Many of you probably know how much I love anthologies and collections, especially when it’s horror.
I have some great ones to share with you today in Regina Puckett’s Short Tales of Horror Part II.
Come on in. Get your scare on.
And don’t forget to enter the giveaway. You could win your own copy!
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Short Tales of Horror Part II
by Regina Puckett
GENRE – Horror
PUBLICATION DATE – September 2, 2014
LENGTH (Pages/# Words) – 77 pages
PUBLISHER – Punk & Sissy Publications
COVER ARTIST – Ryan Jorgensen owns copyright on photo. Charity Parkerson put together the book cover.
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My Review
I love anthologies and collections and the author has some good ones here.
Lets start from the beginning.
First up is Ours.
Sheriff Wilson remembers the last time paranormal investigators wanted to explore the abandoned mental hospital. A dozen people died and they still haven’t solved the case.
Now a new bunch of investigators want to turn their investigation into a haunted house tour.
When will people learn?
This was very atmospheric. Lots of strange things occurring. And the worst of the action took place in room 666. Spooky room number. Wouldn’t catch me entering it. But people do and it gets bad.
Room 666 housed Wallace Webster. A serial killer convicted of killing over 100 children and claiming to have killed many more.
No matter how many times I read stories with a similar plot or watch the movies, I’m always intrigued. I have to know how the author will spin it.
Regina did great with Ours.
Next up is Silent Baby Screams.
A mother returns home to find her baby missing. Her husband was supposed to drop off Toby at the daycare center, but when she called to check up on her baby, he hadn’t been dropped off.
When she gets home she discovers the baby room is empty. Nothing in it. It’s like little Toby was never born.
She calls the police and her husband arrives home at the same time they arrive. What’s strange is he doesn’t get out of the car. Just watches his hysterical wife as she screams for them to find her baby.
It wasn’t long before I figured out where this was going. That didn’t stop me from feeling the suspense, and the husbands odd behavior did have me baffled for a bit.
The third story is Lucky Thirteen
The number thirteen is supposed be lucky. But some people think it’s bad luck.
Granny lives alone except for her cats. You guessed it, thirteen of them.
Her daughter and granddaughter want her to move in with them. It’s getting hard for her to move around and the crime rate has risen in her neighborhood. They don’t like the idea of her being there alone. What if she’s falls? What if someone breaks in?
Someone does break in.
But I don’t think we have to worry about Granny.
This was a wicked, fun one.
Then there’s Pay Back.
This one had me going for a while. I couldn’t put my finger on just what was happening.
Jeremy stumbles out of bed, late again. His parents were going to kill him. But maybe that would be better than having to face the relentless bullies at school.
His parents don’t get how serious it is. They expect him to suck it up, be a man, and deal with it.
Jeremy finds a way to deal with it.
You know what they say about pay back…
Now for Slimmer.
Donald and his partner have created a new diet pill. Eat all you want and lose weight.
We’ve heard that one before.
Now wanting to wait for approval for human trials, Donald gets his girlfriend to try them.
She figures, why not? He’s always on her about her weight. Nagging her. And at first they work great. She can eat anything she wants and never gain a pound. But then she can’t stop eating. She’s always starving for more.
There’s no such thing as a miracle cure. And when the test rats start going crazy, you have to wonder what Donald’s girlfriend will do.
And last but not least is Sam I Am.
There’s someone living in her closet. He’s Sam I Am and he wants little Kippie out.
When Paige and Nathan bought their dream home, they didn’t know it was supposed to be haunted.
When Kippie tries to tell them about Sam I Am, they play it off as her imagination.
But now Kippie has disappeared. Police are called and the hunt begins.
Kippie warned them. She told them – “He said his mommy hurt him once, but that was okay because he fixed her wagon.”
What happened to Kippie? Does Sam I Am have her? Does he exist?
The ending is not what you expect.
So there you have it. Six scary tales to make you keep the lights on, listen when someone tells you there’s a boogeyman, and never mess with little old ladies.
I enjoyed all of these, and just finished reading Regina’s first collection of Scary Tales of Horror. You may want to check them out too.
5 Stars
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BOOK SYNOPSIS
Ours
While Sheriff Wilson has no idea what really transpired the night twelve people were murdered in the old mental
hospital during what was supposed to be a simple night of ghost hunting, he was at the scene moments after the lone
survivor committed suicide. Now it’s a year later and a group of paranormal investigators want to set up a haunted
house and invite the general public in that same abandoned mental hospital. How is he supposed to keep that many
people safe from whoever or whatever killed the last group?
Silent Baby Screams
Gwen doesn’t understand why her husband resents their newborn baby so much, but she never suspects that one day
she’ll return home from work to discover their baby boy has simply vanished. What happens next is the stuff of
nightmares.
Lucky Thirteen
Thirteen black cats help keep watch over a bedridden, old lady. Sometimes the number thirteen is lucky but then again it
might just depend on it who you are.
Pay Back
There’s nothing usual about Jeremy waking up late for school, but on this particular morning something feels different.
When he goes downstairs to face the music, he finds his grandmother waiting for him but no one else appears to be at
home. Jeremy believes he’s caught a lucky break and his mother and father won’t get to know, but he soon discovers
that not everything is as it seems. He finds he’ll have to face up to his mistakes, though, and maybe even suffer a little
payback himself.
Slimmer
Sandy loves her new boyfriend, but ever since they moved in together, Donald won’t get off her back about how much
she eats. When he offers her a new miracle diet pill, she decides to try one just to shut him up. Unfortunately, there are
unexpected side effects that take them both by terrifying surprise.
Sam I am
The morning after moving into her dream home with her young daughter and husband, Paige learns that the three story,
18th century house might be haunted. She then finds that her daughter has a new imaginary friend called Sam I Am. It
isn’t long before Paige’s perfect home turns into a living nightmare.
BUY & TBR LINKS
AMAZON KINDLE US ~ AMAZON KINDLE CA ~ AMAZON KINDLE UK ~ AMAZON PAPERBACK
BARNES & NOBLES NOOK ~ BARNES & NOBLES PAPERBACK
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EXCERPT
Ours
“Something drained its battery. Sometimes that happens when a spirit is nearby. Why don’t you try asking
Wallace a few questions? Maybe he likes men better than women. After all he only kidnapped, raped and killed little
boys. “
There’s nothing Alan wanted less than to try and communicate with a dead serial killer but he had forced his way
in with the group so the least he could do was try in fit in. “He liked little boy’s. I don’t think he’s going to be interested
in my type. I’m a little old for his taste.”
Rhonda didn’t say anything but continued to stare at him. He finally shrugged. “Why the hell not?” He turned
toward the empty room and tried not to feel like a damn fool. It was a good thing none of his deputies could see him
talking to a ghost. “If you’re with us, Wallace Webster, you should know the world’s a better place without you in it. You
were the lowest form of scrum bag and I think it’s a damn shame you were granted the pleasure of dying of old age in
here instead of getting the electric chair like you deserved.”
Rhonda elbowed him. “Ask a question and stop antagonizing him.”
Alan glared at her. “Fine.” He closed his eyes and tried to think of a good question. “Why did you hurt those
innocent children?” All of the K2 meters lit up.
Rhonda leaned over and grabbed her backpack. She dug around until she found the recorder. “Ask him
something else. “
Alan stood and walked over into the circle of K2 meters. “Why, you Son of a Bitch. Why?” He felt a sharp stinging
sensation across the back of his neck before cold air enveloped him. Just as he was reaching back to rub the painful area,
a putrid smell filled the air and a voice right next to his ear whispered. “Mine.” Without even thinking, he asked, “Why?”
There was a sinister laugh and another sharp painful slash across his neck and then down the full length of his back. He
went to step out of the circle until something bumped against the side of his leg. The air around him became soupy and
every breath became harder and harder to draw in.
When he made another move to leave the circle several things happened at once; it felt as if a large hand
gripped onto his shoulder, a breathe of foul air filled his nose and the room became crammed with small black shadows.
Another whisper finally answered his question. “My children.” Alan forced his legs to move but he only made it a few
steps when the black forms rushed to surround him. It felt as if several pairs of small hands were tugging at his pants’
legs and there were arms wrapping around both of his legs. The air overflowed with agitated murmurings and whispers.
Every hair on Alan’s body stood up from the static electricity in the room. He blinked his eyes several times
trying to focus on the tiny black shadows which had suddenly appeared out of nowhere. They were all inside of the circle
of K2 meters and the lights on the meters were flashing on and off like crazy. The shadows were darker than the room’s
darkness. They were completely void of any light and the feelings emanating from them were if they were totally void of
any happiness.
It wasn’t so much the touching or even the presence of the black shadows that bothered Alan. It was those
feelings of pain and anguish that were slowly leaching away his own happiness. He could sense they needed his help and
this was the only way they knew how to ask for it. He broke out in a cold sweat, and just as the coldness was beginning
to seep into his skin, frantic screaming came from somewhere else in the hospital.
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AUTHOR BIO
Regina Puckett is an award nominated author for her short story, Balloon Wishes.
Concealed in My Heart is a Readers’ Favorite Book Award Winner.
Claimed by Sin is nominated for 2014 Ellora’s Cave Golden Ankh award.
Concealed in My Heart won runner-up in the international 2014 MARSocial Author of the Year Competition.
Borrowed Wings, has received the Children’s Literary Classics Seal of Approval.
Memories won first place in the 1st WSBR International Poetry Contest. This poem may be found in her book of poetry,
Tilting at Windmills and Words.
Slowly Drowning won second place in the 3rd WSBR International Poetry Contest. This poem may be found in her poetry book, My Words into the Beyond.
Sir Galahad Comes to the Rescue won third place in the 3rd WSBR International Poetry Contest. This poem may be found in her book of poetry, Ramblings and Dreams.
Her collection of poetry, Fireflies, won 2013 Turning Pages Poetry Book of the Year.
She writes sweet romances, horror, inspirational, picture books and poetry. There are several projects in various stages
of completion and there are always characters and stories waiting for their chance to finally get out of her head and
onto paper.
AUTHOR FOLLOW LINKS
AMAZON ~ WEBSITE / BLOG ~ FACEBOOK
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GIVEAWAY PRIZES
2 print copies of Short Tales of Horror Part II
Click on the rafflecopter below to enter.
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