What Readers Are Saying
Novel Reviews:
“KC Grifant comes out guns blazing with MELINDA WEST: MONSTER GUNSLINGER –a devious action-packed adventure set in a very weird version of the Old West. Fast, furious, and a hell of a lot of fun!“
-Jonathan Maberry, NY Times bestselling author of SON OF THE POISON ROSE and RELENTLESS
“This fun, imaginative, and confident series opener will be a massive crowd pleaser for general audiences, especially for those who enjoy a wide range of popular weird western offerings.”
–Library Journal (full review)
“Melinda West is the hero I’ve been waiting for as long as I can remember. The world and characters are vivid and magical. This story is a delight.“
–Kate Jonez, Bram Stoker and Shirley Jackson Award-nominated author
“Grifant writes with a deft hand, giving us compulsive prose and an easy feeling for her storytelling. I found I was utterly shocked at how much book I was devouring and how quickly…Grifant is a powerfully imaginative author who paints cinematic pictures easily with her descriptions and will make you feel the dust and smell the gunpowder time and time again.“
-Steve Stred, Splatterpunk-Nominated author of SACRAMENT, MASTODON and CHURN THE SOIL (full review)
“I’ve been absolutely riveted to the story KC weaved, and adored everything about it. Imagine Supernatural’s hunting … combined with the most badass female lead you can imagine, amazing supporting characters, nail-biting suspense, great action, and the grunge and grit you expect in a Western.”
–Tasha Reynolds, horror reviewer and host of The Ghoulish Gallery podcast (full review)
“KC Grifant’s horror western hits the road at top speed and never takes its foot off the accelerator, making the book a perfect fit for readers who like their horror weird and their action plentiful.Grifant’s heroine is a delicious amalgamation of Ash Williams in wise-cracking bravado and Ellen Ripley in triumphant fearlessness…I found myself putting off going to sleep each night just so I could continue on to the next chapter.”
–Ginger Nuts of Horror (full review)
Short Story Reviews:
[This] is an intelligent horror story that reads like a parable for mental illness and homelessness…This story will leave you with a cloying sense of fragility that is hard to shake. Truly a great short story.
–Signal Horizons review (excerpt) on “What the Storm Brings”
A haunting tale of a woman losing herself, filled with beautiful imagery this is juxtaposed with the terror of what is happening. A real blast back into the book for me.
–Amazon review on “Better Halves”
KC Grifant’s “The Color of Friendship” gives us major CREEPSHOW vibes, the kind of story that ought to be introduced by the Cryptkeeper, and we mean that as high praise. There have been a few otherworldly critters to show up in previous entries, but Grifant’s gnarly ode to fractured friendship is the first story to feel as though it could’ve been ripped out of the pages of an old EC horror comic.
–Rooster Republic Press
…Four friends escape on a scenic getaway to a lakeside cabin, but simmering about the gray-green water are unresolved grudges and petty jealousies, the stench of which quickly becomes “rotten…bordering on putrid.” Grifant makes hearty use of the verdant setting as her protagonist discovers a strange and ravenous creature…In the isolation felt within a pack of mean girls grown up, there is a monster lurking just under the surface, both literally and metaphorically.
–Ginger Nuts of Horror on “The Color of Friendship” in Chromophobia
KC Grifant’s “The Color of Friendship” conjures impressive atmosphere as a woman continually looks for whatever is swimming in a nearby lake during her friends’ weekend getaway.
–Kirkus Review
“Maternal Bond” by KC Grifant, in which a new mom battles lack of sleep and postpartum depression really got under my skin as I recalled my own earliest days of coping with a baby who cried nonstop.
-Well Worth a Read on “Maternal Bond” in Shadowy Natures
In the engrossing “ Unrest” by KC Grifant, the career and the life of a serial killer are abruptly stopped by a paranormal intervention.
–The British Fantasy Society on “Unrest” in Dancing in the Shadows
K.C.’s tale could have been the basis for an episode of Rod Serling’s classic, “Twilight Zone.”
–Lovecraft eZine reader on “What the Storm Brings”
This story has a real bite to it…As Stephen King said, the artistic value of the work of horror lies in “its ability to form a liaison between our fantasy fears and our real fears,” and by that measure, you have succeeded very well.
–Lovecraft eZine reader on “What the Storm Brings”
“Maternal Bond’ by KC Grifant gets into the uncomfortable skin of post-pregnancy, and that’s only the beginning of the discomfort that this story brings. Grifant brilliantly channels the sleeplessness and disorientation of new motherhood, then moves in and shocks us awake.
–Goodreads reviewer on “Maternal Bond” in Shadowy Natures
KC Grifant 