A collection of short stories that will leave you satisfied
589194
"When It All Went To Hell" is a solid collection of short stories that will undoubtedly leave you satiated and amused. Diverse enough to appeal to a wide range of readers, each new story introduces beautifully flawed characters, that you'll likely have varying degrees of empathy for, with narratives that visit the depth of the human psyche, often with dark hilarity.
1851313
Arguably, a short story is a greater test of an author's prowess than a novel: within a minimum of pages the reader has to be captivated, involved, entertained and, ultimately, finish satisfied. So an anthology of shorts is a perfect way for a reader to discover new authors to explore.

Most! y murder contains eleven stories all without exception well written, with mystery at their heart. Each one is worth the reading and, even if several were more predicable than unexpected, most enjoyable. Three I found especially so, a lighthearted search for a means of thwarting the long held plans of two mafia families (Nun of Your Business), a classical type P.I. investigation story with several  twists, (All Secrets Lead to Lies) and the very last in the book, As Good As A Rest, written by the magnificent Lawrence Block, masterfully demonstrating yet again why he has been so consistently acclaimed over the many years of his career and a long held favourite of mine. All three carried the power of a novel In spite of their brevity, with powerfully drawn characters moving within a gripping storyline.
Between each chapter is a short conversation with the preceding author which, as well as giving insight into the how and why of their individual writing, also contains useful contact information and other available works should the reader be inclined to want more. I have already added two new writers to my watch list.
So, a useful way to get tasters of talent as well as being a most enjoyable read. Recommended
814298
A nice collection of short stories. I especially liked the ones with a collective conscious.
Some stories also leave you with a sense of: What will happen next?
1908233
A thoughtfully conceived collections of stories by an interesting variety of writers. Definitely worth a look!
4321099
The Filing Cabinet of Doom contains 16 short stories and the novella that lends its title to the collection. I enjoy collections of short fiction and was delighted to read something by an author unknown to me. Its been my experience that with any collection, indie or professional, I will find favorites that stay with me, and find some stories that just don't work for me.

Bizarro fiction is hit-or-miss with me, and the Filing Cabinet held many hits and just a few misses. Amongst the Dust and the Mice is the lead story, and it sets the mood for the rest of the collection. A young woman, living in an illegal squat in London, discovers that she is vanishing. This story is an engraved invitation to let go of the real world and vanish into Ms. Swanns dreamlike world of weird situations and improbable reality.

  I kept warm by making a log fire in the grate, sitting hunched like a chimp looking for ants. It was then that I first noticed the chipped gold of the poker through my hand. I dropped it and stared at my almost missing digits but they didn't reappear.

Another favorite of mine, Girl in the Picture, is multi-layered. It took a shot at pretentious art, but also the impossible standards that celebrities are held to. Have you ever wondered if those people really exist outside of the shiny box you see them in every night?

  I pulled and pulled her arm as hard as I could, until sweat dotted my forehead and my grip became slippery. With a final desperate yank I tore her free and I yelped with excitement. I went to hug her, already planning how I could smuggle her past security  hello? I looked up and down the gallery, expecting any minute to be hauled away and arrested, but it was silent. She had gone.

The title story, The Filing Cabinet of Doom is a novella-length tale that defies reason, narrative, and sense. Where the other tales were dreamlike, this one is nightmarish. It dragged me through an unreal world of violence, a quest to either save the world. I think I got lost along the way in a bureaucracy of fools. Its strange, its twisted, and even funny.

I would recommend this for readers who are looking for something different, something strange. Theres plenty of dark humor, characters that are easy to like, and tales that will stick with you for a while. I don't recommend reading this in one sitting, give yourself some time to unwind your imagination before plunging back in.

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Originally published at www.bookie-monster.com
2238492
With many fewer mainstream outlets for short stories than there used to be, most of these stories come from the literary magazines that remain devoted to the form. While the slice-of-life-minor-epiphany-or-not story remains popular, this collection ranges wide in style, content and quality.

Among the best stories are Alice Munro's tightly plotted story of a woman's loss, grief, guilt and redemption; Eileen Pollack's manic, funny, bittersweet tale of a son dealing with a revered father's imminent death and big lie, William Gay's charged story of an addict's scary, unpredictable grief, Lauren Groff's dramatic and atmospheric love story in the time of the 1918 flu and Richard Russo's deceptively quiet tale of emotional containment and catharsis.

Karen Russell's tale about a school for the human children of werewolves is delightfully strange, while Bruce McAllister offers a chilling futuristic tale of a CIA operative's small, desperate attempt to redeem himself.

A society woman's inner monologue on the death of her prominent father has Louis Auchincloss' subtle style but little punch and Ann Beattie's tale of a man visiting his mentor's widow In Key West has a bit of a twist but no satisfying resolution.

The only real dud in the bunch is John Barth's overlong story about a retired couple, more dull and ignorant than they need to be, who go to a toga party put on by the newest, richest folks in their development. It will stick in your head like a bad taste in your mouth.

However, Barth's story is one of editor Stephen King's favorites, which goes to show that taste is all in your head. King states in his introduction that he looks "for stories that care about my feelings as well as my intellect," especially stories that are "all-out emotionally assaultive," and most of this varied collection fulfills that welcome requirement.

If you're interested in the health of the short story today, this collection is for you.
4432714
This collection of four stories were really well written.  While not a lover of short stories, these were quite enjoyable.  The stories were well developed, drew the reader in, and provided for some quick enjoyable reads.  The characters were good and the endings were well done.  I highly recommend this book to all readers liking very good short stories.
I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.
909722
A collection of short works can be a rare and wonderful thing. Opening one is like looking into an author's closet or diaries, finding brief passages and pieces, poems, scenes, characters and more. While some dread this scattershot -- for as any author or scientist can tell you, not every experiment is a success -- when a reader finds a collection that truly sings, then that reader finds a treasure of the truest sort. Is this because the short form of fiction is so deucedly difficult to write? Is it because every word must count? Or is there instead a level of intimacy found that no novel can match? My vote is for the last.

As we are all interested in the macabre here at Horror Reader, your list of favorite collections and mine might share some similar titles, some surprise entries, as well as some title or another that we might contest until our dying day. Such is the subjective nature of that beast known as personal taste (confounded by the subjective nature of this genre called Horror). One reader's crap is another's revelation; what nurtures one person's fears is food for another's laughter. In that way, readers are, despite what John Donne might opine to the contrary, islands until themselves. However, all readers share one quality in particular: when we encounter a work or an author we enjoy, we like to share this finding with others.

Let me turn now to the subject of this review: Sparks and Shadows, the first collection from Lucy Snyder. Here we get a hodgepodge of styles and forms, from the short story to the poem to the personal essay (?!), and in each of these we find an author with something to say and the voice to say it with. Likewise, we encounter a writer who slips between genres with ease, while maintaining both a level of darkness and, in the best pieces of the collection, a sense of humor.

The book itself is divided into seven sections, each preceded by a poem-clue as to the following section's content. Readers should therefore not be surprised to find such a bleak and emotionally gut wrenching story as "Through They Bounty"-- truly an exercise in reading endurance in league with, though coming from a different emotional context than the works of such modern gross out champs as Ketchum, Lee and White; this one put me off the idea of eating for a while-- following a poem titled "Dark Matter." Thank goodness the follow-up section begins with a selection of humorous essays, ranging from such topics as "Camp Songs: Innocent Fun or Diabolical Brainwashing Plot?" to "Why I Can't Stay Out of My Husband's Pants," before plunging back into horror (yes, horror) with "Menstruation for Men," a piece which stems not from the supernatural but the (literally) every day world, as observed with an unflinching eye. My wife laughed as I squirmed. Gents, you've been warned.

This is not to say the collection is perfect. It contains a trio of examples from my least favorite form of fiction: the dreaded Story with a Moral Lesson, which could benefit from a little more subtlety and less of the hammer. However, while stories like "Feel the Love" don't appeal to me on an intellectual/philosophical level -- despite the fact that they often argue in favor of positions I agree with -- they are written with an adroit attention to language.

At times poignant, witty, erotic, thoughtful, chilling and maniacally gleeful, Sparks and Shadows is a delightful collection and book length introduction to an author to watch.
4541942
I believe it takes a special talent to be able to produce a good short story, particularly these days when there are not many publishing outlets for them. This collection then, is especially welcome since it brings together short stories from many famous authors. Like any collection, however, it contains stories that are good, and stories that are bad, and some that are a little of both. It's to the credit of the editor that he has produced this work, and I recommend it to those who enjoy reading shorter works from some of their favorite authors. Despite some of the shortcomings of this collection, I am looking forward to the next edition of this work, if only for the continuation of the last story in the collection.
708981
Unlike a lot of the reviewers of this book, I came into it for what it was, a collection of short stories.  So many readers seem to think that short stories are just a bit out of a longer story.  They are complete in themselves and they are an art form that the writings in this collection have done very well.  In a world as rich as Ms Lackey's Valamar series, it is good to have these short little bits.  They give us a view of the world that is not centered around her beautiful characters.  From light and silly to deep and dark these tales are well worth sitting back and enjoying.  Don't expect the depth of a full novel, but do expect to have yourself taken outside of your world of cars, jobs, kids and the nightly news.  Well worth adding to your collection.
2847740
I have never been a huge fan of short stories.  I prefer the novel length format so I can spend more time with the characters that I have come to know and short stories tend to cut me off just when I want to learn more about a character or a situation.  But, this collection came highly recommended to me and there is a blurb on the back cover from Alison McGhee (Rainlight) comparing Daniel Stolar's stories to those of Jhumpa Lahiri (Pulitzer Prize winning author of "The Interpreter of Maladies").  With the recommendation and a blurb from an author I admire, I was willing to give this collection a chance and I'm glad that I did.
This is Daniel Stolar's debut collection and it is superb.  There are eight stories, and they share common themes and characteristics.  Almost all of them are set in the St. Louis area (or the characters are from St. Louis), and they deal with the themes of loss, friendship, trying to fit in, and love.  There is not a weak story in the collection, but there are some that I found to be more memorable than the others.  The first is the first story of the collection "Jack Landers is My Friend", which deals with Jack returning to his high school reunion and reconnecting with his friend, the beautiful Kara.  As Stolar tells the story, we are shown glimpses of the past, enough to show us exactly how Jack came to be at this place in his life.  Actually, that is another common thread that runs through these stories: the past and present are weaved together so well that the story is stronger and you can't imagine it being told without the flashback.  Another standout story is "Crossing Over" which has a white college student pledging to a black fraternity.  I didn't expect to like this one because of the topic, but it ended up being a highlight of the collection.
This is a collection that I very much wanted to like, but my expectations and my hopes were far exceeded by just how good these stories are.  I don't know if Mr. Stolar is at work on another collection, or even on a novel, but I am already looking forward to whatever he publishes next.  One thing that I should mention about this collection is that these are not upbeat or cheerful stories.  Even though I liked each of the stories, I needed to take a break in between stories, there was that much emotional power contained here.  But every time I took a break, I was looking forward to starting the next story.  That's the mark of a good storyteller: one who leaves you wanting more.
4398189
The line between SF and fantasy is blurry; but what these stories have in common is they leave you with a feeling, an emotional oomph that stays with you after you turn the page. If this is a survey of the best of 2014/2015 then I like what I see.

I like the way the stories were chosen, with the finalists having the authors' names removed. That way, when I see a story by Neil Gaiman or Jo Walton, I'm sure it was chosen on merit and not the author's celebrity status.

I was going to go through the stories I liked best, one by one, and tell you about them, but no. I think you'll be better served if I simply let you know that, while not all of the stories worked equally well for me, almost all of them were excellent and excellently written, with style and verve and depth. The stories connect, and they offer a journey into a new place from which you are likely to return somewhat changed, with a new perspective on your life.

What else can you ask from a collection of the best short stories of the year?
769989
This is McFarland's second collection of short stories, and, after the first collection, I was looking forward to its release. McFarland is a very good writer. His mastery of the language, his pacing of a story, and the wicked edge to his imagination, set him apart. In this fairly short collection there are some good stories, although nothing quite reaches the level of the very best stories in his previous collection. McFarland is at his best when he lets his evil twin take over the writing. For me, Making Headlines is the standout piece of this collection, a gruesome tale told in an almost matter-of-fact style that makes the story and its central character all the more disturbing. Toxic Love is a well-constructed story, written in three parts from the different perspectives of the main protagonists. I thought only that the ending could have been a little stronger, giving it more impact. Here, McFarland's restrained style let's him down a little. The Liar, the title story, was very well written, but the story lacked punch. The reveal at the end, about which of the narrator's claims was true, was delivered in a beautifully understated fashion. The Savant and Ripples are not bad, but don't quite reach the same standard. In Ripples there were too many unexplained elements for my satisfaction. The weakest story, in my opinion, was Hospital. This seems to fall into the category of a reminiscence, rather than a story - there were several stories of this kind in the earlier collection which I similarly found less satisfying. I am not sure to what extent this is fiction. It is never quite clear who the narrator, the `I', is in this story. He never refers to himself as the father of the boy; and he never refers to the mother of the boy by name or as his wife. I found this a little odd, and it marred the story for me.

There were rather more typographical/grammatical errors in this collection than I recall from the earlier collection, which suggests to me that McFarland may have hurried their release just a little. Nevertheless, this is good work from a fine writer. While none of the stories quite rise to the heights of the best in the earlier collection, overall this collection is still worth four stars.
2290876
This book is a collection of short stories in various genres in wildly diverse styles. There is definitely something for everyone here.

My personal favorites were:
The Old Scale Game. (Humorous fantasy story)
Not with a Whimper, Either. (Written as a chat room log)
Black Sunshine. (Written as a TV or movie shooting script)

There were only one or two stories that I didn't care for that much, so overall I would give this a 3.5 stars.
1046538
The first story in this book almost made me put it down and made me want to write it off. However by the second story, Chavisa Woods had me hooked till the end. Like most anthology books, there are ups and downs in the story line up and some will leave you wishing there were more pages to read, while others will make you feel like the couldn't end soon enough.

The stories are a mix of both reality-based and some X-Files-ish supernatural components. The stories are generally told from a young woman from a small rural town escaped to the big city point of view. Most of the stories flow well, but they do often feel like non-sequitors having no common theme  between the stories. This is literally a simple collection of stories bound together by the author and not much else. If you're a short story fan, this is a nice little book to add to your shelves.
4392667
This is an enjoyable collection of short stories. There are five stories with lots of love and humour. Excellent for a quick, comfortable read.
3007458
This is another great collection of stories brought to readers by Rachel Kramer Bussel. This collection has a good amount of diversity and style. Each author brings their world and the characters to life. The characters are well developed and have a lot to say. I enjoyed all of the stories in this collection, some may have stood out more than others but as a whole this anthology is very enjoyable. The stories may be short but they do not lack anything because of that. There are over twenty stories in this collection so there is bound to be something that grabs your attention. I know that I found a few more authors to add to my list.