Customer Reviews

Aaaiiieee!!!

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AAAIIIEEE!!! has me convinced that Jeffrey Thomas is the next name in horror. This collection of stories is possibly the most entertaining book of indie fiction I've read (its main rival being Thomas' earlier collection Punktown). These short stories have the innovation and fresh perspective of Bradbury, the perverse car crash magnetism of early Clive Barker and the layered depths of Lovecraft.

Normally I prefer novels to short stories but Thomas has the knack for creating a complete world with dynamic characters in only a couple pages. Thomas' range is amazing, from the darkly romantic tale of an angel "Fallen" to the truly bizarre "Family Matters" his fiction is always compelling and thought-provoking. Nor is Thomas without a sense of humor. Take for instance,"Psychometric Idol" his tale of a quirky pop star resembling Michael Jackson who acquires artifacts (like the skeleton of the elephant man) so as to convert them to nutritious and inspiring shakes.

I can't recommend the work of Jeff Thomas enough. If you are looking for innovative, top-notch fiction in a dark vein then look no further than Jeff Thomas'

Jennifer Barnes[]

Horrifying, electrifying, and downright squishy, this early collection of Jeffrey Thomas shows much more than budding talent, it shows that Thomas has been in full bloom since first taking up the pen.

Thomas rapidly climbed to the status of one of my favorite authors with his Punktown series, and his recent novel Boneland has earned a special place in my black heart and on my bookshelf. 'Aaaiiieee!!!' will join the others in my 'favored' bookcase.

There isn't one bad story in this collection, and too many excellent ones to cover in one review. My favorite would have to be one of the squishiest and most disgusting tales I have ever enjoyed, 'Family Matters'. And you thought your family was embarrassing!

The incredible heartache of love that reaches beyond physical repulsion is graphically illustrated in 'John Sadness', the repugnant romp of incest in 'Dust', a tale of madmen in 'Mass Production', a gun's inner thoughts in 'Gun Metal Blue', a Freakshow of horror in 'The Sister', (an idea Thomas elaborates further in his novel 'Everybody Scream' which came out much later than this short story), and a touching story of life's unfinished business in 'The Red Spectacles', barely begins to skim the talent offered up in this anthology.

As a final note, I discovered that the distinguished cover art is also credited to Jeffrey Thomas. Not only can he write, but he can dream up and create a lovely alien face that tickles my cute-meter while still causing bile to rise. Awesome job, Jeffrey! I can't recommend Thomas's work highly enough! Enjoy the book!

Taken from [...]
Aaaiieee by Jeffrey Thomas is a short story collection featuring twenty tales that pretty much cover the spectrum of the horror genre. The stories are all from independent press and believe me when I say that this collection is rad. I really like Jeffery Thomas, especially his Punk Town series, so it was no surprise that when I was done reading Aaaiiieee, I was enthralled, enlightened and genuinely spooked. It was a quick read, and from what I have read in the past, this is on its way to becoming one of those cult classic collections ala Dark Forces or even Night Shift. Thomas is changing horror for the better and perhaps soon, he might be cannon. And what about my feelings overall? I'd say not a bad story in the batch, clean prose, and bad ass writing that reaches out and grabs you. I could not recommend this enough.