Steve Bentley #05 - Murder on her Mind

The fifth Steve Bentley novel is Murder on Her Mind, originally published by Dell in 1960. The novel, authored by Howard Hunt using a pseudonym of Robert Dietrich, has been reintroduced to modern audiences in an exciting new version by Cutting Edge Books. It exists in both paperback and digital as well as an inclusion in the massive Steve Bentley omnibus Bentley for Hire.

As a reminder, Bentley is a former U.S. Treasury agent who experienced combat in The Korean War. Now, he works as a successful accountant in Washington, D.C. and spends his free time sailing his boat on the Potomac River. The author positions the Bentley character like an amateur private-eye with plenty of intelligence, street smarts, quick wits, determination, and tenacity. In some ways, Bentley always reminds me of the popular Chester Drum character created by Milton Lesser (better known as Stephen Marlowe). So, it is no surprise that these books normally start with a client walking into Bentley's office needing favors beyond the typical IRS hustle. 

Chula Marques enters Bentley's office wanting an accounting sheet prepared for her father, a Baltimore resident and former revolutionist from an unknown banana country. Bentley is skeptical to become involved with this sort of international diplomat, and his fears are realized when he's handed counterfeit money. Because of Bentley's prior experience rooting out counterfeiters for the U.S. Treasury, he can easily identify saggy president eyes on American currency. 

Bentley dismisses Chula, but her memory stays with him. He visits the local club where she performs, and has a run-in with her drunk and disorderly husband as well as the bandstand leader who may be having an affair with her. Bentley is also approached by a newspaper reporter that represents a sensational publication that focuses on the hottest D.C. scandals. They want the scoop on Chula and her father.

All of this is entertaining enough to read, but the author understands his consumer's needs. One morning, Bentley receives a phone call from Chula that her father is missing. His last known whereabouts is a small shoreline town in Maryland. When Bentley arrives at the beach cottage (a popular staple in crime-noir) he discovers the dead reporter. Someone killed the reporter to put the hush on whatever they feel was blabbed to or by Bentley. So, if the journalist has been whacked, it is only a matter of time before someone tries to hush Bentley. 

Howard Hunt's plot is a little convoluted with some stolen jewels, a gunrunning enterprise, and the ins-and-outs of his relationship with Chula. The most entertaining aspect of the story for me was the abrasion between Bentley and a local criminal kingpin named Renzo. The story-line featuring Bentley squaring off with Renzo's two hitmen was worth the price of admission. Also, uncommon to this series, is a rather foul mood conveyed by Bentley. The imagery of the hero hoisting a rifle and walking down the beach to possibly kill his pursuer was just so vivid and memorable. Hunt was really on his game with this novel. 

If you love intriguing private-eye novels with interesting characters and an intense, calculated story, then by all means Murder on Her Mind should be your next read. While Hunt is often unfairly dismissed by crime-fiction fans, I continue to find his literary work exceptional. The Steve Bentley series is the best representation of the Howard Hunt formula and this is no different. Highly recommended. 

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The Association

Bentley Little (b. 1960) was born in Mesa, Arizona. He earned degrees in communications and comparative literature at California State University Fullerton. His first novel, The Revelation (1990), won a Bram Stoker Award for best novel by a new author. Since then, Little has averaged nearly one horror novel per year since 1990. I've had the opportunity to read many of his novels, including The Association. It was originally published in 2001 by Signet and most recently has been reprinted by Cemetery Dance.

In the opening chapters, Barry and Maureen move from Los Angeles into a gated suburban community in Utah. Upon moving into their new house, Barry and Maureen receive a book of "conditions, compliance and restrictions" regarding the Homeowners Association that they are required to comply with. Unfortunately, with the hustle and bustle of moving in and becoming situated in their new home, the couple fails to read it. They are later shocked when they discover what type of community they are residing in. 

The HOA contract prohibits the two from hosting any minorities in their house. Caucasian is the only prohibited race. Additionally, no one that is gay is allowed to be residents or guests in the community. Further, both Barry and Maureen are prohibited from reproducing offspring. The two quickly find that they aren't allowed to work from home (Barry is a writer). They also find that they must arise bright and early to clear off any pine cones, dead grass, twigs and branches from their property each day. They are prohibited from planting any shrubs, they aren't allowed to paint and they can't include any family photos as home decor. 

These outrageous rules and regulations require that each house must have a camera inside that is monitored by the HOA. Barry and Maureen are subjected to sexual harassment and the HOA is allowed to use deadly force whenever a resident breaks the rules. The local police aren't allowed jurisdiction inside, prompting a legal war between the town and the HOA.

Like Little's The Store (1998), The Policy (2003) and The Resort (2004), The Association follows the same formula - corporations wielding authority on unsuspecting people. The novel's sadism is turned down compared to Little's other works, but there are still some violent and unsettling scenes for readers. If you are familiar with this author, you'll find no surprises. The Association is a disturbing horror novel with a unique perspective on home buying.

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Captain Clive's Dreamworld

To date, Jon Bassoff has authored nine novels of dark crime-fiction and nightmarish horror. I read his debut novel, Corrosion, originally published in 2013, and really enjoyed it. The author has popped up on several “best of the year” lists over the last decade, including his novel Captain Clive's Dreamworld. It was published in 2020 by Eraserhead Press and received an audio book treatment by Blackstone Publishing. The book gained high praise on Amazon's reviews, which caught my eye while shopping for the next horror title to read. 

Deputy Sam Hardy works in a low-life, scum-ridden town plagued by violence and poverty. When a dead prostitute is found with her throat cut, Sam becomes a suspect in her murder. In an odd chain of events, Sam is instructed to move out of town to a place called Angels and Hope. The Sheriff sets Sam up to be the lone lawman of this sleepy desert town. Angels and Hope's claim to fame is a giant amusement park built by a zany entrepreneur named Captain Clive. But, the town is wonky and made up of two-faced citizens that seem to be hiding secrets. These characters evolve from the warm welcoming committee to malevolent tormentors over the course of the book.

Captain Clive's Dreamworld is a weird book, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing. It's presented in a dreamlike way that ultimately conveys the book's title. At times it's like the quirky Twilight Zone episode “Stopover in a Quiet Town”, with the protagonist discovering that his small town is just a reproduction. Other times, Bassoff's writing is dark erotica, complete with disturbingly graphic sex scenes that mostly involve rape or incest. In that regard, it isn't a far cry from the likes of Jack Ketchum or Bryan Smith, two authors I mostly stay away from. Perhaps the best comparison is that of Bentley Little – a little of this and a little of that to make an outlandish horror story memorable. 

Bassoff is a terrific writer that can get the most out of his characters through heartache, emotional angst, homicidal thoughts, and guilt. This gauntlet of emotions lies before the reader to enjoy or combat, which makes the reading  a rip-roar, gut-wrenching event. The reader feels something – good, bad, squeamish - which is what every author desires. There was also a great story here worth telling. It's a cyclical narrative with a plot development that offered some horrifying surprises. 

If  perverted horror is really your thing, then you'll love Captain Clive's Dreamworld. Honestly, I was just lukewarm on some of the provocative stuff, but the story as a whole was good enough for me to...thrust onward I suppose. 

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The Razorblades in my Head

According to his Amazon bio, Donnie Goodman runs the YouTube show The Horror Hypotheses and loves reading, book shopping, and playing video games. The Central Virginia native is a fan of Paperbacks from Hell and enjoys writing. His short stories have appeared in anthologies like Gorefest and Served Cold. In June of 2021, Goodman self-published his short story collection The Razorblades in my Head with a colorful and terrifying cover by Justin T. Coons. As a fan of horror and a native of Central Virginia myself, I was drawn to this macabre collection. 

The book is 140 pages long and features 12 shorts, original black and white cover sketches, and notes from the author on what inspired each story. I'm not a short story enthusiast, but Stephen King's Night Shift, Skeleton Crew, and Nightmares & Dreamscapes were always on hand throughout my childhood. I appreciate the art form, but prefer novellas if it isn't a full-length. That being said, Goodman's work was really enjoyable. This is his first collection and I would imagine some of these stories have been with him for a long time. 

Here are a few stories that I found as real highlights of Goodman's storytelling talent:

“The Stranger in the Squared Circle” is about Goodman's love of professional wrestling, entertainment that he describes as “the last bastion of true performance art in modern culture.” I love wrestling as well, so the idea of a vampire story set in the wild world of independent wrestling was appealing. It's written in first-person by an indy wrestler named Luke (indy meaning not contracted to one of the bigger organizations like WWE). He's a veteran of the indy circuit and starting to draw bigger money in Japan. So, it's with great hesitancy that he agrees to fill in at a local show from an old wrestling promoter named Jim. The gig is at a small, but packed venue, where Jim hoped to have a big main event. But, the headliner has gone missing in Mexico, so Jim wants Luke as the replacement. But, his opponent is a mysterious international wrestler called The Stranger, a performer Luke isn't familiar with. Jim shows Luke a video tape of an archived performance where it appears that The Stranger has supernatural agility and strength. It also looks like The Stranger legitimately kills his opponent. The Stranger may be the strangest opponent he has ever faced. The story is perfectly plotted with a great beginning, a compelling narrative, and a rousing finale. If this is a sign of things to come, Goodman is going to be a rock star. 

“The Old Bay King” is set on Virginia's eastern shores and features two likable, struggling crabbers that owe a loan-shark named Otis. Hoping to eventually make ends meet, they head north looking for a big haul. At sea, they discover an old abandoned ship. Inside are human remains and a huge box of solid gold covered in ancient writings. The two haul the box back to their ship, but run afoul of Otis and his enforcers. When he attempts to take the gold, all Hell truly breaks loose. Again, this was written in first-person and is one of the longer stories featured. I loved the atmosphere and characters, and Goodman's pacing was fantastic. This is Goodman at the top of his game.

“Hourglass” is an example of what Goodman feels is true horror - “a gated community with a homeowner's association.” I've been there and done that, and couldn't possibly agree more. This story reminds me of Bentley Little with its dark nod to the funny side of horror. It's a fairly simple story about a group of suburban men that make violent sacrifices in their garage. It's symbolic of greed and the sense of entitlement in pursuit of self-interest. I loved the story and it is set in a community called Greenfields, a place that Goodman uses in another story about killer snowmen called “Magic in the Hat.”

Razorblades in my Head represents an author that is passionate about literary horror. His stories resonate with a deep, disturbing look at our culture and the negative impact it creates. From snooty gated community residents to post-apocalyptic visions, Goodman isn't afraid to cross multiple sub-genres. This collection includes spatter-punk, crime-fiction, traditional horror, and the Creepy Pasta styled shorter shorts. I love his imagination, passion, and talent and to coin an overly-used phrase...he could be the next big thing. Recommended. 

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Burnt Offerings

Horror luminaries Stephen King and Bentley Little have both acknowledged Burnt Offerings as an influence on their writing. The novel, authored by Robert Marasco, was originally published in 1973 and adapted into an MGM film in 1976. The book is available now as a reprint through Valancourt Books with an introduction by Stephen Graham Jones. 

In the book, Ben and Marian Rolfe live in the crowded city of Queens, New York and are barely surviving the day to day hustle and bustle of work, marriage, and parenthood. The city is consuming them, eating away their existence and crushing their dreams and aspirations. Ben realizes this isn't a place to raise their young son David. In hopes of a fantastic family summer, Marian begins searching the classified ads for a summer place they can rent with their meager budget. Ben works as a professor, so Memorial Day through Labor Day affords them the opportunity to get away from it all. 

Marian locates an advertisement for a summer house in upstate New York. It's an appealing invitation of private beach, pool, dock, magnificent views, and the price, while not disclosed, suggests it might be affordable. The three drive up for the weekend to visit the place and negotiate with the owners. Their arrival proves to be disappointing. 

The house, which is a 30-room mansion, is in disarray. The once lush landscape is now dead, the exterior is crumbling, and the inside is dusty, ancient, and clearly neglected. But, it has potential and could be a great way to spend a summer vacation. The house is owned by Mrs. Allardyce and her elderly son and daughter. The deal works out to just $900 for the whole summer - a bargain if there ever was one. The only catch is that the Rolfes will be sharing the house with Mrs. Allardyce, a frail, sickly woman that lives in the west wing of the house. Her children explain that she doesn't leave her room and rarely makes an appearance. The Rolfes just need to leave a tray of food for her three times per day. This burden isn't that heavy.

Once the Rolfes settle into the house for the summer, their family ties begin to deteriorate. Marian begins to spend more and more time on the west wing cleaning. Ben begins a descent into madness, peaking as he attempts to drown David in the pool. Marian and Ben's relationship unravels, but oddly, the house begins to come alive with new paint and landscaping. The house is growing as the Rolfes sacrifice their happiness and love. Who's the master and servant? Is the house haunted? Is Mrs. Allardyce even real? These are the questions that arise throughout the book's haunting narrative.

American Nightmares: The Haunted House Formula in American Popular Fiction, by Dale Bailey, compares Burnt Offerings with a later novel, Anne River's Siddon's The House Next Door and of course, the staple of 1970s haunted house fiction, Jay Anson's The Amityville Horror. I've now read all three, and while I still prefer Anson's dark and twisted narrative, Marasco's work is much grimmer and intelligent, dwelling on a biblical emphasis of sacrifice and loyalty. There's a deep social subtext to Marasco's storytelling – the price of happiness, humanity's lust for material things, the financial burdens of average Americans, the limits of sacrifice, and the strains of the family dynamic in modern culture. 

The family's descent into despair is a heart-wrenching spectacle for readers, especially considering these characters are so easily likable in the book's opening chapters. The mystery involving the west wing was captivating, leading me to question whether some of the events happening were real or just a malevolent facade. Mrs. Allardyce's identity was like a dangling carrot, suspended for readers to finally uncover in the book's closing pages. The house, a character unto itself, was remarkably detailed to enhance the transformation from ruin to prosperity. 

Stephen King, as he acknowledged, probably owes a great deal to Marasco for the success of his 1977 novel The Shining, published just four years after Burnt Offerings. Like Marasco's plot, King replaces the Rolfes with the Torrance family, equally introduced as a strained married couple raising their young son. King transfers the location of a 30-room mansion in upstate New York to the empty Overlook Hotel in Colorado. Ben Rolfe is struggling with a text, like Jack Torrance's frustrated efforts to finish writing a manuscript. Marasco utilizes a deep swimming pool as an eventful place where young David faces death. King uses the mysterious hotel room 217 to captivate Danny Torrance (and a bathtub to be technical). Alternatively, Marian's fascination with the door to Mrs. Allardyce's room is similar to Danny often approaching 217's door. In other words, I hope King cut Marasco a check. 

Burnt Offerings is an abstract horror novel, working on a psychological level that is crafted with expertise. As an entry in the overpopulated “haunted dwelling” sub-genre, it is easily in the upper echelon of mandatory reads along with the aforementioned The Amityville Horror, The House Next Door and pioneering efforts like Richard Matheson's Hell House, Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House, and Henry James' The Turn of the Screw. Unfortunately, Marasco didn't pursue another horror novel that I'm aware of. To quote John Carpenter, “I guess everyone's entitled to one good scare.” 

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