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Book Review: Christmas and Other Horrors: A Winter Solstice Anthology edited by Ellen Datlow

Cover art for Christmas and Other Stories: An Anthology of Solstice Horror

 

Christmas and Other Horrors:: An Anthology of Solstice Horror edited by Ellen Datlow

Titan Books, 2023

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1803363264

Available: Hardcover, Kindle edition, audiobook

Buy:    Bookshop.org  |  Amazon.com

 

 

Many people think of the Christmas season as a cheerful time of year, but it’s always been a time where sprits, gods, and terrifying creatures roam. Ghost stories set at Christmas abound: Charles Dickens and M.R James both published them every year. Coinciding with the winter solstice, it’s also a time of sacrifice. Christmas and Other Horrors draws on this tradition, with a wide variety of stories, ranging from folk horror to apocalyptic clifi.

 

There are several stories I found especially enjoyable.

In “The Importance of a Tidy Home,” ,by Christopher Golden, grotesque creatures local to Salzburg, Austria murder residents of homes that haven’t been tidied for the new year;

“The Ghost of Christmases Past”, by Richard Kadrey, describes Christmas Eve with Laura, who boards herself into her house every year to prevent the return of a cannibalistic witch who ate her brother in front of her, to her husband’s disbelief;

“All The Pretty People” by Nadia Bulkin, describes a Festivus party reuniting college friends, who are surprised when their friend Sam, who ghosted them months ago, arrives

“Cold”, by Cassandra Khaw, is an apocalyptic clifi story in which a saint, Brede, arrives every year on the winter solstice, asking if she can stay and sleep until spring… but what happens when spring doesn”t come? The figurative language and world-building in this story were fantastic.

In “Löyly Sow-na”,by Josh Malerman, Russell visits his Finnish girlfriend Hannele’s family, where he is trapped in a sauna with her father. I had no idea how this story was going to play out!

“Grave of Small Birds”, by Kaaron Warren, is a folk horror tale in which a bad-tempered reality show chef specializing in medieval cookery takes a job on a small British island with strange Christmas traditions. While it was fairly predictable, the setting was well-done. The main character was unlikable, so I found the ending very satisfying. This was a very atmospheric story, and descriptions of the island and its unusual traditions were excellent..

 

While the winter solstice and the Christmas season have passed, I can recommend this book for any time of year.

 

Reviewed by Kirsten Kowalewski

 

Posted on January 3, 2024 by , Reply

Book Review: The Serpent’s Shadow by Daniel Braum

Cover art for The Serpent's Shadow by Daniel Braum

 

The Serpent’s Shadow by Daniel Braum

Cemetery Dance, 2023

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1587679322

Available: Paperback

Buy: Bookshop.org

 

Daniel Braum’s writing is always intriguing. His NIght Marchers and Other Strange Tales was an outstanding collection of dark fiction. The Cemetery Dance release of his first novel departs from quiet horror to regale readers with a chilling story that is well worth the read.

 

David and his family land in Cancun, circa 1986. He and his sister are looking for adventure, hoping to escape their parents. They find it in a nightclub where he meets Anne Marie, a beautiful young woman to steal the eighteen-year-old’s heart. Yet she isn’t seeking to kill him, only to befriend him. Her innocence and ties to the city only ensnare his attention even more.

 

The true adventure begins as they explore a Mayan temple. The cab driver informs them that not everything is ancient history. The teens discover the pyramid holds a group of natives, many of the modern sort, who ache to bring Cancun back to the olden days when magic ruled the land.

 

What ensues is a blistering dark fantasy story that brings the horror. Braum knows how to deliver solid horror: how to build the tension, slowly tightening the noose on the readers. The setting is rendered beautifully, both the tourist trap of the city with its saccharine glitz, and the rich culture of the Mayans and Mexicans, struggling to reclaim a culture lost

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David and Anne Marie are fascinating in the depth of their characterization, as both stretch out in intriguing manners. The plot twists and turns, via the dive into the cultural dichotomy of past and current, as even the slightest characters contribute to the story. The less said, the better about this short novel, as the surprises creep off the page.

 

Braum paints a bizarre tale that leaves readers aching to read more of the writer’s work. Recommended.

 

Reviewed by David Simms

 

Posted on January 1, 2024 by , Reply

Book Review: The Forest Demands Its Due by Kosoko Jackson

The Forest Demands Its Due by Kosoko Jackson

Quill Tree Books, 2023

ISBN-13: ‎978-0063260795

Available: Hardcover, Kindle edition, audiobook, audio CD

Buy:  Bookshop.org  |  Amazon.com

 

I have enjoyed Kosoko Jackson’s previous YA books, the dystopian Survive the Dome and the time travel novel Yesterday is History, both with Black queer boys as protagonists. The Forest Demands Its Due once again changes genre, to a combination of dark academia and folk horror.

 

Douglas Jones was arrested for arson and manslaughter when a lawyer offered her services pro bono if he would agree to attend an elite boarding school in an isolated area of Vermont. The school is bordered by a forest that students are warned away from as there have been many who disappeared into them never to be seen again.

 

As the only Black queer boy attending Regent School, Douglas is a target for bullies. He also hears loud, disturbing voices he can’t  turn off that he is certain come from the forest. Just the first few pages and Jackson had me deep in his story.

 

Early in the book a bully drags Douglas into the forest and is killed. Everett Everley, a member of the Everley family charged with protecting students, bargains with the Emissary, a vengeful creature of the god of the forest, to save himself and Douglas. Douglas learns that whenever there is a suspicious death the headmaster “erases” the existence of the person from everyone’s memories, so no one is aware of how many students and teachers have been lost to the forest.

 

There is a curse on the forest, nearby town of Winslow, and the five founding families of the town preventing them from leaving because they participated in the burning of Henry, the forest god’s lover, generations ago. His grief and anger have caused the death and anguish of many students and locals.  Everett and the headmaster are both descendants of the founding families. Everett helps Douglas investigate the history of Winslow, the school, and the forest, and after some awkward misunderstandings they start to develop a romantic relationship. The headmaster convinces Douglas to enter the forest  in hopes that he can find the gate to the forest god’s retreat and break the curse. Everett goes with Douglas to protect him. The forest is nightmarish, twisty and changeable and they easily get lost, then attacked by Emissaries and their grotesque servants, called Perversions. When they find the gate, Douglas goes through to try to convince the god to let go of his grief and anger and release the forest and town from their curse. As the god dies, he transfers his powers to Douglas, tying him to the forest and freeing Everett.

 

This was a very emotional story with a lot of darkness and trauma. The two boys have had very heavy responsibilities set on their shoulders and see and experience things no one should have to. They witness the aftermath of a suicide and there is a fair amount of gore and body horror (the Perversions are a grotesque combination of human and animal parts) Jackson’s writing is descriptive and atmospheric, although it’s a little slow in places, and he has created an immersive experience of the dark fantastic.

 

Jackson frequently addresses the injustice and inequality of institutions such as the legal system and education, and that is evident here. I love that he puts power for change in the hands of someone marginalized, who has only ever felt powerless. Recommended.

 

Reviewed by Kirsten Kowalewski

Posted on October 3, 2023 by , Reply
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