What's Being Said

... about Rob's stories and books, that is.... in public at any rate.

"Hood has gone on [from Day-dreaming on Company Time] to produce many fine horror stories and establish himself as one of this country's leading horror authors." (Steven Paulsen and Sean McMullen, "The Hunt for Australian Horror" in Aurealis #14, 1994)

"Rob Hood is Australia's master of dark fantasy, seducing the reader with stories that are lavishly grim and rife with a quirky, unpredictable inventiveness. He takes us along streets we prefer not to travel, even in daylight, and finds humanity in the blackest of shadows."(Sean Williams, author of the best-selling Orphans trilogy, Metal Fatigue, the Geodesica series, The Books of the Change, The Resurrected Man and much else besides)

"Rob Hood is a brilliant fantasist. I've seen work penned by Hood that is absolutely luminous, unnerving, and original. This man can write!" (Jack Dann, author of The Memory Cathedral, The Rebel and numerous SF works, and editor of the World Fantasy Award-winning anthology, Dreaming Downunder)

Robert Hood’s “Monstrous Bright Tomorrows” is a piece that reads like poetry and prose at the same time. Everything is vivid and almost too real at times, heightening the emotional impact and sheer creepiness of the story. Hood manages to capture beauty in his words along with the darkness, something that’s extremely difficult to do well.

Stephanie Gunn

from a review of In Bad Dreams (ed. Mark S. Deniz and Sharyn Lilley), Horrorscope (Sept. 2007)

Challis says she's interested in showcasing stories that transcend the clichés of the horror genre, and this is wonderfully illustrated by the selection of stories. Take Robert Hood's "Autopsy", for example. Its wonderfully depraved opening sequence, in which the "hero" performs a savage autopsy on a living subject, could be written off as exploitative. However as the story progresses it becomes clear Hood has more than just gore in mind. A few plot twists establish this as a captivating (albeit still utterly depraved) highlight of the anthology; a fine, imaginative piece of storytelling from a great Australian author.

Tim Kroenert

from a review of Book of Shadows (ed. Angela Challis), ASif website (2007)

Robert Hood is a well known Australian dark fiction author, and he is well represented in this collection with "Autopsy". A gore filled tale trails off into the truly bizarre and leaves a satisfaction that comes from reading something truly odd.

Paul Mannering

from a review of Book of Shadows (ed. Angela Challis), ASif website (2007)

My first impression is that this is a well-written and slightly creepy tale about leaves. Being scared by leaves is a clever concept, and Hood conveys a good sense of unease as they move with “crackling whispers” and “ripple with quick movement”. However, Hood’s real cleverness is not revealed until the ending, which is a cracker! We’re relying on the narrator to tell us the truth but how much can we rely on him? He is old, after all, and references to a real estate agent and resentful neighbours suggest that all is not well. Perhaps he’s misinterpreting events - or even a bit senile? Maybe the leaves aren’t moving after all.

Hood talks about narration more in his interview, which is as informative and interesting as Kaaron Warren’s. Unlike movies, a reader (or listener) relies solely on the narrator to understand what’s going on. Forcing the reader into the narrator’s reality can create a sense of intimacy, and this definitely works in “Peripheral Movement in the Leaves Under an Orange Tree”. Hood also talks about other indirect methods of conveying information without “telling” – creating impressions through character interaction or indirect facts. Pride and Prejudice is given as an example and, frankly, anyone who references Jane Austen is ok by me.

Kathryn Linge

From a review of The Writing Show's podcast "Seven Days of Halloween" on the ASif website (2007)

Robert Hood writes prosaic poetry that shows you can fill a page with delight based upon very little actual plot. "God Of War" is filled with rich imagery and smoothly composed sentences that carry you along to the sudden ending. The central character has become a god in the sense that he embodies war at all levels. The unquestioning obedience from his underlings means he must take matters into his own hands when he finally decides that being maintained by cybernetic enhancements to ensure that his human mind can plot strategy is quintessentially dull.

Paul Mannering

From a review of Borderlands #8 on ASif website (2007)

Robert Hood has cursed his main character in "Luxury Goods" with the name of Luxury. She starts off as a fairly normal person who gets pulled into the mafia-like world of smuggling: not drugs or weapons in this case, but Virtual Enhancement software, which the Kordanians have banned. Luxury gets involved in order to help her boyfriend, but things don't go quite the way they are meant to -- of course. Luxury is a great character: she is strong, and independent, and adapts really well to the situations presented to her. The issue of genetic modification and all the different ways it could be done, and the ways it could get out of hand, is also fascinating to explore.

Alexandra Pierce

from a review of Fantastic Wonder Stories (ed. Russell B. Farr) on ASif website (2007)

"First Moment of Dying" by Robert Hood is a very nice inversion of the Lazarus myth. Morgue/Autopsy stories are always on the creepier end of the scale for me and Rob Hood seems to delight in constructing just these sort of tales. This one takes deliberate religous symbolism as its method of resurrecting the dead but the sender of the symbolism is (thankfully) never fully examined. Instead, "First Moment..." leaves religion as a plaintive and unanswered cry from the dead and moves to show us the world from the newly risen's point of view. The ending leaves the wider implications of the story very much open to the reader to ponder. This is a great thing. We know what happens when the dead take over the world, we've all seen the movies, but "First Moment of Dying" shows us a more intimate look at where it all might begin.

Andrew McKiernan

from a review of Shadowed Realms #11 on Horrorscope (2006)

"First Moment of Dying" is a zombie story told from the perspective of the zombie. Robert Hood tells us about a rape victim who not only comes back to life after having her throat slashed, but wakes up next to her attacker’s body. The concept isn’t that unique, but Hood pulls it off with style and good form. I think the opening could have been cut, but all in all, it's an effective story.

M. David Schafer

from a review of Shadowed Realms #11 on Tangent Short Fiction Review (2006)

.... Through these (and five other) stories, Hood demonstrates a talent for storytelling, as well as showing us his fascination, not only with the immaterial world that surrounds us, but also with the immaterial connections that form between friends, family and even strangers. Whether or not there are real ghosts here is not important – but each of the stories represents a journey away from the comfortable, the stable and the secure, pulling their protagonists towards a world where not everything is as solid as it appears.

Devin Jeyathurai

on ASif website (2005)

...The breadth of the storytelling both in style and content is just one of the many delights of Immaterial. Fifteen very different tales, 3 of them published for the first time, make this a fine collection from one of our leading proponents of the art. Buy it.

Keith Stephenson

Review in Aurealis magazine #

Robert Hood might not be the exact modern equivalent of Blackwood, but the ghost stories in his Immaterial ... are all clever, well-constructed, and (mostly) subtle, offering a variety of voices and tones, from the wit of Dahl or Collier to the unflinching nihilism of Ligotti. Although some partake of splatterpunk’s excesses – a vengeful skeleton gruesomely dissects a thug in "Dem Bones," for instance – most of these pieces mix humor with understated creepiness. I particularly enjoyed "Blurred Lines," in which a blind man’s hearing becomes so acute as to shatter the normal barriers of space and time, much in the manner of the great horror flick X: The Man with the X-Ray Eyes (1963).

Paul Di Filippo

Review in Asimov's Science Fiction -- online

Take Rob Hood’s "Regolith", which opens the collection. A pair of archaeologists find the burial chamber of an aristocratic scholar and kabbalist who sought the secret of eternal life. A worker on the moon is part of a project to bring water back to the moon. Making the connection between the two, this story bridges present and future, the Earth and the Moon, and manages to throw in a peculiar sort of haunting in the process. I know Hood’s propensity for ghosts, and it doesn't surprise me that he’s managed to wedge one in here. Maybe not a ghost. Maybe it's an echo, or an intention. It's still marvellously subtle, and clever, and not a little spooky ... but hopeful, too.

Devin Jeyathurai

from a review of Agog! Smashing Stories (ed. Cat Sparks) on ASif website (2005)

Consider the somber mood of the Moon's last hope in "Regolith." One last shot to establish something, anything, on the barren landscape -- an attempt that may have failed or succeeded beyond the engineers wildest dreams. Such stories make you look at that cold rock shining down on us with more than the usual curiosity.

Lisa DuMond

from a review of Agog! Smashing Stories (ed. Cat Sparks) on SF Site (2004)

"<term UNTRANSLATABLE>", by Robert Hood, is a clever cyberfiction story, intersecting old-fashioned science fiction with the internal world of geeks. It is particularly appealing that this story is published on the net. It is a First Contact story, pure geek meets alien.

Gillian Pollack

from a review of Ticonderoga Online #4 on ASif website (2006)

Robert Hood is one of Australia’s foremost horror authors. "<term UNTRANSLATABLE>" is a science fiction story which puts a new slant on alien invasion. The depiction of the central character, Gordon, who spends most of his time on the internet debating about science fiction, treads a line between affectionate parody and less affectionate satire without ever fully slipping over the line. It’s hard to get good gags out of nerdy science fiction fans; the jokes have for the most part been mined and done to death. Hood, then, deserves credit for developing his humour through the character and avoiding all the obvious stereotypes. The piece is funny and its ultimate resolution clever.

Ben Payne

from a review of Ticonderoga Online #4 on ASif website (2006)

"A Helping Hand", by Robert Hood, gives us a chance to breathe normally, albeit momentarily. This is a clever story about mental problems and how they confuse reality, and is perhaps one of the more literate of the issue, although the central theme of pulp-style horror is still prevalent, and it’s not long before we are breathing heavily again.

Marty Young

from a review of Dark Animus #7 on ASif website (2006)

Of the 7 stories offered, the most impressive is “A Helping Hand” by Robert Hood. Hood cleverly weaves a tale that is simply creepy from start to finish.

Russell B. Farr

from a review of Dark Animus #7 on ticonderogaonline (2005)

Robert Hood’s “In the Service of the Flesh” was a venture into ‘eekdom’. It’s gore, it’s zombies and it’s clever.

Donna Maree Hanson

from a review of Aurealis #37 on ASif website (2006)

'In the Service of the Flesh' is Rob Hood’s latest contribution to the zombie genre, and it’s a beaut. I can’t say too much about it without giving away the plot, so I’ll limit myself to mentioning only that it’s laugh-out-loud funny, and boasts levels of gore that would make George Romero blanch. This may well be the very best zombie tale I’ve ever read.

Chuck McKenzie

from a review of Australian Dark Fantasy and Horror 2007 Edition on the Horrorscope website, 4 March 2008

The next story is "Touched" by Robert Hood, a ghost story with a twist. Emily finds herself about to tour a house that she lived in once as a child, a house where she found the sad presence of a ghost. She encounters the ghost again and in doing so, comes to a realisation about herself. It's a small little story, but it's lovely. Hood has a very deft touch, able to lead up to things so they make sense, and yet make them surprising as well.

Nicole Murphy

from a review of Fables and Reflections #8 on ASif website (2006)

Perhaps even more rewarding than the previous volume from Agog!, this collection of twenty-one stories showcases the wide variety of voices working Down Under. Every piece exhibits at least journeyman competence, while others are masterful. I particularly enjoyed Robert Hood’s "JAM Jars," about an alien-fostered nanotech plague...

Paul Di Filippo

From a review of Agog! Terrific Tales in Asimov's Science Fiction -- online

"Instructions for Pandora's Box" by Robert Hood is the type of story one used to see in the 70's in SF magazines and anthologies, but which is too seldom seen these days. The eminently dislikeable Mr. Felix Barker, EUS Director of External Policy for the State Ministry, receives a package that only he can see. It comes with instructions for opening of an ominous nature; the unhappy, power-mongering Barker attempts to assure himself of its reality or potential throughout the elegantly-written tale. It's a good, solid SF story with a nice retro feel.

Amy Sterling Casil

from a review of Ideomancer Unbound on SFReader.com (2003)

Robert Hood's "Maculate Conception" is an effective horror story about a man dealing with his wife's leaving him, which moves to a nicely handled twist ending.

Rich Horton

from a review of Passing Strange (ed. Bill Congreve) on LocusOnline (2002)

In a magazine filled with much light and humorous fiction, Robert Hood's "Howler" stands out for its portrayal of a world into which the forces of evil are trying to enter to destroy it. The relationship between Liz and Ian is real, as is Ian's conversion to belief in the strange story Liz tells him about the howlers. Hood does include a smidgeon of humor in the story, but it seems forced and unnecessary.

Steven H. Silver

from a review of Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine #9 on Tangent Short Fiction Review (2003)

"Howler", by Robert Hood, could seem like an excuse for sex, drugs and rock&roll: you have to, to keep the monsters at bay. Liz and Ian are teenagers who have to save the world from nasty extra-dimensional monsters who howl before they break into our world. Easy.

Alexandra Pierce

from a review of Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine #9 on ASif website (2007)

I did not enjoy reading Robert Hood’s "Primal Etiquette", a visceral tale that has about as many body parts as adjectives, but the fact that I read it from beginning to end is testimony to Hood’s skill as a writer. In fact, "Primal Etiquette" is a gruesome gag with quite a funny punch-line. Describing the story at all would likely give the punch-line away, so this is something you should read for yourself; just keep a barf bag handy.

Simon Brown

from a review of Orb #0 on eidolon.net: Australian SF Online (2000)

Robert Hood makes another appearance in Aurealis #23, the magazine’s special WorldCon issue. "Ground Underfoot", despite the science fiction overalls, is really a ghost story. In a world shattered by the random and destructive visits of a giant monster, insurance companies are making a killing (literally). The companies rely on people sensitive to the appearance of the monster to calculate their rates, and penalise insurance cheats with execution. Danforth is a hitman for one of these companies, but unbeknown to his employers he is also a sensitive. Sent on a mission to recover the world’s leading authority on the monster, lost or kidnapped somewhere in Sydney, Danforth discovers there is something about his talent that even he was unaware of.

Simon Brown

from a review of Aurealis #23 on eidolon.net: Australian SF Online (2000)

Hood's fantasy world is only partially realised in this story, but there is enough there to keep the reader intrigued, wanting to learn more. Most effective, is the corruption itself and how it is manifested, by twisting and changing the dead into a form both horrifying and psychologically atavistic. Torm and the others are confronted with the darker sides of their own psyches.

Simon Brown

from a review of Dreaming Downunder on Eidolon.net: Australian SF Online (1999)

"Voyeur Night" by co-editor Robert Hood is also a worthy inclusion, a horror/SF/crime story that hits all the right buttons, as well as a few that might surprise you.

Martin Livings

from a review of Crosstown Traffic in Eidolon 14, April 1994 • online

I enjoyed the series for its pace, for its sense of the strange and the threats posed, but mostly for the lives of its teenagers. Nathan, Mel, Cass and Shine are an unlikely bunch of heroes, but they step up to the plate and have a go.

Review in Aurealis # 29, 2002

... [Shadow Dance] can gross out, but it has a weird poetry to it...

Lucy Sussex

Review in Sunday Age, 1 July 2001

... [Shadow Dance] has a good storyline, with nothing too predictable. It’s so different from anything I’ve read, I didn’t know what to expect as it ranged from murder to ancient Greek gods. The book ... is definitely not to be missed.

Alex Leahy

Review in Courier Mail, 24 July 2001

In this terrific new series, readers will find themselves transported into the world of ghosts. But don’t think of ghosts in the Ghostbusters style; this is much more subtle!... the Shades series is a gripping new series which will leave ordinary ghost stories in the starting blocks. ... A must-read for horror stories and supernatural stories fans.

www.lollipopsmagazine.com

“Shadow Dance is  part mystery, part fantasy, part thriller, part horror, and a great read in all those categories.” (YARA review)

“[Black Sun Rising] is very scary, and at times funny... This is a great book, but it would be helpful to read the other three books in the series before picking this one up.” (YARA Review)

“[Night Beast] is very fascinating and you can’t put the book down when you’ve started reading... Robert Hood has written the book magnificently. It’s like he’s weaved [sic] magic into every word...” (YARA Review, Year 6 reviewer!)

... This is a tough novel which is exciting, memorable and sensitive in its treatment of the issues and, finally, satisfying and optimistic. Hood uses a variety of contemporary language techniques effectively. The pain and raw emotion of the descriptions of the dream sequences, of madness and panic attacks brought on by grief, guilt and disorientation after the accident, are powerful.

CBC Judges Report appearing in the 1999 Notable Books list

... Kel’s story is a quest, much of it nightmarish, where he steps out of society into an underworld of homeless people and violence which seems to mimic the anguish in his own mind and the journey he has to make towards acceptance.

Review in Magpies Magazine, Oct. 2000

This is a short, punchy, and empathic novel of grief, loss, and life on Sydney’s mean streets.... There are no easy one-line answers ... The novel is tender, yet uncompromising, meticulously honest in its dealing with Kel’s emotions, and it feels right in a manner which can only be informed by wisdom and personal experience.

Review in Aurealis #24, 1999