Great Fodder for Nightmares
346176
Animal cruelty and human cruelty are best served when alluded to and not painted out in brilliant colors as in this novel.  Very disappointed overall from a writer who creates dependable and usually enoyable distractions.  Don't bother to read if you are an animal lover--just terrible terrible images of dog fights and other cruelty. .
1723387
The Ballador House Hotel has built itself quite a reputation for causing its guests terrible nightmares. Its history is stained by blood, oil, meat and misery. Now seekers of the morbid have turned it into a tourist hot spot. Get a room and get ready for the stay of a lifetime. One tipstay away from the Residents. They feed on pain and suffering and are getting stronger every day. They want out. They want to play.

Victor Treversham found out that his recently deceased wife, Josephine, made a reservation for him at the infamous Ballador House only hours before her untimely demise. Regardless, of the nightmares he is sure to endure, he intends to stay at the hotel himself. Now he must navigate a grotesque cavalcade of ghosts and demons in order to try and sift thru what is reality and what is just a dream. Or are they one and the same?

This one had a cool 13 Ghosts vibe to it. The relatively few characters had plenty of depth to them and the back story of the Ballador House was well thought out and realized. There was also an appropriate amount of violence and gore. A very well done tale of horror and suspense. 5 Ammy Stars and Highly Recommended.

*I received an advanced readers copy of this work from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
4313890
I thought of giving this book a read on Halloween night and once I started reading it, I just got stuck to it. The language is simple and the stories are scary. I recommend it.
4014339
This had many symbols (for me) that other dream dictionaries don't cover well. But then, I don't stand by any one Author's pre-recorded interpretations of my dreams I haven't had yet...

This is a great resource for dreams. The search feature on my iPod Kindle app is just a tap away. I've been able to find what I needed quickly and easily. And it has a decent set of interpretations.

No dream book is 100% satisfactory 100% of the time. I also recommend, "Complete Idiot's Guide Dream Dictionary" and "I had the strangest dream", both available for Kindle.
2106206
When people talk some of Stephen King's strongest horror novels, invariably Thinner gets overlooked.  I'm not sure why.  It's a terrifying novel that provides everything that good horror needs.  There's a protagonist who goes through all the necessary arcs and challenges.  There's a powerful motive in the curse of a gypsy.  There's a great amount of chase/action as the protagonist goes about finding the gypsy and having the curse lifted.  And there's the resolution which in both premeditation and execution is 100% horrifying.

I read Thinner when it was first released and knew nothing about it.  It scared the crap out of me!  The gypsy curses alone on the three men were enough to give me nightmares.  And, if that's what you're looking for...nightmares and crappy pants...then look no further than Thinner.
312995
An oldie, but doggone, these are great stories!  You might find them more "creepy" than truly "horror" in tone, but they're wickedly creepy and good for some very uncomfortable moments in reading.  Groff Conklin edited some half-dozen or so anthologies, and they were all absolutely top-notch.  This is probably the queen of the batch.  The stories are widely diverse, some (obviously) better than others.  I re-read it every so often, and get a nasty thrill out of it every time.
2476371
This is a cute book that  helps young children and their parents cope with nightmares. Each Child can have their own Dream Warrior that will protect them every night.
2599204
I really enjoyed this book. The writing itself was okay, it was easy to read and understand. What
makes it a worthwhile purchase is the story itself - and for that, it gets five stars. This isn't about
your run-of-the-mill, filthy-mouth demon who does terrible things just for the sake of doing them. This
demon has an agenda and he makes that frighteningly clear in the messages he writes on the mirror. If you want to
curl up on the side of your bed and share in a nightmare that you can't escape from, you won't be disappointed.

I can't wait for the movie.
2449321
Chuck Palahniuk has done it again.  As in Fight Club, Invisible Monsters, and Choke, he manages to give you nightmares.  Some of these stories are so twisted you may be glad they're only a couple pages long.  This way you have a little recovery time before diving into the next crazy scenario.  They often begin in a realistic enough way, and just when you're getting comfortable he drags you along some horrific turn.  For the reader that enjoys this sort of punishment you won't be able to put this book down.

These 23 very dark tales exhibit Palahniuks fascination with the macabre. Descriptions of his stories include sensational, twisted, disturbing, perverse and horrific. If this is your cup of tea, you should love this collection.

Like all short story collections, some rise to the top while others sink, but none are boring.  If you enjoy bizarre stories involving some of societys misfits, Stories You Cant Unread is for you. But be careful; as the title says, they truly are stories you can't unread.
1094010
for me, these have been a staple in my childhood.  I could easily give this a 5 just for the nostalgia.  however, reading them now makes me realize something: all those nights i stayed up with the lights on, freaked out of my mind with images of murderers and demons floating through my head were caused mainly by the pictures in the books.  yes, its true that the stories are well written, but going through each book makes you reailize that these are mostly urban legends/folklore with a few new details here and there.  but i can live with that: its a long-standing technique in horror.  no points off for that.  however, going through them makes you realize that several of them are basically repeats of others in the books, just with different characters and settings.  and also, they're not that scary.  at least not when compared with the illustrations.  eyeless zombie women, corpses with huge cracks in their skulls, gruesome demons... what the hell is up with that picture on the front of the 3rd one anyway??!?! It's impossible to describe the pictures in this book.  i'd like to say i'm just a wimp, but the stories today don't scare me as they should: the pictures, however, achieve their purpose.  and then some.
2335109
I really enjoyed this collection of scary tales. To me, they remind me of a mixture of the Twilight Zone TV show and Tales from the Crypt. They are perfect for reading alone, or to a group for a scary night. Halloween is coming up and any of these would make a good tale while waiting for costume kids.

Even if you don't want to be scared, many of these tales have a message that can teach the young people of our day: Like The Devil You Know, Greywalker, By Your Own Free Will, Double Rainbow, and Turkish Night.

Rayne Hall brings emotion, description, and spooky tales alive to the read. I especially liked her comments after each tale saying what inspired the story.

I was given a copy by the author in exchange for an honest review.
1953417
I have to say the stories in this collection will haunt you and the book itself is somewhere between 4 and 5 stars because I loved many of the tales 5 stars worth and some 4 stars worth. Readers are going to find 11 short stories that take you into the realm that lies between dreams and nightmares. I read this collection just before Halloween, a great time for the theme that runs throughout the tales, but must say you can enjoy these stories anytime and maybe would like to read them with the lights on.
4486358
This book scared the crap out of me now I sleep with my nightlight on. I think this book is great for anyone wanting some awesome Halloween reading material.
2810181
It's very difficult to find a good anthology of horror, but you'll definitely be happy with this one!
I really recommend the first book Read by Dawn I since it has my favorite stories- and I'm a little bias since it was my first love- but this second book is a great close second in my favorites based on story diversity and general intrigue.

I can't really list any of the story titles off the top of my head at the moment, but just know that I keep this book near my bed for a quick fix (even to reread) when I'm in the mood for something creepy or gory.
480173
My 10year old loved it!  Every night he wanted me to continue reading well past both of us being tired.  The characters are like able and the villains are not so scary so as to cause nightmares.  When we finished, he immediately asked me to see if there were more.
1912480
Nightmare is a low budget slasher in a surreal style guaranteed to separate the somewhat interested viewer from the fully committed horror fan. With blood, nudity, a slew of irritating minor characters and graphic sex galore, at first the film appears to be a self-indulgent exercise. Also, it's clear from the start that the sex scenes are not meant to be all that sexy, and some of the horror isn't meant to be scary. So, what gives?

Directed by Dylan Bank in 2005 and now available on DVD, Nightmare redeems itself with a premise that keeps paying off and solid, compelling performances by lead actors Jason Scott Campbell and Nicole Roderick and supporting actor Amin Joseph. By the midpoint viewers will either tune out altogether or become obsessed with figuring out what lies behind the core mystery.

I love a mystery, so I kept coming back for more and I'm glad I did. The conclusion to the story is not what I anticipated, but it is satisfying for anyone who likes both horror and meta-horror.

A self-confident film student goes to a party where he is praised by unctuous friends and envious classmates. He meets an interesting young actress, and they have a one-night stand. When they wake the next morning, they discover a video camera is pointed at the bed. The tape in the camera contains what looks like a snuff film--starring the couple as vicious killers, slaughtering several naked victims. All of the action appears to have been shot in the room where they made love and then slept, yet the tape is the only evidence that the event took place.

Emotionally shaken and still a bit hung-over, the director and the actress try to figure out what has happened to them. Are they the victims of a practical joke? If so, who is behind it? Have they been drugged and used, or is someone simply playing mind games with them? Are they performing the acts on tape or have they been portrayed by doubles?

Their fear spikes when the same thing occurs on the following night. In their confusion, the two form a bond that might have been less likely under normal circumstances. They decide to make sense of their nightmare in the only way they know how: by making a film about it.

Bank and co-writer Morgan Pehme know what they are doing, and why. Their film pokes fun at the reverent study of cinema, while reveling in the horror genre instead of apologizing for it. I would be excited to see these artists operating on a bigger scale with a more generous budget. As it is, they have created a film with a nifty hook, good timing, a sense of humor--and what I think is an ending worth waiting for.
94152
Deadly Instinct by Bradley Poage is an episode in his Bedtime Tales of Horror series. In this cautionary tale, Stan and Erica give us two very good reasons for NOT stealing packages from untended porches.

Stan thought he had stumbled onto a great way to make a quick buck. Whenever he noticed a delivery truck dropping off a package at the front door of a house with nobody home, he would wait for the truck to leave, jump out of his car, then quickly grab the package and take it home with him. Sadly for him and his erstwhile girlfriend, packages don't always contain good surprises.

Deadly Instinct is another good addition to Poages very entertaining series of short horror stories. It also provides a good object lesson for life: there are no viable shortcuts to earning a living. In that regard, Deadly Instinct is capable of standing on its own merit even without the horror aspect. I recommend it as a good, fun and educational read.