I love reading and reviewing short stories and collections. You get a little bit of everything and they are a challenge to review.
For today, I’m reviewing The Lady of Chains ~And Other Stories by V. Shaw. Read more to enter the giveaway.
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NOT SUITABLE FOR YOUNGER READERS
The Lady of Chains
“Remember; you have seventy-two hours to do the deed and not a moment longer. Cut her throat and remove her heart. That, my girl, is the only way to destroy the wretched creature.”
Viola knew she shouldn’t have taken Mrs. Casket’s offer. Viola’s heart stutters with each step up the long winding staircase. She really needs the money, but can she actually do this?
Greylock is a city of rust and steam, patrolled by metal soldiers who’s only purpose is to kill . They are best avoided. Nothing ever grows here and being an orphan, Viola struggles just to live.
It’s been chained up in the tower for years. If It ever escaped, it would finish what it started.
Mrs. Casket’s proposition seemed like a great opportunity, but now that she’s about to come face to face with The Lady of Chains, the Destroyer, Traitor of Greylock, Viola’s having second and third thoughts.
There is all kinds of weird in this story. A lady immobilized with chains, a machine with gears and valves that controls her movements, and a mysterious connection between Viola and the Lady. This novelette has depth and excitement.
I love the steampunk flavor and the well placed scenes of horror make this an edge of your seat read. The author’s ability to develop her characters in-depth, describe the city as if I could see and smell it, and create a unique and startling plot just blew me away.
Hansel and Gretel
You know the story. Brother and sister tricked into the woods and abandoned there by their parents. They stumble around, lost and afraid.
In V. Shaw’s version of this tale, things are quite different. As time passes, Hansel and Gretel begin to change, to become a part of the forest. They are becoming.
This one surprised me. It started out familiar but then took a turn to the mysterious. It’s not the witch, eating children, you have to worry about.
The author got creative and gave you a whole new spin on an old fairytale.
Rogan and the Gargoyle
Megan regains consciousness, a peculiar metallic taste on her tongue. Probing her mouth, she pulls out a lump of flesh.
Then she recalls everything. The gargoyle grabbing her, taking flight, and the taste of its skin when she bites it.
They’d all been a part of the Health and Fitness class and went to the Highlands of Scotland to enjoy some rock climbing and camping. The lodge was isolated and outfitted with the barest of necessities.
Megan wishes she’d never went into the barn. That’s where she discovered the hideous statue.
When night fell, the statue came to life and picked them off one by one.
Big Dave, Meg and Rogan are all that’s left now. If the stories are true, it turns to stone during the day. What should they do, run for it or try to hunt it down and destroy it?
If they’d had that one piece of necessary, need to know information, their decision might have been different.
Silent World
All the adults are gone along with most of the children. Alex and Thorn live in the farmhouse he was raised in. After taking her in, Alex tries to make life for her as normal as possible, as safe as possible, in a world of extreme winters and blistering hot summers.
They’ve been doing okay, keeping up patrols to destroy the Carpathians and meat-sacks that stumble upon the farm. Thorn is very good at taking them down. She’s very agile and ferocious for such a young girl. For all they know, they could be the only humans left.
Then there’s a knock on their door, more like a thump and a scrape. When Alex hears the faint cry for help, he risks opening the door. Standing there, in the white out of the winter storm, is a figure clad in fur and leather, face not visible . He rushes to catch the stranger when Thorn sidles up and conks the visitor on the head.
Alex stops Thorn from shooting the stranger and they put him in one of the kennels in the basement.
At first the young man wants nothing to do with them, but his infected wounds make him too weak to leave. Slowly nursed back to health, Finn begins to come out of his shell.
As the days pass, Finn grows stronger and becomes friends with Thorn. He treads lightly around Alex, not sure of how to act around him. Living in close quarters, they all begin to bond, to work as a team.
But Alex has a secret, a terrible one. One that puts them all in danger.
I’m still wondering if the beings are vampires or zombies or both. They don’t play a big role in the story though. Alex, Thorn and Finn are the major players and the author shows you their flaws, vulnerabilities, and loneliness. I enjoyed reading about them as they began to become friends. The relationship between Alex and Quinn left me curious. Not sure how I should interpret it. The hope the characters bring to each other, along with their struggle to survive allows you to bond with them and their story. You can’t help but care what happens.
All of these stories would be great as full novels. I’d love to know more. Each one has an element of horror but V. Shaw also brings to the table the fragility of human nature and our strengths when faced with impossible situations.
I gave this a Five for keeping it real.
Praise for Lady of Chains ~ And Other Stories
“V. Shaw’s talent for writing a good story is apparent in her very first book. The Lady of Chains and Other Stories doesn’t disappoint.” KDH Reviews
“The story is written to captivate the reader and it does this with the greatest of ease . . . I loved it and couldn’t put the book down.” Amazon.com
“A definite must read! Each story is a gateway into another world which takes your imagination to a whole new place with engaging & quirky characters. Very intriguing stories. Hard to put down.” Amazon.co.uk
About the author
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V. Shaw is the author of the short fiction collection, The Lady of Chains and Other Stories. Born in Scotland, she studied Film and Media at Stirling University. Having reviewed horror films for the now defunct FatallyYours.com, she has turned her attention to creating her own stories.
Writer. Urban explorer. Climber. Horror junkie. Beer guzzler. Book obsessed.
Cinema and television fiend. Nerd for life.
Her debut horror novel, The Fragile Things, is due to be released in March.
Her blog
Goodreads
Giveaway
V. Shaw is offering five e-books for the giveaway.
To enter, please leave your email address and answer this question, “What do you like about short stories and collections?”
Contest ends Jan. 16th.
Thank You and Good Luck.
Click on the cover to purchase your copy.
