The Exorcist By Blatty S/L By Suntup, Lonely Road & Gauntlet

The Exorcist By Blatty S/L By Suntup, Lonely Road & Gauntlet

The Exorcist By Blatty S/L by Suntup, Lonely Road & Gauntlet fine presses provides one of the world’s most terrifying and thrilling novels an exceptional book reading experience.

The Exorcist, suntup, lonely road books, gauntlet press, signed Blatty, William Peter Blatty, limited edition

The Exorcist By William Peter Blatty is an all-time great work of fiction.

This cannot be understated; the writing, the tale, the characters are all remarkable.

The film adaptation that Blatty was a part of will forever be a classic, as well, but the novel adds so much more to the brilliant characters, the shocking story, and the uniquely personal detective work.

The following book review of The Exorcist: The Fortieth Anniversary Edition will have mild Spoilers** that will end with the story review and the start of a fine press book review of each of the Holy Trinity: The Exorcist signed and limited editions by Gauntlet Press, Lonely Road Books, and released this year, in celebration of the 50th anniversary of this iconic masterpiece of horror and paranormal suspense, Suntup Editions.

I have a favorite! But now back to the The Exorcist: The Fortieth Anniversary Edition book review!

The Exorcist, suntup, lonely road books, gauntlet press, signed Blatty, William Peter Blatty, limited edition

For those who have read The Exorcist, but not the revised edition, I highly encourage you to take up the endeavor.

On September 27, 2011, The Exorcist was re-released as a 40th Anniversary Edition in hardcover, paperback and audiobook featuring new and revised material. Of this edition, Blatty wrote:

“This will have a touch of new material in it as part of an all-around polish of the dialogue and prose. First time around I never had the time (meaning the funds) to do a second draft, and this, finally, is it. With forty years to think about it, a few little changes were inevitable — plus one new character in a totally new, very spooky scene. This is the version I would like to be remembered for.” [Suntup.press]

From the eerie and ominous opening of the book, we touch on foreshadowing and evil and duty for Father Lankester Merrin, as he meets with a dear friend.

An ancient Assyrian idol of the demon Pazuzu has been found at Merrin’s archaeological dig in northern Iraq.

And this creepy and poignant chapter, the sweat that runs from the elderly Jesuit priest in the full light of the sun spilling over the desert, bespeaks an impending battle, and what may be strife in the spiritual battleground and the physical one.

He must leave his dear friend and go back to the US. Some goodbyes are heartbreaking.

Blatty leaves Merrin behind for much of the book and focuses on a little girl named Regan in Washington D.C.

She is possessed; there is no spoiler there, folks.

Blatty was originally inspired by the story of the demonic possession of a child in the 1940s.

Regan, the eleven-year-old daughter of Chris, a movie actress residing in Washington, D.C. for a film, lives in a creepy old house overlooking a terribly long and narrow stairway outside.

The murder of Chris’ producer, who is found at the bottom of the stairs with his head turned all the way around – quite unnaturally – begins an investigation into the family in the house.

Welcome one of the most fun detectives in fiction: Lt. William Kinderman!

He is an older man, who is jovial, polite, and so very sly and intuitive with regards to human behavior and reactions.

Because the film producer was murdered after he was in Chris’ home, Kinderman has no choice but to thoroughly investigate every occupant of the house, as well as the visiting Jesuit priest Father Damien Karras, who he befriends in part for company and in part to get information out of him.

This is a thrilling, and at times humorous, cat and mouse game, as the two speak and meet again and again.

Meanwhile, Chris, an atheist, is upset as her daughter quickly dissolves before her into what she thinks is multiple personality disorder.

Regan speaks in other languages, lashes out at her doctors, is shriveling away physically, and even makes her entire bed tremble, as if there was an earthquake.

Aside from locking up Regan in an institution, which Chris will not do, one of the psychiatrists suggests that Regan may think she is possessed and so an exorcist may provide a psychosomatic cure.

Father Carris tries desperately to build a case to the Church for exorcism, but Regan’s time is running out.

**Spoilers END here

The Exorcist, suntup, lonely road books, gauntlet press, signed Blatty, William Peter Blatty, limited edition

The Exorcist: The Fortieth Anniversary Edition by William Peter Blatty is truly something special – there is no work of fiction like this.

The research involved in writing this book was extensive, the writing could not be better, and the eerie world is so real, it scares the hell out of me to this day.

And that is my guess as to why the 71-week bestseller is considered one of the most controversial books of all time.

To pay homage to this classic work of literature, I will review the three small press publishers that crafted S/L editions containing Blatty’s preferred fortieth anniversary text, and I will review in the order they were published before I compare the three, Gauntlet, Lonely Road, and Suntup, limited editions.

The Exorcist by Blatty gets the grand fine press treatment it deserves

The Exorcist, suntup, lonely road books, gauntlet press, signed Blatty, William Peter Blatty, limited edition 

First released was the interesting Gauntlet Press edition that has a signature sheet for the 25th Anniversary and a publication page for the text version, the 40th Anniversary (I do not know why and am so curious about that).

The Exorcist, suntup, lonely road books, gauntlet press, signed Blatty, William Peter Blatty, limited edition

It is a beautiful book that was limited to 600 copies with an introduction by F. Paul Wilson who signed it, as well as Blatty.

Only the lettered, which I do not have got illustrations in the book, but I will say that the cover art of this book is my favorite of any trade or small press dust jacket art that I have seen.

It is black, simple, elegant, and the warped image of Regan in the light symbolizing a cross is, to many, disturbing.

The boards are a fun iridescent sable cloth too and the pages are of a nice quality.

The Exorcist, suntup, lonely road books, gauntlet press, signed Blatty, William Peter Blatty, limited edition

The Exorcist: The Fortieth Anniversary Edition by William Peter Blatty Signed and Numbered Limited Made By Lonely Road Books

The Exorcist, suntup, lonely road books, gauntlet press, signed Blatty, William Peter Blatty, limited edition

Lonely Road Books produced a phenomenal edition of the work in an oversized 7.5” x 10.5” to highlight the stunning original art by Caniglia.

This edition was limited to 374 numbered and signed by Blatty!

The Exorcist, suntup, lonely road books, gauntlet press, signed Blatty, William Peter Blatty, limited edition

The dust jacket is gorgeous, but I prefer the white faux leather boards and red foil stamping sans dj.

The slipcase is crimson with gold foil stamping and the paper is quality, though not as thick in the hand as the Gauntlet or the Suntup.

The Exorcist, suntup, lonely road books, gauntlet press, signed Blatty, William Peter Blatty, limited edition

The artwork in the book is the real highlight, aside from the author’s preferred text and signature, of course.

The Exorcist, suntup, lonely road books, gauntlet press, signed Blatty, William Peter Blatty, limited edition

This art is tied for my favorite (with the Suntup), and it has a ton of illustrations and I think more than any other illustrated edition to date.

The Exorcist, suntup, lonely road books, gauntlet press, signed Blatty, William Peter Blatty, limited edition

It is a sight to behold!

The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty Numbered Edition By Suntup Editions

The Exorcist, suntup, lonely road books, gauntlet press, signed Blatty, William Peter Blatty, limited edition

To celebrate the 2021 50th anniversary of the great book, Paul Suntup and his team went all out to deliver one of the most celebrated numbered editions of The Exorcist and of their own outstanding lineup.

Suntup’s numbered version of The Exorcist is a bar setter.

With William Peter Blatty deceased, his close friend, a man he called his “brother” director of The Exorcist film William Friedkin penned the introduction and signed the book, as well as the marvelous artist Marc Potts.

Getting the award winning director to talk about the book and to sign this edition is nothing short of amazing.

The Exorcist, suntup, lonely road books, gauntlet press, signed Blatty, William Peter Blatty, limited edition

But what is more, the intricate Jesuit priest shirt and collar, done in two-color Japanese cloth, with a white paper tie, is out of this world amazing!

The Exorcist, suntup, lonely road books, gauntlet press, signed Blatty, William Peter Blatty, limited edition


“The EXORCIST by WILLIAM PETER BLATTY Suntup numbered edition unboxing” VIDEO by THE JEFF WORD


From Suntup’s description:

The Numbered edition of 250 copies is a handmade lapped component case binding constructed from purple and black Japanese cloth covers and purple folded single folio endsheets. It features foil stamped titling at the spine, a white Plike paper collar, flush mounted and wrapped at the head of the book, and is housed in a cigar-style enclosure covered in Japanese cloth. The edition is printed letterpress on Mohawk Via Vellum and is signed by William Friedkin and Marc Potts. Each copy of this edition is sewn and bound by hand. [Suntup.press]

This handbound gem has a smooth feel and an effervescent shine to the boards that catches the light in the most beautiful of ways.

The page type is outstanding, and the letterpress printing is truly the finest way to read the book.

The Exorcist, suntup, lonely road books, gauntlet press, signed Blatty, William Peter Blatty, limited edition

You can see the ink on the page so easily and you can feel the impression of each word or device that the letterpress stamped onto the page.

There is no experience like reading this edition of the book.

It is heavy, it is drool-worthy in its visual design, and the fine art illustrated by Marc Potts is by far the darkest of all the editions I have seen.

The artwork in the book is every bit as good as Caniglia’s and tied to be my favorite of all.

The Exorcist, suntup, lonely road books, gauntlet press, signed Blatty, William Peter Blatty, limited edition

And the cigar style case in the vestment purple and black cross insignia is a work of art in and of itself.

The overall transcendent edition of fiction for The Exorcist goes to the rarest of the S/L’s, the Suntup Editions numbered.

All of these books are incredible works of art that pay great homage to the work’s author, Blatty, and I recommend them all.


The Forgotten Fiction Grade: YEA (read it!)


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“The Exorcist By Blatty S/L By Suntup, Lonely Road & Gauntlet” was written by R.J. Huneke.

 

 

Replay By Ken Grimwood: Suntup Editions Replay Suntup Replay

Replay By Ken Grimwood: Suntup Editions Replay Suntup Replay

Replay By Ken Grimwood: Suntup Editions Replay Suntup Replay, and as this time travel tale goes on, the suspenseful, metaphysical, time-mind warp grips the reader’s heart tighter and tighter.

This is a Spoiler-Free** Preview Review of the upcoming Suntup Editions for Ken Grimwood’s award-winning novel Replay.

Conjuring all of the mystery of time travel, the philosophy behind its implications and the personal touch of experiencing love throughout the flux is why Isaac Asimov’s The End of Eternity is my favorite book by Asimov, and Grimwood’s Replay has all of these elements and a magic about it, while being an incredibly fresh and vibrant and innovative tale all of its own.

I know of no book like Replay.

The only hint as to the last book release from Suntup Editions was the publisher, Paul Suntup himself, who said this was one of his favorite books.

Despite having the utmost faith in his judgement as an extremely well-read human, a poet, and a brilliant crafter of fine press books, I was taken aback when I saw Replay announced; I had not heard of it.

I will admit to being flummoxed – as a science fiction writer and fanatic, how did I miss this – and I doubted whether or not I should invest in one of the upcoming editions from Suntup, despite their out-of-this-world design and attention to detail.

I was wrong to doubt. I was so wrong.

I read the book in a few days; I could not put it down.

Replay, Ken Grimwood, suntup editions, Alessandro Sicioldr Bianchi, time travel, asimov

I think the only reason more folks have not heard of Ken Grimwood is that the author tragically died of a heart attack young, not unlike Replay’s protagonist Jeff Winston who dies abruptly at age 43 – at the same day and time – and awakes with all memories of his past life, but back where he was at the age of 18 in the early 1960’s.

What would you do if you could go back with knowledge of 20+ years and experience in a young person’s body?

What are the potential consequences of the replays that happen over and over each time Jeff reaches that fatal day at age 43, no matter where he is?

This novel pulls and yanks at your heartstrings, again and again.

There is debauchery, tragedy, loss, love, and so much more.

The ending got me choked up, as 1984 and only a handful of other books have ever done.

And Suntup Editions has done the most amazing job of bringing every facet of this complex story to light in each of their four different stand-alone limited editions.

Replay, Ken Grimwood, suntup editions, Alessandro Sicioldr Bianchi, time travel, asimov

I will review the numbered edition in detail when it arrives, but for now feast your eyes on each of the incredible works of art that are pushing the boundaries of intrinsic story-encompassing publishing with the art and design.

These editions all floor me, and the artist edition is still available to purchase, as well, signed by surrealist painter Alessandro Sicioldr Bianchi.

The art is, well there are no words; take a look at each edition:

Replay, Ken Grimwood, suntup editions, Alessandro Sicioldr Bianchi, time travel, asimov

The Artist edition is limited to 1000 copies with a dust jacket illustrated by Alessandro Sicioldr Bianchi. It is a full cloth, smyth sewn binding with two-hits foil stamping. It is the only edition of the three with the dust jacket, and is signed by the artist. The edition is printed offset and is housed in an embossed paper covered slipcase with an acrylic coating. [https://suntup.press/replay]


Replay, Ken Grimwood, suntup editions, Alessandro Sicioldr Bianchi, time travel, asimov

The Numbered edition of 350 copies is a handbound quarter leather binding with printed Hahnemühle Bugra boards and leather capped fore edges. The edition is enclosed in a quarter leather chemise and a Japanese cloth slipcase. The cover features a letterpress printed label and endsheets are Hahnemühle Bugra. The edition is printed offset on Mohawk Via and is signed by Alessandro Sicioldr Bianchi and Tim Powers. [https://suntup.press/replay]


Replay, Ken Grimwood, suntup editions, Alessandro Sicioldr Bianchi, time travel, asimov

The Lettered edition is limited to 26 copies and is a Dorfner style binding after master German bookbinder Otto Dorfner, who developed this structure in the early 20th century. The binding is sewn on supports with goat leather strips laminated to silk, with the boards attached to the textblock by the sewing supports. The boards are covered in full goatskin with goatskin onlays and blind tooling on the spine, and the flyleaves are covered with a suede material on one side. The edition is sewn and bound entirely by hand by master bookbinder Jacek Tylkowski in Poland.

The clamshell enclosure is full European cloth with a blind debossed cover. The edition is printed offset on Mohawk Via and is signed by Alessandro Sicioldr Bianchi and Tim Powers. [https://suntup.press/replay]


Replay, Ken Grimwood, suntup editions, Alessandro Sicioldr Bianchi, time travel, asimov

The Roman Numeral edition is limited to 10 copies and is bound in full leather. The leather features an original design using hand dying techniques and photographs of live models, which are transfered to the surface. The block is sewn onto stubs for a perfect opening. The boards are laced on, for the greatest durability. Doublures and headbands are in leather. The edition is sewn and bound entirely by hand by master bookbinder, Zigor Anguiano Calzada in Spain.

The clamshell enclosure is full leather with a rounded spine and suede inner linings with Japanese cloth. The edition is printed offset on Mohawk Superfine and is signed by Alessandro Sicioldr Bianchi and Tim Powers. [https://suntup.press/replay]

 


The Forgotten Fiction Grade: YEA (read it!)


Want To Buy A Book From A Local bookseller? Click Away!

 

“Replay By Ken Grimwood: Suntup Editions Replay Suntup Replay” was written by R.J. Huneke. Illustrations © by Alessandro Sicioldr Bianchi; Photography by Yegor Malinovskii.

 

 

The Forgotten Fiction ANNOUNCEMENT SCHEDULE 3-2021 To 8-2021

The Forgotten Fiction ANNOUNCEMENT SCHEDULE 3-2021 To 8-2021

The Forgotten Fiction ANNOUNCEMENT SCHEDULE 3-2021 To 6-2021: we are going keep TFF’s Eager Readers up to snuff with all of the happenings, from book reviews, to guest reviewers, to giveaway contests, to Rune Works reader-inspired creations.

BIG THINGS Coming To TFF!

Seeing how TFF has grown immensely in just a few short months and less than a year since its launch, I want to thank you all for your support and shared enthusiasm for all that we love as bibliophiles.


ANNOUNCEMENT SCHEDULE 3-2021 To 8-2021

 

  • March 30, 2021 @ 12pm EST

    • TFF Book Giveaway Contest Is Announced & Opened To Enter Free

  • April 5, 2021 @ 1pm EST

    • TFF Livestream & Giveaway Contest Drawing

  • April 28, 2021 @ 1pm EST

    • TFF Book Giveaway Contest Is Announced & Opened To Enter Free

  • May 4, 2021 @ 1pm EST

    • TFF Livestream & Giveaway Contest Drawing

  • May 26, 2021 @ 1pm EST

    • TFF Book Giveaway Contest Is Announced & Opened To Enter Free

  • June 1, 2021 @ 1pm EST

    • TFF Livestream & Giveaway Contest Drawing

  • June 30, 2021 @ 1pm EST

    • TFF Book Giveaway Contest Is Announced & Opened To Enter Free

  • July 6, 2021 @ 1pm EST

    • TFF Livestream & Giveaway Contest Drawing

  • July 28, 2021 @ 1pm EST

    • TFF Book Giveaway Contest Is Announced & Opened To Enter Free

  • August 3, 2021 @ 1pm EST

    • TFF Livestream & Giveaway Contest Drawing

  • August 25, 2021 @ 1pm EST

    • TFF Book Giveaway Contest Is Announced & Opened To Enter Free


And so we will be doing a monthly livestream, via Facebook Live, and in that brief time I will share news for upcoming book reviews and RW Cases or other creations, as well as finish each session with a drawing to choose a winner for a free giveaway contest.

What did I just say?!

Well, yeah, every month there will be a free to enter TFF Giveaway Contest taking place the week before the livestream.

I love reading, and TFF will be spreading the love!

stephen king signature, traycase, Custom Book Case, custom slipcase, hand-made, Dolso, the stand, stephen king, bernie wrightson, trashcan man

The prizes will get better and better – wait until you see this month’s contest! – and most often there will be a choice for the winner (or winners, when we mix it up) to choose from so that if we are giving away books you can hopefully get something you do not have.

Quite a few brilliant authors are interested in writing book reviews on all sorts of fiction.

I spoke briefly last week on Elizabeth Yoo’s upcoming reviews of 1960’s Italian fiction that she will blow us away with, but so much more than that is on the horizon, and since I love almost every type of fiction out there, from horror and sci-fi to historical fiction, there will always be a fun variety to peruse.

So in this site’s NEWS section I will post a TFF Quarterly ANNOUNCEMENT SCHEDULE and I will feature them in a pulldown from the site menu under NEWS too.

What is coming up?

stephen king signature, traycase, Custom Book Case, custom slipcase, hand-made, Dolso, the stand, stephen king, bernie wrightson, trashcan man

Well, besides the monthly contests, I will pick a book of the month that either was or is going to be reviewed during the livestream – a teaser, if you will – and I would like to start some Q/A time too (maybe not every time), but I will play that by ear. I love to live in the moment, so we will see where things take us.

Coming up next in book reviews…

In no particular order, except that CD’s NIGHT SHIFT by Stephen King is almost certainly next, here are the book-newcomers to The Forgotten Fiction magazine:

  • NIGHT SHIFT by Stephen King – Cemetery Dance Gift Edition
  • Ready Player One By Ernest Cline – Lettered Edition By Curious King Books
  • Seed By Ania Ahlborn – Numbered Edition By Suntup Editions
  • Crackle and Fire: An Angela Hardwicke Mystery By Russ Colchamiro – By Crazy 8 Press
  • Alice By Lewis Carroll – Numbered Edition by Amaranthine Books
  • Later By Stephen King – Numbered Edition By Hard Case Crime
  • A Scanner Darkly By Philip K. Dick – Suntup Editions Numbered and Artist Editions
  • Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury – Suntup Editions Numbered and Artist Editions
  • More Books by Michael Crichton – requests are open, folks!
  • The End Of Eternity By Isaac Asimov (and pictures of a rare first edition)
  • The Time Machine, The Invisible Man, and The War Of The Worlds, all By H.G. Wells – all Suntup Edition’s Limited Numbered
  • Killer Come Back To Me the unpublished Ray Bradbury book celebrating Bradbury’s 100th birthday by Hard Case Crime

There will be many books that pop up and wedge there way in between the ones above, but these are some of the fiction titles, young and old, to look forward to.

Branching off of both The Forgotten Fiction and my fledgling production company, press and PR agency Rune Works Productions Ltd. are the literary creations crafted by hand in my woodshop, like the TFF Rune Works Book Cases.

Call them traycases, slipcases, or whatever else you want, but do not call them mass produced haha.

These are beloved creations that I have hand crafted for my own library, art to hold my most precious art.

I am busy working on these RW Rare Book Cases:

  • A one-of-a-kind SILENCE OF THE LAMBS 2021 ARC case for the winner of the Unofficial Fans Of Suntup group’s contest, Kyle – this will be a 1 / 1 and like nothing anyone has ever seen
  • THE STAND Case With Licensed Bernie Wrightson Art – for UK and for US 1st printings
  • SECRET Case Project [hint: horror and Ania Ahlborn]
  • CARRIE 1st Edition case
  • FAHRENHEIT 451 case
  • The Gunslinger case
  • The Long Walk case
  • “The Bachman Books” case
  • “Gunslinger” Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction cases
  • A I of I creation customized for an issue of Astounding Fiction from 1953
  • Startling Mystery 1967 and 1969 Case
  • Fight Club cases, with a strip of cartoon film?
  • A Scanner Darkly case for the first edition of Philip K. Dick’s classic
  • Revival Us First Edition for signed copies
  • End Of Watch Us First Edition for signed copies
  • If It Bleeds Us First Edition for signed copies
  • The End Of Eternity Isaac Asimov case
  • And even a non-book case for a rare Star Wars Lego piece!

There are a couple of cases I want to remain a secret for now.

stephen king signature, traycase, Custom Book Case, custom slipcase, hand-made, Dolso, the stand, stephen king, bernie wrightson, trashcan man

These are some ambitious projects that I have undertaken and some will be ready to fly in the near future, while others may take a year or more to develop (some have already crossed into this realm).

These are handmade and planned and collaborated on with usually one person, me, or a very few others, at times.

That takes time.

But I love to make them and I love to see their purpose fulfilled as the books join with them, and much as time is one of our most precious commodities, up there with family and health, I take my time to ensure the quality I feel all of my work, from my written works to my web-made to my hand-made works all are the most they can be.

Be kind to one another, be safe, and go read!

 

Best,

 

~R.J.H.

Ania Ahlborn’s Brother Astounds In Limited Suntup Editions

Ania Ahlborn’s Brother Astounds In Limited Suntup Editions

Ania Ahlborn’s Brother astounds in limited Suntup Editions, and both the visceral, chilling work of horror and the incredible physical manifestation of the book from Suntup are reviewed here.

A short summation of the book review of Brother is that it is a brilliant novel and work of art.

And Suntup Editions crafted it into palpable art for book lovers to grasp in-hand.

Few tales really grab you, wringing your stomach repeatedly, like Brother does.

fine press, small press, suntup editions, brother, Ania Ahlborn, Paul Suntup, Suntup, book review, book reviews

Here is the story synopsis as seen on Suntup Editions’ website, Suntup.press, and the review continues below:


Synopsis:

Brother is the terrifying tale of a family’s disturbing traditions, and of one brother’s determination to break free from all he has ever known. In a crooked farmhouse off the beaten path and miles away from civilization live the Morrows. A band of eccentric recluses, the family keeps to themselves so as not to be questioned by local police when girls go missing from the side of the highway. But nineteen-year-old Michael Morrow is different. He derives no pleasure in the screams that echo through the trees.

Michael pines for a life of normalcy and to see a world beyond that of West Virginia. In the nearby town of Dahlia, Michael meets Alice, a pretty girl working at a record shop. He is immediately smitten, but his family is all too eager to remind him of the monster he is.

Hailed by critics as “impossible to put down,” Ahlborn delivers all the guilt, guts, and gore of family drama as Michael fights to attain the life he longs for. [credit: Suntup.press]


Both the story itself and the hardcover books are inspired.

From the opening screams, and the lack of surprise at those screams, Brother has you.

Ania Ahlborn’s Brother transcends all kinds of fiction genre labels, as horror, suspense, psychological thriller, and gore converge, and that is part of what makes this work so damn good.

Ahlborn seizes on the psyche of nineteen-year-old protagonist, Michael Morrow, to tell her bone-chilling tale, and he is utterly compelling.

Michael is a walking dichotomy: he is both full of dread and hope, seemingly gold of heart and yet a part of humanity at its most hideous; his brother Reb takes jabs at Michael being slow in the uptake throughout the book and yet Michael shows signs of swift insightfulness; he is a romantic at heart and extremely naïve, despite seeing atrocities the likes of which few can imagine in their nightmares and the self-hatred he has for being a part of them.

The setting is the 1980’s in the rural wooded country of West Virginia, and the fervent characters that live there are primarily seen from the point of view of Michael Morrow.

And seeing through that lens makes for an endlessly intriguing, albeit disturbing, voyage.

fine press, small press, suntup editions, brother, Ania Ahlborn, Paul Suntup, Suntup, book review, book reviews

Limited edition photography by Paul Michael Kane.

*SPOILER WARNING*

You only have to start the book to find yourself jumping at the sound of Mama’s voice.

Michael is woken to the sounds of a young woman in distress, but what is immediately striking is that it is the sound that it is alarming to him.

He abhors the sound, but he is also so familiar with it that he is numb to the frantic plea.

The gravity of the future murder is there, and he is upset but oddly removed from her, even as he feels for the young woman’s plight.

Michael more bemoans the fact that he needs to be ready to rise from his bed in the middle of the night and do Mama Morrow’s bidding.

fine press, small press, suntup editions, brother, Ania Ahlborn, Paul Suntup, Suntup, book review, book reviews

Limited edition photography by Paul Michael Kane.

When the young woman gets loose and flees through the trees, trying desperately to escape, you cannot help to get out of breath yourself as the vivid view from under the trees and the inner monologue of Michael draw you in.

He is the fastest runner among the Morrows, and so he must do as his adopted family commands: catch the girl so Mama can have her way with the young woman before she is literally butchered so the Morrows can make steaks and other things from her.

Michael does not want to be a part of it.

But he is so frightened of what Mama will do if he does not comply, he cannot see that he has any option but to obey.

He cleans up afterward and slices up and stores the cuts of meat.

It is as it has always been at his adopted family’s farmhouse.

The Morrows saved him from an abandoned home, and he was put into the keeping of his older brother who likes to be called Rebel, or Reb.

Reb has bullied Michael for so long, incessantly, that the reader jumps whenever Reb looks Michael’s way or says anything.

The brother terrifies him to the point of paranoia that is justified and the verbal abuse is truly just the smallest glimpse into the wickedness that the eldest son of the longtime cannibalistic family, the Morrows, brings to the story.

As Michael’s brother mixes truths and lies and starts to take his little brother to meet girls – not to scout for more victims, but to get them both dates – the horror of a twisting narrative full of insanely painful and blood-spattered experiences warps the psychological reality of a young man yearning for normalcy.

One microcosm of beauty from this story comes as a girl that Michael likes lends him a record of The Cure from the store she works at, and when he listens to it his entire soul erupts in happiness and his mind opens as it has never done before.

And then things go horribly, horribly wrong as his sister begins to dance and loses control.

*SPOILERS END HERE*

The grit in the writing is so real your hands feel scraped as you put the book down.

To take such a narrative to ever-increasing emotional highs and lows over the course of a detailed terrain, a world built to entrap the reader in its dangerous twists, is sensational.

This book is not for those who are squeamish at the sight of blood, and be warned you may find yourself choked up, nauseous, cheering, and crying all within a short span while reading.

For fiction fans, and in particular horror fans, you may have a new favorite book and author on your hands.

Brother feels as though it really happened, and that scares the hell out of me.

There is no escape from one’s brother . . . Or is there? But the cost . . .

Suntup Editions Numbered State Of Brother Is One Of The Closest Examples Of A Physical Book Possessed By A Story

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While I am sure the Suntup Editions lettered edition of Brother by Ania Ahlborn is also a fantastic work of art that emanates the dark tale, this review now shifts its focus to the fine press signed and numbered state.

What Paul Suntup has conjured for Brother is nothing short of remarkable.

The cover is like a fine cigar wrapper, smooth and yet full of a crinkly texture and its colors of brown and black produce a one of a kind effect for each book.

I have never held anything like this book in my hand!

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Limited edition photography by Paul Michael Kane.

The cover boards were constructed by Andrea Peterson, and each is formed via a custom handmade Walnut rag cotton paper has been coated with black walnut dye from the trees of the print artist’s own homestead.

Some softening and shellac seal the walnut and then standing bright amongst the deep tones are the title and author’s name in two hits of foil stamping.

I treasure this book.

The slipcase is heavy, hard, like acacia hardwood, and not only protects but beautifully represents the toughness from the work it encompasses.

Moving to within the pages, the endsheets are Hahnemühle Bugra and have a great feel to the palm and the paper is off-white and also excellent in the hand.

On top of the finest book design a fine press can deliver – from the chapter headings to the font and all of it – Brother features six full-color illustrations by World Fantasy Award winner Samuel Araya.

And these images conjure up a surrealistic quality that is unique and combines the weird beauty with the horrific intensity of Brother.

I cannot understate two things here:

The cover alone seems to project the novel within and is a special rare book collectors will pine over.

Two: because Suntup Editions decided to give a great book that had only previously been available in paperback a hardback en masse there were 500 copies made and signed of the numbered state of Brother and amazingly enough, because most of Suntup’s numbered books are limited to 250 or less, there are a few copies still available for sale here: https://suntup.press/brother.

Since nearly all of Suntup’s books have sold out, and most do at the hour of pre-sale (the last in less than three minutes), this fantastic edition of Brother is an anomaly ripe for the taking.

The Forgotten Fiction Grade: YEA (read BROTHER! And if you can read the Suntup Editions numbered state)

Here is an unboxing video done by our local professional unboxer Jeff Terry if you want to get a feel for what it is like to open up A Suntup Editions box and behold Brother in HD video:


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Born in Ciechanow Poland, Ania Ahlborn has always been drawn to the darker, mysterious, and morbid side of life. Her earliest childhood memory is of crawling through a hole in the chain link fence that separated her family home from a large wooded cemetery, where she’d spend hours among the headstones, breaking up bouquets of silk flowers so everyone had their equal share.

Ania’s first novel, Seed, was self-published. It clawed its way up the Amazon charts to the number one horror spot, earning her a multi-book deal and a key to the kingdom of the macabre. Eight years later, she has published ten titles. Her work has been lauded by the likes of Publishers Weekly, New York Daily News, and The New York Times. [credit: Suntup.press]

www.aniaahlborn.com


Illustration © 2019 by Samuel Araya. Brother Limited Editions © 2019 by Suntup Editions*. Brother © 2015 by Ania Ahlborn. Limited edition photography by Paul Michael Kane as credited in captions; the unboxing video is by Jeff Terry; the remaining photography is by R.J. Huneke. Read more about The Contributors to the review article here. *[BROTHER Suntup Editions First Edition Release Date: January 2020; the novel Brother was originally published in paperback in 2015.]


P.S. If You Want To Know A Little More About How The Forgotten Fiction Is Different & Our Mission . . .

We are really trying to achieve two main goals here:

  1. To bolster every author who puts out a work of fiction long after the initial buzz that accompanied its release. This is something that is usually left to an expensive public relations manager or company and even with all of their powers of marketing / PR are limited in where they can place the book months after its launch. This includes limited edition and small press publications, like Suntup Editions, that are also reviewed for their physical beauty, as well as the work’s literary art and often illustrations, so long as the initial work has been out 60 days.
  2. We love books of fiction! And as readers we have too little time to read ALL of the books that fall onto our tentative To-Read List. The Forgotten Fiction hopes that with our Yea or Nay stamp, we can definitively give our unbiased opinion to you as a recommendation that may or may not move a book from the stack to your Must-Read List.

To Read More Details On Our Process Go To The About Page Here.

“Ania Ahlborn’s Brother Astounds In Limited Suntup Editions” was written by R.J. Huneke for The Forgotten Fiction.