Beyond the Veil

I love short horror stories. Anthologies are my addiction and I pick them up whenever I can. I read and enjoyed last year's anthology from Flame Tree Press (After Sundown) and I was so excited to see that they will continue this annual tradition. This year's offering, Beyond The Veil may be even spookier and darker than the first volume.

The first story The God Bag by Christopher Golden is about a woman near the end of her days, who has managed to keep a secret from her family until now. It raises the bar pretty high for those that have to follow, and yet the majority of these tales managed to keep up the deliciously grim tone that blasts off from the beginning, leading us through a procession of the macabre. Another story in the same vein was The Care And Feeding of Household Gods by Frank J. Oreto in which a happily married stay at home dad finds a bit of otherworldly help to get through his daily chores. I was holding my breath at the end of this one, afraid of where it was going to take me. Caker's Man by Matthew Holness was downright scary. A neighbor who has never bothered to introduce himself in the year since he's moved in suddenly becomes extremely pushy in very creepy ways. The Dark Bit by Toby Litt is a gruesome work of body horror not for the squeamish. For All The Dead by Angeline B Adams and Remco Van Straten takes place in a small coastal village where the women know that their men may not always return from the sea. This was suspenseful, sad, and spooky all at once. Away Day by Lisa Tuttle is about a woman who is always left out of everything, until at last she finds a place to belong.

These are just a few of what for me were 5 star reads. If you enjoy short horror stories you are going to want to add this to your collection.

I received an advance copy from Flame Tree Press under no obligation to write a review.