Creature Feature

A Horrid Comedy

By: Steven Paul Leiva

Narrated by: Seamus Dever, Juliana Dever

Length: 4 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

Named a Top Book of 2020 by the Montreal Times!

There is something strange happening in Placidville! It is 1962. Kathy Anderson, a serious actress who took her training at the Actor's Studio in New York, is stuck playing Vivacia, the vampire woman on Vivacia’s House of Horrors for a local Chicago TV station. Finally fed up showing old monster movies to creature feature fans, she quits and heads to New York and the fame and footlights of Broadway. She stops off to visit her parents and old friends in Placidville, the all-American, middle-class, blissfully normal Midwest small town she grew up in. But she finds things are strange in Placidville.

Kathy’s parents, her best friend from high school, the local druggist, even the Oberhausen twins are all acting curiously creepy, odiously odd, and wholly weird. Especially the town’s super geeky nerd, Gerald, who warns of dark days ahead. Has Kathy entered a zone in the twilight? Did she reach the limits that are outer? Has she fallen through a mirror that is black? Or is it just - just - politics as usual?

"This is the most horrible thing I've ever heard - and that's a good thing! It's screamingly funny and probably one of the best performed and produced audiobooks I've ever heard...and I have tinnitus." (Phil Proctor of the Firesign Theatre)

"Seamus Dever hits the tone just right - he's close to going over-the-top without ever slipping into parody. It's clearly funny material, but he plays it straight. Still, he sounds like he's having fun - and it's hard not to join in. And Juliana Dever nails the character of Kathy (and her alter ego).... Give this one a shot folks, I think you'll be glad you did." (H.C. Newton, The Irresponsible Reader Blog, five stars)

"Creature Feature is a fun fast-paced old-timey horror flick with plenty of humor. I enjoyed it for the one-line jokes, the crazy situations, and the odd the characters all tossed together in a completely unexpected situation. Kathy, who at times does come off as a vain self-involved woman, has her moments to shine as a woman of action. Meanwhile, Gerald's years as a science fiction lover and tech nerd have finally paid off - in the form of a supped-up Vespa! Haha! I love the imagery." (Dab of Darkness Book Reviews)

©2020 Steven Paul Leiva (P)2021 Steven Paul Leiva, Seamus Dever

A great production

This was a fun ride. I really enjoyed the story and the narration sealed the deal

Aliens, Nerds to the Rescue, & One-Liners

Creature Feature is a fun fast-paced old-timey horror flick with plenty of humor. I enjoyed it for the one-line jokes, the crazy situations, and the odd the characters all tossed together in a completely unexpected situation. Kathy, who at times does come off as a vain self-involved woman, has her moments to shine as a woman of action. Meanwhile, Gerald’s years as a science fiction lover and tech nerd have finally paid off – in the form of a supped up Vespa! Haha! I love the imagery.

Gerald has unwittingly tapped into something he didn’t expect and doesn’t really understand and now the whole of Placidville is in dire straights! But the first step is convincing Kathy, who really doesn’t want to have anything to do with him. lol poor dude. There’s a new and rather handsome mayor in town, Mack, who has his eyes set upon world domination via Kathy. Part pod people, part space invasion, our heroes certainly have their work cut out for them.

Obviously, there was a lot I enjoyed about this story. There were a few minor quibbles, like Kathy is really the only female character who is plot relevant. Even her mom and best friend Mary aren’t what they seem for much of the story. And I didn’t really bond with any of the characters. Gerald was the closest, but he’s pretty much just a joke punching bag for people to make fun of nerds in general. Really, Mack had the most drive and even though he was the villain, I kinda liked him for it. Still, the plot kept me engaged the entire time.

There are a few sorta adult jokes that would easily go over the heads of kids, though there’s one that is a bit crude (fine for me but maybe not for a family road trip… depending on the kids). Mostly safe for work. 4/5 stars.

The Narration & Sound Effects: The narration was well done all around. With both narrators putting in quality performances, there were plenty of believable unique voices to cover all the characters. The sound effects were well done, including the little bits of music. They never overwhelmed the narration. All sounds were easily identifiable too. The pace & timing of the narration was perfect and there were no tech issues with this recording. 5/5 stars.

I received a free copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are 100% my own.

Comedic, horrifying, and in one word, brilliant

First, thank you to Steven Paul Levia, Seamus Dever, and Kuliana Dever for making me smile and laugh more than I have all year. I love the old cheesy horror movies. I love pulp fiction. I have seen every episode of the original Twilight Zone and Outer Limits series. This book absolutely delivered everything it promised and more! This is one of those books that is absolutely enhanced by the brilliant voice acting which brings each scene and character into vibrant...color? Black and white? Either way, this is definitely a book I will be listening to again. I intended to listen to this while doing chores, but I found myself so wrapped up in the story that I often forgot what I was supposed to be doing. I cannot recommend it enough if you love the old strange TV shows and cheesy classic horror movies.

Nope

Not horrid. Not comedic. I made it 50min before I had to turn it off. It’d make a decent short story in anthology, but not a stand alone story.