Nancy Collins & Ed Kramer - Forbidden Acts

[dem]

Nancy A. Collins & Edward E. Kramer (eds.) - Forbidden Acts (Avon October, 1995)

Introduction - Joe Bob Briggs

Alan Moore - Light Of Thy Countenance
Brian Herbert & Marie Landis - The Contract
Steve Rasnic Tem - Blood Knot
Rob Hardin - Interrogator Frames
Brooks Caruthers - The Real World
Lucy Taylor - Choke Hold
Philip Nutman - Blackpool Rock
Edward E. Kramer - Forgotten Promises
Douglas Clegg - Coming Of Age
Mike Lee - High Heels From Hell
Howard Kaylan - The Energy Pals
Don Webb - The Agony Man
Rex Miller - Brainchild
Nancy A. Collins - Furies In Black Leather
John Shirley - You Hear What Buddy And Ray Did?
Melissa Mia Hall & Douglas E. Winter - Playing Dolls
Christopher Golden - Facets Of Solitaire
Karl Edward Wagner - The Picture Of Jonathan Collins
Danielle Willis - Happy Couple
Kathe Koja & Barry N. Malzberg - Mysterious Elisions, Riotous Thrusts
David Aaron Clark - Stations Of The Cross

Taste the forbidden fruit ...

... as Mike Lee's harmless fetish turns as razor-sharp and deadly as a stiletto in HIGH HEELS FROM HELL.

... as Nancy A. Collins teaches the world's greatest sinner the true meaning of pain in FURIES IN BLACK LEATHER.

... as Philip Nutman introduces an Elvis impersonator to the King's biggest fan for a chilling demonstration of the high cost of fame in BLACKPOOL ROCK.

... as Brooks Caruthers celebrates the dead in THE REAL WORLD - where corpses party hardy, and the TV is always on. hiding away the world has moved on as he learns the next time he steps before a 'live' audience.

You probably sussed from the titles that for the most part this is an 'erotic horror' collection with a bias toward S & M. Can't remember much about it other than that Karl E. Wagner is on top form with a variation on The Picture Of Dorian Gray. Howard Kaylan's The Energy Pals is something of an anomaly in that its light on sex scenes and multiple expletives: some children disappear into the TV while watching a Ninja Turtles/ Power Rangers type show. Kaylan was/ is (?) a vocalist with the Turtles and he also sang with Zappa and the Mothers Of Invention. Another person you might not expect to find in here is Alan From Hell Moore.

includes:

Philip Nutman - Blackpool Rock: Darren Franks, Elvis impersonator, is kidnapped by psycho George Robles on the eve of his gig at Blackpool's Lucky Strike. Robles 'daughter', Michelle, is a blind cripple who worships the King and Robles hasn't found it in him to tell her he died in '77. He's decided to euthanize her, but first she's going to be wined, dined and made love to be Elvis. Jamie, a reporter on the local press, has been sent to interview Franks and finds he has a psychic link with the missing entertainer. Can he reach him before Robles goes gaga?

Nancy A. Collins - Furies In Black Leather: Millionaire and one-time child molester O'Brien frequents an S & M dungeon run by a dominatrix trio known as the Sisters. Unable to endure pain, O'Brien has the girls work over a surrogate while he merrily jerks off in a corner. But, unknown to him, Alexis, Meg and Cissy were all victims of his ugly crimes and concoct an elaborate and terrible revenge.

Edward E. Kramer - Forgotten Promises: Mrs. Ginny 'Two-whacks' Matthews is the most feared teacher in the school and when she catches Tina in the boys changing room giving Robbie head after a football match, she brutally punishes her. A decade (and the best part of a sex-change) later, the person now known as Chris looks up his retired tutor with vengeance in mind.

Douglas Clegg - Coming Of Age: A nasty one.The Bonchance family are despised locally as white trash but when fifteen year old Ricky tells a dozen local youths that his sister wants to lay them all one at a time his popularity soars. Each of the thirteen year old's lose their virginity that afternoon save the narrator, Scooter, who realises that the supposed nymphomaniac is a boy in a dress - Ricky's cousin, Kirby. Scooter's best friend, Joey Draco, is instrumental in beating the kid to death and disposing of the body (but only after he's molested it for a couple of months). Draco grows up to become the Dragon of Deer Hill, torture-murderer of several young kids. All these years later, Scooter pays him a visit in the Mental Hospital.

[dem]

Introducing Forbidden Acts, Joe Bob Briggs, author of Profoundly Erotic: Sexy Movies that Changed History, enthuses; "Most of these stories I did not enjoy." Am with him on that, the difference being, I didn't find so many of them particularly interesting, either.

Don Webb - The Agony Man: The art of torture. Freelance reporter Dave Meacham visits New Orleans' Iguana Lounge as research for an article on the 'vampire'-fetish scene. Amidst the usual depressing bunch of poseurs, one improbably sweet young woman stands out as ... different. Susan Folger, masochist, has set her sights on modelling for Art Putnam, the controversial sculptor of intensely horrible, stainless steel statues, every one a study in human agony. Meacham learns via a fortune teller that Putnam reverses the usual voodoo process to create his monstrosities, scarring the person to scar the bronze. For every mutilation Art inflicts on Susan, the corresponding wound appears on his work in progress.

Mike Lee - High Heels From Hell: Teenage kicks on the Texan (I think!) punk scene. Irene loves to be hog-tied, he has a fetish for girls in stiletto heels. Imagine the ecstasy when she loans the gore-splattered pair Miriam wore to kick a drunk gal to death in a car park. Pop culture references include The Sex Pistols' I Wanna Be Me, The Skids Into The Valley, The Jam on the cover of Creem magazine, the death of Sid, and bad 1977 throwback bands as exemplified by the Retractors. " I have always been nauseated by their music, a sort of double-gaited fey Wire rip-off with a primma-donna lead singer whom all the girls love."

Melissa Mia Hall & Douglas E. Winter - Playing Dolls: Voodoo of an entirely accidental kind. Fifteen year old Laurie, set on losing her virginity to annoy too-perfect parents, rehearses the big night ahead using Barbie and Ken dolls as surrogates for herself and Chad. Somehow Laurie puts too much of herself into their brutal performance, and when she gets Chad on the bed, her every muscle locks. Laurie is transformed into a living Barbie girl, in a Barbie world, etc.

[dem]

This was far my favourite from Forbidden Acts on first acquaintance, and a decade plus on that remains the case.

Karl E. Wagner- The Portrait of Jonathan Collins: "Right, then. Are you telling me that you are over a century of age, and that you were photographed being buggered by Oscar Wilde in drag?" That indeed seems to be the case, and it started when Jonathan Collins, avid collector of fin de siècle, acquires a late Victorian photograph of Wilde screwing a young man in maid's attire. The young man is the image of Collins down to the blemish over his left cheekbone. Collins, convinced that he was the life model for Dorian Gray, which can only mean - the portrait! What became of it? He must locate and protect it at all costs!

Victoria Starlight, BOGUS MEDIUM, advises that he invest in some of her crystals and channel his thoughts back to the last century, seek clues to its current whereabouts. To focus his mind, Collins visits Madame Gwen, transvestite dominatrix, to re-enact his passionate encounter with Wilde. Meanwhile, further photo's from the same set pass into the hands of a fellow aficionado of vintage erotica. Collins relieves him of these items at an inflated price, unaware that the collector has also acquired the original plates, one of which depicts a hideously bloated devil creature ....

[helrunar]

This one sounds like a regular riot, Kev. Many thanks for the amusing annotations! Your wit often brings a smile to my weary, wizened features.

cheers, Steve

[dem]

Jun 28, 2018 12:15:42 GMT helrunar said:

This one sounds like a regular riot, Kev. Many thanks for the amusing annotations! Your wit often brings a smile to my weary, wizened features.

cheers, Steve

The wit is all KEW's, Steve. His is easily the most entertaining story in a poker-faced collection. I so much prefer the Dark Love anthology. Howard Kaylan's The Energy Pals is funny too, though not sure it's especially erotic/ horrific.

Steve Rasnic Tem - Blood Knot: Protagonist - who seems to have strayed in from a Nick Cave song - can't bear it that his three beautiful daughters are growing up. The house reeks of menstrual blood, "my baby Ann" is acting like a slut (i.e., dating), and wife MK II thinks this is all perfectly normal! Why did he ever marry again? He will just have to follow his father's example and do what any man would do in the same situation - kill everyone.