Comments on: After Midnight

By: Chelsea Miller

Chelsea Miller — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 00:49:20 +0000

I actually liked this book very much. Although I disliked ‘One Rainy Night’ and some others, this and ‘Island’ struck me as incredible if only because he is able to make the main character do such horrible, horrible things, and still feel human. If you’ve written something on ‘Island’, I’d love to read it.

Indeed, the character seems immature, and paranoid, but that makes her very real to me. The fact that she has a deeper, darker background which is never openly discussed with the reader makes her interesting. I think there was too much that went off topic (and a lot of sexsexsex), but I didn’t mind a hell of a lot. I guess it was a hook for the guys.

Alice was very human to me, and because she suffers from the usual female problems (about her body, how she doesn’t really like a person, etc.) as well as the less-common issues, I found it easy to identify with her (which makes it all the more shocking considering what she’s done).

By: Rod Lott

Rod Lott — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 02:00:46 +0000

The stomach comment refers only to the narrator’s voice, not Laymon’s hard-R style, with which I have no problem.

By: Keri Boyd

Keri Boyd — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 01:57:24 +0000

After Midnight was an incredible book. Just because some people don’t have the stomach for it does not make it a lazy effort. I found it amazing how well the author submerged himself into the character. I loved it. What an imagination that guy has.

By: Flesh | Bookgasm

Flesh | Bookgasm — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 11:22:43 +0000

[...] BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THIS AUTHOR: • AFTER MIDNIGHT by Richard Laymon • THE BEAST HOUSE by Richard Laymon • BEWARE by Richard Laymon • THE CELLAR [...]

By: Bookgasm: Reading Material to Get Excited About » Blog Archive » Savage

Fri, 02 Nov 2007 12:20:00 +0000

[...] BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THIS AUTHOR: • AFTER MIDNIGHT by Richard Laymon • THE BEAST HOUSE by Richard Laymon • THE CELLAR by Richard Laymon • COME [...]

By: The Beast House » Bookgasm

The Beast House » Bookgasm — Wed, 14 Mar 2007 12:01:54 +0000

[...] OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THIS AUTHOR: • AFTER MIDNIGHT by Richard Laymon • THE CELLAR by Richard Laymon • COME OUT TONIGHT by Richard Laymon • ISLAND by Richard Laymon • THE LAKE by Richard Laymon [...]

By: The Cellar » Bookgasm

The Cellar » Bookgasm — Mon, 30 Oct 2006 13:22:43 +0000

[...] OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THIS AUTHOR: • AFTER MIDNIGHT by Richard Laymon • COME OUT TONIGHT by Richard Laymon • ISLAND by Richard Laymon • THE LAKE by Richard Laymon [...]

By: Michael Padgett

Michael Padgett — Thu, 20 Jul 2006 14:15:53 +0000

I don’t want to argue that “After Midnight” is one of Laymon’s better efforts, but your comments make it appear that the book is just a first draft left unfinished when Laymon died. Not so. After the collapse of the US horror market in the early ’80s, Laymon continued writing and publishing, and was particularly popular in England and Australia. “After Midnight” was originally published in 1997, as a cursory glance at the copyright page should have told you. The recent Leisure edition was merely the first American publication, which is the case with most of the Laymon novels Leisure has published. Leisure has already started reprinting some of Laymon’s earlier stuff that was originally published here but is long out of print. Once you’ve read such 70s classics as “Flesh”, I think your opinion of Laymon will rise.

By: Rod Lott

Rod Lott — Fri, 24 Mar 2006 14:58:02 +0000

Most of Leisure’s recent horror titles have ranged from terrible to disappointing. I’d single out SURVIVOR as the exception, despite its in-need-of-editing flaws.

However, I’m not giving up hope for a few of their forthcoming titles: Douglas Clegg’s THE ATTRACTION, W.D. Gagliani’s WOLF’S TRAP, Brian Keene’s THE CONQUEROR WORMS and their uncensored reprint of Jack Ketchum’s OFF SEASON, which I’ve never read.

By: Jason Light

Jason Light — Fri, 24 Mar 2006 14:50:43 +0000

That’s too bad. I also had a good run with Laymon but the last couple have let me down. I’m not sure if he meant for the drafts he left behind to be published as-is.

I’m hoping Leisure will bring out SAVAGE and THE STAKE domestically, and stop churning out these poorly edited first drafts. And speaking of Leisure, I’m a little put off with their whole line of horror fiction right now. Everything from them seems diluted and rushed lately.