Tag Archives: F. Paul Wilson

Hauntings edited by Ellen Datlow

Overview
Hauntings: Datlow, Ellen: 9781616960889: Amazon.com: Books

Title: Hauntings
Author: Ellen Datlow, Pat Cadigan, Dale Bailey, E. Michael Lewis, Lucius Shepard, David Morrell, Caitlin R. Kiernan, Joyce Carol Oates, Elizabeth Hand, Neil Gaiman, F. Paul Wilson, Jonathan Carroll, Terry Dowling, Paul Walther, Simon Kurt Unsworth, Connie Willis, Stephen Gallagher, Michael Marshall Smith, Richard Bowes, James P. Blaylock, Jeffrey Ford, Gemma Files, Kelly Link, Adam L.G. Nevill & Peter Straub
In: Hauntings (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Ghosts, HorrorShort story collections
Pace: Slow
Format: Anthology
Publisher: Tachyon
Year: 2013

Thoughts

This is, as with all Ellen Datlow collections, seriously fun and enjoyable. The fact that this fantastic collection is full of seriously creepy stories made it that much more enjoyable. Mostly because it’s out of my usual genre of choice. Horror and ghost stories might not be quite my usual speed, but that didn’t mean that I didn’t love reading this collection!

Although I really enjoyed reading all of these short stories, I did find that this was not an anthology I should be reading late at night. Or when I was home alone. Whilst some of the stories were kind of mild and not too terrifying, some made it really difficult to sleep after turning the final page. Or just made it difficult to turn off the lights. Which is why this took me a little bit longer to read than I had anticipated.

Hauntings runs the gambit of horror and ghost stories, from horrible hauntings to stories that had a little bit more hope at the end. They made me feel all of the feelings, and I would most definitely read this collection again in the future.

<- The First Lunar HalloweenEenie, Meenie, Ipsateenie ->

Image source: Amazon

Anna by F. Paul Wilson

Overview
Hauntings: Datlow, Ellen: 9781616960889: Amazon.com: Books

Title: Anna
Author: F. Paul Wilson
In: Hauntings (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Horror, Murder
Dates read: 18th August 2021
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tachyon
Year: 2013
5th sentence, 74th page: Morley watched the fabric and padding of the stool dissolve in a burst of flame, watched the wood of the seat and legs char and smoke and burn and crumble.

Synopsis

He thought he was just buying a beautiful foot stool. But then the wood in his house starts to attack him and he has to open the door to the past… a past that is unexpectedly dark.

Thoughts

There is nothing I like better than a story in which the bad guy gets his comeuppance. I didnt quite realise that this would be one such story until I got about halfway through, but then I felt wonderfully happy and vindicated.

As someone who loves woodwork, I kind of liked the idea of the woodwork doing the haunting. To begin with, your not quite sure WHY Bill keeps getting stabbed by his footstool, but as the past unravels… *shudder.

This was definitely a well themed hauntings question. It was a tale that made me slightly cringe and grin throughout. Wonderful and a little spooky, definitely loved this short tale.

Image source: Amazon

<- Closing TimeMr. Fiddlehead ->

The Sound of Blunder by J.A. Konrath and F. Paul Wilson

Overview

Blood LiteTitle: The Sound of Blunder
Author: J.A. Konrath & F. Paul Wilson
In: Blood Lite (Kevin J. Anderson)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: ComedyEasy reading
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Pocket Books
Year: 2008
5th sentence, 74th page: Hey, did you eat all the duck sauce?

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Synopsis

Mick and Willie are in a buttload of trouble with their drug-dealing boss. But things are about to get a whole lot worse…

Thoughts

This was a pretty tripped out story. In more ways than one.

It starts off with two total douche bags who owe a pound or so of cocaine to their boss. But it’s been baked into a cake. Now, I’m not really sure what happens after that, whether they eat the cake, or they actually time travel. But shit just gets weirder and weirder and weirder as the story unfolds.

Like seriously weird. So weird that I can’t actually explain what is going on… or how I feel about it… or really anything.

 <- Old School Review An Evening with Al Gore Review ->
Image source: Goodreads