A review by blreed
Doorbells at Dusk, by Evans Light, Gregor Xane, Jason Parent
dark
tense
medium-paced
3.75
Spookytime short stories!
The tales included here run the gamut from spooky fantasy to no-holds-barred gore. While every story won't be for everyone, this collection definitely offers something for every horror reader. Kind of like a trick-or-treat haul: You might not like the licorice, but there's plenty of chocolate in the bag, too. Hell, some of these are so good they're full-sized bars.
Here are my favorites:
"The Rye-Mother" by Curtis M. Lawson
A Halloween changeling story? You can't strike any closer to my heart or my literary interests than this. Immediate seasonal classic for me, right up there with The Halloween Tree and The Graveyard Book.
"Rusty Husk" by Evans Light
Engages the senses in the beautiful-but-terrible way good horror should. Reading this gave me the same shivery, creeped-out kind of fear that I felt reading scary stories as a kid. And that assonance!
"Between" by Ian Welke
Beautiful, atmospheric, dark urban fantasy steeped in Los Angeles. I've never been there, but I found the theme of change almost uncannily relatable in light of when I read this story.
"Many Carvings" by Sean Eads and Joshua Viola
A vaguely historical, fantasy-tinged tale that went in a wildly different direction than I thought it would. It's fun to still see an evil witch crop up from time to time.
"Offerings" by Joanna Koch
The thought of suddenly becoming the caretaker of three demonic children? Panic-inducing.
"Masks" by Lisa Lepovetsky
Lepovetsky masterfully builds suspense in a way that kept me reading just to find out what was going on, which slyly mimics the Halloween party at which the story is set. It, too, culminates in a final unmasking. I love when the macabre and attention to form meld so well.
The tales included here run the gamut from spooky fantasy to no-holds-barred gore. While every story won't be for everyone, this collection definitely offers something for every horror reader. Kind of like a trick-or-treat haul: You might not like the licorice, but there's plenty of chocolate in the bag, too. Hell, some of these are so good they're full-sized bars.
Here are my favorites:
"The Rye-Mother" by Curtis M. Lawson
A Halloween changeling story? You can't strike any closer to my heart or my literary interests than this. Immediate seasonal classic for me, right up there with The Halloween Tree and The Graveyard Book.
"Rusty Husk" by Evans Light
Engages the senses in the beautiful-but-terrible way good horror should. Reading this gave me the same shivery, creeped-out kind of fear that I felt reading scary stories as a kid. And that assonance!
"Between" by Ian Welke
Beautiful, atmospheric, dark urban fantasy steeped in Los Angeles. I've never been there, but I found the theme of change almost uncannily relatable in light of when I read this story.
"Many Carvings" by Sean Eads and Joshua Viola
A vaguely historical, fantasy-tinged tale that went in a wildly different direction than I thought it would. It's fun to still see an evil witch crop up from time to time.
"Offerings" by Joanna Koch
The thought of suddenly becoming the caretaker of three demonic children? Panic-inducing.
"Masks" by Lisa Lepovetsky
Lepovetsky masterfully builds suspense in a way that kept me reading just to find out what was going on, which slyly mimics the Halloween party at which the story is set. It, too, culminates in a final unmasking. I love when the macabre and attention to form meld so well.