Scan barcode
filthymutt's review
4.0
Some of these stories were fantastic, while others dragged on quite a bit. While I did not find these particularly scary to the point where I had troubles sleeping, "The Girl Without A Face" was freaking horrifying!!! Overall, a fantastic collection of short stories. Some of these were not as well written as the others, but still well done.
4saradouglas's review
2.0
Just lame. The stories weren't scary, nothing was original or surprising... it's all just half-hearted retellings and ripoffs of things that have been done before.
steph01924's review
4.0
Short story anthologies are always a mixed bag for me, though I couldn't resist a horror-themed collection so close to Halloween. There were some interesting stories and some ho-hum ones, but overall I enjoyed this scary grab-bag. I also liked how each author let you know in the footnotes what book/movie inspired their ideas.
My Favorites
The Birds of Azalea Street
A handful of the stories--while still containing some supernatural elements, natch--were more about the ways that humans can hurt other humans, which can often be far more terrifying for that aspect of realism than if, say, a ghost or vampire was our main villain. This one stuck in my head.
Hide-And-Seek
Loved the idea behind this one. The setting really lent itself well to the story.
Verse Chorus Verse
This was one of the few where I would've wanted it to be longer. The ending felt abrupt and unfinished, too enigmatic where the rest of the story until that point was delightfully creepy and more straightforward. That nurse! I doubt there's many people who can pull off being that freaky while wearing purple Crocs!
Stitches
Possibly the most graphically gruesome to imagine, but also a really interesting and twisted story. This one was definitely my favorite out of all of them. The story was engaging from start to finish and had a solid narrative. Loved it!
My Favorites
The Birds of Azalea Street
A handful of the stories--while still containing some supernatural elements, natch--were more about the ways that humans can hurt other humans, which can often be far more terrifying for that aspect of realism than if, say, a ghost or vampire was our main villain. This one stuck in my head.
Hide-And-Seek
Loved the idea behind this one. The setting really lent itself well to the story.
Verse Chorus Verse
This was one of the few where I would've wanted it to be longer. The ending felt abrupt and unfinished, too enigmatic where the rest of the story until that point was delightfully creepy and more straightforward. That nurse! I doubt there's many people who can pull off being that freaky while wearing purple Crocs!
Stitches
Possibly the most graphically gruesome to imagine, but also a really interesting and twisted story. This one was definitely my favorite out of all of them. The story was engaging from start to finish and had a solid narrative. Loved it!
madi_mairee's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
o_oliviarose_o's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
amybraunauthor's review
4.0
Right from the get-go, I knew this would be one creepy and disturbing book. I also knew that I was going to love it. At the end of every story at the bottom of the page there is a little anecdote about where the author got their inspiration for their respective stories, and that love shines clear with every expertly crafted page. I have so many favourite authors in here that it's hard to pick who wrote my favourite story, but I have to go with Jay Kristoff taking the top spot with Leigh Bardugo coming in close at second. His story had only a hint of the supernatural, but it was seriously disturbing and had the exact kind of ending I wanted, while Bardugo's story opened a well of imagination and horror. As much as I loved it, this book might not be for everyone. The content of some stories does not mess around and even I was unsettled at times. But if you're a fan of Stephen King's work, or any of these authors, this is definitely a horror book you're going to want to pick up and enjoy. It will give you chills, thrills, and one fantastic time.
sarabookdragon's review
4.0
to be fair, I will be rating each story in the book separately:
1- The birds of Azalea street - 4/5
2- In the forest dark and deep - 4/5
3- Emmeline- 4.5/5
4- Verse chorus verse - 4/5
5- Hide-and-seek - 4.5/5
6- The dark scary parts and all - 5/5
7- The flicker, the fingers, the beat and the sigh - 4/5
8- Fat girl with a knife- 3.5/5
9- Sleepless- 5/5
10- M - 3.5/5
11- The girl without a face- 4/5
12- A girl who dreamed of snow- 3/5
13- Stitches- 5/5
14- On the I-5 - 3.5/5
overall its a pretty interesting collection of stories, some are really twisted and spooky, others weren't very much to my liking, but what I liked is that one continuously switch from one story to another. its an interesting choice if you want to pick up a short story to read in one sitting to get you out or in a certain mood
1- The birds of Azalea street - 4/5
2- In the forest dark and deep - 4/5
3- Emmeline- 4.5/5
4- Verse chorus verse - 4/5
5- Hide-and-seek - 4.5/5
6- The dark scary parts and all - 5/5
7- The flicker, the fingers, the beat and the sigh - 4/5
8- Fat girl with a knife- 3.5/5
9- Sleepless- 5/5
10- M - 3.5/5
11- The girl without a face- 4/5
12- A girl who dreamed of snow- 3/5
13- Stitches- 5/5
14- On the I-5 - 3.5/5
overall its a pretty interesting collection of stories, some are really twisted and spooky, others weren't very much to my liking, but what I liked is that one continuously switch from one story to another. its an interesting choice if you want to pick up a short story to read in one sitting to get you out or in a certain mood
kitsuneheart's review
5.0
Yes. Yes yes. I listened to the audiobook of this to see if I should buy it, and the answer is YES.
First of all, this is, of course, best for lovers of short stories and particularly horror short stories. And, while this may be a YA book, it doesn't pull its punches! If you can't deal with subjects like child abuse, sexual abuse, and bullying, do be wary of this book, but if you're okay with reading about them--especially with endings that give perfect justice--go ahead.
These stories are generally inspired by horror movies, so you'll see a lot of familiar introductions. However, by the end, they'll have inverted things enough to make you quite satisfied.
Most of the tales are very true-to-life, but two stand out for having healthy doses of fantasy: "The Girl Who Dreamed of Snow" and "Stitches." The former shows a more tribal society, with men hunting women to sell as brides, and one woman setting out to work her magic against them. The latter is a Frankenstein-esque tale of amputation! With romance! But it's actually quite good, and brings to mind plague doctors.
A well-deserved purchase. And, as I said above, I did the audiobook, and it is fantastic. All the different voices really helps each tale stand out.
First of all, this is, of course, best for lovers of short stories and particularly horror short stories. And, while this may be a YA book, it doesn't pull its punches! If you can't deal with subjects like child abuse, sexual abuse, and bullying, do be wary of this book, but if you're okay with reading about them--especially with endings that give perfect justice--go ahead.
These stories are generally inspired by horror movies, so you'll see a lot of familiar introductions. However, by the end, they'll have inverted things enough to make you quite satisfied.
Most of the tales are very true-to-life, but two stand out for having healthy doses of fantasy: "The Girl Who Dreamed of Snow" and "Stitches." The former shows a more tribal society, with men hunting women to sell as brides, and one woman setting out to work her magic against them. The latter is a Frankenstein-esque tale of amputation! With romance! But it's actually quite good, and brings to mind plague doctors.
A well-deserved purchase. And, as I said above, I did the audiobook, and it is fantastic. All the different voices really helps each tale stand out.
bifi707's review
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
missbookiverse's review against another edition
4.0
The Birds of Azalea Street by Nova Ren Suma ★★★★☆
I liked how this one was about a different kind of horror.
In the Forest Dark and Deep by Carrie Ryan ★★★☆☆
I liked the idea and it was pretty creepy but the ending cost it one star because what was the March Hare's motif?
Emmeline by Cat Winters ★★★☆☆
A sweet (or maybe not), quick ghost story. I enjoyed the accent the audiobook narrator used for the protagonist.
Verse Chorus Verse by Leigh Bardugo ★★☆☆☆
I liked how this was partly in the Mom's point of view but in general I wish there had been more. The creepy part is mostly left up to the imagination. Also, I thought it was weird how it was never addressed that JC got punished for "sins" that had to do with her acting out her sexuality (she was called a "dirty little girl"). What kind of message is this supposed to be?
Hide and Seek by Megan Shepherd ★★★★★
My favourite so far! The idea was great and I loved the ending. Only the game itself could've been stretched out a bit more (didn't feel like 24 hours).
The Dark, Scary Parts and All by Danielle Paige ★☆☆☆☆
After a jem follows a dud. This was plain boring, full of YA cliches (the names were the worst) and it just didn't hold anything new for me.
The Flicker, The Fingers, The Beat, The Sigh by April Genevieve Tucholke ★★☆☆☆
A bit uneventful but ok, not as bad as I had expected from my experience with the author's work :P Some of those Urban Legends really freaked me out.
Fat Girl With a Knife by Jonathan Maberry ★★☆☆☆
Props for on over-weight protagonist. Apart from that it wasn't bad but it was also pretty basic and kinda boring. Nothing I haven't read or watched before.
Sleepless by Jay Kristoff ★★★★★
This story was amazing. So messed up and creepy. I wish there were more stories like this in this anthology.
M by Stefan Bachmann ★★★☆☆
It was a decent story but I wish there would've been more of a twist to the revelation.
The Girl Without a Face by Marie Lu ★★★☆☆
He got what he deserved :P I liked the idea, it was kind of creepy and I liked how you slowly realized what kind of person the protagonist is.
A Girl Who Dreamed of Snow by McCormick Templeman ★★★★☆
I loved the idea and setting and the twisted outcome. Could've dug even deeper though, it was a lot of story for so few words.
Stitches by A.G. Howard ★★★★★
Holy moly, this was creepy on a whole new level. Who would've thought that I'd ever enjoy something written by the author of [b:Splintered|12558285|Splintered (Splintered, #1)|A.G. Howard|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1340134213s/12558285.jpg|17562095]? Deliciously twisted.
On the I-5 by Kendare Blake ★★★☆☆
This one was good, sad and weird but I wouldn't have chosen it as the last story in the collection. Stitches would've ended things with a bang.
I liked how this one was about a different kind of horror.
In the Forest Dark and Deep by Carrie Ryan ★★★☆☆
I liked the idea and it was pretty creepy but the ending cost it one star because what was the March Hare's motif?
Spoiler
The first murder he commited to avenge the main character but what about the second? It seemed out of the blue and thus less believable.Emmeline by Cat Winters ★★★☆☆
A sweet (or maybe not), quick ghost story. I enjoyed the accent the audiobook narrator used for the protagonist.
Verse Chorus Verse by Leigh Bardugo ★★☆☆☆
I liked how this was partly in the Mom's point of view but in general I wish there had been more. The creepy part is mostly left up to the imagination. Also, I thought it was weird how it was never addressed that JC got punished for "sins" that had to do with her acting out her sexuality (she was called a "dirty little girl"). What kind of message is this supposed to be?
Hide and Seek by Megan Shepherd ★★★★★
My favourite so far! The idea was great and I loved the ending. Only the game itself could've been stretched out a bit more (didn't feel like 24 hours).
The Dark, Scary Parts and All by Danielle Paige ★☆☆☆☆
After a jem follows a dud. This was plain boring, full of YA cliches (the names were the worst) and it just didn't hold anything new for me.
The Flicker, The Fingers, The Beat, The Sigh by April Genevieve Tucholke ★★☆☆☆
A bit uneventful but ok, not as bad as I had expected from my experience with the author's work :P Some of those Urban Legends really freaked me out.
Fat Girl With a Knife by Jonathan Maberry ★★☆☆☆
Props for on over-weight protagonist. Apart from that it wasn't bad but it was also pretty basic and kinda boring. Nothing I haven't read or watched before.
Sleepless by Jay Kristoff ★★★★★
This story was amazing. So messed up and creepy. I wish there were more stories like this in this anthology.
M by Stefan Bachmann ★★★☆☆
It was a decent story but I wish there would've been more of a twist to the revelation.
The Girl Without a Face by Marie Lu ★★★☆☆
He got what he deserved :P I liked the idea, it was kind of creepy and I liked how you slowly realized what kind of person the protagonist is.
A Girl Who Dreamed of Snow by McCormick Templeman ★★★★☆
I loved the idea and setting and the twisted outcome. Could've dug even deeper though, it was a lot of story for so few words.
Stitches by A.G. Howard ★★★★★
Holy moly, this was creepy on a whole new level. Who would've thought that I'd ever enjoy something written by the author of [b:Splintered|12558285|Splintered (Splintered, #1)|A.G. Howard|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1340134213s/12558285.jpg|17562095]? Deliciously twisted.
On the I-5 by Kendare Blake ★★★☆☆
This one was good, sad and weird but I wouldn't have chosen it as the last story in the collection. Stitches would've ended things with a bang.