Reviews

This is my first horror anthology and I loved the experience of reading so many new and unique stories in such a short time. I've always avoided anthologies thinking that I wouldn't connect to the characters or the plot given the length of each story is so short but I was pleasantly surprised to enjoy this so much. Will definitely pick up more horror anthologies. Rating each story separately!

My Top 3 stories were - 1. Lost in the Dark by John Langan, 2. The Turn by Paul Kane, 3. Dirtmouth by Stephen Graham Jones

With Graveyard Weeds and Wolfbane Seeds by Seanan McGuire – 3.5 Stars (not scary at all but a good story!)

Dirtmouth by Stephen Graham Jones – 5 stars (awesome writing & narration. Loved the ending!)

A Small Taste of the Old Country by Jonathan Maberry - 1 Star (Meh! too long with nothing happening till the very end.)

Wick's End by Joanna Parypinski – 4 stars (Spooky one!)

The Seventeen Year Itch by Garth Nix – 5 stars (Unique and bizarre with an awesome ending!)

A Flicker of Light on Devil's Night by Kate Jonez – 1 star (Didn’t like!)

Witch-Hazel by Jeffrey Ford – 3 stars (an okay read!)

Nos Galen Gaeaf by Kelley Armstrong – 4 stars (Oh! That ending! Justice served. No offense to anyone but I’m Not really a fan of young adult characters in general with their immature problems and angst so not a 5-star read.)

We're Never Inviting Amber Again by S. P. Miskowski – 5 stars (a true gem really! Didn’t see that coming at all.)

Sisters by Brian Evenson – 4 stars (unique plot. loved the story. It reminded me of one of my all-time favorite animated movie Hotel Transylvania.)

All Through the Night by Elise Forier Edie – 3 stars (fey stories are often a miss for me so I wasn’t expecting much from this but I was pleasantly surprised by it.)

A Kingdom of Sugar Skulls and Marigolds by Eric J. Guignard – 5 stars (this was an emotional one for me which led me to shed a few tears too. Wasn’t expecting that! Though it wasn’t scary I still loved it because it shows that humans are the real monsters sometimes.)

The Turn by Paul Kane – 5 stars (what an awesome ending! double twist at the end which left me speechless. Instant 5 stars!)

Jack by Pat Cadigan – 4 stars (this was so entertaining and humorous.)

Lost in the Dark by John Langan – 5 stars (for me this was the absolute best of all the short stories in this anthology. Truly hats off! It has all my favorite horror tropes i.e., found footage, trapped in a dark cave, supernatural phenomenon.)

The First Lunar Halloween by John R. Little – 4 stars (this was another hit for me. I was loving this till the end but the unexplained ending left me wanting more.)

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