Small Town Horror by Ronald Malfi

Five childhood friends are forced to confront their own dark past as well as the curse placed upon them in this horror masterpiece from the bestselling author of Come with Me. 

Maybe this is a ghost story…

Andrew Larimer has left his past behind. Rising up the ranks in a New York law firm, and with a heavily pregnant wife, he is settling into a new life far from Kingsport, the town in which he grew up. But when he receives a late-night phone call from an old friend, he has no choice but to return home.

Coming home means returning to his late father’s house, which has seen better days. It means lying to his wife. But it also means reuniting with his friends: Eric, now the town’s deputy sheriff; Dale, a real-estate mogul living in the shadow of a failed career; his childhood sweetheart Tig who never could escape town; and poor Meach, whose ravings about a curse upon the group have driven him to drugs and alcohol. 

Together, the five friends will have to confront the memories—and the horror—of a night, years ago, that changed everything for them. 

Because Andrew and his friends have a secret. A thing they have kept to themselves for twenty years. Something no one else should know. But the past is not dead, and Kingsport is a town with secrets of its own.

One dark secret... One small-town horror...

Andrew has already been troubled by a constant pervasive worry over his wife and their unborn child. A phone call from a former friend summoning him back to his hometown only increases his anxiety. Feeling as if he has no choice, he lies to his wife and heads to his childhood home. Is it karma or witchcraft that reunites these former best friends? Are they haunted by a ghost or is it their guilt?

Secrets are revealed slowly at first but just as I thought I knew everything there was to know I could almost hear the author say BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE! as the final bombshells nearly had my heart in my throat.

Small Town Horror was everything I could possibly want in a chilling, spooky read. Told on two timelines it is both a coming-of-age tale of five childhood friends and a story of the consequences that plague them as adults who have kept a shocking secret for longer than anyone could hope to get away with. 

In my humble opinion, it is Ronald Malfi's best work to date.

5 out of 5 stars

My thanks to Titan Books.

Available for Preorder

About the author

The Devil's Backbone: Appalachian Horror by Ronald Kelly, Laurel Hightower, and Red Lagoe

Join three of horror’s finest storytellers on a journey through the dark heart of Appalachia…

AFOOT IN THE NETHERWILD by Ronald When the children of Bowden Ayres mysteriously disappear in the woods near their homestead, he enlists the aid of Uriah Coldcreek, a seventh son and purveyor of mountain magic. Together, they travel into the deepest depths of the Devil’s Backbone, intent on locating a place known as the Netherwild… the realm of the Coveter, an otherworldly being who steals away the mountains’ youth for its own selfish needs.

SPIRIT COVEN by Laurel For generations, Jude and her coven of witches have co-existed peacefully with the citizens of Arnett, providing them with remedies and top shelf bourbon, especially valued during the draconian days of Prohibition. But when too many townsfolk go missing and dead, trust is broken and the witches find themselves on shaky ground, facing threats from frightened families, from the mountain they protect, and the very magic they steward.

THE GATHERER by Red Gray Hollow lies at the foot of evil—a dark part of the forest home to The Devil’s Bathtub. Martin is skeptical of the local folklore warning of the dangers of dipping even a toe into its waters. However, after his brother leaves for Vietnam, more people fall victim to the water's summoning darkness, and Martin struggles to make sense of it all, determined to hold onto life's fraying reality.Proudly represented by Crystal Lake Publishing—Tales from the Darkest Depths.
 

When I saw this gorgeous cover pass through my feed, with the names Laurel Hightower and Ronald Kelly, I barely read the description before I begged, pleaded, threatened, and cajoled a review copy out of the publisher. (Kidding! I asked politely. Always be polite and do not threaten publishers.)

Red Lagoe was not a familiar name to me and is not currently a name that appears in my TBR or on my bookshelves but I plan to remedy that as soon as possible.

In Ronald Kelly's story AFOOT IN THE NETHERWILD, Two children are lured into the woods by a figure that appears to them as their deceased mother. What is it really and how many children has it stolen? Their father will embark on a dangerous journey in an attempt to rescue them. 

SPIRIT COVEN by Laurel Hightower features a group of moonshining witches who have selflessly protected the mountain and the townsfolk. They have always borne the burden of keeping things in balance. Now that too many townspeople have turned up dead, the witches are the first to be blamed. 

THE GATHERER by Red Lagoe was my favorite story. Deep in the woods where people are forbidden to go, lies the devil's bathtub. A body of water that will grant your desire to know the unknowable... for a price. Would you be able to resist? Things don't bode well for those who take a dip.

This trio of authors have created a powerhouse of folk horror.  Old traditions, superstitions, unexpected heroes, magic, and sacrifices that will break your heart share these pages with  otherworldly beings. The Devil's Backbone was a lot of fear-filled fun to read.

5 out of 5 stars.

My thanks to Crystal Lake Publishing.

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Cumberland Furnace and Other Fear-Forged Fables by Ronald Kelly

 From the Master of Southern-Fried Horror comes a collection of stories that could only beat in the dark, diseased heart of Dixie...- An abandoned furnace, choked with shadow and haunted by tormented ghosts, stands as a grim testament to a time when cruelty and the abuse of human flesh was woefully commonplace...- A man's obsession with mysterious roadkill on a lonesome country avenue awakens a horrifying hunger that can not be satisfied...- Two boys let curiosity get the better of them and discover that a collector of monster movie memorabilia is something more than a retired master of greasepaint and latex...- A dimwitted projectionist at a small-town drive-in theatre upsets a Saturday night crowd when he unwilling releases a dark secret from a dusty and forgotten film can...- A grandfather's Christmas Eve story of a unfinished journey by a drunken peddler captivates a young boy and brings about the delivery of a yuletide gift once thought to be forever lost...- It started out as nothing more than a shortcut home... a detour through a shadowy stretch of forest known as Tanglewood. But what awaited an unsuspecting driver, amid the brush and bramble, made a simple flat tire seem like a horrifying journey into madness... 22 terrifying tales of Southern darkness and depravity

First I should say that I read the complete paperback version which contains the full 22 stories in 328 pages and NOT the kindle version which contains only 7 stories. 

I'm not sure if there are any of these paperbacks still in circulation but you might find a used copy here even though you will probably have to wishlist it for quite a while before a copy finally becomes available. If you don't want to wait or get fed up searching for used copies in good condition the kindle version is an option and the seven selected stories are excellent.

Some of these stories were new to me, but as a long time fan of Ronald Kelly I had read some of these in other collections. It was still a joy to revisit them.

There are ghosts, stories of revenge, magical and deadly places, psycho killers, satanists, and more in this entertaining and delightfully dark collection.

Ronald Kelly is a master story teller and I recommend him even to people who say they don't like short stories! Often what they don't like is the ambiguous or abrupt endings. It takes skill to fit a satisfying conclusion into a short story and Ronald Kelly is adept at doing just that.

5 out of 5 stars

About the author

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The Colour Out of Deathlehem

 

Welcome back to Deathlehem, where…

…the holiday décor has a voracious appetite…
…your past can—and will—come back to haunt you…
…a one-night stand leads to an unexpected climax…
…a son brings home more than nightmares from his tour of duty…
…and many more!

Twenty-four more tales of holiday horrors to benefit
The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation.

Not many folks in these stories are having the merriest of times but some are getting exactly what they deserve.

A few of my favorites involved a ghost who haunts a run down tenement building, a man who visits an unusual toymaker when he helps a lost boy get home,  a witch who is spending the holidays with her daughter and abusive son-in-law, and a miraculous gift exchange in which you do not get to choose what you give.

I enjoyed every story in this collection. The holidays may be over but you can keep Christmas in your heart (and all your other organs and entrails too) with this frightfully festive anthology from Grinning Skull Press.

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