Thursday, July 30, 2015

Dark Screams: Volume Four by Clive Barker, Ed Gorman, Heather Graham

Like to scare yourself once in a while?  This series will do it for you...

Hydra and Net Galley allowed me to download this book for review (thank you).  It will be published August 4th, so watch for it then.  If you've missed the first three, you might want to grab them in the meantime.

I love reading short stories.  They have to be succinct and the words well woven to keep your attention and to get the point across.  All the authors in this collection know how to do that well.

The stories included are: 


THE DEPARTED by Clive Barker
On All Hallows' Eve, a dead and disembodied mother yearns to touch her young son one last time. But will making contact destroy them both?


CREATURE FEATURE by Heather Graham
What could be better publicity for a horror convention than an honest-to-goodness curse? It's only after lights out that the hype—and the Jack the Ripper mannequin—starts to feel a little too real.


THE NEW WAR by Lisa Morton
Mike Carson is a war hero and a decorated vet. He doesn't deserve to be trapped in a hospital with some black thing sitting on his chest as patients die all around him. His only hope is to take out the nurse—before it's his turn.


SAMMY COMES HOME by Ray Garton
It's what every family prays for: a lost pet returning home. But when Sammy, the Hale family sheepdog, appears on their doorstep, he brings back something no parent would ever wish upon his or her child.


THE BRASHER GIRL by Ed Gorman
Cindy Marie Brasher is the prettiest girl in the Valley, and Spence just has to have her. Unfortunately, Cindy has a “friend” . . . a friend who tells her to do things . . . bad things.


Each of these stories is unique and has its own taste of horror.  Some are fantastic fantasy, some are paranormal, but all have a scare factor.  My favorite story was The Departed by Clive Barker.  He has a subtle horror that doesn't slap you in face (in this story) and it was almost a happy ending.  He must be mellowing a bit as he gets older.

All the stories were worth reading.  The one about the animals is going to haunt me for a while.  We all need to know a bit about those things that we see out of the corner of our eye that aren't really there.  One day they may be... 

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