A collection of deliciously strange horror stories with an impressive scope.
From the allure of urban legends to the haunting reimagining of youthful games like Truth or Dare, these tales possess the vibe of a shadowy slumber party destined to keep you up all night. With pieces by 10 authors, including familiar names like Erica Waters, Chloe Gong, Courtney Gould, and editor Bovalino, this compact volume contains varied themes and styles. A young woman in New Zealand is filled with foreboding after taking a position as a live-in nanny in a remote seaside house in Gong’s “The Tallest Poppy.” A teenager learns of a fiery curse on her Oregon farming town that dates back to a history of witchcraft in Gould’s “Third Burn.” The arrangement of the stories successfully negotiates shifts in tone and provides a strong, cohesive reading experience. Several stories draw upon traditional subject matter; overall, they take surprising turns and offer vividly fresh spins on even the most classic of frightful motifs. Strong gothic tendencies emerge in these accessible, well-crafted, and atmospheric tales. Ominous, moody, and fiercely original, this anthology provides a delightful introduction to horror and an irresistible diversion for existing genre fans. Strong female protagonists are well represented along with diversity in race, national origin, and sexual orientation.
Perfectly creepy. (about the authors) (Horror anthology. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 6, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-64567-622-5
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Page Street
Review Posted Online: June 22, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2022
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Rachel, a 16-year-old trauma survivor, is initiated into her private school’s secret society for horror fans.
A year after surviving a violent attack, high school junior Rachel Chavez becomes the new girl at Manchester Prep on Manhattan’s affluent Upper East Side. The middle-class daughter of a faculty member, Rachel feels invisible except for her one new friend, harmless school gossip Saundra Clairmont. After a school party ends in a ghost story, a séance, and screaming, Rachel—who immersed herself in horror movies as a coping device—notices a prankster amid the chaos. Soon, she is initiated into the Mary Shelley Club, a tightknit group that requires secrecy and rule-following from its members. She joins Freddie Martinez, a film geek on scholarship; hot-tempered, Stephen King–adoring Felicity Chu; charming Thayer Turner, whose political family is compared to the Obamas; and brooding golden boy Bram Wilding. Mostly the teens just watch all sorts of horror films—classics, slasher, zombie, psychological—but membership also involves more sinister activities. Moldavsky’s tightly plotted tale weaves in dark humor, an impressive amount of horror trivia, and insightful references to Frankenstein. Readers will quickly become invested in Rachel’s story even when she’s making difficult-to-witness mistakes. The characters are notably diverse; issues of ethnicity and social class are naturally woven into the story.
An atmospheric page-turner about loving scary movies, longing to belong, and uncovering the many masks people wear. (Horror. 14-18)Pub Date: April 13, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-250-23010-2
Page Count: 480
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: Feb. 5, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2021
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Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in.
24
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Black is back with another dark tale of Faerie, this one set in Faerie and launching a new trilogy.
Jude—broken, rebuilt, fueled by anger and a sense of powerlessness—has never recovered from watching her adoptive Faerie father murder her parents. Human Jude (whose brown hair curls and whose skin color is never described) both hates and loves Madoc, whose murderous nature is true to his Faerie self and who in his way loves her. Brought up among the Gentry, Jude has never felt at ease, but after a decade, Faerie has become her home despite the constant peril. Black’s latest looks at nature and nurture and spins a tale of court intrigue, bloodshed, and a truly messed-up relationship that might be the saving of Jude and the titular prince, who, like Jude, has been shaped by the cruelties of others. Fierce and observant Jude is utterly unaware of the currents that swirl around her. She fights, plots, even murders enemies, but she must also navigate her relationship with her complex family (human, Faerie, and mixed). This is a heady blend of Faerie lore, high fantasy, and high school drama, dripping with description that brings the dangerous but tempting world of Faerie to life.
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in. (Fantasy. 14-adult)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-316-31027-7
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Sept. 26, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2017
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