Secret Faces by Kealan Patrick Burke

“If you are hiding from yourself, don’t expect anyone else to see you.”

Everyone has a secret. Everyone is someone else when the world isn't looking. Sometimes that person is good, sometimes that person is not. In Bram Stoker Award-winning author Kealan Patrick Burke's latest terrifying collection of short stories, you'll meet thirteen people who discover the horror of what happens when those secret faces are removed and the true darkness that dwells within us all is unleashed.


It is no secret than Kealan Patrick Burke is on my very short list of "must read" authors. In fact that list gets shorter all the time. I literally purchase every book I see his name on, often before even reading the description. The reason for that is simple. I have enjoyed everything he has ever written. Secret faces included.

All 13 stories were good, some were exceptionally good. The ones that had the most impact for me were the following.
The first story "Home" about a man who rushes home during a storm for his daughter's 16th birthday only to find something obviously amiss with the celebration, had me almost scared to turn the page.
In "Stalled" a man's urgent need to find a bathroom has dire consequences.
"The Red Light Is Blinking" is the story of revenge against internet trolls. For best enjoyment crack open a bag of Doritos while you read.
In the story "I'm Not There" a man loses his reflection...and discovers how to get it back.
In "Memory Lane" a quick trip to the store for milk goes sour.
"Terminal" is every nightmare you've ever had about an airport.
A father regrets not listening when he had the chance, in "Quiet"
"The One Night Of The Year" is of course a tale of Halloween, and "Hoarder" is an excellent story of a salesman who attempts to sell cleaning products to a hoarder.
I would highly recommend this anthology for anyone who enjoys short horror stories.

Baby Talk Book 1 by Mike Wells

Description
"In this creepy horror novel, Neal Becker is convinced that his 5 month old baby daughter can talk. But that's impossible...isn't it? Except that Neal didn't really want to get married in the first place and pushed his wife for an abortion. And now, Baby Natasha knows it. She's out to get Neal, or so he believes. Join the two in a terrifying battle for survival that will make your blood run cold!"


Well...I liked it and I did not like it.
First off at a mere 90ish pages I would not call it a novel.
It also ends very abruptly with a link to purchase book 2 which seems more likely that it is the second half of what should have been the rest of this book.

Annie and Neal "had to" get married. Actually when Annie got pregnant Neal would have rather she had an abortion. He never wanted "Baby Natasha" and is not all that fond of being a husband either at only 21 years old.

Neal works a minimum wage job and resents that he had to leave school to support a baby he never wanted.
I read a lot of horror and I never really expect it to make sense so I have no problem at all with this story line of a 5 month old baby being out to kill. What did bother me was a couple of things that the author seemed to presume, such as one character mentioning that a 5 month old baby can't even sit up yet. Sure they may topple over but babies can indeed sit up usually any time between 4-7 months.  While it may be unusual for a 5 month old to want to kill anyone I don't see why the author would find it unusual for a 5 month old to sit up. He also seems to presume that breast size has anything to do with milk production. Hence Annie's thoughts that she needed to supplement with formula because of not having large breasts. Most of all what really grated on my nerves was that a character (Annie) who is so paranoid of crib death and who is always reading books on baby care would ever in a million years leave her baby in a car alone in a parking lot. No I take that back, what bothered me the most was Annie's baby talk. It made me want to throat punch her.

Other than that, it was not a bad story. I mean who doesn't love a good evil baby story? But somehow even though this is currently free at amazon I feel cheated, because I thought this was a complete "novel" and not just half.

Charnel House by Graham Masterton

 

Description

Winner of the Edgar Award: A demon is intent on devouring the world—and it’s up to a small group of believers in San Francisco to stop it.

A desperate and terrified old man appears at the office of John Hyatt at the San Francisco Department of Sanitation with a chilling complaint. His house, Seymour Willis insists, is breathing. Hyatt suspects a rat infestation but the truth is worse. Much worse. An ancient demon out of darkest Native American folklore lives within the walls and floorboards of Willis’s home—an all-powerful malevolent being determined to break free and wreak havoc on the City by the Bay.

Soon a tiny cadre of believers in the impossible—including Hyatt, Willis, and a Native American shaman—hold the fate of all humanity in their hands. The monster’s hunger for blood and flesh is insatiable and it is determined to escape its prison and become whole. And once it does, the entire world will be its feeding ground.

A haunted house story like no other—a gory and terrifying tale of demonic possession—this award-winning supernatural thriller by the acclaimed author of The Manitou provides substantial chills on every page. A tale of unrelenting terror reminiscent of the works of H. P. Lovecraft, Graham Masterton’s Charnel House will haunt your dreams long after you’ve turned the final page.

 

This is classic 1978 horror that is being re-released in June and I do remember reading it decades ago. In fact it was one of the first horror novels I ever snuck off my mother's book case when she thought I was too young to read them.

 

When an elderly gentleman complains that his house is breathing, John doesn't really know what to make of it. The gentleman does not seem like a crack pot and yet who ever heard of a breathing house? John reluctantly agrees to stop by and have a listen to this breathing, if he has the time later on that evening. He and a friend do indeed hear something that sounds like breathing, and against the owner's wishes try to communicate with it. This proves to be a fatal error, because when they leave the house a part if this evil goes with them.

This was a classic good against evil story.  4 out of 5 stars from me.

 

I received an advance copy for review

The Story's Writer by Wayne Lemmons

Description
"Amy, a single mother of one, has been alone for too long. One-night stands and unsatisfying relationships are dragging the joy out of her life. One Sunday morning she wakes in a strange bed, one of many just lately, and meets the man of her dreams.
Grant is handsome, charismatic, and charming. He’s also a horror novelist who’s had moderate success in his craft. The only thing more attractive than the man is the fact that he actually wants to meet Amy’s son, Bailey.
Bailey is independent for his age, as competent at caring for his own daily needs as most children twice his age, but overweight and ailed by a lack of personal confidence. His reservations about meeting a new man are evident in his resistance of his mother’s demands, but soon he warms to the charming writer. Bailey sees an opportunity to gain not only a father, but a friend.
Months later, after Amy and Bailey have taken up residence with this new man, odd behaviors begin to emerge as Grant researches the basis for his new novel. It’s a nonfiction manuscript, based on ghost stories originating at a local bar with a reputation for appearances from the other side. It’s a good book with a good story behind it, but it’s taking Grant down a path of hatred, violence, and ultimate destruction.
When Amy begins helping Grant with his editing, she too falls victim to the effects of prose, Bailey begins to receive a more brutal version of parenting. Now he’s hungry, in pain, and afraid with little or no help in sight as the story being written in his home stops mirroring the events at a remote bar, and becomes the new terrorizing story of his life."

The Story's Writer: From the author of The Dark Roads by Wayne Lemmons
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

8 year old Bailey is a lonely child, often left home alone for long stretches of time while his mother is out. He is a bit overweight due to his favorite pastime of watching movies, playing video games and comforting himself with food. He is a bright boy, wise beyond his years and loves his mother Amy fiercely, and she returns that love even though it seems she could benefit from a few parenting classes.

Suddenly, Amy just happens to click with her latest one night stand Grant, and the two become a couple. Not long after that Amy and Bailey move in to his apartment and Grant is thrilled to be part of a family. While working on a book concerning the happenings in a haunted bar, Grant begins to act strangely. He has bursts of rage for no apparent reason and vile thoughts that are no longer under his control. It appears something evil has followed Grant home from the bar and is now taking over his personality. Bailey knows something horrible is happening and that it has to do with the book, but he is powerless to stop it and as it begins to effect his mother's behavior as well there is nobody left to protect him.

This was a quick and creepy read with several heart in your throat moments that made me wish I could get in that apartment and rescue Bailey myself.

I received a complimentary copy for review.