short stories

Review: The Haunted Houses She Calls Her Own by Gwendolyn Kiste

~ megs14malloy

The Haunted Houses She Calls Her OwnThe Haunted Houses She Calls Her Own by Gwendolyn Kiste
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

‘You know my name. You know my face. I’m the girl in the picture. The girl who never gets to stop smiling, never gets to rest, no matter how hard I try, no matter how loud I scream.’

🖤❤️🖤❤️🖤❤️🖤❤️🖤❤️🖤❤️🖤

The Haunted Houses She Calls Her Own is a gripping and thought-provoking Feminist Horror Short Story collection from Bram Stoker Award winning author, Gwendolyn Kiste.

This collection includes 16-diverse stories that are all sure to capture and hold your attention. I loved the variety among the stories, but really appreciated the common themes explored throughout. The Feminist vibes made the collection feel very cohesive.

Some of the standout stories for me include, The Sea Witch of the World’s Fair, The Last Video Store on the Left, Sister Glitter Blood, The Mad Monk of Motor City, Best Friends Forever, and the story that gave the collection its name, The Haunted Houses She Calls Her Own, which was my favorite.

Another aspect I was surprised by, but I thought was very interesting was the number of historical figures that popped up amongst these stories. Individuals like Rasputin and Mary Shelley, I didn’t expect that here and I liked how those figures were used to tell the stories.

In this collection, Kiste was really able to display the range of her writing and it’s clear she’s not afraid to explore difficult topics. It was almost like a mental exercise, going in and out amongst the stories, jumping around in space and time. I loved that.

I would absolutely recommend this to any Readers of Horror Short Fiction, particularly if you enjoy stories exploring things like systemic gender inequalities, body autonomy and female rage, to name a few.

Thank you to the publisher, Raw Dog Screaming Press, for providing me with a copy to read and review.

I certainly would be surprised if I see this listed on the 2026 Bram Stoker Awards Final Ballot!

View all my reviews

Review: Night Shift by Stephen King

~ megs14malloy

Night ShiftNight Shift by Stephen King
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Night Shift was Stephen King’s 1st-published short story collection. It was originally published in 1978. Most of the stories had been previously released in various magazines, but a few had never been seen before, including the 1st-story in the collection, Jerusalem’s Lot.

I read this collection as a kid, but I’m not sure how much I really understood of the nuance of it all. Thinking back on it, I really only remembered one story well, The Lawnmower Man, which I think had more to do with the fact that it contained a naked man than anything else.

As a kid, that seems to be memorable content. Reading it now, 30+years later, it’s one of the least impactful stories of the bunch, but still memorable.

Let’s get into the stories, shall we? While reading, I made brief comments after each one. I don’t feel any contain spoilers, but will more give you a general idea about what sorts of topics you’ll find explored within this collection.

#1: Jerusalem’s Lot — ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I love that King chose to make this story epistolary. It feels a perfect nod to Dracula. I also love the historical vibes and history of the place. Certain scenes gave me chills. I would love to see him dive deeper into exploring this time period in the Lot.

#2: Graveyard Shift — ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 King brought out the rats early and often. They remaining a staple in his work. This has such a good ending. Terrifying 🐀

#3: Night Surf — ((unrated)) Very short, Maine Coast, The Stand connection. Brutal start, pensive ending. Didn’t leave much of an impact.

#4: I Am the Doorway — ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Holy shit, I loved this. I need a full length novel for this idea. It gave clarification to the cover of my favorite edition Signet paperback, as well. Light Duma Key vibes, I believe because of the location.

#5: The Mangler — ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I loved it!!! It’s the perfect example of how in the right hands, anything, person, place or thing, can be made terrifying, horrifying and ghastly. 😳😲🙌

#6: The Boogeyman — ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Unsettling! Fun ending! Left off with a chill – loved it!

#7: Grey Matter — ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ OMG! I loved that! That’s good ole’ fashioned Horror right there!! 😲

#8: Battleground — ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This is a fun one. It’s straight out of a child’s worst imaginings. Bro needs to pick better weapons though, for real. 😝🤣

#9: Trucks — ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ As the daughter of a truck driver, I can recognize how horrifying this story is. Having one of these beasts parked in your driveway, is admittedly a little intimidating if you let your imagination run wild!

#10: Sometimes They Come Back — ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This was an absolute nightmare of a story. I’d say it’s not over for Jim either, but just the beginning…

#11: Strawberry Spring — ((unrated) Hahaha, fantastic conclusion 👏 wow! Got me in the end!!

#12: The Ledge — ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ As someone with a fear of heights, this definitely got my pulse racing!! I can’t even imagine being the protagonist in this story. No way!!

#13: The Lawnmower Man — ((unrated)) The one I have been waiting for… This is the only story I remember from when I read this collection as a kid. Reading it now, I’m not quite sure why it had such an impact? It’s the shortest of the stories so far. Maybe the indecent exposure? LOL

#14: Quitter’s, Inc. — ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Ahh, this was so good. I could picture being in this guy’s shoes, how terrifying that would be, to live in fear like that. He def handed over the power in his life to a new entity. And that ending!? That was so fun 😁

#15: I Know What You Need — ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 I loved this. It’s so eerie, so creepy and it completely immersed me in Elizabeth’s story. Also, it has a touch of early ‘Good For Her’ Horror, which I love!

#16: Children of the Corn — ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This could explain my almost life-long fear of cornfields and men named Malachi.

#17: The Last Rung on the Ladder — ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ So that’s what it feels like to have your heartbroken in under 30-pages. 😢

#18: The Man Who Loved Flowers — ((unrated)) There’s no beating around the bush with this story. It strikes quickly, and hard! This one probably petrified me as a kid…

#19: One For the Road – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Unsurprisingly, King made the 19th-story connected. IYKYK. It’s a tale of the Lot, and a helluva good one!

#20: The Woman in the Room — ((unrated)) 😢 This one makes me so sad to think about. I get it, I definitely do, but yeah, sort of sucks the wind of of my sails a bit by how sadly realistic it is.

Overall, this is a STUNNING collection. There is so much fantastic Horror and Speculative content in this. An absolute icon, and so ahead of his time. King was breaking ground. No matter what you may think of King’s work, you have to be able to doff your cap to what he did for the genre.

No doubt about it, I’ll definitely be revisiting this collection someday. I highly recommend this to any Horror Reader who enjoys short stories.

What King was able to accomplish with these tales is truly incredible. Proving, fewer pages doesn’t necessarily equate to lesser impact.

View all my reviews

Review: Letter Slot (Shivers Collection #5) by Owen King

~ megs14malloy

Letter Slot (The Shivers Collection, #5)Letter Slot by Owen King
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Letter Slot is a great Horror short story. This is the 2nd-Shivers Collection release that I have picked up and I enjoyed it just as much as the 1st, Jackknife.

This is the 1st-time I’ve read from Owen King, and I can definitely see the family resemblance. This guy knows how to tell a COMPELLING story. I was hooked from the start!

This story follows Blake, a teenage boy, who lives with his single-mom. They’ve been struggling and Blake’s Mom’s health has suffered because of stress and an accident she had at their rental property.

Nothing seems to be going right for them, and Blake just wants it to be better, particularly for his Mom, who does so much. He hates seeing her in pain.

As part of a school assignment, he ends up pouring out all these thoughts and emotions into a letter, and putting that letter through a mail slot of an abandoned show house.

He’s floored when he receives a response with an offer to help make all of their problems disappear. All he has to do is give his new pal a name; a name of someone he hates.

Blake is left with a real Faustian dilemma on his hands. He’d do anything for his Mom, but what will it cost him?

I really enjoyed how this story played out. The way it was told, it was beautifully-plotted for such a short story. I was completely sucked in and invested in the moral dilemma.

I feel like King did an exceptional job creating an unsettling atmosphere, even when you didn’t know exactly what was getting under your skin. It was a whole vibe; very well done.

Thank you to Brillance Publishing for providing me with a copy to read and review. Grover Gardner’s narration in the audiobook was perfect for this story.

I highly recommend that format!

View all my reviews

Review: Jackknife (The Shivers Collection #1) by Joe Hill

~ megs14malloy

Jackknife (The Shivers Collection, #1)Jackknife by Joe Hill
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Jackknife is a captivating short story from one of my faves, Joe Hill. This is a part of the Amazon Shivers Collection, which features works from some of the best Horror and Dark Fiction authors currently in the biz.

After seeing the author list contributing to this collection, I knew it was one that I could not possibly miss. This is the first I’ve picked up and can’t wait for more!

This story features a University Professor on the brink of losing everything after being caught up in a scandal, but through it all he discovers his deep will to live.

It also has a terrifying tree and a touch of vigilante justice.

Joe Hill’s writing never fails to capture my attention, and more importantly keep it. Once I started this one, I had to see it through. I wanted to know where exactly we were going with this unsettling concept.

As short stories go, I feel like this is well executed. It gave me what I was hoping for, and as mentioned above, I’m excited to continue on with the collection.

Thank you, Brilliance Publishing, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I would recommend this to fans of Horror Short Fiction, and of course to fans of Joe Hill!

View all my reviews

Review: Gleanings (Arc of the Scythe #3.5) by Neal Shusterman

~ megs14malloy

Gleanings (Arc of a Scythe, #3.5)Gleanings by Neal Shusterman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Gleanings, tagged as Arc of the Scythe #3.5, is a collection of 13-short stories set within Shusterman’s incredible world of the Scythe. A world without death, or disease. A world I fell in love with as I binged the entire trilogy recently.

This was a fantastic collection. I listened to the audio and loved the multiple narrators, including Shusterman himself. It provided great new insights and gave me some extra time with a few of my favorite characters that I wasn’t ready to say good-bye too yet.

I appreciated how the collection was arranged and liked how it was sort of book-ended by stories following one of my favorite characters of the series.

My favorite story though, which personally I think is worth picking up the entire collection for, is hands-down The Martian Minute, which gives the Reader tons more insight into the Mars disaster. It’s a bit of an origin story for the most wicked villain of the series.

I loved how varied the perspectives were and how many of them connected to the original series. As bonus content goes, this leans into the must read category.

I did read this immediately upon finishing The Toll; as in, I started it the next day, so the entire series was fresh in my mind. I was emotional about it ending and didn’t want it to be over. This provided just the right amount of material for me to feel like I can walk away with a full heart now.

Shusterman is a genius. That’s clear throughout this series and I am really hopeful that we’ll eventually get more in this world. I’m not sure if that is in the cards or not, but you better believe I would be first in line at the bookstore if it ever comes to fruition.

Overall, I had a fabulous experience with this. I’m sure glad I made time for it and am happy to display it with the rest of the series on my shelf!

View all my reviews

Review: The Gift by Freida McFadden

~ megs14malloy

The GiftThe Gift by Freida McFadden
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Gift is a very fun short story by beloved author, Freida McFadden. It is a Christmas story and if this doesn’t get you in the mood for the season, I’m not sure what will!

I’m not going to say anything at all about the story itself, as it’s only 53-pages. I will say, this is my first taste of Freida McFadden’s work, but it will not be my last.

It’s tense, engaging and delightfully devious. I was impressed with how easily McFadden was able to draw me into the story and how much she packed into so few pages.

There are times when short stories can be unsatisfying, but that’s not the case here. This was really well done.

Thank you to the publisher, Dreamscape Select, for providing me with an audiobook to read and review. I am definitely looking forward to reading more from this author.

View all my reviews

Review: Never Whistle at Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology, Edited by Shane Hawk & Theodore C. Van Alst, Jr.

~ megs14malloy

Never Whistle at Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction AnthologyNever Whistle at Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology by Shane Hawk
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Attention Dark Fiction fans: if you only read one anthology all year, it should be this one; an amazing collection!!

Never Whistle at Night is exactly what the subtitle says, an Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology. From the moment I heard about this release, I was stoked for it.

The synopsis sold me. I was also so excited to see the incredible group of authors contributing and that there would be an introduction by one of my all-time faves, Stephen Graham Jones!

I love all things Dark Fiction. It’s definitely my comfort zone and I truly enjoy exploring Dark Fiction inspired by cultures other than my own. I just love learning about the different dark lore/stories that various cultures around the world tell, or incorporate into their broader fictional narrative.

I am no writer, so I’m probably failing miserably in explaining what I mean, but hopefully you get the gist of why I was so excited for this particular anthology.

After the introduction from Stephen Graham Jones, the deep storytelling vibes are set and it’s time to dive in. I was immediately impressed with the variety and depth of the stories included. I had chills by the time I had finished the first story, always a good sign.

Anthologies and short-story collections are always a little hard to rate highly, as it’s very rare to vibe with all the stories included in a 5-star way. You’ll always have some you enjoy a lot and maybe a few that aren’t to your taste.

While I would say that is also true here, overall, for me, this was definitely a 5-star reading experience. Even though not all the stories were tailored to my particular tastes, I could still appreciate just how well they were written, and how each author truly brought their heart and their A-game to this collection.

If you are curious, some of the stand-outs for me in this collection were: White Hills by Rebecca Roanhorse, Quantum by Nick Medina, Snakes are Born in the Dark by D.H. Trujillo, Scariest. Story. Ever. by Richard Van Camp, The Prepper by Morgan Talty, Sundays by David Heska Wanbli Weiden and Collections by Amber Blaeser-Wardzala.

My favorite story of the collection was actually written by one of the editors, Shane Hawk. The story is titled Behind Colin’s Eyes and follows a boy and his Dad embarking on what should be a regular day of hunting, but ends up being anything but that. This one creeped me the heck out. It gave me chills and the whole thing is seared in my brain now. I won’t unsee this. Great work!

Overall, there is so much to love about this collection. There’s definitely something for everyone in here. As mentioned before, the stories cover a wide-range of topics and you can tell that these authors took a lot of care with the stories they were sharing.

Never Whistle at Night is a must read for anyone who enjoys Dark Fiction. Available now!!!

View all my reviews

Review: The Beast You Are: Stories by Paul Tremblay

~ megs14malloy

The Beast You Are: StoriesThe Beast You Are: Stories by Paul Tremblay
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-star rounded up**

The Beast You Are: Stories is a recently compiled collection of short works from beloved author, Paul Tremblay.

I have enjoyed three previous novels from Tremblay, but have never read any of his shorter works. I was happy to receive a copy from the publisher and check them out.

Overall, I felt like this was an interesting collection. It’s quite a mix of topics, which made every new story feel fresh and unique. Additionally, I think it’s a great example of Tremblay’s creativity and speculative style of storytelling.

Unfortunately though, the last story, the novella for which the collection is named, was my least favorite. Therefore, it ended up leaving a bad taste in my mouth at the close, which isn’t how I like to finish off a collection.

Other than that one though, I felt it was very solid.

I loved how a couple of the stories are lightly connected to A Head Full of Ghosts. That was fun, like little Easter Eggs.

That has been my favorite of Tremblay’s novels, so it was exciting to see those connections revisited here.

I believe the majority of these stories have been previously published in other collections, or magazines, etc., but this is the first time they have ever been presented together.

I think for long-time Tremblay fans, this will be an enjoyable way to get your hands on so many of his shorter works. I would absolutely recommend it to those readers looking to get easy access to that type of story.

I’m happy I read this. Always happy to be reading Tremblay and am looking forward to whatever he publishes next!!

Thank you so much to William Morrow for providing me with a copy. I appreciate it!

View all my reviews

Review: Night of the Living Queers: 13 Tales of Terror & Delight, Editors — Shelly Page and Alex Brown

~ megs14malloy

Night of the Living Queers: 13 Tales of Terror & DelightNight of the Living Queers: 13 Tales of Terror & Delight by Shelly Page
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Night of the Living Queers: 13 Tales of Terror & Delight is a fun, spooky-time YA-Anthology full of great representation and diverse stories.

This is the perfect collection to get you in the mood for Fall!!

Editors, Shelly Page and Alex Brown, did an incredible job bringing together a great assortment of authors to contribute to this collection.

I loved how each story takes place on Halloween night, when there is a rare Blue Supermoon. It’s thought this special occasion could open up our world more easily to all sorts of supernatural and creepy occurrences.

It was fun to see how each of these authors took that prompt, that setting, if you will, and created something unique and engaging, all of their very own.

Anthologies can be tough sometimes, because it’s rare to connect with each and every story equally, but for me, this was well-rounded and exciting enough to keep me hooked throughout.

Of course some stories fit my personal tastes more than others, but I can absolutely see how every single Reader will be able to find something within this collection to enjoy and connect to.

I really enjoyed so many of these of stories and cherished how different they all were from each other. It never felt repetitive, or overdone.

Some of the standouts for me were: The Visitor by Kalynn Bayron, A Brief Intermission by Sara Farizan, The Three Phases of Ghost Hunting by Alex Brown and Nine Stops by Trang Thanh Tran.

My favorite story overall was Anna by Shelly Page. This one just had everything I love to get myself geared up for a solid spooky season. It had a babysitter, twins, a ouija board, an attic and a ghost. I mean, what is not to love about that!?

Finally, I will just say how much I appreciate the thought and care these editors and authors put into this collection. The vast and inclusive representation is so important and I feel like they all did a great job creating super fun and creepy stories, while also being mindful of the original intent of the collection.

I would absolutely recommend this anthology as a way to get yourself in the mood for the Spooky Season. It’s the most wonderful time of the year and books that showcase that are my favorite kinds!

Thank you so much to the publisher, Wednesday Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I’d love to read more from every one of these authors!

View all my reviews

Review: They Lurk by Ronald Malfi

~ megs14malloy

They LurkThey Lurk by Ronald Malfi
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars rounded up**

This 2014-novella collection has been lovingly-repackaged and rereleased by Titan Books and Tantor Audio.

I am so pleased with how the cover pairs with Ghostwritten. I really enjoyed that collection as well and feel like these two would make quite a duo on the shelves.

The stories included are: They Lurk, Skullbelly, The Separation, The Stranger, After the Fade and Fierce.

I felt the arrangement was great, as my favorite story was the first one and my least favorite was last, but by least favorite, we’re still talking like a solid 3.5-star rounded up.

Ronald Malfi is one of my favorite authors. Truth be told, I’m a bit of a fangirl, but honestly, I feel like this collection has something for every Horror Reader to enjoy.

Each story had it’s own vibe, but the one thing they all had was a overriding creepiness as the narrative unfolded. There were times I was feeling like Bone White vibes, other times I was getting The Mist, I was hooked.

I listened to the audiobook and would definitely recommend that as a medium. Both narrators did an incredible job bringing these stories to life. Well done!

It’s rare for me to find a short-story collection that works for me so well. This was fantastic. I can’t praise Malfi enough. Every time I pick up one of his books, I’m reminded of how in love I am with the tone and delivery of his stories.

Chef’s freaking kiss!!!

Thank you so much to the publisher, Tantor Audio and Titan Books, for providing me with copies to read and review. I’m working my way through Malfi’s backlist and these rereleases are certainly helpful!!

If you love Horror and have yet to read Malfi, you need to change that ASAP. 10-out-of-10 recommend!!!

View all my reviews