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Missing heads, hot tub sex, unspeakable
secrets, old boyfriends, blood on the snow of stormy
winter nights—Vince A. Liaguno’s debut novel, The
Literary Six, has all the right ingredients for
thrilling and chilling. A set-up full of atmosphere—jealousy,
alcohol, money, lust—and the story really takes off
when the guests put on their party clothes and begin
to disappear, one by one, a la Christie’s Ten Little
Indians. Liaguno is a writer to keep an eye on.
The murder is hot, the sex is steamy and his sense of
momentum from scene to scene, spot-on. The series of
short scenes, movie-like, that lead to the denouement
deserves wholeheartedly the genre description, HORROR.
- ForeWord
Clarion Reviews
Vince A. Liaguno's The Literary Six is strangers
meeting on a (terror) train. Think April Fool's Day
from film meets The Secret History from fiction.
And, like all good strangers, once these two get together,
there's blood. Think Happy Birthday to Me or
My Bloody Valentine or Prom Night or any
of the other slasher-by-numbers from the Golden Age
of Freddy and Jason and Michael, but don't (though you'll
be tempted) try to shove this book into your VCR. Instead
just let it play in your head, and with your head, and
if you can keep from grinning, then you're a better
person than me. As Liaguno shows us with this impressive
debut, the slasher is far from dead - it isn't even
tired yet.
- Stephen
Graham Jones, Author of Demon Theory
Filled with the right mix of horror, thrills, chills
and slasher gore, this novel enthralled into the wee
hours of the night. Hard to believe this is Liaguno’s
first novel, because this tightly plotted tale about
six college writers who reunite twenty years later on
a remote island during a winter storm reminded me of
some of the best stuff by authors with much more recognizable
names. In fact, The Literary Six, with
its twists and turns galore, reads like a polished author’s
fifth or sixth novel, filled with great characters,
dead-on (no pun intended) dialog and plenty of graphic
sex and gore. As the bodies fall, the clues pile up;
yet just when you think you are sure you know what is
going on, the bottom falls out from under you. Chock
full of mystery and romance and tinged with all the
things that make readers flock to books by guys named
King and Kellerman and Koontz, The Literary Six
turns tables and twists endings even when you think
you know who’s done what to whom. It’s a fantastic first-time
novel, and I for one will be waiting with bated breath
for Liaguno’s next.
–
Curled Up With A Good Book
With The Literary Six, Liaguno has created an
edge-of-your-seat page-turner; a great read for either
the beach or a chilly winter night. With simple words
and the use of light and shadow imagery, Liaguno creates
some disturbingly memorable impressions. He layers the
story with graceful images - sometimes gorgeous, other
times extremely macabre, and often both. In the hands
of the right filmmaker, this could be a top-notch visual
experience. The mood the author creates through the
use of his perfectly chosen wording is frequently flesh
crawling. He goes beyond Agatha Christie's proper styling
and writes a book that Christie would have written if
she married John Carpenter. While scary as hell, The
Literary Six contains some deep and disturbing truths
about human nature and the effect our own past mistakes
have on those around us. It's not just interested in
skimming the pond here - it delves deep.
–
Eric Arvin, Author of The Rest Is Illusion
Dark, scary, and absorbing. Vince A. Liaguno has
penned a compelling and impressive debut. Tight
plotting, nail-biting suspense...it’s all there. But
the characterization is what sets this book apart. The
Literary Six comes alive. You like them, you
root for them. You don’t want them to die!
-
Amanda Stevens, Author of The Dollmaker
The Literary Six charges
forward like an out-of-control locomotive with a bomb
on board, bearing down on a station full of lost and
unsuspecting souls. The story is smartly told and well
plotted, the characters vividly drawn and memorable.
Liaguno brings a unique and refreshing voice to the field
of thriller writing. I believe he’ll be around for a
long time to come.
–
Mark Edward Hall, Author of The Lost Village
& The Holocaust Opera
An intense, nail-biting plot with plenty of inventive
kills and thrills…Liaguno has a few surprises up his
sleeve with vibrant characters with depth and complex
relationships that add dramatic layers to the plot.
These relationships help create a slow tension-filled
build to a surprisingly brilliant climax that is sure
to bring a sharp gasp. Liaguno gives readers the blood
and gore they expect in a thriller, and readers can
expect bloody axes, power outages, a masked killer,
and a dark snowy night. The Literary Six is a
classic slasher novel.
-
Authors After Dark
By writing The Literary Six, Vince Liaguno has
accomplished a rare and unusual feat: the creation of
an excellent, scary slasher movie in the form of a novel.
Liaguno does a wonderful job of capturing the “essence”
of the cinematic slasher in the pages of his novel.
His slasher is a horrifying slasher indeed – an impressive
literary creation that becomes more complex as the story
goes along. Wes Craven’s Scream attracted a lot
of attention because of its intertextuality: a slasher
movie that was aware of itself as participating in a
larger body of slasher movies. Liaguno’s novel
contains a similar intertextuality, but his story does
not contain the postmodern irony of the Craven films.
In other words, this novel is an homage to the slasher
genre while simultaneously offering a genuine slasher
movie experience.
–
Chad Helder, Author of The Pop-Up Book of Death
It’s likely that you’ve never heard of Vince A. Liaguno
before, but I’m predicting his name will be common within
the horror genre before long. When I accept review assignments,
I try my hardest to find something I can offer the author
as constructive criticism from the average readers’
point of view. Most of my reviews are for first time
authors who generally have obvious weaknesses that are
easy to point out. Vince A. Liaguno has provided a challenge
I can’t overcome! This is Liaguno’s first novel, but
he certainly doesn’t make it obvious. He writes as if
he’s been doing this for years. The characters are believable
and provided with richly described settings to live
in - or, in this case, die in. The Literary Six
is a great read.
-
TCM Reviews
Vince A. Liaguno is destined to be the newest voice
in horror writing. His style is that of Jack Ketchum,
Agatha Christie, and Peter Straub combined. The detail
and depth of the story is outstanding while the horror
of it is deliciously stomach turning. The Literary
Six is a page-turner that you will not put down,
and when the cover does close the tale may continue
to haunt your thoughts. The book is deep with believable,
intricate characters in the throes of love and life,
rich with sensory perception and description, and ripe
with delectable suspense and tingle-producing terror.
Exactly what a work of horror should be and more!
-
BookIdeas.com
In The Literary Six, Vince Liaguno crafts a well-written
homage to the various slasher horror films. The
story is heavily character-driven with a great deal
of attention given to the members and the relationships
of the members of the titular group. Liaguno does a
great job of keeping the reader's attention with this
gripping story. While anyone who has watched any
of the multitudes of slasher movies will be able to
identify the plot devices and vehicles in the story,
Liaguno's storytelling is superior. If you see
a friend trying to check out a slasher movie, take that
movie out of their hand and give them a copy of The
Literary Six. They will thank you for it.
-
MonsterLibrarian.com
Vince Liaguno’s debut novel is a slasher film in print,
albeit with a bit more depth and protagonists that are
more mature than your typical summer camper. One of
the strengths of The Literary Six is in the characterizations
of the principals. It’s obvious that Liaguno cares for
most of these characters and that empathy carries over
to the reader, making the harrowing events of the reunion
all the more chilling…a visceral, satisfying tale of
revenge.
–
Horror World
Put any thoughts of cheese away…this is a serious slasher
story. Author Vince Liaguno has really done a great
job putting the classic slasher formula to paper. The
basic formula is here but it’s written well enough that
you don’t feel you’re reading something you’ve read
or seen a million times before…and how often does that
happen in the slasher genre?
–
Horrorwatch
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