Never Whistle at Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology edited by Shane Hawk and Theodore C. Van Alst is a collection of some of the most creative and unsettling tales I have ever had the opportunity to read. Covering a wide array of chilling topics, you never know what will be served up next.

When this anthology was first announced, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on a copy! When I requested it via NetGally, I was so thrilled to see I had been approved. Diving into the collection immediately, I was fully immersed in these stories.

My favorites from the collection included –

Per usual, here are my notes on each tale:

This is one of the best Forewords I’ve read in a very long time. Not only does this perfectly set the tone of the upcoming tales, but it also sheds light on so many key factors and drills home the feel of sitting around telling stories. 

After reading this, I wanted to be sitting by a fire while I read these tales so badly. 

Forced to work for a man who already wants to take advantage of her, this woman’s rage simmers just below the surface before it finally boils over. 

PHEW. What a horrific and gore-filled tale. I was so nervous for this woman every step of the way. But that ending, man was that satisfying.  

White Hills by Rebecca Roanhorse –
CW: Abortion.

Pleased with her absolutely picture-perfect life, this woman can’t wait to tell her husband about her pregnancy. But when a seemingly innocent comment sets him off, the news of the baby takes a very different turn than what she expected.

My gosh, my blood absolutely boiled for this poor woman. I cannot imagine living a life like hers, even if it had all the fancy things she loved. The lack of control she had under the careful watch of this family’s legacy was terrifying. 

Navajos Don’t Wear Elk Teeth by Conley Lyons –
CW: Toxic relationship.

Caught up in a difficult and very controlling situation with an extremely forward person, this man doesn’t kick the guy out based simply on loneliness. But things keep getting more and more bizarre and the red flags can’t be ignored any longer. 

After reading this tale, I had to take a walk around the room to loosen up as my entire body was super tense from the read. I haven’t had a physical reaction to a story like this in a long time. My gosh, that last line. 

Wingless by Marcie R. Rendon –
CW: Child abuse.

As one of the two foster kids in the home, this kid is equally shocked and curious about the other kid’s interest in violence. Never one to shy away from making a scene, even when it ends in a brutal beating, the sibling continues to make waves. One day, the shy sibling will have their turn to display violence. 

These poor kids! In a horrible living situation, I couldn’t help but root for them to find a way out. 

Quantum by Nick Medina –
CW: Child abuse.

After getting the genetic results, this mother finds out that only one of her two sons has enough Indian blood to be considered one of them. After that, her obsession with her second son gets very intense. 

It was horrible to see how this woman treated her children so differently. I assumed things changed after the blood test, but as we were dropped into the story there, I can be sure. Either way, my heart broke for her firstborn. 

Uninterested in a young man’s advances, this young woman leaves the party after denying his ego. Little does she know, this young man has been possessed by something and it is hungry… 

Gosh, the entitlement of forcing itself on this young woman was so upsetting. But that ending was brilliant! 

After the death of his parents, this man goes on a hunting trip only to pick up a tick. 

What an awesome quiet grief horror tale! The focus on having something missing hits hard. 

Determined to find the ones that killed their people, this group of men wanders. Thinking only of revenge and of their women who were killed, they aren’t afraid of what is to come.

This story is very heavy. Focusing on the brutality of white people as they invaded and took what wasn’t theirs, this one had me ready to cry numerous times throughout the read. 

Going on a hike with his cousin and her boyfriend, this man is shocked to see how horrible the boyfriend is. Not only disrespecting the native art, but making horrible racist comments. But soon, they get what’s coming to them.

My goodness, the anger that readers will feel with this one! If only all racists could have things like this happen. Hopefully, it would make them actually facilitate change. 

Going back to where her fiancé died on the one-year anniversary, this woman sees spirits but doesn’t heed one of their warnings as her grief is still too deep. 

Such a powerful grief horror tale that reflects on things being better left alone. 

Spending the night in a new-to-her home that her aunt had purchased, this woman has trouble settling as she’s haunted by nightmares and spirits. All she can do is wait for the sunrise. 

I’m so in love with the scene where a ghost tells her to leave and yet at the same time, slams the door shut so she can’t leave, and the main character calls her out for the contradiction. What a nightmare of a tale!

Before a hunting trip, this boy can’t sleep in anticipation. Unsure if his eyes are playing tricks on him, he tries to brush aside his fears in the night. But once in the woods, he sees things he can’t explain.

This tale was wildly eerie! I shivered a few times while reading, the setting was just so chilling. I’m obsessed with the way Shane blends beauty and darkness perfectly. For example, there was the section of terror in hiding from the being and the beauty of a father and son relationship, and a section where we see the beauty in the sunrise then the horror of the lost teeth, and so many more. 

A son who just wants to be loved by his mother can’t help but keep getting himself into bad situations. 

This one was absolutely heartbreaking. 

Scariest. Story. Ever. by Richard Van Camp –
CW: Animal brutality.

Determined to meet with an elder to steal a story from him for an upcoming contest, this man doesn’t anticipate the elder seeing right through him. 

Oh, I love stories within stories! The build-up for this was so good. Then the ending hits so fast! What a great tale! 

Preparing two young boys for what needs to be done, she doesn’t hold back telling them what could go wrong. She needs the boys to do this correctly, otherwise the slight will continue to fail.

What an eerie story she tells of their legends. However, it’s not just lore. The creatures are right there, watching. I was so nervous reading this one! I hope the boys did well!

After a violent attack, a being appears in their real estate office with a bunch of heads. When a second visitor arrives, things just keep going sideways.

This tale was so bizarre and fun, but also super tense and blood-boiling! What a wild mix. 

Spending time with her Aunt, this young girl is chilled after seeing a horror film and questions if the house is haunted. One night in her dreams, she’ll learn about the troubles. 

This was such a soft horror tale based on everyday life, but also digs deeper into history and past trauma on the lands. 

While spending time with his dying grandfather, this young man becomes absolutely convinced that zombies are coming. Preparing for the downfall, he falls deeper and deeper into the delusion. 

This tale is so heartbreaking. Seeing the grandfather struggle was one thing, but seeing the inner turmoil of the young man as he narrates when he’s in a mindset where he realizes he should have known better was brutal. 

A tale of two men who live and die, but don’t yet give up on a few loose ends.

This tale is heavy. I loved the bits focused on their afterlife!

After the sudden death of his wife, this man struggles with nightmares of his past. Determined to get some sort of justice, he takes things into his own hands.

This one will have your stomach churning from start to finish. Despicable, and yet, a beautiful tale of forgiveness. 

Still grieving her brother’s death, this woman decides that she wants him back. Luckily, her aunt agrees. 

Oh gosh, that ending…

While off fighting in a war, but taking a break to drink in a bar, these men are told to beware of the wolf. Walking back to their camp, they risk going through the woods rather than staying on the road…

This was such a quick tale that packs an eerie punch with a slap of brutality! The final four lines are intense!

On a trip to France for the translated debut of his book, this man becomes more and more distressed as time goes on. Making things much worse, it’s clear that his translator did not do right by his book. 

Seeing this man drown every inconvenience in alcohol while his family was right there was so upsetting.

Sitting around with their beverages of choice, these three scientists decide they need to tell stories to one another. 

I love stories within stories! 

Attending a dinner party after a long day, this student is hoping to ask the professor for a letter of recommendation. But once she arrives, all she wants to do is flee.

This was so unsettling! The calm demeanor of everyone around her made this even more chilling! 

Taking a white man on a trek through native lands, this man is treated horribly. When he’s tortured, things are about to get much worse, but luckily he is able to call for help.

I get so uncomfortable reading about people treating others poorly for no reason at all. This one had me ready to rage.

Bloody footprints covered the floor. Blood spatters and smears graced the walls. There weren’t men here, there were pieces of men. Entrails of men.
— Kushtuka by Mathilda Zeller

Marissa laughs because who wouldn’t laugh in the face of a monster.
But the monster doesn’t laugh back.
— White Hills by Rebecca Roanhorse

Soon, there would be light in this nightmare.
— Snakes Are Born in the Dark by D. H. Trujillo

I am the Night Mohter. I am the last, wet gasp of a punctured lung. I am the quiet sound of blood cooling in dead veins. I am the end of all things, and all things that end are my domain.
— Before I Go by Norris Black

A little girl rocked silently on a chair, staring at Cece with wide doll eyes. Her dress had an unnatural satin gleam in the moonlight; her glassy eyelids blinked, rolled open, blinked, rolled open as she rocked back and forth on the chair.
— Night in the Chrysalis by Tiffany Morris

I’ve noticed that when you see a good horror film, your senses open up like you’re a bug with a thousand feelers. You hear more noises, sense every breeze.
— Dead Owls by Mona Susan Power

The future itself was constantly being replaced by the ever-present present, which never looked enough like the future to be the future — plus there was always more future to be had, and the past could loom too, always threatening to come back.
— Capgras by Tommy Orange

This collection had so many names I didn’t recognize. I’m honored to have been given the chance to not only read this book early but to also now know of many of these new-to-me authors so I can go read more of their work!

Horror lovers, this anthology is a must-read!

You may close this book and walk away at the end, but you can’t walk away from the content. These stories are going to stick with you for a long time, floating around like spirits and popping up every now and then to make sure that they aren’t forgotten.

Gore by Matt Wildasin is a fast-paced tale of uncovering things that were long buried and the curiosity that strikes and drives them forward, even when they knew better than to bend to their interest.

Just when the crew is getting desperate, they think they’ve found a good place to drill. Unfortunately, they don’t find the acid ice or Umbranium they’re hoping for. Instead, they find sarcophagi. 

Looking them over in the lab, one of their scientists detects a heartbeat, and of course, they just have to open it up even when they knew better, whether they vocalized that or not.

I haven’t played any of the DOOM video games, so I’m sure I was missing out here. However, like Matt said he hoped for in his introduction, I still had an absolute blast with this tale!

I loved that we were dropped right into the rough situation without the need for a long build-up to set the scene. We get just enough description before things go absolutely wild.

I was hooked immediately with the curiosity of what they would find when they began drilling. As soon as the sarcophagi were announced, I kept thinking, “Put them back! Put them back!” Then very soon after that, once the action began, I was totally immersed but still a bit nervous to see how everything would play out.

Matt does an amazing job ramping up the dread as the story goes on until we’re in full-blown action and terror. Sentences like this made this book impossible to put down: “It was a request he would later wish he hadn’t made.”

Shout-out to the character named Logan for being the one who reacted exactly how I could imagine that I would have in the same situation. His logic and absolute shock over how the others were reacting was so relatable!

He started at the sparkling red surface with a grimace that could crush stone.

He rounded upon the first fiend so swiftly that the creature had no time to react as he plunged the chainsaw deep into its belly. The circulating blades chewed through the layers of flesh to the beast’s innards with ease, dousing the surrounding monsters in blood and viscera.

Gordon felt his mind slipping. He couldn’t understand what he was looking at, let alone be able to accept that it was real. Never in a million lifetimes did he ever think he’d see such a horrendous sight.

A classic curiosity-killed-the-cat type of situation, this tale is one that you’re going to want to read straight through. The tension and action are just too intense to put down at any point.

Action-horror fans, go grab your copy today!

Darla is a wild ride of idolizing politicians, drinking water that has been publicly labeled unsafe, and trying to play God. Of course, this can’t go well…

After an injury at work, Darla is just looking for something to latch onto. Unfortunately, that something is a new politician on the scene… And of course, it’s a politician that name calls, acts inappropriately, and aligns perfectly with Darla’s general attitude.

But there’s something else going on in Derryl County that’s affecting the water and causing headaches, tinnitus, visions, and more. 

Idolizing politicians, thinking opinion is fact, using a disability she doesn’t have as an excuse, yelling at customer service reps… Boy, Darla sure was a trip.

When I started reading this, I immediately hated Darla. But soon, I found myself wondering: What is wrong with Darla? Is it the trauma from the accident, her meds, her grief, the drinking water, or is there something even darker going on here that we’re chalking up as a side effect rather than something real?

Of course, as this was a graphic novel, we can’t go without commenting on the artwork! The story was brought to life by Bri Tippetts, who has such a jarring style here. There are many sharp angles that add to the uneasy vibe.

It terrifies me to think that so many people out there could read this and relate to Darla and think that she’s a good person and rally behind her. In the end, I could only see an unhinged person playing the victim and going through life believing everything revolves around her.

A must-read for fans of tales that will make your blood boil while you question everything and dread ever meeting a Darla in real life.

Silent Key by Laurel Hightower is a tale of grief, change, and ghosts, where running away isn’t an option.

Relocating to a small town after the death of her husband, former Detective Cam Ambrose feels like she is running from her husband’s ghosts when she finds that she has more questions than answers about his death. Little does she know, these ghosts are real and much more dangerous than she thinks.

With each step toward her healing process, more is thrown at Cam, threatening to break her at any moment. Luckily, she has two great supporters that she finds herself fully confiding in as she can’t tell the truth about what is going on to the cops; one is a man she calls her brother, Dimi, and another is her new neighbor, Eric Morgan.

But will these three be able to put the ghosts to rest before another life is claimed?

I absolutely loved this tale! Each of the characters were so wonderfully developed, I felt like I was sitting in the room with them, anticipating what was to come next and trying to solve the puzzle. I loved seeing how each of them interacted with one another and how their relationships were both tested and grew throughout the story.

The scene where Cam’s daughter, Sammy, sees Eric’s “library” was too cute! The quick bond between Cam and Eric added a really fun layer as well as some light in the darkness.

The mystery element of the tale was tense. I had so much fun with each twist and each new bit of information that was uncovered.

And of course, we had the horror. There was an overall level of dread that started growing from very early on, but there were also plenty of bursts of full-blown terror! There was one scene that occurred in a bedroom that gave me a wicked jump scare! I can’t wait for readers to experience that!

I spent the next twenty minutes forgetting every trouble I’d ever had, hugging dogs that stood on hind legs to lick me, rolling in the dirt with a boxer-pit mix, and loving on an enormous fella with soft gray fur, the kind they call blue.

“What I do know is, it ain’t a good idea for you to start by distrusting yourself. Whatever you end up doing, believe what you saw. Chances are it’s real as hell.”

You could buy anything online, and I’d have paid every cent of Tony’s life insurance to make us safe. But there was no equipment in the world that could have helped us that night.

“Yeah, well. I’m not the first, and I won’t be the last.”
He leaned in and took both my hands between his. “I reckon not, but this is your hurt. Other people hurtin’ don’t make it any less.”

When I’d said, as I had so many times throughout her life, that there was nothing I wouldn’t do for her, no battle I wouldn’t fight, I’d never imagined how often that fight would require emotional bravery instead of physical. But that was the nature of parenting – kids rarely need you to run into an actual burning building. Instead you have to be their advocate, and do the things that truly scare you.

Then I saw it. Fingertips, gray and mottled, clinging to the very edge of the outside sill. I stared at them while time spun out, my breath leaving my lungs and refusing to return to my brain tried to tell my eyes they were full of shit.

Funny how responding with your emotions never does any good.

Part police procedural, part mystery, and part paranormal horror, this book is sure to hook readers right from the start, pulling them deeper and deeper as things progress.

I had a blast reading this. I loved it so much it gave me quite the book hangover!

Readers that enjoy tales that slowly unravel while the action picks up are going to love this.

Dehiscent by Ashley Deng is an unsettling ecological horror tale that centers around a young girl who lives in a house that provides. 

Yi is a young girl growing up in a world that is either swelteringly hot or terrifyingly cold. She understands just how lucky she is to be living in an old home on the edge of town with her family. 

Of course, this isn’t just any house. This house provides for its inhabitants. Fruit grows in cabinets, meat arrives in boxes, and Choy sprouts all over. 

Yi is grateful for everything the house gives them, frequently receiving strawberries, candies, and a cold shower. But soon her curiosity outweighs her willingness to follow her parent’s rules about going into the attic. 

Once she knows how the house provides for them, will she be able to keep up her appreciation? 

Oh man, there were so many times that I thought living in this house would be amazing! Having something that anticipates your needs sounds wonderful. But I certainly wouldn’t be able to deal with the heat or the other things required of this family. Plus, having stuff show up in random places would drive me nuts. I need everything in its designated place.

I loved Yi so much. Her determination to find a way to share even when she knew sharing could be a bad thing, was such a relatable element. I can’t imagine how difficult it was for her to see her friends and classmates struggling when help was right at her fingertips.

The pacing of this tale is wonderful. It’s such a smooth and slow story that focuses on everyday survival and the calmness of being at home safe with family. 

There was still frost on the ground, dusting the wispy grass like lace while the sheets of ice crunched underfoot. It was a weird feeling, being cold and humid at the same time; she was sweating under her layers when the surface of her skin still felt so cold.

Today felt like she was standing on the ever-shifting slush of melting ice, just barely thick enough to hold her weight. She wanted to fall through just to get it over and done with.

Ecological and apocalyptic fans, you gotta check out this quick read. It will totally draw you in and chill you with the atmosphere that the author has created. I really enjoyed this quiet little horror tale! 

For those that have read this already, could you live in this house?

Negative Space 2: A Return to Survival Horror edited by Aric Sundquist is a collection of tales that will have you ready to pack up a go-bag, you know, just in case.

Survival horror is something that will never cease to totally freak me out! From good ol’ life experiences to all of my anxieties and paranoias, I’m terrified of a lot of things. Then a collection like this comes around, and I thank the cosmos that I’m not in these characters’ shoes.

My favorites from the anthology include: 

Per usual, here are my thoughts on each tale!

After witnessing the brutal death of her mother, this girl copes by painting sunflowers in a world that was forever changed. 

What a mix of beauty and terror! The barn scene with the blood and paintings is cemented in my brain. 

When water is suddenly the most unsafe thing on earth, this crew of random people must make difficult choices. But how can they survive without water?

The premise here is so unsettling. Just with the very first mention of not being able to drink water and I was up getting myself a glass… if I was in their shoes, I would have just walked outside. I can’t imagine trying to survive this!

After a virus has traveled through the world, turning human brains to mush, this grandfather and grandson try their best to keep living in their new normal. 

This story is such a neat tale. I loved that some parts seemed so everyday normal, but that those scenes were scattered through the rest of the plot where everything else was horrific. The scene with the rats is going to haunt me. 

Determined to make contact with other humans they’ve found in space, one man quickly sees that something is wrong here.

What an intense cosmic horror tale! I’m so nervous about what would come after this tale ended! 

In a world where they are forced to scavenge to scrape by, these people survive by designating people as their Meat. 

Yes, this is as brutal as that makes it sound. What a heartbreaking situation for everyone. These poor people. 

While celebrating a milestone together with a hiking trip, curiosity gets the best of one of them, and the other two are forced to follow. Of course, they never should have veered off.

Starting with a terrifying scene, we jump back a bit to learn more about what’s happening. You never know what’s out there in the woods! 

Waking to realize that their ship had crashed and was being torn apart by a creature, this researcher rushes for an evacuation pod. Unfortunately, her body isn’t cooperating well, and the creature is close. 

My gosh the intensity of this tale! As a reader, this description was so vivid, I was practically feeling this character’s pain right along with her! 

Determined to get to the bottom of what’s been tearing up cattle and people in their town, these two neighbors go out on a night hunt. But they very quickly find themselves in too deep.

The claustrophobia here is intense! Pair that with the terror and brutal gore and you’ve got quite the tale that will make even the most hardened stomach churn. I loved that the narrator that was telling this tale was also able to throw in a bit of humor here and there with the phrases he used. 

Taking a night off as their usual selves, this band dresses up to play at an art exhibit. Right from the start, one of the band members comments on the danger of the exhibit, but they all laugh it off. That laughter is quickly forgotten when the moonlight finally hits the first mirror. 

This tale was so much fun! I loved that we were seeing things from the perspective of the band. Terrifying and action-packed, but this tale also had some lovely humor. I need this one turned into a full novella or a film, please! 

Watching the downfall of a family, this entity enjoys the madness. 

Such a bizarre tale! I had no idea what was going on and I loved it so much! 

After something crashes into their barn, this young man realizes that something is wrong while his father and farm hand rejoice. 

So many levels of terror here! 

Driving to the airport after a successful trade show, these salespeople brag and joke around. But when they come across an accident and have to backtrack to take another route, they end up in an accident of their own. Things only get worse from there. 

Where this is a prequel to Midnight, off Arkansas River Trail, which appeared in the first Negative Space anthology, when I got to the end, I groaned right out loud as I knew what happens next. 

While on a camping trip, something comes out of the woods that these two aren’t expecting… 

I loved how this story was laid out! It made me feel one way at the start, but a very different way once we had more information. 

Sent out on a mission, this man encounters something that forces him to take extreme action. But things are only going to get more intense from there!

Ah, I love Stephen’s works so darn much! I really enjoyed that this tale started with a band before backing up a bit to show us what was going on. And my gosh, the mention of SKINWRAPPERS! Go read that novella if you haven’t already!

Pulling people out of their cars, dragging them off balconies, carrying them into the air and dropping them, busting them open like seagulls cracking clams in a parking lot. So many corpses on the streets that some people actually survived the fall, only to be hauled up a second time.
— The Places Where Sunflowers Grow by J.W. Schnarr

He struggled to control his breathing, sure the thing would hear it, his gasping breath and hammering heart. But if it heard any of this it gave no indication, only continued to creep along the edge of the canyon just as it had been feeling its way forward.
— Sap by S.R. Miller

Being separated from Bud was one thing, but knowing he was probably dead, and knowing I was down here alone in all this darkness was enough to make my heart feel six sizes too big and my stomach to drop out of my asshole.
— Badlands by Richard Beauchamp 

I screamed as my body plummeted downward into the ravine. Hot, wet flesh slammed into me and then rolled away as we fell. I felt like loose change in the world’s largest dryer as I kept spinning and falling and rolling over yet another sheer drop-off, before plummeting down further and coming to a sudden stop.
— Badlands by Richard Beauchamp 

Shards of glass begin to fall and, in a chain reaction, the slivers tumble into the sheets below them, splintering pane after pane of mirrored glass. It’s like a crystal chandelier forming in mid-air, the pieces of mirror still reflecting the pinkish sky and the beams of the stage lighting.
— Monastery Blood Moon by M.J. Mars

Arlo got to his knees, but felt himself collapsing within. A drizzle of rain trickled down, refreshing. The smell of wet forest is heady, rich. He wished he could enjoy it. He looked for the crowbar, but it was gone, thrown, dropped, melted by lightning, he didn’t know. He was helpless, and Martina was laughing.
— The Night Before Midnight, Off Arkansas River Trail by Eric J. Guignard

I have never seen anyone who looks so exactly like her before. It takes my breath away, something I always thought before was a myth, but, here I am, not breathing, and not because of any issue with my life support system.
— Derelictus by Stephen Kozeniewski

I had so much fun with these tales. I already can’t wait to see what the third addition to this series brings!

If survival horror is your jam, you need to check out Negative Space 1 and 2 immediately. There are so many amazing authors here that bring a variety of terrors to the table!

My Glass is Runn by Die Booth is a collection of haunting tales that range from spooky supernatural beings to the terrifying horror of humans.

What a collection! This author writes in such an engaging style, once I picked up the collection, I had a hard time putting it down to get to other life things!

My favorite stories from the collection included:

Per usual, here are my notes on each tale!

A boy obsessed with animals and creatures of lore grows up with the goal of making the myths and legends more of a reality. 

The final line of this one is quite the gut punch! The author does an awesome job leading up to this last bit, but it still hit me wicked hard! 

Going to the known witch of the town, this man asks for a favor but ends up skirting payment. Cursed to be ruined by a fly, this curse bides its time. 

The gall of this man! I was so excited to see what would come of this situation. 

When a coworker goes missing, only two people seem to care at all. One of those people may have answers. 

This tale was so unsettling! How often could something like this actually happen and as coworkers, we’d have no idea? 

Told to just go to bed, this little girl fears the numerous monsters that haunt her room in the dark. The mother assumes seeing shadows and hearing tales is just her imagination, but what if they aren’t?

Such a creative spin on the monsters we all fear in childhood! 

All this man wanted was to be heard. In death, he has the same wish. 

Captured by journal entries, readers follow this poor guy through the transition. This one was so bleak and sad, but that ending was excellent!

All little Bertie wants to do is play in the ball pit with the other kids. His mother, equal parts controlling and totally disconnected, won’t allow him to. But today, he has a plan. 

Oh gosh, the germ-infested ball pits… I have a very clear memory of going into one as a kid and finding all kinds of trash at the bottom. What this kid finds is truly something of nightmare. 

Just trying to find her path, Marie tries to become a model. One day, she spots the perfect dress to ask to wear. But once she has it on, will she be seen past the clothing or is she just another human clothes hangar? 

A quiet little unsettling tale!

After the loss of a young man, this family has one more task to attend to so he can rest. 

Oh my, the grief horror here, but with quite a twist. 

When people are suddenly hearing things that drive them to harm themselves, this woman is afraid when her husband begins showing symptoms. But both of them are determined to make it through this together. 

The premise here is absolutely terrifying! Thinking about what I would do if I were in their shoes makes this much more horrific. Would I be able to do what the husband did? I had tinnitus for 6 months and that almost drove me batty! I can’t imagine this situation.  

Going on the first trip that they can remember in ages, this group of school kids are shocked to see where they end up.  

My goodness, this tale is set up so wonderfully. When the realization of what was happening slammed down, I actually gasped out loud. 

Determined to help convince her husband to get over his fear of spiders, she convinces him to go see someone. Transforming spiders in his mind into something beautiful, this trick works until suddenly, it doesn’t. 

I’m just like this guy – I hate spiders. I don’t care how big or small they may be, I don’t want to be anywhere near them. If I was given the chance to get hypnotized to remove the fear, I’d like to think I would do so. But after reading this… maybe not.

Living a life filled with gray and confusion, this man takes a shot of vodka and suddenly has a new friend. But is the friend really there to help?

A quiet grief adjacent horror tale! This one is so atmospheric, but also so dreary at the same time. 

Drawn to his new friend immediately, this young man realizes there’s something too magnetic about this guy to stay away, even if there are a few reasons to. But one night when he starts talking about death and something worse than death, is it too late to leave?

I absolutely love tales like this that start out so fun and innocent before they take a sharp dark turn!

Arriving to care for a strange man’s home, his displays make her nervous and sad. She continues to do all of the work he requests until one day, he invites her into his office…

This tale has such a cold, gothic horror vibe!

It seemed darker, if possible, than the main room, although how when both were equally ill-lit was a mystery. Perhaps because this sleeping chamber was smaller: the walls seemed to crouch in around them like a circle of great dark creatures bending down to look. There was plaster off the walls here, too, lending the small space the feel of being inside a ribcage, their twin life essence in the dead house an incongruous heart, beating after death.
— Hearts of Gold

It’s quieter at night and in the dark is when the fear leaks in and people are most open to seeing the things that they don’t want to admit are there.
— To Be Heard

The dark corridors seemed to narrow before Charlotte’s path, panic stifling her, making the panelling close in and every rug slip beneath her feet.
— The Fourth Ape

I had such a blast reading this collection! So many of these tales really cemented themselves into my psyche. I cannot stop thinking about how moving our bed and giving the space underneath a really good clean is long overdue… I’m sure there are some dust bunnies under there.

This is a must-read for fans of chilling horror closer to the quiet horror side of things than the extreme. But don’t let that fool you, there are plenty of terrors on these pages.

DOGS by Mike Sullivan is a brutal and terrifying tale filled with violence, confusion, and some perfectly timed and bone-chilling barking. 

Returning to his parent’s house to attend a funeral for his mother who had recently passed, this man just wants a hot shower and to mentally prepare himself for what’s to come. But just moments after entering the house, his parent’s dog gives him a wicked bite though it’s not satisfied with just a bit of drawn blood.

From there, the story takes off on a terrifying rush for safety as the man realizes that something is very wrong.

With a very short opening that centers around grief, readers are already set on a path of dread from page one. But that dread very quickly pivots into the dread of what is to come as the horror comes barreling at us.

The author does an amazing job with the action scenes here. Not only does each scene have the perfect amount of description to show what’s happening, but the author also touches on what the character is feeling and what they’re thinking! This uncomfortably, but brilliantly, forces the readers into the main character’s shoes each and every time, starting with the scene with the very first bite. 

“Something’s wrong with the dogs.”

Sometimes bad things happened on beautiful days. It made Tom wonder: Was it all simply a game of chance? Or were the gods just twisted motherfuckers?

His head felt like it had been harnessed into one of those pneumatic paint shaker machines at Home Depot for a few hours.

I had SO much fun with this read. It has everything I look for in short and brutal horror novellas; an awesome main character, a bit of grief, a terrifying premise, great description, intense action, and lots and lots of blood.

I’ve been bitten by dogs a couple of times, the most traumatic of them being a bite from a German shepherd (not her fault!) and a little terrier (100% that dog’s fault). Luckily, nothing nearly this bad! But boy did this plot bring up some memories! What an absolutely terrifying premise; the biting is bad enough, but the brain power from these dogs as well… Phew.

If you’re sensitive to stories about dogs, tread very lightly here!

Ghosts of Acadia by Marcus LiBrizzi is an awesome collection of spooky tales from the Acadia region.

I always have SO much fun with collections like this. When I spent the weekend in Bar Harbor with my husband and our friends, I just had to visit Sherman’s Book Store. Per usual, I kept an eye out for a local book I could snag to remember the trip. Ghosts of Acadia stood out immediately!

I couldn’t help myself, I started reading this collection when we got back to the hotel that afternoon.

This collection has such an awesome range! There’s a ghost of a jilted bride, shipwrecks and ghost ships, a haunted lighthouse, a ghost cat, lots of cursed land and murders, ghostly caretakers that continue to watch over the properties, haunted trails, caves with horrific histories, water spirits, and more!

Each tale was wonderfully written. I was sucked right into each, unable to pause until I reached the end of the tale. This author has a great writing style! These tales would also be great to read aloud to others on a dark and stormy night!

This ghost appears as a silhouette or dark figure that shimmers like heat off the highway. 

Whenever the sea has claimed a local man or woman, people have seen a ghost ship depart from Spirit Cove to collect the soul.

I had an absolute blast with this collection! If you enjoy reading a good ghost story based on local legends and stories, then this is a must-read for you!

Terror in the Trench: An Anthology of Aquatic Horror edited by Jay Alexander is a collection of chilling tales all centered around the horrors that await below the surface of the waters.

All proceeds from the sale of this book were supped to go to the Shark Trust, but unfortunately, the publisher seems to have disappeared so I can’t confirm whether or not that happened. The three books in the series seem to have been pulled from online retailers as well.

Shout out to the publisher for including a general content warning at the start of the book, referencing more detailed warnings at the back for anyone who would like to check them out. This was handled wonderfully!

This collection was fun! I have always been drawn to ocean horror being someone who grew up on an island where I saw the ocean every day, so was wicked excited to give this one a read!

There were quite a few tales that I absolutely loved. My favorites from the collection included: 

Per usual, here are my thoughts on each tale:

Going after her boss who failed to return after checking out a submarine that had resurfaced, this woman is cautious but determined to get him back on board their ship. But little does she know, she’s not alone in the submarine.

I first read this tale in Laurel’s short story collection, Every Woman Knows This. It was even more chilling the second time knowing what was going to happen, but not being sure when. 

Displayed as an incident report, we follow the transmissions from a scientific vessel that begin with a mayday and only get more desperate. 

I’m not sure what was more terrifying here, the content of the transmissions themselves or the reaction to the case at the end of the incident report. 

Self-isolating to live a simple life after a tragic incident he still mourns, this man goes out for his usual fishing trip. Little does he know, this will be his last one. 

The slow burn beginning here was done so well! By the time the terror kicked in, I was so invested in seeing what would happen. 

Sent down to investigate a cruise ship, this dive team feels that something is odd before they even hit the water. Of course, they were right to be worried. 

The thought of having to investigate a cruise ship underwater is absolutely terrifying to me. I went on one during my class trip and got lost every single day we were on it. I can’t imagine trying to navigate in the water and darkness. 

While on a fancy yacht, this woman has had enough of her abusive husband. She snaps and kills him. Or so she thinks… 

The “What are you” scene was so good!

Going down into Challenger Deep, this sub-operator is distracted by lights. Diving much faster than he should, he soon loses control. 

This is such an unsettling tale. The thought of trying to go that deep under the water absolutely terrifies me. And what he finds… Yikes!

Determined to get a rumored deep sea snail in order to up her cooking game, this woman has been plotting for years. Today, she thinks she will get her way no matter what needs to be done. 

Wow, what a terrible person this character was! I was rooting for them to fail, but I couldn’t help but be curious to see how their plan would play out if they were successful. 

Mourning the loss of a loved one, the sister and the boyfriend struggle to keep their grief together while sticking to their mission. But these two have other things they’re struggling to keep in check as well. Letting them loose would be disastrous. 

I never thought I’d need a werewolf ocean horror tale in my brain, but here we are. This was SO good. I was so anxious each step of the way and I loved that it started with a scene of terror before stepping back to show us how we ended up there. 

Diving into a cave underwater in a sub, the comlink cuts out immediately leaving this man alone. His goal is to explore the uncharted cave and he hopes to make new discoveries along the way. But is he ready for what he’s about to see?

Going underwater in a sub is terrifying enough to me… but then to take the sun into an unknown cave system? I was so claustrophobic reading this one! 

Calling out the monsters humans are, these beings from below are finally sick of watching what humanity is doing to the oceans. They now rise up. 

What a chilling short tale packed with brutal truths. 

When a sound recording from the sea is sent to this grieving man, he goes out with a crew to investigate. He says he doesn’t know what’s out there, but as we get flashbacks to his past and travel further into the straight they’re searching in, it becomes clear that he may not have been truthful in saying that. 

My gosh, the flashbacks were gut-wrenching. Paired with the mystery and intensity of the current timeline, this story was impossible to put down! 

While on a risky dove, this woman’s light starts to act up. Her diving partner isn’t phased as his curiosity is more interested in a blue light he can see. Soon, there is more anger than just a glitching light.

The author really puts you into this character’s flippers! I caught myself holding my breath a lot while reading this one!

Deep under the sea, this crew is focused on repairing oil equipment. Explaining the isolation of the job and all its risk, the one risk they didn’t plan for was a visitor. 

This story had me ready to jump out of my skin. I was so ready for a jump scare or something terrible to happen with each step the tale took. 

When a plane crash lands in the ocean, these people are shocked to learn that getting out of the plane may put them in a more dangerous position than staying inside… 

Jeez, this one is terrifying. Straight out of my nightmares! But what a powerful tale of motherhood too!

Out fishing, this old man struggles to remember. Soon, he’s unsure what year it is and why he’s out there.

This poor man. The dementia element really makes this a tale that can be seen in a few different lights. 

Only minutes ago, the crystal-clear water of the Caribbean and the colours of vibrant ocean life surrounded me. Now, it’s as if I have sealed myself in my own coffin.
— Unfathomable by Matthew Stevens

If you want to save the starving children, you can forget it. If you want to throw millions of dollars at Mars or the Mariana Trench, well, there’s a billionaire for that.
— Julia by Andrew Cull

As the light came back, it had vanished and I could see a problem, spreading into the thick water, almost as dark as the ocean in the deep. Blood.
— The Last Dive by Catarina Prata

Overall this is a fun collection of tales! I had so much fun reading most of the tales and it was great to see some familiar names as well as some new-to-me authors! I really enjoyed the collection overall, even if a few of the tales didn’t hit the mark for me.

This is a great read for fans of ocean horror!