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onewingedpsycho's review against another edition
4.0
This has some absolutely excellent short stories in not all of which are blatantly horror but a rather strong stomach is required to get past the first story which does involve a form of bestiality.
The final story by M.R Carey is however brilliant and really the sort of thing to stop you sleeping at night.
Of course some stories were a tad mediocre but this being a short story collection it's easy enough to flip past the ones that aren't holding your interest or even just plow through them as none are more than 20 minutes reading long.
The final story by M.R Carey is however brilliant and really the sort of thing to stop you sleeping at night.
Of course some stories were a tad mediocre but this being a short story collection it's easy enough to flip past the ones that aren't holding your interest or even just plow through them as none are more than 20 minutes reading long.
alexcanread's review against another edition
1.0
TW: bestiality, rape
I have to seriously question the thought process of Christopher Golden in choosing to put The Dogs as the first story in this anthology. I question why it was even included in the anthology, but if it were to be included, it should not have been the first story. Yes, this is a horror anthology, but that story alone made me put the book down and walk away. It took me over a week to talk myself into picking it up again to skip to the short stories from authors I already know I like/trust. Why? Because The Dogs features a very graphic bestiality/rape scene. I was suspicious of the story as soon as the MC was revealed to be a sort-of sex worker. I should have stopped reading then. The first story in an anthology sets the tone, and the tone The Dogs set was unpalatable.
I skipped forward. The short story Dear Diary was good. Amber Benson's entry was interesting but very short. Seanan McGuire's story was creepy and sad. I did not read the other stories in this anthology, especially Golden's own, because I couldn't trust that the other authors wouldn't cross lines I am uncomfortable with, and in putting The Dogs first, Golden showed me that I can't trust him. This may be a shame. I may be missing out on some excellent short stories by other authors in this collection. I'll never know.
I have to seriously question the thought process of Christopher Golden in choosing to put The Dogs as the first story in this anthology. I question why it was even included in the anthology, but if it were to be included, it should not have been the first story. Yes, this is a horror anthology, but that story alone made me put the book down and walk away. It took me over a week to talk myself into picking it up again to skip to the short stories from authors I already know I like/trust. Why? Because The Dogs features a very graphic bestiality/rape scene. I was suspicious of the story as soon as the MC was revealed to be a sort-of sex worker. I should have stopped reading then. The first story in an anthology sets the tone, and the tone The Dogs set was unpalatable.
I skipped forward. The short story Dear Diary was good. Amber Benson's entry was interesting but very short. Seanan McGuire's story was creepy and sad. I did not read the other stories in this anthology, especially Golden's own, because I couldn't trust that the other authors wouldn't cross lines I am uncomfortable with, and in putting The Dogs first, Golden showed me that I can't trust him. This may be a shame. I may be missing out on some excellent short stories by other authors in this collection. I'll never know.
alanbaxter's review against another edition
4.0
This anthology plays with a great theme and has some cracking stories in it. Not all of them worked for me, a couple of real misses, though taste is arbitrary, of course. But the good ones are outstanding and make the cover price worthwhile. Standouts for me included stories by Nathan Ballingrud, Cherie Priest, Paul Tremblay and Christopher Golden. I'm always leery of an editor including a story in their own anthology, but Golden's is one of the best in this book. Dark, urban, gritty, noirish horror of every kind, I really enjoyed this book.
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