Criminal Macabre: The Complete Cal McDonald Stories

Review by J. Travis Grundon

For the first time ever in one volume Dark Horse Books has collected Steve Niles' entire Cal McDonald series in Criminal Macabre. This collection includes, the out of print Savage Membrane, Guns-Drugs and Monsters and Dial M for Monster all for the modest price of $12.95. In Addition to these three books, Criminal Macabre includes “All My Bloody Things”, originally only found in the first Dark Delicacies anthology.

While Niles is most recognized for his ground breaking 30 Days of Night, his Cal McDonald stuff is not to be overlooked. Die hard Niles fans can see that he puts a lot of himself into this character including his smart-ass sense of humor. McDonald is a throwback to the noir days with a modern supernatural twist. As a P.I., Cal Macdonald is a force to reckon with in the tradition of Raymond Chandler's Philip Marlowe and Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer if they were tossed into the world of magic, madmen, and monsters.

Together a pill popping McDonald and his ghoulish parter Mo'locke go head to head with everything from alien zombies to backwards redneck cannibals in a book that is nearly impossible to put down. With its ability to keep you guessing and sharp wit, Criminal Macabre will entertain you in ways you won't even expect. Over all this book is an amazing read from cover to cover.

For more information on Cal McDonald or Steve Niles, you can find them both on MySpace at http://www.myspace.com/criminalmacabre or http://www.myspace.com/steveniles. You can also find out more by visiting steveniles.com. So, what are you are you waiting for? Believe me you don't Cal to have to ask you the second time!