Hell Hath No Fury: A Collection by Peggy Christie

Hell Hath No Fury: A Collection Reviews

• 
  Michael

  As the publisher, I have to shy away from saying what a spectacular group of stories appear in this new edition of Ms. Christie's work. Instead I'll just note that the current edition features two stories original to this book.
• 
  Jillybeane

  Most of the stories in this book were really good. I didn’t like the first two, but I’m glad they didn’t deter me from finishing the book.
• 
  Tiffany Lynn Kramer

  I had really high hopes for this collection after reading the first tale, Secretary's Day. It struck me as something that would adapt well to the likes of The Twilight Zone. The same can be said for the majority of the other works. Along with Secretary's Day the real stand outs for me where Reborn, Bad Touching, The Lonely Corridor, Black Rain and Honor Thy Mother.
  Sadly however the other works had either an almost juvenile quality to the writing or had unsadisfing endings. Family Time and Driver's Ed were two I perticularly disliked.
  Despite the disapointments I still mean to check out more work by Christie.
  
• 
  The Hardcover Honey

  
  http://www.thehorrorhoneys.com
  Twitter: @jbrivard
  
  As I may have mentioned before, your Hardcover Honey typically reads what she's interested in and reports back to you on the good stuff – but sometimes the good stuff finds the Hardcover Honey in the form of an author submission. This week's read is the short story collection “Hell Hath No Fury” by Peggy Christie and like some earlier works sent to the Horror Honeys for review, this is something I never would have picked up on my own, but it is definitely worth a read, and I'm so glad it found me.
  
  It came with a sweet little note thanking us for reading it, elegant loops of handwriting on a Humane Society notepad, embossed with “Ms. Peggy A. Christie”. I pictured a matronly type, sipping tea and knitting while she petted one of her many cats. But the minute I opened the book, an entirely different mental picture emerged. This Peggy Christie seems like one bad-ass chick - with a very dark imagination.
  
  Although I didn't love every story in this collection, there were some strong standouts, including the very first tale “Secretary's Day” - as someone with 17 years (and counting, ugh) of experience in the secretarial arts, I read this nasty little tale with a special sense of glee. When nondescript secretary Linda Phillips pays the ultimate price because of her careless blowhard boss, what will the consequences be for him?
  
  Other favorites of mine included:
  
  Another Day in Paradise – The head of a large organization starts to doubt his ability to lead – can a pep talk from his therapist bring him back to his love of the job? What about if the leader is Lucifer and the organization is Hell?
  
  Mother Knows Best – In just one short page, Christie tells us everything we need to know about one sad middle-aged man and his domineering mother.
  
  Mulligan – Another very short story, but no less effective, in which abused child Angie decides she needs a fresh start.
  
  Fester – This one could have easily been a terrific Tales from the Crypt episode – when meek Joe swallows all of his anger for decades, the toll it takes on his body is nothing anybody could have predicted.
  
  Earl – Your friendly neighborhood park employee isn't quite as harmless as he appears to be.
  
  Here There Be Monsters – A child trembles in bed while underneath him, sibling monsters argue about who is supposed to be doing what.
  
  Too Soon – Sort of a “War of the Roses” story, in which our nameless narrator mourns the death of her husband of 53 years.
  
  Keeping Up with the Joneses – Two neighbors allow their friendly competition over Christmas lights to turn ugly.
  
  Don't Be a Dummy – Another Tales from the Crypt worthy tale, this time about crash test dummies that are coming from an all-too-likely source.
  
  Honor Thy Mother – Deirdre plays nursemaid to her dying mother, trying unsuccessfully to keep a lid on her simmering rage and frustration.
  
  Driver's Ed – A look at a bleak future, wherein getting your drivers license and obeying the rules of the road is more important than ever – and failure to comply comes with stiff punishment.
  
  Hardcover Honey's Verdict: Four out of five sharp little fingernails for this fun collection.