Lord Samper's Library

The trailer says far more than my words ever could. My first 'must see' movie of 2023 ;o)

Just a very quick one today as it’s been another crazy day and there’s still a whole load of work to get through before I can go to bed. Too much to do and not quite enough Graeme to do it all… But anyway 😊 I first came across ‘Weirdworld’ years ago, when I was hiding out in ‘Time Trek’ (a lovely little comic in Bromley which is sadly long gone now), trying not to have to go back to an office that I hated. As much as I love Marvel, I’m always a little wary about jumping into their series as it always seems to rely on a knowledge of continuity that I just don’t have. ‘WeirdWorld’ was a first issue though and the cover suggested that I’d be in for a story unlike the regular Marvel fare. So I did what I always do… I picked it up, enjoyed the hell out of it, promised myself that I’d keep an eye open for the following issues and… completely forgot about it. To be fair, there were a lot of other things happening then and forgetting a comic book was so easily done. But again, anyway… 😉

I've been trying to get into 'The Lost Level' but for whatever reason, it's not working for me and I don't know why. Funnily enough, I don't think it's the book's fault, more that I'm not in the right place to read it at the moment. Sometimes that happens and when it does, you've got to put the book down (and read something else) before you go and spoil it for a 'future you' that will probably get a lot out of it. But anyway... That's why I'm all about 'The Complex' today. I wanted to read something by Brian Keene and it had been a long time since I read 'The Complex', seemed like it was a good time for a re-read. And it was, it really was. That's about all I can say at the moment as I put the book down about an hour ago and my mind is pretty much blown by the experience. Let me try and tell you about it. There was no warning. No chance to escape. They came suddenly. Naked. Bloodthirsty. Sadistic. They descen

Sorry about the lack of blogging over the weekend... I had my Covid booster shot, on Friday, and it knocked me out for all of Saturday and a large chunk of Sunday as well. Still, it's better than the alternative which knocks you out for a lot longer. So no reading for me then but I did take some time to get acquainted with Netflix and see what was what. It turns out that there's a lot on Netflix, for the likes of me, certainly enough for me to keep my subscription for a while at least ;o) Have some quick thoughts on what I managed to watch while I finish off some reading and sort myself out for the week ahead... The New Legends Of Monkey'(Season 1)' One of the reasons I'm into what I'm into is that around about the end of the nineteen seventies, my folks sat a very young me in front of a show called 'Monkey Magic' and left me to it. I had no idea what it was about (still don't to be honest) but I loved it anyway, all that shouting and fighting was

I already have the Fantasy Masterworks edition of 'Viriconium' but when I saw this New English Library Edition of 'The Pastel City', I had to get it. I mean, just look at that cover, isn't it just the best? And back in the day when a paperback would set you back 30p. They don't make em' like that any more etc, etc... ;o) Anyway, middle-aged reminiscing over... So yep, mostly the cover then but even though it's been a while since I last read 'The Pastel City', I remembered enough that I knew it would be a good read (which should give you some idea about how this post is going to end). That and the fact that this edition is only a hundred and forty four pages long, just the right length for a couple of commutes to and from work (with a lunch break in between). So that's just what I did and here I am to tell you all about it. For millenia, the Pastel City had been the sole centre of civilisation on an Earth despoiled and ruined by it's

If you were round these parts about three weeks ago (and where did those three weeks go? It's all been a bit of a blur here) you'd have seen that 'Reiksguard' was one of the books that I picked up in Ramsgate , took to the nearest pub and drank beer until I'd finished it. The Old World may be a thing of the past (although if and when Games Workshop release the new 'Warhammer Fantasy Battle' game...) but I will take any chance to pay it a visit and that's just what I did here; it just took me a while to get round to writing about it here (like I said, the last few weeks have been a blur..) I got there eventually though :o) Quick thoughts are the order of the day once again I'm afraid; bear with me, one day I'll have the time and energy for something a little longer. Right now though, lets talk 'Reiksguard'. The Reiksguard knights are entrusted with the sacred duty of the Emperor's protection from foes within and without. Under the com

The other week, I took myself off to Ramsgate for a little book shopping but also to grab a little time for myself and read some books that I was desperate to get to but... you know what it's like, life loves to exercise its power of veto over my reading plans (yours too, I reckon). Well, no prizes for guessing which book came with me and kept me in my hotel room until it was finished... ;o) I thoroughly enjoyed 'The Seven', when I read it last year , and have spent the intervening time looking forward to getting back into the Labyrinth and seeing what happened next. And when I finally got round to it, it was like I'd never been away... The Seven have won the first battle against the Thirteen, but it cost them one of their number. Now Frankie, Teddy, LeHorn, Tony, Bloom and the Exit find themselves in the middle of a global super storm on a flooded Earth, reunited with old friends and facing off against familiar threats, including the terrifying titanic might of Behem

I am always the last person to read the cool book that everyone is talking about, especially these days when reading time is at a real premium and I have a nasty habit of falling asleep on the bus home (I’m getting old…) ‘Things have gotten worse since we last spoke’ is a novella that I’ve meant to read, ever since Twitter blew up about how good it was, but somehow never managed to get round to until I finally grabbed a copy of the collection, back in September , and gave the titular story a shot. That was back in September and it’s taken me until now to finally get to a point where my stomach has calmed down and I can write something about a story that I think will occupy a dark corner of my head for some time to come. That should give you a pretty big clue about what I thought about ‘Things have gotten worse’ but if you need more… Let’s go. Sadomasochism. Obsession. Death. A whirlpool of darkness churns at the heart of a macabre ballet between two lonely young women in an internet

Look, I spent most of yesterday with a kitten asleep on me and when she wasn't sleeping, I was trying to prise a rabbit out from under my daughter's bed. And if you've ever seen a rabbit building barricades (and she was, she really was) then you'll understand why I didn't post yesterday ;o) And as for today... Well, the least said about that, the better... I'm here now though and I got paid the other day so yep, a few books landed on my doorstep. Should we take a look at them? Should we...? Go on then :o) Excuse the 'camera work', 'TerrorTome' has a shiny cover and I didn't want my reflection all over the picture (and neither do you, you're welcome). What we have here is possibly the most important horror novel ever... and 'The Fog' ;o) I'm reading 'TerrorTome' at the moment and it's, well... I'll let you know when my review goes up. I've been listening to the 'Breakfast in the Ruins Halloween Special&#

So I finally went and subscribed to Netflix the other day as it looks like the only way I'm ever going to be able to see stuff like 'The Witcher', 'Squid Games' and all those other shows that the cool folk watch. Oh yes, and 'The New Legends of Monkey', more on that another time ;o) I was completely unprepared though for the number of shows that Netflix would throw at me though, based on making three choices before logging on for the first time. Honestly... There was so much to choose from that I really didn't know where to start. I had to start somewhere though, especially after yet another hard slog at work, so I went for 'Hellbound' based on... I don't know really, the title more than anything else. Six episodes later and damn... What a first show to pick for my journey through Netflix. I'm sat here waiting 'kind of' patiently for Season 2. All of a sudden, unearthly monsters are appearing and violently ushering chosen sinne

Well, work has been crazy this week (again) and watching Twitter go through whatever it seems to be going through right now has made for compelling (if a little confusing) viewing but I did manage to get a little reading done this week. Just a little but you know what? Sometimes that’s all you’re going to manage and that’s ok 😉 Better to read than not at all, even if it’s only a little bit here and there. I’m pretty sure I’ve mentioned this already, but I saw ‘Swords Against Tomorrow’ for 50p, in Michael’s Bookshop, and there was no question about it, I had to have it. Part of that is down to the fact that I will always buy old school ‘Sword and Sorcery’ and Fantasy, especially if it’s only 50p. It brings back happy memories of rooting through piles of old books in markets and strange little second-hand bookshops on the coast, that’s always a good thing for me 😊 Not just that though, I saw John Jakes’ name on the cover and had a pretty good idea that this would be another stop on m

I finally went for it and got 'Netflix'... Loads of reasons really, partly so I could see why my eldest loves 'Stranger Things' so much, partly because it looks like it's the only way that I'll ever got to watch 'The Witcher' and a little bit because of all the zombie stuff that I've never seen but can now watch (it doesn't take a lot to make me happy...) All of that to one side though, I love 'creature features' and this one looks like it could be some fun, 'Troll' arrives on Netflix on December 1st and thanks to my new subscription, I get to watch it ;o)

Well, the plan was to watch some Doctor Who last night but my DVD player developed a dislike to the two DVDs that I tried in it, and time was ticking away, so I thought I’d give something else a go instead. I’d thoroughly enjoyed ‘The Raid’, when I watched it back in May , and had been meaning to get acquainted with ‘The Raid 2’ ever since but never quite managed it… Until last night when I saw it in the DVD pile and thought to myself, ‘why not…?’ So when my pizza arrived, that’s exactly what I did 😊 Having fought his way out of a building full of gangsters and madmen, Rama thought he could resume a normal life. He couldn’t have been more wrong. His triumph attracted the attention of the criminal underworld, and with his family at risk, Rama’s only choice is to go undercover and begin a new terrifying odyssey of violence. ‘The Raid 2’ is one of those movies that’s lucky enough not to have to try very hard as it’s predecessor was so good that… Well, all it really needs to do is

I’m not quite sure where the weekend went, I’ve just been left with a sense that it was really busy (that and some new Doctor Who figures on my shelf)… Good aren’t they? I really like the UNIT soldiers actually, but anyway… There wasn’t time for a lot of reading, over the weekend, but I did make a little time to try and catch up with the latest round of Warhammer Horror short stories. I think I’ve got a couple more to find but this is the closest I’ve got to being up to date, with a new set of releases, so I’m feeling a little proud of myself for being on the ball 😉 Quick thoughts then, mostly because these are short stories but also because it has been a hell of a day (again…) and I’ve got half an eye on some pizza and a Doctor Who DVD. In the meantime, lets talk some Warhammer Horror…   ‘The Somewhere Sister’ – Jeremy Lambert A lowly innkeeper channels her grief and the weight of her trauma into a mysterious mirror… How can a story with such an unengaging lead keep me

Yep, this post is pretty late in the day (what's left of it!) but I slept for half the day and then I was hanging out with my kids, and assorted pets (there are only two but it feels like more sometimes...) for the rest of it. All good fun :o) With what's left of the day then, lets take a quick look at the books that have arrived at mine this week... And it will be a quick look as there weren't that many books arriving this week. It doesn't look like it but I'm trying to cut back on the ol' book buying and read what's already in my flat. That said, there are always a few books that catch my eye, books like these... I've been very much enjoying the 'Empire Army' books and these two books round off the collection. As ever, I've got a few other books that I need to read first but I have a feeling that these two will feature sooner rather than later ;o) 'Warrior Priest' will be a re-read, after several years, so I know there's a good

Even after getting rid of one hell of a load of books and DVDs, there are still plenty of both to keep me going up until Christmas at least (the DVDs that is, the books will keep me going well into the New Year). With that in mind, I thought I'd see how many 'Doctor Who' DVDs I can get through before Christmas. You'd think that would be easy but DVDs, in my flat, do have a habit of turning up in piles of books... We'll see how it goes. First up is 'Death to the Daleks', a story that's a year and a bit older than I am and a story that was picked by my youngest daughter for me to watch last night. I might need to have a quiet word about her choices, 'Death to the Daleks' wasn't all that... A power failure in the TARDIS throws it off the course , and the Doctor and Sarah Jane Smith end up stranded on the bleak planet of Exxilon. They soon meet members of an Earth expedition in a similar situation. The humans are searching for a rare mineral bu

It’s an ‘unexpected double post day’ today as I treated myself to a couple of ‘Warhammer Short Reads’ to have a go at while I was having lunch. I polished them both off (along with a rather nice lasagne) so I thought I’d take a little time out and share some quick thoughts on ‘Age of Sigmar’ tale ‘The Interrogator’ and Warhammer Horror story ‘King of Pigs’. I say ‘quick thoughts’ as it’s another one of those days and I’ve got a few things that I need to get done. Two tales then, both good but one a lot better than the other… ‘The Interrogator’ – Richard Strachan In the wake of the Siege of Excelsis, a humble scrivener is caught up in a web of terrible coincidences, and interrogated by the ruthless witch hunter Doralia ven Denst. Her consecrated crossbow in hand, Doralia wants nothing but the truth – no matter how it hides. If you know the settings for either Warhammer game, you’ll know that there’s a whole other war that takes place away from the frontlines. A war for the very

I really enjoyed the 'Reader Recession Relief Readalong' that I did, for Brian Keene's books that were the weekly deal, so I thought I'd keep reading his books and see where I ended up. No rhyme or reason this time round, just me and whichever of his books happened to catch my eye. This time round, the book that caught my eye was 'Pressure', a 2016 release that I never got round to picking up because, well... 2016 was fucking dreadful and I was barely holding it together (I didn't read a lot at all). But anyway... 'Pressure' was a big hole in my Brian Keene reading so I figured now was the time to do something about that. And that's just what I've been doing over the last week or so, let me tell you about it. Off the coast of tropical Mauritius, an ecological catastrophe with global implications is occurring. The ocean's floor is collapsing at a rapid rate. World-champion free diver and marine biologist Carrie Anderson joins a scientific

Last weekend was mostly split into either catching up on my reading or buying more books to catch up on at some point yet to be determined. Drinking beer was equally divided between these two activities… 😉 During my cull of books in my flat, I built up quite the pile of comic books that I’d had every intention of reading but somehow, yeah… you know how it is. ‘Barbaric Volume 1’ was one of those comic books (recommended by the ever reliable @AnthonyPerconti, a man who really knows his stuff) and I took the opportunity to finally crack it open, over the weekend, and get stuck in… How can a man sworn to do good indulge in so much violence…? Owen the Barbarian has been cursed to do good with what remains of his life. His moral compass is a bloodthirsty axe with a drinking problem. Together, they wander the realm, foredoomed to help any who seek their aid, avoiding witches at every turn. Because if there’s one thing Owen hates more than a life with rules, it’s witches. But what ha

Yeah, the plan was to post this much earlier but, it was another one of those days wasn't it? Oh well, fingers crossed for a better one tomorrow ;o) Anyway... It's not just zombie movies that I love; I really enjoy the 'Hellraiser' movies as well, even the bad ones (although I may have to revise that if I ever manage to watch 'Hellraiser: Revelations', I've heard that it's particularly bad...) Most of it is down to Doug Bradley just being amazing as Pinhead but there's a whole mythos behind it (which is developed further in the books and comics) that is really engaging for someone like me who likes a little bit of meat on their plot. So when I heard that 'Hellraiser' was being rebooted... Yep, I was a little bit wary when I heard there would be a new Pinhead (no matter how bad a 'Hellraiser' film is, Doug Bradley will rescue it) but it was more excitement than anything else. 'Hellraiser: Judgement' felt like a step in the r

Sorry for the blog silence these last couple of days... I've had a couple of days in Ramsgate and given the way work, and life in general, has been just recently, I decided to take a little time away from the blog as well and just concentrate on reading, mostly in pubs ;o) And that's exactly what I did and it was lovely, I've got a potentially tough day looming but I feel recharged and ready to give it a go. It wasn't just reading though (although I managed to finish three over the weekend, not bad going at all), of course it wasn't. One of the reasons that I stayed over in Ramsgate was the promise of a couple of second-hand bookshops that I'd never had the chance to look in the last time I was there. Haywards Bookshop will have to wait for another visit (it was closed) but Michael's Bookshop was open and that proved to be more than enough. The bottom line is that if you ever find yourself in Ramsgate, make sure you pay 'Michael's Bookshop' a vi