Cafe Purgatorium by Dana M. Anderson, Charles de Lint, Ray Garton

 

THREE VOICES - THREE VISIONS - THREE MOODS. "Ranging from melancholy to downright gruesome, these stories demonstrate that those of us who enjoy being frightened find that the novella length story, 80 to 90 pages, is just fine to get our fix. Following 'Cafe Purgatorium', a sad, even tender story, is 'Dr. Krusadian's Method', a real shocker by Ray Garton. Finally, love is in the air in De Lint's 'Death Leaves an Echo'

What first grabbed my attention, aside from the cover, was the name Ray Garton. I used to think I had read everything he had ever written but once in a while I come across a story that has been out of print, that I never knew existed. Such is the case with his novella in this book, Dr. Krusadian's Method. I greedily scooped up a used copy which was published back in the 90s from Tor Horror even though I've never heard of Dana Anderson.

The title story by Dana Anderson is sadly the only reason I can't give this book 5 stars unless I pretend it wasn't included. Cafe Purgatorium is about a man who hates his job, and decides against the wishes of his fiancée to quit and go into business for himself. He purchases an old building for the purpose of opening a restaurant. After the sale he discovers that the building is not as empty as it appeared. Shortly after this point I just started skimming. Maybe it was partly due to how anxious I was to get to the Ray Garton novella but Cafe Purgatorium did not hold my interest. If it was a stand alone it would have gone in my DNF pile. 

Luckily for me the other 2 novellas were both 5 star reads. 

Dr. Krusadian's Method by Ray Garton is about a little boy who has suffered abuse at the hands of his father for as long as he can remember. His mother does nothing to protect him from the horrific beatings. The father is a vile and repulsive excuse for a man who filled me with such rage that when he finally got caught I was convinced that no amount of punishment would be adequate. 

Death Leaves an Echo by Charles De Lint is about a man who awakens from one nightmare to find himself in another. His wife is gone, and it's as if she never existed. He is the only one who remembers her. Which nightmare is realty? Is he losing his mind or is something supernatural afoot?  This story was brilliant.

I found my used copy here

About the authors

Ray Garton is the author of several books, including horror novels such as LIVE GIRLS (which has a movie in the works), CRUCIFAX, E4 AUTUMN, and THE FOLKS; thrillers like TRADE SECRETS and SHACKLED; and numerous short stories and novellas. He's also written a number of movie and television tie-ins for young readers. He lives with his wife, Dawn, in California.

Charles De Lint has a Goodreads page here

I literally can find nothing for Dana Anderson, no Goodreads or amazon page or website.