Splitting Sides: Tales of Humorous Horror

by David Schembri

Based on the stories from horror writer, David Schembri, Splitting Sides features distinct and dazzling illustrations by the author along with his darkly humorous tribute to horror comics of the 50s. Splitting Sides presents two 'Day of the Vorcha' and 'The Date-Night Dead', along with some delightfully entertaining advertisements, this comic will leave you horrified and giggling at the same time.

24 pages, Paperback

Published October 11, 2022

About the author

David Schembri is an author, artist, comic creator and poet from Australia. He is the author of Unearthly Fables (The Writing Show, 2013), the Australian Shadows Awards-nominated collection, Beneath The Ferny Tree (Close-Up Books, 2018), and the comics, Splitting Sides: Tales of Humorous Horror #1 & #2, and Crowman #1.
His first novella will be released in 2024 by Odyssey Books.
David’s short fiction has been published by Chaosium Inc, Horror World Press, Things in the Well, Black Beacon Books and Midnight Echo.
His poetry has been published in Spectral Realms, Midnight Echo, Silver Blade Magazine, and anthologies by Rainfall Books.
davidschembri.net

Reviews

[Stefan Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderfully crafted comic!

Splitting Sides is funny, gory and even a tad disturbing.
Schembri creates bold and colourful art that give his short stories a smooth flow, and solid sense of place. There is a further sense of heightened realism to his work. Every character's emotions are clearly expressed. Every piece of action has its meaning demonstrated in striking colour.

This is a comic who's artwork you can sit back and ponder over long after finishing the two stories.
I very much hope this is the start of a series of work, and not a one off.

[Dion Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great comedy horror comic. I loved it.

The style of the artwork and the comedy reminds me of the cartoon, Invader Zim. a favourite of mine from years back, the colours are vibrant and dynamic, there is a bit of gore, but nothing to graphic, and it's short (24 pages) which makes it perfect for all but the youngest of ages.

And the quality of the printing shows it is made to last, not like the Phantom comics from when we were kids, they were so thin you could almost see through them.

This is the first thing that I have read of this author and artist, but I already pick up the sequel to this and a short story collection.

So if you like a bit of Whitty horror, than you will love this.

[Andrew Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

A glossy original magazine packed with sharp, witty humour and fantastically drawn original and cool characters. As well as horror and adventure, there are some real laugh out loud moments. David Schembri, the Australian author and illustrator works hard and engages with his readers, giving his work the personal touch that makes us, the readers, feel 'Part of '.

I personally purchased Splitting Sides and it was read by myself and my daughter and we are already looking forward to the next issue and to reading David's other works.

[Daniel Belic · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tales From The Crypt meets Evil Dead. This comic book of short stories was a great read and is shaping up to be a fun series. The diversity of genres kept me engaged and I was thoroughly entertained from start to finish. I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys a mix of horror, science fiction, and comedy. Worth reading just for the satirical advertisements alone!