Review: Very dark indeed...
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 02 22, 2014
This is an extremely well written collection of thirteen dark stories (very dark indeed). Anyone looking for even the slightest glimmer of optimism would be looking in the wrong place here. Not that the stories are necessarily depressing, but the constant bleakness and lack of hope throughout could seriously damage someone who is already feeling a little near the edge, so be warned. Luckily for me I'm not in that category, and thoroughly enjoyed the collection as a whole.The tiniest slither of humour (albeit dark humour) arrives some way in, in one of my favourites of the collection - "Cooking With Grace". The sheer craziness of what's being offered provides a little tongue in cheek, but not for long. It's written in the form of emails and letters which gives the story a sinister edge, not to mention an unspeakable ending. The other story which I really liked was "Losing Control" (the final story). Horror and Sci-Fi come together for the first and last time, with ultra dark results. I think the imagination was just let out the bag with this one, and the gloves were well and truly off. Many other stories were also good, with only one or two which didn't really do it for me. All the stories are -1) I Eat The Dead (7/10) A serial killer and a man with a large appetite form a strange relationship.2) Breeder (8/10) When a girl appears to be cutting herself, only she can see the reason behind it.3) Shadow of the Woodpile (9/10) A boy begins to lose touch with reality as his obsession with something in the woods grows.4) Pickman's Next Top Model (8/10) A new model in town has the male population prepared to kill for her.5) Writing Home (6/10) A man tells his mother about a new addition to the family.6) The Haunting of the Mines (8/10) A boy lives to regret his decision to go ghost hunting in an old mine.7) The Blood Shed (5/10) A man is drawn back to his own special place.8) Cooking with Grace (10/10) A famous chef starts to receive some rather unusual emails.9) Every Night is Halloween (8/10) An old man struggles with the memory of what he did to his own child.10) The Winter Experiment (7/10) A ritual to call a mans obsession into reality, doesn't go to plan.11) The Test of Darkness (8/10) A girl shows just how far she is willing to go in order to become something else.12) Revisited (9/10) When a lonely man picks up a hitchhiker, it soon becomes life changing decision.13) Losing Control (10/10) A man with a very secret job takes on his most dangerous assignment ever.Don't expect an easy read here, in fact it can be an uphill struggle at times. But like anything that pushes your limits the reward is usually worth it. It definitely is in this case.