Deadfellas
by David Whitman
Darktales Publications; 2001; 55 pages; $8.99
Sometimes you have to wonder what goes on in an author's mind. Like, before writing Deadfellas, did David Whitman watch a movie marathon of Leslie Nielson films with Goodfellas and Night of the Living Dead thrown in? Did he have some bizarre dream about himself being reincarnated on the spot after someone chops off his head? Was he watching The Sopranos when the idea hit him?
Whatever the reason, David Whitman's novella Deadfellas is an entertaining and quick read. This story is not really horror as in horror scary; it's more like a walk through a Twilight Zone-themed carnival funhouse ride. DeadFellas is character-rich with a fairly good plot, lots of bizarre action and tons of humor.
There are two interconnecting stories in this book. Four hitmen -- Tim and Francis who are trying to make a hit on one Adrian Lime and Benny and Rico who need to get a key off a dead man's body -encounter something otherworldly. The hit doesn't go exactly as planned and the attempt to get the key off the dead man's body isn't as simple as it seems. Eventually, the four guys get together to battle the zombies who've suddenly been summoned by a demon alien in Lime's basement.
There were a few loose ends that weren't resolved in this story: how did this alternate reality come to be, what were the two monsters in the Lime's house, why didn't the other three mobsters reincarnate? Even with these few problems, though, this 54-page book is still worth reading.
Whitman is a good writer with lots of talent who can keep his audience entranced. He is the co-author of the don't-miss book, Scary Rednecks and Other Inbred Horrors (co-written with Weston Ochse) and the recently released novel Harlan. He's been published in over 100 print and online publications including Gothic.net, Black October and Twilight Showcase. Visit David's website at http://www.david-whitman.com.
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