Eden's Children (1) (The Eden Series) by Andrew Neiderman as V.C. Andrews

 

Mother doesn’t always know best in this atmospheric and twisty novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Flowers in the Attic series and Landry series—now popular Lifetime movies.

When former teacher Paula Eden adopts Faith and Trevor, she is astounded by their natural intelligence and decides to homeschool them to nurture their brilliance. But as the years go on, Faith and Trevor itch for more independence.

When Faith sets her sights on a handsome young man visiting from out of town, Paula grows increasingly desperate to preserve her small family and her plans for the children to carry on her legacy. Luckily, she has a cohort in loyal Trevor, who will do anything to please his mother, even at the risk of hurting his sister and potentially changing their lives forever.

Trevor age 15 and Faith age 14 know next to nothing about their biological parents. As far as they are concerned they never had parents until they were taken from the foster home and adopted together. They lead very sheltered lives, having no interaction with other children or with anyone other than their adoptive parents. Their mother tells them this is to keep them safe from the evils out there but in reality, it is to protect herself from others finding out about her own evils. The children's adoptive father is conveniently on the road most of the time, and looking the other way when he is home.

I must say I really hated Trevor and his mannerisms. The smirking and shrugging made me want to smack him even though I couldn't actually see him doing it I could picture it in my mind. The father could have been a likable character if not for being so weak-willed and always kowtowing to his wife's demands.

The story is told from Faith's point of view and is at times only what is going on in her thoughts, which gets a bit draggy. It's also fairly predictable but I will probably tune in for the next installment to see how it ends.

My thanks to Gallery Books.

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A Sliver of Darkness by C.J. Tudor

 

The debut short story collection from the acclaimed author of The Chalk Man, featuring ten bone-chilling and mind-bending tales

Timeslips. Doomsday scenarios. Killer butterflies. C. J. Tudor's novels are widely acclaimed for their dark, twisty suspense plots, but with A Sliver of Darkness, she pulls us even further into her dizzying imagination.
In Final Course, the world has descended into darkness, but a group of old friends make time for one last dinner party. In Runaway Blues, thwarted love, revenge, and something very nasty stowed in a hat box converge. In Gloria, a strange girl at a service station endears herself to a cold-hearted killer, but can a leopard really change its spots? And in I'm Not Ted, a case of mistaken identity has unforeseen, fatal consequences.

Riveting and explosively original, A Sliver of Darkness is C. J. Tudor at her most wicked and uninhibited.

It's no secret that I have been a fan of C.J. Tudor ever since The Chalk Man was released. I also have a great love for, and addiction to short horror stories.  I had high expectations for A Sliver Of Darkness, and I was not disappointed.

I was hooked from the first story, End of the Liner which incidentally is how I've always pictured a Disney Cruise. (sorry not sorry) Much like reality, this suspenseful little story is all about your own perception of good and bad.

The subsequent stories kept up the pace and maybe even gained momentum. I also enjoyed the author's introduction to each story which told how these tales came to be.

Normally at this point, I would tell you a bit about my favorites in the book but I enjoyed them all. If you are looking for a shivery, chilling, thought-provoking, good time check out this collection.

My thanks to Random House Publishing Group -Ballantine Books

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Sebastian by P.D. Cacek

 

The son of a world-renowned photographer, Morgan Riley is familiar with his mother’s creative eccentricities. Having been the subject of one of her photographic series, he knows all too well how focused she can become with a new project. So he’s not overly concerned when his mother shows him her newest series that spotlights a small, featureless white plastic manikin the size of a two-year-old child that his mother has named Sebastian. However, as Morgan watches his mother’s obsession with the manikin grow, he begins to question her sanity and fear for her safety…

Morgan has always had a complicated relationship with his famous photographer mom. There is love there, but there is also the camera, always present and intruding on personal events and what should have been private moments.

Now suddenly, there is Sebastian, the manikin his mother claims is just for a series of photos but has become another intrusive presence in Morgan's life.

This was more of a psychological/family drama than the actual horror I was expecting.  Not to say it wasn't a good story although it did move a little slowly in the middle. It kind of bothered me every time the word manikin was used since it was specifically mentioned that it had been purchased at a children's clothing store that was going out of business, and to me that would be a mannequin which is what department stores use to display clothing and not a manikin which is what you get from a medical supply company to practice CPR and such. But that could just be my OCD kicking in. 

Anyway, it was a decent story in which an obsession leads to an unexpected outcome, but there are no scares involved.

3 out of 5 stars

I received an advance copy for review.

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Close to Midnight Edited by Mark Morris

 

An exceptional third book in the horror anthology series which Publishers Weekly highlighted as “Beautifully written pieces that lean into the intuitive and fantastic.”

Close to Midnight is the third volume in an annual, non-themed horror series of entirely original stories, showcasing the very best short fiction that the genre has to offer, and edited by Mark Morris. This new anthology contains 20 original horror stories, 16 of which have been commissioned from some of the top names in the genre, and 4 of which have been selected from the 100s of stories sent to Flame Tree during a 2-week open submissions window.

This is the first time I have had a chance to sit down and read since before we moved to our new home. I'm so glad I picked this anthology to start with. I'm going to keep this short and sweet because we are still getting settled in here.

           This book contains stories by some of my favorite writers as well as some authors I was not familiar with. There are tales of the strange and spooky, darkly humorous stories, a bit of body horror, and even a thriller about revenge thrown in for good measure.

You will read about an easy cure for whatever ails you, A woman who just wants a break from her heavy load of responsibilities, A son caring for his father as the end of his life quickly approaches, bizarre neighbors, a remarkably affordable and effective home security system, and more. A few of the endings were more vague than I'd like but that is my only complaint.

Close to Midnight is an entertaining read for anyone who enjoys short horror stories.

4 out of 5 stars

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My thanks to Flame Tree Press.