Reviews

Afraid of the Shadows: An Anthology of Crime Stories by Peter James, Phoebe Morgan, Kate Simants, Adam Southward, T.M. Logan, Victoria Selman, Trevor Wood, M.W. Craven, Elle Croft, Matt Wesolowski

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txa1265's review against another edition

4.0

This is a fun collection I bought to support charity and as a fan of TE Kinsey, who had a story in the collection.

I've read a couple of 'classic Russian short story' collections this year including George Saunders' "A Swim in the Pond in the Rain" which has great stories and thorough analysis - and you won't confuse these stories with the all time greats ... but they are fun and well done and most are quite solid.

There are some of uneven quality, some where the ideas feel half-baked where it is more like "words wrapped around an intended effect" and one or two that didn't really grab me much at all. But overall I am happy to have found this collection, supporting the authors and the charity.

kellyvandamme's review against another edition

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5.0

A brilliant collection!

ellekreads's review against another edition

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dark mysterious fast-paced

3.75

lozababe's review against another edition

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dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? N/A
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.0

A collection of short stories from various different crime writers, all either set around Halloween or creepy enough to keep in with the Halloween theme.
Some were fantastically written, while others were not at all my cup of tea. Some I didn’t quite get the idea behind, while others I guessed pretty much straightaway. And that’s what is great about anthologies of short stories, there’s something for everyone, and you can’t like everything you read.
This anthology has definitely made me want to read more things by certain authors, and has especially made me want to read the Washington Poe series as I thought the writing was both funny as well as having the right amount of suspense for a crime read.
I haven’t read the other anthologies in this series, but I would be more open to reading them after this one, although it really would depend on which authors had written short stories for it as some of the stories on this collection missed the mark for me.

faysieh's review against another edition

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4.0

I have come to love anthologies of short stories and these are no exception. All different, some haunting, some scary, some funny and only one which I found so gross it turned my stomach. A great collection for some seasonal spookiness, raising money for Barnados.
Ideal if you do not get much of a chance to read as you can read a complete story very quickly as well as discovering how clever these authors are to produce whole stories with far less than 400 pages each!

laurahastoomanywips's review against another edition

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5.0

Another great anthology from this writer's collective & the guest writer's who joined them for this book. I had pre-ordered this before I found out it was being serialised on the Pigeonhole after enjoying the previous two books on there.
This collection didn't disappoint, every story was of a high caliber. They were a mix of creepy (as expected being the Halloween edition) and/or thought-provoking.
Bonus that this anthology is for charity (Barnardo's)
Highly recommended.
With thanks to the authors and The Pigeonhole for the opportunity.

karlamcclatchey's review against another edition

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3.0

3.5 stars. A great read to get you in the mood for Halloween. A real mix of stories; some spooky and some that made me laugh a little. A few had more of YA feel about them. It is great to find a renage of authors and short stories all in one anthology and even better when profits feed into charity. #thepigeonholehq