Screams from the Dark: 29 Tales of Monsters and the Monstrous ed. by Ellen Datlow
Reviewing any one of Ellen Datlow’s excellent horror anthologies is always a pleasure as they unanimously feature stories of high-quality writing and are a kind of go-to place for us horror readers who want to discover fresh blood. So I was lusting for her latest themed anthology, the massive Screams from the Dark: 29 Tales of Monsters and the Monstrous anthology ever since the announcement of its publication in the summer and gifted it to myself as a birthday treat in the fall, intending to read a story a day in October, which I did.
Regrettably, by the high standard the name Datlow entails, this one shines a little paler than usual - many of the stories dragged despite their shortness and felt somewhat overwritten at times.
Still,
each contributing author interpreted the theme “monster” in their own
original way and of course I found some
highlights that sweetened this read for me that I'll shortly present here, here we go:
“You Have What I Need” by Ian Rogers
Consider
you only have limited space and have to provide sufficient background
for a short story to be believable, consistent and plausible. A hard
task, yes, but one that Ian Rogers totally aces in the vampire story
“You Have What I Need” - baller world building, societal distress in the
shape of a vampiric virus, how quick the tables can turn… Rogers packs a
punch with this one.
“The Virgin Jimmy Peck” by Daryl Gregory
“They Rosemary-babied you!”
I’m
aware this is probably spoiler territory but this sentence is too good
to not share here and the expression should be added into dictionaries.
Though, of course I hope nobody ever needs to use it except in fiction.
The story follows a Lovecraftian cult preparing for the coming of their
lord and Jimmy Peck, the chosen mother. One of the most likable main
characters I have ever read about. Funny, horrible, horrific story.
“Here Comes Your Man” by Indrapramit Das
I love Das’ writing ever since I discovered The Devourers,
a truly monumental historical fiction about werewolves and the likes in India. In
“Here Comes Your Man” the threat is nothing imaginary but something much
more imminent, acute, real. A wonderful reflection on female anxiety.
“What is Love But the Quiet Moments After Dinner” by Richard Kadrey
Surprisingly
I haven’t read anything by Richard Kadrey to this day but I’m
completely sold after reading this story about a man with a bloody
secret and his relationship with a woman whose perverse impulses are the
antidote to his loneliness. Genuinely twisty and action-packed.
“Strandling” by Caitlín R. Kiernan
For
me, this is the absolute winner of this anthology. It’s no secret
Kiernan can rock the Lovecraftian but she mightily ups her game with
this one. Is there a connection between marine parasites and these
lovers we follow, one of whom is terminally ill? What are these
creatures? Fantastic final scene, sublime writing, a touching
relationship, plain wonderful, but also devastating.
“Knock, Knock” by Brian Evenson
If
Kiernan is the winner, then Evenson is surely the closest runner up
because this story is just laugh out loud dreadful. We’re following a
nephew trying to kill his uncle in an inheritance dispute and it
gets really all tangled up. There’s something sticky in Evenson’s
monsters, something foul, rotting, the kind that sticks with you long
after you finished reading.
There’s also an honorable mention of a
story I hated reading but feel the need to give the devil his due: A.C.
Wise’s “Crick-Crack Rattle Trap” was done immaculately – the writing,
the horror, the development are all top tier but it’s highly triggering
motherhood horror and it really dragged me down. So I’ll take my hat off
for Wise, but this isn’t mine to enjoy.
As you see, despite my griping and nagging, there
still are quite a few stories that hit and surpassed the mark for me,
and considering there are whopping 29 stories in total there will surely
be some that appeal to everyone.
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