| Title | : | Slasher Girls Monster Boys |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Kindle Edition |
| Number of Pages | : | 400 |
| Publication | : | First published August 18, 2015 |
A host of the smartest young adult authors come together in this collection of scary stories and psychological thrillers curated by Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea’s April Genevieve Tucholke.
Each story draws from a classic tale or two—sometimes of the horror genre, sometimes not—to inspire something new and fresh and terrifying. There are no superficial scares here; these are stories that will make you think even as they keep you on the edge of your seat. From bloody horror to supernatural creatures to unsettling, all-too-possible realism, this collection has something for any reader looking for a thrill.
Fans of TV’s The Walking Dead, True Blood, and American Horror Story will tear through tales by these talented authors:
Stefan Bachmann
Leigh Bardugo
Kendare Blake
A. G. Howard
Jay Kristoff
Marie Lu
Jonathan Maberry
Danielle Paige
Carrie Ryan
Megan Shepherd
Nova Ren Suma
McCormick Templeman
April Genevieve Tucholke
Cat Winters
Slasher Girls Monster Boys Reviews
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Honestly, this is one of the best YA anthologies I've ever read. Normally I can pick out one or two strong works amid a bunch of mediocre ones but, in this case, there was only one story I didn't enjoy. I think Suma's remained my favourite throughout but I also absolutely loved Marie Lu's creepy closet girl. So many great stories here, all inspired by various movies, books and music.
The Birds of Azalea Street by Nova Ren Suma
5 stars
This was a fantastic start to the collection. The author's eerie, poetic writing style is well-suited to short stories, particularly horror ones. Lots of strangely beautiful imagery, as well as birds, creepy men and a little taste of truth: "Teenage girls know more than we’re given credit for."
In the Forest Dark and Deep by Carrie Ryan
4 stars
A nod to Lewis Carroll's
Alice in Wonderland and even stranger and creepier than the original. This is about monsters, little girls with big imaginations and, of course, tea parties in the forest. "They wanted the safe answer. The one that reassured them that all monsters are filled with darkness."
Emmeline by Cat Winters
4 stars
Nobody does creepy historical fiction with a touch of romance quite like Cat Winters, even when she's writing short stories. This one isn't very scary but it is unsettling, evocative and sad too, set in France during the First World War. "Boys were curious creatures by nature."
Verse Chorus Verse by Leigh Bardugo
4 stars
This isn't my favourite of Bardugo's short stories - that would be
The Too-Clever Fox - but it is very good. It's about a teen starlet (and her mother) who gets sentenced to rehab and finds a lot more than she bargained for within the centre's walls. I'm not sure I "get" the ending, but it did creep me out a lot. “Her chest was tight, the breath caught there, captive against her ribs. Something was in that room with her daughter."
Hide and Seek by Megan Shepherd
4 stars
This was an excellent and fast-paced tale of cheating death. When Annie dies, Crow Cullom comes to take her soul, but Annie knows how the rules go. If she can win a game against death, her life will be hers again. In a 24-hour hide and seek marathon, Annie must avoid the traps death has set out - but is it really possible to hide from death? "When does the game begin?" she asked.
The Dark, Scary Parts and All by Danielle Paige
2 stars
In an anthology filled with many fascinating, complex and twisted female characters, this one instead offers a Mary Sue, bitchy high school mean girls, and a supernatural love interest. “But Damien Thorne was not supposed to be looking at me. He was supposed to be looking at someone with longer limbs, a face with more angles than circles, and a dress that was bought this decade."
The Flicker, The Fingers, The Beat, The Sigh by April Genevieve Tucholke
3 stars
This story pulls inspiration from two well-known horror classics and it never quite touches upon the darkness and fear of either. In fact, it rather superficially recreates the plots of both in a mash-up that feels contrived rather than scary. "Headlights. Someone's coming. Someone's coming."
Fat Girl With a Knife by Jonathan Maberry
3 stars
Predictably, Maberry goes the zombie route for his horror short. It was entertaining and introduced us to Dahlia - a complex character and high school "fat girl" - but it wasn't that original and it didn't contain any of the creepy atmosphere that many of the other stories created. The two stories that are very high school clique-centric haven't impressed me as much. "That's when Dahlia knew that something was a lot more wrong than boyfriend problems."
Sleepless by Jay Kristoff
4 stars
This is a story of twists and turns that made me smile almost as much as it creeped me out. I think it would have been a little better if I hadn't seen the movie it's obviously based on, but I still very much enjoyed it. There was plenty I didn't see coming. "Sometimes I wonder if the right girl is out there. Sometimes I wonder if Momma isn't right about all of them."
M by Stefan Bachmann
3.5 stars
Children reciting creepy rhymes has to be one of the scariest things, right? Well, I think so. And this story is written from the perspective of a blind narrator, which makes it all the more eerie to imagine the sounds of the rhyme coming to you in the darkness. "L is for Louis, who douses the spark, M is for Misha, who sits in the dark..."
The Girl Without a Face by Marie Lu
5 stars
Wow, that was amazing! The most traditionally scary story in the collection (I was genuinely looking over my shoulder) but also very psychological and very clever. Lu blurs the line between realistic and supernatural in a story that is gruesome, chilling and sad in ways you probably won't expect. Plus, closets and mirrors *shivers* "As he drifted off, he realized that the shuffling sound seemed to come from behind the closet door."
A Girl Who Dreamed of Snow by McCormick Templeman
3 stars
This story wasn't as compelling as some of the others and I found myself almost wanting to skim-read some parts(which is pretty unforgivable in a short story). Though the setting is perhaps the most different and exciting and the talk of "night creatures" watching from the trees was indeed unsettling, it was the characters that let it down for me. "And for a moment, she had something like a premonition, a feeling that something terrible was watching her, something hungry and sick."
Stitches by A.G. Howard
4 stars
Definitely not one for the sqeamish! Not only is this story graphic and gory, but some of the imagery used made me cringe. But if you can stomach it, it's an excellent story that continued to surprise me. And what an opening line! "The first time the wrens sang at night was three years ago, when I used a rusty saw to cut off Pa's left foot."
On the I-5 by Kendare Blake
3.5 stars
I really liked this but I think being the last story was a disservice to the tale - the others that came before it made the reveals less shocking. But it is suitably creepy and ends with a combination of horror and sadness. "She wasn't stupid. She was just sad. And young. So full of life, she thought she could afford to lose some."
All quotes were taken from an ARC and are subject to change by the final publication.
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why is there no introduction to this collection? am i the only one who appreciates a good intro to set the mood and drum up anticipation for what's to come? the only thing we get here is some flap-copy, which i never read, so when i got to the end of the first story and there were these upside-down bits, i was like whaaaaat??? and then i read the flap copy.
which informed me that all the stories in the collection have used one or more books, movies, television, or songs as jumping-off points to explore their themes in unexpected ways, and the upside-down bits are the reveal of the inspiration.
nearly all of these stories are about girls victimized, marginalized, terrorized, and the ways they have their revenge/justice, often subverting the horror-film traditions of their own parentage with a more girl-power ending.
wendy darling says that one of the best things about this book is trying to guess the inspiration for the stories, and she's not wrong, but since information is never a bad thing, i'm putting unlabeled images from each story's origins in spoiler tags just for those of you who like to know exactly what you're getting into. and also 'cuz pictures are fun. the book specifies when the author drew on the book or the film-version, so don't come at me with "doy, the exorcist was a book first, you heathen!!"
also, spoiler alert -one of these is based on the exorcist. the 1976 film version.
The Birds of Azalea Street - Nova Ren Suma
★★★★☆
Paisley told us she could sense the hunger coming off of him, like she was plump and roasting and he hadn't eaten for a week.
i loved the megan abbott/karen russell feel to this one. young girls, pervy neighbor and birrrrrds. it's definitely more on the side of "fabulism" than "horror," but it's a great story that makes me want to read more by her and even more resentful that netgalley turned me down for one of her books so long ago.
In the Forest Dark and Deep - Carrie Ryan
★★★★★
"Exactly so," she whispered.
this is probably my favorite story in the collection. its inspiration is easily identified, and it's one that's been done and redone hundreds of times, but this managed to bring an all-new spin into the mix and takes a story that is already known for its strong imagery and made it even more memorable and disturbing. wonderful darkness, this one. good twists and turns and even though it's not based on it, i was getting this kinda vibe from it:
Emmeline - Cat Winters
★★★☆☆
"You like monster films?
"Just the beautiful ones."
"Beautiful monsters?"
"Oui."
i wasn't crazy about this one and i don't know why. the writing is beautiful, with its haunting atmosphere containing a lonely girl in her "broken bedroom," heavy on the cinematic imagery - The moon sidled closer, but its cinematic beams, all glamour and trickery, carried no warmth. but i just didn't respond to the story at all. it's carefully detailed and well-plotted, but it's a little stiff and slow. objectively it's well-written, but it didn't grab me.
Verse Chorus Verse - Leigh Bardugo
★★★★☆
That was when she'd realized the way the other kids were sitting - not like they were on camera. They were keeping still like small creatures when a predator was near.
this was the one i was expecting to love the most because BARDUGO!! she is so strong at short stories, especially the dark fantasy kind, so i figured it would be the best piece in the collection. and it's better than a lot of them, but not as good as her tor shorts. i think it's because it's neither fantasy nor fairy tale; it's a very contemporary story about the pressures and sacrifices of teenage celebrity and while there's a supernatural element, it reads so much more "ripped from the headlines" than i had anticipated coming from my queen of dark woods and magic. a very solid story, just an unexpected one.
Hide and Seek - Megan Shepherd
★★★★☆
Dying wasn't so bad, not really.
a game of hide-and-seek with death. cuz chess is for nerds! but as your hall monitor here, i gotta scold the participants for all the cheating on both sides, or at least the hair-splitting with rules. not cool, guys! this story has the most eclectic mix of springboards than any of the others and who could have predicted these melding at all? it's a good story/adaptation and i enjoyed her writing, even if i frown at all the chicanery.
The Dark, Scary Parts and All - Danielle Paige
★★★☆☆
"Just because you're chosen, doesn't mean you don't have a choice."
i really liked the premise here of a monster-apologist, because i am also one who roots for the underdog, appreciates the misfit toys and is drawn to damage. however, there's a difference between a sympathetic character seeing the humanity in frankenstein's monster and … twilight. this one was just too romancey for me.
The Flicker, The Fingers, The Beat, The Sigh - April Genevieve Tucholke
★★★★★
"What kind of dick would lead a girl on as a joke? He deserved what he got."
another favorite. i mean, it's familiar as hell because it sticks pretty close to its roots, but there's something about the writing i really dig, and it tosses in some bonus unattributed ocean-based mythology and also references the one urban legend that terrifies me every time i even think of it (although the punch line is softened in this version) and which is one of the few things to ever give me the fear shivers i want so bad. so while this story didn't scare me, it contained the bones of stuff that does. i thought it was lovely, honestly. that ending, phoar.
Fat Girl With a Knife - Jonathan Maberry
★★★☆☆
Somehow it didn't surprise Dahlia Allgood that the world would end on a Friday. What better way to screw up the weekend?
pretty standard horror story, but its got some cool blood and good stabbing, as well as a nicely-done dawning realization setup. it's also the only story that tries to be funny, so points for that because all horror collections need at least one to represent the humor of horror. rarrrrrr!
Sleepless - Jay Kristoff
★★★★☆
She thinks I'm perfect behind my little screen. I can be whoever she wants in the dark. But there's no delete key IRL.
What if she can't love who I am out here?
this story is probably the most faithful (and self-referentially name-dropping) to (of) its source material, but it skews a little younger (for the kids), there's a modern-day tech spin (for the kids), and a more triumphant ending (for some of the characters). even though i knew where the story was going, it was still fun to watch it unfold (the end).
M - Stefan Bachmann
★★★★☆
For all their squinting, peering eyes, they did not know who was good and who was wicked, who was strong and who was cowardly, who was murdering in their house, and who was trying to save their lives. Eyes were tricks in bone boxes, but everyone believed them.
halfway through, i was thinking this was going to be my favorite. the ghoulish children's rhyme reminded me of
The Gashlycrumb Tinies, and all the scary things happening to the blind heroine were giving me a
Bird Box feel. the premise is great and scary and lord knows i like big houses, fancy dresses and murrrrdeerrrrr. even though it didn't go to the much scarier place i thought it was going, it definitely wrapped up in a satisfying way.
The Girl Without a Face - Marie Lu
★★★☆☆
It was a deer. At least, it used to be.
well, i definitely didn't predict where that story was headed. SVU meets ringu with a douchey unreliable narrator. AGAIN, those are comparisons i am making with my brain and not the ones the author made with her brain. hers are in the spoiler tags, in case you haven't been paying attention.
and more pictures from that movie, which require a second layer of suppression because gross
A Girl Who Dreamed of Snow - McCormick Templeman
★★★☆☆
Whatever had happened to the girls they tried to take in the village by the river, he was sure it hadn't been wolves.
this feels like an excerpt of something rather than a standalone story. it's not that it lacks closure; it ends where a short story should, but i want to know more about the mythology and the different groups of people than what is here. which isn't necessarily a bad thing because i'm intrigued enough to want to read an entire novel set in this world, so if they write it i will come.
Stitches -A.G. Howard
★★★★☆
The first time the wrens sang at night was three years ago, when I used a rusty saw to cut off Pa's left foot. The birds drowned out his screams.
this is a perfectly constructed short story. backwoods grit lit meets grimm's fairy tales with a touch of edward scissorhands and some bloody quid pro quo. <---- and none of those things are actual references from the author's vision board or whatever. also, this quote - story of my life:
… I wasn't sure what sort of job I was qualified for…other than baking things, or chopping parts off of people and sewing them back on pretty.
On the I-5 - Kendare Blake
★★★☆☆
She is fourteen. An old fourteen, and for how many times she's heard that, she can almost believe it really was her fault. That maybe some girls really are nothing much more than meat on spits.
this one felt familiar to me, but not because of its inspirations, although i have seen them both. the spirit of this one is similar to those grit lit books i so enjoy, only with a supernatural overlay to the backdrop of young girls in bad situations. and there are endless pull-quotes in this one, which i appreciate so much considering how long this review has taken to write oh my god.
here's another one so i can rally for the finish line
Tina doesn't look at her like she thinks she's trash, and she doesn't look at EmmaRae's budding chest either. She looks at her like what she is: a girl.
phew!
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I'm not going to sit here and give you the low down on every single story in this book. You can read that in all of the other reviews. I am going to talk about or leave the names and authors of some of my favorite ones.
The Bird Of Azalea Street by Nova Ren Suma
I loved this one right off the bat, it's actually the first story. It's about a creepy dude that does evil things to the birds and has a creepy, lustful fascination to the girls in the neighborhood. But. . . sometimes, karma man, karma.
The next story I loved was actually the second story of the book.
In The Forest Dark And Deep by Carrie Ryan
This is about Cassidy and it's told in different time frames. When she is 7/8 and 17/18. She goes out into the woods across from her house one day and starts to see things. At one point there is a table with a tea party set up and a creepy arse March Hare standing in the woods. This story is freaky deeky and creepy as hell - at least to me - and I loved it! I mean, dude. This is dark and that March Hare has come some evilness plus.
Hide-And-Seek by Megan Shepherd
This a bizarre little story about Annie who has to outlast a certain amount of time or she will have to die or so says Crow Cullon. The race is on, who will win? I enjoyed this one too!
The Flicker, The Fingers, The Beat, The Sigh by April Genevieve Tucholke
This one is cray. These bunch of kids hit a girl on the road one night and decide to hide it. This is another one of those karma stories. Just don't do stupid things!
Sleepless by Jay Kristoff
This is about some perv who gets these girls through the internet. Then one day he picks the wrong girl and she puts him in his place. There is also some creepy stuff going on with his mom!
Stitches by A.G. Howard
This story is another wackadoo! I loved it, it's so freaking unbelievable. It involves . . . stitches!
Another thing I loved about these stories is at the bottom ending of each story, upside down, is written where the author got the idea. They are from books and movies.
I really enjoyed this slasher monster flick! Fin
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I love that these are horror stories from some of the best YA writers working today, some of whom don't normally write horror. Each story takes inspiration from films, books, or music, and half the fun is seeing if you can guess the source.
I rated the stories as I went along:
Nova Ren Suma's "The Birds of Azalea Street" 5 stars
Carrie Ryan's "In the Forest Dark and Deep" 3.5 stars
Cat Winters' "Emmeline" 4 stars
Leigh Bardugo's "Verse Chorus Verse" 4 stars
Megan Shepherd's "Hide and Seek" 5 stars
Danielle Paige's "The Dark, Scary Parts and All" 2.5 stars
April Genevieve Tucholke's "The Flicker, the Fingers, the Beat, the Sigh" 3 stars
Jonathan Maberry's "Fat Girl with a Knife" 3 stars
Jay Kristoff's "Sleepless" 3.5 stars
Stefan Bachman's "M" 3.5 stars
Marie Lu's "The Girl Without a Face" 3.5 stars
McCormick Templeman's "A Girl Who Dreamed of Snow" 3.5 stars
A.G. Howard's "Stitches" 4 stars
Kendare Blake "On the I-5" 3.5 stars
I knew that Jay Kristoff and Leigh Bardugo would have good ones--their usual writing is so well-crafted (and obviously, Kristoff's tinged with blood already), and I liked that they both switched from their usual genres and styles to try something totally different. Of course, Suma, Tucholke, Shepherd, and Winters delivered the kinds of eerie stories you'd expect, and I was pleasantly surprised by the new-to-me author Stefan Bachman (who's known for middle grade, but really must write more YA).
Overall, it's probably the strongest YA short story collection I can recall from recent years, and well worth seeking out if you like your stories not terribly gruesome or frightening, but a little grimy and torn and bloody.
An advance copy was provided by the publisher for this review. -
I wanted to get more in the Halloween mood, so I thought this anthology collection would be perfect! I also, low key, wanted to read this because I just finished
Crooked Kingdom, and now I have to read every sentence Leigh Bardugo has ever published. Seriously, I'm desperate.
Verse Chorus Verse ended up not being my favorite, but I was still left speechless at how good this anthology collection was! Dare I say, this might be the best anthology I've ever read? It is for sure the best I've ever rated.
Sleepless by Jay Kristoff end up being my favorite story. It was so beautiful, so thrilling, and had such amazing twists throughout. I loved it, and it has completely motivated me to read his other work.
And, sadly, M by Stefan Bachmann was my least favorite story. I wanted to like it, I really did, but it was just so boring to me.
Overall, I did really enjoy this collection and it did a wonderful job immersing me into the Halloween spirit. This is the perfect book for the Halloween season, and I can't recommend it enough!
1.) The Birds of Azalea Street by Nova Ren Suma - Four Stars ★★★★
This was a perfect first story in this collection, because this author completely captures the creepy Halloween feel. This story drips with eerie, and gives a pretty good message about always listening to your kids. Also, creepy dudes are scarier than any Halloween creature.
2.) In the Forest Dark and Deep by Carrie Ryan - Four Stars ★★★★
This story was exquisite! It keeps switching back and forth between a span of ten years, and surrounds a girl obsessed with Alice in Wonderland, who has a very unusual friend. This story also gave me some major
Five Nights as Freddy's vibes. I was drinking tea while reading this one, and I do not recommend that. Amazing, creepy, exactly what I wanted from this short-story collection!
3.) Emmeline by Cat Winters - Three Stars ★★★
This one actually surprised me. I'm not that big of a fan of Historical Fiction, and this is set at the end of WWI, in France. I did really like this, even though it was pretty predictable. My only complaint is that it leaves you feeling really sad, rather than scared or spooked.
4.) Verse Chorus Verse by Leigh Bardugo - Two Stars ★★
This was the novella I was most excited for in this anthology, but I think I set the bar too high. Honestly, I was pretty disappointed with this one. The rehab facility wasn't explained well enough, and I think we needed more about this mother and daughter's past to fully understand it. Don't get me wrong, it was creepy and wonderfully written, because Leigh Bardugo is Queen, but this didn't spook me or give me an eerie feel. It left a lot to be desired, and just made me think of an alternate reality Britney Spears.
5.) Hide and Seek by Megan Shepherd - Three Stars ★★★
This was a pretty unique take on the Grim Reaper. I also loved how it actually felt like a complete story with no loose ends. Also, the premise of Appalachian folktales hooked me from page one. This story was unique, thrilling, and had a great sense of closure.
6.) The Dark, Scary Parts and All by Danielle Paige - Four Stars ★★★★
Okay, this feels young and sort of Twilight-ish, but it was still really enjoyable for me. I loved all the nods at famous literature; it felt like a book lovers dream. Then, I was in Heaven with this modern day Hades and Persephone aspect. I know this is set in high school, but it also deals with the impact of bullying. Also, this has a very lyrical prose, which I absolutely devoured. I just really liked this short-story, and it left me wanting so much more!
7.) The Flicker, The Fingers, The Beat, The Sigh by April Genevieve Tucholke - Two Stars ★★
This one felt pretty weak, especially the tie-in with the title. It is basically just a bunch of Mary Sues and Gary Stus, in high school, making bad decisions. The end was somewhat creepy, but it took a long time to get there.
8.) Fat Girl With a Knife by Jonathan Maberry - Two Stars ★★
I'll be honest with you, the title of this, plus noticing it was by a male author, sort of pissed me off before I had even read one word of this story. So I was already developing pretty negative vibes for this story. Unfortunately, it didn't get better while reading. This was the first zombie story, but it felt so unoriginal and even referenced The Walking Dead. Also, this story wasn't even close to being creepy or scary; it was predictable and didn't accomplish much.
9.) Sleepless by Jay Kristoff - Five Stars ★★★★★
This was so amazing. At first, I hated their messaging conversations, and I was actually cringing at the abbreviations they used. I knew something bad was going to go down once they said they starting talking on a serial killer subreddit, but then the twist came and I was so surprised. Then the other twist came, and I was even more surprised! Seriously, this read like such a perfect and complete short-story. This is the perfect Halloween story, especially for my generation, and I absolutely loved it!
10.) M by Stefan Bachmann - One Star ★
This story felt the weakest in the collection, in my opinion. I loved the blind representation, but the story didn't feel very suspenseful, to me. I wish it felt more thrilling, but it fell very flat for me.
11.) The Girl Without a Face by Marie Lu - Three Stars ★★★
This one was more all around scary, than Halloween scary. I think the message is pretty important, and not nearly talked about enough, but it still just lacked the eerie Halloween feel I'm looking for in these short stories. Also, major triggers for rape and cutting.
12.) A Girl Who Dreamed of Snow by McCormick Templeman - Three Stars ★★★
If you've been following my reviews for a while now, you'll know that I absolutely love stories about Shaman and how much I wish there were more out there! Well, this story stars one, so I was instantly drawn in. Honestly, I would read a full story set in this world. I was completely hooked, and it was perfect for my high-fantasy loving self. My only complaint: It didn't feel like a Halloween story at all.
13.) Stitches by AG Howard - Four Stars ★★★★
This one was so creepy, yet empathetic! I loved these three children, and I can honestly say I've ever read anything like this; Perfect Halloween feel, amazing twists, and heart-warming characters. And the ending was so very clever. I still am thinking about this story, and I'm still super impressed.
14.) On the I-5 by Kendare Blake - Four Stars ★★★★
I loved this story, but I had the same problem I had with A Girl Who Dreamed of Snow: It didn't feel like a Halloween story. I still absolutely loved it, and it felt like such a complete story that really left me satisfied. Revenge stories are always the best thriller stories.
I gave this anthology four stars overall, because out of a possible 70 stars (5 stars possible for each of the 14 stories) this anthology accumulated 44 stars (63%). I know that's more like 3.5 stars, but since we can't do half star ratings on Goodreads, and because I really enjoyed this collection, I am happy to give this four deserving stars.
I hope all of my Goodreads friends and family have a very happy Halloween, filled with love, sweets, happiness, and lots of good books.
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3.434 stars(I calculated it lol)
Sooooo, this took me 85 years to read and even though all of these stories were considered thrillers, barely any of them were thrilling. Only 1(one) actually scared me.
As far as anthologies go, this was a good one; it featured many well written, entertaining stories by a plethora of outstanding authors. I wouldn’t exactly call many of these stories thrillers or horror as they were advertised, but I enjoyed them about as much as I do any story in short story collections.
The thing is, I don’t like anthologies. I know I don’t like them, so I have no idea why I keep reading them and expecting to like them. My main issue with them is that I expect them to be quick reads, but I always end up taking over a month to read them because 1) there’s nothing to keep me hooked from story to story 2) reading the same theme over and over again burns me out super quickly and by the end of the anthologies I’m so sick of the designated theme I can’t even enjoy the stories anymore. Despite my lack of judgement though, I liked this book.
💀The Birds of Azalea Street – Nova en Suma – 2.75 stars💀
Even though creepy old men are scary as hell, I didn’t like this one much. Not very scary in the horror-thriller way I was expecting and the way the foreshadowing was written made everything painfully predictable.
💀In the Forest Dark and Deep – Carrie Ryan – 5 stars💀
My favourite of the entire anthology! This was weird, non- sensical, chilling and terrifying and I loved every second of it.
💀Emmeline – Cat Winters – 4.5 stars💀
Sort of cliché and predictable but in the exact way you want a thriller to be. Wish it was a little bit more frightening but other than that I enjoyed it.
💀Verse Chorus Verse – Leigh Bardugo – 2.5 stars💀
I love Leigh Bardugo, so it pains me to say that I didn’t like this story, but it was all over the place. It was super long and tedious and not nearly scary enough to justify being so. Also, I don’t like celebrities, so that didn’t help.
💀Hide-and-Seek – Meghan Shepard – 4.5 stars💀
Another favourite! Incredibly entertaining, intriguing and fast-paced. I LOVED THE ENDING.
💀The Dark, Scary Parts and All – Daniele Paige – 3.5 stars💀
Interesting enough, beautiful writing and ideas but not nearly frightening enough and the ending was a little cheap.
💀The Flicker, the Fingers, the Beat, the Sigh – April Genevieve Tucholke – 2 stars💀
This wasn’t scary or suspenseful. I hated the dialogue, and I didn’t particularly care for the characters or the petty teen drama. This was a rough one.
💀Fat Girl with a Knife – Jonathan Maberry – 4 stars💀
Loved this one. I wasn’t scared, but I didn’t even care because I was so entertained, and the concept was so interesting.
💀Sleepless – Jay Kristoff – 5 stars💀
Probably my second favourite of the anthology. Every expectation I had going into this story was flipped over on its head. Every plot twist left me itching for more. Eerie and creepy, there’s nothing quite as terrifying to me as serial killers. Every word meant something to the bigger story arc, and everything came full circle, and it was so satisfying.
💀M – Stefan Bachmann – 3 stars💀
This one was drawn out a little too much. It was eerie enough but slightly dull. It had an anticlimactic reveal and predictable ending. Also, it was never explained why the mc could only see that one person.
💀The Girl Without a Face – Marie Lu – 4.5 stars💀
There’s nothing scarier than the monsters in our closest, other than victim blaming rapists, of course. Symbolism, 10/10. Story, wonderful. I’ve never been more satisfied with an ending before.
💀A Girl Who dreamed of Snow – McCormick Templeman – DNF💀
I don’t remember why I didn't finish this story but was probably the fact that I was just sick of the ‘thriller/horror but not really’ theme going on.
💀Stitches – A.G. Howard – DNF💀
Same with this one. It wasn’t bad, seemed interesting enough it was just really slow and I just wanted to be done with this book.
💀On the 1-5 – Kendare Blake – 4 stars💀
Ended with a bang. Super interesting concept and super interesting main character. I loved this despite my terrible attitude towards the end of this novel. -
Spoiler-free review!
Since this is an anthology, I'll be splitting the review up by story first, and then give my overall thoughts at the end!
☠️ THE BIRDS OF AZALEA STREET - Nova Ren Suma ★★★☆☆
A group of teen girls observe mysterious incidents going on at their creepy neighbor's house, and decide to investigate.
The prose was very lovely and gave way to some haunting imagery, but overall the story was pretty boring and unmemorable.
☠️ IN THE FOREST DARK AND DEEP - Carrie Ryan ★★★★★
An incredibly twisted Alice in Wonderland retelling about a girl whose mysterious "white rabbit" watches from the woods and commits horrible acts of violence.
Gruesome, creepy, and easily my favorite story of the collection.
☠️ EMMELINE - Cat Winters ★★★☆☆
A young girl hides away in the wreckage of her war-torn home and awaits unsuspecting soldier boys.
Like Nova's story, it's a tale with beautiful writing but lackluster events.
☠️ VERSE CHORUS VERSE - Leigh Bardugo ★★★☆☆
When a pop star comes back from treatment after a DUI and hitting a child, her mother notices that something is very different - and very wrong.
This was one of my most anticipated reads in the collection, because I tend to enjoy Leigh's writing, and as usual, it was beautiful and descriptive, but I found myself tremendously bored and skimmed several bits of this one. I did love the ending's creep factor, though.
☠️ HIDE-AND-SEEK - Megan Shepherd ★★★★☆
Some legends claim that, when death comes for you, you may challenge him to a game... and if you win, you keep your life.
I really loved the idea behind this story, and thought it was really fun - probably one of the most interesting plots of the collection, for me.
☠️ THE DARK, SCARY PARTS AND ALL - Danielle Paige ★☆☆☆☆
Everyone calls Marnie a "monster", but when the popular boy in school falls for her, the students find out Marnie isn't the one they should be afraid of.
I found this story to be fairly subpar and was rolling my eyes by the ending of it. It was too trope-y.
☠️ THE FLICKER, THE FINGERS, THE BEAT, THE SIGH - April Genevieve Tucholke ★☆☆☆☆
When a group of teens hit their classmate on the road and leave her for dead, they quickly learn to regret their indecency.
I'm always interested to reach the editor's contribution in any given anthology, but in this case, it was my next-to-least favorite contribution. It's essentially Carrie from the bullies' POV, which just wasn't a perspective I was interested in ever hearing.
☠️ FAT GIRL WITH A KNIFE - Jonathan Maberry ★★★★☆
It sucks to be the victim of bullying, but there's a certain satisfaction that comes with turning the tables on your assailants when the world ends.
I cringed when I read the title of this story, but gave it a chance because my mom loved Maberry's Rot and Ruin series. I actually was pleasantly surprised and found this to be one of the more fun stories in the collection.
☠️ SLEEPLESS - Jay Kristoff ★★★★★
You have to be careful with online relationships, because you never know who's really on the other side of the screen.
This was another of my faves; Kristoff's writing is always fun (though his idea of teen text-speak can be a little excessive at times). I loved the twists in this one.
☠️ M - Stefan Bachmann ★★★★☆
M may be blind, but when she walks into a murder scene, she learns she has other senses that may lead her to the killer - if she can get to him before he kills again.
I really enjoyed the idea behind this one, and loved it up until the ending, which fell short for me, hence my giving it 4 stars instead of 5. The writing was beautiful and very descriptive of how horrifying it would be, to be a blind woman stuck in a house with a murderer.
☠️ THE GIRL WITHOUT A FACE - Marie Lu ★★★★☆
The closet was locked from the inside - so how did the girl get in, and why won't she stop following him?
I personally have a fear of spooky closets that I never outgrew, so the idea behind this one creeped me out a little. Unfortunately, the middle felt a bit slow and less than thrilling, but I loved the ending (and the twist).
☠️ A GIRL WHO DREAMED OF SNOW - McCormick Templeman ★☆☆☆☆
The shaman's daughter hunts a cure. The brothers hunt the shaman's daughter. Unknown to both, a more foreboding presence hunts them all...
If I were rating this as a story in a fantasy collection, I might have given it 3 stars, but this didn't fit Slasher Girls AT ALL. I kept waiting for the "horror" aspect to kick in, but it was really just a weird fantasy story thrown in.
☠️ STITCHES - A.G. Howard ★★★★★
The good book says, "if your eye causes you to sin, cast it out," and this abusive father is about to learn it the hard way.
I adored this story. It's gruesome and gory and downright gross, and I enjoyed every moment of it. The ending is poignant and heavy, but still somehow optimistic.
☠️ ON THE I-5 - Kendare Blake ★★★★★
The I-5 truck route is no safe place for a pretty young girl, but what about a girl who feels a supernatural pull to these monsters - and their victims?
I loved the idea that this young girl could sniff out pedophiles and their victims, and take revenge for the poor girls left in dumpsters and forests. There were some tough parts to read, and the ending was predictable, but I thoroughly enjoyed this ending to the collection.
☠️ COLLECTION ★★★★☆
Averaged out, my rating for the collection altogether came to 3.4/5 stars, which I feel comfortable rounding up to a solid 4. While there were some definite misses, if you're into YA horror, I still think this is an anthology worth picking up. -
This was absolutely AWESOME. There was one story here that I really didn't enjoy, but every single other one was good. There were a few here that were incredible. I think in general, stories that feel more human are my favorite. I always love stories where the good guys triumph, but are pretty devious in how they actually win. I love stories that are terrifying and desperate but end with hope. I LOVED how many stories here fit that category. I loved how these stories were dark and terrible but didn't feel the need to be one-note about it. I really can't recommend this story collection enough.
The Birds of Azalea Street by Nova Ren Suma - ★★★★☆
This seriously nailed atmospheric writing. Look no further for creepy. I liked the themes and honestly think the only problem was the short length.
In The Forest Dark and Deep by Carrie Ryan - ★★★★☆
Carrie Ryan has a talent for suspense and dramatic tension; this just got creepier and creepier. It's also an interesting take on Alice and Wonderland. I think it was almost too odd for me. I still liked it a lot, though.
Emmeline by Cat Winters - ★★★★☆
Again, weird, but I enjoyed reading this. There’s a very slow reveal of what exactly is happening, and the atmosphere is done perfectly, but I predicted the twist a bit too easily.
Verse Chorus Verse by Leigh Bardugo - ★★★☆☆
There’s a celebrity mom and her daughter and some interesting themes about fame and of course I worship Leigh Bardugo’s writing, but the ending was not explained well enough for my taste. I was loving this so much and then the ending just... fizzed.
Hide and Seek by Megan Shephard - ★★★★★
I LOVED this story, about a girl who plays hide and seek with death. The ending is completely awesome. And the protagonist is also great! It's a fast-paced story that never lets go.
The Dark, Scary Parts and All by Danielle Paige - ★★★★★
I’ve seen a lot of people disliked this, but I personally loved the shit out of it. The beginning is not incredible, yeah, but it gets better. The brief character arc and the quotes were so GOOD. I especially loved the protagonist; she's an interesting take on the i'm-not-like-other-girls type. Haven't we all wanted to read a villain arc for a dislikable high school student? Maybe that's just me. The ending worked well in context, but I think I would have preferred if she had **chosen her own destiny**.
The Flicker, The Fingers, The Beat, The Sigh by April Genevieve Tucholk - ★★☆☆☆
Boring and overdone concept. And I wasn't creeped out. I just felt really bad for all the main characters, horrible as they might have been.
Fat Girl With A Knife by Jonathan Mayberry - ★★★☆☆
Eh? I liked the ending of this, but it was kind of boring. The issue here is the total lack of atmosphere. There is no dramatic tension whatsoever.
Sleepless by Jay Kristoff - ★★★★★
Holy shit.
M by Stefan Bachmann - ★★★★☆
This one isn't nearly as creepy and atmospheric; it's more thematic and funny. There are some good quotes and themes about the blindness of the soul. It was mainly just flat-out fun to read. I liked Misha and Kirsten a lot. And the ending was!!
The Girl Without A Face by Marie Lu - ★★★★★
What the fuck is happening in Marie Lu’s brain and why does it turn out so brilliantly on page??
The Girl Who Dreamed Of Snow by McCormick Templeman - ★★★★☆
I liked this, but I can’t put my finger on exactly what made it good. It's a bit of a fantasy story with great atmosphere, but mainly it’s just a story that makes you think.
Stitches by A.G. Howard - ★★★★★
I loved this SO MUCH? I loved how hopeful the ending was. And the plotting was incredible.
On the 1-5 by Kendare Blake - ★★★★★
This had some awesome moments and was really interesting and compelling. But I wanted more out of the ending.
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*2.75 stars*
1) THE BIRDS OF AZALEA STREET by Nova Ren Suma -★★★.5 / 5
2) IN THE FOREST DARK AND DEEP by Carrie Ryan -★★★★ / 5
3) EMMELINE by Cat Winters -★★.5 / 5
4) VERSE CHORUS VERSE by Leigh Bardugo -★★.5 / 5
5) HIDE-AND-SEEK by Megan Shepherd -★★★★.5 / 5
6) THE DARK, SCARY PARTS AND ALL by Danielle Paige -★.5 / 5
7) THE FLICKER, THE FINGERS, THE BEAT, THE SIGH by April Genevieve Tucholke - ★.5 / 5
8) FAT GIRL WITH A KNIFE by Jonathan Maberry -★★★.5 / 5
9) SLEEPLESS by Jay Kristoff -★.5 / 5
10) M by Stefan Bachmann -★ / 5
11) THE GIRL WITHOUT A FACE by Marie Lu -★★★ / 5
12) A GIRL WHO DREAMED OF SNOW by McCormick Templeman -★ / 5
13) STITCHES by A.G. Howard -★★.5 / 5
14) ON THE I-5 by Kendare Blake -★★★ / 5 -
Exact average rating: 3.5 stars
What a fantastic anthology! Loved it. Some of the stories were phenomenal and there was only one I actively disliked. Overall, I'm very impressed with how original and strange some of these stories were. I feel like the authors really dared to do something different here. Although none of these short stories truly scared me, I still found them to be creepy and eerie. If you're in the mood for something fitting for Halloween, definitely pick this one up.
The Birds of Azalea Street by
Nova Ren Suma
4 stars
What is there to say? I would read a grocery list if it was written by Nova Ren Suma; that’s how much I love her writing style. She sucks you in from the first page and only needs a few sentences to establish an eerie atmosphere. She is one of those authors whose stories just seem to have such character that distinguishes them from others. The story didn’t scare me but it did give me the chills. A great choice to have this as the first one since it immediately puts you in the right state of mind for the rest of the anthology.
In the Forest Dark and Deep by
Carrie Ryan
4 stars
This one was inspired by Alice in Wonderland and it was excellent. Well-written and creepy, it gives you what you want from a YA horror anthology. It’s quite strange and dark and I especially loved the psychological aspect of the story. It was quite disturbing! I’m not sure if the skipping between timelines was a good idea in regards to the length of the story, which in my opinion wasn’t long enough to warrant so much back and forth, but I really enjoyed it regardless.
Emmeline by
Cat Winters
4 stars
Reading this story just proved to me again that I really need to read one of Cat Winters’ novels. This story is set in France towards the end of the First World War and the setting and writing style was just perfect for what was being conveyed. Again, this story isn’t really scary but it’s sad and tragic in a quiet sort of way, which is always my favourite.
Verse Chorus Verse by
Leigh Bardugo
3.5 stars
I love Leigh Bardugo so I had to make sure I didn’t go into this one biased. The idea was very interesting and found myself impressed yet again by how quickly and expertly Leigh Bardugo is able to create believable, distinctive characters that stick in your mind. The story was well-written and definitely hit the mark in terms of creepiness, however, I found myself let down by the ending, which I didn’t really grasp and just didn’t give me enough to be satisfied. If this story had been longer and things would have been cleared up more, I think it could have been my favourite (or second favourite) in the anthology.
Hide-and-Seek by
Megan Shepherd
3.5 stars
If you’re going to start a story with a quote from a book of Appalachian folktales, you better know that my expectations are going to be high because myths, legends and folktales are always my cup of tea. Imagine my disappointment when an enthusiastic Google search wielded no results. So apparently, the quote and tale originated from Megan Shepherd’s own mind (please correct if I’m wrong) and I found the idea to be quite intriguing. I don’t think the concept was exhausted as much as I would have liked, but I still really enjoyed the story and was taken aback by the ending.
The Dark, Scary Parts and All by
Danielle Paige
1.5 stars
I really didn’t like this one. In my opinion, it’s the “rotten egg” in the collection, the only one I can actively remember disliking. It contains all your typical YA tropes with the super-smart but has no friends Mary Sue protagonist, the drop-dead-gorgeous love interest that suddenly shows interest out of the blue and the high school mean girls that don’t go beyond one dimension. Lack of originality, annoying characters and unnecessary angst and melodrama made this one hard to get through and it didn’t even remotely hit the mark of establishing something scary or creepy.
The Flicker, The Fingers, The Beat, The Sigh by
April Genevieve Tucholke
2.5 stars
Although it had some potential, this story fell short for me. I finished it feeling underwhelmed. The concept was unoriginal and because it felt like something I had read before, it never succeeded in scaring me or creeping me out. What should have been a tragic story ended up just being a bit of a rehash with little depth. Also, I didn’t like the way the story was written; it felt very disjointed and confusing without actually adding anything significant to the story.
Fat Girl With a Knife by
Jonathan Maberry
3 stars
I really liked Dahlia, the main character, for her strong and distinctive voice and appreciated the diversity aspect of the story. Dahlia was what made this story so readable. Unfortunately, the plot was very predictable and I didn’t find it to be even remotely scary. Like the story by Danielle Paige, this one felt quite young and the high school setting didn’t really do it for me.
Sleepless by
Jay Kristoff
5 stars
From what I’ve seen of other people’s reviews this one seems to be a favourite and I have to agree. The story was well-written, creepy, unpredictable and had me at the edge of my seat throughout. It was just the right amount of strange and twisted and still remained credible. This is one I would love to see as a full-length novel, although I thought the short story format suited it very well. I really want to read Jay Kristoff’s other works now that are sitting on my shelf.
M by
Stefan Bachmann
3.5 stars
I love Stefan Bachmann as an author (I had the fortune of meeting and talking to him in person) but I have yet to be convinced by his storytelling. He has a beautiful, poetic writing-style reminiscent of the period this story is set in, but the overall plot just didn’t have me completely hooked. It was interesting, it had potential, but unfortunately, it failed to wow me.
The Girl Without a Face by
Marie Lu
4.5 stars
Another excellent one. It wasn’t quite as memorable as Jay Kristoff’s story but I totally loved it. It was creepy and atmospheric and had some important underlying themes. I loved the way the whole thing played out, the characters were interesting and I read it in one go because I couldn’t put it down. I adored the ending; it was so gut-wrenching and frightening and really made me think about karma and what guilt can do to people.
A Girl Who Dreamed of Snow by
McCormick Templeman
2.5 stars
This one left me with a bit of a question mark. I’m not actually sure what this story was trying to achieve and I found it quite boring to be honest. Again, the mythology and snowy, unique setting had me excited but McCormick Templeman wasn’t able to sustain that initial suspense. After a couple of pages I just found myself confused and wanted to know what was going on already. When I lose patience with a story like that, especially a short story, it’s not a very good sign.
Stitches by
A.G. Howard
4 stars
If I’d have to describe this story in one word it would be strange. This story was so disturbing yet calmly told that it really was quite scary. It’s the most graphic and gory one of the bunch but I found that to be a strong point. The inspiration of Frankenstein was definitely very obvious but I still felt like the author made it her own. The story was engaging and A.G. Howard had my attention from the opening line, which perfectly set the tone for the rest of the story.
On the I-5 by
Kendra Blake
3.5 stars
Another interesting one. The author keeps you guessing throughout and I was constantly on my toes. The main character was intriguing and quite badass which made the whole story very enjoyable. Unfortunately, I did feel somewhat disconnected to what was happening; this might however, be due to the fact that this is the last story. I think that by the end I had kind of seen it all and twists didn’t surprise me as much, which is a shame. Also, I’m just not a fan of third person present tense; I find it to be quite jarring at times. Regardless, this was still a very creepy story that perfectly combined horror and sadness.
On the whole, this is a very enjoyable anthology and I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys YA and is in the mood for something a little different. -
Updated 10/26/2015
I'm not usually a huge short story fan, but this collection? Oh man, this one was fantastically creepy. Sure, there were certain stories I liked more than others, but I thoroughly enjoyed every story in this collection! Cat Winters and A.G. Howard's were my top two. Just look at this first line from A.G. Howard's: "The first time the wrens sang at night was three years ago, when I used a rusty saw to cut off Pa's left foot." How can one not be hooked in by that line?!
While there are definitely paranormal stories this collection, I was surprised by how many touched on real life horrors: abusers, serial killers, stalkers, and other things that go bump in our real world. Each of the stories is inspired by a mixture of classic horror stories and movies, which is noted at the end of each. With Halloween right around the corner, this is the perfect book to get you ready for the season! Reading this will definitely become part of my yearly Halloween celebration.
Pre-Publication 12/10/2013
I want this. I want this now. Please?
-
3.5 out of 5 stars
This is a great anthology that I recommend for fans of light horror. I came waiting to be severely terrified, but I wasn’t. However, I thought most of these stories were quality writing, and some of them were a bit disturbing. I’m glad I read it and I hope you do too because it’s one of the best collections of short stories I’ve ever read!
Reviews for each story:
The Birds of Azalea Street by Nova Ren Suma: 4 ½ stars
Creepy atmosphere, even creepier writing. Nova Ren Suma’s style was perfect for this story. It didn’t scare me in a holy-shit-I-will-not-be-able-to-sleep-tonight way, but it did gave me many chills, especially when that girl came.
In the Forest Dark and Deep by Carrie Ryan: 4 stars“It had been a marvelous tea party.”
Ah, an ode to Alice In Wonderland! As you may expect, it was weird and creepy. Creepy but not in a nightmare-inducing sense – it was a bit disturbing more than anything. The calm way in which it was written only made it even more unsettling. This was a very good story.
Emmeline by Cat Winters: 4 stars
Wow, is a short story enough for me to confirm I like how an author writes? Because this was so good! Starts with a lonely girl in WWI France and seems like a simple story, but it’s actually a bit sad and unsettling once you read it all.
Verse Chorus Verse by Leigh Bardugo: 3 ½ stars
Sigh. Not bad, but not the best one either. I think Emmeline overshadowed this one and that’s why I didn’t love it as much. Still, creepy atmosphere + beautiful writing = happy Vane.
Hide-and-Seek by Megan Shepherd: 3 stars
A girl cheats death with a hide-and-seek game. I thought this story was very clever, but I felt it was a little pointless (?). Not bad at all, though.
The Dark, Scary Parts and All by Danielle Paige: 1 star“But Damien Thorne was not supposed to be looking at me. He was supposed to be looking at someone with longer limbs, a face with more angles than circles, and a dress that was bought this decade.”
Oh my GOD. Ugh. This is another of those typical stories that promise to be full of badassery and darkness but in reality are full of bullshit and drama and a stupid romance.He put a hand on my back—was he going to kill me or kiss me?
I wish this story was not included in this anthology. What’s worse is that only the first sentence of it was enough for me to hate it.
The Flicker, the Fingers, the Beat, the Sigh by April Genevieve Tucholke: 3 stars
This was like a combination of Carrie and I Know What You Did Last Summer. Gonna admit, though, I know it’s similar to IKWYDLS because my father had told me about the original premise of that movie and the events in this story reminded me to that… and a little about Carrie, of course. However, I think this fell a little short because it never managed to encompass the tragedy and creepiness of Carrie.
Fat Girl With a Knife by Jonathan Maberry: 3 stars
I liked Dahlia, the heroine, more than anything else. This is a zombie story, but I think those only work for giving you adrenaline, not actual fear – for making me afraid, give me despicable, fucked-up human beings (err, I mean, entirely human humans, if that makes sense) and I will surely be disturbed.
Sleepless by Jay Kristoff: 4 stars
Talking about the Internet, are we? This is the kind of story I like the most. It starts simple and there’s nothing scary about it, but once a certain truth is revealed, everything that had happened before suddenly turns out disturbing. Well done, Kristoff, well done.
M by Stefan Bachmann: 3 ½ stars
This was a slight mystery, but it also gave me chills! There was a rhyme sung by children and those songs ALWAYS manage to be creepy! I don’t know why, though.
The Girl Without A Face by Marie Lu: 4 ½ stars
Horrifying, horrifying, horrifying. Pure horror at its core. I missed being scared like this! Really, I can’t remember the last book that actually creeped me out. Can you remember? I’d really love to know, because Marie Lu just managed to scare the hell out of me, and I’m not an easy one to impress with horror literature.
A Girl Who Dreamed of Snow by McCormick Templeman: 2 stars
I don’t know if this rating is owed to the fact that I read this over my excitement for
Six of Crows, but I found myself bored with this story. I can’t even remember what it was about. I recall a girl and aboy talking and other stuff, but that’s all.
Stitches by A.G. Howard: 4 starsThe first time the wrens sang at night was three years ago, when I used a rusty saw to cut off Pa’s left foot. The birds drowned out his screams.
Holy Christ! The imagery in this story was vivid in adisturbingly delicious monstrumologicalway that screams “squeamish people turn the other way” level. I really liked it. It was engaging and easy to follow. Plus, it was told in such a calm way it felt a even more disturbing!
On the I-5 by Kendare Blake: 3 ½ starsDo you think, dead girl, that there’s a special place for girls like us? Do you think we always to go heaven, no matter what we done before?
Such a complex and fascinating character in few pages. How is that possible? Anyway, I would have rated this higher if it hadn’t felt so rushed, but that is not to say this is a bad story, becasue it wasn’t! The few pages it lasted I spent them on the edge of my seat! The other thing that didn’t work for me was the writing: 3rd person, present tense, but really, this was so short it was easy to forget about that aspect!
(Note: I wrote each mini review right after finishing each story) -
"Not all monsters are filled with darkness."
The Birds of Azalea Street by Nova Ren Suma - 4.5 stars
Wow, what a great start for an anthology. The moment I started this one, I've already got the eerie feeling and the creeps. I've got totally nervous, thanks to the compelling writing-style and vivid description and story-telling of Nova Ren Suma.
In the Forest Dark and Deep by Carrie Ryan - 4 stars
At first, I thought this will be meh but few pages later and after it dawned to me what the fuck is happening, "Bloodydamn! that was a sick tea-parties" is all I could say.
Emmeline by Cat Winters - 3 stars
Great story-telling but didn't really spooked me at all.
Verse, Chorus, Verse by Leigh Bardugo - 3.5 stars
Leigh Bardugo, what is the meaning of that? Tell me more. Can't get out of my head. Dammit! I'm creeped out!
Hide and Seek by Megan Shephard - 3.5 stars
Fast-paced. Great plot. Engaging. Just lacked of the thrill. It didn't make me nervous but it surely got me excited to what will happen next.
The Dark, Scary Parts and All by Danielle Paige - 2.5 stars
It was all good until the main character felt like a typical YA heroine.
The Flicker, The Finger, The Beat, The Sigh by April Genevieve Tucholke - 3.5 stars
The ending is quite weak for me but the start is fascinating.
Fat Girl With A Knife by Jonathan Maberry - 3 stars
I enjoyed reading it rather than being scared and all. Loved the main character!
Sleepless by Jay Kristoff - 5 stars
My favorite! Truly compelling and surely creepy as hell. Revenge pa more!
M by Stefan Bachmann - 4 stars
More like a detective story but it is still all good especially with the children singing a dark alphabet song.
The Girl Without A Face by Marie Lu - 4.5 stars
Messed up with my brain. Psychologically creepy and truly scary.
The Girl Who Dreamed of Snow by McCormick Templeman - 3.5 stars
Unique but lacked of horror and suspense.
Stitches by A. G. Howard - 5 stars
My second favorite! Bloody! Gore! Graphic! Stomach-churning! Great plot!
On the I-5 by Kendra Blake - 4 stars
Weird and mysterious. But those were the reason why I liked this one plus dead girls! -
I’m genuinely surprised by how much I loved this collection as a whole. I’ve never been one for short stories and I hadn’t heard the best things about this one to begin with, but I thoroughly enjoyed this! My ratings for each individual story are as follows:
THE BIRDS OF AZALEA STREET - 4 stars
IN THE FOREST DARK AND DEEP - 4 stars
EMMELINE - 2 stars
VERSE CHORUS VERSE -3 stars
HIDE-AND-SEEK - 2 stars
THE DARK, SCARY PARTS AND ALL - 1 star
THE FLICKER, THE FINGERS, THE BEAT, THE SIGH - 1 star
FAT GIRL WITH A KNIFE - 1 star
SLEEPLESS - 5 stars
M - 1 star
THE GIRL WITHOUT A FACE - 4 stars
A GIRL WHO DREAMED OF SNOW - 2 stars
STITCHES - 3 stars
ON THE I-5 - 4 stars -
I originally read this in 2015. Someone recently asked me if I ever reviewed this so when I came here to get the link to it, I read through my old review and realized that I didn't remember most of the stories but my reviews made them all sound so interesting. So I picked it up again, this time listening to the audiobook (which I recommend!). My favorites were the same. Below is my original review with a few notes where my thoughts changed during my re-read.
The quick version: This was the perfect book for October, it did a great job of setting an eerie tone. There is a good mix of genres from zombies to hauntings, to just a good ol' murder mystery. Not all of the stories are creepy or scary, so I think there is a good mix for everyone. Overall I give this book 4 stars because I enjoyed the majority of the stories and it gave me the chills I was looking for for this time of year.
My favorite story was Sleepless by Jay Kristoff. I was surprised that this is my favorite because I picked this book up wanting that spine tingling feeling, and this story was one of the least outright creepy. But it had some surprises and I found myself gripped by it the most.
The creepiest stories (to me), if that's all you're after, were In the Forest Dark and Deep, The Girl Without a Face, and Stitches.
And here's my breakdown of each story if you want to know more.
The Birds of Azalea Street by Nova Ren Suma 3 stars
A great start for setting the tone of the book. Eerie but not creepy.
In the Forest Dark and Deep by Carrie Ryan 5 stars
This was the creepiest story for me. I was really freaked out by the imagery. There is quite a bit of gore in this one. I was also really glad to see that this wasn't a zombie story since I know Carrie has written many short stories in her Forest of Hands and Teeth world. I would actually enjoy a full length novel of this one. It would have been nice to have the events explained, but not knowing actually added to the thrill in this case.
Emmeline by Cat Winters 1 star
This was the weakest story in my opinion. I've heard this story so many times and feel like the short story brought nothing new to the table. Predictable and very juvenile in terms of how the characters spoke and acted.
Verse Chorus Verse by Leigh Bardugo3 stars2 stars
There was a fair amount of creepiness to this story, however I felt like the story was kind of jumbled. This was one that would have benefited from a bit less backstory and more explanation of the current events. Update: Upon rereading, there was even less to this story than I remembered. One barely creepy scene. I think it relies a lot on the reader needing to make assumptions. There's also unchecked fat shaming of multiple characters by multiple characters.
Hide-and-Seek by Megan Shepherd 4 stars
This was one of the less creepy stories in the book but I really enjoyed it. It was kind of playful and thrilling without scaring your pants off.
The Dark, Scary Parts and All by Danielle Paige 3 stars
This one was interesting, but I thought it could have been a bit more thrilling. I liked it but it kind of ended up in the middle of the pack for me.
The Flicker, the Fingers, the Beat, the Sigh by April Genevieve Tucholke 4 stars
Another story that isn't obviously creepy, but it really got into my head. This was my first time reading anything by April and I definitely want to check out her books now.
Fat Girl with a Knife by Jonathan Maberry4 stars1 star
Wasn't surprised to see a zombie story by Jonathan Maberry. I've only read the first book in his Rot and Ruin series, and I don't know if Fat Girl With a Knife fits into that world or not, but I enjoyed the story for what it was - the first day of a zombie apocalypse. In the few pages it had, he made me root for the main character, and it was interesting to see her discover zombies for the first time. Update: My prior review is still true but during my reread I realized that 50% of the story is describing the character's weight in very harmful ways. It's said that she can't be pretty because she is fat, that skinny equals pretty and good. A lot of the character's thoughts are about working out or dieting, which seem to say that she's only valid because she tried to lose weight. She rally had no personality beyond that.
Sleepless by Jay Kristoff 5 stars
My favorite of the bunch! Again, I've never read anything by Jay Kristoff but I want to read everything by him now. Parts of this story are told in IM format, and he captured that really well. This story had the most plot progression of all the stories in this collection, and I was caught off guard a few times. I didn't find this one to be THAT creepy, but it was chilling in a this-can-happen-in-the-real-world kind of way. Would read an entire novel about this premise! I also just really enjoyed the classic it was inspired by and Jay's modern interpretation of it.
M by Stefan Bachmann 3 stars
This story had a blind protagonist. This one was more of a straight forward murder mystery. Enjoyable, but I think it was just too short for me to be very invested in a murder mystery.
The Girl Without a Face by Marie Lu 5 stars
This is arguably the most creepy story in the book, and I made the mistake of reading it before bed. Definitely will give many readers a good scare. It's another of the best plot progressions in this collection.
A Girl Who Dreamed of Snow by McCormick Templeman 2 stars
I felt this story and world were just too large scale for the short format. It didn't give me enough time to care about what was going on. The horror element in this story was much more fantasy than horror, so it also wasn't very creepy to me. This story seemed very well developed, however it was the slowest and most difficult to get into because it was fantasy and I was more in the mood for contemporary quick thrills.
Stitches by A.G. Howard 5 stars
Another fantastically paced short story. This one is the most gory of the bunch, definitely not for the squeamish reader. Again, I loved the story this one was inspired by and this interpretation of it. The characters were some of the most interesting in this book. Would love more of this story, but I do think it was very suited to a short story.
On the I-5 by Kendare Blake1 star3 stars
I really just didn't know what was going on here, and therefore was unsure why I should care. It could have possibly worked better as a longer story to allow for more explanation, but overall it just wasn't something I enjoyed, and even if it were longer I don't think I would have felt any more satisfied or interested. Update: I didn't remember this story at all, but on my reread I didn't hate it as much as my original 1 star review. I actually now feel that it works well as a short story, although I still would like to know more about what was actually happening to these girls. -
EDIT:I have to put the name of the short stories and their respective authors to help my fellow readers know what kind of awesomeness does this book have.
GIF from Cat Winter's Tumblr blog
The Birds of Azalea Street by Nova Ren Suma
In the Forest Dark and Deep by Carrie Ryan
Emmeline by Cat Winters
Verse, Chorus, Verse by Leigh Bardugo
Hide and Seek by Megan Shephard
The Dark, Scary Parts and All by Danielle Paige
The Flicker, The Finger, The Beat, The Sigh by April Genevieve Tucholke
Fat Girl With A Knife by Jonathan Maberry
Sleepless by Jay Kristoff
M by Stefan Bachmann
The Girl Without A Face by Marie Lu
The Girl Who Dreamed of Snow by McCormick Templeman
Stitches by A. G. Howard
On the I-5 by Kendra Blake
This book has stories about urban legends, monsters, dark human natures and pure mind fuckery.
This is probably one of the most amazing anthologies ever published.
Slasher Girls & Monster Boys is book made ofunicorn poop, dashed with the blood of the innocents and sprinkled with dragon dustthrilling short stories guaranteed to raise those little hairs in your neck.
Ya'll need to read this book one short story at a time. One story is enough to give you troubled sleep. Don't push your luck.
-
So... this sound potentially badass, no?
-
I really enjoyed this anthology - though I wouldn't personally have put it in the horror genre as very few stories were terrifying or truly creepy. Regardless, it impressed me immensely and gave me a bunch of new authors I want to read more from now!
My favourites short stories were by Nova Rensuma, Megan Sheperd, Jay Kristoff and Marie Lu.
Serious props to April Genevieve Tucholke for putting this collection together. The stories all felt placed very specifically, and I appreciated the true mixture of ideas - we have fantasy, paranormal, realistic, and imaginary monsters all in there, plus sometimes our narrator was the victim, and other times the villain - the best part was going into each story not knowing which it would be.
The Birds of Azalea Street by Nova Rensuma 5/5
In the Forest Dark and Deep by Carrie Ryan 3.5/5
Emmaline by Cat Winters. 5/5
Verse Chorus Verse by Leigh Bardugo 2.75/5
Hide and Seek by Megan Shepherd 5/5
The Flicker, The Fingers, The Beat, The Sigh by April Genevieve Tucholke 2/5
Fat Girl with a Knife by Jonathan Maberry 3/5
Sleepless by Jay Kristoff. 5/5
M by Stefan Bachmann 3.5/5
The girl without a face by Marie Lu. 5/5
A girl who dreamed of snow - McCormick Templeman 3/5
Stitches by AG Howard. 4.5/5
On the I-5 by Kendare Blare. 3.75/5 -
Really enjoyed this one! I have a full video review where I rate each short story coming next week!
-
Buddy reading with the lovely
Bunny
We'll be reading a bunch of short stories every week until Halloween (starting next monday) :D
The Birds of Azalea street by Nova Ren Suma:. 4 Stars
I was surprised by how good this story was! A fantastic start to the collection. I was so close to being put off by the birds because of
Magonia but in the end I really enjoyed this story.
In The Forest Dark and Deep by Carrie Ryan: 5 Stars
*gasps* This one you guys!
Emmeline by Cat Winters: 3 Stars
Creepy historical fiction with a touch of romance. I didn't really get into it. This was more disturbing than scary but still an enjoyable read.
"Boys were curious creatures by nature."
Verse Chorus Verse by Leigh Bardugo: 2 stars
I'm not sure I understood what happened in this one. I have a love hate relationship with Leigh Bardugo.
Hide-and-Seek by Megan Shepherd: 5stars
My favorite story so far. I absolutely adored it.
That ending!
The Dark, Scary Parts And All by Danielle Paige: 1 star
I didn't even finish this one, just nop.
TheFlicker, The Fingers, The Beat, The Sigh by April Genevieve Tucholke 4stars
This one was written by the person who edited this anthology. I really enjoyed it and I'm really interested to see more from this author.
Fat Girl With a Knife by Jonathan Maberry 3stars
Ooh I wasn't expecting the twist at all! It was really well done.
Sleepless by Jay Kristoff 5stars
One of the creepiest stories of this collection.
M by Stefan Bachmann 3 stars
Got a little boring in the middle but still a good story.
The Girl Without a Face by Marie Lu 4 stars
This one was really good. Not my favorite of the collection but I think it was well done. Can't wait to read more of Marie Lu's writing
A Girl Who Dreamed of Snow by McCormick Templeman:3 stars
A good creepy story. It started off a little boring but the ending was amazing.
Stitches by A.G. Howard: 4 stars
One of the creepiest stories in this collection. It was gory and pretty graphic. This one will give me nightmares for sure!
On the I-5 by Kendare Blake: 2stars
Meh. This one was weird. I didn't really like it. -
The Birds of Azalea Street by Nova Ren Suma
3 Stars
Very odd.
Inspired by Alfred Hitchcock's Rear Window and The Birds.
In the Forest Dark and Deep by Carrie Ryan
4 Stars
Such a twisted story.
Inspired by the 1951 animated film and novel Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll.
Emmeline by Cat Winters
Pretty generic and easily predictable.
2 Stars
Inspired by the 1930 film All Quiet in the Western Front, the 1952 short story Kiss Me Again Stranger, and the 1922 film Nosferatu.
Verse Chorus Verse by Leigh Bardugo
5 Stars
That ending though...
Inspired by the song Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle by Nirvana.
Hide-and-Seek by Megan Shepherd
4 Stars
This was an interesting take on hide and seek.
Inspired by the Final Destination films, The Crow, and Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure.
The Dark, Scary Parts and All by Danielle Paige
2.5 Stars
Kind of predictable... Not a lot of suspense.
Inspired by the 1976 film The Omen and Mary Shelley's novel Frankenstein.
The Flicker, the Fingers, the Beat, and the Sigh by April Genevieve Tucholke
2 Stars
I want to believe that people are good and with stories like this it breaks my heart. I know its only a story but there are people in this world who think like this and make mistakes like these.
Inspired by the Stephen King novel Carrie and the 1997 film I Know What You Did Last Summer.
Fat Girl with a Knife by Jonathan Maberry
2 Stars
So predictable...
Inspired by the films Zombieland and Night of the Living Dead.
Sleepless by Jay Kristoff
4 Stars
Kind of predictable but still has some suspense. Overall, was a good story but Psycho is one of my favorite movies.
Inspired by the 1960 film Psycho and Mudvayne's song Nothing to Gein.
M by Stefan Bachmann
3.5 Stars
This is a historical fiction short story told from the perspective of a young blind girl. This was an interesting murder mystery.
Inspired by the 1931 film M and the 1970's television series Upstairs, Downstairs.
The Girl Without a Face by Marie Lu
4 Stars
This one started out creepy but then the story is explained in more detail.
Inspired by the films What Lies Beneath and Los ojos de Julia.
A Girl Who Dreamed of Snow by McCormick Templeman
2 Stars
This story was boring. More of a fantasy telling than spooky story.
Inspired by the 1968 film Kuroneko.
Stiches by A.G. Howard
4.5 Stars
This was an eerie Frankenstein retelling. It was the perfect amount of creepy!
Inspired by Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.
On the I-5 by Kendare Blake
3 Stars
This was a vengeful short story.
Inspired by the films Death Proof and the Hitcher. -
I DNFed a few stories since I was too much of a chickenshit. I don't do well with horror, especially alone..
Anyway I wanted to read this mostly just for Leigh Bardugo's story and it ended up be being one of the stories I actually hated the most xD
Ahh the irony. 💜 -
Below is a rating and mini review (spoiler free) for each story in this anthology so you get a better idea of my thoughts instead of just a general star rating. Just know that going into this book I was terrified and I'm not sure yet how I'll feel coming out the other side...but here I go.
From what I can tell each of these stories was inspired by other horror stories or movies and I really really love that idea!
1. The Birds of Azalea Street by Nova Ren Suma
4 stars
This is a terrifying story for a few reasons, and none of them had much to do with the murder that took place of who committed it. Nope, this is creepy because it's real and raw and much too relatable. You have a creepy town lurker who is single and prays on the young girls in the town in a multitude of ways. The "harmless" guy that no parent believes would dare to harm their little girls but harbors the most evil thoughts toward them. Yeah, not cool...but so well written.
2. In the Forest Dark and Deep by Carrie Ryan
4 stars
Holy wow, what!? This is a creepy Alice in Wonderland inspired story and I have no love for that story (or the movies) but this one was not okay. I was worried this would give me nightmares about the woods (which I love) but I don't think it will. It will, however, make me regret my love of tea on cold fall nights. Also, Cassidy may scare me more than the "villain" in this story-- the girl is twisted.
3. Emmeline by Cat Winters
2 stars
This one felt oddly predictable in a collection that until now has felt really original. It was okay but nothing scary or particularly wow-worthy for me, personally.
4. Verse Chorus Verse by Leigh Bardugo
3 stars
I wanted to love this story because it's Leigh and she's life, but it fell a little flat for me. The spooky aspect was there in the end but for the majority of the story, I wasn't thrilled or horrified, just angry at the mother in the story. Still, I enjoyed it.
5. Hide and Seek by Megan Shephard
2 stars
This one is bloodier than others I've read so far but it still rang a little TOO close to the inspiration for the short story. I loved the folklore behind it and the way that was woven in, though! Still a quick and "fun" read but not a game I'm looking to play any time soon.
6. The Dark, Scary Parts and All by Danielle Paige
4 stars
Sure this was all kinds of mean girls and girl on girl hate--which I dislike in stories, but it takes a Carrie/Omen story and turns it on its head. I really enjoyed this read!
7. The Flicker, the Finger, The Beat, The Sigh by April Genevieve Techolke
3 stars
A secret love between the nerdy girl and the popular boy turned sour for the win. I did enjoy this story even if the retribution and the ending seemed rushed as heck. I will say, though, that the whole popular kids who are all coupled off and do shitty things so their perfect lives aren't ruined--yuck.
8. Fat Girl with a Knife by Jonathan Maberry
2 stars
This felt underdeveloped and weak to me. Creepy, sure. And it wasn't nearly as fat shaming as I anticipated it being...but it also wasn't particularly great, either. Just not my fave story.
9. Sleepless by Jay Kristoff
4 stars
This was the one story that I was told would haunt me, would creep me out, and it was one of the few stories that didn't really do that for me. Sure, I enjoyed it--it's Jay's writing -- duh. However, it was one of the few stories whose source material I knew well enough to see twists coming. It was pretty clear to me what was going on from the start of the story and while there was a twist that I appreciated, I didn't get freaked out by the story. Still, I loved the message and it was super well written.
10. M by Stefan Backmann
3 stars
This is told from the POV of a blind girl and there's nothing creepier than a murder mystery when you can't see the killer coming. I was getting serious Clue and Secret Garden vibes with this story and I really liked it. Anything set in an old-timey mansion just creeps me right the heck out.
11. The Girl Without a Face by Marie Lu
3 stars
Closet monsters take on a whole new meaning but also...undiscussed themes of self-harm, insinuated sexual assault, and suicide that could have been handled a bit better. I got some heavy House of Leaves type vibes with a creepy closet that defied spacial awareness and I loved it!
12. The Girl Who Dreamed of Snow by McCormick Templeton
Honestly-I can't remember this story AT ALL when sitting down to write this review. I may have read it in a sleepy haze and so i'm skipping rating or review on this one.
13. Stitches by A.G. Howard
2 stars
What did I just read? I don't understand the magic system in this story or how a young girl was able to dismember and sew back together her father...at all. It wasn't written poorly but I just don't understand anything that happened here.
14. On the I-5 by Kendare Blake
3 stars
This was on okay story, too. Avenging girls who prey on the predators...I'm here for it.
I spent the end of the month trying to wrap this book up and found myself feeling totally unethused about the ending ones because I was just done with spooky reading and over reading in general. So, forgive the lackluster reviews of the ending stories-I'm certain I didn't give them enough credit. Sorry bout that! -
In honor of it being the first week of October (a.k.a. the greatest month of the year)
I decided to finally pick up Slasher Girls and Monster Boys, a collection of short stories dealing with all things scary and creepy.
The Birds of Azalea Street by Nova Ren Suma: 4 stars"We suspected. We’d told tales. We’d heightened our stories into gross and grandiose lies. And even with all of that, we never really thought we were in danger.”
This was a great way to start to the collection, it was filled with creepy birds and creepy men. This is the first thing I’ve ever read from Suma but her eerie writing style makes me want to go pick up one of her books.
In the Forest Dark and Deep by Carrie Ryan: 4.5 stars"This was worse than before. This was more. This was a massacre."
I really liked this one! It’s got an Alice in Wonderland theme to it, and the tone of the writing, so calm and detached, made the story very creepy and disturbing.
Emmeline by Cat Winters: 4 stars"Boys were curious creatures by nature."
Amazing story-telling! This one wasn’t very scary but it was pretty sad, and takes place in Northern France during World War One.
Verse Chorus Verse by Leigh Bardugo: 3.5 stars"They say you’re crazy, I’m crazy too.”
This one was pretty creepy, also kind of confusing. It's about a teen superstar who was sent to rehab after a driving accident and finds that things aren’t what they seem at Wellways
Hide and Seek by Megan Shepherd: 4.5 stars"Don’t expect death to play by the rules. Death is not a person. Death cannot be reasoned with. In death, as in life, nothing is fair.”
When Annie dies, she challenges death to a hide-and-seek game, if she can beat death, her life will be hers again. In a 24-hour hide and seek marathon, Annie has to avoid death and all the traps he sets up for her. I thought the story was clever, fast-paced, and I breezed through this pretty quickly.
The Dark, Scary Parts and All by Danielle Paige: 1.5 stars"It wasn’t just that no one ever touched me. It was that he was the one who just had. My insides strained for more.”
*sigh*
Supernatural love interest, high school mean girls, and a Mary Sue. Why?!
The Flicker, The Fingers, The Beat, The Sigh by April Genevieve Tucholke: 3 stars"She was looking at me when the car hit her..."
This one was okay. It’s based on two well-known horror stories: I Know What You Did Last Summer and Carrie. It wasn’t very scary and nowhere near as good as the original stories.
Fat Girl With a Knife by Jonathan Maberry: 3 stars"That's when Dahlia knew that something was a lot more wrong than boyfriend problems."
This one was just okay as well. It was entertaining but not creepy or scary at all. It’s a zombie story that introduces Dahlia, the schools “fat girl”, she was definitely my favorite part of the whole story.
Sleepless by Jay Kristoff: 4.5 stars"I want to sleep, Wolfie.” She sighs the words, and I see the red veins scrawled across those big gray eyes. “Just a single night without one of them finding me. Pleading. Waking me in the dark.”
This is one of my favorite ones! It’s full of twists and turns, most of them I didn’t see coming. I was sufficiently creeped out.
M by Stefan Bachman: 3.5 stars"M is for Misha, who stifled his screams . . .”
Children terrify me (I’m not kidding). You know what’s even scarier? Children singing creepy rhymes. Misha is our blind narrator and this story is more mystery than horror. But the whole time I was picturing myself sitting in a dark room and children singing creepy rhymes all around me.
The Girl Without a Face by Marie Lu: 5 stars"Go away, he whispered into the darkness. Tears ran down his cheeks. I didn’t mean it. I’m sorry.”
Omg.
This one was amazing! Definitely one of the scariest ones and psychologically creepy. This was one intense but also sad story.
A Girl Who Dreamed of Snow by McCormick Templeman: 2.5 stars"And now there were whispers of something coming, something catastrophic sweeping ever closer."
This story wasn't as good as some of the others. It definitely had a unique premise but I found it to be a bit boring.
Stitches by A.G. Howard: 4 stars"The birds drowned out his screams."
This was so fucked up. Definitely not one for the faint of heart! It wasn’t very scary, but it was gory and pretty graphic.
On the I-5 by Kendare Blake: 3.5 stars"She wasn't stupid. She was just sad. And young."
This one was kind of weird, but I really liked it. It was creepy, kept me at the edge of my seat, and had a pretty good ending (would have been better if it wasn’t so rushed).
I don’t read many anthologies, but this one was fantastic! I enjoyed almost every single story and definitely recommend it. -
Average Rating 3.5 Stars
The Birds of Azalea Street by Nova Ren Suma – 3 Stars
Three teenage girls playing with things they shouldn’t. Enjoyable, creepy and a bit twisted. The first few pages reminded me of Shia LaBeouf’s movie Disturbia. The writing evoked a slightly eerie style. I liked the ending, interesting how karma works, even if someone intervenes.
In The Forest Dark And Deep by Carrie Ryan – 5 Stars
Another AiW retelling, I seem to have thing for these. This one had graphic gruesome scenes. Simple straight forward writing. The MC Cassidy could easily belong in a Gillian Flynn novel. Marvelous suspenseful ending.
“Darkness grew where it would and took what it wanted. It staked its claim and never let go”
Emmeline by Cat Winters – 3.5 Stars
Classic ghost story filled with longing, fueled by sentimental aspects this one was very short and precise with a couple of metaphorical sentences.
“The next night my old friend the moon would return, casting his silvery spell, and I would wait. I was always a patient girl. I could wait.”
Verse Chorus Verse by Leigh Bardugo – 1 Star
It reminded me of Britney Spears’ downward spiral back in 2008 and when Miley Cyrus did that cover shoot for Vanity Fair in which she shows her bare back and everyone was so scandalized by it.
This piece had too much history and more background than a short story might need. Plot wise, it felt too dense. I wasn’t even sure if this was a mystery, or suspense, or horror, at times it was a bit of everything.
Hide-And-Seek by Megan Shepherd – 4 Stars
It starts with a fable. Clever main character trying to cheat death. Very fast paced and engaging.
The Dark Scary Parts And All by Danielle Paige – 3 Stars
Casper style, girl with peculiar clothes moves with her father to creepy mansion. Interesting and suspenseful enough events were unfolding but the story took a turn I wasn’t particularly fond of.
The Flicker, The Fingers, The Beat, The Sigh by April Genevieve Tucholke – 3.5 Stars
I didn’t enjoy the writing and dialogues for the most part of this story, a bit too cheerful and annoying for my taste, and sadly it didn’t fuse well with the last page which was wonderfully melancholic.
Up until this point I���ve accidentally ignored the footnotes…
Fat Girl With a Knife by Jonathan Maberry – 1.5 Stars
Two years ago I started reading Maberry’s Rot and Ruin and after only 8 pages, I gave up on it. The thing is, there wasn’t anything inherently wrong with that book like it wasn’t with this short story either, but neither of those managed to grasp my attention and interest. But I love Zombieland and I appreciate how the author injected the same kind of humor into his short story.
Sleepless by Jay Kristoff – 4.5 Stars
Although I knew of the film, I haven’t seen Psycho and didn’t know its plot, so I didn’t know where this was going. I read this story three days ago and I’m still having flashbacks. I’m always so iffy when there’s online chatting within a story but in this one it was obviously an essential part of the plot and ugh the beginning was so convincing, I mean, with horror or mystery stories we’re always looking for clues to decipher whatever is happening. Like I said…still thinking about it. -
Slasher Girls & Monster Boys is an anthology of short-stories that fall in the genre of young-adult horror/thriller. Most titles also had some type of paranormal or fantasy element as well. Each story was inspired by some past piece of work and I personally had a bit of fun guessing the inspiration for each as they were told. Some were delightfully clear, granting me a feeling of nostalgia, and some were inspired by works I am unfamiliar with. As with most anthologies, a few stories stood out to me more than others but all-in-all, I enjoyed this book as a whole and would recommend it to readers who enjoy young-adult anthologies.
I experienced this collection via audio, which was read by a full cast. The short stories are listed in order below, along with their authors, individual ratings (based on my personal enjoyment), and a brief review. An average of the ratings below equals 3.5 stars, which I rounded up to 4 on goodreads.
1. THE BIRDS OF AZALEA STREET by
Nova Ren Suma
★★★★★
This is a story of protectiveness in the face of a potential predator with ill intent and it left a satisfying smile on my face. I loved it.
-Inspired by Alfred Hitchcock's Rear Window and The Birds.
2. IN THE FOREST DARK AND DEEP by
Carrie Ryan
★★★☆☆
I am unfamiliar with Ms. Ryan's popular series so I was excited to get a glimpse inside of the world she writes. This short-story is fast-paced and engaging, but I am not a fan of Alice in Wonderland which was an evident focal theme. Regardless, I am intrigued by Ms. Ryan's writing style and plan to check out more of what she has authored.
-Inspired by Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and the 1951 animated film Alice in Wonderland.
3. EMMELINE by
Cat Winters
★★☆☆☆
A sad historical romance set in World War I that unfortunately didn't hold my attention much at all.
-Inspired by the 1930 film All Quiet on the Western Front, the 1952 short-story Kiss Me Again Stranger, and the 1922 film Nosferatu.
4. VERSE CHORUS VERSE by
Leigh Bardugo
★★★★☆
I am a HUGE fan of Ms. Bardugo and sought out this anthology for this story alone. But why not read the whole book?!? This one is more contemporary with some fantastical elements versus the pure fantasy I have come to love about Ms. Bardugo. Regardless, it was very good with a delightfully creepy ending.
-Inspired by Nirvana's song Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle.
5. HIDE-AND-SEEK by
Megan Shepherd
★☆☆☆☆
This story didn't stay with me for very long unfortunately and having it broken up into "parts" became annoying in my opinion. That combined with the fact this is the longest short-story in the collection didn't make it a very enjoyable experience for me personally.
-Inspired by the films Final Destination, The Crow, and Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure.
6. THE DARK, SCARY PARTS AND ALL by
Danielle Paige
★☆☆☆☆
Lots of young-adult interpersonal drama that again didn't do much for me personally. After two 1-star (IMO) stories in a row I was starting to give up on this anthology at this point.
-Inspired by the 1976 film The Omen and Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.
7. THE FLICKER, THE FINGERS, THE BEAT, THE SIGH by
April Genevieve Tucholke
★★★★☆
This was like reading the script for a classic high-school horror movie. While it wasn't incredibly original, I thoroughly enjoyed it nonetheless.
-Inspired by Stephen King's Carrie and the 1997 film I Know What You Did Last Summer.
8. FAT GIRL WITH A KNIFE by
Jonathan Maberry
★★★★☆
An age-old zombie story set in a current-day high school, with all the social dynamics that go along with it. I really liked this one but it ended a bit abrupt for my liking.
-Inspired by the films Zombieland and Night of the Living Dead.
9. SLEEPLESS by
Jay Kristoff
★★★★★
OMG! Have to say this one was my favorite in this collection. It is sooooo disturbing. Kinda feels like two stories in one. I won't say anything more for fear of spoiling.
-Inspired by the 1960 film Psycho and Mudvayne's song Nothing To Gein.
10. M by
Stefan Bachmann
★☆☆☆☆
Didn't really care much for this historical tale - I just wanted it to be over. The audiobook narrator may have had something to do with this though. The narration was incredibly annoying in my opinion.
-Inspired by the 1931 film M and the 1970's television series Upstairs, Downstairs.
11. THE GIRL WITHOUT A FACE by
Marie Lu
★★★★★
This one is crazy! Have you ever wondered if there is any truth (even the paranormal kind) behind the thinking and actions of those labeled insane? This one was spot on horror in my opinion.
-Inspired by the films What Lies Beneath and Los ojos de Julia.
12. A GIRL WHO DREAMED OF SNOW by
McCormick Templeman
★★★★☆
Very engaging and enjoyable - had a dark fantasy feel to it. Has me interested in this author and urgently interested in watching the film which inspired this short-story.
-Inspired by the 1968 film Kuroneko.
13. STITCHES by
A.G. Howard
★★★★★
Loved this one. I was completely engaged in this story and it was surprisingly the perfect length. Win/Win!
-Inspired by Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.
14. ON THE I-5 by
Kendare Blake
★★★★★
Wow - murdered girls, vigilantes, and revenge. A satisfying theme combined with one truly horrific scene. Super short but I loved it!
-Inspired by the films Death Proof and The Hitcher.
Check out the Slasher Girls & Monster Boys web page
HERE for some super creepy gifs made especially for this anthology. -
2.9
Buddy read with Simo, Claudia, Lu, Dreams and Maggi :)
Day one - The birds of Azalea Street by Nova Ren Suma: 3 stars
It was lovely rather than creepy I think. I mean, maybe it's twisted to describe it as lovely, because it's not a sweet short story, but it didn't scare me. I'll settle for disquieting then. I was not impressed by it, but it was well written.
Day two - In the forest dark and deep by Carrie Ryan: 4.5 stars
Not scary, but so so so good! I loved this short story, it was spooky and disquieting like I expected. The atmosphere was perfect, fairy-tale-like, but dark and ambiguous at the same time. I surely didn't expect to like this one so much, but I am really impressed by how it fit into the anthology.
Day three - Emmeline by Cat Winters: 3 stars
Well written but certainly not spooky. I liked the creepy-romance thing, and the atmosphere but I wouldn't call it a horror story. It's sad, but spooky? Not so much.
Day four - Verse Chorus Verse by Leigh Bardugo: 3 stars
It's difficult to tell whether I liked this short story or not. I think that Bardugo is one of the best writers in this anthology and it's clear that she's an excellent writer. However, maybe because I expected something different, maybe because this isn't my kind of story, I can't bring myself to give Verse Chorus Verse more than 3.5 stars.
Day five - Hide-and-seek by Megan Sheperd: 4 stars
I really liked this one. It wasn't disquieting until the end, but I loved the idea itself and the characters.
Day Six - The dark, Scary parts and all by Danielle Paige: 1.5 stars
Ok, the thing is, this story is quite average. There are a lot of stereotypes and I did not like the writing, but...what bothers me is the fact that I feel like I can't support this author. There's a reason why I did not finish the Dorothy Must Die series and I'm going to be coherent with myself.
Day seven - The flicker, the fingers, the beat, the sigh by April Genevieve Tucholke: 2 stars
...if this was meant to be scary I probably should give it even less than 2 stars. It's a really nonsense story in my opinion, without a real, logical, structure. At least it was short.
Day eight - Fat girl with a knife by Jonathan Maberry: 2 stars
The last three stories were such a disappointment that I really don't know what to say.
Day nine - Sleepless by Jay Kristoff: 4 stars
This one was predictable but I really liked it anyway.
The messages bothered me, but the beginning was perfect.
Day ten - M by Stefan Bachmann: 2 stars
Interesting concept but I was quite bored.
Day eleven - The girl without a face by Marie Lu: 4.5 stars
This kind of story is a classic. I mean, I know very little about this genre, but I feel like this story has the typical elements of horror. The plot was familiar, it's not something that I'd call original, but it worked. Thumbs up.
Day twelve - A girl who dreamed of snow by McCormick Templeman: 2.5
I'm not sure this can be called "horror". It's not just that it wasn't scary, it didn't even have the right atmosphere.
Day thirteen - Stitches by A.G. Howard: 3 stars
Not a bad short story but...it was so disgusting. I wanted it to be creepy not disgusting. Damn, I was having breakfast!
Day fourteen - On the I-5 by Kendare Blake: 2 stars
I was so so disappointed. I really enjoyed Blake's Antigoddess last year and I didn't think that her short story could disappoint me. -
دحتران سلاخ، پسران هیولا
بالاخره در یک بازه ی زمانی بسیار طولانی به پایان رسید که خب دلایل مختلفی داشت این قضیه
اما راجع به این کتاب فوق العاده که یکی از بهترین کتاب هاییه که در جدید یا همون بهداد سابق منتشر میشه، هست باید بگم که رگه های فمینیسم به وضوح در روح کتاب موج میزد. یعنی شما خط داستانی هر یک از داستانا رو که دنبال کنید، که هر کدوم بر اساس موسیقی یا فیلم عمدتاً نوشته شدن، البته بهتره بگیم الهام گرفتن از این فیلم ها، متوجه این قضیه میشید. محور داستان ها همینه دیگه، داستان های وحشیانه، ترسناک و تاریکی از جوهره ی مردان و پسران این جهان خاکی، با دخترانی که واقعا نمیشه تصمیم گرفت که قرار گرفتن شون در این نقش، چه معنایی داره؟ سلاخن به معنای واقعی کلمه یا قربانی ان؟ یا ناجی ان؟ و این نقشی که بر عهده میگیرن رو وقتی انجامش میدن، درنهایت حق باهاشونه؟ در حقیقت این سوال پیش میاد که وقتی یکی قربانیه، توجیه میشه که دست به نجات خودش و شاید دیگر همنوعانش بزنه به هربها و با هر وسیله ای؟
این سوالیه که به وضوح مطرح میشه در هر داستان. اون رو از خودتون میپرسید. شیطان کیست؟ هیولا کیست؟ این دخترها هیولاترن؟ این پسرها سلاخ ترن؟ آنچه حاصل میاد، قابل قبوله یا نه؟
اما به شخصه من در تک تک هر چهارده داستان، به وضوح و مشخصاً طرف دخترهای داستان بودم و کاملا حق رو بهشون میدادم و نقششون رو درست و به جا میدونستم و به نظرم خدا هم حتی دوستشون خواهد داشت و ازشون تقدیر خواهد کرد
اما امتیاز میانگینم به کتاب 4.5 هست اما به داستان ها جداگانه امتیاز میدم
املین
کت وینترز، رباب پورعسگر
امتیاز من: 5
بیخواب
جو کریستوف، امیرمهدی عاطفینیا
امتیاز من: 5
بخیهها
آ.گ. هوارد، مهنام عبادی
امتیاز من: 5
در جنگل انبوه و تاریک
کری رایان، آیدا کشوری
امتیاز من: 4.75
قایم باشک
مگان شفرد، سمانه افشارحاتم
امتیاز من: 4.5
میم
با ترجمه ی صبا ایمانی
امتیاز من: 4
حرکت پلکهایش، انگشتانش،
نبضش، نفسش
آپریل جنویو تاهالکی، محمد قصاع
امتیاز من: 4
دختر بیچهره
مری لو، شبنم سعادت
امتیاز من: 3.75
بخشهای پلید و ترسناک و از این چیزها
دنیل پیج، بهنام حاجیزاده
امتیاز من: 3.75
در بزرگراه I-5
کندارا بلیک، محمدصالح نورانیزاده
امتیاز من: 3.75
پرندگانِ خیابانِ آزالیا
نوشتهی نوُوا رِن سوما
امتیاز من: 3.75
دختری چاق با کارد
جاناتان مبری، پیمان اسماعیلیان
امتیاز من: 3.5
ترانه آهنگ ترانه
لی باردوگو، کژوان آبهشت
امتیاز من: 3
دختری که خواب برف میدید
مَک کورمیک تِمپِلمَن، شکیبا محبعلی
امتیاز من: 2.5 -
This anthology was just okay. I had a fairly pleasant time reading it, but I didn't love any story in particular. It was a good read for the month of October but I don't think I'll ever revisit it.
-
Slasher Girls & Monster Boys is a collection of YA Horror and Psychological Thriller short stories. This anthology has been on my radar since it was published but I never had a chance to pick it up. The authors whose writing I'm familiar with are Marie Lu and Jonathan Maberry and the rest are new-to-me.
The Birds of Azalea Street by Nova Ren Suma [4 stars]
- I don't know which is scarier: the freaky birds outside your house or the pervert neighbor harassing teenage girls? Maybe both? The story is slightly violent but it's so good! This anthology has a great start.
In the Forest Dark and Deep by Carrie Ryan [4 stars]
- The story is told in two timelines: When the protagonist is seven years old and seventeen years old about March Hare haunting her. This is a gruesome Alice in Wonderland inspired horror story.
Emmeline by Cat Winters [3 stars]
- Your typical ghost story with a crazy ghost seducing boys who comes in her room and murders them in their sleep. I pity the ghost because she's a war victim.
Verse Chorus Verse by Leigh Bardugo [2 stars]
- I was looking forward to read this because you all love Leigh Bardugo. I'm sorry but this was weird and confusing. What a mess. I'm disappointed.
Hide and Seek by Megan Shepard [3 stars]
- The protagonist escaped death like a boss. This is entertaining but forgettable.
The Dark, Scary Parts and All by Danielle Paige [4 stars]
- Frankenstein + The Omen = YES PLEASE! This is a screwed up love story between Marnie and Damien. I wish this is a full length novel just to see the future of these two.
The Flicker, The Fingers, The Beat, The Sigh by April Genevieve Tucholke [1 star]
- It had an I Know What You Did Last Summer vibe This one bored me. I forced myself to finish it and unfortunately, I didn't enjoy it.
Fat Girl with a Knife by Jonathan Maberry [3 stars]
- The heroine contradicts herself. She liked who she was yet she's pessimistic about being fat / plus size. That was a deal breaker to me. If you love your body, own it. This is a good zombie story and somehow, the heroine redeemed herself by kicking butts on those who bullied her (...they're zombies)
Sleepless by Jay Kristoff [5 stars]
- The gore : CHECK. Unreliable characters: CHECK. Psychos: CHECK. Plot twist: CHECK. Oh man... I love it! I was on the edge of my seat! This short story was a total package. Mr. Kristoff, you are GENIUS!
M by Stefan Bachmann [2 stars]
- It was an okay murder story. Sadly, it's bland.
The Girl without a Face by Marie Lu [4.5 stars]
- God this reminds me of The Ring / The Grudge. These two horror films terrified the crap out of me. I can't deal with that faceless girl but she haunts the protagonist for a reason.
A Girl Who Dreamed of Snow by McCormick Templeman [2 stars]
- Good writing style but the story isn't as captivating as I've expected. It could have done better.
Stitches by A.G. Howard [5 stars]
- A fantastic Frankenstein inspired short story. It's engaging and the gory details are well written. Holy crap. I love this one too.
On the I-5 by Kendare Blake [3 stars]
- Good story but something was missing. The ending was sad though.
Overall, this is a great horror story collection. Majority of the stories are enjoyable and creepy. Just a heads up, expect gore. Some of them might be stomach-churning and put you out of your comfort zone. My three favorites are written by Jay Kristoff, A.G. Howard and Marie Lu. I recommend it if you like YA Horror stories.
