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NORTHAMPTON, Pa., Oct. 20, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Pushcart Prize-nominated Lehigh Valley fiction writer, pop culture podcaster, and former\u00a0Newsday<\/em> reporter Suzanne Mattaboni today announces the launch of her newest book, Gore, Lust & Kin<\/em>, a collection of \u201cdelightfully unhinged\u201d and \u201cunflinching\u201d short fiction. The book explores feminist themes through a unique combination of alarming body horror, heartfelt introspection, and an ironic examination of dysfunctional relationships. It\u2019s now available on Amazon<\/a>, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Bookshop.org<\/a> and other booksellers.<\/p>\n Called “Bloody, provocative, chaotic, and wonderfully unhinged” in early reviews, the collection is organized into three parts. Gore<\/em> covers horror stories, Lust<\/em> tells tales of bad romance, and Kin<\/em> examines familial ties. Yet all explore a common theme of young women yearning for some other life, homesick for a stability and peace of mind they haven\u2019t yet built for themselves. The book\u2019s cast of women (and a few guys) are on the edge of either finding themselves or destroying themselves.<\/p>\n \u201cAmbitious women tend to exist on the ledge of a world they imagine is just beyond their fingertips\u2014if they could only land that great job, charm that enigmatic guy, or crash that infamous party,\u201d Mattaboni said about the women who populate her work. \u201cMy characters dwell in circumstances that make them wonder how they got there, and leave them squinting for the neon exit sign. Eventually they realize there\u2019s no man or shift dress or job listing that will get them to that next existential rung. They have to depend on their own resources.\u201d<\/p>\n Published by Madville Publishing of Dallas, TX, the work touches on provocative subject matter that mainstream publishers tend to shy away from, attempting instead to explore and exorcize the figurative and emotional demons that haunt human beings in their search for love, satisfaction, and their better selves.<\/p>\n \u201cSuzanne taps into the anxiety of women as they scratch away the barriers that limit them,\u201d said Kim Davis, president at Madville Publishing. \u201cAlthough it\u2019s got plenty of literal gut-wrenching moments, this book reminds readers that horror doesn’t always come in the form of monsters in the shadows.\u201d Sometimes the most frightening things in life are desire, resentment, isolation, family obligations, and the versions of ourselves we become when we\u2019re pushed too far.<\/p>\n Launch Run-Up Events<\/strong><\/p>\n Mattaboni has been busy throughout the Lehigh Valley region, online, and beyond. She appeared at the Bethlehem WitchFest on October 3, and her essay \u201cHow to Kill a Hip Thrusting Frankenstein<\/a>\u201d is featured in the Horror Writer Association\u2019s HALLOWEEN HAUNTS October blog series. She hosted the panel \u201cDefending Authentic Women in Our Books\u201d on 10\/18 with four other Lehigh Valley and Philadelphia-area authors who tackle controversial subject matter, part of the week-long Easton Book Festival. She\u2019ll be one of eight authors at the 2<\/a>nd<\/sup><\/a> & Charles Book Store\u2019s Halloween event<\/a>, Whitehall, PA on 10\/31, and will read at the Ink & Anchors Chesapeake <\/a>literary event<\/a> in Maryland November 13.<\/p>\n Suzanne is also a pop culture podcaster, cohosting the \u201cGenX Book Club<\/a>\u201d series on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify, part of the popular GenX Journeys platform with Return to the \u201880s\u2019 Paul Stroessner, Jr. Mattaboni is currently competing in the second round of the Top Host podcaster competition, spearheaded by Ryan Seacrest and benefiting his charity foundation. She ranks #4 in her contestant group. Viewers can vote for her here<\/a> daily<\/a>.<\/a><\/p>\n ABOUT THE AUTHOR<\/strong><\/p>\n Suzanne Mattaboni<\/strong><\/a> is an award-winning author, Newsweek Experts Forum contributor and former community reporter for Newsday<\/em>. Her new short story collection, Gore, Lust & Kin<\/em>, is being called \u201cDeliciously wicked.\u201d Her debut novel Once In a Lifetime <\/em>won an IPPY independent book publisher\u2019s award, a PenCraft Book Award, and was an Eric Hoffer Award Finalist. Suzanne\u2019s work has appeared in Seventeen<\/em>, Parents<\/em>, Child<\/em>, The Huffington Post, Mysterious Ways<\/em>, Guideposts<\/em>, the Chicken Soup for the Soul <\/em>series, and the 2026 White Winged Doves <\/em>Stevie Nicks-themed poetry anthology. <\/em>Suzanne was named one of the Lehigh Valley Business Journal\u2019s \u201c2022 Women of Influence\u201d and has won literary contests with Seventeen<\/em> magazine, Writers Digest<\/em>, New York\u2019s Gotham Writers, and the New York Council of Teachers of English. She is available for interviews, articles, guest posts, Q&As, and commentary.<\/p>\n Reviews for <\/strong>Gore, Lust & Kin<\/em><\/strong>:<\/strong><\/p>\n “Suzanne Mattaboni spins real magic with this collection of feminist tales. Daring, insightful, heartfelt, and unflinching. Highly recommended… but buckle up!”<\/p>\n \u2014Jonathan Maberry, Bram Stoker Lifetime Achievement Award winner; New York Times bestselling author of Netflix\u2019s V Wars, NecroTek<\/em>, Ink, <\/em>and Ghost of the Void<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cMattaboni shocks, dazzles, moves, and illuminates shadowy depths\u2026 The messy anxieties of the characters \u2026 are matched by the brisk confidence of the storytelling.\u201d \u00a0\u00a0 \u2014BookLife \u201cEditor\u2019s Pick\u201d Lightning Review<\/p>\n \u201cGore, Lust & Kin<\/em> is delicious and dark in the best ways possible. I like my fiction off-center, strange, and original, and this collection was a breath of fresh air. If you like to keep guessing during a story, and you aren’t afraid of fiction veering into unexpected territory, then get comfy and read this book now.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0 \u2014Chuck Sambuchino, former Writers Digest<\/em> editor; executive director, Writing Day Workshops<\/p>\n An “entertaining collection that oscillates between light and dark, realism and feminist fable…the collection unfolds breathlessly.”<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0 \u2014Kirkus Reviews<\/p>\n Additional Assets: <\/strong><\/p>\n Amazon buy<\/a> link<\/u><\/p>\n Headshot, Launch Activities, Etc.<\/a><\/p>\n Full BookLife Editor\u2019s Pick Lightning Review: \u201cA\u201d Rating <\/a><\/p>\n www.suzannemattaboni.com<\/a><\/p>\n https:\/\/www.suzannemattaboni.com\/gorelustkin<\/a><\/p>\n NetGalley listing<\/a><\/p>\n Edelweiss listing<\/a><\/p>\n GenX Journeys<\/a><\/p>\n Digital review copies of Gore, Lust & Kin<\/em> are available on NetGalley until 11\/10, or upon request.<\/p>\n CONTACT: <\/strong>
\u00a0\u00a0 Take away: \u201cSharp, playful, sometimes shocking stories of women, bodies, and life.\u201d<\/p>\n
suzanne@mattaboni.com<\/a>
610 737-2140<\/p>\n