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bookstarreviews_'s review
3.0
3⭐️
I really liked this collection of short stories which featured lots of weird and wonderful things such as Christmas spirits, candles, Santa on the naughty list, Coca Cola Christmas truck revenge, Santa’s workers reducing the population, Christmas ghost stories, parental desperation, and strange Christmas apparitions.
Here are a few of my favourites:
❄️Christmas Eve ~ this short story contained an unexpected and clever twist that I did not see coming about a delivery man on his rounds before Christmas.
❄️The Advent of Father Hirst ~ the whole story based on keeping candles lit was intriguing and served as a good read.
❄️Santa’s Gift ~ this one was comical and I could really picture it in my head as Santa is in the little girl’s bad books for not bringing what she wanted.
❄️White Oleanders ~ this read was a little more gruesome and featured two couples who’s festive holiday was upturned by a Coca Cola Christmas Truck out for revenge.
❄️The Christmas Miracle ~ this was the most heartbreaking of them all and was based on parental desperation and the things you would do to save your child. This read was insanely clever!
❄️Down the Bizarro Watering Hole ~ this was another great read and reminded me of a modern Scrooge, with alcohol, apparitions and a great underlying message.
I enjoyed these reads, but definitely preferred the Pumpkin Edition more!
⚠️ Please check out the trigger warnings! ⚠️
I really liked this collection of short stories which featured lots of weird and wonderful things such as Christmas spirits, candles, Santa on the naughty list, Coca Cola Christmas truck revenge, Santa’s workers reducing the population, Christmas ghost stories, parental desperation, and strange Christmas apparitions.
Here are a few of my favourites:
❄️Christmas Eve ~ this short story contained an unexpected and clever twist that I did not see coming about a delivery man on his rounds before Christmas.
❄️The Advent of Father Hirst ~ the whole story based on keeping candles lit was intriguing and served as a good read.
❄️Santa’s Gift ~ this one was comical and I could really picture it in my head as Santa is in the little girl’s bad books for not bringing what she wanted.
❄️White Oleanders ~ this read was a little more gruesome and featured two couples who’s festive holiday was upturned by a Coca Cola Christmas Truck out for revenge.
❄️The Christmas Miracle ~ this was the most heartbreaking of them all and was based on parental desperation and the things you would do to save your child. This read was insanely clever!
❄️Down the Bizarro Watering Hole ~ this was another great read and reminded me of a modern Scrooge, with alcohol, apparitions and a great underlying message.
I enjoyed these reads, but definitely preferred the Pumpkin Edition more!
⚠️ Please check out the trigger warnings! ⚠️
biteintobooks's review against another edition
4.0
Thanks to the author for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
One of the most fun things I do, during my reading year, is reading the Short Story Collections by Kevin J. Kennedy during the time of year they are set in. It was such a blast to read these Horror stories during Christmas.
A longer review can be found at BiteIntoBooks
'm glad that I have a lot more short story books by this author on my TBR, so you can expect more reviews to come for his books!
I feel like this is one of the collections, so far, that had the most variety in stories. I've read two other Christmas Collections and I remember writing in my review that some of the stories felt the same. I did not feel like that at all with this collection.
One of the most fun things I do, during my reading year, is reading the Short Story Collections by Kevin J. Kennedy during the time of year they are set in. It was such a blast to read these Horror stories during Christmas.
A longer review can be found at BiteIntoBooks
'm glad that I have a lot more short story books by this author on my TBR, so you can expect more reviews to come for his books!
I feel like this is one of the collections, so far, that had the most variety in stories. I've read two other Christmas Collections and I remember writing in my review that some of the stories felt the same. I did not feel like that at all with this collection.
tfabers's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
tastybourbon's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
ericarobyn's review against another edition
5.0
The Horror Collection: White Edition by Kevin J. Kennedy is the perfect read for fans of horror and the Christmas holiday.
I mean... Christmas and Horror?! Come on. Sign me up!!
Full disclosure: I was given a free copy of this book by the author in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my rating in any way.
From paranormal-themed-spooky to real world terror, and from eerily creepy to horrifyingly gruesome, this collection has quite the variety of tales!
Each tale in this collection was wonderfully written and perfectly horrific. I just couldn’t get enough!
Per usual, here are my quick reactions and rating breakdowns for each story:
‘Twas the Night Before Yuletide by James Matthew Byers – 4/5
What a way to kick off the collection! This poem was a trip with an intense ending!
Christmas Eve by Mark Tufo – 5/5
Oh my gosh, I loved this one so much! Poor Devan… What a crazy tale, but so wonderful. I also loved the idea of Karma being an individual! That could certainly be another story itself!
The Advent of Father Hirst by Lex H Jones – 4/5
Eek! How scary! This story really came alive! With how well this one was written, I could imagine it all happening very vividly. I actually found myself picturing the church in my hometown that I would go to for bible school. Phew, I haven’t thought of the inside of that place in ages.
Santa’s Claws by Mark Allan Gunnells – 5/5
Spooky!! This takes the creep factor up a notch!
Santa’s Gift by Mark Allan Gunnells – 5/5
YIKES! What a little terror Susie is. What an ending!
White Oleanders by Steven Stacy – 4/5
Oooh! Take a bit of Christine by Stephen King, mix it with a bit of No Exit by Taylor Adams, then add a dash of Final Destination and you’ve got this tale! This was so terrifying and so wonderfully done!
Santa’s Elite by Mark Cassell – 4/5
Woah! What an interesting and spooky idea! Using the bits of ribbon to cut down on the population is such a terrifying idea!
A Christmas Story, 1985 by Amy Cross – 4/5
What an awesome ghost story!! I loved that it was centered around story telling! I wonder what the mans story would be about next year…
The Christmas Miracle by Chris Miller – 5/5
Oofh. The most horrifying tales are the ones that hit you with a gut punch. So heartbreaking but so wonderfully done.
Down the Bizarro Watering Hole by Kevin J Kennedy – 5/5
Woah!! This one was nuts! I loved the theme and the overall message. I hope everything worked out!!
My Final Thoughts:
I’m SO excited that this book was my first holiday themed read of the year. It was so much fun to read. I ended up forcing myself to put it down simply so I could drag it out a bit. I easily could have read straight through…
This collection certainly set the bar high for the rest of my holiday reads this year!
I cannot recommend this one highly enough to fans of horror, especially fans of holiday themed horror. Enjoy!
I mean... Christmas and Horror?! Come on. Sign me up!!
Full disclosure: I was given a free copy of this book by the author in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my rating in any way.
From paranormal-themed-spooky to real world terror, and from eerily creepy to horrifyingly gruesome, this collection has quite the variety of tales!
Each tale in this collection was wonderfully written and perfectly horrific. I just couldn’t get enough!
Per usual, here are my quick reactions and rating breakdowns for each story:
‘Twas the Night Before Yuletide by James Matthew Byers – 4/5
What a way to kick off the collection! This poem was a trip with an intense ending!
Christmas Eve by Mark Tufo – 5/5
Oh my gosh, I loved this one so much! Poor Devan… What a crazy tale, but so wonderful. I also loved the idea of Karma being an individual! That could certainly be another story itself!
The Advent of Father Hirst by Lex H Jones – 4/5
Eek! How scary! This story really came alive! With how well this one was written, I could imagine it all happening very vividly. I actually found myself picturing the church in my hometown that I would go to for bible school. Phew, I haven’t thought of the inside of that place in ages.
Santa’s Claws by Mark Allan Gunnells – 5/5
Spooky!! This takes the creep factor up a notch!
Santa’s Gift by Mark Allan Gunnells – 5/5
YIKES! What a little terror Susie is. What an ending!
White Oleanders by Steven Stacy – 4/5
Oooh! Take a bit of Christine by Stephen King, mix it with a bit of No Exit by Taylor Adams, then add a dash of Final Destination and you’ve got this tale! This was so terrifying and so wonderfully done!
Santa’s Elite by Mark Cassell – 4/5
Woah! What an interesting and spooky idea! Using the bits of ribbon to cut down on the population is such a terrifying idea!
A Christmas Story, 1985 by Amy Cross – 4/5
What an awesome ghost story!! I loved that it was centered around story telling! I wonder what the mans story would be about next year…
The Christmas Miracle by Chris Miller – 5/5
Oofh. The most horrifying tales are the ones that hit you with a gut punch. So heartbreaking but so wonderfully done.
Down the Bizarro Watering Hole by Kevin J Kennedy – 5/5
Woah!! This one was nuts! I loved the theme and the overall message. I hope everything worked out!!
My Final Thoughts:
I’m SO excited that this book was my first holiday themed read of the year. It was so much fun to read. I ended up forcing myself to put it down simply so I could drag it out a bit. I easily could have read straight through…
This collection certainly set the bar high for the rest of my holiday reads this year!
I cannot recommend this one highly enough to fans of horror, especially fans of holiday themed horror. Enjoy!
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