Review: One Buck Horror; One Wild Ride
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 07 25, 2011
I recently had the pleasure of reading One Buck Horror, volume 1, a horror collection of short stories by 5 talented authors.When I first began reading this anthology, it was with the expectation that I would be in for a real treat. I wasn't disappointed. It begins with a short story called Jenny's House, by Ada Hoffman. This is the shortest of all the tales within the collection, but by no means does that diminish the story of Jenny's House and the secret contained within her basement.  Told through the eyes of a school child, this story brought a smile to my face as the horror unfolds and the child remains innocently unaware of what just happened.The next story takes us into the world of the freak show circus with a Lullaby for Caliban, by Mark Onspaugh. Three boys sneak into the circus after dark to steal a pickled punk, a deformed fetus that is preserved in formaldehyde and put on display.  Their reward will be admittance into a local gang. Unfortunately for them the `pickled punk' is said to be the son of the devil and they drop the jar.The circus is one of my favorite settings for horror and this was an excellent story in that regard. The only thing I would have liked to see would be what happened to the kids. The story does flash forward to the future through the eyes of the youngest, but he tells what he discovers and, at least to me, it seemed to diminish the story's end. The suspense leading up to it was great, I would have liked to have seen  it carried through, perhaps through the eyes of the older two kids as they experience what happens to them.The next story is The Last Nephew by Elizabeth Twist. This is by far my favorite out of all the stories! It is told through the eyes of a boy who is trapped in a home with a man that calls himself his uncle. Of course he is not his real uncle and the things he does to the boy are meant to destroy his spirit. The uncle has a dark secret that the boy uncovers, a secret that is about to be loosed.This is a tale that takes you into the world of sorcery and dark magic. The uncle has trapped spirits in a device and is harnessing their power to use for his own. The boy attempts to learn the secret of how they were trapped so he can release them.I loved every part of this story, including the ending!The Cornfield, by Mike Trier, follows a boy home through a cornfield. He has the feeling something is following him and his uneasiness causes him to reflect on how his brother had recently been bitten by a dog. Then the creature reveals himself and the boy races for his life until he takes one final stand to attempt to kill it before it can follow him to his home and family. The ending is a bit of a twist and I have to admit I didn't see it coming, though I should have. The author left enough clues to the creature's identity, but I was so caught up in the battle that it never occurred to me. This was another wonderful read!The final story is The Ginger Men, by Julie Jansen. This was a fun horror short, that reminded me a lot of a reverse Stepford Wives.Georgie is a little boy who just wants his father to be well again. His mother has been acting strange since hanging out with the neighbor and the neighbor's husband is a little strange lately as well. To top things off his mother is making a strange ginger concoction for his father to eat. Then Georgie discovers what the concoction is and fears for his own life. This was a great story with an ending that hints at more to come.One Buck Horror volume 1 is an amazing collection of stories and I can't wait for volume 2, which drops tomorrow on Amazon. YAY!! I suggest you pick up your own copy of Volume 1 now and then get volume 2 tomorrow. I am giving it 4 in a half stars out of 5, only because I do wish some of the endings didn't leave me longing for more.