Black Gallery by Ash Ericmore
Andrew wants a night in with Janey. But Janey wants to go to the gallery. And worse … she’s decided that she wants the artist to do her.
Within the halls of The Black Gallery, Andrew finds heathen creations, and imagery he can do nothing but distrust … statues cast so lifelike they bleed. With horrors abounding and the grotesque coming to life, it is all he can do to keep himself from being painted into oblivion …
… but what of the beautiful Janey?
United KingdomA Horrifying Masterpiece
Horror Dad Ash is bringing in some new and unusually surreal vibes with this beastie. I mean you know I can't say a bad word about Ash, his work is always on point. But I have to admit considering his back catalogue this one was toned down a tad. I mean, a tad you still have the amazing characters that make the story hold every fibre of your being. Andrew pretty much is me most days, I would rather chill watching Tv then walk around a gallery in the evening. But it's obvious that what Janey wants Janey gets, as they explore the new exhibit and meet the very Creepy Hampton. I definitely get that eerie something ain't right vibe so I would be reluctant to have this guy paint me too! The classic Ash Humour and sex scenes that make your skin crawl are there. But things take a turn for the fuc king weird later on, like I have no idea at points what's actually happening, like is this real or some fucked up acid dream. Which is beautifully done but Ash always seems to pull it out of the bag with different horror styles. At one point I was getting Junji Ito vibes, which made me very happy. This just has so much going for it in terms of unsettling atmosphere and in all fairness mannequins creep me the hell out. So I felt like I was trapped in a nightmare fueled anxiety attack with vomiting mannequins. My worst nightmare as I do not do sick, gagging internally as we speak. Bloody hell Ash can you release just one pile of shit so we don't all look bad, cose you are a book writing machine!
United StatesSurrealist literature
Ohhhhh, buddy. Buckle up. This is going to get crazy. Janie wants to go to a new art gallery and Andrew is not keen on it. Who wants to go around some fancy scmancy gallery, not Andrew. When the owner, Hampton, takes a likely to Andrew’s wife, things get weird but the exhibits Andrew sees are weirder. Hampton wants to “do” Janie and Andrew isn’t excited about a threesome. Can he save her from what’s in store? I’m in shock with this one. It’s not even close to what we are used to with an Ericmore and I’m kinda in love with it. The humor is there but turned down to a 2, which works perfectly. The gore is at a 3 so we still get a wee bit of gross. But it’s surrealism in writing. I would go as far as to say Neo-gothic surrealism. You literally feel trapped in a painting and it is the damnedest thing! This one is hard to explain but I know I need more like BLACK GALLERY. Give me Rene Margritte, Mark Ryden, and/or Salvador Dali vibes any day with literature and I will show up with bells on (and clothes because no one wants to see that). A DOUBLE OFF THE CHARTS RECOMMEND from me with a 20/5.
United KingdomBlack Gallery
Andrew would rather stay at home on Friday nights and watch classic movies but instead, he reluctantly accompanies his girlfriend to an exclusive art gallery. Upon arrival, the two are separated and what follows will push the couple's relationship to its limits. Another great read from Ash Ericmore. If you are familiar with his massive body of work you'll know what to expect but will be happy to see that he has continued to mature with his most recent stories. Darkly funny, sexually depraved, with buckets of gore presented in creative, horrific situations. The second half of the book veers into surrealism which is a direction I personally enjoy. This gives Ericmore an opportunity to vividly describe some unusual imagery. It all leads to a quickly wrapped up conclusion, but one that I was satisfied with.