Mister October, Volumes I and II edited by Christopher Golden

This anthology is a two volume set written by friends of Rick Hautala.  Mr. Hautala had an untimely death and this set is a tribute to who he was and his talents.  There are some well-known authors and others I didn't recognize but this whole effort contains horror stories that will stick in your mind, as well as help his family out with the sales proceeds.

Library Thing and Journal Stone allowed me to read these as ebooks (thank you).  They were published October 31st, so check with your local bookstore for a copy.

From Christopher Golden: “On March 21st,2013, I received a phone call from Holly Newstein telling me that her husband, Rick Hautala, had suffered amassive heart attack. That piece of information shocked me into a surreal sort of panic, so much so that at first Icould not make the leap to the next thing she said…that he had died. It seemed impossible. Rick had been such a good friend, such a consistent and stable force in my life, that the idea of him being so suddenly removed from this world…I just couldn’t make sense of it.  I have no doubt that readers will treasure this two volume set. It is my hope that as you read, you will ruminate a little bit about the man for whom we all have come together within these pages. And I hope you’ll urge others to pick up their own copies of MISTER OCTOBER as well.”

This is an amazing group of short stories that grabbed my attention and kept me reading.  I read both volumes in one day and that's not usual.  With names like Neil Gaiman and Clive Barker, I knew someone would be messing with my head as I read these.  Quite a few of the stories were like that.  Happy ever after is not the theme in horror stories.  The best part is that the sale of this book is not only going to get you some good stories to read, it's also going to help the family.

Here's a list of the stories available in the two volumes:

Contributors: Volume I

FEEDERS AND EATERS ‐ Neil Gaiman

UNDER THE PYLON ‐ Graham Joyce

A GUY WALKS INTO A BAR ‐ Matthew Costello

HELL HATH ENLARGED HERSELF ‐ Michael Marshall Smith

FIGURES IN RAIN ‐ Chet Williamson

AS YOU HAVE MADE US ‐ Elizabeth Massie

THOUGHTFUL BREATHS ‐ Peter Crowther

NEVER BACK AGAIN ‐ Matti Hautala

A GIRL, SITTING ‐ Mark Morris

BLOOD BROTHERS ‐ Richard Chizmar

LITTLE BROTHERS—PORTFOLIO ‐ Stephen R. Bissette

TIGHT LITTLE STITCHES IN A DEAD MAN’S BACK ‐ Joe R. Lansdale

CRAVING ‐ Yvonne Navarro

lXCHEL’S TEARS ‐ José R. Nieto

LIFE DURING DEATH ‐ Duane Swierczynski

AFTER THE ELEPHANT BALLET ‐ Gary A. Braunbeck

OVERNIGHT GUEST ‐ Craig Shaw Gardner

SPRINGFIELD REPEATER ‐ Jack M. Haringa

CONJURER—BOOK I: THE GRIEVE ‐ Tom Piccirilli

THE YEAR THE MUSIC DIED ‐ F. Paul Wilson

PROPERTY CONDEMNED—A STORY OF PINE DEEP ‐ Jonathan Maberry

PLAYING THE HUDDYS ‐ John M. McIlveen

CRASHING DOWN ‐ Weston Ochse

Contributors: Volume II

TOM REQUIEM ‐ Clive Barker

LITTLE RED’S TANGO ‐ Peter Straub

HOLOGRAM SKULL COVER ‐ Jeff Strand

LUX ET VERITAS ‐ Thomas F. Monteleone

DEVOTION ‐ J. F. Gonzalez

INN CLEANING ‐ Stephen R. Bissette

BREATHE MY NAME ‐ Christopher Golden

MAGDALA AMYGDALA ‐ Lucy A. Snyder

THE BOHEMIAN OF THE ARBAT ‐ Sarah Pinborough

JOHNSTOWN ‐ Brian Keene

ROAD KILL (A Dan Shamble, Zombie P.I. story) ‐ Kevin J. Anderson

JUST BREATHE ‐ Tim Lebbon

CATFISH GAL BLUES ‐ Nancy A. Collins

ILLIMITABLE DOMINION ‐ Kim Newman

INDEPENDENCE DAY ‐ Sarah Langan

THE GHOST OF LILLIAN BLISS ‐ Rio Youers

HOTLINE ‐ Jack Ketchum

THE LIGHT OF ALL POSSIBLE WORLDS ‐ John Skipp

WAR STORIES ‐ James A. Moore

IT’S… ‐ Amber Benson

THE DREAMCATCHER ‐ Nate Kenyon

KRISTALL TAG ‐ Holly Newstein

GHOST TRAP ‐ Rick Hautala

If you have an interest in short stories, horror stories or just helping people, this set is for you.  Why not grab a set for you and set aside some time for reading?