Amazing review of Doom Rider by the wondrous Holly Harkness over at her blog http://spinechills.blogspot.co.uk:


Dearly Departed, 
We are gathered here today to discuss Doom Rider, by David Gatward. I am big fan of high-concept ideas – if you can sum it up in a sentence, there’s a good chance I’ll be interested. In this case, the moment I heard ‘boy discovers he’s one of the horsemen of the Apocalypse’ and saw the awesome cover, I was sold. Of course, it didn’t hurt that I knew it was being penned by the phenomenal David Gatward. Thanks to his previous series, The Dead, I had an inkling that I’d be in for a wonderfully dark and twisted read. I wasn’t disappointed. 

The very first thing that struck me was the brand of religion found in the world of Doom Rider. Seth’s life on the travelling faith show circuit was a really fascinating foundation for the character. I must admit, my own religious knowledge is practically non-existent, but The Way seemed to be a mix of evangelical faiths, borrowing from a few of the mainstream religions without resembling any too closely. This background makes Seth a very conflicted character, and it was precisely because of his origins that I found him so interesting, even more so than Gatward’s previous protagonist of the Dead series, Lazarus Stone. The cast of supporting characters is also varied and colourful, particularly when we begin to meet the other riders, and it’s here that the book really starts to shine.

I read in an interview with Gatward that he decided to take his interpretation of the riders all the way back to their original roots, so he could portray them differently. Well, it worked, because these versions of the horsemen of the apocalypse are like nothing I’ve ever seen before, and this originality makes them all the more awe-inspiring, purely because I was completely unprepared for the strangeness of their abilities (especially Death!). Gatward really has a knack for description, and there are some fantastically gruesome scenes in this one. Whenever I read one of Gatward’s books, I’m reminded of that old creative writing class tip to do with description – use all the senses, not just sight. Gatward is a master of this, and all the senses are constantly engaged, to the point where you’re really there alongside Seth as he struggles with the weight of the world on his shoulders.

Doom Rider is a fantastic addition to the YA horror genre, one that every reader with a taste for the darker side of life should read. It will be released in Australia on 5 July 2012.

Doom Rider Review

An astonishing review of Doom Rider, my new novel, out July 5th 2012, on www.bookzone4boys.blogspot.co.uk:

David Gatward is a member of my 'drop everything' list, by which I mean that when a new book comes through from an author on that list I literally drop everything to read it. Even if I'm mid-way through another book. It isn't a particularly long list, although it grows year by year, but I still don't know what I would do if two books arrived at the same time. Let's hope that never happens.

I loved David's The Dead trilogy, and rank them as some of the best children's horror books ever written. Sadly though the adventures of Lazarus Stone came to an end, but I have been on tenterhooks waiting to see what Mr Gatward wrote next, and I have therefore been looking forward to this one for some time. Back in February I posted a guest piece by David aboutDoom Rider, as part of my Coming Up In 2012 feature, and I have been eagerly awaiting its arrival ever since. Thanks to the lovely people at Hodder I was able to dive in to the proof about ten days ago, and read it in a single sitting.

David Gatward is still yet to disappoint me. Doom Rider is a finely crafted apocalyptic horror story that proves he is no one-trick pony, and goes a long way to establishing him as having one of the darkest imaginations in teen fiction. Many of the reviews of The Dead trilogy, including my own, played heavily on the gore that dripped bloodily from the pages. However, there was a lot more to those books than just the blood splatter - great characters, descriptive writing to die for, cracking dialogue with many great humorous moments, tight plotting and an exciting pace that will have you reaching for the defibrillator as your heart struggles to keep up. But still, most review focused on the gore. In Doom Rider David Gatward gives the gore little more than a cameo role, but has still produced a great horror story that will have critics and teen readers begging for more.

Doom Rider is set in Britain, at some undefined point in the not-too-distant future. Religious extremism grips the population in a way that is similar to some middle-eastern countries at the moment. The religion of choice is referred to as The Way, the leader of their 'church' known only as The Protector. Seth Crow lives in a caravan with his sister and his parents, travelling from festival to festival, pulling in the crowds with their show that preys on the public's fears about the end of the world, and more specifically about how and when they will die. Christened The Apocalypse Boy, Seth is a key part of this show, as he has a talent for 'cold reading' people - just like TV's The Mentalist, in a matter of seconds he can read a person, and make eerily accurate statements about their lives. As such, when he moves on to telling them about their death's the crowds simply lap it up. However, Seth is fed up with this life of duplicity, and the moods of his authoritarian father, and so he plans to escape. However, before he can he meets Lily, and from that moment his life changes is ways he could never have predicted.

Lily is a seeker, tasked with tracking down young people before they reach the age of 13, at which point The Protector and his elite inner circle of enforcers, The Chosen, believe that they will morph into one of the prophesied four horsemen of the apocalypse. We quickly find out that Seth has had many, many previous lives, and in every one he has been violently killed before he can reach his teens. Lily has had enough of this, and instead of leading The Chosen to Seth she helps him to escape. Of course, as the clock ticks over onto the day of his 13th birthday all hell begins to break loose, for Seth is Conquest, the first horseman of the apocalypse. At this point the pace of the story ratchets up to a whole new level, as Seth and Lily try to track down the three remaining riders, whilst trying to avoid being killed by The Chosen. Their efforts are more than a little hampered by Seth's new-found desire to destroy anything and everything in his new role. That's pretty much all you are going to get from me plot-wise as Doom Rider a book that will best be enjoyed with as little prior knowledge as possible.

I grew up in the church, and my mother is an ordained minister, and so there were parts of The Dead trilogy that resonated with some of the great biblical imagery that I was opened up to as a child and a teenager. I was pleasantly surprised then, when I read the press release for Doom Rider, to discover that David Gatward had a very similar upbringing. His knowledge of biblical imagery and the events that take place in The Book of Revelation, is obvious in Doom Rider, and by putting his own twist on things he has created a dark, modern horror story that is a long way from the New Testament version of 'the end'. I was also pleased to see him veer away from the norm, by having his horsemen named Conquest, Strife, Famine and Death, which is more in line with the concepts I had when growing up. However, as David brings attention to this himself in his Author Note at the end of the book I can't help but feel something of a fraud by mentioning my this in my review.

Some might question how a boy who grew up in the church could turn into a man who writes such deliciously dark stories. In answer to that I would like to leave you with an excerpt from the press release that Hodder sent out with the book:

Dave, more than a little aware that it could seem odd to write horror and dark fantasy in light of his background in the church and religious writing, puts it like this: “Dealing with our fears isn't about running away or hiding, but often facing them head on. And I know this from experience thanks to drowning as a kid and, years later, deciding I'd had enough of being terrified of water and learning to swim. It was scary, but it was also the only way I could think of to deal with it. Which is why I love horror. It's a genre unafraid to deal with the darker things in life (and death). It scares and horrifies and disgusts, as

much as it entertains and forces us to ask questions. Then there's the other side of it, too. I love a good, scary story! I love creating horrifying monsters and putting my characters in situations they simply can't survive, but do. It's a part of that sense of being a kid again, and creeping downstairs in the middle of the night so as not to wake the parents to watch a horror movie on TV because you really don't want them to know you've just seen a head explode in full-blown technicolour, and some terrifying demon launch itself at the next hapless victim, claws dripping in blood... And you know what? I'm happy with that."

Doom Rider is a standalone story and the book is scheduled to be released in paperback on 5th July. My thanks go to the generous people at Hodder for sending me a copy to review.

Review of The Damned, MTUK

Not sure how often books get reviewed in music mags. It matters not for I've been lucky enough to have each of my Dead books reviewed in the ezine MTUK, a mag that rocks to the sound of a dark and sinister beat (you know the type: the stuff that makes your ears bleed and your eyes burst; marvellous!) Pete Woods seems to have become a fully fledged Deadling in his love of what I've created. And he's the first reviewer to mention the nod at Mad Max with the Land Rover driven by everyone's favourite alcoholic angel, Arielle; nicely! So, without further ado, behold: a rather nifty review of The Damned, book 3 of The Dead...

There will be no spitting here, well there might be and it will be thick and green and incredibly slimy but this is not about The Damned who we would normally write about, nothing to do with the latest exploits of Messrs Vanian and Sensible. This is in fact the closing part of a trilogy of horror novels written for younger readers, which started with The Dead and continued with The Dark, a thrilling ride it has been as well.

I was looking forward to the concluding episode, which follows on from the end of the last one and carries on at breakneck speed. I am not alone either as our editor is eagerly about to grab this and read it too. We don’t consider ourselves big kids really as these novels have plenty of bite that us older readers can appreciate as well. Let me make one thing very clear, although our main hero Lazarus is a mere teenager he is also now established as guardian of the dead and to put it simply the dead are not really very keen when it comes to behaving. The gang from previous instalments are all here, an angel who likes a dram or two called Arielle, faithful sidekick Craig, Abaddon a rotten or should that be rotting priest with revenge on mind and Red whose part in all this becomes more apparent as things unfold. Put these strong characters together with all manner of nasties and demonic foul fiends, a vehicle out of Mad Max and plenty of twists and turns and you will find yourself turning pages at fast and furious speed.


One thing that did impress and also make me feel sorry for the characters is the drive of the narrative. It is especially noticeable here that they never have time to relax for a second. Sleep, forget it, they may well be knocked out but there is little perchance to dream. Even if limbs are lost or indeed flesh is chewed off right down to the bone, they have to get straight back into the thick of it. I mentioned before in previous reviews what the scenarios reminded me of and was particularly pleased to see Fulci’s ‘Sea Of Darkness’ passage from The Beyond prior to the story starting. This is the reason that as an adult I can fully appreciate this; Gatward knows his horror and is not one to hold back on grue and gore for the sake of more sensitive readers.


I really enjoyed these three novels and hope to find time at some point to sit down and read them back to back (although there is a bit of a friend’s waiting list to borrow them). I also think there is plenty of scope for more in the future featuring the same characters but whatever David G goes onto write next I will be more than intrigued to quickly pick up and no doubt fail to put down till finished. A film would be great too but I have come to the conclusion that making it for an under 18 audience would be nigh on impossible, still if it ever sees the dark of night I would happily put myself in the frame for playing something nasty and dead!

The Damned, Frightfest Review - 5 Star Rating!

I'm astonished by this review. A full five-star rating from Frightfest? To me, that's like getting an Oscar. Stunned. Enjoy...

"Following the very well received (in these quarters) THE DEAD and THE DARK, THE DAMNED is the third and possibly final installment of an epic young adult horror trilogy. Following the action-packed ending of the second volume, THE DAMNED immediately hurtles the reader into an action scene. The plot finds teenage protagonist and Keeper of the Dead Lazarus Stone and his companions Arielle (a member of the heavenly host more than partial to the odd drink) and Abaddon (a reanimated and vengence obsessed Priest, or in Lazarus’ words “undead git”) embarking on a desperate mission into hell itself to rescue Lazarus’ father and friends who have been trapped in the bleak, purgatorial land of the dead. However matters take an even more dire turn when Lazarus is confronted by one of The Fallen, an angel exiled to hell, and discovers that hell is preparing an army of the dead to invade our world. Soon all that stands between the corporeal world and eternal damnation is one teenage boy with a bad attitude.

Author Gatward seems to have become more confident in his delivery and surer of his characters with each successive installment, and THE DAMNED is easily the best of the three books. He writes great pulp dialogue and conjures up a hi-octane juggernaut of a narrative that careers crazily from one outrageous setpiece to the next. This third volume takes on the epic tone that was hinted at in THE DARK. In an extended action scene a vast tower rises from hell bringing an invading army of the undead to earth. Our heroes must reach it and race towards it in a battered Land Rover. However a vast wall of flame originating from the tower is sweeping hell burning everything in its path. It is tempting to draw comparisons to Tolkein when reading this scene although Gatward credits an illustration by Stephen Jones in an H. P. Lovecraft collection as inspiration for the image of the tower.

Now all three volumes have been published, the trilogy really feels like a single complete novel, and could easily be read as such. This entire third part is almost one extended action-packed climax. Although written for young adults, I would recommend these books to adult readers looking for some exciting dark fantasy escapism without hesitation. They are the kind of imaginative, exciting horror thriller that seems all too rare in genre fiction aimed squarely at grown-ups. As the shelves of bookstores’ horror sections (if you are lucky enough to find a bookstore with a horror section) strain under the weight of endless identical zombie/viral contagion holocaust novels, reading these books took me back to teenage years spent voraciously consuming grisly James Herbert and Robert R. McCammon novels. Bliss."

Frightfest review: The Dark

To get a good review is something I still can't get used to. To get one from people who seriously know their horror? It's like my peers, those I seriously respect and look up to, have turned round and said, "You know what, Dave? Nice one!"

So here's the review from Frightfest (www.frightfest.co.uk) of The Dark. And, even if I do say so myself, it's a total blinder! They even gave it four our of five stars! Crikey! I even get compared to Lucio Fulci, and the movie The Beyond! I simply cannot express how happy that makes me feel. And, indeed, utterly astonished and shocked...

Enjoy...

THE DARK ****

THE DARK is the second installment in a horror trilogy aimed at young adult readers. First installment THE DEAD was a rollicking tale although one that was over rather too quickly. With the second book author David Gatward has really hit his stride, opening up the macabre world he has created and producing a more assured, expansive and better-paced adventure.

Opening at the previous book’s close our hero Lazarus Stone crosses the veil that separates the world of the living from the world of the dead in search of his lost father. Along for the ride is Lazarus’ horror obsessed school friend Craig, who acts as point of view for the reader and a much needed comic foil. Lazarus has discovered that he is destined to act as the Dead’s Keeper policing the borders of the purgatorial realm and our world ensuring that none of its desiccated inhabitants escape to possess the living. However he’s not happy about this, especially having died twice in the previous installment!

Lazarus’ quest in THE DARK takes sinister and violent turns, leading to a road trip with an alcoholic angel. Lazarus and Co must set off in search of Abadon, fabled scourge of the dead. Abadon is the key to preventing the worlds of the living and the dead from colliding with apocalyptic consequences. Abadon is a great character with a terrifying and grisly history that I will leave it to you to discover.

THE DARK improves upon the solid foundation laid by THE DEAD in almost every way, the sometimes clunky dialogue of the previous installment is much improved, characters are deeper and Gatward paces his plot well, leading to an satisfying climax and setting up the final installment. The book is pleasingly gruesome without being too gross for younger readers, and will continue to delight junior horror fans as well as satisfying those closer to middle age.

Gartward’s world of flayed demons and repurposed religious imagery is clearly reminiscent of early Clive Barker, but there are also nods to Italian splatter legend Lucio Fulci. Fulci’s film THE BEYOND seems to have influenced Gatward’s imagination in realising the grim realm of the dead and its rotting and malevolent inhabitants on the page. How often can you legitimately raise the specter of Fulci (a man with three entries on the official DPP video nasties list) when reviewing a book aimed at younger readers? For that alone Gartward deserves some kudos.

THE DARK continues Gartward’s ripping yarn and wets the appetite for the third and final installment THE DAMNED due in April 2011.

OK, so I suck at this whole blogging thing. Facebook and Twitter I get. My website I get. But writing blogs? Nope. Just ain't happening! And, to be honest, I'm not sure many/any teens are in to them.

Anyhoo, what it does allow me to do is post up reviews! And this one is a cracker! Seriously top stuff, thanks to Pete Woods at http://www.metalteamuk.net! I'm astonished by it, thrilled by it... Read on for a fantastic Hurrah on The Dark!

Dave

"It’s a case of attention being drawn to the cover art as it jumps off the shelf and takes a bite at you and who could refuse the allure of such nasty, slimy, multi-fanged dread? You cannot tell the book by the cover is that age old adage but here you can as David Gatward very much delivers both goods and gore with ‘The Dark,’ the second part of his ‘Dead’ trilogy, designed for young adults, but being equally enjoyed by this older one.

When I was an evolving horror enthusiast we were not quite so lucky with young adult fiction but I too read a book called ‘The Dark’ written by James Herbert. Perhaps it explains why I turned out the way I did and it would have been less nerve shredding if I could have started off with something designed a bit more for my age range. The school library would have no doubt agreed, as cottoning on, they shortly after withdrew and allegedly burned Mr Herbert’s early endeavours. 

Gatward does a great job here of not belittling his audience and not dumbing down the horror, sure there are no sex scenes and foul language but the horror and the claret are delivered in spades. We rejoin hero Lazarus guardian of The Dead and his eager and long suffering sidekick Craig through the veil of the dead, a place they had the misfortune to end up in at the climax of the first part.

The incredibly atmospheric narrative describes a domain that is very reminiscent of Silent Hill as we uncover its intricacies. The Dead themselves are utterly sinister and again Red, the demonical figure who brought the fear previously is some sort of overseer of the domain and has a very Lovecraftian pet with him (think lots of tentacles). Envisaging the action as how this section would be filmed and with some of the utter destruction going on, I am reminded a bit of some of the early Manga films. It has that sort of fantastical feel to it here and one wonders how such scenes, which are intrinsically designed for teenagers, would even make it onto anything film wise lower than an 18 certificate if that?

Without giving too much away the second part of the book takes place on our more mortal side of things with the boys teaming up with Clair who will hopefully not become possessed this time around and attack them, as well as boozy angel Arielle. Here their task is to find Abaddon (a name in itself to send shivers of dread down the spine) and stop hell itself from opening. Lazarus also has to find out what exactly his parents part is in all the proceedings and could well be torn between conflicting emotions as the world as we know it sits upon the very precipice of doom. This all flows at a cracking rate naturally and the book is one hell (sorry) of a page turner. I actually had to pace myself reading it, wanting it to last as many nights as possible as it is perfect just before sleep reading (well it is for those of us liking nightmares at any rate).

The second part of a trilogy is often looked at as the tricky one but things do not feel cumbersome here and set events up nicely for the conclusion. The only real complaint is that I have to wait until next year to get my claws into it, or should that be until it gets its claws into me?"

An Interview with Steve Feasey... creator of much evil and darkness...

I, like the rest of society, have grown weary of teen horror which is, in essence, lots and lots and lots and lots of snogging. I prefer my stories to have bite. You can imagine my joy, then, to present to you now, an author who's stories have enough of it take your head off...

Behold Steve Feasey, evil creator of the quite wondrously ferocious Changeling series!

As a member of the notorious Chainsaw Gang, he has willingly given his answers to some questions below. Enjoy...

What’s your favourite book?
SUCH a difficult question to answer! It’s like trying to decide what’s your favourite food. But as I have to pick one, I’d say Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. I’m a great Dickens fan and the characters in this book are so beautifully imagined that it’s one of a handful of books that I’ve read more than twice.
If I had to pick a scary book, I’d go for Salem’s Lot by Stephen King. I think every copy of this book should be sold with a free nightlight because there’s NO WAY you’re sleeping in a dark room after reading it.


What’s your favourite monster?
Alien. Simply THE best monster of all time. Ever. End of. I love the film (I rank it as my all time favourite horror flick), and the monster is simply terrifying – hey, you get THREE monsters for the price of one – face-hugger, stomach-burster, and finally, The Alien – and each one becomes more shocking and horrifying than the last. The film is perfect because Ridley Scott, the film’s director, only allows you glimpses of the monster, showing glimpses of various parts and keeping the rest in shadow or out of shot. Anything with more teeth than you can shake a stick at and acid for blood had got to be good. And all this before CGI! If you haven’t seen the film, go grab a copy and give yourself a treat.


Who’s your favourite bad-ass monster slayer?
I loved reading Greek mythology as a kid, and if you love bad-ass monsters you can’t go wrong with those sick and twisted Greek tales. Of all the guys and gals that faced off against a plethora of monsters and scary creatures, Heracles (or Hercules if you like your heroes a bit more Roman) was, for me at least, ‘the daddy’. Yes, I know that he was only set his twelve labours as punishment for infanticide – sick and twisted, remember? – but boy, does he go at them with relish. Striding around in a lion-skin, wielding a huge club and laughing in the face of the Gods. He makes Buffy look like a rank amateur.



If you could make a pact with the Devil, what would you want in exchange for your immortal soul?

I’d want x-ray vision, superhuman strength and the ability to fly. Yeah, I could do without a soul if I was Superman!


The Chainsaw Gang are all trapped on a desert island with no food. Who would you eat first and why?
Hmmm, well pound for pound I think Alexander Gordon Smith might be the best meal. I can see a couple of really good steaks coming out of him. Sarwat looks a bit stringy, Sam a bit gamey, and I doubt I could catch Alex Bell. No, I think AGS would be first on the menu.

Cheers Steve! Good answers!

So there you go, people - Steve Feasey: creator of monsters, lover of Alien and eater of AGS. What's not to like? So get out and get his books in to your life right now!