Toys in the Attic by Tim Turner

"Sometimes it is not a house that is haunted, or a person, but a combination of the two"

This collection of 8 short stories introduce an interesting cast of characters dealing with everything from zombies and robots to dog faced people with tails.

These stories range from Sci-fi to dark fiction/horror.

As a horror lover, my favorites were the title story Toys In The Attic, about a haunting that occurs when just the right family moves into a new home,  Echo Lake about a camp ground with a dark past, and Off Season, about the goings on in a tourist town when the summer people go home.

There were a few rough spots that could have used a bit of polish or benefited from some minor edits, but over all it was a decent assortment of creepy fiction.

I received a complimentary copy for review.

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Bad Parts by Brandon McNulty

When rock guitarist Ash Hudson suffers a career-ending hand injury, she seeks out the only thing that can heal it--her hometown's darkest secret.

For decades the residents of Hollow Hills, Pennsylvania, have offered their diseased and injured body parts to a creek demon named Snare. In return, Snare rewards its Traders with healthy replacement parts. There's only one catch: if Traders leave town, their new parts vanish forever.

Ash wants a new hand, but living in Hollow Hills isn't an option. Not when her band is one gig away from hitting the big time. Desperate, she bargains with Snare, promising to help the demon complete its organ collection in exchange for both a new hand and the freedom for everyone to leave town.

As her band's show rapidly approaches, Ash teams up with her estranged father in a last-ditch effort to recruit new Traders. But not everyone trusts Snare's offer, and Ash soon learns how far her neighbors will go to protect their precious parts.

With her family in danger and her band waiting, Ash must find a way to help Snare. But even if she succeeds, there's no telling what Snare plans to do with everyone's bad parts.

I love a good home town horror story. You know the kind, small towns with dark secrets that are only as as safe as the weakest link. Outsiders are not welcome and are steered away or killed. What differs here from that usual formula, is that an insider becomes an outsider, and her return is the threat. Ash knows what goes on at the creek in Hollow Hills, or at least some of it. She doesn't know the full scope of the creek demon's hold over the town.  She cut ties with her father years ago and never looked back. Nothing could make her return to her childhood home, until a savage attack leaves her hand injured beyond repair. I was fascinated with the whole family dynamic. The love and resentment felt very realistic, as we learn what had transpired between Ash and her brother Trent, which is mirrored in the strained relationship between Trent and his son. While at it's heart this is a horror story of a demonic spirit seeking revenge, it is the selfishness of some characters juxtaposed with the selfless acts of others that most impressed me, along with enough gruesome acts and blood curdling scenes to keep this horror fan turning the pages.

5 out of 5 stars

I received a complimentary copy for review.

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About the author
Brandon McNulty grew up loving monsters, demons, and the thrill of a great scare. Now he writes supernatural thrillers, horror, and other dark fiction. He is a graduate of Taos Toolbox Writers Workshop and a winner of both Pitch Wars and RevPit. He writes from Pennsylvania.

Website

https://www.brandonmcnulty.com/

Coleridge by Tom Deady

Coleridge was the start of everything for Zadie and Dalia. Their love of the old house began as a restoration project and blossomed into a love story. Until the tragedy.

Coleridge was all Dalia Cromwell had left. It served as both a tribute to their love and a harsh reminder to her loss. Until the visitor arrived.

Coleridge was his obsession. Slade knew more about the house than Dalia did. And he knew of its past. By the end of their long night together in the house, Dalia would know all of Coleridge’s secrets, and Zadie’s.



This was a quick read and some of the story has already started without us. No disrespect to Dickens but Zadie was dead, to begin with. Who is Zadie you ask? Well she was the love of Dalia's life, soulmates who met purely by chance when they both wanted to put an offer on the same house. Now Dalia is on her own, mourning her loss and living her lonely life... until he shows up. Slade knows a secret about the house that Dalia and Zadie so lovingly restored. It holds something he wants. He has already gone to great lengths to get it and it seems unlikely that he will let Dalia get in the way. Before the night is over Dalia will learn more about Zadie than she ever did during their time together. I don't want to portray this as just a melancholy love story or a flame snuffed out too soon. There's a mystery to unfold and a touch of the supernatural in this engrossing tale.
4 out of 5 stars

I received a complimentary copy for review.

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About the author
Tom Deady is the author of several short stories, as well as a non-fiction book on the Red Sox historic 2004 season.
Tom's debut novel, Haven, is available now from Cemetery Dance on Amazon in ebook and paperback (https://www.amazon.com/Haven-Tom-Dead...).
Haven is the 2016 Bram Stoker Winner of Superior Achievement in a First Novel.

Tom's second novel, Eternal Darkness, is available now from Bloodshot Books in ebook and trade paperback format. (https://www.amazon.com/Eternal-Darkne...).
Tom has a Masters Degree in English and Creative Writing from Southern New Hampshire University, and is a member of both the Horror Writers Association and the New England Horror Writers.
Tom is a lifelong resident of Massachusetts, where is actively working on his next novel

Under a Raging Moon by Mike Sherer

A mother and her possessed son battle for their lives against a horde of demons intent on not only their destruction but the death of the unborn child she carries.

Stressed-out single mother Vivian has to fetch twelve-year old son Kody from an overnight after he gets into a fight with the friend he was spending the night with. On the way home she nearly runs over a man out for a night jog. Who ends up being run over in front of her house. When a police officer very quickly responds he shows little sympathy for the injured man, instead drawing his gun. But the jogger kills the officer first. Vivian calls for help, then flees her house with her son. Thus begins a long gory night as Vivian is hunted down by demons intent on her destruction. As the reasons for this come into focus, an extremely weird relationship develops between Vivian and her possessed son who is on the brink of death. Forget Norman Bates. This mother-son relationship is more twisted than the Gordian Knot.


This was a fast paced, gore drenched tale of demonic possession on the run. The supermoon has allowed demons to wreak havoc on earth. They not only possess humans but can jump from one body to the next, even taking over wild and domestic animals should the need arise. I can't say that it was scary, but there was lots of action and splattery blood soaked fun. I do think it could have benefited from a bit of editing, but all in all it is worth a read.

I received a complimentary copy for review.

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Dark Celebrations by Calvin Demmer

Each year, people all over the world celebrate special festivals and days, shining light on what they wish to remember and revere. But sometimes, inhabitants of the dark arrive with the desire to disturb proceedings. Dark Celebrations is a collection of twelve short stories... and the holidays will never be the same.

I'm fast becoming a Calvin Demmer fan and if you love short horror stories as much as I do you will want to check out his latest collection Dark Celebrations. As we travel through the calendar not only of holidays like Halloween and Thanksgiving but also through special occasions like prom we are treated to a supernatural smorgasbord featuring ghosts, zombies, witches, and more.  From pranks gone wrong, to the poor soul who just wanted to take a hot girl to prom after being dumped by his girlfriend, what seems to start as just an ordinary event leads to dire consequences and unforeseen horrors. 

I received a complimentary copy for review.

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About the author

Calvin Demmer is the author of The Sea Was a Fair Master and Dark Celebrations. When not writing, he is intrigued by that which goes bump in the night and the sciences of our universe. 

Website

http://www.calvindemmer.com

Devil's Creek by Todd Keisling

GIVE US THAT OLD-TIME RELIGION

About fifteen miles west of Stauford, Kentucky lies Devil’s Creek. According to local legend, there used to be a church out there, home to the Lord’s Church of Holy Voices—a death cult where Jacob Masters preached the gospel of a nameless god.

And like most legends, there’s truth buried among the roots and bones.

In 1983, the church burned to the ground following a mass suicide. Among the survivors were Jacob’s six children and their grandparents, who banded together to defy their former minister. Dubbed the “Stauford Six,” these children grew up amid scrutiny and ridicule, but their infamy has faded over the last thirty years.

Now their ordeal is all but forgotten, and Jacob Masters is nothing more than a scary story told around campfires.

For Jack Tremly, one of the Six, memories of that fateful night have fueled a successful art career—and a lifetime of nightmares. When his grandmother Imogene dies, Jack returns to Stauford to settle her estate. What he finds waiting for him are secrets Imogene kept in his youth, secrets about his father and the church. Secrets that can no longer stay buried.
The roots of Jacob’s buried god run deep, and within the heart of Devil’s Creek, something is beginning to stir…



Jacob Masters was a child molesting cult leader who demanded human sacrifice in worship of his nameless god. Fire may be cleansing, but when the Church Of Holy Voices burned after the dramatic rescue of 6 children, the evil did not die. The 6 children grew up, and as children do, some flourished and some flailed. These days, some people think the old stories of Jacob Masters and his church are just  empty tales of the boogie man to scare each other with over s'mores around the campfire. Now that Jack Tremly has come home the town is about to find out there's more truth than legend to the old stories. I love small town horror, and Devil's Creek delivers it's share of villains among the few brave heroes. It's graphic and gory with huge helpings of anxiety inducing suspense, and supernatural terror. I would recommend it to all horror fans.

I received an advance copy for review


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About the author
TODD KEISLING is the author of Devil’s Creek, The Final Reconciliation, and Ugly Little Things: Collected Horrors, among other shorter works. He lives somewhere in the wilds of Pennsylvania with his family where he is at work on his next novel.




 

The Dilemma by B.A. Paris

It’s Livia’s fortieth birthday and tonight she’s having a party, a party she’s been planning for a long time. The only person missing will be her daughter, Marnie.

But Livia has a secret, a secret she’s been keeping from Adam, her husband, until the party is over. Because how can she tell him that although she loves Marnie, she’s glad their daughter won’t be there to celebrate with her?

Adam is determined everything will be just right for Livia and the party is going to be perfect… until he learns something that will leave him facing an unbearable decision.


Well...this is not my usual type of read, but on other occasions when I have strayed from horror I have been able to count on a good twisty family drama from B. A. Paris. I have enjoyed her previous 3 novels more than this one. The story takes place over preparations for a 40th birthday party, the party itself, and it's aftermath. It seemed maddeningly slow paced, and although I did enjoy probably the first third of the book I begin to wish they would just get on with it. It seemed to drag on for too long. A slow drawn out reveal can sometimes increase the suspense but when drawn out too long can just lead to boredom. It seemed to drag even after the climax instead of just coming to an end.

I received an advance copy for review.

About the author
B A Paris grew up in England but has spent most of her adult life in France. She has worked both in finance and as a teacher and has five daughters. 

Come Join The Murder By Holly Rae Garcia

 

Rebecca Crow’s four-year-old son is dead and her husband is missing.
Divers find her husband’s car at the bottom of a canal with their son’s small, lifeless body, inside. The police have no suspects and nothing to go on but a passing mention of a man driving a van. Guilt and grief cloud Rebecca’s thoughts as she stumbles toward her only mission: Revenge.

James Porter knows exactly what happened to them, but he’ll do anything to keep it a secret.

James didn’t plan to kill Rebecca’s son, but he’s not too broken up about it, either. There are more important things for him to worry about. He needs money, and his increasing appetite for murder is catching the attention of a nosy detective.



Loss and depression can bring on it's own form of horror, and this is what is visited upon Rebecca Crow on what should have been just another ordinary day. Her husband Jon and 4 year old son Oliver are off for a day at the beach. Rebecca is looking forward to a few hours of alone time and getting some work done, having no idea she would never see her family again. The fear was palpable as she waited and waited for them to show up at their designated meeting spot. My own anxiety grew along with hers as she made her way home, thinking they would be there when she arrived. But they didn't come, and they didn't come, and I knew they wouldn't. and I almost could not bear to witness the moment when her hope was crushed. Rebecca goes through the motions, the funeral, the well wishers, but as is said in the book there is no word for a mother without a child. Rebecca is... something else now, she wants revenge and we are along for the ride, to join the murder, as she imagines one brutal scenario after another of how her family died and who took them from her, until at last the truth comes barreling in like a gut punch.
5 out of 5 stars
I received a complimentary copy for review.


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About the author
I love the works of Edgar Allen Poe, Daniel Keyes, Richard Matheson, and Stephen King. Dark stories with sad endings are my jam. In my own writing, I lean toward the thriller, horror, sci-fi, and dystopian genres.

My debut novel, Come Join the Murder, released in March 2020 right alongside Covid-19.

I live on the Texas Coast with my family and four dogs.

More information can be found on my website: www.HollyRaeGarcia.com