Best Horror Shorts: 2015

There's no intro, so lets just hop right on in there!

The Crow Scare- Mandi S. Lockley kicks things off with a crow who proves that when you screw with animals, they return the favor tenfold.

A Flash Of Light- Stuart Conover introduces us to Justin, who's just woke up from a fever. He's not totally certain of what's going on around him, but he soon learns he's not truly in control.

City Park- John A. Karr starts off with Marcus, who teaches us a valid argument for staying home with a pastry and coffee. We then meet Lars who discovers what happens when some dumb hick gets a hold of ancient magic.

The Initiate- Edward Ahern provides us with a really valid reason why neighbors are a bad idea.Walt is no prize pick either, but no one really deserves that. Just stick to watching them through the mini blinds in the living room.

The Tracks of Ridge Rock Station- S.H. Mansouri tells us about revenge via train. All Elmer wanted to know is what happened to Thelma. Prices to pay and exchanges to be made.

A Mouth Full of Spiders, A Gut Full of Snakes- Rhoads Brazos's nameless character is living in a time where life as we currently know it no longer exists. Don't reveal too much though, there are curses about.

A Campfire Tale- Shannon Hollinger's Fran tells a tale that shows what can happen in real life is far more horrifying than anything a screenwriter could think up. Don't forget to say you met her!

Harlequin Midnight- S.E. Casey shows us one family waiting through a tradition for their children. They have to make it home by midnight. In the end, it's all hilariously sad, so please don't interfere.

Open, Locks, Whoever Knocks- Timothy C. Hobbs has a mirror that isn't quite what it seems. Are you sure you're seeing what you see or is there something else there?

The Village of Sirenas Caida- Rebecca Carter wraps things up by warning us of siren songs.



If that was the best of 2015, I can't wait to see what 2016 brings!

Corpus Deluxe: Undead Tales of Terror

This horror anthology with an intro by Jorge Salgado-Reyes talking about his thoughts on horror and one of his own experiences into the unknown. He then wishes us well on our journey through the disturbing things these story tellers will put into our minds.

A Tale Of The Undead- Tony Dews's investigator has a great amount of curiosity that takes them to Scotland after reading about an unsolved happening with several mystery elements in it- four people dead and no way to truly explain it. Through "local" research, the investigator learns what must come next....complete with sharp object......

Night Class- David Jon Fuller's student studies martial arts with a very stern teacher. He's tested and comes out on top. Student surpasses master. Student becomes master. Drinks?

Lorscapedia- Edward Ahern's lovers learn a very hard lesson when it comes to messing with the locals and their traditions. Change happens for some easier than others.

Blood Bond- Druscilla Morgan and Roy C. Booth present their take on Jack the Ripper. All it takes is one slip and messing with the wrong person. As you stare at the walls, you can wonder if that one insult had been worth it.

Night Shift- Jan Goeb's night watchman is a pleasant fellow, taking us through his life watching over the dead and the perils he has to deal with. Except for zombies. Epoxy and shrink wrap keep them at bay.

Lucky Chucky- Stuart Conover's Chuck thinks he's the luckiest man around after getting to safety with a survival enthusiast. After all he must be lucky since he's come through the beginning of the end with just a scratch, right?

Amongst The Dead- R. Thomas Riley gives a slice of history via the Alamo. Zombie changing history.

The Death of Halpin Frayser- Ambrose Bierce.....yes, the Ambrose Bierce who wrote The Devil's Dictionary. What? There is nothing that says an anthology of horror needs to be made up solely of contemporary materials. Tcht, fine. Moving along.

Stiffed- Ken MacGregor and Kerry G.S. Lipp meet death with a sense of humor. Jason never intended to have his day wind up the way it did, but what if it was hereditary?

Chooser Of The Unslain- Cynthia Booth and Roy C. Booth introduce us to Hans, a soldier in Germany. He believes an encounter with a Valkyrie tells him to hunt for a man, but was he more damaged by that pipe?

River Red- James S. Durr presents a horrific fairy tale. Jealously is an ugly thing, isn't it Fiona?

Night Walker- DJ Tyrer presents a story about a family massacred and the things seen in the night after the event of that night. What was that tall man after?

Carlsen's Plastic Tarps- Roy C. Booth and Axel Kohagen shows containment of the undead. Don't ask unless you're really certain you want the answer.

The Vampire Costume- Daniel S. Duvall reminds us to be careful what we wish for, especially on Halloween.

No Rest- Rose Blackthorn presents what happens when you don't have enough sleep. The waking dead if you will.

What Are You?- Brian Lu shows that when the dead rise again, the worst thing to come from this won't be the zombies, it will be the living.

Battle of Bones- Robert E. Howard talk about the horror of betrayal and fits the French in there.

Blood Of Nyx- Our last story is actually a book excerpt from Druscilla Morgan and Roy C. Booth.

Overall, not a bad collection.

Ingheist

There are times when I see book recommendations on my Twitter feed and I think "Ok, sounds interesting, I'll go check it out." That's what happened with this book.

The problem with taking suggestions when it comes to books is for every little gem, you wind up with what I just read- something between "What did I just read?!" and "I paid money for this?!"

The story follows Simon Heath, a disgraced police officer, who manages to find a new job working for the police department in Fallow's Down. The town is regarded as a really strange place to live as incidents happen there on a regular basis.

As Simon becomes involved with the town, strange happenings occur in his life outside Fallow's Down. He loses his friend, his dog and starts to think his sanity is going too.

When Simon figures out what's really going on, the shit has truly hit the fan and he loses his girl. But that's pretty much short lived as we learn in the end.

Basically, it felt like there was something missing in the story. The pacing felt strange with the plot wrapping up in a neat little bow. Seeing "The End" pretty much left me with a feeling of

Zombie Command

Here we have an anthology from the mind of Derek Ailes. Let's crack it open! (the book, not the author's head. ew)

Zombie Command- In space, no one can hear you make your last stand......or go nomnomnom.......

Gargoyle's Curse- Want to become an unstoppable killing machine and carry out the massacre of a small town? Have some sparkly dust!

The Candy Factory- I have a feeling Michael Myers ate the bears.

The Hookup- If it's too good to be true, it's too good to be true. Especially when the internet is involved.

Stuffed With Beans- The darker side of collectibles.

This Is Heavy Metal- Even science has found a dark use for music!

Brave Zombie World- What happens when you create Utopia? An opening for Murphy's Law to go nom.

Cachildrun- You know all those warnings about introducing foreign fauna?

It's a Sugar Thing- You wouldn't think one thing would lead to another, but inspiration is found in all sorts of places.

The Night Crew- There's always that one person you work with that you need to watch out for......

Shark Transporter- All I can say for sure is SyFy probably just found their new franchise.....

Zombie Twister- Not only a really awesome idea, but the perfect reason not to go to Kansas.

Chelsea Avenue

Armand Rosamilia steps away from zombies to bring us another piece of horror, all surrounding a spot on Chelsea Avenue.

1987- A god attempts his ascension, but fails. In the wake of his failure, the destruction is clear and Murphy's Law loses. Literally-the music club Murphy's Law and the neighboring strip club are destroyed.

1988- The owner's son, Manny, survived the fire that night and is moving on with his life. He's done with school and getting ready to join the police force. The area where the club had been is still vacant, but death is found here.

1989- More death is found on Chelsea Avenue. Manny is on patrol with a partner he could care less about.

1990- Hope you weren't planning to listen to that band.

1991- Some people meet up like it was a dream. Manny meets a girl thanks to his partner's lameness.

1992- Oh Mike, you weren't supposed to be a dirty cop. You weren't supposed to be a cop at all.

1993- While Manny is away, a few people get together in the cursed area.

1994- Hey dude, there's a tree there.

1995- I'm sorry, but this something I have to do. Your number will come up eventually.

1996- The daughter pays the price for the mother.

1997- I don't work for you anymore. Please take your car and get out of here. Manny, please accept this bullet because your life isn't messed up enough at this point.

1998- Tammy learns while you can never go home again, it hurts when you don't have anywhere else to go. Oh and murder.

1999- Manny is getting beaten by life.....literally.....and more murder.

2000- Old friends meet up by coincidence. Old friends meet death by bizarre compulsion.

2001- Manny has now hit rock bottom and has decided getting out of town is the way to fix it. Tammy is still trying to find her place. Murder-o-rama!

2002- Traveling hasn't brought Manny the peace he was hoping for and murder.

2003- Manny is starting to realize what's going on and what needs to happen. He pieces together that  he needs Tammy. He goes to Tammy, but she's suffering from her own losses. Once Manny explains it all, her daughter adds the final piece and it's time to stand up and fight back after all these years.

They take the fight back to the cursed area and everything that needs to happen falls into place. One is left standing with their life ahead of them and the wonderment of where it will go.

This story was amazeballs!! As soon as you pick up the book, it's so hard to put it down because you want to know what happens to everyone who survived from the initial fire in 1987. You keep hoping that someone will break free and stop the horror, but you realize that it had to happen the way it happened.

A definite must read!

Twisted Magic

Claire C. Riley's new series centers around Sarah, a good witch born into a bad witch family.

When we meet Sarah, she's arrived home to mourn the loss of her grandmother. She wasn't there when her grandmother passed because she had been banished. Sarah never quite embraced the dark the same way the rest of her family did, but her strength also makes her a target.

Sarah is staying at her grandmother's cottage under the watch of her mother's ravens. A quick protection keeps the ravens from attacking, but doesn't stop them from camping and leering (or whatever ravens do while they sit on tree branches).

While Sarah starts to have fond memories in her grandmother's home and how warm the woman had been, she suddenly notices she's not alone in the house. There's a spirit here named Peter.

Peter knows all about Sarah, but she doesn't recall him and he knows why- the depths Sarah's grandmother went to stop the world as they knew it from coming to an end.

Sarah struggles to remember everything and once her grandmother is laid to rest, everything hidden becomes known and Sarah knows what she has to do. Peter knows the price. They don't care.

And we leave Raven's Cove......for now........

The Little Book of Horrors

The first time I read anything by Lacey Lane, it was her short about psychotic pumpkins with a penchant for murder and mayhem. I loved the story and the writing style and also loved how it gave a delicious scare- just enough scare without going slasher bait.

Then Lacey began tweeting about the follow up she was working on- The Little Book of Horrors. When I heard the title, I got the song "Little Shop of Horrors" stuck in my head, but that's mostly just how my mind works and how catchy the title sounded. Enclosed within is three tiny terrors designed to delight, so let's begin!

Karma's A Psychopath- What happens when a complete and total dick adopts a tiny marmoset? Bad fashion and exploitation. Scotty is purchased by Stefan to be nothing more than a money making tourist trap. This keeps up until Scotty has had enough and expresses his frustration. Through this, Stefan meets Karma.......in one more ways than one..............

Bloodlust- What happens when your dance class has another side to it? Anastasia and Tatiana take up pole dancing as a means to get a good workout. Anastasia really takes to the classes and the instructor, who grants her a reward. Tatiana, on the other hand, doesn't quite make it that far.

The Monster Within- What happens when you try to find easy street? Rhoda is an aspiring writer who decides that there's not enough hours in the day to work a job and write, so the obvious thing is bag a rich one and off them. Just when it looks like the plan might actually work, Rhoda learns that shiny packages aren't always the best.

Enjoy these tiny tasty treats responsibly!