Books & Comics – Page 24

George R.R. Martin Werewolf Novella “The Skin Trade” to Become a Film

It’s all right there in the headline! According to Variety, “Spoke Lane Entertainment and Mike the Pike Prods. have acquired film rights to George R.R. Martin’s werewolf novella ‘The Skin Trade.'” Here’s the premise:

Martin’s story is based on a female private investigator on the trail of a serial killer linked to an underground werewolf clan ruling the remains of a vibrant city devastated by a recession.

The novella was first published alongside work by Stephen King and Dan Simmons in a short horror anthology called Night Visions 5. It seems to be out of print, but there are some used copies available on Amazon. I’ve read a little Martin, but not enough to know how I feel about this. I suppose I’m cautiously optimistic. Martin readers, should I be stoked?

Angela Quinton Apr. 21st 2010

Mozart and The Wolfman Vs. The Mummy

It’s by Alex Cox. It’s four panels long. I might have printed the last panel and stuck it on the wall. Maybe. Probably.

Angela Quinton Apr. 18th 2010

Tim Seeley’s New Comic “Wild Game”, Where Werewolves Eat the Homeless

Bloody Disgusting has got the scoop on “Hack/Slash” creator Tim Seeley’s new comic franchise (and soon to be film), “Wild Game”. Here’s the premise:

In a world where Werewolves were long ago hunted nearly to extinction by humans and thought only to be urban legends, the few remaining packs live among us in secret. But, the beast can’t be caged forever. Once a year: runaways, homeless people, anyone who won’t be missed… are captured and brought to a secluded private destination to be hunted for game by the last living Werewolves on earth.

Visit the Bloody Disgusting article for some exclusive art from the comic. I’m on the fence about Pasquale Qualano‘s artwork (what’s that female werewolf doing next to that tree?) but Bloody Disgusting thinks it’s going to be the next “30 Days of Night” but with werewolves. We’ll see!

Angela Quinton Mar. 24th 2010

“Gil’s All Fright Diner” To Be Animated By DreamWorks

According to this little Variety snippet, DreamWorks Animation is producing an adaptation of A. Lee Martinez’s novel Gil’s All Fright Diner. If you haven’t heard of the book (I hadn’t, but then, there’s a lot I don’t hear about), here’s what you need to know:

Something Evil (that’s with a capital E) is stalking Gil’s All Night Diner in Martinez’s terrific debut, a comic horror-fantasy novel. Heading the delightfully eccentric cast are buddies Earl (aka the Earl of Vampires) and Duke (aka the Duke of Werewolves), who are looking for a place to eat as they drive through Rockwood, a small desert community besieged by cosmically weird stuff. Soon after stopping at Gil’s Diner, the pair help Loretta, the formidable owner-operator, fend off a zombie attack. Determined to do the right thing, the two supernatural misfits take on further challenges, such as trying to prevent Tammy (aka Mistress Lilith, Queen of the Night) and her loyal but dumb boyfriend, Chad, from ending the world.

The screenplay is being adapted by Ethan Reiff and Cyrus Voris (who also wrote Kung Fu Panda for DreamWorks) and the film will be directed by Barry Sonnenfeld (it’s been 11 years– I think we can forgive him for Wild Wild West now). With the right character design and an adherence to what sounds like a dark Douglas Adams style of humour, this could be pretty good. Have any of you read the book? What’d you think?

Angela Quinton Jan. 21st 2010

Centipede Press Releases Gorgeous Edition of “The Werewolf of Paris”

Centipede Press, a publisher that specializes in “the finest in crime, horror, horror film studies, and science fiction”, has released a gorgeous edition of Guy Endore’s classic werewolf novel, “The Werewolf of Paris”.

Our edition, the only edition currently in print, features a new introduction by Thomas Tessier (author of The Nightwalker), the complete text of the novel, numerous wood engravings, and a color gallery of old hardcover and paperback covers as well as film adaptations. Cloth, $75

Centipede has been described as the “Rolls Royce of horror publishing“, and by all accounts, the editions they publish are second to none. If you’re a bibliophile with a penchant for classic horror, you might want to consider adding this to your shelf. For those with a bit more to spend and an appreciation for macabre art, Centipede also publishes Knowing Darkness: Artists Inspired by Stephen King, an art book that includes Bernie Wrightson‘s gorgeous illustrations for “Cycle of the Werewolf”.

Angela Quinton Dec. 29th 2009

The Return of McGinty & Hughes: Limited Edition John Allison “Red Riding Hood” Print

It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of John Allison’s work. His long-running comic Scary Go Round sustained me for years, and his new (and even better) comic Bad Machinery was what finally convinced me to start using Google Reader– I require an immediate alert when the newest one is posted. John also managed to eat a chocolate bar and shake my hand at the exact same time, which just goes to show the industrious spirit that helped the British to colonize so much of the world.

If you like werewolves and you like comics, John’s just started taking pre-orders for a limited-edition print that you can probably add to your list of likable things. At £10 + £2.50 international shipping, there’s no reasonable excuse to refrain from buying one, especially considering that each purchase helps support a fellow who’s been giving away amazingly entertaining material for years. Here are the details:

A2 poster (420 x 594 mm — 16,5 x 23,4 in). Giclee prints on heavy glossy 200gsm stock.

McGinty (werewolf) and Hughes (small monkey) present “Red Riding Hood”. Signed and numbered run of 100. You can see a larger version of the poster here.

Angela Quinton Nov. 5th 2009

The Last Werewolves of October

Here’s an assortment of items that have hit my inbox over the course of October, but that I’ve been too busy or distracted to post.

The Yorkshire Post has an interview with Jenny Agutter, who played nurse Alex Price in An American Werewolf in London. She discusses her role in AWIL and talks about how the audience reacted to the initial screening of the film.
The Grosse Pointe Farms Department of Public Works in Michigan is home to a boulder that bears the footprint of Le Loup Garou, the werewolf of Grosse Pointe. Hooray for urban legends!
Here’s a printable 3D werewolf paper craft, in case you’re locked in a room with a colour printer and 15 minutes to kill. I may have crafted one of these for my office desk.
pjstar.com has an interview with Professor Leslie Sconduto, author of “Metamorphoses of the Werewolf: A Literary Study from Antiquity through the Renaissance”. Choice quote: “There’s a werewolf for everyone. Each to its own. One to suit each taste.”
Champions Online is running a game event called “Blood Moon“, wherein the game’s world is overrun with werewolves, vampires and other monstrous creatures. Players can battle (and become) these monsters, and of course there’s a number of werewolf-related items to be had. There’s a free trial available for anyone who wants to try the game out, but it expires at 10 AM Pacific on November 2nd. That’s in, like, 10 hours. Hurry! HURRY!
The BSC Beat has an interview with Mark Chadbourn, author of the recently-released Hellboy novel Hellboy: The Ice Wolves. You can read a preview of The Ice Wolves at the Dark Horse web site.
Scribblenauts is an interesting game that’s just come out for the Nintendo DS. The idea is to solve puzzles by typing in the name of virtually any object you can think of that might help. That object then appears in the game and does its thing, whether it’s a ball, a chainsaw or a platypus. You can probably guess where I’m going with this… yes, you can summon werewolves. Here’s a Youtube video of two garlic and stake-infused werewolves scaring a vampire to death. I want this game just so I can do that, over and over.
Cinematical explains why it’s worth it to replace your DVD copy of An American Werewolf in London with the recently released Full Moon Edition on Blu-ray. Apparently the new bonus content alone is worth the cost! I wish I had a Blu-ray player.
I also wish I had an Xbox 360. The LIVE Marketplace has got werewolf costumes for your Xbox 360 Avatar.

Many thanks to people who submitted these items!

Angela Quinton Nov. 2nd 2009

A New Classic Lit / Horror Mashup: Little Women and Werewolves

If you’re at all interested in books, you’ve probably heard of the recent classic literature / horror novel mashups Pride and Prejudice and Zombies and Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters. These silly (but generally well-received) conglomerations of classic prose and monsterific additions have been sufficiently popular that Del Ray’s doing it again, this time with werewolves. GalleyCat has announced that Little Women, the story of the March sisters, will be retold as “Little Women and Werewolves”. No word on a publication date yet, but here’s a description from the publisher to keep you interested:

In this retelling of Louisa May Alcott’s classic, the beloved little women must keep not just the wolf, but the werewolves, from the door…and the kindly old gentlemen next door and his grandson may have some secrets to hide–or share with the March girls.

Angela Quinton Oct. 28th 2009

The Werewolf’s Guide To Life – A Manual For The Newly Bitten

I was trying to save my effusive praise until I’d actually read a copy, but I would be lying if I said the mere title of this book didn’t make me giddy. Written by Ritch Duncan and Bob Powers and lovingly illustrated by Emily Flake, The Werewolf’s Guide To Life looks like the lycanthropic response to the Zombie Survival Guide. It’s packed with sensible advice, survival tips and illustrations like the one below. It hits shelves on September 15, and you can pre-order it from a number of online retailers (including the ubiquitous Amazon). I’m trying to arrange an interview with the authors, so stay tuned!

Angela Quinton Sep. 1st 2009

Werewolves on the Moon: Versus Vampires – Read the 1st Issue For Free

Dark Horse Comics has put the entire first issue of Werewolves on the Moon: Versus Vampires online so you can read it for free. Go and read it. Now. Go on. I’ll wait.

Now, how many of you would have been happy to have been on that shuttle from Earth? Yeah, I thought so.

Werewolves on the Moon is now up to issue three, and if your local comic shop doesn’t carry them, you can order them online from Things From Another World.

Angela Quinton Aug. 27th 2009