May 23 2013: Nina Allan: http://www.ninaallan.co.uk/?p=992
Mar 16 2012: Rhys Hughes:HERE: “Thanks for this, Des! You are the undisputed hero of reviewing, that’s for sure!” {17 Mar 12: Rhys wrote on my Facebook: “I’m really enjoying each instalment of this review, Des. Your real time reviews are a bit like pass the parcel — but with a gift on each unwrapping…”}
Mar 15 2012: Ellen Datlow: HERE: “I’ve enjoyed seeing the book through your eyes– “
Feb 29 2012: Simon Strantzas HERE: “The term “real-time review” if not the concept itself has been enjoying a healthy life on the internet, and it all traces back to the incomparable Des “D. F.” Lewis. Both my previous collections were reviewed by Des in this way on his blog, and NIGHTINGALE SONGS continues this tradition with a dazzlingly trippy review. Des attempts to find gestalts and underlying themes of collections as he reads them, which often makes for an intriguing read.”
Feb 25 2012: Glen Hirshberg on his Facebook: “Des Lewis has just published a lovely, thoughtful, and insightful “real-time” review of AMERICAN MORONS. “
Dec 2011: Jeff VanderMeer: HERE
Dec 2011: Nick Jackson: HERE: “I have appreciated your reading of my stories, Des. It’s a kind of psychoanalysis of the book and, strangely, of me. I feel as though I’ve been well and truly hung, drawn and quartered!”
Dec 2011: Michael Cisco: HERE: “D.F. Lewis’ very thoughtful real-time review of The Great Lover can be found here.”
Oct 2011: Simon Kurt Unsworth: HERE: “I love Des’ reviews, partly because he likes my stuff but mostly because I tend to understand one word in three, and he finds things in my work that I never knew was there!!”
Aug 20 2011: Simon McCaffery in comment HERE: “Thank you for the thoughtful review of my story, “Still Life” from Black Static #24. Your kind words are appreciated. Cheers, Simon”
Aug 6 2011: Be-Bitty-Ment
July 29 2011: Rhys Hughes: http://rhysaurus.blogspot.com/2011/07/old-tales-from-spain-real-time-review.html
July 27 2011: Douglas Thompson HERE: “Glad you liked the robot bees, Des. There is also a whole novel of them just finished, of which this story constitutes first 2 chapters, looking for publisher now. Thank you for your kind review.”
July 23 2011: Adam Golaski HERE on the ‘Master in Morphine Cafe’ review: “I do know what Lewis means, by the way, and from his review it’s obvious he’s insightful. Chekhov was very much in mind while I wrote.”
July 15 2011: Part of the author’s (George Berguño) public comment attached to the review of ‘The Exorcist’s Travelogue’: “Thank you for the wonderful review of my second collection of stories, The Exorcist’s Travelogue (and a very belated thanks, also, for the review of my first book, The Sons of Ishmael). I particularly liked the way you conveyed the impression each story was making on you as you read. By the way, you were right to suspect I have been influenced in my writing by the medieval Icelandic sagas (and Lovecraft, etc & etc).” —- Benjamin Uminsky says (16/7/11) : as public comment on same review: “Another great RTR Des, I have been following these for some time. This is my first post on your site. I have particularly enjoyed George’s stories since I first read Sad Eyes of the Lewis Chessmen on the Absent Willow Review website. I’m glad to know that there are others like myself who have enjoyed these tales.”
July 12 2011: Louis Marvick: in public comment HERE: Thank you for thinking well of The ‘Star’ Ushak. It was a pleasure to follow the record of your parcours. With best wishes,
March 16 2011 Adam S. Cantwell: HERE: <<Mr. Lewis is a noted author, original thinker, anthologist and synchronist who has posted many fascinating real-time reviews on his site, [...] And he’s a Webern enthusiast who claims “I need my ‘fix’ of Webern each day in order to exist.”>>
March 2011: Anthony Watson as a public comment to the ‘Dark Minds’ review (22 Mar 11): Thank you for an amazing, and thought-provoking review of our book. Death as seen through the eyes of the dying does seem to be a motif throughout and one that – I have to admit – came as a surprise. Sometimes you have to step outside to see the bigger picture I guess. Interestingly, the two stories set during wars (my own and Ben’s) have animals wandering through them briefly, dragging metaphors behind them…
August 24 2010 Joel Lane: HERE: Des, I’m waiting for you to write a real-time review of Philip K. Dick’s Counter-Clock World. Starting with the last chapter.
John Howard (on 12 Juy 2010): “I was pleased to see that you’re reviewing THE SILVER VOICES in this way. I’ve read many of the other reviews and have been impressed with the insights you bring out in your comments. I’m sure that the writers concerned have learned from your reviews, and I hope to do the same!” — as comment appended HERE
Matt Cardin (on 10 July 2010): “Thanks for this fine reading, Des. As always, it’s a joy to watch your sensibility interact with a book — mine or anybody else’s.” – as comment appended HERE
Mark Valentine to me about review of ‘The Nightfarers’, quoted here with permission: “The way you turn the pages of the book releases ideas and images that present the stories freshly even to me.”
(10 May 2010) Steve Duffy HERE re my review of his ‘Tragic Life Stories’: “A writer should never pass comment on his/her reviews, so I shan’t do that – but I do want to thank you very, very much for taking the time and trouble to communicate your impressions of the book in such a comprehensively entertaining and thoughtful way. Cheers, Des! It was an absolute honour.”
(18 Apr 2010) John Travis re my review of his ‘The Terror and the Tortoiseshell’: “A unique position for a writer to be in – reading a review of his own book to see what happens next!” (quoted with permission).
From the publisher of ‘The Terror and the Tortoiseshell’ HERE: “Des, this review is incredibly good and — as always — intelligent in its literary analysis. Your references to a plethora of outside material, which was un-knowingly echoed in the story by John, are astonishing by their inclusion.”
(23 Mar 2010): Gary McMahon: HERE: Legendary horror writer and editor Des Lewis has just concluded one of his infamous “real-time” reviews of Pieces of Midnight.
30 June 09: Allyson Bird HERE: “The title story is set in late June 2003 – ’4,000 dead in Spain and over 18,000 in Italy by the end of summer.’ It really is a strange coincidence that you are reading it today of all days. It is cooler up here on the moors though.
It’s an important experience for me – reading your real-time review. I’m very much alongside you as you write.” — 5 July 09: “That was quite a journey Des and it was a wonderful experience to take part in the small parallel observations too. I read the real-time review of that last story and shed a tear too.”
(21 Mar 2010): Rhys Hughes: HERE: “Another thing I’ve recently noticed is a reviewer in Portugal who is reviewing my book Una Nova História Universal da Infâmia story by story — in other words, he’s doing a Des Lewis style treatment of it. Des is the only other person I’m aware of who is doing these so-called “real time reviews” (Des may well have started his scheme before this other fellow) and it’s a worthwhile approach, in my view…”
HERE: Ramsey Campbell: “Awed by your thoughts, Des – I’ll say no more.”
HERE: Des, your reviews are almost as well-written as the book themselves. Well done, sir.
Allyson Bird HERE: “This is such a unique experience. It’s like having my own subconscious talking to me.”
Neil Williamson’s blog HERE. “Had an interesting experience this week of watching an “as live” review of The Ephemera taking shape as it was being read.”
Tim Nickels’ website: HERE: The full effects of this revelation have yet to manifest themselves… and yet the truth, little by little, is seeping out: a Major Excavation by an eminent Field Expert was conducted over several days in May 2009. His results may be found HERE… .
Jai Clare to me about review of ‘The Cusp of Something’, quoted with permission: “Your comments were very insightful and I particularly loved that you got the placing of the last story and all it contained and meant for the collection.”
Simon Bestwick HERE: “Des, just wanted to say a heartfelt thankyou for this ongoing review. Very grateful. And oddly touched.”
Joel Lane (in blog comment on actual review page): “Des, thank you for these thoughtful and heartening comments. I mean the stories to find some resonance in the concerns of readers as well as my own concerns – so, for example, the fact that some of these stories strike you as referring implicitly to the Internet may not reflect my intentions, but it shows that you’re relating the stories to what you think and feel about the world. Which is exactly what I would hope for. Cheers!”
Gary McMahon: HERE: The legendary Des Lewis has seen fit to assemble a stream-of-conscious review of my latest collection.
Matt Cardin’s blog here about the DFL review of his book: HERE. “So here’s a sincere thanks to Des for his perceptive and insightful reading of my work.”
A review of DFL’s review of Ligotti’s book below: HERE. “If you’re looking for a brief romp through weird literature and the banker Meltdown, or have wondered what one weirdmonger on the fringe thinks of another wordsmith of the high weird, then you have found your destination.”
HERE: “Des you make me want to buy books. My dream is to have you one day do one of these enlightening reviews about a collection of my stories. Brilliant stuff!”
Paul Meloy: HERE: “Des, this has been an absolute pleasure! Delightful, unique, touching…an honour. I predict these stream-of-consciousness reviews will become the essential thing to have and be in great demand! Thanks for taking the time to do this, Des!” and LATER publicly on the same thread: “I have to say I’m awestruck by the amount of hits this review is getting. It says so much about the respect Des has as a renaissance man of strange otherness. If I wore a hat, it would probably be a fez. And I would lift it to you, Des.”
Re Alsiso, from Alasdair Stuart HERE: A few years ago, I contributed a story to Andrew Hook’s ‘The Alsiso Project’ anthology. It was a gloriously odd idea, taking a spelling mistake and using it as the starting point for twenty three completely unique stories. Mine was a lecture, delivered by someone who has discovered that Alsiso is the name for something we haven’t quite reached yet, a linguistic tenth planet of sorts.It was also pretty much hated on release, which is fine, each to their own after all. However, CERN Zoo just put up a spectacularly good review of both the book and my story which I’ve linked to here. I always rather liked my Alsiso story and it’s a real pleasure to see someone else does too.
Allen Ashley HERE: “….an astonishingly detailed and complimentary review of my collection “Somnambulists” by the wonderful writing and editing legend Des Lewis. All I can do is to recommend that you have a look at it if you have 10 or 15 minutes to spare. [...] Thanks again to Des for such a great review and thank, of course, to Andrew for helping make it all possible in the first place.”
August 2009: Simon Strantzas: HERE: “Fascinating stuff!”
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28 Sep 10: Terry Grimwood’s public reaction (Here) to my review of THE PLACES BETWEEN:
“Hello Des thanks for your, as usual, mighty review of “The Places Between”. I loved the ebb and flow and outright bewilderment of your reading experience. Daft? Yes, that as well. I deliberately made the fantastical element as fantastical as I was able. Bosch? Absolutely. [...] It was written in the aftermath of a catastrophic personal tragedy, the same tragedy that fashioned many of the stories in “The Exaggerated Man”. Where the latter was perhaps a more measured examination of that time in my life, much of it written as it was taking pale, a real-time review if you like, “The Places Between”, is a white hot furnace of emotions, a Bosch-Dali collaborative landscape of my subconscious all to the soundtrack of Saint-Saens’ “Aquarium of the Fishes”. I hope that isn’t a spoiler and I know the worst person to discuss a story is its author but I couldn’t resist it.
So, again, thanks Des, without you the small press would be, well, small.”
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5 Nov 10
Christopher Barker sent me an email out of the blue a day or so after my completion of the TENEBROUS TALES review. He has given me permission to quote it:
“Dear Des: I just wanted to drop you a line to thank you far having taken the time out to read and then review “Tenebrous Tales”.
I was genuinely touched by some of your comments and insights. I found the composition of the book to be emotionally-draining so it is heart-warming to discover that others have found some of the pieces emotionally-engaging.
Usually a review involves someone ponderously re-interpreting a piece of fiction with a view towards asserting his or her authority to judge it; that’s when the review isn’t a piece of nepotist puffery by a friend of the author. However, you have demonstrated the enviable talent of being able to review in an insightful, intuitive and original way. In reviewing my book, you swiftly zoned in upon the key aspects and commented accordingly. I *am* puckish, often dangerously so, but you’ve been the first person with enough integrity to say so out loud. This is both an endearing and a refreshing style of review. It also exhibits a healthy intellectual regard for your reader, whether he or she be author, publisher or genre enthusiast.
I’m sure my book can’t be half as good as you portray it but I will delude myself otherwise by virtue of pandering to vanity.”
28 March 2012: “People who don’t have a basic command of English and grammar or even sentence structure don’t make the best writing critics.” in Comments here: http://bloodmagicbooks.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/railriders-review-at-neonomicon.html
1 May 2012: “Thanks for the review which was awesome – better than the story! It’s like you feel rather than read, if that’s the right way of putting it.” – Priya Sharma as comment here: http://nullimmortalis.wordpress.com/2012/04/24/black-static-28/
“Amazing review, love Lewis’ real-time reviews, and this one is visceral, poetic in a sideways manner…” – comment from one of JSP Sr’s ‘friends’ on his facebook about review of ‘The Orphan Palace’.