Scan barcode
jaclyn_sixminutesforme's review
2.0
🌟🌟 💫 This was a collection of hit and miss stories (mostly miss), and for me the majority just didn’t hit the mark - as a disclaimer, horror is not a genre I typically read.
I did find a few stories that I quite enjoyed:
- The Dust by William Stuart (which is also the story closest in plot to Houston and Hurricane Harvey - and I thought the concept of the dust was quite quirky and original);
- In The Shadow of the Equine by Kenneth W. Cain (this legitimately creeped me out and the ending was pretty epic! I liked that it still left you wondering a bit though!);
- The Last Wish of Seymour Moss by Robert Freese (I thought this was a unique take on what could have been a predictable genie narrative);
- High Tide Coming by Kenneth C Goldman (while i didn’t like the ending and think it would have been more effective without the final section, I liked the pacing of this one)
I did bear in mind that this collection was compiled within two weeks in order to raise funds for the Hurricane Harvey victims, and the editors are to commended for the effort. However, there were a few formatting/editing issues that i think are worth pointing out (in case edits can be made to a future edition)... the title page for many of the stories has the incorrect header. Also, The Soul Fish by Jeffrey B Burton just ends mid sentence (a friend who I buddy read this with was advised it was a print error when she inquired about it...) which kind of ruined the experience of that story not knowing how it ended!
I did find a few stories that I quite enjoyed:
- The Dust by William Stuart (which is also the story closest in plot to Houston and Hurricane Harvey - and I thought the concept of the dust was quite quirky and original);
- In The Shadow of the Equine by Kenneth W. Cain (this legitimately creeped me out and the ending was pretty epic! I liked that it still left you wondering a bit though!);
- The Last Wish of Seymour Moss by Robert Freese (I thought this was a unique take on what could have been a predictable genie narrative);
- High Tide Coming by Kenneth C Goldman (while i didn’t like the ending and think it would have been more effective without the final section, I liked the pacing of this one)
I did bear in mind that this collection was compiled within two weeks in order to raise funds for the Hurricane Harvey victims, and the editors are to commended for the effort. However, there were a few formatting/editing issues that i think are worth pointing out (in case edits can be made to a future edition)... the title page for many of the stories has the incorrect header. Also, The Soul Fish by Jeffrey B Burton just ends mid sentence (a friend who I buddy read this with was advised it was a print error when she inquired about it...) which kind of ruined the experience of that story not knowing how it ended!
exorcismofemilyreed's review against another edition
3.0
Hydrophobia is a charity anthology from Stitched Smile - the proceeds from this book go to Hurricane Harvey victims. I'm from Houston, so I had to order this book as soon as I heard about it.
The anthology was put together in about 2 weeks in order to be able to raise money. I truly admire the authors who donated their stories to this collection in order to help my city.
However, as a book reviewer, I just didn't love this anthology. My biggest issue was that one of the stories was unfinished. It just ended in the middle of a sentence, and I was actually curious to find out what happened. I contacted the publishing company & was told that it was a printing error. There were a couple other minor errors, but that was the big frustrated one. I just feel bad for complaining about this when it's a charity anthology.
The stories in this book were hit or miss for me (and there were a few more misses than I expected, but it is a longer anthology). My top 5 were The Dust - William Stuart, In the Shadow of the Equine - Kenneth W. Caine, Hydrophobia - Shemeeka Howard (based screenplay by Chris Courtney Martin), and What Storms Bring - KC Griffant. These were amazing stories, and I was introduced to quite a few new authors from this anthology.
Thank you so much to Stiched Smile & the authors for supporting my city.
The anthology was put together in about 2 weeks in order to be able to raise money. I truly admire the authors who donated their stories to this collection in order to help my city.
However, as a book reviewer, I just didn't love this anthology. My biggest issue was that one of the stories was unfinished. It just ended in the middle of a sentence, and I was actually curious to find out what happened. I contacted the publishing company & was told that it was a printing error. There were a couple other minor errors, but that was the big frustrated one. I just feel bad for complaining about this when it's a charity anthology.
The stories in this book were hit or miss for me (and there were a few more misses than I expected, but it is a longer anthology). My top 5 were The Dust - William Stuart, In the Shadow of the Equine - Kenneth W. Caine, Hydrophobia - Shemeeka Howard (based screenplay by Chris Courtney Martin), and What Storms Bring - KC Griffant. These were amazing stories, and I was introduced to quite a few new authors from this anthology.
Thank you so much to Stiched Smile & the authors for supporting my city.
More...