Halloween Frights

 

Haunted Nights Anthology by Various Authors

My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars.

My Review on Goodreads

I finished this on December 1st to round out my Spooky Season Reading. I started a new idea of November Frights because October just isn't long enough to dedicate to horror/scary reading. Sadly, I didn't finish it soon enough for it to qualify. I expected to like this more than I did, honestly. The anthology included the following stories. I will attempt to make comments on the stories as best as possible, and my brain fog is real.

“With Graveyard Weeds and Wolfbane Seeds” by Seanan McGuire
-I liked this story. It plays with the concept of kids making mischief on Halloween in/on abandoned houses. Maybe there are spirits there that don't like their abodes being abused. It was more on the cozy side of horror, which I like. 3.5 stars

“Dirtmouth” by Stephen Graham Jones”
-One of the darker stories in this volume. It's really sad and grim. The narrator was so good at inhabiting the character and getting the reader engaged in his story that he is telling. I had a quake in my stomach as I read. 3.5 stars

“A Small Taste of the Old Country” by Jonathan Maberry
-I really enjoy Maberry's writing. This was suspenseful. The plot builds and I could feel the tension rising in me as I read. The climax was really well executed. 4 stars

“Wick’s End” by Joanna Parypinski
-This has a classic horror/folklore inspired bent that I enjoyed (although it also has some modern trappings.) Nicely chilling. 3.5 stars.

“The Seventeen Year Itch” by Garth Nix
-I think this was the scariest book in the collection. It really got me. I am glad I didn't read this at night. For some reason, it reminded me of some of the dark, twisted villain origin stories in the Batman comics. 4 stars.

“A Flicker of Light on Devil’s Night” by Kate Jonez
-I dnf'd this story. I didn't like where it seemed to be going. There's a type of horror I avoid and I had a feeling it was going in that direction, so I didn't continue it.

“Witch-Hazel” by Jeffrey Ford
-This story really made my skin crawl. I have a fear of contagion that got triggered by this story. It had a unique feel and made me think of folk horror. I love stories with that edge of folklore/dark legends/stories associated with certain places. 4 stars.

“Nos Galen Gaeaf” by Kelley Armstrong
-This story had a mean spirit vibe to it that I didn't enjoy. I disliked the narrator intensely, and his motivations eluded me. There is definitely a sense of justice to the ending though. 3 stars.

“We’re Never Inviting Amber Again” by S. P. Miskowski
-The husband in this story was a major tool. Honestly, if I married a guy and he didn't like my sister, that would be a dealbreaker for me. Hard to feel sympathetic for this guy. I found the open ending intriguing, but I wish there was more comeuppance for the husband. 3 stars.

“Sisters” by Brian Evenson
-This was a weird story. Interesting, and I have lots of questions. 3 stars.

“All Through the Night” by Elise Forier Edie
-What a sad story. I loved the Irish folklore aspects of it. It reminded me of one of the narratives in the American Gods season one storylines. I wish things were better for that poor girl though. 4 stars.

“A Kingdom of Sugar Skulls and Marigolds” by Eric J. Guignard
-I loved this story. I am a sucker for Latin American folklore and this book was so rich and beautifully described in its depictions of Dia de Los Muertos and how it has a particular and personal meaning for the lead character. I would get this a 4.5 stars without reservation.

“The Turn” by Paul Kane
-Short and really brutal in execution but there was a tiny seed of hope in the whole situation. 3.5 stars

“Jack” by Pat Cadigan
-Another story rich with folklore. Interestingly, this has some similar themes to "Wick's End", but reads very different. I loved the twist. 3.5 stars

“Lost in the Dark” by John Langan
-If a reader is into found footage and metafiction, this is your thing 100%. I found it an interesting listen, and there are some genuinely hair-raising parts in this story. It has a documentary feel that adds to the metafictional narrative in an intriguing way. Normally, this wouldn't necessarily be my thing, but I liked it a lot. 4 stars

“The First Lunar Halloween” by John R. Little
-I wasn't a big fan of this story. It was too short and there's not enough depth to capture my emotions. The concept of Halloween on the moon and a sci-fi story was good in theory, but its execution doesn't catch me. 2.5 stars

My overall rating is 3.5 stars for this anthology. I think it was an enjoyable read. Although the stories are mostly set around Halloween, it could be read at any time.

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