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3.88 AVERAGE
3.88 AVERAGE
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Wow… Just wow… This was my number 1 most anticipated release of 2023 and it DELIVERED! The creep factor in every story was high and the spooky vibes were immaculate! The stories ranged from suspenseful to eerie to terrifying! Any anthology is going to have hits and misses, but the hits in this collection HIT, and there were way more of them than misses! There were so many amazing stories that it was hard to pick my favorite! We have Southern gothic tales, Bloody Mary vibes, serial killers, and more! Any kind of horror story you’re looking for can be found in this collection! (Except vampires, I would’ve loved some vampires lol) This is a perfect read for Halloween, so make sure you get it on October 17th!
Ratings:
📚Lights by Kalynn Bayron: ⭐️⭐️ (Tw: child abuse)
📚Be Not Afraid by Ashia Monet: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📚All My Best Friends Are Dead by Liselle Sambury: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📚The Teeth Come Out at Night by Sami Ellis: ⭐️ (go ahead and skip this one😬)
📚I love your eyes by Joel Rochester: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📚The Consumption of Vienna Montrose by Joelle Wellington: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (All imma say is… Imagine the splinters🤭😭)
📚The Landscape of Broken Things by Brent Lambert: ⭐️⭐️
📚Mother, Daughter, and the Devil by Donyae Coles: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📚Papa Pearlie by Ryan Douglass: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (Tw: Slavery & homophobia)
📚No Harm Done by Circe Moskowitz: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (My fave story! Tw: homophobia)
Average rating: 3.7 ⭐️’s
Overall rating: 5 ⭐️’s!
Thank you Chicago Review Press/Amberjack Publishing for this arc! All opinions are my own.
Ratings:
📚Lights by Kalynn Bayron: ⭐️⭐️ (Tw: child abuse)
📚Be Not Afraid by Ashia Monet: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📚All My Best Friends Are Dead by Liselle Sambury: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📚The Teeth Come Out at Night by Sami Ellis: ⭐️ (go ahead and skip this one😬)
📚I love your eyes by Joel Rochester: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📚The Consumption of Vienna Montrose by Joelle Wellington: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (All imma say is… Imagine the splinters🤭😭)
📚The Landscape of Broken Things by Brent Lambert: ⭐️⭐️
📚Mother, Daughter, and the Devil by Donyae Coles: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📚Papa Pearlie by Ryan Douglass: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (Tw: Slavery & homophobia)
📚No Harm Done by Circe Moskowitz: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (My fave story! Tw: homophobia)
Average rating: 3.7 ⭐️’s
Overall rating: 5 ⭐️’s!
Thank you Chicago Review Press/Amberjack Publishing for this arc! All opinions are my own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia
Moderate: Child abuse
Minor: Slavery
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
SUMMARY
In All These Sunken Souls, horror is explored through a blending of genres–ghost stories, folklore, and weird, among others–written by established and debut Black authors.
REVIEW
All These Sunken Souls hits like hell and doesn’t stop. Every time I thought I’d surely found the standout story in the collection another came along and vied hard for the position, leaving me with three choices and no desire to choose favorites. So I shan’t! It's my review and I can do as I please.
“Be Not Afraid,” “The Consumption of Vienna Montrose,” and “Mother, Daughter, and the Devil” hit everything I want from a good horror short story. These three have fantastic prose that takes on a life of its own; it’s rare I feel like I can hear the protagonist's voice clear as day; these girls spoke. The narratives are fresh and unique while conversing with tropes, stories, and histories that came before them. And, as a bonus, they feature beautifully written female characters.
Save one, every single short story was as least three stars, with most of them being four or five stars. The single exception was a matter of purely taste–I didn’t enjoy the first five pages, skimmed ahead, and realized that my issue, the prose, persisted throughout. So I skipped it. (I only mention the fact I DNF’d this one story for transparency’s sake, as this was an ARC.)
Broadly speaking, this collection features tropes and themes I love love LOVE in horror. Body horror (tooth, flesh, and bone), names (and the lack of them), houses (sentient or otherwise), biblical imagery (of the accurate angelic sort), folk tales and ghost stories (told and acted), and the comfort–yet also the horrific pain–of isolation.
And that’s not all, of course. But you’ll explore the rest yourself.
INDIVIDUAL STORY RATINGS
INDIVIDUAL STORY RATINGS
"Lights" by Kalynn Bayron - ⭐⭐⭐
"Be Not Afraid" by Ashia Monet - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
"All My Best Friends Are Dead" by Liselle Sambury - ⭐⭐⭐⭐
"The Teeth Come Out At Night" by Sami Ellis - ⭐⭐⭐⭐
"I Love Your Eyes" by Joel Rochester - DNF
"The Consumption of Vienna Montrose" by Joelle Wellington - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (ok it's 5⭐ but GOD I loved this one so much)
"The Landscape of Broken Things" by Brent Lambert - ⭐⭐⭐.5
"Mother, Daughter, and the Devil" by Donyae Coles - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
"Papa Pearlie" by Ryan Douglass - ⭐⭐⭐
"No Harm Done" by Circe Moskowitz ⭐⭐⭐⭐
FINAL THOUGHTS
If you like horror, you absolutely must read this collection. Doubly so if you have interest in diverse horror, horror short stories, or, like me, just really love a visceral piece of character-driven horror.
Thank you to Amberjack Publishing for providing a digital ARC via Netgalley. If you are interested in All These Sunken Souls, it will be released 17 October 2023. If possible, support indie bookshops by purchasing the novel from your local brick and mortar or from Bookshop.org!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Murder, Classism
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Confinement, Mental illness, Religious bigotry, Alcohol
Minor: Animal death, Homophobia, Self harm, Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, Stalking, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
A brilliant anthology! Every single story hits! Fun, spooky, tense, mysterious. Great read.
dark
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-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:
N/A
ARC REVIEW / SPOILER FREE
For fans of horror, this book is the golden ticket. Blood freezing horror stories with different tropes to suit every taste. All These Sunken Souls is an anthology of horror that shifts the narrative of black characters and takes you on a deep dive to chill your bones with every story. Thrilling moments and different writing styles that blend greatly together from well known and new debut authors.
As a beginner in horror (I've read one or two Stephen King for my defense), this book is a delightful discovery for me, and I recommend it whether you're only starting with horror or it's your favorite genre, All These Sunken Souls is a sublime addition to your reading and to the shelves as well with a beautiful cover that translates the essence of the book.
For fans of horror, this book is the golden ticket. Blood freezing horror stories with different tropes to suit every taste. All These Sunken Souls is an anthology of horror that shifts the narrative of black characters and takes you on a deep dive to chill your bones with every story. Thrilling moments and different writing styles that blend greatly together from well known and new debut authors.
As a beginner in horror (I've read one or two Stephen King for my defense), this book is a delightful discovery for me, and I recommend it whether you're only starting with horror or it's your favorite genre, All These Sunken Souls is a sublime addition to your reading and to the shelves as well with a beautiful cover that translates the essence of the book.
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated