Movies
Book Review: Drew Stepek’s ‘Knuckle Supper’
In Drew Stepek’s “Knuckle Supper,” Los Angeles’ drugs are run by the undead. When the LA heroin-addicted vampire and gang leader named RJ reluctantly takes in a twelve year-old prostitute called Bait, humanity is introduced to his otherwise lifeless existence. An unforgiving, vicious and realistic horror story, Knuckle Supper explores chemical dependency, inner-city brutality, religion, molestation, abortion and the very nature of evil itself. Inside you’ll find Ryan Daley’s review of the indie book, which he recommends you check out.
I rarely bother to review independent horror fiction for B-D, only because most of it sucks. Don`t get me wrong, I do read a fair amount of indie horror each month–more than the average horror fan, I think. I regularly receive novels in the mail from ambitious authors, and I make an effort to purchase indie horror online several times a year. But it’s hard to get past the abundant typos, grammatical errors, and ages-old clichés that come with independently published horror. Frankly, the vast majority of indie horror seriously licks balls.
And yet there was something about Drew Stepek’s Knuckle Supper that really stuck with me. It’s a vampire novel, and yeah, I know, we’re all sick of fucking vampires. Who isn’t? But somehow Stepek’s novel–a splatterpunk foray into a Los Angeles packed with feuding vampire gangs–managed to stand apart from the rest. It’s a drug-fueled, modern-day vampire saga that reads like a bloodsucking sequel to 1979`s The Warriors written by James Ellroy. And fans of hardcore horror fiction take blissful note: Stepek’s wicked prose can cut awfully deep.
R.J. is the ultimate anti-hero, a drug-loving member of The Knucklers, a vampire gang of self-described “junkies and gangster motherfuckers” who are constantly feuding with other vampire gangs in L.A. Like the Blue Blooded Perrys, for instance, a gang of douchey, coked-up rich kids. Or the Battlesnakes, a stoner vampire gang “not known for their intelligence” who remain “brutal bad-ass fucks”, presumably through the power of weed. And even the Batwangers, a gang of tranny hooker vampires who feed by biting off their john’s weiners.
When R.J. stumbles across a bag of heroin and a 12-year-old prostie named Bait, he takes them both under his wing. But when Bait gets pregnant after getting raped by some defiant vampires, R.J. is forced to confront forces of evil even greater than himself. It’s a novel packed with very skeezy characters doing very skeezy things, and while a few gory set pieces really amp up the action, the dialogue has a tendency to drag things down at times. Not that Stepek’s dialogue is bad–it’s solidly-written and frequently very funny–but there sure is a hell of a lot of it. At times you find yourself wishing there was more action. And then Steepak finally starts describing a kill scene that’s so gruesome, you find yourself changing your mind. If Knuckle Supper were a movie, you would frequently find yourself clapping your hands over your eyes.
Although the book is packed with drug addiction, sadistic violence, and heavy-duty sex abuse, it’s only fiction, a point proven by Stepek’s commitment to donate up to 10% of the revenue of Knuckle Supper to Children of the Night , a non-profit organization dedicated to assisting childen between the ages of 11-17 who have been forced to prostitute. A pretty cool move on Stepek’s part. (Although I have to admit, I’m not sure what “up to” 10% really means….like, doesn’t “zero” qualify as “up to 10%”?)
Knuckle Supper is available for purchase November 16. The author also sent me a couple of signed copies (and t-shirts), so if you’re interested in receiving one, contact me through the website (member search “Ripvanryan” on the Community page) and I’ll pick a couple of lucky readers at random.
3.5/5 Skulls
The holiday weekend means a light week for new horror releases, but it does bring the return of Dark Castle Entertainment to select theaters. It’s being joined by 6 new horror movies.
Here’s all the new horror releasing June 29, 2026 – July 3, 2026!
For daily reminders about new horror releases, be sure to follow @HorrorCalendar.
You wished for it. The highest-grossing horror movie of the year (so far), Curry Barker’s Obsession, arrived on Digital on June 30.
In Curry Barker’s theatrical debut Obsession, after breaking the mysterious One Wish Willow to win his crush’s heart, a hopeless romantic finds himself getting exactly what he asked for but soon discovers that some desires come at a dark, sinister price.
Michael Johnston (“Teen Wolf”), Inde Navarette (“Superman & Lois”), Cooper Tomlinson (“That’s a Bad Idea,” Milk & Serial), Megan Lawless (The Death That Awaits), and Emmy Award-nominee Andy Richter (“Conan,” Elf) star.
Based on a story by director James Kondelik (Behind The Walls) and a screenplay by Canadian writer Victor Rose, survival thriller Pitfall headed home to Digital on June 30. Family is murder in this Cineverse release.
In Pitfall, a young man becomes separated from his friends in the woods and plunges into a ten-foot pit lined with spikes, impaling his leg and leaving him helpless. As reality sinks in and his situation grows dire, he realizes the fall wasn’t an accident.
The film stars Richard Harmon (Final Destination: Bloodlines), Alexandra Essoe (The Pope’s Exorcist), and UFC champion Randy Couture (The Expendables) as the ruthless killer who stalks his prey in the woods. Marshall Williams (The Ice Road), Jordan Claire Robbins (The Umbrella Academy), and Matt Hamilton (Murder for Sale) also star.
The Amityville IP leans into Jaws with Amityville Shark House, just in time for the Fourth of July holiday too, as it released on Digital June 30.
Will Collazo Jr. (Amityville Thanksgiving) and Shawn C. Phillips (Amityville Karen) co-direct from a script they wrote with Julie Anne Prescott.
In the movie, after discovering an ominous shark idol hidden beneath the decaying floorboards, Richard unknowingly awakens an ancient and savage force. As the entity begins to merge with him, a quiet coastal town descends into blood-soaked chaos.
With each victim claimed, the monstrous predator grows stronger, fueling a cult’s belief that their dark god has been reborn. Now, the race is on to stop the carnage before evil consumes everything in its path.
Phillips and Prescott also star alongside Tasha Tacosa, Maritza Brikisak, Gigi Gustin (The Retaliators), Adam Marino, and Carl Solomon.
Available on Digital, Blu-ray, and DVD as of June 30 is Jacked, directed by John Fucile from a script he co-wrote with Simon Fraser.
The synopsis: “Set in the summer of 1987, JACKED follows two small-town teenagers whose day at the lake turns into a fight for survival after their car breaks down and they encounter a violent stalker.”
Marla Jean Robison, Tom Koch, Anthony Cipriani, Wynn Reichert, Kam Perez and Bella Marie star.
Get ready to work up a killer sweat and maybe spill some blood with Slashercise, a workout meets slasher hybrid that arrived exclusively on Bloodstream on July 1.
Written and directed by Ama Lea (Deathcember), the retro-styled feature follows “a masked killer known only as Meathead as he stalks the fitness clubs of Los Angeles, turning workout sessions into blood-soaked nightmares. As the city’s top trainers are picked off one by one, a group of determined fitness fanatics must fight back before they become the next bodies on the mat.”
Vanessa Decker (Stiletto), John Bloom (The Last Drive-In With Joe Bob Briggs), Spencer Charnas (Ice Nine Kills), Sarah French (Blind), Kelli Maroney (Night of the Comet), Sarah Nicklin (V/H/S/Halloween), Diana Prince (The Last Drive-In With Joe Bob Briggs), Jared Rivet (The Once and Future Smash), Felissa Rose (Sleepaway Camp), Tiffany Shepis (Victor Crowley), and Lisa Wilcox (A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master) star.
After a record-breaking box office run, A24 and director Kane Parsons’ feature debut is heading back to theaters with bonus footage. AMC Theatres is unleashing Backrooms: Everything Must Go Editiontoday, July 3.
In the film written by Will Soodik, the owner of Cap’n Clark’s Ottoman Empire discovers a strange doorway in the basement of the furniture showroom. He sets out to explore the mysterious, liminal space, walking headfirst into a creepypasta nightmare.
Chiwetel Ejiofor and Renate Reinsvestar.
AMC describes this release as a “theatrically exclusive post-credit” with additional footage from Kane Parsons. Expect 16 minutes of bonus footage, with the new version clocking in at 2 hours and 6 minutes.
The Last Exorcism director Daniel Stamm and Dark Castle Entertainment are back with Lockbox, in select theaters July 3. It adapts Soren Narnia‘s Knifepoint Horror Podcast story “Winthrop” by Emmy-winning playwright Justin Yoffe.
In Lockbox, “Seeking peace after her mother’s death, Ellen retreats to a rural town and takes in her severely traumatized cousin Winthrop. Their fragile domestic balance shatters when an erratic neighbor warns that Winthrop is dangerous. As strange phenomena escalate, Ellen must put everything on the line to defend Winthrop from a dangerous otherworldly entity determined to track him down.”
Lou Taylor Pucci (Touch Me, Evil Dead), Carla Gugino (The Haunting of Hill House, Gerald’s Game, The Fall of the House of Usher) and Katharine Isabelle (Ginger Snaps, Backrooms) star.
This week’s new release roundups are presented by Lockbox.
Be careful who you let in. Carla Gugino and Lou Taylor Pucci star in Lockbox, only in select theaters this Friday. Get tickets.
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