A review by vondav
Gutted: Beautiful Horror Stories by Ramsey Campbell, Neil Gaiman, Clive Barker
5.0
What can I say about this book, 15 short stories and a poem makes this book a great read.
Every story was different but what each one had in common was the way they were all beautifully written, the words just flowed to make such great stories. Like everyone who reads a collection of short stories I did have my favourites but I enjoyed reading every one of them and there was not a single one that I did not enjoy.
I will just mention the ones I enjoyed the most.
Arbeit Macht Frei by Lisa Mannetti. Eligia is remembering her time in a Nazi run concentration camp. This story shows that not all horror stories involve paranormal monsters, but human beings are as evil. Reading this gave me the shivers, we have all heard what happened to people in these camps, but the way it was written from a child’s POV made this more real.
Picking Splinters from a Sex Slave by Brian Kirk. Most of us have heard on the news of young girls that have been found after being abducted years before, but we never hear about the recovery period. This story is about the after effects of Meagan’s abduction and what lengths her dad has to go through to help her recovery. This would be any parent’s nightmare and as a mom of a daughter I don’t know if I could do what her dad did.
Water Thy Bones by Mercedes M Yardley. This story easily explains that beauty is not skin deep. Two troubled people meet up, Michael with a fascination of bones and Nikilie who wants someone to love her not just for her beauty on the outside. This story was so tastefully written, that I had tears in my eyes at the end of the story and even though you did not expect it, it was a beautiful ending.
On the other side of the door, everything changes by Damien Angelica Walters. A very topical story thanks to the popularity of social media. I have been lucky that I have never had to have a conversation with my teenagers on the other side of the door, but my heart went out to the mom wanting to know what is wrong and trying to find the right words. Both my teenagers understand Cyber bullying and the consequences but this story really explained it in such a dramatic way. I would get every child who delves in to social media to read this story as I think that it would stop a lot of them making the mistake of posting pictures.
When we all meet at the Ofrenda by Kevin Lucia. Day of the dead is a special holiday to celebrate the lives of your deceased loved ones, but for Whitey, this one was the first one he celebrated without his wife. This story was heart breaking and you could sense Whitey’s loses. What you don’t expect is the involvement of his sons. That is all I am saying
What has not been mentioned is the beautiful artwork from the cover to the pictures that accompanies each story. A great book and although I have read a couple of the author’s other books there are now more authors for me to look out for
Every story was different but what each one had in common was the way they were all beautifully written, the words just flowed to make such great stories. Like everyone who reads a collection of short stories I did have my favourites but I enjoyed reading every one of them and there was not a single one that I did not enjoy.
I will just mention the ones I enjoyed the most.
Arbeit Macht Frei by Lisa Mannetti. Eligia is remembering her time in a Nazi run concentration camp. This story shows that not all horror stories involve paranormal monsters, but human beings are as evil. Reading this gave me the shivers, we have all heard what happened to people in these camps, but the way it was written from a child’s POV made this more real.
Picking Splinters from a Sex Slave by Brian Kirk. Most of us have heard on the news of young girls that have been found after being abducted years before, but we never hear about the recovery period. This story is about the after effects of Meagan’s abduction and what lengths her dad has to go through to help her recovery. This would be any parent’s nightmare and as a mom of a daughter I don’t know if I could do what her dad did.
Water Thy Bones by Mercedes M Yardley. This story easily explains that beauty is not skin deep. Two troubled people meet up, Michael with a fascination of bones and Nikilie who wants someone to love her not just for her beauty on the outside. This story was so tastefully written, that I had tears in my eyes at the end of the story and even though you did not expect it, it was a beautiful ending.
On the other side of the door, everything changes by Damien Angelica Walters. A very topical story thanks to the popularity of social media. I have been lucky that I have never had to have a conversation with my teenagers on the other side of the door, but my heart went out to the mom wanting to know what is wrong and trying to find the right words. Both my teenagers understand Cyber bullying and the consequences but this story really explained it in such a dramatic way. I would get every child who delves in to social media to read this story as I think that it would stop a lot of them making the mistake of posting pictures.
When we all meet at the Ofrenda by Kevin Lucia. Day of the dead is a special holiday to celebrate the lives of your deceased loved ones, but for Whitey, this one was the first one he celebrated without his wife. This story was heart breaking and you could sense Whitey’s loses. What you don’t expect is the involvement of his sons. That is all I am saying
What has not been mentioned is the beautiful artwork from the cover to the pictures that accompanies each story. A great book and although I have read a couple of the author’s other books there are now more authors for me to look out for