Joey Madia, New Mystics Reviews

 (Waterside Productions, 2024). ISBN: 978-1-234567-89-0 Ask anyone from Atlanta about Wayne Williams and the “Atlanta child murders” that claimed 28 lives (children, adolescents, and adults; July 1979 to May 1981) and you’re certain to receive strong responses of fear and uncertainty comparable to those from New Yorkers when asked about the yearlong Son(s) of Sam killings in New York City (July 1976 to July 1977). On the opposite coast, the Night Stalker/Richard Ramirez murders in Los Angeles and San Francisco (April 1984 to August 1985) evoke a similar response. In the latter two cases, it is clear that law enforcement apprehended the “right man” (although Maury Terry’s The Ultimate Evil makes a semi-compelling case that David Berkowitz was one of several Sons of Sam). The same is not the case regarding Wayne Williams. When it comes to the “Atlanta child murders,” there seems to be much we do not know. Enter Mike Cobb, a writer of historical fiction that I have publicly compa...

(Old World Heroism, 2022). ISBN: 978-82-692791-1-5 As a longtime writer of historical fiction, I deeply appreciate the time and effort—the passion and commitment—that authors in this popular genre expend. After all, many authors claiming to be writing in this genre simply make things up, shooting from the hip of history, inserting well-known names and tropes like the Nazis and Templars, and promoting their slipshod stories as authentic historical fiction. The fact is, in order to make such a claim, you have to be willing to stand shoulder to shoulder with the likes of Bernard Cornwell (arguably the best historical fiction writer of the late BC/early AD periods), Caleb Carr, Michael Shaara, George MacDonald Fraser, and John Jakes. It’s nearly as daunting as claiming a spot in the realms of high fantasy, where JRR Tolkien (whom Ryder quotes in the Afterword) and George RR Martin are the scales on which we are (brutally, ruthlessly ) measured and weighed. JTT Ryder (his name itself is...