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wolfmand13's review against another edition
4.0
I just finished Kevin Kennedy’s new Christmas Horror Shorts 3 and it did not disappoint!! I have to say I loved something about each one of these stories. From the rain drenched gutters of hard city life to the North Pole itself, this collection pulls out all of the stops and delivers an eclectic mix of Yuletide terror. 4.5/5 would recommend this holiday season
beastreader's review against another edition
4.0
This collection of short, horror stories centered around Christmas is just what I needed. I really enjoyed most of the stories in this collection. They are the stuff of nightmares. Not your children's bedtime stories. Not unless you want them to stop believing in Santa.
There is a story about a 911 operator that helps the dead, a boy who gets lost in a snowstorm and meets Krampus, another boy who meets an ax wielding man dressed as Santa, or how about Santa tripping on LSD!
No matter what your dark cravings are, there are stories for everyone who likes their Christmas to be "black".
There is a story about a 911 operator that helps the dead, a boy who gets lost in a snowstorm and meets Krampus, another boy who meets an ax wielding man dressed as Santa, or how about Santa tripping on LSD!
No matter what your dark cravings are, there are stories for everyone who likes their Christmas to be "black".
howlinglibraries's review against another edition
fast-paced
2.5
I love a collection of Christmas horror stories and I had high hopes for this one, especially with the way it kicked off. The first story, 'The Fourth Emergency Service' by Lex H. Jones, was an instant favorite for me. It follows a woman who works at a very unique call center and, while it was predictable, it was in a good way — one of those stories that leaves you eagerly flipping the pages to see if you're right and to watch it all play out.
Unfortunately, after the first story, the rest were a bit of a letdown. I mostly enjoyed 'Ho Ho Howard' by RJ Roles and thought the writing in 'Lords of the Sleigh' by Gage Greenwood was beautifully written, but none of the remaining pieces stuck out to me and I even found myself skim-reading the endings of a couple because I couldn't seem to get interested in them.
Collected Christmas Horror Shorts III has some good pieces and is worth picking up if you're an avid lover of holiday horror short stories like I am, but it won't go down in my "best of" list this year, sadly.
Thank you to the publisher for the review copy! All thoughts are honest and my own.
Unfortunately, after the first story, the rest were a bit of a letdown. I mostly enjoyed 'Ho Ho Howard' by RJ Roles and thought the writing in 'Lords of the Sleigh' by Gage Greenwood was beautifully written, but none of the remaining pieces stuck out to me and I even found myself skim-reading the endings of a couple because I couldn't seem to get interested in them.
Collected Christmas Horror Shorts III has some good pieces and is worth picking up if you're an avid lover of holiday horror short stories like I am, but it won't go down in my "best of" list this year, sadly.
Thank you to the publisher for the review copy! All thoughts are honest and my own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Gun violence, Violence, Animal death, Child death, Gore, Murder, and Death
bobbiejowoo's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
3.25
This was an interesting and creepy collection of holiday horror. I found the majority of the stories to be very somber and more grief horror than expected. While I'm not typically a fan of grief based horror I can honestly say there wasn't a story in this collection that I didn't like. The stories and authors included in this collection offer something for everyone from masters to gore. It was a quick read and perfect for those looking for a darker side of Christmas.
cyireadbooks's review against another edition
4.0
Collected Christmas Horror Shorts 3 is an eclectic mix of creepy Christmas stories ranging from the macabre to the bizarre. There are ten different stories from various authors. All of the stories are centered around the Christmas holiday.
I didn’t find the stories horrifying, just creepy and unusual. Although some of the stories were pretty gory. I enjoyed most of the short tales with notable shorts that included: The Fourth Emergency Service, We Want to Sing You a Song, A Wanted Man, and Three Sizes Too Small.
Collected Christmas Horror Shorts 3 is my first novel from author Kennedy. It won’t be my last and I look forward to reading the next collection of horror shorts. Four solid stars.
I received a DRC from Kevin J. Kennedy through NetGalley. The review herein is completely my own and contains my honest thoughts and opinions.
I didn’t find the stories horrifying, just creepy and unusual. Although some of the stories were pretty gory. I enjoyed most of the short tales with notable shorts that included: The Fourth Emergency Service, We Want to Sing You a Song, A Wanted Man, and Three Sizes Too Small.
Collected Christmas Horror Shorts 3 is my first novel from author Kennedy. It won’t be my last and I look forward to reading the next collection of horror shorts. Four solid stars.
I received a DRC from Kevin J. Kennedy through NetGalley. The review herein is completely my own and contains my honest thoughts and opinions.
tyler_j's review against another edition
3.25
24 Holiday Horror short stories! I really did enjoy this collection over-all. There were a few I didn't care for but mostly I enjoyed them and loved some of them.
My favorites being
Better Watch Out by Willow Rose
All Naughty, No Nice by Michael A. Arnzen
The Christmas Spirit by Lisa Morton
Merry Fucking Christmas by Kevin J. Kennedy
Killing Christmas by Andrew Lennon
My average rating ended up being 3.35
If you like holiday horror, i'd recommend it.
My favorites being
Better Watch Out by Willow Rose
All Naughty, No Nice by Michael A. Arnzen
The Christmas Spirit by Lisa Morton
Merry Fucking Christmas by Kevin J. Kennedy
Killing Christmas by Andrew Lennon
My average rating ended up being 3.35
If you like holiday horror, i'd recommend it.
ericarobyn's review
5.0
I just cannot get enough Christmas horror this time of year!
Christmas Horror Shorts is such a wonderful collection of stories that range from the mildly spooky to full-blown terror.
Full disclosure: I was given a free copy of this book from the authors in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my rating in any way.
Per usual with these types of collections, here are my rating breakdowns for each story along with some immediate thoughts/reactions:
Forward by Nev Murray
A wonderful forward to jump start the book! I loved how honest Nev was and how he told the reader a bit about his personal life. I also really loved how welcoming this intro was!
Better Watch Out by Willow Rose – 4/5
This story hits on so many thoughts I’ve had over the years. The whole idea of Santa can certainly seem terrifying! I loved how this story played on that. And that ending…
Tommy’s Christmas by John R Little – 5/5
Poor Tommy! He was so innocent… but what a twist!
Naughty or Nice by Veronica Smith – 5/5
Yikes! How terrifying! Our neighbors have an inflatable Santa outside… we can see it from our bedroom. I’m going to be a smidge paranoid about that Santa now…
All Naughty, No Nice by Michael A. Arnzen – 5/5
Ever wonder what would happen to the naughty and nice list when zombies take over? This story covers just that! How spooky!!
Slay Bells by Weston Kincade – 4/5
Heartbreaking and so terrifying! What an absolutely horrible annual tradition. These poor people. The gore in this one was intense.
Santa’s Midnight Feast by J. L. Lane – 5/5
So intense!! This tale started out innocently, but then took quite the turn. I love tales like this!
The Christmas Spirit by Lisa Morton – 5/5
I loved that this one centered around a spooky house in the middle of nowhere and that the couple read from a book! What a scary tale! But also quite heartwarming.
Thy Will Be Done by J.C. Michael – 4/5
Yikes! Terrifying. And all in Gods name…
Psychopath Remix by J.C. Michael – 5/5
Phew! This turned dark very quickly!
A Tome of Bill Christmas Carole by Rick Gualtieri – 4/5
A fun twist in the usual Christmas Carol!
Christmas Market by Amy Cross – 5/5
This one made me feel so claustrophobic. That crowd does not sound fun. And what a terrifying situation! And what happens next?!
Deck the Halls by Xtina Marie – 4/5
A short but terrifying poem!
Merry Fuckin’ Christmas by Kevin J. Kennedy – 5/5
Oh my goodness! So heartbreaking, but what wonderfully intense payback. I have zero respect for people that think drunk driving is okay.
Santa Came by Peter Oliver Wonder –
Unfortunately, not for me.
Hung With Care by Ty Schwamberger – 5/5
Ah! Another intense and bloody one with one unhappy Santa!
Killing Christmas by Andrew Lennon – 5/5
What a twisted tale! I loved it!
A Disappointed Shade of Blue by C.S. Anderson – 3/5
A sad one. Oofh.
The Present by Israel Finn – 5/5
A difficult one to read because of the domestic violence. But that ending!
Christmas Carole by Lisa Vasquez –
Unfortunately I don’t think I understood this one. It started with a bang, but then it lost me. I’ll have to give it a re-read another time.
Stuffed Pig by Steven Murray – 5/5
Phew! That was intense and terrifying!! Right when the neighbor called to report someone luring about, I knew we were in for an intense ride.
The Last Christmas Dinner by Christina Bergling – 5/5
Ugh, what rotten and self centered kids! I felt so bad for this poor mother. But yes! What payback!
The Veil by Rose Garnet – 3/5
Oooh! Spooky! I’m so glad this dirtbag got was was coming to him.
The Night Before Christmas by Suzanne Fox – 2/5
Personally not a fan of the erotic elements of this one, but if that’s your jam, you’ll love this! This one was also quite brutal.
The The Bag by Tim Curran – 4/5
I kept picturing something like that book with teeth from Harry Potter for this one. Phew, what a dark and sad tale.
My Final Thoughts
This was such a fun collection!! If you enjoy horror and Christmas, you have to give this a read! This is yet another collection from Mr Kennedy that has a little something for every horror fan!
Christmas Horror Shorts is such a wonderful collection of stories that range from the mildly spooky to full-blown terror.
Full disclosure: I was given a free copy of this book from the authors in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my rating in any way.
Per usual with these types of collections, here are my rating breakdowns for each story along with some immediate thoughts/reactions:
Forward by Nev Murray
A wonderful forward to jump start the book! I loved how honest Nev was and how he told the reader a bit about his personal life. I also really loved how welcoming this intro was!
Better Watch Out by Willow Rose – 4/5
This story hits on so many thoughts I’ve had over the years. The whole idea of Santa can certainly seem terrifying! I loved how this story played on that. And that ending…
Tommy’s Christmas by John R Little – 5/5
Poor Tommy! He was so innocent… but what a twist!
Naughty or Nice by Veronica Smith – 5/5
Yikes! How terrifying! Our neighbors have an inflatable Santa outside… we can see it from our bedroom. I’m going to be a smidge paranoid about that Santa now…
All Naughty, No Nice by Michael A. Arnzen – 5/5
Ever wonder what would happen to the naughty and nice list when zombies take over? This story covers just that! How spooky!!
Slay Bells by Weston Kincade – 4/5
Heartbreaking and so terrifying! What an absolutely horrible annual tradition. These poor people. The gore in this one was intense.
Santa’s Midnight Feast by J. L. Lane – 5/5
So intense!! This tale started out innocently, but then took quite the turn. I love tales like this!
The Christmas Spirit by Lisa Morton – 5/5
I loved that this one centered around a spooky house in the middle of nowhere and that the couple read from a book! What a scary tale! But also quite heartwarming.
Thy Will Be Done by J.C. Michael – 4/5
Yikes! Terrifying. And all in Gods name…
Psychopath Remix by J.C. Michael – 5/5
Phew! This turned dark very quickly!
A Tome of Bill Christmas Carole by Rick Gualtieri – 4/5
A fun twist in the usual Christmas Carol!
Christmas Market by Amy Cross – 5/5
This one made me feel so claustrophobic. That crowd does not sound fun. And what a terrifying situation! And what happens next?!
Deck the Halls by Xtina Marie – 4/5
A short but terrifying poem!
Merry Fuckin’ Christmas by Kevin J. Kennedy – 5/5
Oh my goodness! So heartbreaking, but what wonderfully intense payback. I have zero respect for people that think drunk driving is okay.
Santa Came by Peter Oliver Wonder –
Unfortunately, not for me.
Hung With Care by Ty Schwamberger – 5/5
Ah! Another intense and bloody one with one unhappy Santa!
Killing Christmas by Andrew Lennon – 5/5
What a twisted tale! I loved it!
A Disappointed Shade of Blue by C.S. Anderson – 3/5
A sad one. Oofh.
The Present by Israel Finn – 5/5
A difficult one to read because of the domestic violence. But that ending!
Christmas Carole by Lisa Vasquez –
Unfortunately I don’t think I understood this one. It started with a bang, but then it lost me. I’ll have to give it a re-read another time.
Stuffed Pig by Steven Murray – 5/5
Phew! That was intense and terrifying!! Right when the neighbor called to report someone luring about, I knew we were in for an intense ride.
The Last Christmas Dinner by Christina Bergling – 5/5
Ugh, what rotten and self centered kids! I felt so bad for this poor mother. But yes! What payback!
The Veil by Rose Garnet – 3/5
Oooh! Spooky! I’m so glad this dirtbag got was was coming to him.
The Night Before Christmas by Suzanne Fox – 2/5
Personally not a fan of the erotic elements of this one, but if that’s your jam, you’ll love this! This one was also quite brutal.
The The Bag by Tim Curran – 4/5
I kept picturing something like that book with teeth from Harry Potter for this one. Phew, what a dark and sad tale.
My Final Thoughts
This was such a fun collection!! If you enjoy horror and Christmas, you have to give this a read! This is yet another collection from Mr Kennedy that has a little something for every horror fan!
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