The Web by Robin Knabel

The Web Reviews

• 
  Megan Diedericks

  Inky Bones Press is at it with another ‘Dark Decades’ anthology, this time set in the 2000s, and Y2K wasn't ready for what these authors unearthed! (Neither was I...)
  
  My thoughts on each story:
  • “As Advertised” by Tinamarie Cox
  I adore how descriptive this story is – it feels as though I'm right there and witnessing the events unfold. What I had in mind after finishing it was: ‘It was always going to end this way,’ which was both saddening and comforting. Haunting story, in more ways than one!
  • “Mademethinkofyou.bmp” by Mathilde Glass
  First of all, creative title (at first glance, anyway. After reading the story it takes on a whole new meaning – genius!)
  I was also struck hard by the stentence: ‘What love song didn't sound obsessive and romanticize stalking?’ BECAUSE, THAT'S LITERALLY SO TRUE!!!
  This story read like an urban legend that we all fear happening to us at some point in time. I loved it!
  • “We Are Changing Your Electric Meter” by Katherine Kerestman
  JAW. ON. THE. FLOOR. I definitely wasn't expecting that ending. Amazing, saddening and also a little thought-provoking in regards to the world (digital or otherwise) we live in!
  • “Live Feed” by Robin Knabel
  Absolutely terrifying! Who doesn't love a good autopsy story? I know I do – and I also love the morbid feel that remains throughout the whole story. All else I'll say is: there's something to be said for people who see everything, but nothing at all... 👀
  • “Finn and Morris” by Corinne Pollard
  This story took me through a whole range of emotions – from ‘awww’ to ‘AHHH!’ The storytelling is incredible!
  • “Auction” by Caitlin A. Quinn
  The format of this story is so insanely creative. It reminded me of a couple of technology horror movies, as this story takes place mainly over email!! It felt like I was unearthing the evidence myself as I was reading it – like I had found a secondhand laptop that hadn't been erased. Horrifying and absolutely haunting!!!
  • “A Shambles” by Jeremy Russell
  Despite it being first-person narration, to me the story really felt like it was more Wendie's. ‘Good for her’ vibes in the same way Florence Pugh's character had it in Midsommar – she didn't really win and everything comes at a cost. Which is to say: this is an amazing story!!!
  
  I love the concept of technology going wrong or, the much more real possibility, there being something evil on the other side (or even inside!)
  
  Because stories like “Mademethinkofyou.bpm” and “A Shambles” contain events that could very well happen, maybe you even heard of something similar on the news (or read a post on a very obscure Scary Stories Instagram account...)
  
  Point is – it is so horrifying because these are devices and things we all come into contact with every day, and the very real feelings of fear and paranoia are perfectly captured in this anthology.
  
  “The Web” will be credited in my laptop's goodbye-note.
• 
  Milt Theo

  Another great anthology by Inky Bones Press! Containing seven short stories about or around the internet, this Dark Decades anthology (the fifth entry in the series) combines wonderfully an atmosphere of dread and creepiness with the sinister anonymity of the web, the apparent freedom it provides, and the moral flexibility of digital media.
  
  There are no hits and misses in this volume: the stories are engrossing, well-written, and quite original. My favorite, showcasing all three features to an excellent degree, was Caitlin A. Quinn's "Auction": the premise is stunning in its simplicity (selling your soul online), the execution incredibly well-crafted (chat and e-mail transcripts), the development unpredictable (not even the seller herself realizes the very real implications of what she's doing) - and that ending!!! I would enjoy reading this story again and again, and I recommend it to everyone who's intrigued by internet horror! Equally well-done was Tinamarie Cox's “As Advertised,” though its moral ambiguities (not to mention its plausibility) might have been more extensively explored; still, its shortness packs a punch and might easily provoke worthwhile discussion in a moral philosophy seminar. Last but not least, two stories worth reading for showing how internet technology, however tenuously, may not only impact one's profession but also allow for some radical upsetting of the internal moral order, were Robin Knabel's "Live Feed” and Jeremy Russell's “A Shambles”. Knabel's story is short but, as an autopsy story (actually an autopsy transmitted through a necropsy feed), it exhibits a terrific grasp of the options technology provides the psychopathic personality, as well as what it can keep hidden from view; "Shambles," about a computer programmer ending up working in a slaughterhouse, displays a rather deep understanding of one's dissatisfaction with the everyday, and the consequences when the everyday decides to hit back.
  
  In sum, this Dark Decades Anthology collection merits wide attention for the superb storytelling skills of its authors, its intriguing theme (the occasionally terrifying implications of internet comnectivity), and the sheer delight and entertainment it offers whether you're an internet horror fan or not. I unreservedly recommend it!
• 
  Jenny Coyne

  Rounding up from 4.5 stars
  
  This is book #5 in the Dark Decades Anthologies series. This collection is based on the age of the internet. I really enjoyed the short stories in this book.
  
  My favorite was "Mademethinkofyou.bmp" by Matilda Glass. For something to register on the spooky scale it has to be relatable to me. Let's face it, who hasn't at some point in there life jumped onto their bed so that the thing living under there can't grab you by the ankles?
  
  The only reason I deducted half a star is that this is the first book out of this series that I felt deviated from the topic. The stories in the other anthologies all directly stemmed from the main topic (old theater, radio, TV, video, etc.). I felt like some of the stories embraced the topic of the internet very loosely instead of the action in the story being centered around it. I fully enjoyed them all. I just didn't feel they all suited this particular collection.
  
  Thank you to Robin Knabel and Inky Bones Press. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
  
  Release date 9/3/24