For this particular review I am going to be say something that I liked and did not like about each short story in one blurb, just to keep things simple and not too crazy. As usual, I hope you enjoy!
When you crack open this book you are greeted to an introduction by R.L. Stine and it was a short and simple one. It actually got me pumped to read these short stories. From there on, in reading order, there is Welcome to the Club by R.L. Stine, She's Different Tonight by Heather Graham, Suckers by Suzanne Weyn, The Perfects by Jennifer Allison, Shadow Children by Heather Brewer, The Poison Ring by Peg Kehret, Dragonfly Eyes by Alane Ferguson, Jeepers Peepers by Ryan Brown, Piney Power by F. Paul Wilson, The Night Hunter by Meg Cabot, Tuition by Walter Sorrells, Tagger by James Rollins, and lastly Ray Gun by Tim Maleeny.
Welcome to the Club was a really great opening short story. It was like welcoming you to the coming short stories of horror and suspense. I don't have a con to talk about because the short was well put together and really had me speeding through to get to the end from the first page.
She's Different Tonight had me wondering at first. Was the plot really going to be that straight forward to the very end? Thankfully no and just the hint of supernatural beings was enough to make me wish it were just a little bit longer. Yet again I don't have anything negative to speak about this short.
Suckers was my favorite story by far. I never thought it would end the way it did, and it was a twist I love greatly. I was hooked from the first page and I didn't want it to end. It was the future based but not so future base that made me love it from the beginning. Different perspectives are really wicked once you know certain details from who's perspective it is coming from.
The Perfects reminded me of Texas Chainsaw Massacre, in a way except the whole town was in on the murdering. If Entrails Michigan were a real place I will be far away from it. This short also happens to take place on Halloween like She's Different Tonight. I wasn't too taken with this short but I didn't not like it.
Shadow Children was the one that I was most looking forward to in this compilation but I wasn't too happy with it. It was a great plot, had great characters, had a great everything, but I just couldn't really get into it. It was also very short and I know "short stories" but this is 16 pages long. I feel as though if it were just a little longer I would have enjoyed it more.
The Poison Ring didn't go how I thought it would go. I thought it would end up like Skeleton Key where the old lady takes over the body of the younger girl, but nope. I'm glad it didn't, but I am glad that this was more of a suspense story, it fitted it nicely.
Dragonfly Eyes was another story that I thought would take a whole different path then what it did take. I was hooked from the beginning with just the first sentence. It is another perspective-type story but this time it's because of a traumatic experience that the perspective changes. This is another short that would be really amazing leading into a bigger series or another book. This was the shortest story in the book with being only 8 pages long. I wanted so much more but at the same time I was content with what was given.
Jeepers Peepers I expected to have murder in it especially with the way it started. It ended up being really sweet, and I loved how it ended. I loved the little boy and I loved how special people need someone to ground them when things start to go wrong. It just goes to show that your imagination can get the better of you if you let it.
Piney Power was a short that I basically knew what was going on and what was going to happen within the first few pages. I would have been more upset if it were a full book, but since it was a short it was tolerable. I do have to say that the characters made the short completely worth the read, for me.
The Night Hunter ended up being a whole bunch of sweetness. I loved the ending and who ended up being who. I would say that this one was another that if the characters where different I probably wouldn't have liked the short as much as I do.
Tuition, I'm not too sure how I feel about this short. I liked the end a lot and the plot that was going for it, but I didn't like much more than that. Again, I know. The characters and the plot are what count (for some), but I also look forward to how it is all put together.
Tagger reminded me of a mixture of Anna Dressed in Blood and The Black Tattoo. Bittersweet till the end, I don't know what to say about this short either. It was a little plain to me, and very easy to read. Overall I was able to just skim through it and know what was going on. I don't exactly not like this short, I am just not crazy about it either.
Ray Gun, as the final short, I have to say that I liked it very much and wish it were a full length book. The back story to it and it's 'anything can happen'-ness is what made me get sucked in, and the beginning as well.
I had pretty mixed emotions about the whole compilation, but I would read these shorts again. I do recommend this book to others who like a little bit of horror and suspense in their reading. I wasn't completely unhappy with any of the shorts, which is great. I don't know if I would buy this book or just be content with having to borrowing it from the library when I want to read it. I also recommend that you check out some or all of these authors if something intrigues you about them. I do read from a handful of these authors.
Rating: 4 out of 5.
Page Count: 306 pages, including About the Authors (hardcover)
Price: $16.99
Next Book: OCD Love Story by Corey Ann Haydu
Thank you for reading!
~Jade
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