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the_bookubus's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars
The stand out story for me was The Auteur which is about a horror fan who goes over to a co-workers place so she can show him some of her own horror films. Super dark and creepy and wonderful! I loved everything about it.
A few of my other favourites were: Hair, A New Kind of Drug, Fear and Grace, and Long Man. All excellently written and each had their own flavour of horror.
The rest of the collection was a mixture of some good and some that I didn't really care for (as is usually the case with short story collections). I rated each story individually and came out with an average rating of 3.5 out of 5, so overall a good collection and I would recommend it because the really good ones were fantastic!
The stand out story for me was The Auteur which is about a horror fan who goes over to a co-workers place so she can show him some of her own horror films. Super dark and creepy and wonderful! I loved everything about it.
A few of my other favourites were: Hair, A New Kind of Drug, Fear and Grace, and Long Man. All excellently written and each had their own flavour of horror.
The rest of the collection was a mixture of some good and some that I didn't really care for (as is usually the case with short story collections). I rated each story individually and came out with an average rating of 3.5 out of 5, so overall a good collection and I would recommend it because the really good ones were fantastic!
sheepyreads's review
5.0
Thank you to Mike Thorn for gifting me an advanced reader’s copy of his short story collection!
Darkest Hours is the horror collection equivalent of a big ol’ bowl of vegetable soup. Each horror sub-genre within this collection represents an element meant to warm your belly with its goodness. Looking for some gross body horror? Check. Creature feature? Check. Something more psychological? Double check.
I thoroughly enjoyed each and every story in Thorn’s collection (my favorites being Hair, Lucio Schluter and Satanic Panic) and just kept wanting to read on to see what the next story would consist of.
Probably what I found most impressive about Darkest Hours was the author’s ability to perfectly incorporate humor into those few stories that fell into that category.
If you’re a horror fan, (even if you don’t like vegetable soup) you need this.
Darkest Hours is the horror collection equivalent of a big ol’ bowl of vegetable soup. Each horror sub-genre within this collection represents an element meant to warm your belly with its goodness. Looking for some gross body horror? Check. Creature feature? Check. Something more psychological? Double check.
I thoroughly enjoyed each and every story in Thorn’s collection (my favorites being Hair, Lucio Schluter and Satanic Panic) and just kept wanting to read on to see what the next story would consist of.
Probably what I found most impressive about Darkest Hours was the author’s ability to perfectly incorporate humor into those few stories that fell into that category.
If you’re a horror fan, (even if you don’t like vegetable soup) you need this.
readbydusk's review
5.0
4.5 stars rounded up! Darkest Hours is a terrific collection where the author’s passion for all things horror shines through. The clarity and confidence in the writing made these stories come alive. I liked the accompanying author’s notes which highlights the influences and background of each story.
The book opens with a bang with Hair, a distressing story that describes a horrifying physical condition. A New Kind of Drug is a hallucinatory terror in light of an unexplainable phenomenon. Long Man is a fresh look at the boogeyman and it will make you think twice before looking into the mirror. Sabbatical takes on the dissertation writing process and turns it into an absolute nightmare. Lucio Schluter portrays the power and seduction of art with disturbing results.
The second half of the book features essays and criticisms of horror cinema and I enjoyed this section too. The films covered include Halloween (2007), Diary of the Dead (2007) and My Soul To Take (2010). There are also in-depth discussions on films by Rob Zombie, Tobe Hooper and M. Night Shyamalan. If you love horror in books and films, you don’t want to miss this collection!
Thank you to the author for a review copy.
book blog | twitter | instagram
The book opens with a bang with Hair, a distressing story that describes a horrifying physical condition. A New Kind of Drug is a hallucinatory terror in light of an unexplainable phenomenon. Long Man is a fresh look at the boogeyman and it will make you think twice before looking into the mirror. Sabbatical takes on the dissertation writing process and turns it into an absolute nightmare. Lucio Schluter portrays the power and seduction of art with disturbing results.
The second half of the book features essays and criticisms of horror cinema and I enjoyed this section too. The films covered include Halloween (2007), Diary of the Dead (2007) and My Soul To Take (2010). There are also in-depth discussions on films by Rob Zombie, Tobe Hooper and M. Night Shyamalan. If you love horror in books and films, you don’t want to miss this collection!
Thank you to the author for a review copy.
book blog | twitter | instagram
erinxmegan's review
4.0
*Thank you to the author for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.*
I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, short story collections are such a great way to really see what an author can do. It allows the opportunity for the author to try their hand at different types of sub genres and just explore their writing abilities.
This is something Mike Thorn does really well with this collection. There is truly a story for everyone. You prefer body horror? You got it. A fan of the more psychological? You got it. You like a bit of comedy in your horror? You got it.
The collection starts off with the story ‘Hair’ and boy does that one start you off on a wild journey. It’s a really gross one that you just can’t help but keep reading to see what happens next. After I read it, I knew this was going to be a fun collection.
My favorites were: Hair, The Auteur, Fear and Grace, Long Man, Satanic Panic, and Lucio Schluter.
They are all so different, but each made me feel a certain way while reading them.
At the end of each story he goes into some detail about what really inspired the story and I think that’s always fascinating. I love knowing how authors get their ideas and why they went into the direction they did.
Included at the end are 17 articles dedicated to horror film as well.
Overall, this is a really cool and unique collection that I think a lot of people will have fun with.
I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, short story collections are such a great way to really see what an author can do. It allows the opportunity for the author to try their hand at different types of sub genres and just explore their writing abilities.
This is something Mike Thorn does really well with this collection. There is truly a story for everyone. You prefer body horror? You got it. A fan of the more psychological? You got it. You like a bit of comedy in your horror? You got it.
The collection starts off with the story ‘Hair’ and boy does that one start you off on a wild journey. It’s a really gross one that you just can’t help but keep reading to see what happens next. After I read it, I knew this was going to be a fun collection.
My favorites were: Hair, The Auteur, Fear and Grace, Long Man, Satanic Panic, and Lucio Schluter.
They are all so different, but each made me feel a certain way while reading them.
At the end of each story he goes into some detail about what really inspired the story and I think that’s always fascinating. I love knowing how authors get their ideas and why they went into the direction they did.
Included at the end are 17 articles dedicated to horror film as well.
Overall, this is a really cool and unique collection that I think a lot of people will have fun with.
plagued_by_visions's review
3.0
3 1/2⭐️
A more thorough review is coming to my YouTube channel, but overall this was a delightful love letter to the “metal band t-shirt” generation, with a sensible and grotesque treatment of a variety of topics plaguing aimless youth: drugs, peer pressure, the erratic and tragically passionate first pangs of love, and there’s even quite a bit of satirization and lampooning of pompous academia, which I quite enjoyed. Mike Thorn’s writing style is infatuated with viscera, liquids, and abnormal psychologies (Lovecraft, Ligotti, and King stood out as possible main inspirations), yet at times it feels bound and compact, and he never quite spends a lot of time on any given story (some stories felt too short even for a “short story”—does that make sense?), so, as with most collections, there were some definite misses. However, overall, the more I kindled to the world he was trying to portray through these varied threads, the more I enjoyed his sentimental, loving, and horrific explorations of eroding suburbia and wormy minds.
The supplemental pieces (author’s notes, nonfiction film criticism) I did not read as part of this review, because that was not the experience I was looking for out of a “short story collection,” and because the author’s thoughts and analyses on his own stories are secondary to me. However, in a good way, I’m happy they’re there for any instance in which I feel like paying them a visit! “Hair,” “A New Kind of Drug,” and “The Auteur” were delightful and ghastly highlights.
A more thorough review is coming to my YouTube channel, but overall this was a delightful love letter to the “metal band t-shirt” generation, with a sensible and grotesque treatment of a variety of topics plaguing aimless youth: drugs, peer pressure, the erratic and tragically passionate first pangs of love, and there’s even quite a bit of satirization and lampooning of pompous academia, which I quite enjoyed. Mike Thorn’s writing style is infatuated with viscera, liquids, and abnormal psychologies (Lovecraft, Ligotti, and King stood out as possible main inspirations), yet at times it feels bound and compact, and he never quite spends a lot of time on any given story (some stories felt too short even for a “short story”—does that make sense?), so, as with most collections, there were some definite misses. However, overall, the more I kindled to the world he was trying to portray through these varied threads, the more I enjoyed his sentimental, loving, and horrific explorations of eroding suburbia and wormy minds.
The supplemental pieces (author’s notes, nonfiction film criticism) I did not read as part of this review, because that was not the experience I was looking for out of a “short story collection,” and because the author’s thoughts and analyses on his own stories are secondary to me. However, in a good way, I’m happy they’re there for any instance in which I feel like paying them a visit! “Hair,” “A New Kind of Drug,” and “The Auteur” were delightful and ghastly highlights.
howlinglibraries's review
5.0
Haunting, haunting, haunting, and good God, I don't know why this trauma belongs to me.
There's something that many lovers of horror literature have come to accept, which is the fact that a lot of horror authors aren't looking to promote any sort of deeper message or morals—they're simply putting out a spooky story and hoping it sticks, and there's nothing wrong with that. Every now and then, though, you find a horror author who can disarm and unsettle you while telling these incredibly meaningful, important stories, and those are the ones that tend to stick with me. Mike Thorn? He's one of those authors.
Darkest Hours is a deeply disturbing collection that shifts between shocking moments of outright terror and examining the worst parts of the human psyche, reminding us that we're often surrounded by the scariest monsters of all. He doesn't pull any punches, but his writing doesn't rely on only scares and chills—Mike's got such a witty and fluid style that I would happily reach for again and again.
I didn't give any story in the collection less than 3 stars, but most of them were far better than that, with these as my favorites:
→ Hair: This is one of the most disgusting and AMAZING short stories I've ever read. What a way to kick off a collection!
→ Long Man: The descriptions in some of these scenes were downright nauseating (in the best way), and that ending? Perfect.
→ Sabbatical: This story was the perfect example of the way Mike has this way of setting the stage and then spinning the whole thing on its head and taking you completely off-guard.
→ Lucio Schluter: I had a slight, sinking suspicion about the ending on this one, and it was exactly as gruesome and incredible as I thought it would be. Talk about terrifying.
Altogether, I'm so glad I got the chance to read Darkest Hours and I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for future releases from Mike Thorn. I highly recommend grabbing a copy of this one as soon as you can!
Thank you so much to Mike Thorn for sending me a review copy in exchange for my honest thoughts!
ania_star's review against another edition
4.0
Darkest Hours is a collection of short stories. The stories are all very different, from fantasy, sci-fi, to horror, but they have few things in common: they are all kind of dark, very original and each one pack one hell of a punch.
The collection starts off strong with one of the creepiest stories I've ever read. From there on I was hooked. Each story that follows is better than the last, hits you in a different way and shakes you up all over again.
I highly recommend the series to everyone who likes horror and creepie stories. :)
received from Author
The collection starts off strong with one of the creepiest stories I've ever read. From there on I was hooked. Each story that follows is better than the last, hits you in a different way and shakes you up all over again.
I highly recommend the series to everyone who likes horror and creepie stories. :)
received from Author
spookyoctopusreads's review
5.0
Think of your favorite type of horror...now think of your second favorite type....and your third........
Now imagine that ALL of your favorite types of gross out, creepy, cringe worthy, scary, gory horror are all wrapped into one collection. That's EXACTLY what you get with Mike Thorn's Darkest Hours (plus some surprises near the end). Every story has a bit of author's commentary at the end explaining inspiration and thought behind the story. I love when we get this in collections.
Thorn busts out of the gate with guns blazing in the very first story, "Hair." I don't often make notes when I'm reading (I know, I know....), but I did when reading this collection. The only things I wrote for this were "cringe- seriously, just vomit." This short was bizarre, visceral, and just plain disgusting, and I kinda loved it, even if it did make me feel like gagging.
Here are a few of my other notes/observations on my favorite pieces while reading (and, yeah, it is safe to say that I LOVED this collection):
Now imagine that ALL of your favorite types of gross out, creepy, cringe worthy, scary, gory horror are all wrapped into one collection. That's EXACTLY what you get with Mike Thorn's Darkest Hours (plus some surprises near the end). Every story has a bit of author's commentary at the end explaining inspiration and thought behind the story. I love when we get this in collections.
Thorn busts out of the gate with guns blazing in the very first story, "Hair." I don't often make notes when I'm reading (I know, I know....), but I did when reading this collection. The only things I wrote for this were "cringe- seriously, just vomit." This short was bizarre, visceral, and just plain disgusting, and I kinda loved it, even if it did make me feel like gagging.
Here are a few of my other notes/observations on my favorite pieces while reading (and, yeah, it is safe to say that I LOVED this collection):
morelikelibrarybooked's review against another edition
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.5
Even though it wasn't my favorite book of short stories, it was still a solid read overall. The great thing about short story compilations is that you really don't have to like every story; if you don't like one story, there is always potential for the next one! That's part of why I love short, punchy horror stories as a reader-- they really have endless possibilities! And I really loved that he included an author's note at the end of each story to explain his inspiration. That was part of the reason that I loved Junji Ito's Shiver, he explained his inspiration at the end of each story which is just exhilarating to me. I love understanding what drove authors to create stories, especially short horror stories because sometimes they are so off-the-wall.
As a whole, I genuinely enjoyed 9 of the 16 short stories. Those short stories are: "Hair","A New Kind of Drug","Mired","The Auteur", "Choo-Choo", "Long Man","Lucio Schluter", "Fusion", and "Remembering Absence". My particular favorites that really stuck out as being particularly effective were "Hair," "Long Man," and "Lucio Schluter". Something about "Hair" was so viscerally descriptive and overwhelmingly disgusting that it left a HUGE impression. It had me hooked in the first few pages, my disgust becoming almost palpable. But something about it also felt nostalgic to me. If you guys ever read the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark books growing up, this had that same energy throughout. It made me feel, as an adult, the same way I felt as a kid reading those books. So I cannot recommend this story enough, even though you will leave it very grossed out. Also, I know that Thorn mentioned that there was a call for a longer story behind "Long Man"and I agree. I want a full length novel (or novella) of the Long Man as an antagonist but with some good backstory (PLEASE hit me up if this becomes a reality). Finally, "Lucio Schluter" was disturbing in its just claustrophobic dread that we experience with the protagonist at the climax. It's disturbing in just the right way. (FYI, if you like disturbing books with this vibe, I just read Exquisite Corpse by: Poppy Z. Brite, and it fits that mold [no pun intended]). Thorn just has a way with description that makes the stories hit the reader hard because you feel like you're part of the experience (especially "Hair" I cannot stress how grimy that story made me feel).
I didn't include "Economy These Days" in my likes because it hit way too close to home (as a recent Master's degree graduate who has no job in my field). But I will admit that it was pretty funny, in a dark way.
I couldn't stand "Speaking of Ghosts," I know the point was that the language was over-inflated and pretentious, but I couldn't stand reading it. And I also guess I'm not that into "Satanic Panic" type horror because none of those stories hit right for me. I also kind of just flipped through the movie critique section of the book. I was never very interested in any of the movie portions that I read. I guess I watch horror movies almost solely for enjoyment and I don't have very much drive to "learn" anything from them. I'm a horror fan, don't get me wrong. But my enjoyment is focused heavily on the effect and the vibe, not so much the composition or the commentary. But if you like reading about horror movies, it's clear that Thorn really knows what he's talking about. (BTW I watched Djinn and I tried to like it, but I could not :/ ).
As a whole, even though it wasn't my favorite, I do think it was solid. Short stories have the ability to give you a taste of an author's writing style, without the danger of getting bogged down with the story itself. I like Thorn's voice as a writer and I think that he'll be doing great things in the future. I look forward to that full length novel about the Long Man that better be coming (please write it, I want to know more).
filiusromae's review against another edition
3.0
3.5
There were some great ones and some lukewarm ones. Loved the shift in persons, styles and character backgrounds and different types of creepy.
There were some great ones and some lukewarm ones. Loved the shift in persons, styles and character backgrounds and different types of creepy.