Gauntlet Press (with and w/out Borderlands partnership)...

[sholloman81]

After months of consideration, I ended up canceling my preorder of THE PINES last week. I kept hoping that uninspired digital clip art they are using for the cover on their website was a placeholder, but now it appears all but certain it is the true cover. Given that I have a nice signed tpb with better art than that and it bears no typos or odd formatting issues, I've decided to call that tpb Good Enough. Really unfortunate and disappointing...the PINES trilogy was one of those volume(s) that I hoped for so long and so fervently that a small press publisher would do it justice and I'd be pleased and proud to have a beautiful deluxe edition(s) on my shelf...but what I'm seeing on the Gauntlet site isn't what I was envisioning, not even close.

Yeah, I have The Pines on pre-order as well, and, if I am being honest, I've got to admit that the cover art really sucks. The only thing that is stopping me from canceling the order as you did is that I have never read The Pines/this author, nor do I have any version of the book already. I'm really hoping that they will change the cover art at the last minute.

[mhatchett]

At the $50.00 price point, I will hang in there with my fingers crossed....

[Ben Staad]

That is not an appealing cover. I don't have any skin in this but surely they have something better for the actual cover.

[RonClinton]

That is not an appealing cover. I don't have any skin in this but surely they have something better for the actual cover.

The Gauntlet newsletter of just a few days ago said this:

Layout is almost complete on Blake Crouch’s PINES. This is a collaboration with Borderlands Press and they are laying out this title. Once it is approved by Blake it will go to the printer so if you haven’t ordered your copy you should do so now.

...so my takeaway from that is that the cover is indeed the one still show on the site, the one I assumed was a placeholder but is, it seems, the true cover. Layout by Borderlands is essentially complete, and if you've seen the covers Borderlands has used on their jacketed hardcovers over the last few years (including the recent BORDERLANDS 7 and the forthcoming Peter Straub collections), this uninspired digital clip art used for THE PINES fits right in. I was hoping for a change of cover as well, but that announcement and what it clearly indicates to me was the final straw that prompted my cancellation of the order.

[Splync]

The Gauntlet newsletter of just a few days ago said this:

Layout is almost complete on Blake Crouch’s PINES. This is a collaboration with Borderlands Press and they are laying out this title. Once it is approved by Blake it will go to the printer so if you haven’t ordered your copy you should do so now.

...so my takeaway from that is that the cover is indeed the one still show on the site, the one I assumed was a placeholder but is, it seems, the true cover. Layout by Borderlands is essentially complete, and if you've seen the covers Borderlands has used on their jacketed hardcovers over the last few years (including the recent BORDERLANDS 7 and the forthcoming Peter Straub collections), this uninspired digital clip art used for THE PINES fits right in. I was hoping for a change of cover as well, but that announcement and what it clearly indicates to me was the final straw that prompted my cancellation of the order.

Yeah, it's not a very appealing cover. I suppose it's marginally better than the current cover for Draculas, but that's not a very high bar to surpass.

I have a copy on order, so we'll see how it looks when I have it in hand.

[TacomaDiver]

Just received my copy of Ravenous by Ray Garton. It turned out really great. I love the cover art. I also am really happy with the new introduction by Garton and the new afterword by Chizmar. Can't wait to dig into this book. I did not know that this story existed until the Gauntlet announcement. FYI- I did not receive any kind of shipping notice for this one; so, if you ordered a copy, you may want to keep an eye out for it.

i actually just ordered this. It sounds interesting and $60 isn't a huge risk.

[RonClinton]

i actually just ordered this. It sounds interesting and $60 isn't a huge risk.

For what it’s worth, after collecting, reading, and enjoying Garton’s work for over two decades, it was the duo of RAVENOUS and its sequel, BESTIAL, in their original paperback form that turned me off from doing so any further. I’m sure at some point I’ll come back to the fold, but those two just didn’t click for me at all, for reasons I frankly no longer recall.

But I’ll stop there…between this and the new King I criticized in the last couple of days, I’m starting to feel like the neighborhood curmudgeon.

EDIT: Oh, but did I mention that after 20 years or whatever it’s been, after starting with volume 1 in the first series, so all matching numbers for all three sets…I officially pulled the plug on the LITTLE BOOKS OF… series from Borderlands. I’d get into my reasons, but we all know why…’sides, no need to lay down more curmudgeoness…

[Martin]

For what it’s worth, after collecting, reading, and enjoying Garton’s work for over two decades, it was the duo of RAVENOUS and its sequel, BESTIAL, in their original paperback form that turned me off from doing so any further. I’m sure at some point I’ll come back to the fold, but those two just didn’t click for me at all, for reasons I frankly no longer recall.

But I’ll stop there…between this and the new King I criticized in the last couple of days, I’m starting to feel like the neighborhood curmudgeon.

I will change the subject for you. Just think about 'The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell'?

[RonClinton]

I will change the subject for you. Just think about 'The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell'?

Ah yes, and my curmudgeonosity lifts like an ethereal veil, and the sun shines down again with the beatific joy that is A Book Well Done.

[Martin]

Ah yes, and my curmudgeonosity lifts like an ethereal veil, and the sun shines down again with the beatific joy that is A Book Well Done.

I have been thinking about that story lately. Which means that a re-read will be coming soon!

[TacomaDiver]

For what it’s worth, after collecting, reading, and enjoying Garton’s work for over two decades, it was the duo of RAVENOUS and its sequel, BESTIAL, in their original paperback form that turned me off from doing so any further. I’m sure at some point I’ll come back to the fold, but those two just didn’t click for me at all, for reasons I frankly no longer recall.

I don't believe that I've read anything by Garton (I could be wrong) but Ravenous sounded interesting and had some decent reviews. I think the only werewolf stories that I've read are Cycle of the Werewolf and the two Michael Gallatin books from McCammon.

[slayn666]

For what it’s worth, after collecting, reading, and enjoying Garton’s work for over two decades, it was the duo of RAVENOUS and its sequel, BESTIAL, in their original paperback form that turned me off from doing so any further. I’m sure at some point I’ll come back to the fold, but those two just didn’t click for me at all, for reasons I frankly no longer recall.

Too bad you can't remember, I'd like to know what didn't work. I mean, I can certainly understand something on one of Garton's works turning off someone unfamiliar with him, but a long-time reader would know generally what to expect.

[mhatchett]

I'm enjoying Live Girls and I picked up the sequel and I did pick up a copy of Ravenous,haven't read it yet.

[RonClinton]

Too bad you can't remember, I'd like to know what didn't work. I mean, I can certainly understand something on one of Garton's works turning off someone unfamiliar with him, but a long-time reader would know generally what to expect.

It's been thirteen years (2008 pub.) since I read RAVENOUS, so I just don't recall with any detail. I could guess based on the very vague memories I have of it, but it would be unfair to the book and quite possibly inaccurate.

Garton hasn't had too much published post 2010 -- I think there was FRANKENSTORM, TRAILER PARK NOIR, and MEDS, perhaps (or not?) a couple others that aren't leaping to mind -- so I suppose my lack of buying/collecting his stuff was a mix of my diminishing interest and his lack of new work. That said, I *did* pick up TRAILER PARK NOIR -- how could I not with a title like that? -- and enjoyed it, so my decision to skip his work isn't steadfast...if he comes up with something out of that RAVENOUS world and it sounds interesting, I'll give a shot. Hell, I have almost an entire shelf of his work -- probably more than two dozen different titles -- so he's built up a lot of goodwill with me over the twenty/twenty-plus years I read him, but ultimately I guess it doesn't take much to really shake my confidence in an author -- I've had it happen with Koontz, King, and a number of other once-loved authors that I now either don't read or with whom I'm very selective -- and, for me, RAVENOUS and BESTIAL were those books.

[Splync]

Okay, so someone posted pictures on Facebook of the lettered edition of The Outer Limits that Gauntlet published and I have to say that I was blown away by David McCallum's signature. Seriously... Look at this!

I don't get wowed by signatures too often, but the calligraphy on this is just astounding!