Review: Horror Novel Reviews: Honesty in the Terror
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 07 30, 2013
Jeremiah Cress' collection of shorts, "Seven Slightly Sadistic Stories" is one of those quick anthologies that may leave a reader on the fence. I can honestly say I'm not entirely sure I disliked the book, and I'm not entirely sure I liked it.Time and time over Cress creates paradoxical situations in his stories. In one moment we're studying an enthralling personality with pronounced character traits, the next we're fumbling through subpar articulation, only to dive into a beautifully descriptive paragraph. It's a strange mash-up of a very creative mind and an author still searching for his signature style. The potential is certainly there, make no mistake. It's evident in multiple stories - particularly "Just Say No", which is a carefully assembled examination of the hazards affixed to the poor habit of smoking - and to be fair, Cress never completely fumbles the ball.He just runs a few improper routes."Stalking" was an enjoyable narrative that plays on the threats of contemporary cultural practice, and while it's a story to sink your teeth into, some erratic writing brings the story's continuity to brief periodical halts. A hint of refining here and "Stalking" is a certified homerun. "Captor" is another solid effort that plays out like a condensed torture porn picture, sans the exploitative graphic visuals.Praise can easily be issued for virtually every story in the collection, sans "Hide and Seek", the book's opener, which simply didn't grab my attention. My only major complaint is inconsistency.As a whole, this is the type of work that some will enjoy and some will dismiss without a second thought. It's just... one of those books. The consumer exists for Cress, he's simply got to locate it, and aim all future promotional ventures at the proper demo. In the meantime, I suspect we'll see more work from Jeremiah surface in the future. And, if my instincts are right, I think we'll see some marked improvement as the man finds his own foothold on the craft.Written by Matt Molgaard from Horror Novel Reviews. Horror Novel Reviews does not receive payment for reviews. All books are promotional copies.