Author Melanie Tem has died today at age 65. Her novels, published throughout the 1990s by Dell/Abyss, include Prodigal, Wilding, Desmodus, and Revenant.
Very sad news. Melanie Tem was definitely one of the leading lights of the Dell/Abyss line in the early 90s. That was a very cool time to be a horror fiction fan, and my expectations for the genre were immediately raised after reading novels like PRODIGAL and WILDING.
Those early novels of hers caused me to take notice of more women authors in the field, and I soon discovered that Kathy Koja, Poppy Brite, Lisa Tuttle, and especially Tem were not only leading the way for Dell/Abyss, but pushing the boundaries of horror more than just about anybody in the field.
And I may never have discovered all that if it weren't for PRODIGAL. She will be missed.
This is awful news. Like her husband Steve Rasnic, Melanie Tem has always been a very compassionate, stylish writer. Her story "Fry Day" from Final Shadows is one of my all time favorites.
Very sad news. She was a great talent. _The Prodigal_ was a standout in the Abyss line (and man, was I an Abyss junkie when those were coming out! It was a publishing company like SubPop was a record label -- you knew anything they put out would be well worth a read/listen). I need to re-read that one sometime...
Anyway, it's sad that she's no longer with us. She'll be missed.
Zwolf, exactly! I *loved* the Abyss line when it was coming out. However I've lost a lot of my copies over the years. And PRODIGAL definitely holds up today.
Very sad news. Melanie Tem was definitely one of the leading lights of the Dell/Abyss line in the early 90s. That was a very cool time to be a horror fiction fan, and my expectations for the genre were immediately raised after reading novels like PRODIGAL and WILDING.
ReplyDeleteThose early novels of hers caused me to take notice of more women authors in the field, and I soon discovered that Kathy Koja, Poppy Brite, Lisa Tuttle, and especially Tem were not only leading the way for Dell/Abyss, but pushing the boundaries of horror more than just about anybody in the field.
And I may never have discovered all that if it weren't for PRODIGAL. She will be missed.
I agree with all this!
DeleteThis is awful news. Like her husband Steve Rasnic, Melanie Tem has always been a very compassionate, stylish writer. Her story "Fry Day" from Final Shadows is one of my all time favorites.
ReplyDeleteI will check that one out, thanks.
DeleteNothing like a spammer to ruin a reflective moment....
ReplyDeleteVery sad news. She was a great talent. _The Prodigal_ was a standout in the Abyss line (and man, was I an Abyss junkie when those were coming out! It was a publishing company like SubPop was a record label -- you knew anything they put out would be well worth a read/listen). I need to re-read that one sometime...
ReplyDeleteAnyway, it's sad that she's no longer with us. She'll be missed.
Zwolf, exactly! I *loved* the Abyss line when it was coming out. However I've lost a lot of my copies over the years. And PRODIGAL definitely holds up today.
ReplyDelete