Melon Head Mayhem (Killer V/H/S #1), by Alex Ebenstein
The Book
Synopsis:
Have you ever wanted to live inside your favorite horror film? Prove you have what it takes to fight Freddy? Destroy Jason? Mangle Michael?
Cousins Carson and Sophia are in town for their grandma’s funeral and are, unknowingly, about to live out the nightmare that is every horror fan’s dream.After they find an old unfamiliar VHS tape tucked away in grandma’s house, they figure the worst that can happen is a few cringeworthy moments and 90 minutes wasted. Instead, the video summons the movie monsters—local urban legends called melon heads—into their very real lives!T
he destruction caused by the blood thirsty melon heads has Carson and Sophia fighting to survive and sets them on a deadly path to the shores of Lake Michigan, home of the devilish beasts. They vow to destroy every last one of the melon heads and make sure these monsters never get a sequel.
Will they survive? Would you fare better?
It’s a creature feature. It’s a throwback. It’s… MELON HEAD MAYHEM!
My Review
Melon Head Mayhem is the first novella in the Killer V/H/S series, written by Alex Ebenstein and published by Shortwave Media. In this standalone, we have a fun homage to 80s serie B movies with touches of slasher, following two horror movies junkies cousins that stumble upon an unknown urban legend.
Cousins Carson and Sophia are in their hometown for their grandmother's funeral; what they can't imagine is that watching an unknown VHS found in their grandma's house will unleash a nightmare for them, as it will bring to life the urban legend featured in there, the tiny assassin monsters calling melon heads that will persecute them to kill them.
With a fast pacing, we are drawn towards the situations where the cousins will be forced to fight together if they want to survive this menace and find the home of the creatures near to the Lake Michigan. Ebenstein puts the focus on the bond that existed between the two cousins, taking advantage of that nostalgia associated with somebody you've known for a long time; all while creating hilarious situations that remembers us to that low budget horror films, never shy of the gore to compensate for the lack of resources.
While I feel this novella could have benefitted from a few more pages, I have to say that Ebenstein has pulled a banger, that has kept me glued to the pages until the end. An excellent first instalment for this Killer V/H/S series.
The Author/s
Alex Ebenstein
Alex Ebenstein is a lifelong Michigander, where he lives with his wife, son, and dog. His daytime mapmaking career supports his nighttime addiction of writing horror and other speculative fiction. His debut horror novella, Curse Corvus, was released in April 2023, and his follow-up novella, Melon Head Mayhem, was released by Shortwave Publishing in July 2023. He is also the editor of the SPLIT SCREAM series, published by Tenebrous Press.