A review by lantastic1
Never Whistle at Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology by Shane Hawk, Theodore C. Van Alst Jr.

dark informative mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

 I didn’t know what to expect when I picked up this book of short stories. Horror isn’t generally my genre, but indigenous fiction definitely is, so I went into this with an open mind.

I loved this collection. It’s the perfect mix of truly terrifying body horror (I don’t know I’ll ever quite get over Snakes are Born in the Dark), traditional horror stories (Hunger was one of my favorites), stories centered in indigenous traditions (Scariest. Story. Ever. let me into a world I know little about), and social commentary (Quantum was one of the most disturbing things I’ve ever read, and Sundays was heartbreaking).

My favorite stories, however, were the two more traditional satire pieces - White Hills and Collections. They have a Get Out feel to them but with this added layer of written tradition that I really responded to. I won’t give anything away about the plots - you should just read the book, seriously - but they were both captivating and deeply disturbing.

Shane Hawk and Theodore C. Van Alst Jr. did a great job curating this collection, and you can absolutely tell that they are Own Voices editors by the stories they chose. This was amazing, highly recommend you checking it out, even if Horror isn’t your first choice!

 
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