Dario Ciriello

Paul Hatzis was tired of life in San Francisco, his wife had left him to join a cult and he feels American culture is violent and delusional. Paul is in search of a simpler life and has decided to go to the Greek island of Vóunos to find it. He rents out a small old house but what he doesn’t know is that the house has a dark history.

Seventy years ago master of the dark arts, Dafyd along with a seer named Magda and Klaus a delusional SS colonel practiced black magic there. They killed some of the locals and in their final ritual they made a deal with outer hell and gave up their bodies to serve 70 years in hell. In exchange for their service they will be given new bodies and become immortals on Earth and the souls of the three bodies they inhabit will spend eternity in hell.

I found it hard writing a description of this book because there is so much depth to the story its hard to put into words. I guess I would have to say that Black Easter by Dario Ciriello is an intellectual horror novel. I’ve read many books that have a plot line like this but what makes this story different is how its told.

As Paul’s story begins you also hear the story of Magda, Klaus and Dafyd. The story starts in the present and keeps going back to tell the story of the former owners of the house. You think this is going to be your classic good versus evil story but in the beginning it’s not. You get the impression that Dafyd and Magda aren’t evil, they are in search of knowledge. Klaus is evil but he finds redemption(sort of). Then we get to find out more about what hell is like and it’s not the kind of place you would think it is.(I would love to say more but I don’t want to give it away.)

This brings me to one of the things that I liked about the book, I figured that Dario wouldn’t get into the description of hell but he does and I loved the concept behind it and hearing the rituals that the three characters used to get there. I loved the characters in the book and I liked how the Greek island itself is a character as you get into how the people on the island live and act. The best part of the book is how the characters in danger act when they are faced with the prospect of death. At this point the story does become good versus evil and you see that what was presented in the beginning wasn’t the thing that should be feared(read it you’ll understand).

Black Easter is truly an excellent read that had me still thinking about it after I was done reading. If you are into horror novels that have a lot of jump scares or lots of violence(it does have violence but it’s not what drives the story) you might not like this. That being said there we’re some scenes in this book where it comes across like a haunted house story. This is a great novel that will have you pondering life’s mysteries and what evil really is. I love that some of the characters question how evil can be stronger than good but as they question themselves they find the answers that they are looking for. I would love to elaborate on that statement but it would be better if you just bought Black Easter and read it.… (mais)

Would you be willing to leave the security of your every day life for the chance to make your dream come true? Dario and his wife Linda did just that when they decided to leave behind the financial security they had and live on a Greek island. Many of us have gone on vacation and thought how great it would be to live there. Aegean Dream by Dario Ciriello is the story of two people brave enough to turn a dream into reality.

I was hooked on this book from the start. In the beginning you hear Dario and his wife Linda talk about how wonderful it would be live in a vacation destination which is something that lots of people do. Aegean Dream is a very detailed travel memoir that takes you from Dario and Linda planing out how they can make the trip happen, overcome the obstacles to make it happen and what life was like in Greece. This book doesn’t sugar coat anything, you see how hard it was to make a living on the island, how difficult the government bureaucracy was to deal with and the hard realities to living your dream life.

I was surprised how good it was, I figured that at some point I would lose interest in the story but I never did. I enjoyed hearing about all the differences between Greeks and Americans and with Dario and Linda constantly having a new challenge to face, I was curious to see if they would be able to make a living. They have issues such as appliances not working, getting their belongings through customs, and getting their business up and going.

As they go to Greece they have a plan to make and sell soap using local ingredients. While they have a solid business plan what they didn’t plan on was the government red tape. Reading this book you can see what led to Greece’s financial collapse. The government sets up a lot of obstacles to starting new businesses which Dario and Linda have to deal with, also at one point you hear about a woman saying how employers get away with not paying their employees and one employee went over a month without getting paid. Another thing that you read about is one person saying that people use credit too much and they don’t seem to realize that one day they will have to pay the money back.

I loved reading about how Greek people were so friendly and very different from Americans. Dario talks about how they were invited to several dinners where everyone was encouraged to eat and drink until they got their fill. This book is worth reading for two reasons, it’s a great look at a culture that is very different from ours and its a story about a couple who tried to make their dreams come true. Aegean Dream is a great story from a great storyteller and is a book that you should read before you decide to follow your dreams. One thing you will learn is that you have to take the good with the bad, running down a dream isn’t easy.… (mais)

Originally posted on Tales to Tide You Over.

This is a short story collection by Dario Ciriello that contains both new and reprinted stories, one of which I’d already read.

I characterize the collection as a series of thought experiments on the concept of universe, whether addressing multiverse and string theories or providing a situation where one action takes life in an unexpected direction. I enjoyed reading every one of the stories, including the reread. Only one gave me mixed feelings, and those feelings were definitely mixed as there was much to like in the story, and the technique employed was both successful and surprising.

As with other short story collections, I’ve included my specific notes on the stories below. I do not talk about the content as much as my reaction to the stories. For a short description of each story, check out the book page on the Panverse Publishing site.

Free Verse

A lovely story taking the concepts of string theory and the multiverse to heart, but what’s wonderful is how it becomes simultaneously a personal battle between Pol Ferrikkin and a person from his past as well as a philosophical one in which billions of lives depend on the side chosen. The concepts of Talent and line walkers are what make this work.

Normally I don’t like fractured storytelling, but the fragmentary scenes worked with the story to create mood and help the reader see through Pol’s eyes. To be honest, I misread the “verse” in the title to be poetry, and in some ways, the scenes, especially the solo ones, have that feel.

Collateral Damage

An odd little story but a plausible one. I liked the end and the solution. The use of multiple POV characters is unusual in a short story but very effective to maintain the mystery and develop sympathy to help the end.

Tigger Walks the Planck

I was opposed to the story at first as it reenacts the Schrodinger’s cat think experiment in real time, a pointless exercise. But where the story goes from that start I heartily approve of, and it even addresses my opposition in the text. It also includes science fiction references that give the aware reader an extra jolt. Besides, I loved the main character, and the blend between its two aspects – mental and physical – was beautiful.

Dwell on Her Graciousness

I have mixed feelings on this story in part because it is like watching a picnic from the perspective of ants. At the same time, this fact makes the story compelling. The middle had me sucked in. The beginning and even the end did not as much, but then it still made sense where it ended up because ants don’t have the understanding to know what will follow. As a perspective technique, it definitely worked, but those who prefer a concrete ending might find this story a little hard.

Skiffy Supreme

Cute. A tongue-in-cheek recipe for a space adventure written like cooking instructions with homages to other works such as Star Trek. Nicely done for a quick laugh.

Dancing By Numbers

It says something about this story that I instantly recognized I’d read it before though years had passed since, and I was happy to read it again. It’s a complicated and yet simple tale with an untraditional ending.

A lovely collection that I’m happy to have had the opportunity to read. I received this eBook from the author in return for an honest review.… (mais)