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A review by mindyleereads
Blame it on the Pumpkin by Greg Patrick, Pamela K. Kinney, Jennifer Kyrnin
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
2.0
*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an Advanced Readers Copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.*
Man I am bummed! I just got off of the high of reading the Human Monsters anthology and while this is young adult, I expected more. I do really enjoy young adult horror but this collection missed the mark on numerous occasions. Some of it read YA while others read middle grade or adult. It's hard to say who this collection is truly for. I also did not find these stories to be that scary, but I did expect a lot of pumpkins. Starting the collection off with a nonfiction description on how pumpkins are farmed would make you think you're in for a bunch of pumpkins but that just didn't happen.
I would also suggest that triggers be placed in this book, especially before the ones involving self-harm. There should also be triggers in here for transphobia as well as some other things I am not listing as they didn't specifically stand out to me, but could be harmful to others.
See below for my individual reviews.
From Pumpkin to Jack-o-lantern by Majory E Laposky
Overall: ⭐️/5
This is a nonfiction piece and while I liked some of the facts presented, it wasn’t written in a way that easily flows. It felt like something I would have written for school back in the day. It just felt out of place
Moonlit Hunt by JM Silverlead
Overall: ⭐️⭐️/5
This poem would have been a better opening for this book.
Pumpkin Hollow by Pamela Kinney
Overall: ⭐️⭐️/5
This story has a lot of potential. There were a lot of pieces that I could have enjoyed had the story been tweaked a bit.
Vampire Gourd by Jennifer Kyrnin
Overall ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
I really enjoyed this story. This is the absolute stand out in the collection. It gave me Little Shop of Horror and Don”t Go Into the Basement (Goosebumps) vibes and I was 100% here for that. I want to read more from this author!
Nasty Old B!tch by SP Mount
I’m not going to rate this one. Content warnings for transphobia, suicide, and more. I skimmed through the second half of this story. This one is not for me.
Flock of Badb by SP Mount
Skipping based on the story prior by this author.
Alone on Halloween by Michael Gore
DNFing this story as well due to a personal trigger regarding self harm. Based on other reviews, I made the right choice in stopping.
Dance of Madks and Fire The Witchfinder’s Shadow by Greg Patrick
Overall: ⭐️⭐️/5
This was alright. I think a short story doesn’t do this kind of theme justice. I want more witch hunting, more revenge, more character development. It has potential.
Trick or Treat: Once Upon a Hunter’s Moon by Greg Patrick
It isn’t super clear to me but it seems like this is a spin off from the prior story. Mr. Elmer appears in both and the witches. It feels disconnected but I suppose it would since these are two short stories. I’d rather just have a novella, personally.
The Halloween Seances by EW Farnsworth
Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
I’m not exactly sure what to think of this story. It had Sex and the City vibes but also some mob stuff. I liked a lot of things from this story but it, like another story in this collection, needs to be its own novella or novel. But also - why is this in a horror collection?
My other issue is I thought that the term “gypsy” is offensive. I can’t speak to this as I’m not Romani but I have read a few articles where we should not be using this term anymore.
Man I am bummed! I just got off of the high of reading the Human Monsters anthology and while this is young adult, I expected more. I do really enjoy young adult horror but this collection missed the mark on numerous occasions. Some of it read YA while others read middle grade or adult. It's hard to say who this collection is truly for. I also did not find these stories to be that scary, but I did expect a lot of pumpkins. Starting the collection off with a nonfiction description on how pumpkins are farmed would make you think you're in for a bunch of pumpkins but that just didn't happen.
I would also suggest that triggers be placed in this book, especially before the ones involving self-harm. There should also be triggers in here for transphobia as well as some other things I am not listing as they didn't specifically stand out to me, but could be harmful to others.
See below for my individual reviews.
From Pumpkin to Jack-o-lantern by Majory E Laposky
Overall: ⭐️/5
This is a nonfiction piece and while I liked some of the facts presented, it wasn’t written in a way that easily flows. It felt like something I would have written for school back in the day. It just felt out of place
Moonlit Hunt by JM Silverlead
Overall: ⭐️⭐️/5
This poem would have been a better opening for this book.
Pumpkin Hollow by Pamela Kinney
Overall: ⭐️⭐️/5
This story has a lot of potential. There were a lot of pieces that I could have enjoyed had the story been tweaked a bit.
Vampire Gourd by Jennifer Kyrnin
Overall ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
I really enjoyed this story. This is the absolute stand out in the collection. It gave me Little Shop of Horror and Don”t Go Into the Basement (Goosebumps) vibes and I was 100% here for that. I want to read more from this author!
Nasty Old B!tch by SP Mount
I’m not going to rate this one. Content warnings for transphobia, suicide, and more. I skimmed through the second half of this story. This one is not for me.
Flock of Badb by SP Mount
Skipping based on the story prior by this author.
Alone on Halloween by Michael Gore
DNFing this story as well due to a personal trigger regarding self harm. Based on other reviews, I made the right choice in stopping.
Dance of Madks and Fire The Witchfinder’s Shadow by Greg Patrick
Overall: ⭐️⭐️/5
This was alright. I think a short story doesn’t do this kind of theme justice. I want more witch hunting, more revenge, more character development. It has potential.
Trick or Treat: Once Upon a Hunter’s Moon by Greg Patrick
It isn’t super clear to me but it seems like this is a spin off from the prior story. Mr. Elmer appears in both and the witches. It feels disconnected but I suppose it would since these are two short stories. I’d rather just have a novella, personally.
The Halloween Seances by EW Farnsworth
Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
I’m not exactly sure what to think of this story. It had Sex and the City vibes but also some mob stuff. I liked a lot of things from this story but it, like another story in this collection, needs to be its own novella or novel. But also - why is this in a horror collection?
My other issue is I thought that the term “gypsy” is offensive. I can’t speak to this as I’m not Romani but I have read a few articles where we should not be using this term anymore.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Self harm
Minor: Suicide