The Scary Reviews

Genre: Horror
Length: 298 Pages
Publisher: Crystal Lake Publishing
Release date: April 27, 2018
Kindle Link
Synopsis:

Today’s top Horror and SF authors pay tribute to C.H.U.D. in this anthology of original fiction.

C.H.U.D. is a genre defying, cult classic film featuring monsters living in the sewers below New York. The stories in this anthology expand the world created by the film and add depth to the C.H.U.D. universe like never before. From stories of apocalyptic horror and all out monster action, to tales of underground parties interrupted by uninvited guests and evening strolls that end in death, this anthology will leave you both smiling and breathless.

Relive the fear as these original stories take you beyond the movie to events that occurred before, during, and after the scenes we remember so well.

Includes C.H.U.D. related stories by Jonathan Maberry, Tim Waggoner, JG Faherty, Mort Castle, Michael H. Hanson, Martin Powell, Ben Fisher, Jason White, Chad Lutzke, Ross Baxter, Philip C Perron, David Bernstein, Nick Cato, Alex Laybourne, Christopher Fulbright, Angeline Hawkes, David Robbins, Robert Waters, Greg Mitchell, Ryan C. Thomas, and Eugene Johnson.
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With an introduction by David Drake. Compiled by Eric S. Brown.

C.H.U.D. Lives! also features in-depth interviews with Andrew Bonime (producer) and Parnell Hall (screenwriter), as well as never before seen behind-the-scenes photos from the classic 80s horror film.

This book is dedicated in loving memory to Andrew Bonime, the producer of the C.H.U.D. film.

Review copy provided in exchange for an honest review as part of the Confessions Publicity book tour

I never saw the movie CHUD back in the day, how this happened I’ll never know. I’ve been a horror fan since I watched the first Halloween and Friday the 13^th movies as a kid. I had high hopes for CHUD, but it’s always a crap shot with anthologies. I see a few writers I enjoy and hope the others can keep up. The first story in any anthology should be strong and get the book off to a blazing start. Unfortunately, I didn’t feel what Robert E Waters was throwing down in Dog Walker. It was ironic, but it didn’t get enough traction, and it was easy to see where it was going. But I was quickly back on board when I finished the second story, The Dwellers by Nick Cato. It had a quick pace, solid beginning, middle, and ending that was twisted and wrong on a few levels. This was a story I could dig along with the images of carnage. I really dug The Way to a Man’s Heart by Tim Waggoner. This was a great bit of writing from start to finish along with This City Will Eat You Alive by Ryan C. Thomas. Other stories that were notable include, Step Ate by Chad Lutzke and Zero Hour by JG Faherty. These were both real gems in the bunch along with the final story, You Will Never Leave Harlan Alive, but I didn’t expect anything less from Jonathan Maberry, thank you sir! I found the majority of CHUD mildly entertaining, the same as many B horror movies I watched back in the day. It just didn’t deliver enough punch to make this a must read.