The Horror Collection: Yellow Edition edited by Kevin J. Kennedy and Natasha Sinclair is collection of heartbreaking and dark tales that had an element of loss in each.

Each time I see Kevin pop into my inbox, I want to drop everything and start reading. That was definitely the case here and I’m so pumped that I was able to give it a read already!

From this collection, two tales really stood out to me and I will definitely be thinking about them for a long time! Post-Truth Prometheus by by Lex H Jones and Moonflowers by Sara Tantlinger were such chilling tales that really packed a punch! Unfortunately, there was one story here that wasn’t up my alley, but there’s a scene from that one that I won’t get out of my head any time soon!

Per usual, here are my notes on each story.

Before I Wake by Kyle M. Scott – 4/5
When a man wakes up with a nasty hangover, he goes through the motion of getting his day started but soon realizing something is wrong. All of the people aren’t buzzing around the neighborhood like they usually are, and his wife is missing. But that’s not the worst of it… This tale kept me on my toes! Such an eerie and dark tale of regret.

A Gathering in the Woods by Mike Duke – 4/5
When two teenagers go to the site of a rumored sacrificial area used by a cult, they can’t believe the rumors were true. But getting photos of the area in the daylight wasn’t enough, they wanted real proof. My goodness. I personally didn’t care for the sexual elements, but the terror toward the end was intense! I loved the ending! 

Post-Truth Prometheus by Lex H Jones – 5/5
When a man on a mission to complete a coding project as an experiment sets off, he forgets one very important question- just because you can, does it mean you should? If the project works, what will be the cost? Phew this one was so suspenseful! I was so nervous about what was going to happen next and it just kept getting worse! 

Tumor Lottery by Zoltan Komor –
Not one for me unfortunately. But for fans of bizarro horror, you’ll dig this one! There was one scene when the lottery numbers were being picked… my god. That won’t be leaving my brain any time soon!

Moonflowers by Sara Tantlinger – 5/5
When a grieving widow attends a reception out on by her late husbands company, she is stunned when they name his last project before his death, a bridge, after his favorite flowers. But on that bridge, the widow thinks she sees her late husband… This is a heartbreaking tale! I felt so bad for this woman. Each event leads reader down a dark path.

Freedom of Speech by J.C. Michael – 4/5
A mute teen struggles through school and home life. His mom is an alcoholic and he has a bully at school. But what no one else knows is that he has a power that is quite unusual. This was a fun and bizarre read! I loved that it left so many things unanswered that reader can think of what he may have done next. 

This is another wonderful collection filled with deep, dark tales. I loved the variety here as they were all so different; from stories about bloody rituals, to technology, you never knew what to expect next!

Dear Laura by Gemma Amor is a heartbreaking and blood boiling tale about a girl whose life changed in the blink of an eye one morning when she was just thirteen. Since then, she has been receiving creepy letters…

This tale jumps between the present and the past, each chapter giving us more information to show the whole story. The center of the tale, are the letters that Laura receives from a man that she only knows as X. With promises to give her information if she plays along with his sick and twisted games, Laura does what she thinks is right, only to get sucked deeper and deeper in this tangled web, unable to tell anyone else what is going on.

Readers are sure to go on a wild ride of emotion while reading this story. With each chapter, you’ll dive deeper into the depths of Laura’s despair and have a better understanding for how she ended up doing what she is doing in the present.

My heart broke for this poor woman with every event that she was forced to live through. I cannot imagine being in her shoes! What occurred when she was thirteen was traumatic enough, but it just got worse from there.

Gemma Amor has such a wonderful writing style. I love that she can write something brutal and heartbreaking in one line, and something beautiful and peaceful in the very next line! There is one specific example I wanted to add here but it was a spoiler! So when you pick this up, take note of the last paragraph of chapter 30.

My Favorite Passages:

A life can alter beyond recognition in the time it takes to simply let go of someone’s hand. 

She was not too young to understand what closure meant. She was not too young to feel the agony of not-knowing.

She was mystery wrapped in silence, and sometimes, unwrapping the secret just wasn’t worth the struggle. 

She imagined him, hunched over, meaty fists wrapped around a cheap pen, writing letters to her from his mattress cocoon and folding them into dirty yellow envelopes while the trees shook their leaves overhead in judgement. 

This is a must read for fans of unsettling and suspenseful horror. This is a great one to pick up on an afternoon off so you can dedicate the time to read straight through. You won’t want to put it down!

Hybrid Moments: A Literary Tribute to The Misfits edited by Sam Richard and MP Johnson is a collection of tales that range from fun light horror to darker tales that will make readers a bit queasy. If you listen to the Misfits, this is one you don’t want to miss!

Some of the tales hinted at ideas behind songs or lore from the band, while other tales focused in on the lyrics by Glenn Danzig. I really enjoyed the ones that I could match up with a song, but there were also a few that I wasn’t sure about.

There were so many tales in here that I absolutely loved, but a few were not for me. My favorite tales include:

My notes on each tale along with my personal ratings and quick passages that I just had to call out are included below.

Exterminate The Whole Human Race by Matthew Vaughn – 5/5
A group of zombies are sent on a mission from “The Burning Hand.” What is the mission? To exterminate the human race, of course! There is one zombie that we follow, and she has a lot more control over herself compared to the others…

WHAT A STORY TO KICK THIS OFF! Oh my gosh. This was so brutal. I love zombie tales to begin with, but I especially love when the zombies have an awareness and we see the tale play out from their perspective.

That ending… This is my favorite type of ending- one that perfectly concludes the tale, but leave me wishing we had more as well.

Misfits Song: Astro Zombies

American Gods, American Monsters by José Cruz – 3/5
A person known only as “The Editor” is busy chasing down a woman named Marilyn Ford that has been on a murdering spree. It’s unclear what he plans to do if he catches up with her, but he’s certainly determined to do so.

This one was spooky! The beginning where the initial crime occurred was very unsettling.

For the song, I wasn’t sure what one this pulled from exactly even though it brought a few to mind, so if you know, please feel free to share! 🙂

Prison Food by Ross Peterson – 5/5
Oh my gosh! What an awesome tale to expand on this song. I loved the story arc! I could totally imagine the prisoners in this tale singing this song! 

Misfits Song: Braineaters

Slice-And-Grab by Mark Zirbel – 5/5
Frank, a man that is very close to retirement, is removed from desk duty to be sent out into the field with one of the new recruits. This job? To spot a mark, take them down, and harvest their organs. 

There were various elements from this song that made it into this tale, and the dark tone was perfect! Such an eerie thought to imagine a world like this!

Misfits Song: Violent World


Bone Birds by Darci Schummer – 5/5

This Thanksgiving holiday is marred by attitudes and a nasty argument. To escape the fight, the main character heads outside to a tree with animal skulls in it. While out there, she comes up with a plan… she needs more skulls. 

The tense scene with the game and dinner made me super uncomfortable as I really hate situations like that. But once the main character headed outside, it was like a breath of fresh air. I couldn’t wait to see what was going to happen. And man, what an ending! I was trying to guess which song this tale pulled from, and when it was made clear, I wanted to cheer! This is one of my favorites!

Misfits Song: Skulls

APRIL 10, 2021

Hybrid Moments: A Literary Tribute to The Misfits edited by Sam Richard and MP Johnson is a collection of tales that range from fun light horror to darker tales that will make readers a bit queasy. If you listen to the Misfits, this is one you don’t want to miss!

Shout-out to my husband for buying this book for me for Christmas!

Let’s dive in!

My Thoughts on Hybrid Moments: A Literary Tribute to The Misfits edited by Sam Richard and MP Johnson

Some of the tales hinted at ideas behind songs or lore from the band, while other tales focused in on the lyrics by Glenn Danzig. I really enjoyed the ones that I could match up with a song, but there were also a few that I wasn’t sure about.

There were so many tales in here that I absolutely loved, but a few were not for me. My favorite tales include:

My notes on each tale along with my personal ratings and quick passages that I just had to call out are included below.

Exterminate The Whole Human Race by Matthew Vaughn – 5/5
A group of zombies are sent on a mission from “The Burning Hand.” What is the mission? To exterminate the human race, of course! There is one zombie that we follow, and she has a lot more control over herself compared to the others…

WHAT A STORY TO KICK THIS OFF! Oh my gosh. This was so brutal. I love zombie tales to begin with, but I especially love when the zombies have an awareness and we see the tale play out from their perspective.

That ending… This is my favorite type of ending- one that perfectly concludes the tale, but leave me wishing we had more as well.

Misfits Song: Astro Zombies

American Gods, American Monsters by José Cruz – 3/5
A person known only as “The Editor” is busy chasing down a woman named Marilyn Ford that has been on a murdering spree. It’s unclear what he plans to do if he catches up with her, but he’s certainly determined to do so.

This one was spooky! The beginning where the initial crime occurred was very unsettling.

For the song, I wasn’t sure what one this pulled from exactly even though it brought a few to mind, so if you know, please feel free to share! 🙂

Prison Food by Ross Peterson – 5/5
Oh my gosh! What an awesome tale to expand on this song. I loved the story arc! I could totally imagine the prisoners in this tale singing this song! 

Misfits Song: Braineaters

Slice-And-Grab by Mark Zirbel – 5/5
Frank, a man that is very close to retirement, is removed from desk duty to be sent out into the field with one of the new recruits. This job? To spot a mark, take them down, and harvest their organs. 

There were various elements from this song that made it into this tale, and the dark tone was perfect! Such an eerie thought to imagine a world like this!

Misfits Song: Violent World

This Thanksgiving holiday is marred by attitudes and a nasty argument. To escape the fight, the main character heads outside to a tree with animal skulls in it. While out there, she comes up with a plan… she needs more skulls. 

The tense scene with the game and dinner made me super uncomfortable as I really hate situations like that. But once the main character headed outside, it was like a breath of fresh air. I couldn’t wait to see what was going to happen. And man, what an ending! I was trying to guess which song this tale pulled from, and when it was made clear, I wanted to cheer! This is one of my favorites!

Misfits Song: Skulls

La Caja by James Edward O’Brien – 4/5
A man isn’t feeling well, but he heads out to get some booze to try to dull the pain. He feels like he has creatures inside of him that are getting ready to burst forth…

Yikes the thought of having things growing inside of someone is such a terrifying thought. This one made me so uneasy.

For the song, I wasn’t sure what one this pulled from. If you know, please feel free to share! 🙂

She Is On The Run by David Agranoff – 3/5
She has been taken and held hostage. When they aren’t using her in public, showing her face so her rich father will give them cash, She is kept in a closet. She learns that these people are trying to break her, and she must learn how to play along.

I loved that the word “She” was capitalized throughout this story. I felt so bad for her and the situation she was in. Especially when these people were violent with her. I couldn’t wait to see what would happen next!

Misfits Song: She


Helena Drive by Glen Damien Campbell – 4/5
When his date spots a tattoo, she asks him about it. Embarrassed, he brushes it off. Little did he know, the woman sitting across from him would have enjoyed his honesty if he had reacted differently…

This one was brutal and a bit heartbreaking. The scene where Todd pops in was very unsettling! And man, if only more people were honest on dates!

I’m not totally sure on the song for this one, so I’ll leave this one here-

Potential Misfits Song: Who Killed Marilyn?

The Soft Remains by T.A. Wardrope
A man is on a mission, but for what?

The authors use of description to set the scene in this one was incredible! Very vivid for all senses! Overall though this one unfortunately wasn’t for me.

I’m not sure about this song either, but this one seems fitting!

Potential Misfits Song: Spinal Remains


Remnants by Christine Trace – 4/5
When Donny and Marie’s mother dies, and they are tasked to go through her stuff, they stumble upon an old tin that holds her bible. But there’s more than a bible in there…

PHEW I was not expecting that ending at all! I love how this one threw me for quite the loop!

I have no idea what the song is for this one. Feel free to comment if you do!

Reality of the Wolf by Daniel Otto Jack Petersen –
This one was not for me.

Misfits Song: Demonomania


Static Imago by Nicholas Patnaude –
I have absolutely no idea what was happening in this story. 


An Answer From The Stars by P.J. Kryfko – 4/5
When a group of teens go out on the town in Arizona, they are all looking for women to seduce. One woman catches our lead’s eye, and he as caught hers…

This story was heartwarming and heartbreaking! I so wanted this one to have a happy ending…

Misfits Song: Teenagers From Mars

Bonus Tracks

The Verdant Holocaust by Sam Richard – 4/5
When a woman goes to find one of her friends after the friend took off, she’s quickly about to find out that not is at all what it seems in this weird place.

I wasn’t sure where this one was going, but man did it get dark fast!

Boom by MP Johnson – 4/5
A man stuck in a living hell is on the run. When he is caught in a trap and injured, he just wants this to end. But what’s next is going to start a whole new chapter for him.

This one had me so anxious! For a bit, I wasn’t sure what was happening, but I was so there for whatever happened next!

Misfits Song: Living Hell


My Final Thoughts:
 I had so much fun reading this collection! I also made it a point to listen to the various songs that came to mind while reading each tale if something jumped to mind. What an awesome idea this project was! I only wish I had heard about the kickstarter so I could have donated.

If you love horror and the Misfits, this is a must read! Go snag a copy of this book and come scream with us!

Dead Meat: Day 7 by Nick Clausen is another entry in this series where we are seeing how fast the zombie virus can spread… It’s out of hand, and now other countries are threatening to step in. But can things still be fixed, or is it far too late?

Let’s dive in!

My Thoughts on Dead Meat: Day 7 by Nick Clausen

When this addition to the series picks up, Iver was still stuck in the old man’s house with zombies approaching, and William and Dan are still trying to get back to Denmark.

Per usual, things are quite tense!

Iver makes it over one hurdle just to run into another. When he makes his way to the roof, he thought that he would be able to climb down, but he quickly realizes that there were too many zombies around. Two newcomers approach with perfect timing and after examining him for scratches, they take Iver where he needs to go. But Iver may have been better off just waiting things out on the roof…

William and Dan come across a woman who has just lost her husband. When he comes back to attack her as a zombie, the boys deal with it and tell her that she can come with them if she wants. Not sure if she will follow or give in to her grief, the boys head out. Later on, the woman catches up to them after following their footprints. But more disaster is right around the corner for this crew…

PHEW. Yet again with these tales, I couldn’t put this down. The way the chapters are organized, jumping from one perspective to another group, is sure to keep readers antsy to see what will happen in each of the groups.

I love the characters Dan, William, and Iver so much. Their bravery and quest to do what is right while staying safe and trying to protect others, even if they are afraid themselves, is incredible. Each of them had quite the storyline in this one! I can’t wait to see what happens with them all next.

Dan is such an awesome teenager. There was one scene in this tale where Dan hears a radio broadcast and calls out the lie. When another character comments that they are probably just trying to make people stay hopeful, Dan isn’t having it and says, “That’s still a lie.” In another scene, he connects with someone by saying that he understands what that person is going through, and that he knows nothing he can say will make it any better. I’m not sure that I had commented on his personality before, but we have seen him go through some major growth in just seven days!

One other element that I really loved in this one was a call-out to The Walking Dead and a method they use to get the zombies off their scent. I loved this tie in to another popular zombie tale!

He pulls the trigger just as the guy regroups and lunges forward again. The shot it absolutely deafening, hammering painfully against his eardrums, but William hardly notices. The top of the guy’s skull breaks open like a tin can, as the bullet removes part of his brain the size of a fist.

“We’ll probably kill each other before the infection can.”

The entire harbor is coming alive. Everywhere he sees the dead appearing and moving this way. It’s like someone stuck a stick into an anthill – and Dan is that stick.

I know I say something similar every time, but this time more than ever before, I cannot wait to get my hands on Day 8 to see what happens next! I’m SO nervous.

If you haven’t yet, you should really check out this series if you enjoy awesome zombie tales! They just keep getting more and more intense!

Severed by Joshua Marsella is a brutal and terrifying tale of bravery in the face of darkness.

This is the prequel to his debut novella, Scratches. If you haven’t read that one yet, I highly recommend doing so before diving into this one.

TW: child in danger, sexual assault.
(The assault was handed “off screen” if you will, and I thought it was handled very well, but it still made my blood boil as it was very clear what happened. So just a heads up there!)

In this tale, we follow a platoon of Marines in Vietnam. They are making their way through the forest, trying to get to a village that is said to be troop friendly. When they arrive, they are welcomed by a village elder and their translator jumps in to help facilitate the conversation.

The platoon is thrilled to learn that the rumors were true as the village treats them to a meal of fresh fish and rice and then gives them space to set up for the night.

Unfortunately, that night, disaster strikes. In the morning, the troops head out on an unplanned mission to do what they believe is right. But little do they know, their strength, bravery, and bullets are no match for what hides in the darkness…

My goodness, there are so many scenes in here that I would love to comment on because they were so vivid and terrifying! These scenes are certainly going to stick in my head. There’s one in particular that occurs at a clearing that I won’t be able to forget any time soon. But I don’t want to spoil the terror, so I will leave the discovery of all of these up to you.

Paired with the terror, there was also a lot of brotherly love amongst the Marines, complete with all of the heckling and banter. I really enjoyed seeing them engage with one another. Selfishly, I wish it had been a little more heartfelt knowing what was in store for them later on.

Severed is such a page-turner! I stupidly kept picking it up with only small chunks of time to read, and I never wanted to put it back down.

When you pick up this novel… prepare yourself before diving in. There are so many elements here that will chill you to the bone or make you want to jump through the pages of the book to fight. Joshua is a master at scattering seriously creepy jump scares and stomach-dropping scenes of terror into his work.

I had so many more passages noted… but they were major spoilers, so I’ll leave you all with just this one:

They were rapidly losing daylight. The late spring sky was a tapestry of amber and gold. They didn’t have a moment to waste before darkness would envelop the jungle. This was the last place any of them wanted to be at night.

This story was absolutely terrifying and brutal! Of course, I loved it! I picked Severed up before bed one night, and the nightmares that I had were insane! Well done, Joshua!

I cannot wait to jump back into Scratches now that I have more background information.

Bring on book three!

Halloween Land is the first solo novella by Kevin J. Kennedy. This tale is about two teenagers that attend a carnival, but it’s not just any carnival… This is a magical one, and not everyone that enters the gates will walk back out.

Part of this story first appeared in Collected Halloween Horror Shorts: Trick ‘R Treat, back in 2017. Since that story landed, I have thought back to it so many times. When I heard this would be a collection later, I absolutely could not wait to read it.

First things first, how beautiful is that cover by François Vaillancourt?! I cannot wait to see this one in print.

Next up I have to say that I LOVED the foreword by Natasha Sinclair. I’m a total sucker for when a foreword gets me really pumped to dive into a book that I was already excited about, and that was exactly the case here. The last line of her foreword was absolutely perfect: It’s my honour to take your ticket and open the gates – welcome to Kevin J. Kennedy’s Halloween Land!

When I first reviewed the short story, I said: I’m a total sucker for any story that is set in an amusement park! This one was so awesome! The characters were lovely, the action was thrilling, and the plot was interesting!

And now here we are! I was so excited to dive back into this world. All of those notes still hold true, but my goodness, seeing this transform from a short story to novella was really neat!

I loved that we got to see the same scenes that we had visited before, but with so much more action this time! Right along with the terror and suspense, we also got to know more about our main characters, Zak and Wendy, as their relationship developed further.

This was such a perfect blend of the dark and spooky plot, and the uplifting coming of age element.

Just a few more notes as I don’t want to spoil all the surprises!

The scene where Zak and Wendy first see some of the carnies that are dipping in and out of the shadows was super creepy! I actually felt my anxiety spike during that scene with a heavy dose of dread.

Later on, there’s a scene where we get a glimpse at some of the places that the carnival has popped up in that I really enjoyed. This scene was so vivid and exciting! It also opens this up to many spin offs if the author wanted to do so.

There was also a scene where we jump into the future that I actually shouted out loud, “OH NO!“

Overall, this is a wonderfully written novella that has jumped to the top of my favorites list! I would kill to see this on the big screen!

Before the book concluded, there was also a poem and artwork-

This poem was so fun and sums the story up wonderfully while still keeping the tone!

I had seen the first piece of artwork here via Kevin’s social media and I am still so obsessed with it! Seeing the other pieces was a ton of fun. The pumpkin man was my favorite!

Now that night had fallen, it felt like an entirely different carnival. Darkness lends a feeling of magic to carnivals; the flashing, coloured lights coupled with the enchanting music has them feeling like they were part of another world. Another world of whimsy, magic and excitement – where anything could happen – even if only for one night.

The freaks crept around in the background, not necessarily hiding but definitely staying out of the way. Zak and Wendy wondered if they were simply people in costume, hired to make the place look a little scarier, but if that was so, the ‘costumes’ were pretty high end – it would’ve been a waste to not show them off. One of the freaks has four arms and appeared to be using all of them. It seemed elaborate for someone that a lot of the revellers would only get a passing glance at.

Before they knew it, they were at the front of the queue, and they had barely spoken the whole time, both caught up in their thoughts of the future together without either being able to vocalise their feelings.

“… It is what it is, just like most things in life. Not believing it doesn’t mean you don’t have to deal with it.”

Zak slipped his hand into Wendy’s without a second thought as they began to walk to the library. It hadn’t even occurred to him how simple the transition from friends to boyfriend and girlfriend had been. They hasn’t even had their first kiss yet, but he was confident that they would be together forever. He wasn’t someone who believed in fate, but they had know each other their whole lives, and he knew he would do anything for her.

Life would likely always be tough, but at least they had comic books and horror movies.

…and the last was slowly walking after Zak with a relaxed killer from a horror-b movie type of confidence. They seemed to be in no hurry.

“Don’t they usually say something cool in the movies right about now?”
“You mean cheesy?”
“Cheesy cool.”
“What you got?” Wendy asked.
“How about… When this is all over, it’ll be raining pumpkins!” Zak said in his best tough guy voice.

If you enjoy vividly written carnival horror with wonderful coming of age elements mixed in, you need to go pick this one up! I had so much fun reading this! While I was anxious to see how things would turn out, I also didn’t want it to end!

I cannot wait to also snag a copy of this one in print!

Run Walk Crawl: Getting Fit In My Forties by Tim Lebbon is a non-fiction tale about climbing mountains, racing in Ironman triathlons and other events, never having enough bikes, and eating lots, and lots of cake!

In the very first paragraph, with the mention of what your wetsuit burn looks like… I was like, yup there’s the horror writer shining straight through already! While this read definitely isn’t horror, it still has plenty of suspense!

The entire book is organized in a way that pairs tips and tricks with wonderful storytelling! In many of the cases, it feels like you’re right there in the races with him! The build up in part one from the climbs to the first Ironman race… when Tim crossed the finish line, I wanted to jump up and cheer!

I love all the notes about family, like after finishing the Ironman, having a drink with his wife and hanging out with their kids. I also loved the footnotes included every now and then as they always made me laugh! Like this one for example:

My favorite element of this book was just how relatable it is. I mean this in the nicest way possible of course, but Tim is a middle of the pack kind of race participant, which made this a much more interesting read that someone that always placed first. For me, seeing how honest he was, how he didn’t hold any punches, and how he poked fun at himself from time to time, made Tim seem like he was a friend. Like he was about to run right off the edge of the page and say ask you to go for a run with him!

I’m a professional horror writer with over forth novels, hundreds of short stories, half a dozen awards, and a couple of Hollywood movies to my name. You’d think that would prepare me for broken ribs, split nails, wetsuit burn that looks like Pedigree Chum ground down and mixed with tomato sauce, blisters the size of small household pets, spending three miles cycling behind a guy wearing an all-white tri suit on a TT bike, and genital chafing.
You’d think. But nope.

In training for, and undertaking the races and challenges I talk about in this book, I’ve found a determination that frankly, and rather expletively, surprised the fuck out of me.

Eat healthier, and find something you love to make you move more!

There’s no cure for being an arsehole.

So be as careful as you can, never pour fuel on a flammable situation, and always remember that sometimes, people are just arseholes. They’re born arseholes, they spend their lives being arseholes, and I’ll give you two guesses how they die.

While reading this one, I felt so guilty sitting on my couch, so I ended up reading this mainly while using a stationary bike. I cannot wait to listen to the audio book when it’s ready when I’m out on a run!

This is a perfect read for people that are looking to get a bit more in shape without feeling any shame and still eating cake! Go pick this one up today!

Irish Gothic: Tales of Celtic Horror by Ronald Kelly is a haunting collection of short stories, each with a different creature of lore included. From the spooky, to tales that make you giggle, there was such a great range here!

Full disclosure: I was given a free copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my rating in any way.

I gotta admit, I went into this collection pretty dark. I heard the call for reviewers and then I saw the cover, and I couldn’t wait to get my hands on a copy! I mean… Isn’t that cover AMAZING?!

Each story was so different, and yet they all had a little something that tied them together. Some were heartbreaking, some were uplifting, and most were quite spooky! I loved each of these stories! 

One story specifically really hit me! Diabhal’s Timepiece is quite something.

Per usual, here are my quick notes about each! 

Flanagan’s Bride – 4/5
When a man shares that he’s getting married, a burly crew of men at the pub don’t believe him. But when he brings her to town after they are wed, one of the crew is determined to shake things up… What a haunting and brutal tale to kickstart this collection. 

The Wee Village – 5/5
In this village, the people are weary of the return of a being that snatches people and imprisons them….That ending! Gosh I love when stories take a turn like this. What terrifying creatures these are! 

Diabhal’s Timepiece – 5/5
When a grandfather clock with intricate designs is delivered for a man that lives upstairs, the tenants downstairs are shocked with the appearance of the clock. It it’s not just any grandfather clock… The thought of having something creepy delivered to my home has always spooked me. I can’t imagine receiving something like this! Hats off to the main character, he took it all in stride! 

O’Sheehan! – 3/5
This man is constantly on the go, making sure that the various creatures of lord that live right among others in this town they’re in behave. It was so fun seeing each new character pop in!

Postcard from Kilkenny – 5/5
When a man receives a postcard out of the blue from his uncle that he has no relationship with, he’s instantly anxious. Their curiosity gets the best of them and he and his wife head to the location that the postcard requested they meet at. Loved the mention of a Brian Keene novel in this one! This one had me super nervous to see what would happen next! I loved the ending!! 

A Fine Wake for Nana Ferree – 4/5
When Nana Ferree passes away, she had asked one woman to promise to give her a kiss on the forehead during her wake to pay her respects. But that simple gesture has some unpredictable side effects.What a spooky tale! I was very happy to see how this one ended. I was so worried! 

The Spawn of Arget Bethir – 4/5
When a man is haunted by horribly vivid dreams, he goes to his master at the abbey to ask for advice. The man is sent home only to learn that the things of his nightmares are real. Another very spooky tale, and brutal too! I loved the ending! 

I loved the sections at the end that went over the creatures/cryptids included in these tales and the Gaelic/English translations! If I had read a physical copy rather than an ebook copy, I definitely would have been flipping back and forth.

My Final Passages:
True, he loved the city life, but his heart belonged to this lovely region of rolling farmland and green hills.

Ian cast his eyes upon the fading light of the sunset, stunned to see that its soft and comforting hues had deepened into a crimson as dark and heavy as freshly-congealed blood.

My Final Thoughts:
I had so much fun reading this. There are a couple of tales in here that are just screaming for longer tales to be tacked on to them, so I would love to return to them in the future if the author takes that route.

If you haven’t picked this one up yet, it’s not too late to snag this one for your Saint Patrick’s Day reading! Enjoy!

Hide in Place by Emilya Naymark is a nerve-wracking thriller that will keep you anxious to find out if there will be a happy ending.

Full disclosure: I was given a free copy of this book from Partners In Crime Virtual Book Tours on behalf of the author in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my rating in any way.

A retired detective has recently moved to a small town. When her son goes missing, the local police don’t take her seriously at first considering the kids history of outbursts. But when days go by and he’s still missing, and things from the detective’s past start to pop up, they realize that this isn’t just a teen that’s run from home… this is life or death.

I really enjoyed that this tale started out by really building the readers connection to the characters. So when the boy went missing, it caused immediate panic and frustration when the local PD wasn’t taking her seriously.

In her fierce determination to find her son, our main character makes a few decisions that will make readers shake their heads in dismay. But those risky choices soon start to work in her favor.

This one had me totally hooked. I couldn’t wait to see what was going to happen next, especially when we started getting bits and pieces of her backstory that made what was happening in the present even more terrifying.

He knew he should be afraid. But like everything else about Alfie, the things that scared him were not things that scared others.

The snow was going through a personality crisis as they drove, going wet and soft, turning to gray sluices of rain, then back to flurries.

This was an awesome thriller that had many layers. With each reveal, I just got more and more nervous to see how everything would play out.

A must read for fans of thrillers that don’t just go from point a to point b, but take various steps back to fill in crucial details for later on.

Eden by Tim Lebbon is a brutal survival story about a group of adventurers that try to cross a zone that they shouldn’t be in in the first place. The deeper they get, the more dangerous they realize this area is…

When we first meet the crew, we learn that they pride themselves on going to remote areas to test their abilities to race and beat other teams to accomplish certain feats.

Eden is something special. It’s an area of land that has been protected to give it back to the world with no more humans interfering. The borders are heavily guarded. Of course, this crew just can’t help but plan a trip to go in…

When they finally cross the border enter the zone itself, they feel that the area is a bit off. They also notice that it is far too quiet… But that doesn’t stop them. They very quickly begin their trek to cross the zone.

A couple days in, they start finding bodies. Soon, they realize that there was a lot more to fear than they originally thought.

Will they make it out, or will Eden claim them just like it has claimed the roads and buildings?

Phew, I hated all of these characters so very much. The author did an amazing job setting up the groundwork here. I totally understood the draw that the characters felt, but I was also so mad at these people for totally disregarding the rules and putting the whole area at risk.

So of course, when the area begins to fight back, I was rooting for Eden.

I don’t want to give too much away, so the last couple of things I will touch on are the scenes where they began to find bodies and the terrifying action scenes… My god were these scenes all extremely haunting. If you’ve read this book, you’ll know exactly what I am talking about. If you are going to read it soon, you’ll know what I mean when you hit each one. Good luck to you!

Press together in Aaron’s bivvy bag, sharing warmth and comfort against the storm, the sense that they were the only place of calm in a world of thunder and chaos with strong. Wind howled along the canyon like a roar from something unseen. Trees shook in the darkness, groaning together, shedding leaves and limbs that merged with the gale. Rain sheeted through the air, caught in swirls and updraughts, impacting exposed skin like hail. Lightning strobed their surroundings, and thunder boomed in the distance. As the space between flash and crash grew closer, the wind and rain seemed to grow wilder in anticipation.

The four of them swept their head torches up from the ground and probed the night before them. Eyes glimmered back. Deep red, hellish. Two sets, then three, at different heights and different distances.

I really enjoyed this read and I thought it was interesting how much I sided with nature over the characters. I did find it a bit too repetitive for my taste in a few areas. However, this is a tale that I would very likely pick up again down the road to relive the terror!

This is a must read for fans of survival horror.