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A review by ambrose_7
100 Word Horrors: An Anthology of Horror Drabbles by Amy Cross, William F. Nolan, Lisa Morton
4.0
100 Word Horrors introduced me to a style of writing I've never experienced before. There's a humongous difference between short stories and drabbles. Being able to tell a story in only 100 words is a complicated artform and I was more than impressed when it was done correctly. I've compiled a list of my ten favorite stories from the collection of 110 stories with short thoughts on each.
Honorable Mention: Silence by Pippa Bailey, I liked this one because it was presented in such visceral terms. The ending was a bit cliché though.
Honorable Mention: The Dolls by Mark Lukens, a funny little story that goes over the problem of how wasteful humans are in a unique way. Great story to finish the anthology with.
Honorable Mention: Jack Frost by Christina Bergling, dying to Jack Frost would be most unpleasant as Bergling shows. Creative idea for a drabble, I liked it.
10: Beasts from Below by Alex Laybourne, I find this one funny. Humans might not be the strongest physically, but we did create nukes…
9: Alone by Brandy Yassa, I liked the secret message in this one, what’s happening behind the words. It was my favorite style of Drabble in the entire collection.
8: Just A Game by Christopher Motz, I laughed at the ending of this one. Had the shock value, even if it was unrealistic.
7: Hobby by Matt Hickman, disturbing, as it’s alluded the MC is a child. Very good imagery given the strict word constrictions of a drabble.
6: Air by Dave McClusty, I also love stories like this where you don’t know what’s going on until the end, just that it’s horrible. This is a concept I’ve thought of before, I wonder how fast the camera crews would get it off air? (Pun intended)
5: Greed Has No Heart by Mark Lumby, this one is the best story for just disturbing classic horror. With a beautiful finishing line I love the images this story paints.
4: Jolly Ol’ Infiltrator by Weston Kincade, a beautiful twist on what Santa thinks of the “impostors” of him. I also love the rhyming.
3: The Dead Thing by Lisa Morton, I love that I had to read this one like three times to figure it out and I was so proud of myself once I did. Showed it to many peers and family to see if they could figure it out.
2: It's by Billy Chizmar, What an idea! And presented in such a short time. What would you do if you knew you were the last human to exist?
1: The Man in the Black Sweater by Richard Chizmar, I loved this one, beautiful irony. I don’t think it’s the most original concept. But man it is beautifully portrayed for 100 words. Best story in the collection.
I think the anthology was strongest in the beginning some of the stories that were in the middle of it felt weaker. But I had an enjoyable experience with all of it. I ended up reading it in only a couple of days. I might be a flash-fiction convert. I want to see it in genres besides horror now.
Honorable Mention: Silence by Pippa Bailey, I liked this one because it was presented in such visceral terms. The ending was a bit cliché though.
Honorable Mention: The Dolls by Mark Lukens, a funny little story that goes over the problem of how wasteful humans are in a unique way. Great story to finish the anthology with.
Honorable Mention: Jack Frost by Christina Bergling, dying to Jack Frost would be most unpleasant as Bergling shows. Creative idea for a drabble, I liked it.
10: Beasts from Below by Alex Laybourne, I find this one funny. Humans might not be the strongest physically, but we did create nukes…
9: Alone by Brandy Yassa, I liked the secret message in this one, what’s happening behind the words. It was my favorite style of Drabble in the entire collection.
8: Just A Game by Christopher Motz, I laughed at the ending of this one. Had the shock value, even if it was unrealistic.
7: Hobby by Matt Hickman, disturbing, as it’s alluded the MC is a child. Very good imagery given the strict word constrictions of a drabble.
6: Air by Dave McClusty, I also love stories like this where you don’t know what’s going on until the end, just that it’s horrible. This is a concept I’ve thought of before, I wonder how fast the camera crews would get it off air? (Pun intended)
5: Greed Has No Heart by Mark Lumby, this one is the best story for just disturbing classic horror. With a beautiful finishing line I love the images this story paints.
4: Jolly Ol’ Infiltrator by Weston Kincade, a beautiful twist on what Santa thinks of the “impostors” of him. I also love the rhyming.
3: The Dead Thing by Lisa Morton, I love that I had to read this one like three times to figure it out and I was so proud of myself once I did. Showed it to many peers and family to see if they could figure it out.
2: It's by Billy Chizmar, What an idea! And presented in such a short time. What would you do if you knew you were the last human to exist?
1: The Man in the Black Sweater by Richard Chizmar, I loved this one, beautiful irony. I don’t think it’s the most original concept. But man it is beautifully portrayed for 100 words. Best story in the collection.
I think the anthology was strongest in the beginning some of the stories that were in the middle of it felt weaker. But I had an enjoyable experience with all of it. I ended up reading it in only a couple of days. I might be a flash-fiction convert. I want to see it in genres besides horror now.