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catsluvcoffee's review
5.0
Mother Nature has long been a subject of horror and with good reason. Given enough time, plants have proven that they will take over, insinuating themselves into every nook and cranny. You only need to look at the nearest sidewalk to see a tree persevering, slowly breaking through the concrete. There's also a wrongness in disrupting the natural order of things, allowing vegetation an exalted spot in the human-dominated hierarchy. As part of the Black Shuck Shadows micro-collection series, Green Fingers demonstrates that short stories of nature gone awry can still have deep roots. These six unsettling stories will slither and ooze themselves into your subconscious.
"Invasive Species" is the first story in this collection, demonstrating that plants can have a very insidious nature as they quietly infiltrate everything. A transplanted homeowner tries to familiarize themselves with the foreign fauna of their new home, choosing dirt under their nails above unboxing the house. When a mysterious plant arrives in a cardboard box with no note, they assume it's a gift and plant it in the garden as well. There's a wonderfully stealthy feel here. While the plant doesn't actually do anything but grow—as plants have a tendency to do—it's never felt so menacing.
Written through an interview, the event occurring in "By Black Snow She Wept" has an added survivalist quality to it as a couple stumbles upon an unconscious stranger in the snow with a disquieting scaly black lichen growing in his wounds. When he regains awareness, he begs them to amputate his arm to stop the spread. The origin of this creeping black organism is unknown. However, the refusal of the stranger to drink anything but boiled water gives us an inkling. The first-person recounting of the survivor years later gives validation to the story, even though we are later told that the interviewer doesn't believe the occurrence happened as told. He does, however, say that he doesn't plan to drink of the water while investigating.
In "The Pale Men", a son comes home for the funeral of his estranged father and to settle his affairs. After meeting his father's friends at the local pub, he realizes that there might be more to his father and his cronies than he knew. This one was odd but still interesting. While it doesn't have the same threatening quality as the first two stories, a giant gastropod, the only non-vegetative inclusion in the collection, still ensured an engaging, if odd, read.
The discovery of a VHS tape labeled EYEWITNESS TO MURDER buried within an enormous mushroom sends the mayor fleeing to the town's old mine in "We Live in Dirt". The mine is not only the origin of the fungi but the scene of something nefarious many years ago. The mayor has a lot at stake if the truth were discovered. Did someone plant the tape to be unearthed by his daughter, bringing to light things that should stay hidden? While the payoff for this story isn't unearthed until its ending, the apparent anxiety of the mayor made this one worth reading.
The folk tale feel of "Green Fingers", the titular story in the collection, focuses around an old oak tree whom some say is the oldest oak tree in Britain. It also happens that it is the location of an unusual seemingly ritualistic and possibly satanic murder. An errant dog scampering after woodland creatures leads to the startling discovery of the tree still ringed with police tape from the murder investigation, leading to a prickly entanglement for, sadly, both the dog and its owner.
In the final offering, "Among the Pines", bizarre and eerie screaming for nights on end sends campers out into the woods seeking the source. This one was the most speculative fiction leaning piece of the six, while still creating chills. It wasn't difficult to see where it was leading but concluded on a remarkably creepy note.
Green Fingers offers up six distinctive tales to give you pause. The author imbued the characters with realism and depth despite their short length. There’s a uniqueness to the stories despite the common theme. Unlike a lot of eco-horror, there is really no explanation of why things have suddenly turned sinister. These plants aren't sentient (that we know of) and they aren't motivated by a sudden need for revenge for the sins of humanity against them. They just...are, which might make that the most terrifying reason of all.
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"Invasive Species" is the first story in this collection, demonstrating that plants can have a very insidious nature as they quietly infiltrate everything. A transplanted homeowner tries to familiarize themselves with the foreign fauna of their new home, choosing dirt under their nails above unboxing the house. When a mysterious plant arrives in a cardboard box with no note, they assume it's a gift and plant it in the garden as well. There's a wonderfully stealthy feel here. While the plant doesn't actually do anything but grow—as plants have a tendency to do—it's never felt so menacing.
Written through an interview, the event occurring in "By Black Snow She Wept" has an added survivalist quality to it as a couple stumbles upon an unconscious stranger in the snow with a disquieting scaly black lichen growing in his wounds. When he regains awareness, he begs them to amputate his arm to stop the spread. The origin of this creeping black organism is unknown. However, the refusal of the stranger to drink anything but boiled water gives us an inkling. The first-person recounting of the survivor years later gives validation to the story, even though we are later told that the interviewer doesn't believe the occurrence happened as told. He does, however, say that he doesn't plan to drink of the water while investigating.
In "The Pale Men", a son comes home for the funeral of his estranged father and to settle his affairs. After meeting his father's friends at the local pub, he realizes that there might be more to his father and his cronies than he knew. This one was odd but still interesting. While it doesn't have the same threatening quality as the first two stories, a giant gastropod, the only non-vegetative inclusion in the collection, still ensured an engaging, if odd, read.
The discovery of a VHS tape labeled EYEWITNESS TO MURDER buried within an enormous mushroom sends the mayor fleeing to the town's old mine in "We Live in Dirt". The mine is not only the origin of the fungi but the scene of something nefarious many years ago. The mayor has a lot at stake if the truth were discovered. Did someone plant the tape to be unearthed by his daughter, bringing to light things that should stay hidden? While the payoff for this story isn't unearthed until its ending, the apparent anxiety of the mayor made this one worth reading.
The folk tale feel of "Green Fingers", the titular story in the collection, focuses around an old oak tree whom some say is the oldest oak tree in Britain. It also happens that it is the location of an unusual seemingly ritualistic and possibly satanic murder. An errant dog scampering after woodland creatures leads to the startling discovery of the tree still ringed with police tape from the murder investigation, leading to a prickly entanglement for, sadly, both the dog and its owner.
In the final offering, "Among the Pines", bizarre and eerie screaming for nights on end sends campers out into the woods seeking the source. This one was the most speculative fiction leaning piece of the six, while still creating chills. It wasn't difficult to see where it was leading but concluded on a remarkably creepy note.
Green Fingers offers up six distinctive tales to give you pause. The author imbued the characters with realism and depth despite their short length. There’s a uniqueness to the stories despite the common theme. Unlike a lot of eco-horror, there is really no explanation of why things have suddenly turned sinister. These plants aren't sentient (that we know of) and they aren't motivated by a sudden need for revenge for the sins of humanity against them. They just...are, which might make that the most terrifying reason of all.
Website | Twitter | Pinterest
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