Dark Screams: Volume Three

I received an advance reader copy (arc) of this book for the purpose of providing an honest review. As I have mostly enjoyed the previous two installments of this anthology, I was truly looking forward to this, the third installment. With three (supposed) heavy hitters and two (to me) unknowns, this anthology certainly had great potential. Whether it lived up to that potential or not remained to be seen. The brightest star was certainly The Lone One and Level Sands Stretch Far Away. At the complete opposite end of the spectrum was The Collected Short Stores of Freddie Prothero. I have never been a fan of Straub's writing and this story is a pretty darn good explanation as to why. Overall, I would consider this anthology a bit stronger than volume 2 buoyed mostly by Hodge's story and would rate it just over 4 stars. This anthology includes these stories: —The Collected Short Stories of Freddie Prothero, by Peter Straub. As I have read reviews of other works by Straub, one overwhelming opinion is that you will either love his work or hate it. I can honestly say that the only thing that I have read by Straub that I even remotely enjoyed was The Talisman and Black House. I just with that I could get back the time I invested in reading this short story. The idea was intriguing, but it shouldn't require so much effort to make heads or tails out of a story. As others have said, what's the use of a story that can't even be deciphered. 0.5 Stars —Group of Thirty, by Jack Ketchum. I more often than not like Ketchum's writing. I have to be careful as it is usually brimming with violence and depravity that puts it on the borderline of what I can stomach. Not so with this story, which seems at least slightly autobiographical. While there was great tension and build-up at which Ketchum is an artist, the shocking turn was jarring without being bloody (much). 3.5 Stars —Nancy, by by Darynda Jones. I wasn't familiar with Jones' work before this story but, based on this taste, am interested in seeking out more of her work. This was essentially an olde timey ghost story with a little murder mystery thrown in. It wouldn't have hurt my feelings if it had been longer. 3.5 Stars —I Love You Charlie Pearson, by Jacquelyn Frank. Another author with whom I'm not familiar which, given how much I enjoyed this story, is a very bad thing. What appears to be your typical stalking and kidnapping story turns out to be nothing of the sort! The tables are turned and then some! 4.0 Stars —The Lone One and Level Sands Stretch Far Away, by Brian Hodge. I have enjoyed what I have read by Hodge and I was surely not disappointed with this read. I felt that the atmospheric buildup was so in depth and involved that I surely must have been reading for dozens of pages. There was also a depth of character development, even for the peripheral characters, the belies this story's short length. Certainly a testament to the condition of our man-made world as it ages and decays around us. 4.5 Stars

This is a review of an uncorrected ARC that I received from Cemetery Dance Publications for the purpose of posting a review for potential future readers. As with volumes 1 and 2, this book consists of five stories by five authors. The collection begins with “The Collected Short Stories of Freddie Prothero,” by Peter Straub. I am a huge Peter Straub fan, but I was puzzled by this story. It collects the short stories written by Freddie before his untimely death at the age of eight. The stories are concern the presence of a “bood gig” (bad guy), and all contain such interesting spelling (the author is supposed to be young). A sense of menace does pervade the piece as one reads (sequentially) the tales written by this boy. One really has to concentrate and ponder to make sense of the piece, and although it was interesting, I would not rank it among Straub’s best works. “Group of Thirty,” by Jack Ketchum, concerns author Jonathan Daniels, who accepts an invitation to speak at the monthly meeting of the Essex County Science Fiction Group. What begins as a typical speech / Q & A takes a dramatic turn when his readers begin questioning him concerning the inspiration and direction of his writing. From my experience with Ketchum (“Off Season” may be the MOST horrifying thing I have ever read), this story is pretty sedate. Anxiety and suspense builds throughout, and I found it a fitting story for the Dark Screams series. Next is “Nancy,” by Darynda Jones, an author I have never read nor heard of. I will be looking for more of her work. The strongest and best work in the collection, it follows a student at a new school as she is torn between the popular clique who have accepted her and Nancy Wilhoit, who appeared to have no friends due to her habit of twitching, making odd sounds, and talking to herself. You see, the town of Renfield is touted as the most haunted city in Virginia, and Nancy may have her own personal ghost. I don’t want to say anything more about the plot, but for a short story there are plenty of twists and unexpected turns, and I was hooked from the beginning. As previously stated: best story in this volume! Jacquelyn Frank’s “I Love You, Charlie Pearson” also deals with high school, this time with the author’s crush on cheerleader Stacey Wheeler. When an opportunity arises to get Stacey to his house, Charlie jumps at it. Does either one know as much about the other as he/she thinks? Is it a good idea to be alone with someone you know so little about? This story gets under your skin, and it is easy to see why it was chosen for Dark Screams. The collection ends with “The Lone One and Level Sands Stretch Far Away,” by Brian Hodge, an author who is no stranger to Cemetery Dance fans. When Marni moves in next door, Aidan becomes intrigued with the parkour runs she and her friends take (I had to look it up on my Kindle; short definition runs that take place in an urban space using whatever movement is deemed suitable for the situation). Finally, he accepts the invitation to join them. As they run through long abandoned buildings, Aidan realizes that empty does not equate to idol, and there is more in the world than what we understand. Another totally original story (I have never read anything similar) this is a fitting conclusion to a great collection. With the exception of my wobble on the opening story, I loved everything in this collection. So far, this series has been very strong, no surprise considering its editors! My only advice to make these books better --- more stories, please!

I received this book via NetGalley to give an honest review. When I read the title I expect real horror, frightening tales being told. This was very disappointing for me. The reason why is it didn't have anything like that within the stories. The Collected Short stories of Freddie Prothero: I honestly don't know what to say about this story. I understood how the author wrote it but it just felt all over the place to where I just ended up skimming over it mostly. This is a diary of a young boy and it is just kind of like nonsense, I couldn't truly understand all what was being written. Group of Thirty: I enjoyed the story and it wasn't scary but it was like whoa these folks are just plain crazy I liked the idea behind the story. You have an author who writes some murder stories and his so called fans are not who they say they are. Nancy: I liked this one though I wished it was more in depth and longer so we could find out the full consequences of what happened. It made me think of a Goosebumps in a way which is a good thing. You have Nancy who has some weird things going on within her life. The new girl tries to befriend her as she is curious but as you know curiosity killed the cat will that happen here? I Love You, Charlie Pearson this one was another one of those creepy stories that you just wonder where it could go. I really wish this one was longer as well, especially when it has something to do with bones being sucked on!!! How freaky does that sound. Charlie is a teenage boy who has a crush on this beautiful girl though she doesn't really pay him too much mind. He has it to where he wants her and will stop at nothing but will his plan backfire? The last story The Lone and Level Sands Stretch Far Away um, I really didn't know what to make of this story. You have a marriage that is doing okay until Aidan comes into the picture. I didn't really understand the ending and it left me a bit confused as to the whole thing. Because I only enjoyed three of these short stories I ended up giving this book a solid three wine glass rating.