Thorns Gregory Bastianelli 9781787589971

Dr. Monica Cucinotta works on the front lines of a hospital in Cassino, Italy, dealing with a deadly contagion that causes thorns to erupt along the surface of the body. When Monica becomes infected with the virus and must leave the hospital, she begins a journey across the dark landscape of a pandemic world where she meets the best and worst of humanity that tests her belief in science and faith as she struggles to return home to her loved ones.

Gregory Bastianelli is the author of the novels, Shadow Flicker, Snowball, Loonies, and Jokers Club. His novella The Lair of the Mole People appeared in the pulp anthology Men & Women of Mystery Vol. II.

Publisher's Weekly described his Shadow Flicker as a "dark disturbing treat." Booklist stated: "This is a gripping horror story from an author who deserves a wider audience."

Publisher's Weekly said of Snowball, that "Readers will be riveted by this genuinely scary holiday phantasmagoria." Rue Morgue Magazine said: "If you want Halloween-infused Christmas terror tale ... Bastianelli has got you covered ... with several feet of blood soaked snow." Horrornews.net has referred to Bastianelli as the "messiah of macabre."

He graduated from the University of New Hampshire where he studied writing under instructors Mark Smith, Thomas Williams and Theodore Weesner. He worked for nearly two decades at a small daily newspaper where the highlights of his career were interviewing shock rocker Alice Cooper and B-movie icon Bruce Campbell.

He became enchanted with the stories of Ray Bradbury as a young child, and his love of horror grew with the likes of Richard Matheson, Robert Bloch, Stephen King and Ramsey Campbell.

He lives in Dover, NH. He enjoys traveling, especially to Italy where he has visited his ancestral home and hiked the Path of the Gods on the Amalfi Coast and to the top of Mt. Vesuvius.

He is a member of the Horror Writers Association and the New England Horror Writers.

A creepy novel which doesn't rely on gratuitous blood and gore but rather world building to tell. And it's very effective.

Praise for SHADOW FLICKER:

"This is a gripping horror story from an author who deserves a wider audience." - Booklist

"It's a dark, disturbing treat." Publishers Weekly

"An original, well written horror story, which is sure to scare you or creep you out at the very least! Very well written, with characters written in perfection for this twisted tale! Unique, fun, and chilling to the bone at times! Highly, highly recommend!" - Johnna Whetstone

"This book grabbed me from the start! It had a creepy atmosphere that fit the storyline very well. Must read!" - Naomi Downing

"Shadow Flicker is an intriguing, character driven story with one foot in Eco Horror and the other in Sci-Fi. I loved the descriptions of the island and getting to know it's residents. It is a story of love and desperation and well as greed and fear. The horror creeps up slowly until suddenly it comes crashing in like high tide nearer the end." - Irene Cole

"I read this book almost in one sitting (darn having to go to work) and was captivated right from the first sentence ... This is my first book I've read by the author, but it will definitely not be my last." - Michelle Donaldson

"A book that's a blend of genres, horror, mystery, sci-fi and supernatural it was a book I enjoyed to the fullest... This really is a book with a fresh and unique plot. Gregory Bastianelli has done some fantastic world building to make the reader feel like they are transported to Kidney Island with the strange things that are going on." - SharonBeyondTheBooks