C. J. Daley
Found this amongst my kindle while putting together a folder of Christmas related reads and decided to give this a go as it fits the horror holiday kick I’m on.
They are quite short, but not really as short as I’ve come to expect when people use the word “flash.” There was a decent variety of stories, and they were enjoyable without going too extreme, something I’m somewhat not a fan of.
If you’re looking for a quick read for the holidays, this one might be perfect for you. As they are so short, as is the collection in general, it’s harder to go into specifics without spoiling anything, but I was a big fan of Secret Santa short and its twist.
Personally a 4/5*.
Found this amongst my kindle while putting together a folder of Christmas related reads and decided to give this a go as it fits the horror holiday kick I’m on.
They are quite short, but not really as short as I’ve come to expect when people use the word “flash.” There was a decent variety of stories, and they were enjoyable without going too extreme, something I’m somewhat not a fan of.
If you’re looking for a quick read for the holidays, this one might be perfect for you. As they are so short, as is the collection in general, it’s harder to go into specifics without spoiling anything, but I was a big fan of Secret Santa short and its twist.
Personally a 4/5*.
Grabbed this as it was included on audible, and it seems to track with some of the other Christmasy stuff I was reading.
This is a murder mystery. Honestly, I think I was a little distracted, or maybe I listened too fast, but this one seemed to lack a lot of needed substance. The main character, Cameron Winter, is called in to help solve the murder of Sweet Haven’s librarian. There are various details about the main character that were left vague or tight lipped to the point where I thought this wasn’t the first book. It is. He has the build of a man that works out and has hands as if he does lots of push-ups on concrete (who knew that was a thing). Almost bringing to mind the kind of bare knuckle boxing look of Daredevil to mind. When asked, he just says he’s an English professor.
Then, he is brought in because sometimes “he can see outside of himself and just figure stuff out.” This almost brought to mind Will Graham from the Hannibal series, except there’s not substance behind the claim. He simply sees things differently sort of aka—there are no hints and the author makes it up?
Another jarring detail that’s there, but also somehow lacking, is that he is haunted and in therapy from a traumatic childhood. The therapy sessions happen during the story, and seem to link to why he is the why he is, but they never actually pay out to anything worthy of much. Oh, and for Cameron Winter, every woman is “young” and “beautiful” and guess what, interested in him. It read like a lack of a personality for the main, and a lack of existence for the women.
The murder, how it was solved, and the twist surrounding it, all read as awfully flat to me. Nothing, not a single line in the entire book, made me care whatsoever. Again, maybe it’s me, and maybe it’s not.
Personally 2/5*. I wish the characters were more than mobsters and smiling women enhancing the character’s looks. Narration was good though!
Grabbed this as it was included on audible, and it seems to track with some of the other Christmasy stuff I was reading.
This is a murder mystery. Honestly, I think I was a little distracted, or maybe I listened too fast, but this one seemed to lack a lot of needed substance. The main character, Cameron Winter, is called in to help solve the murder of Sweet Haven’s librarian. There are various details about the main character that were left vague or tight lipped to the point where I thought this wasn’t the first book. It is. He has the build of a man that works out and has hands as if he does lots of push-ups on concrete (who knew that was a thing). Almost bringing to mind the kind of bare knuckle boxing look of Daredevil to mind. When asked, he just says he’s an English professor.
Then, he is brought in because sometimes “he can see outside of himself and just figure stuff out.” This almost brought to mind Will Graham from the Hannibal series, except there’s not substance behind the claim. He simply sees things differently sort of aka—there are no hints and the author makes it up?
Another jarring detail that’s there, but also somehow lacking, is that he is haunted and in therapy from a traumatic childhood. The therapy sessions happen during the story, and seem to link to why he is the why he is, but they never actually pay out to anything worthy of much. Oh, and for Cameron Winter, every woman is “young” and “beautiful” and guess what, interested in him. It read like a lack of a personality for the main, and a lack of existence for the women.
The murder, how it was solved, and the twist surrounding it, all read as awfully flat to me. Nothing, not a single line in the entire book, made me care whatsoever. Again, maybe it’s me, and maybe it’s not.
Personally 2/5*. I wish the characters were more than mobsters and smiling women enhancing the character’s looks. Narration was good though!
Grabbed this one/was drawn in 100% for the title. Keeping my Christmas horror streak going too is a plus.
This is a gruesome and no holds barred collection. The author takes you through a murder-fueled nightmare and does not slow down for a second. As the blurb claims, this really is a multi-sub genre horror collection, with varying lengths that made it go by pretty easily.
My personal favorite was the self titled story. A man loses his family to a drunk driver accident. Now, this Christmas, he’s out for revenge, and he’s taking more with him than you think. Out at all the revenge stories I’ve read, this one definitely had me feeling for the guy. It’s kind of strange that revenge stories in fantasy have you rooting for them, but this being in the real world still felt wrong. Maybe it’s just how extreme it was.
Personally a 3/5* for me. Great horror Christmas cheer.
Grabbed this one/was drawn in 100% for the title. Keeping my Christmas horror streak going too is a plus.
This is a gruesome and no holds barred collection. The author takes you through a murder-fueled nightmare and does not slow down for a second. As the blurb claims, this really is a multi-sub genre horror collection, with varying lengths that made it go by pretty easily.
My personal favorite was the self titled story. A man loses his family to a drunk driver accident. Now, this Christmas, he’s out for revenge, and he’s taking more with him than you think. Out at all the revenge stories I’ve read, this one definitely had me feeling for the guy. It’s kind of strange that revenge stories in fantasy have you rooting for them, but this being in the real world still felt wrong. Maybe it’s just how extreme it was.
Personally a 3/5* for me. Great horror Christmas cheer.
I wanted to read this for the Christmas season, and lo and behold, I won an audible code giveaway from the author and Shortwave Publishing. The narration from Elisabeth Rodgers was very well done!
This is book two in the Killer VHS Series, but I believe they are standalone stories. It’s styled just like you’d think. It has everything you’d look for in a slasher film. Drama. Comedy. Surprises. Kills. I’d say Black Christmas sticks out as similar, but that’s likened to the Christmas atmosphere probably.
A Christmas from the past has shocking repercussions on one in the future. The same house, two different families, one hell of a Christmas stay. I enjoyed that the story linked back to the Christian side of Christmas, as that is somewhat absent at times, and it has the ability to be turned so super creepy when done right. This does it pretty flawlessly.
Another thing McAuley has achieved is taking something kind of silly, and making it creepy. Not to mention gruesome. The tagline, “Oh, what fun it is to die” is a perfect cheesy rip off the Christmas song, and drew me as a reader 100%, but it could very easily have fallen in the way that its B, C, and even D horror predecessors have gone. Don’t get me wrong, it most certainly is what it claims to be, I’m just saying the author has done so quite well.
Personally a 5/5*, I did not call the twist, therefore I was twisted.
I wanted to read this for the Christmas season, and lo and behold, I won an audible code giveaway from the author and Shortwave Publishing. The narration from Elisabeth Rodgers was very well done!
This is book two in the Killer VHS Series, but I believe they are standalone stories. It’s styled just like you’d think. It has everything you’d look for in a slasher film. Drama. Comedy. Surprises. Kills. I’d say Black Christmas sticks out as similar, but that’s likened to the Christmas atmosphere probably.
A Christmas from the past has shocking repercussions on one in the future. The same house, two different families, one hell of a Christmas stay. I enjoyed that the story linked back to the Christian side of Christmas, as that is somewhat absent at times, and it has the ability to be turned so super creepy when done right. This does it pretty flawlessly.
Another thing McAuley has achieved is taking something kind of silly, and making it creepy. Not to mention gruesome. The tagline, “Oh, what fun it is to die” is a perfect cheesy rip off the Christmas song, and drew me as a reader 100%, but it could very easily have fallen in the way that its B, C, and even D horror predecessors have gone. Don’t get me wrong, it most certainly is what it claims to be, I’m just saying the author has done so quite well.
Personally a 5/5*, I did not call the twist, therefore I was twisted.
Decided to give this a go as Christmas horror is 100% my style this year and I liked the cover art.
This features a character that the author has used elsewhere before, the Tricker-Treater, but it did not feel as if the prior story was a necessity to understand this. The TT is a kind of Internet folklore figure that’s passed around forums kind of like the slender man. There’s a way to call him, to grant you your wish, but there’s a hefty fee…and the fine print is a must read.
The plot using the dysfunction of the family gave the need for the TT a grounded feel. The father’s fear of losing his daughter, on top of his job, makes his desperation real for the reader. I could feel his desire to hold on to her, for some last semblance of control, and his turn to the TT as a last resort was right there.
The Tricker-Treater as a character was terrifying and his description had me thinking of him speaking with a proper Englishman’s accent (that might just be the top hat) with a skeletal demonic visage.
Personally a 4/5* for me.
Decided to give this a go as Christmas horror is 100% my style this year and I liked the cover art.
This features a character that the author has used elsewhere before, the Tricker-Treater, but it did not feel as if the prior story was a necessity to understand this. The TT is a kind of Internet folklore figure that’s passed around forums kind of like the slender man. There’s a way to call him, to grant you your wish, but there’s a hefty fee…and the fine print is a must read.
The plot using the dysfunction of the family gave the need for the TT a grounded feel. The father’s fear of losing his daughter, on top of his job, makes his desperation real for the reader. I could feel his desire to hold on to her, for some last semblance of control, and his turn to the TT as a last resort was right there.
The Tricker-Treater as a character was terrifying and his description had me thinking of him speaking with a proper Englishman’s accent (that might just be the top hat) with a skeletal demonic visage.
Personally a 4/5* for me.