Showing posts with label short story collection. Show all posts
Showing posts with label short story collection. Show all posts

Saturday, 17 October 2015

Book Review: The Little Book of Horrors by Lacey Lane

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Synopsis: Three chiling tales to mess with your mind. The tales that can be found in this book are Karma's a Psychopath, Bloodlust and The Monster Within.

Warning. This book contains explicit content.

Review: A collection of three short stories that doesn't pull its punches, the aptly named Little Book of Horrors will have you reaching for the light switch - that's if you dared to turn it off and foolishly try to go to sleep.

The first story, Karma's A Psychopath, is a clever tale that makes us think how we should treat those around us. You'll be feeling for the 'hero' of the story, that's for sure. Even though the brutality and horror pervading throughout this book is stark and horrifying, it remains a compelling read. This one really messed with my head.

Bloodlust was probably my favourite of the three, given my fascination with vampires, and especially of the female variety. This tale is truly macabre, disturbing and viciously satisfying at the end.

The Monster Within is a clever tale that never tries to trick its readers with a big Aha moment. It is subtle in its growth, and as it reaches its conclusion, one wonders how they got there.

As a collection, it certainly fits to and adds much to the well worn horror genre, but it also would fit as a psychological horror too. Over the course of the pages, you feel like you know the characters.

The narrative is sharp and clever.Hence why you will be thinking about these stories long after you have closed the book and turned the light off. Or maybe you'll choose to leave it on.

Suitable for Halloween, huddled around the camp fire? I don't know. I would be suspicious of someone telling me these tales!

Also suitable only truly for a mature audience, and definitely over 18's - though if I was at school, I'd peek at this - it's a deliciously wicked treat.

Sunday, 21 June 2015

Book Review: Coming Around by Tom Benson


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Any collection of short story erotica can only work if it is well written. Some stories that contain sexual elements can be poorly executed and it's not like I shy away from such content. Fortunately the author Tom Benson shows he is an authority at constructing each tale and knowing when to move the reader onto the next story.

Each story has something for everyone. It's also easy to be dismissive, and say to ourselves that we would never engage such things, and I am not saying that we should or will. I was reminded of the staggering success of the film 'Silence of the Lambs'. People aren't cannibals or killers in the main, yet people went in their droves. Why? If it repulses us, what is the motivation to put ourselves through the story?


It's fair to say that one would need an open mind perhaps the size of a bus to enjoy each story. Whilst there is a lot of fun to be had in each tale, I think most enjoyable thing for me was in the unpredictable outcome of each story.


The first two are probably the best in the entire collection, but again, there is something for everyone here, even if they won't admit it.


Sometimes it is fun to read a book that truly doesn't hold back on its subject matter. Would we act on any of the scenarios in the book? Almost certainly not, but that's the skill of the author. Tom Benson gives the reader a realistic setting for each story where it actually 'could' happen.



Whilst certainly not for under 18s, if you like a seriously spicy set of stories, you cannot go wrong with this!