Night Terrors Vol. 13: Short Horror Stories Anthology by Scare Street

Night Terrors Vol. 13: Short Horror Stories Anthology Reviews

• 
  David

  And the hits just keep on coming. These are stories featuring demons, phantasms and unrecognizable things that go bump both night and day. One thing I noticed is that many of the stories feature kids as the main characters. Horror told through the eyes of kids has a particularly sweet flavor. Steven King popularized this theme with classics like "It" and "The Body" among others. The stories in this anthology rival King's best work for the most part.
  Scare Street has a unique ability to find top quality horror authors and give them a means of expression. You something nasty is going to happen but you keep reading anyway. It's sort of like sticking your hand unto a fire knowing it will burn you but it's just so beautiful that you can't resist.
  If you haven't read any of Scare Streets offerings, you are missing a real treat. What are you waiting for, an invitation scratched out in blood?
• 
  Nat Whiston

  I loved loved loved this anthology, such a fantastic collection of stories. So many great writers in here, so good I posted a video review on my page. The one that stuck with me was Aokigahara which was both hearts wrecking and unnerving, with unique characters. Shatterbox, which was an incredible take on a board game from hell, like Jumanji turn hell-raiser. Bowels of Hell, which was a perfect comedy horror with heart and humour. Lester's Locket was imaginative and intensely pulled me in with the character and his struggles. Thackery Tree was profoundly thought-provoking and really made you look deeper into the human mind when faced with survival. Don't scream has the most terrifying and exciting character, with the little boy Joey. It pulled me, and honestly would love to know if there's a continuation from this one. The Scent of Decay was a twisted story of mental torture from beyond the grave that made me think of the tell-tale heart by Edger Allen Pope. I loved the vibe and atmosphere of the story. Honestly there are so many good stories that really stick with you. So I highly recommend the anthology to readers of scary and clever horror.
• 
  Nisar Masoom

  Review of Madison Estes’ featured story, The Scent of Decay, originally published on Literary Retreat:
  https://www.literaryretreat.com/the-s...
  
  The Scent of Decay (2021) is a short supernatural horror-story written by Madison Estes around the events that follow after an argument between a couple ends up going horribly wrong. The tale is short and sweet, which makes it perfect to read in one sitting. Although the plot itself isn’t anything special, the effective writing, perfect pacing and a clever ending make it a very satisfying read.
  
  The plotline in the story is very simple and as a result there isn’t much unique about it which at times makes it seem slightly cliche (I’m looking at you creepy voice on the phone). You can pretty much surmise how things will progress throughout after a few pages. Additionally, a nitpick I have with the story was with the character Josh. I felt he was a little underutilized and that a bit more detail about his relationship with the main characters could have allowed there to be a better understanding of their emotions. The relationship between the couple also doesn’t entirely add up, because again, a lack of detail makes it a little hard to relate to them and fully understand their situation.
  
  The writing in the story is topnotch and to the point. There is no unnecessary amount of detail when it comes to description and the language is simple, which ensures that the story flows at a very good pace. It gets you hooked from the start, which is why I found myself unable to stop reading it until the very end. I was impressed by the author's vocabulary use, especially in relation to the smells and how she was able to make me picture them in various ways, which also ends up doing a lot of justice to the title of the story. Her writing was even able to salvage a lot of predictability in the story, like for example, while the creepy voice on the phone was cliche, it still had me anxious and this was all due to how well she wrote the scene. The very clever ending just caps it off, tying up the story brilliantly and she does this just by subtly bringing up a little detail which I won’t spoil.
  
  Overall, if you’re looking for a brilliantly written and quick read, then I would definitely recommend this story. However, you won’t find anything new or different from this tale.
  
• 
  R. Moores

  Starts off strong but the stories get weaker as the anthology progresses. I really liked 'The Ash Collector' which was an excellent slasher. 'The Steepest Fare,' was great as well, very creepy and atmospheric.
  
  The rest of the collection is generally well written but for me is missing truly great stories that would elevate this from a good to a great read.