews16 followers
July 28, 2021
It was quick and fun, a little over done at times, but definitely a good break in my summer grad classes.
Profile Image for Suz Jay.
1,047 reviews80 followers
December 15, 2020
“What kind of monster brings violence into a hospital? Aren’t these miserable souls suffering enough already? The answer: a detective who can’t dance.”

Detective Leonard “Rummy” Rumbold refuses to be mocked for his lack of rhythm by the dancing killer and his synthesizer-playing accomplice. He vows to stop their reign of terror regardless of the collateral damage.

This novella gleefully shatters the fourth wall using an unnamed narrator who frequently dishes to the reader, which adds a campy fun to the experience. This reminds me of that voice over in the 1960’s live action Batman television show. The over-the-top action and cheesy cliches amp up the outrageous atmosphere.

I really liked how the book is set up like a film, with a production note, bonus feature, deleted scene, and post-credits sequence. Rummy’s goofy character arc and deus ex machina solution made me giggle.

This installment of Unnerving’s Rewind or Die series has goodness reminiscent of VHS horror movies of the past. I adore the Rewind or Die series so much, I purchased the whole set of 2020 releases directly from the publisher.
Profile Image for Kevin L.
589 reviews13 followers
December 30, 2020
3.75 stars.

This is a fun little story, but it feels a bit stretched out to me. It is crazy fun, but this is also like the campy horror movie you have on VHS where you fast forward through a couple slow scenes that drag on.

If you’re looking for a fast and whacky horror read this might be just the book for you.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews

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