The Devil's Wine (Hardcover)

~ Tom Piccirilli (Editor)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Without apologies, 19 masters (and mistresses) of contemporary horror fiction reveal themselves in a poetic mood in this anthology of mostly previously unpublished verse assembled by Stoker-winner Piccirilli (The Night Class, etc.). Known for the nasty violence of much of his fiction, Jack Ketchum shows a gentler side in such poems as "Hoboe" and "Sleeping Woman." Ray Bradbury, whose poetry is by now as familiar to fans as his fantasy, contributes such whimsies as the self-referential "The Other Me," in which he wonders, "Did R.B. write that poem, that line, that speech?" Joe Haldeman brings the same wickedly endearing wit to a poem like "Audience Participation," about an elderly moviegoer's revenge on some annoying teenagers, as he does to his fiction. Other notable contributors include Peter Straub, Charles De Lint, Peter Crowther and Elizabeth Massie. This is a rich feast, fit for a king, and indeed he is here too—Stephen King. Such poems as "The Dark Man" and "Harrison State Park '68," reprinted here for the first time after some 30 or more years, are good enough to make readers hope the Master Spellbinder revisits his muse more frequently.
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Product Description

"Poetry is the devil's wine." -- St. Augustine

THE DEVIL'S WINE features contributions from Stephen King, Ray Bradbury, Peter Straub, Graham Masterton, Charles De Lint, Jack Ketchum, Joe Haldeman, Michael Bishop, Jack Cady, Steve Rasnic Tem, Melanie Tem, Peter Crowther, TM Wright, Brian Hodge, Edward Lee, Elizabeth Massie, Jay Bonansinga, and Tamara Thorne.

The Cemetery Dance hardcover is the only edition for this title, and many of the nearly 200 poems have never appeared anywhere else. Stephen King's amazing contributions were originally published in small venues during his college years and these publications now resell for thousands of dollars due to their scarcity. The King poems haven't seen print in over 30 years--this is the only time they have ever been reprinted!

The poetry found within THE DEVIL'S WINE is deeply moving, affecting, and deals with the human condition in a way that only those who've danced along the edge of the abyss are capable of understanding. One of the contributors, Jay Bonansinga, calls THE DEVIL'S WINE "a unique compendium of thriller writers moonlighting in the world of dark verse" and that's about the best description we've heard yet.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Cemetery Dance Publications (April 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1587670704
• ISBN-13: 978-1587670701
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 7.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,899,104 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars In a word? Raw. , September 16, 2004

By	HorrorWench (horror-web.com) - See all my reviews

The forward by Tom Piccirilli tells us that this is horror writers, writing poetry, not necessarily about horror. Oh really? I was intrigued... And when I finished reading, I was impressed. This collection takes some of the best horror writers out of the shadows they so love and exposes their inner most thoughts, heartbroken entrails, and offers a tiny peek into their very own nightmares, as well as a few visits to the lighter side of their insanity.

This multi-layered journey is unnerving and yet enthralling - it's very difficult to read from these authors without expecting it to turn ugly, take that twist, or dive into darkness... and it was actually very refreshing to visit another side of them. Within these pages I found a few lines I jotted down because they were so powerful, thought provoking, crazy, or simply amusing. Among those were:

"...you lie on the threshold of your etc" [Graham Masterton, 'Marriage']

"Don't talk to me about endings, Dare the beginnings" [Jack Ketchum, '7/69']

And though they're not necessarily horror, there are some horror poems scattered about - amidst the blank verse, sonnets, and random poetry in these pages. Some of my personal favorites, of all the poetry [not just horror] were:

'Audience Participation,' by Joe Haldeman - boy wouldn't we all like this to happen to those pesky loudmouths in the theater?

'Poe's Grave,' by Steve Rasnic Tem - He is not dead...

'Conversation,' by Peter Crowther - Death and Time discuss who needs whom

'Only Two Legs and No Silk,' by TM Wright - a whimsical little ditty about spiders, you can almost hear the spiders yelling 'Whoopee!'

'7/69,' by Jack Ketchum - who knew that he could make you ponder sea turtles!

'Four Female Voices in an Empty Room,' by Edward Lee - ghosts on tape?

'Tryptic o' Terror,' by Elizabeth Massie - great little limericks about ghost, vampires, and monsters...

'Horror is Dead, Long Live Horror,' by Jay Bonansinga - creepy ode to the death of fictional horror and the rise of factual

'The Three Evils,' by Tamara Thorne - hear no, see no, speak no... you have a big mouth !

While I thoroughly enjoyed this collection, to be honest, it is not for everyone. For poetry lovers and/or fans of these authors, it's a great collection that belongs on your shelf. You will smile at what you see here! A nice, solid, iambic pentameter 5

For those that don't like poetry, or have only read a few of these authors - you should check it out. If for no other reasons than the uniqueness of it, as it gives you a look inside the rotted, visceral minds of those that bring us our nightmares. Or as Tom Piccirilli put it in the forward:
It's a heady brew, the devil's wine.
Take a sip and find out for yourself.
... for you i give it a 4