New Kealan Patrick Burke E-Mail Newsletter

Kealan Patrick Burke (Seldom Seen In August) has started a new e-mail newsletter. To subscribe, send a blank e-mail to elderlemon2010@aol.com with “newsletter” in the subject line. Those who subscribe will receive an electronic copy of his excellent novel Currency of Souls, and will be entered into a drawing to receive a copy of his forthcoming novel Kin. For a little more about Mr. Burke, I interviewed him a while back here. Kealan Patrick Burke is one of the very best writers working in the genre today; if you aren’t reading him, you should be.
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Kealan Patrick Burke

The historic 10th interview in the We Interrupt This Author series is up at Horror World, and to mark the special occasion, the victim this time is one of the absolute best authors writing today, Kealan Patrick Burke (Currency of Souls, Seldom Seen In August). Don't hate him because he's handsome, like him because he's an amazing writer.
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Currency Of Souls

There are a lot of people who seem to believe that there is no possible intersection between “literature” and “horror”. I would say these people have never read anything by Kealan Patrick Burke, an Irish author now living in America, who has written literate, thought-provoking short stories and novels, without the attention he deserves.

Currency of Souls, a 2007 novel from Subterranean Press, is a good example of how you can have a novel with the action and suspense fans of the genre want without sacrificing the ability to get inside characters that is the benchmark of good writing. It takes place in Eddie’s Tavern in the town of Millstone, a kind of hell, or more appropriately, purgatory, where a motley collection of characters await redemption. It seems they were all responsible for some tragic event, and are awaiting their chance at redemption. Every night at 11:00, the sinister Reverend Hill appears to tell them who is about to die, and which one of them will serve as the driver for the occasion. The hope of the patrons is they will one day atone for their sins and move on. The main character is Tom, the town sheriff, who, like the rest, is weary of the repetition and pain of their existence.

One night, the routine is broken. Unexpected blood is spilled, the tavern burns, and the desperate denizens of the tavern struggle to learn whether the events represent an end to their limbo, or just a momentary interruption. Along the way, we learn more about why they are there, whether they (or anyone) deserve their fate, and if there is to be a release.

This is a short novel, but there is plenty to get under your skin and much to ponder after reading it. Burke is one of those rare authors with a fluid way with words, and he can tell a story. I thought the novel reflected a very Catholic sensibility, but perhaps I’m projecting my own background there.

Highly recommended.
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Seldom Seen in August

Although novels get most of the attention, the heart and soul of the horror genre has always been the short story, and one of the modern masters of the short story is the Irish-born Kealan Patrick Burke, whose short story collection the 121 to Pennsylvania and Other Stories ranks among the best collections ever published.

In "Seldom Seen in August", Wade Crawford is a man on the run. A bank robbery has gone wrong with three people killed, and he is fleeing in one direction while his partner goes in the other (with the money). Wade is an unrepentant killer, so the death of innocents doesn’t concern him, but eluding the police does. His flight takes him to a residential subdivision, and a road strangely named Seldom Seen. There he seeks refuge in a seemingly deserted house.

Wade made a bad choice, as he is confronted by a boy with a straight razor, a horribly burned woman and others, all of whom appear and disappear at will. The police are also closing in on him, but given what he has gotten himself into, Wade would have been better off going down in a hail of bullets than facing what waits in the house on Seldom Seen road.

Burke does a good job of creating a sense of dread despite the intentionally unappealing protagonist, and he takes the story in directions that are unanticipated. (From reading the description, you probably think you know where the story is headed. You’re wrong.) It’s always difficult to flesh out a character in the brief pages of a short story, but Burke does it well, which is why he is a master of the form.

The chapbook was published by White Noise Press, with artwork by White Noise Press founder Keith Minnion. It is an attractive package to complement a good story, so I would recommend you order it. Except it is out of print, so good luck. I got mine from a certain gurkling.
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