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A review by brennanlafaro
Graveyard Smash: Women of Horror Anthology, Volume 2 by Jill Girardi
4.0
3.5 stars rounded up for Amazon
Jill Girardi’s Kandisha Press is doing some cool things in 2020. They released Under Her Black Wings in January, an anthology I absolutely loved, jam-packed with horror stories by women. Assuming this anthology might be an annual thing, I was pleasantly surprised to see they were doing it again in July with Graveyard Smash, and as of this writing, Kandisha is open to subs again for volume three.
One of my favorite things about these collections are the mixture of known and loved entities with up-and-coming names, a fair few new-to-me authors. Graveyard Smash is a bit bigger than its predecessor at 21 stories. As with any anthology, some hit hard, some sink their teeth in, and some simply didn’t resonate with me for whatever reason. Allow me to highlight some favorites:
“Holes” by RA Busy - The opening gambit in this anthology comes out swinging. Admittedly this is the first short story I’ve read that directly references corona, and I was worried at first, but the execution here is top notch and really encapsulates paranoia using trypophobia.
“Two’s Company, Three’s a Shroud” by Catherine McCarthy - This one stood out for being really different, not an easy feat in such a sizable collection. Funny and original, I really enjoyed being immersed in this story. I mean, there is a pun in the title.
“The Clockmaker” by Sonora Taylor - The best story in the collection comes in pretty early. Taylor’s creepy story is note perfect and has the feel of a classic story in the vein of Poe or Shirley Jackson.
“Love You to Death” by Yolanda Sfetsos - Yolanda’s story in Under Her Black Wings was a stand out there as well. This author seems to have it, and I look forward to reading more by her. That said, I adore horror mixed with mythology and this story had it in spades and did it well.
“Cicada Song” by Michelle Renee Lane - Another top notch tale. Lane’s story had a very original premise and even though it was laugh-out-loud funny at points, the humor didn’t detract from the weight of the story.
“The Invitation” by Janine Pipe - It’s hard to lay out what I liked about this story without spoilers, or at least affecting the reader’s experience. I will say that it’s well-plotted and Pipe’s use of misdirection is Prestige-level. “Are you watching closely?”
Lest this write-up exceed the length of one of the stories contained within, I’ll leave longer story descriptions at that. There are other fun, creeptastic, engaging, and even beautiful stories by V Castro, Beverley Lee, Ellie Douglas, Susan McCauley, Ksenia Murray, and Christy Aldridge. Kandisha is putting out consistently entertaining work by women of horror, drawing readers in with the big names and introducing future stars. As long as they keep these anthologies coming, I’ll keep lining up for them.
I was given a digital copy by the publisher for review consideration.Rating/review coming soon
Jill Girardi’s Kandisha Press is doing some cool things in 2020. They released Under Her Black Wings in January, an anthology I absolutely loved, jam-packed with horror stories by women. Assuming this anthology might be an annual thing, I was pleasantly surprised to see they were doing it again in July with Graveyard Smash, and as of this writing, Kandisha is open to subs again for volume three.
One of my favorite things about these collections are the mixture of known and loved entities with up-and-coming names, a fair few new-to-me authors. Graveyard Smash is a bit bigger than its predecessor at 21 stories. As with any anthology, some hit hard, some sink their teeth in, and some simply didn’t resonate with me for whatever reason. Allow me to highlight some favorites:
“Holes” by RA Busy - The opening gambit in this anthology comes out swinging. Admittedly this is the first short story I’ve read that directly references corona, and I was worried at first, but the execution here is top notch and really encapsulates paranoia using trypophobia.
“Two’s Company, Three’s a Shroud” by Catherine McCarthy - This one stood out for being really different, not an easy feat in such a sizable collection. Funny and original, I really enjoyed being immersed in this story. I mean, there is a pun in the title.
“The Clockmaker” by Sonora Taylor - The best story in the collection comes in pretty early. Taylor’s creepy story is note perfect and has the feel of a classic story in the vein of Poe or Shirley Jackson.
“Love You to Death” by Yolanda Sfetsos - Yolanda’s story in Under Her Black Wings was a stand out there as well. This author seems to have it, and I look forward to reading more by her. That said, I adore horror mixed with mythology and this story had it in spades and did it well.
“Cicada Song” by Michelle Renee Lane - Another top notch tale. Lane’s story had a very original premise and even though it was laugh-out-loud funny at points, the humor didn’t detract from the weight of the story.
“The Invitation” by Janine Pipe - It’s hard to lay out what I liked about this story without spoilers, or at least affecting the reader’s experience. I will say that it’s well-plotted and Pipe’s use of misdirection is Prestige-level. “Are you watching closely?”
Lest this write-up exceed the length of one of the stories contained within, I’ll leave longer story descriptions at that. There are other fun, creeptastic, engaging, and even beautiful stories by V Castro, Beverley Lee, Ellie Douglas, Susan McCauley, Ksenia Murray, and Christy Aldridge. Kandisha is putting out consistently entertaining work by women of horror, drawing readers in with the big names and introducing future stars. As long as they keep these anthologies coming, I’ll keep lining up for them.
I was given a digital copy by the publisher for review consideration.Rating/review coming soon