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ericarobyn's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
4.5
The Horror Collection: Monster Edition presented by KJK Publishing is a collection of chilling tales filled with monsters of all kinds! Get your nightlights ready; this collection will have you constantly on the lookout for something creeping just around the corner.
Giant spiders, werewolves, cosmic creatures, a water nymph, a mummy, a monstrous hag, a giant Gila monster, and other nighttime horrors are just a handful of the monsters you’ll find in the pages of this book! Each tale brings such fun and creativity to the monster scene!
My top three favorites (in order of appearance in the book) from this collection included:
- Jungle Habitat by Daemon Manx
- Kill it With Fire by Veronica Smith
- Salvia Sunset by Brennan LaFaro
Per usual, here are my notes on each tale!
Charlotte by Kyle M. Scott –
After a horrible bullying event where her two friends didn’t step in to help, this girl breaks. Frustrated with people as a whole, she goes walking on her family’s property and makes quite the discovery!
Oh my gosh… this one gave me the willies! I just hate spiders. I loved the circle back the end of the tale had to draw back from the beginning! This poor unhinged girl.
Rusalka by Brian Moreland –
Warned to stay on the roads, this young man ventures off into the woods while on a backpacking trip. Of course, he should have heeded the warning…
Such a fun tale of thinking you know better than to heed the warning of the locals! Always a trope I can’t get enough of.
Beneath the Lunar Light by Mark Young –
Afflicted with a curse, this man is determined to get help before the next full moon to prevent another incident. But when he arrives at the doctor’s house, he is shocked to see the doctor has an afflicted iron of his own.
What a fun and action-packed Jekyll and Hyde take!
Jungle Habitat by Daemon Manx –
Exploring an abandoned safari park with friends looking for something mysterious and odd leaves this character running for his life.
They sure found something within the park! What a bizarre monster!
Monster by Ashley Ericmore –
Running from a monster that she can’t leave behind, she thinks she has a safety plan this time. Of course, she’s wrong.
What a wild path this one takes! I loved not knowing what was going on but trying to guess as hints were dropped up until the big reveal!
Opportunity by Christina Bergling –
After striking out on his own to feed, this character knows he’s betrayed his savior, but the kill is more important. But how will she react?
What a neat premise where each organ can fulfill a different type of need!
Kill it With Fire by Veronica Smith –
Waking up with a strange substance around her nose, Becky is terrified to realize it was spider webbing after discovering a large web in her living room. Determined to find the source, she’ll soon regret not leaving her house when she first had the thought.
My gosh, kill it with fire indeed! This one has a handful of my fears all wrapped into one!
Gone Witness by Chris Panatier –
After a flash in the sky, humanity is split into two; those who witnessed the event and those who didn’t. For both groups, things are never the same after.
What a terrifying cosmic horror! These creatures were absolutely terrifying and the grief horror here for the poor man watching his daughter go through this…
An Invitation to Play by George Daniel Lea –
When creatures start appearing all over, the world tries to keep on with a business-as-usual mindset. Trying to convince the public that things are getting better, these two know otherwise.
What an eerie apocalypse! The focus on business as usual hit hard after seeing how businesses handled COVID-19… phew!
The Art of Mummification by Frederick Pangbourne –
Determined to find out what happened to his father, this man and his hired help find themselves getting answers they could have never imagined.
The suspense and action here! Phew!!
In the Arms of the Annis by Heather Miller –
Wandering children are being snatched up by something in the forest. But when one unique child is taken, the creature responsible acts differently… but can the child get free?
That last line, oh no…
Salvia Sunset by Brennan LaFaro –
Spotting a monster outside, Nola isn’t sure what exactly she saw. But when miners begin to go missing, she’s determined to find answers.
I was so excited to see that this tale was set in Buzzard’s Edge! Another amazing character to get to know in this town. She certainly wasn’t afraid to try to take matters into her own hands!
Paying Tribute by Scott Paul Hallam – CW loss of a child.
After the passing of their son, this father has a bit of an angels-in-the-outfield-moment. But is this angel his son, or something else?
Oofh, this one hits extra hard now that I have a son… Phew.
My Favorite Passages from The Horror Collection: Monster Edition –
A scream pierced the summer twilight. What followed was a wail of sorts, human until it wasn’t. It stopped as suddenly as it had started.
— Charlotte by Kyle M. Scott
— Charlotte by Kyle M. Scott
Torian stepped off the cliff, assisted by the momentum of the blast, and was thrown into the air. His arms flailed to grab onto something that wasn’t there or to perhaps start flying. When neither happened, Torian’s body cartwheeled downward like a ballistic mistle.
— Jungle Habitat by Daemon Manx
— Jungle Habitat by Daemon Manx
When she opened the door, sunlight streamed in around the silhouettes of two men. Suit jackets wrapped their broad shoulders. Their clothes were impeccably tailored, but their shoes were worn and scuffed. Something brutish packaged up to look like something nice.
— Opportunity by Christina Bergling
— Opportunity by Christina Bergling
The structure towered over the dead grass, looming toward the quivering crimson leaves. Two narrow windows on the second floor glared down like eyes, the eaves of the roof forming severe eyebrows. A long wooden porch ran along the front like a sinister grin.
— Opportunity by Christina Bergling
— Opportunity by Christina Bergling
I tried to reassure myself it was just “Nature.” That’s what you say when the TV shows a lion getting a zebra. It’s natural. It’s okay. Of course, in nature, little girls don’t go biting the spines off goats. Whose nature was that?
— Gone Witness by Chris Panatier
— Gone Witness by Chris Panatier
This close to the tree, the creaking of its massive branches fills the air, a deep and unsettling accompaniment to the keening of the wind.
— In the Arms of the Annis by Heather Miller
— In the Arms of the Annis by Heather Miller
When the sun starts to shake hands with the tops of buildings on the western edge of town, that’s when I usually close up shop.
— Salvia Sunset by Brennan LaFaro
— Salvia Sunset by Brennan LaFaro
One thing you learn about Buzzard’s Edge. Talk to most people and they’ll tell you the sand here drinks blood fast as a shot of whiskey.
— Salvia Sunset by Brennan LaFaro
— Salvia Sunset by Brennan LaFaro
A few brave souls remained behind, hacking away at the beast with their sharpened tools. They might as well have been trying to break rock with a spoon. A whip of that mighty tail and the men fell on their asses and waited for the monster to choose which of them would die next.
— Salvia Sunset by Brennan LaFaro
— Salvia Sunset by Brennan LaFaro
I swear the shot moved so slow I watched it carve through thick afternoon air, politely excusing itself before cracking the surface of the gila monster’s eyes.
— Salvia Sunset by Brennan LaFaro
— Salvia Sunset by Brennan LaFaro
My Final Thoughts on The Horror Collection: Monster Edition –
I’m obsessed with this theme! Who doesn’t love monster tales?! Snag your copy today!
Content Warnings
Minor: Child death
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