Cody's Bookshelf

Release Date: 04.25.17

This was my first Dark Screams collection, but it certainly won't be my last. Color me impressed!

While I wasn't particularly scared by any of these stories, most of them do deal with dark themes and toe the line between natural and unnatural. They range in voice and style, obviously, as the six stories were written by different authors.

I think my personal favorite is 'The Manicure,' by Nell Quinn-Gibney, a brief and haunting story about childhood traumas and phobias that come back in adulthood. Another standout is Norman Prentiss' 'The Comforting Voice,' which might have made me tear up a little.

The stories here are sublime, for the most part. I felt my attention wandering during 'The Corpse King' and I wasn't impressed with Stephen King's 'The Old Dude's Ticker' — an old Poe pastiche that should have stayed in the drawer. My favorite author contributed my least favorite story in Dark Screams. Bummer.

I am very impressed with this collection, and will certainly check out past editions of this series.

Thanks to Netgalley and Hydra for the ARC, which was given in exchange for an honest review.