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A review by andreacaro
Doorbells at Dusk by Evans Light, Gregor Xane, Jason Parent
4.0
I saw a tweet about this anthology and immediately headed over to Amazon to purchase my copy. Anyone that knows me knows that I'm a Halloween fiend, so a new Halloween anthology to read in the middle of what I call Pre-October (the months after winter that come before October itself - I hate spring and summer) is something that is completely up my alley. All in all, this is a great anthology and one that I would call a favorite. Most stories in this book were perfectly on point and soothed all of my spookier cravings, though a few felt out of place in this anthology, either because of tone or because they centered on Day of the Dead which, to me, is a completely separate holiday from Halloween itself.
Here's the story breakdown -
"A Plague of Monsters" by Charles Gramlich - 5/5:
A paranoid old man questions whether trick-or-treaters are actually actually trick-or-treaters when they show up on his doorstep too early. I thought I knew where this one was going, but was surprised in the end. Exactly what I signed up for.
"The Rye-Mother" by Curtis M. Lawson - 4/5:
A kid named David, stifled by his parents no-Halloween rule, can't fight his compulsion to visit a corn maze on Halloween night where he discovers secrets to who he really is. It was well-written, but ultimately I felt like the focus was less on Halloween and more on David's true identity.
"The Day of the Dead" by Amber Fallon - unrated:
From one of my updates - I feel awfully odd rating the Amber Fallon story because I don’t think Day of the Dead has anything to do with Halloween (aside from date proximity) and I also felt like it wasn’t appropriately appreciated or celebrated in the story.
"Rusty Husk" by Evans Light - 5/5:
Rusty Husk takes his Halloween decorations seriously. Each year the crowning jewel of his Halloween display is always a scarecrow that he makes fresh every single year. This story was quintessential Halloween for me and my favorite in the entire collection. I absolutely loved it.
"Adam's Bed" by Josh Malerman - 4/5:
Ronnie puts together a birthday party for his son on Halloween. Later, he puts him to bed and sees a creature lurking underneath. It was well-written, but the fact it took place in hot Florida and read more like a bedtime story made me take it down a star.
"Keeping Up Appearances" by Jason Parent - 5/5:
A group of people think they're going to break into a mansion with its owners out for Halloween night. Little do they know, the owners are home and have a trick to play on them.
"Vigil" by Chad Lutzke - 3/5:
A neighborhood is rattled by the discovery of loads of bodies buried on the lot of an empty house on their street. This story was really sad and kind of a weird tone for this anthology. It wasn't poorly written, it just felt out of place.
"Mr. Impossible" by Gregor Xane - 5/5:
Children consume Halloween buckeyes containing a drug which makes them believe that they are their costumes. I loved this story; it was probably my second favorite in the anthology. It reminded me of a Buffy Halloween episode with a similar plot.
"Between" by Ian Welke - 3.5/5:
A story discussing the concept of Halloween/Day of the Dead being the one night a year when the veil between the living and the dead is the thinnest. A girl takes a combination of drugs to try to reach her dead parents to ask them about an important life choice. Another story that felt really out of place in this anthology, but really well-written.
"The Friendly Man" by Thomas Vaughn - 5/5:
A man decorates his home for Halloween and uses someone that has knocked at his door as a scare attraction by connecting his doorbell to a cattle prod poking his victim in the back. I loved this one. I also loved the way it ended.
"Many Carvings" by Sean Eads and Joshua Viola - 2/5:
An old witch delivering babies carves their faces into pumpkins, effectively making them her "children". Kind of a confusing story for me; my least favorite in the collection.
"Trick 'Em All" by Adam Light - 3/5:
A burgeoning psychopath carves a jack-o-lantern in his closet. The jack-o-lantern then starts whispering to him to do unspeakable things in order to give him a body. Honestly, this was going to get a 5/5 from me, but there was some unnecessary animal death which brought it down.
"Offerings" by Joanna Koch - 3/5:
A single chef invites a haggard mother over to her home on Halloween and the mother leaves her three little monsters behind. This was fine.
"Masks" by Lisa Lepovetsky - 4/5:
Parents discuss their daughter's bizarre behavior at a Halloween party while their daughter stalks them. This was fine. I want to re-read this one because at this point I was excited about finishing the anthology.
So, all in all, I give this anthology a 4/5 stars. Kind of disappointed there was no story about my favorite Halloween cliche - what happens to people who forget to leave out treats for the kids.
Here's the story breakdown -
"A Plague of Monsters" by Charles Gramlich - 5/5:
A paranoid old man questions whether trick-or-treaters are actually actually trick-or-treaters when they show up on his doorstep too early. I thought I knew where this one was going, but was surprised in the end. Exactly what I signed up for.
"The Rye-Mother" by Curtis M. Lawson - 4/5:
A kid named David, stifled by his parents no-Halloween rule, can't fight his compulsion to visit a corn maze on Halloween night where he discovers secrets to who he really is. It was well-written, but ultimately I felt like the focus was less on Halloween and more on David's true identity.
"The Day of the Dead" by Amber Fallon - unrated:
From one of my updates - I feel awfully odd rating the Amber Fallon story because I don’t think Day of the Dead has anything to do with Halloween (aside from date proximity) and I also felt like it wasn’t appropriately appreciated or celebrated in the story.
"Rusty Husk" by Evans Light - 5/5:
Rusty Husk takes his Halloween decorations seriously. Each year the crowning jewel of his Halloween display is always a scarecrow that he makes fresh every single year. This story was quintessential Halloween for me and my favorite in the entire collection. I absolutely loved it.
"Adam's Bed" by Josh Malerman - 4/5:
Ronnie puts together a birthday party for his son on Halloween. Later, he puts him to bed and sees a creature lurking underneath. It was well-written, but the fact it took place in hot Florida and read more like a bedtime story made me take it down a star.
"Keeping Up Appearances" by Jason Parent - 5/5:
A group of people think they're going to break into a mansion with its owners out for Halloween night. Little do they know, the owners are home and have a trick to play on them.
"Vigil" by Chad Lutzke - 3/5:
A neighborhood is rattled by the discovery of loads of bodies buried on the lot of an empty house on their street. This story was really sad and kind of a weird tone for this anthology. It wasn't poorly written, it just felt out of place.
"Mr. Impossible" by Gregor Xane - 5/5:
Children consume Halloween buckeyes containing a drug which makes them believe that they are their costumes. I loved this story; it was probably my second favorite in the anthology. It reminded me of a Buffy Halloween episode with a similar plot.
"Between" by Ian Welke - 3.5/5:
A story discussing the concept of Halloween/Day of the Dead being the one night a year when the veil between the living and the dead is the thinnest. A girl takes a combination of drugs to try to reach her dead parents to ask them about an important life choice. Another story that felt really out of place in this anthology, but really well-written.
"The Friendly Man" by Thomas Vaughn - 5/5:
A man decorates his home for Halloween and uses someone that has knocked at his door as a scare attraction by connecting his doorbell to a cattle prod poking his victim in the back. I loved this one. I also loved the way it ended.
"Many Carvings" by Sean Eads and Joshua Viola - 2/5:
An old witch delivering babies carves their faces into pumpkins, effectively making them her "children". Kind of a confusing story for me; my least favorite in the collection.
"Trick 'Em All" by Adam Light - 3/5:
A burgeoning psychopath carves a jack-o-lantern in his closet. The jack-o-lantern then starts whispering to him to do unspeakable things in order to give him a body. Honestly, this was going to get a 5/5 from me, but there was some unnecessary animal death which brought it down.
"Offerings" by Joanna Koch - 3/5:
A single chef invites a haggard mother over to her home on Halloween and the mother leaves her three little monsters behind. This was fine.
"Masks" by Lisa Lepovetsky - 4/5:
Parents discuss their daughter's bizarre behavior at a Halloween party while their daughter stalks them. This was fine. I want to re-read this one because at this point I was excited about finishing the anthology.
So, all in all, I give this anthology a 4/5 stars. Kind of disappointed there was no story about my favorite Halloween cliche - what happens to people who forget to leave out treats for the kids.