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3.62 AVERAGE
3.62 AVERAGE
dark
This is a great collection with gems like "The Grave" by P. D. Cacek, "Elsewhere" by William Peter Blatty and runs through shades and variations of horror from the creeping un-reality of "Rehearsals" by Thomas F. Monteleone to the humorous "Catfish Gal Blues" by Nancy A. Collins. I originally read parts of this for school, but it's a keeper!
Not, IMO, as good as the short story collection Story, but nearly. Some of the horror tales have aged poorly. I thought Kim Newman's "Amerikanski Dead" was especially brilliant.
I was surprised how many good stories were in this anthology. There was only one I skipped to the end of and a few I was sad were over so quickly. I was also very surprised how old this book is, it wasn't at all dated and I only found out it was older because there was a millennium story (that was .such more than a millennium story) about halfway through the book and I wanted to see when it was written. The only story I had read before was the King one, Road Virus (or something close to that title.)
I had a really tough time getting through this book. I thought it might have been just the fact that I was only reading it at work that might have been slowing me down, but even when I read at home, i realized that all of the stories seemed very similar. Only one or two of them really had me creeped out, the rest just had me thinking "Okay, what's so scary about that?"
Maybe it's due to the fact that I don't read much horror or suspense, but I wanted to at least try and branch out a little. Now I've reaffirmed that it's not really my type of reading material and I'm ok with that.
Maybe it's due to the fact that I don't read much horror or suspense, but I wanted to at least try and branch out a little. Now I've reaffirmed that it's not really my type of reading material and I'm ok with that.
some stories were better than others—as expected in an anthology—but overall i thought it was pretty good
While there are a few duds in this anthology, the good stories more than make up for any duds.
This was a tough one to get through.
I appreciate now, why horror-anthology readers were quick to give this book one or two star at best over at Amazon; it’s not what I’d call a “horror anthology” nor is there much in the way of suspense, but the marketing and the title itself suggests otherwise.
This book is more a ‘weird tales with interesting characters’.
I get it - the editor was obviously going for the same readers that made Hitchcock suspense anthologies so popular...but most of the stories here lack that suspensful punch.
A few of the stories do stand out: Newman’s zombie tale Amerikanski Dead at the Moscow Morgue, Carol-Oates The Ruins of Contracoeur, Gaiman’s Keepsakes and Treasures, and King’s ode to the Night Gallery tale about the painting that stalks…The Road Virus Heads North. The standouts for me: Disch’s The Owl and the Pussycat, Wilson’s Good Friday, and Williamson’s Records of the New Zodiac…
I gave up reading once I hit Lustbader’s story. I skipped to the next and found that lacking as well. >_< I think I’ll try and get the rest of these read but at this point, I can’t give it anything higher than a two-star.
Poorly marketed and converted (this book is loaded with common digital conversion errors that appear to be spelling errors to the untrained eye), and overreach on the editor’s part (I don’t need to read the editors thoughts at the beginning and end, and before every story.) This is a book that, if priced at $5 or less might earn it an extra star, but sadly the publisher sets the price—the same publisher that aimed for an audience familiar with the authors involved--but failed to deliver what that audience actually desires to read.
I appreciate now, why horror-anthology readers were quick to give this book one or two star at best over at Amazon; it’s not what I’d call a “horror anthology” nor is there much in the way of suspense, but the marketing and the title itself suggests otherwise.
This book is more a ‘weird tales with interesting characters’.
I get it - the editor was obviously going for the same readers that made Hitchcock suspense anthologies so popular...but most of the stories here lack that suspensful punch.
A few of the stories do stand out: Newman’s zombie tale Amerikanski Dead at the Moscow Morgue, Carol-Oates The Ruins of Contracoeur, Gaiman’s Keepsakes and Treasures, and King’s ode to the Night Gallery tale about the painting that stalks…The Road Virus Heads North. The standouts for me: Disch’s The Owl and the Pussycat, Wilson’s Good Friday, and Williamson’s Records of the New Zodiac…
I gave up reading once I hit Lustbader’s story. I skipped to the next and found that lacking as well. >_< I think I’ll try and get the rest of these read but at this point, I can’t give it anything higher than a two-star.
Poorly marketed and converted (this book is loaded with common digital conversion errors that appear to be spelling errors to the untrained eye), and overreach on the editor’s part (I don’t need to read the editors thoughts at the beginning and end, and before every story.) This is a book that, if priced at $5 or less might earn it an extra star, but sadly the publisher sets the price—the same publisher that aimed for an audience familiar with the authors involved--but failed to deliver what that audience actually desires to read.
I always have a hard time reviewing anthologies, at least when they are by multiple authors. I kind of feel like unless I rate each individual story, it doesn't really matter. I mean, my review is basically always gonna be the same unless an anthology totally sucks or every story is awesome. "Some stories were good, some just didn't keep my attention." I guess I could call out some stories that I liked, such as (of course) Neil's "Keepsakes & Treasures," Joe R. Landsdale's "Mad Dog Summer," Nancy A. Collins' "Catfish Gal Blues," etc., but it doesn't really matter unless you are the type to buy or check out an anthology just because somebody said they liked one story in it.
Anyway, it was good. Some of the stories were good, some just didn't keep my attention.
Anyway, it was good. Some of the stories were good, some just didn't keep my attention.