This is Halloween by James A. Moore

 Author James A. Moore offers up ten autumnal tales of the darker things that lurk just around the corner of Indian Summer. A man learns of a town's obsession with scarecrows and tries to find the answers as to why they are so important. Children move through familiar streets and find that Halloween makes everything different. Tis' the season when ghosts are real, witches soar through the night, and things in the Beldam Woods are not always what they seem. Sometimes it's the monsters that wear the masks.

If the gorgeous cover didn't get me, the title would. Halloween is my favorite holiday. Short horror stories are my addiction, and Halloween horror is my favorite. I expected a lot from this collection, and it delivered all I could have hoped for.

These stories embody the spirit of the season. 

From folk horror to trick or treating at homes that don't exist in the light of day this book held me spellbound from start to finish. You will travel to small towns with strange and deadly customs, meet vengeful spirits, and more. The writing crackles like crisp leaves and snaps like an October wind. And much like Halloween itself, I hated for it to end.

5 out of 5 stars

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Ghoulish Tales Issue #1- Various Authors

 The debut issue of Ghoulish Tales features stories by Robert Nazar Arjoyan, Barbara Castro-Rojas, Clay McLeod Chapman, Chloe Harper Gold, Rae Knowles, Angela Liu, Nina Maar, and Betty Rocksteady. Also includes articles by Nicholas A. Battaglia and Lor Gislason.

This is the first issue of a brand new magazine from Ghoulish books. I hope many more issues will follow.

I have been addicted to short horror stories for as long as I can remember. There's nothing I love more than a good anthology, and Ghoulish Tales delivers some fantastic dark fiction.

This was a quick and creepy read with dark humor, body horror, revenge, and more. There are a couple of articles but to be honest I'm just here for the horror fiction.

My favorites were Life In The Demon's Gizzard by Betty Rocksteady about two sisters, one of whom can't or won't let go of the past. On what is their last night together they share snacks and differing memories of their childhood.

Tonight's Guest Is! by Robert Nazar Arjoyan in which a talk show guest is surprised by the host who seems to know more about his life than what was published in his recent memoirs.

All the stories had unexpected twists, but those two really hit home for me.

My thanks to Ghoulish Books.

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Nestlings by Nat Cassidy

 

Ana and Reid needed a lucky break.

The horrifically complicated birth of their first child has left Ana paralyzed, bitter, and struggling: with mobility, with her relationship with Reid, with resentment for her baby. That's about to change with the words any New Yorker would love to hear―affordable housing lottery.

They've won an apartment in the Deptford, one of Manhattan's most revered buildings with beautiful vistas of Central Park and stunning architecture.

Reid dismisses disturbing events and Ana’s deep unease and paranoia as the price of living in New York―people are odd―but he can't explain the needle-like bite marks on the baby.

When Reid and Ana put their names in the lottery for an affordable luxury apartment they never dreamed they'd win. They also never dreamed that their lives would be so different from the time they entered the lottery to the time they finally got called.

When they are shown the apartment it seems perfect for most people, but Ana has misgivings right away. She is confined to a wheelchair these days and can not get down the stairs from their upper floor apartment if there is ever an emergency. Ignoring her unease, and buoyed by her husband's excitement over their win. she agrees to take the apartment. After all, it will do them good to get away from their obnoxious antisemitic landlord.

It's not long after moving day when Ana knows something is wrong with this building. Her baby seems to sense it too, constantly screaming and crying as if she knows this is a bad place to be. Reid becomes obsessed with learning the history of the building, to the point that he loses interest in all else, even gaslighting Ana when she points out the tiny bite marks on the baby after having seen a face at their top floor window.

Not since The Sentinel or Rosemary's Baby has an apartment building had such an unsavory past or housed such sinister tenants. I can't say much else about the plot without spoilers, but I loved the domestic drama as much as the scary parts. The psychological fear mixed with the supernatural terror combined to make Nestlings into an exquisite horror that was perfection from start to finish. This book will land firmly on my best horror of the year list.

5 out of 5 stars.

My thanks to Tor Nightfire.

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Movie Review- Heir of the Witch

 

Heir of the Witch is a chilling folk horror full of unnerving surprises. All is not as it appears. In fact, the things that you see may not be what is truly going on at all. Anna is plagued by traumatic memories and haunted by the angry spirit of her grandmother, the witch who is even more dangerous in death than she was in life. Through Ana's memories, we are shown in flashbacks how she came to be cursed.

Starring Victoria U  Bell as Anna, a seamstress caring for her sickly aunt and supporting herself by making beautiful dresses for wealthy snobs who flock together like a bunch of "mean girls" with all the maturity of a high school clique. Anna floats along on the periphery of their lives, never really being part of the in crowd.   The movie does not rely on typical jump scares but adds an element of psychological fear that kept me glued to my screen. My only minor complaint would be that it does occasionally make use of distorted demonic-sounding voices which although they can be scary it sometimes makes the dialogue tough to understand. What is scary, is the ever-increasing dread as the witch infests every aspect of Anna's life in order to get what she wants. The effects are better than I have seen in recent indie movies and many of the scenes are visually striking.

Deanna Rashell shines in the role of Chloe the leader of the clique who takes advantage of Anna's good nature and financial problems.  Ben Holtzmuller was perfect as Chloe's unhappy husband with a wandering eye. 

I would recommend this movie to anyone who enjoys psychological horror in addition to folk horror.

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Too Scared to Sleep by Andrew Duplessie

 

From debut author Andrew Duplessie, a terrifying collection of teen short horror stories--and accompanying videos--that will keep you up long into the night! Perfect for fans of Five Nights at Freddy's.

A garbage disposal that feeds on flesh . . .

A beloved stuffed rabbit that cooks up your parents . . .

Roses that require human blood to bloom . . .

From blood-chilling horror to supernatural scares, this collection of short stories from debut author Andrew Duplessie offers something to stoke anyone's fear factor. But that's only the beginning. In a first-ever twist, each story also comes with a pulse-pounding video that deepens the horror. Point your phone at the QR code and be prepared to scream! Maybe even share it with your friends, if you dare.

Ready or not, Too Scared to Sleep will answer the question: How brave are you, really?

Too Scared To Sleep is a fun collection of spooky stories geared towards teens and tweens. The majority of the stories revolve around main characters who are fourteen years old, getting into weird and spooky situations.

Cell phones and futuristic technology, along with the dangers of AI are also the main themes here, with cautionary tales of why you should never steal, the dangers of social media, and why you should live each day as it comes because life is too short to even wish away the bad times.

There were a few stories that just didn't work for me, but I enjoyed most of them, and I think the modern themes will resonate with kids of today.

A unique feature of this book, is that a short video accompanies each story. I've read many collections that would include an illustration to go with each story but this is the first time I've ever seen a book that provides a video via a link in a QR code. It was a clever idea that added to the fun.

4 out of 5 stars.

My thanks to Clarion Books.

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The Last Haunt by Max Booth III

 

On the one-year anniversary of a young woman’s tragic death, an extreme haunted house attraction reopened its doors to the public. What happened next would forever traumatize a small Texas town. The Last Haunt is an attempt to make sense of the mysterious brutality that occurred on that fateful Halloween night. Constructed from interviews with the survivors, this oral history is the closest anyone has ever come to documenting the truth behind the McKinley Manor massacre.

This novella is written in a true crime/mockumentary style. The Last Haunt tells the story of the life and death of Gus Mckinley, a man whose love of horror and Halloween grew into an obsession with extreme haunt attractions, and the people whose lives were affected by McKinley Manor. Much like an extreme haunt that actually exists, you can enter Mckinley Manor for the mere cost of a bag of dog food. But can you get out?

Told from multiple points of view, as an oral interview by those who knew or worked for Gus, including his family, neighbors, and the brother of the young woman who died while trying to reach the end of Gus's haunt, gives the story a realistic feel. I loved the build-up and suspense as each piece of the interview came together for the final reveal, culminating in a horror that brought a clever and satisfying conclusion. 

5 out of 5 stars

My thanks to Max Booth III for the review copy.

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