HIDDEN WORLD
HIDDEN WORLD . William Schoell. Raven Tale; 2025. I first became aware of William Schoell through his books on comics -- and one he did on 20th century opera -- but I also knew he wrote several horror novels back in the days of the horror boom. He also wrote a more recent novel entitled Monster World in which scientists use a time machine to bring dinosaurs to the 21st century, and it was excellent. Hidden World is a short, fast-paced novel in which a group of people, led by a determined and desperate woman, descend into a huge cavern under a Greek island to find an ancient city and in particular a certain mystical artifact. Schoell peoples the book with a host of interesting characters, some of whom meet dire fates, not unexpected when you consider the creatures -- huge lizards, rapacious rats, and even giant cannibals -- that he throws at them at regular intervals. You might be surprised at who survives and who doesn't. Written with Schoell's customary verve an...