Tag Archives: Hauntings

Two Houses by Kelly Link

January 5, 2024Book ReviewGhosts, Hauntings, Horror, Kelly Link, Spaceskyebjenner

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

Title: Two Houses
Author: Kelly Link
In: Hauntings (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Ghosts, Horror, Space
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tachyon
Year: 2013

This short story started out kind of fun, and not with too much feeling of a horror story. I mean, it’s a bunch of younger people, in space, celebrating a friends’ birthday. How could that not seem fun and innocent? But then it got a little bit darker… and kind of haunting. And then it just got twisted. I love that this horror feeling came out of left field and was quite unexpected.

To start with, the characters begin by telling each other ghost stories. A perfectly normal way to spend an evening when you’re young and bored. Again, it wasn’t overly freaky to begin with. Then we get to the story of the two houses – which is quite twisted in and of itself. But then the ship gets involved in the story and things get seriously… twisted. And horrible. Which made this a fantastic story – the unexpected nature of the ick and horrifying.

After reading this seemingly benign short story, I actually had to walk around my house and close all of the darker areas. I mean, this was a seriously creepy murder story that features a murder house. I might not live in a murder house, but it didn’t mean that I wanted to look out at the darkness that inhabits all of the shadows. I mean, you finish off this story wondering who is in the murder house, and who is in the replica…

<- Spectral Evidence

Where Angels Come In ->

Image source: Amazon

Where Angels Come In by Adam L.G. Nevill

January 2, 2024Book ReviewAdam L.G. Nevill, Hauntings, Horrorskyebjenner

Title: Where Angels Come In
Author: Adam L.G. Nevill
In: Hauntings (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 3 (On the fence about this one)
My Bookshelves: Horror
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tachyon
Year: 2013

At the beginning of this Hauntings tale, I thought that this was going to be a fae / changeling story. But it wasn’t. It was actually seriously icky. And disturbing… and had absolutely nothing to do with angels or anything even remotely benevolent.

This story features horrible demon things that try to eat children. And they do succeed… which, of course, makes this the perfect short story for the Hauntings collection. But, it did make me seriously uncomfortable when the narrator started describing the “wet thing”.

There is something of this short story that is a bit reminiscent of IT. Which, of course, makes it all that much more terrifying. And honestly, it is just damn creepy. And not in the way that I usually enjoy…

<- Two Houses

Hunger, An Introduction ->

Image source: Amazon

Transfigured Night by Richard Bowes

December 29, 2023Book ReviewHauntings, Horror, Richard Bowesskyebjenner

Title: Transfigured Night
Author: Richard Bowes
In: Hauntings (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 3 (On the fence about this one)
My Bookshelves: Horror
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tachyon
Year: 2013

This was a very dark and icky short story. Honestly, it was just an incredibly uncomfortable read. Which, of course, makes it kind of difficult to write a review about it…

Although I did enjoy this and found it really interesting, I also found it a little bit difficult to get through. I mean, I like a good, dark story, but some tales are just a little too dark for me. And this was most certainly one of them.

This is one of those stories that, even though it made me uncomfortable, I’ll probably read again. After all, it’s in a book of hauntings stories. And there is a whole lot of sex, murder and history…

<- Everybody Goes

Hula Ville ->

Image source: Amazon

Spectral Evidence by Gemma Files

December 28, 2023Book ReviewCrime, Gemma Files, Hauntings, Horrorskyebjenner

Title: Spectral Evidence
Author: Gemma Files
In: Hauntings (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 3 (On the fence about this one)
My Bookshelves: Crime, Horror
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tachyon
Year: 2013

I’m not entirely sure that I followed this short story. Yet, even with all of my not sure I followed it, I still enjoyed this. There was something dark and twisty about it. And all of those bits that made me not entirely certain that I followed it – they kind of added to the haunting and eerie aspect of the story. It’s incredibly hard to write a review on something that I didn’t quite follow, but still enjoyed…

The dossier feeling to this tale made it feel all that much more eerie. It’s the tale of three people all ending up dead or incarcerated, but through the lens of official documentation. It gives the whole tale a more removed, freaky feeling. Again, Files’ use of the unknown makes it that much more uncomfortable.

All in all, I loved the vibe of this story. It was creepy and eerie. There’s also the feeling that I could reread this and get all that much more out of the story…

<- The Bedroom Light

Two Houses ->

Image source: Amazon

Hunger, An Introduction by Peter Straub

December 12, 2023Book ReviewGhosts, Hauntings, Horror, Peter Straubskyebjenner

Title: Hunger, An Introduction
Author: Peter Straub
In: Hauntings (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 3 (On the fence about this one)
My Bookshelves: Ghosts, Horror
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tachyon
Year: 2013

Hunger, An Introduction was not quite as creepy as many other stories in the Hauntings collection. Which I’m kind of glad about. Because some of them were seriously intense and kind of uncomfortable to read.

This short story jumped around a lot. It talked a lot about the hunger of death. And how hauntings occur. I’d probably have to read this again to get a better grasp on how it is all related. Particularly to the child at the end.

I don’t normally feel that deaths are necessarily warranted. But Ethel and Frank’s stories were seriously twisted. Their journeys to death row something that made me cringe. And their fate as hauntings kind of felt warranted.

<- Where Angels Come In

Inferno: Tales of Terror and the Supernatural ->

Image source: Amazon

Hula Ville by James P. Blaylock

December 11, 2023Book ReviewGhosts, Hauntings, Horror, James P. Blaylockskyebjenner

Title: Hula Ville
Author: James P. Blaylock
In: Hauntings (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 3 (On the fence about this one)
My Bookshelves: Ghosts, Horror
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tachyon
Year: 2013

This was a bit of an eerie feeling short story, one featuring angels and mummies. And just all of the discomfort that facing the unknown entails. It also had a bit of that feel that if I read it multiple times, I’d find symbols throughout that I missed the first time around. It was all about the mystery of the unknown without providing any answers whatsoever at the conclusion of the tale. Not necessarily a bad thing, but it does make it hard to recount / write a review on…

There were so many layers of meaning throughout this that I just know I didn’t quite grasp. Or at least, that’s how this story made me feel. As though I was almost reaching the reality being revealed, but not quite getting there. Although, this is in a collection called Hauntings so that very elusiveness makes it sit really well within that theme…

Everything about this story, particularly Hula Ville is just not quite what it seems. There is the constant threat of something terrifying happening from the tone of the story. And, even when things didn’t quite end as tragically as anticipated… I was still left feeling disquieted from this story.

<- Transfigured Night

The Bedroom Light ->

Image source: Amazon

The Bedroom Light by Jeffrey Ford

November 29, 2023Book ReviewHauntings, Horror, Inferno, Jeffrey Fordskyebjenner

Title: The Bedroom Light
Author: Jeffrey Ford
In: Hauntings (Ellen Datlow) & Inferno (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 3 (On the fence about this one)
My Bookshelves: Horror
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tachyon
Year: 2013

This short story felt kind of incredibly creepy, but also not at all at moments. It had that really vague and haunting feel to it. But, I was honestly kind of anticipating a death. Or at least the heavy hinting of a death in it. Maybe it will have a bit more clarity if I read it again…

Everything that was “haunting” and creepy within this story was very easily explained away by normalcy. It did kill a bit of the mood for me, but also highlighted how easily we explain things away. Again, still not sure if this was supposed to be a haunting, a demon child, or people’s paranoia…

The lights flickering in the bedroom were probably the bit that stuck with me the most in this short story. I’m really glad I didn’t read it late at night… before turning off my own bedroom lights.

<- Hula Ville

Spectral Evidence ->

Image source: Amazon

Hauntings edited by Ellen Datlow

November 22, 2023Book ReviewAdam L.G. Nevill, Caitlin R. Kiernan, Connie Willis, Dale Bailey, David Morrell, E. Michael Lewis, Elizabeth Hand, Ellen Datlow, F. Paul Wilson, Gemma Files, Ghosts, Hauntings, Horror, James P. Blaylock, Jeffrey Ford, Jonathan Carroll, Joyce Carol Oates, Kelly Link, Lucius Shepard, Michael Marshall Smith, Neil Gaiman, Pat Cadigan, Paul Walther, Peter Straub, Richard Bowes, Short Story Collections, Simon Kurt Unsworth, Stephen Gallagher, Terry Dowlingskyebjenner

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, Horror, Short story collections
Pace: Slow
Format: Anthology
Publisher: Tachyon
Year: 2013

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 Halloween

Eenie, Meenie, Ipsateenie ->

Image source: Amazon

The Horn by Stephen Gallagher

September 16, 2023Book ReviewHauntings, Horror, Stephen Gallagherskyebjenner

Title: The Horn
Author: Stephen Gallagher
In: Hauntings (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Horror
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tachyon
Year: 2013

From the very beginning of this short story, and the tone that is powerful within this, it was very obvious that everyone was probably going to di3 in this short story. But, me being the ghoul that I am, I really wanted to see how they all died… I mean, who wouldn’t?

To be fair, I did think that the narrator or one of the men he was stranded with was going to be the killer. There was just that whole, lo ked in with a serial killer tone to this tale. But, the reality of this story was a whole lot more sinister. And creepy.

Normally I love tales that feature a snowstorm. Probably because I often read romances and fantasies and there is always a very powerful feeling to that. However, this short story worked as a great reminder that the isolation that works so well in romances and fantasies, can also be deadly. The kind of isolation where secrets grow.

This is definitely a horrible and creepy haunting. One that I feel like will keep coming back, through many snow storms to come.

<- Distress Call

Everybody Goes ->

Image source: Amazon

Everybody Goes by Michael Marshall Smith

September 14, 2023Book ReviewGhosts, Hauntings, Horror, Michael Marshall Smithskyebjenner

Title: Everybody Goes
Author: Michael Marshall Smith
In: Hauntings (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 3.5 (Liked this)
My Bookshelves: Ghosts, Horror
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tachyon
Year: 2013

This wasn’t quite the “haunting” tale that I was expecting, but it was even better. I mean, I was kind of expecting something that was scary and disturbed. Instead, it was actually a little bit sweet and innocent. I mean, there is still a haunting and a bit of a creepy factor, but overall, it was actually kind of innocent and sweet.

Before I got to that point of kind of innocent though, I got some pretty serious IT vibes. I honestly kept on expecting a creepy, horrifying, killer clown to dive out of the pages and attack the children. Which definitely lent to the feeling of suspense that kept me turning the pages. Then, the ending made everything much more innocent in hindsight.

This was a good, easy read. It had a bit of a suspenseful feeling. But it also worked as a great reminder of the innocence of childish days and memories.

<- The Horn

Transfigured Night ->

Image source: Amazon

Earth and Skye

The ramblings of a bibliophile.

Tag Archives: Hauntings

Two Houses by Kelly Link

Where Angels Come In by Adam L.G. Nevill

Transfigured Night by Richard Bowes

Spectral Evidence by Gemma Files

Hunger, An Introduction by Peter Straub

Hula Ville by James P. Blaylock

The Bedroom Light by Jeffrey Ford

Hauntings edited by Ellen Datlow

The Horn by Stephen Gallagher

Everybody Goes by Michael Marshall Smith