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A review by nikki_in_niagara
Howls From Hell by Grady Hendrix
3.0
This anthology of mostly indie horror authors offers a wide variety of stories. Each story ends with a small blurb about the author which I appreciate in anthologies. There was also a wide variety of quality to the stories. There were a couple of excellent stories, a couple of duds, and the majority were good.
1. A Casual Encounter by Quinn Fern - A man and woman hook up in a motel after meeting online. Somewhat predictable but interesting. (3/5)
2. The Pigeon Lied by JW Donley - A young man works a lowly job for the Hell-adjacent Underworld. He gets mixed up with the Lords of certain houses and violence ensues with goons and demons. Fun (4/5)
3. Manufactured God by PL McMillan - It's the far future, Earth has suffered a Catalyst, and some anthropology students have landed to investigate a fissure. As they enter they find rooms full of Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics. Very good. Entertaining, fast-paced, and a bit gory. (5/5)
4. Red Punch Buggy by BOB Jenkin - A man rear-ends a VW Bug and has to escape the driver. Didn't like this one. The dialogue was bad. (2/5)
5. She's Taken Away by Shane Hawk - We read a transcription from the good twin. Predictable. (2/5)
6. Suspended in Light by Alex Wolfgang - A film student spends a Saturday watching 1920s donated reels and her life is changed forever. This was fantastic and extremely creepy. (5/5)
7. Gooseberry Bramble by Solomon Forse - A boy is warned not to go near the gooseberry bramble but, of course, he does. Pretty much predictable and is written in a style I can't stand, the narrative entirely in dialect. (2/5)
8. Clement & Sons by Joe Radkins - A woman moves into an old house and finds a beautiful grandfather clock still there. Good build up but the ending has no explanation. (3/5)
9. Possess and Serve by Christopher O'Halloran - It's a world where officers go into the bodies of those in danger and try to save life-threatening situations. One such officer is behind stolen jewellery and much more. Great premise, well well-written, and exciting story. (5/5)
10. Duplicitous Wings by Amanda Nevada Demel - A young witch conjures a spell to right the injustice of her father's will. Straightforward story. Ok read. (3/5)
11. It Gets In Your Eyes by Joseph Andre Thomas - A woman gets an increasingly worse eye problem but drs can find nothing wrong. Great body horror and anything to do with eyes creep me out. (4/5)
12. Red and the Beast by Thea Maeve - A retelling of a Red Riding Hood And Beauty and the Beast mashup. A dark romantasy which is not my thing at all. Decent story for what it was. (3/5)
13. The Intruder by Justin Full - A man finds himself having angry thoughts on his way home from work to see his apartment door is open. The writing style is hard to read and the story doesn't exactly make sense. (2/5)
14. Sprout by M David Clarkson - We read as a man is transformed into something else between the story of how he got there. Great body horror. Creepy. (4/5)
15. Junco Creek by SE Denton - After a woman's separation, she and her son go to a cabin in the woods to heal their relationship. They meet a dark mysterious man there. Entertaining. It is predictable though so just ok. (3/5)
16. A Fistful of Murder by Lindsey Ragsdale - A man receives a ten-dollar bill with "KILL" written on it. He gets an immediate urge to kill and steps on an ant. Things get worse from there. Short and sweet. (3/5)
1. A Casual Encounter by Quinn Fern - A man and woman hook up in a motel after meeting online. Somewhat predictable but interesting. (3/5)
2. The Pigeon Lied by JW Donley - A young man works a lowly job for the Hell-adjacent Underworld. He gets mixed up with the Lords of certain houses and violence ensues with goons and demons. Fun (4/5)
3. Manufactured God by PL McMillan - It's the far future, Earth has suffered a Catalyst, and some anthropology students have landed to investigate a fissure. As they enter they find rooms full of Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics. Very good. Entertaining, fast-paced, and a bit gory. (5/5)
4. Red Punch Buggy by BOB Jenkin - A man rear-ends a VW Bug and has to escape the driver. Didn't like this one. The dialogue was bad. (2/5)
5. She's Taken Away by Shane Hawk - We read a transcription from the good twin. Predictable. (2/5)
6. Suspended in Light by Alex Wolfgang - A film student spends a Saturday watching 1920s donated reels and her life is changed forever. This was fantastic and extremely creepy. (5/5)
7. Gooseberry Bramble by Solomon Forse - A boy is warned not to go near the gooseberry bramble but, of course, he does. Pretty much predictable and is written in a style I can't stand, the narrative entirely in dialect. (2/5)
8. Clement & Sons by Joe Radkins - A woman moves into an old house and finds a beautiful grandfather clock still there. Good build up but the ending has no explanation. (3/5)
9. Possess and Serve by Christopher O'Halloran - It's a world where officers go into the bodies of those in danger and try to save life-threatening situations. One such officer is behind stolen jewellery and much more. Great premise, well well-written, and exciting story. (5/5)
10. Duplicitous Wings by Amanda Nevada Demel - A young witch conjures a spell to right the injustice of her father's will. Straightforward story. Ok read. (3/5)
11. It Gets In Your Eyes by Joseph Andre Thomas - A woman gets an increasingly worse eye problem but drs can find nothing wrong. Great body horror and anything to do with eyes creep me out. (4/5)
12. Red and the Beast by Thea Maeve - A retelling of a Red Riding Hood And Beauty and the Beast mashup. A dark romantasy which is not my thing at all. Decent story for what it was. (3/5)
13. The Intruder by Justin Full - A man finds himself having angry thoughts on his way home from work to see his apartment door is open. The writing style is hard to read and the story doesn't exactly make sense. (2/5)
14. Sprout by M David Clarkson - We read as a man is transformed into something else between the story of how he got there. Great body horror. Creepy. (4/5)
15. Junco Creek by SE Denton - After a woman's separation, she and her son go to a cabin in the woods to heal their relationship. They meet a dark mysterious man there. Entertaining. It is predictable though so just ok. (3/5)
16. A Fistful of Murder by Lindsey Ragsdale - A man receives a ten-dollar bill with "KILL" written on it. He gets an immediate urge to kill and steps on an ant. Things get worse from there. Short and sweet. (3/5)