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darquedreamer's review
3.0
As a whole, this anthology was quite different than what I am used to reading. It took me about a week to get through it, reading a few stories each night. There were several stories I did not care for, several that were my favorite, and three that I did not finish.
While I was going over the anthology in my head, contemplating what I would say in my review, I knew it would deserve a decent rating because there were several well written, thought provoking stories. I also knew that I had to point out that with this being my opinion, some of the reasons for not enjoying a few of the stories were because of my own personal preferences, so I would say this is still worth a read for those who enjoy a mix of short stories with mature content.
All in all, the collection was edgy, gritty, shocking, and entertaining. Several stories had bits of horror and spookiness. Several were humorous, and a few were endearing and emotional. My personal opinion is that I would have liked to see more horror, and less adult content, but I think the collection would be enjoyable for those who don't mind the content.
I decided that, instead of naming each story and author in my review, I would list the stories in order by number and list my thoughts I jotted down while I read them. As I read the collection, I paid little mind to the story names and authors, as I wanted to focus on just the stories themselves.
So, keep in mind, these are my personal opinions, though sometimes I did not enjoy the writing, that in no way means I thought the author was a poor writer, just that certain writing styles and subjects are not enjoyable for every reader.
1. Confusing. Too much drug use. Awful story line.
2. Good writing style. Interesting plot twist. Not really horror.
3. Boring. Good twist though. Decent writing style.
4. Definitely suspenseful and well written. Awkward and confusing at times, but had some interesting twists.
5. Nice writing style, but odd subject, and lame, predictable twist and ending.
6. Good, descriptive writing. Heart pounding suspense. Horrifying gore and ending, but disliked drug abuse subject and rape.
7. Didn't seem to have a point or anything to do with the theme. Writing style was okay.
8. Favorite so far. Great writing, suspenseful and creepy with a great twist.
9. Nice writing, funny twist.
10. Favorite. Beautifully written. Suspenseful. Great twists and amazing character development and story for being so short!
11. OMG, too funny!! Writing mildly awkward at times, but entertaining and suspenseful and hilarious!
12. What did I just read? Intrigued and confused. Nice writing, odd twist.
13. Decent writing style with suspense, but confusing twist.
14. DNF. Decent writing style, but ridiculous, pointless story line. Not my kind of enjoyable humor.
15. Writing is slightly awkward at times, but the story is spooky and suspenseful and has an eerie twist.
16. Not crazy over the writing style of the story. Predictable.
17. Decent writing. Awkward at times. Suspenseful story with a spooky twist.
18. Holy d#mn that was good! Great writing, awesome twist, and captivating story!
19. Nice writing, creepy, suspenseful, and interesting twist.
20. Awkward writing and dialogue. Boring story.
21. A little long winded at times, but very good with a nice, predictable twist and a shocking twist too.
22. What?? Confusing. Awkward. Switching tenses.
23. Very awkward writing style. Disgusting, violent twist involving baby death. DNF.
24. Interesting plot and twist. Awkwardness between narration and dialogue, but decent story for the length.
25. Decent writing style, but awkward plot and shocking, yet enjoyable twist.
26. Weird writing style. Weirder plot and twist. Not really enjoyable, even with the Doctor Who reference.
27. Nice writing style and predictable, but interesting twist.
28. Writing style was decent with an intriguing plot, but I DNF'd at a scene of child molestation.
29. Good writing style, but confusing plot twist.
30. Awkward writing and dialogue at times. Confusing twist and unsatisfying ending.
I ended up enjoying about 16 out of 30 of the stories. Three of them I did not finish. And, the rest were either not enjoyable, or just mildly enjoyable.
Thank you to author J.M Ames for sending me this anthology in exchange for my honest review.
While I was going over the anthology in my head, contemplating what I would say in my review, I knew it would deserve a decent rating because there were several well written, thought provoking stories. I also knew that I had to point out that with this being my opinion, some of the reasons for not enjoying a few of the stories were because of my own personal preferences, so I would say this is still worth a read for those who enjoy a mix of short stories with mature content.
All in all, the collection was edgy, gritty, shocking, and entertaining. Several stories had bits of horror and spookiness. Several were humorous, and a few were endearing and emotional. My personal opinion is that I would have liked to see more horror, and less adult content, but I think the collection would be enjoyable for those who don't mind the content.
I decided that, instead of naming each story and author in my review, I would list the stories in order by number and list my thoughts I jotted down while I read them. As I read the collection, I paid little mind to the story names and authors, as I wanted to focus on just the stories themselves.
So, keep in mind, these are my personal opinions, though sometimes I did not enjoy the writing, that in no way means I thought the author was a poor writer, just that certain writing styles and subjects are not enjoyable for every reader.
1. Confusing. Too much drug use. Awful story line.
2. Good writing style. Interesting plot twist. Not really horror.
3. Boring. Good twist though. Decent writing style.
4. Definitely suspenseful and well written. Awkward and confusing at times, but had some interesting twists.
5. Nice writing style, but odd subject, and lame, predictable twist and ending.
6. Good, descriptive writing. Heart pounding suspense. Horrifying gore and ending, but disliked drug abuse subject and rape.
7. Didn't seem to have a point or anything to do with the theme. Writing style was okay.
8. Favorite so far. Great writing, suspenseful and creepy with a great twist.
9. Nice writing, funny twist.
10. Favorite. Beautifully written. Suspenseful. Great twists and amazing character development and story for being so short!
11. OMG, too funny!! Writing mildly awkward at times, but entertaining and suspenseful and hilarious!
12. What did I just read? Intrigued and confused. Nice writing, odd twist.
13. Decent writing style with suspense, but confusing twist.
14. DNF. Decent writing style, but ridiculous, pointless story line. Not my kind of enjoyable humor.
15. Writing is slightly awkward at times, but the story is spooky and suspenseful and has an eerie twist.
16. Not crazy over the writing style of the story. Predictable.
17. Decent writing. Awkward at times. Suspenseful story with a spooky twist.
18. Holy d#mn that was good! Great writing, awesome twist, and captivating story!
19. Nice writing, creepy, suspenseful, and interesting twist.
20. Awkward writing and dialogue. Boring story.
21. A little long winded at times, but very good with a nice, predictable twist and a shocking twist too.
22. What?? Confusing. Awkward. Switching tenses.
23. Very awkward writing style. Disgusting, violent twist involving baby death. DNF.
24. Interesting plot and twist. Awkwardness between narration and dialogue, but decent story for the length.
25. Decent writing style, but awkward plot and shocking, yet enjoyable twist.
26. Weird writing style. Weirder plot and twist. Not really enjoyable, even with the Doctor Who reference.
27. Nice writing style and predictable, but interesting twist.
28. Writing style was decent with an intriguing plot, but I DNF'd at a scene of child molestation.
29. Good writing style, but confusing plot twist.
30. Awkward writing and dialogue at times. Confusing twist and unsatisfying ending.
I ended up enjoying about 16 out of 30 of the stories. Three of them I did not finish. And, the rest were either not enjoyable, or just mildly enjoyable.
Thank you to author J.M Ames for sending me this anthology in exchange for my honest review.
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