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Peekers
Larry just wants to enjoy the first day of his retirement. But there are a couple of obstacles in his way. First, there are the kids next door who insist on racing their dirt bikes through his yard. And then there's his eccentric neighbor Zach, who comes looking for Larry's help, to verify that Zach isn't losing his mind.
Because there is something in his house that couldn't possibly be real...Something terrifying...
Because there is something in his house that couldn't possibly be real...Something terrifying...
14 pages, Nook
First published January 1, 2006
17 people are currently reading
291 people want to read
About the author
Kealan Patrick Burke
194 books2,325 followersHailed by Booklist as “one of the most clever and original talents in contemporary horror,” Kealan Patrick Burke was born and raised in Ireland and emigrated to the United States a few weeks before 9/11.
Since then, he has written six novels, among them the popular southern gothic Kin, and over two hundred short stories and novellas, many of which are in various stages of development for film/TV.
A five-time nominee, Burke won the Bram Stoker Award in 2005 for his coming-of-age novella The Turtle Boy, the first book in the acclaimed Timmy Quinn series.
As editor, he helmed the anthologies Night Visions 12, Taverns of the Dead, and Quietly Now, a tribute anthology to one of Burke’s influences, the late Charles L. Grant.
More recently, he wrote the screenplays for Sour Candy (based on his novella), and the remake of the iconic horror film The Changeling (1980), for producer Joel B. Michaels.
He also adapted Sour Candy as a graphic novel for John Carpenter's Night Terrors.
His most recent release is Cottonmouth, a prequel to Kin. The Widows of Winding Gale, a maritime horror novel set in Ireland, is due for release in October as a signed limited edition from Earthling Publications.
Kealan is represented by Merrilee Heifetz at Writers House.
He lives in Ohio with a Scooby Doo lookalike rescue named Red.
Since then, he has written six novels, among them the popular southern gothic Kin, and over two hundred short stories and novellas, many of which are in various stages of development for film/TV.
A five-time nominee, Burke won the Bram Stoker Award in 2005 for his coming-of-age novella The Turtle Boy, the first book in the acclaimed Timmy Quinn series.
As editor, he helmed the anthologies Night Visions 12, Taverns of the Dead, and Quietly Now, a tribute anthology to one of Burke’s influences, the late Charles L. Grant.
More recently, he wrote the screenplays for Sour Candy (based on his novella), and the remake of the iconic horror film The Changeling (1980), for producer Joel B. Michaels.
He also adapted Sour Candy as a graphic novel for John Carpenter's Night Terrors.
His most recent release is Cottonmouth, a prequel to Kin. The Widows of Winding Gale, a maritime horror novel set in Ireland, is due for release in October as a signed limited edition from Earthling Publications.
Kealan is represented by Merrilee Heifetz at Writers House.
He lives in Ohio with a Scooby Doo lookalike rescue named Red.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 65 reviews
August 26, 2020
Zach invites Larry to his house. He says he should check who's upstairs since his wife still is in Cleveland. Then Larry is invited to a "play". Why are those faces only half visible? What about the missing papers? The story has some great and creepy horror effects but I would have liked to know more about what's really going on here. It seems more a preview than a full story. To me it was okay but left some questions open...
January 19, 2022
Strange Story!
Backstory:
Larry has retired and just wants to spend his time home to do the things he hasn't been able to get to while he was working. But his plans for the day are interrupted when his neighbor, Zach rushes over to his house wanting Larry to come over to his house as something is lurking inside Zach's home and he wants conformation that Larry is seeing what Zach is seeing. When Larry gets over there - things are awry as Zach's wife is suppose to be not home and yet she is upstairs peeking over the steps at them. How is that possible??
Thoughts:
This book was just plain odd and after reading this author's book "Kin" which was really a great book, this one fell flat for me as there wasn't nothing to the story of what is actually lurking in the house. Lots of questions with no answers. My questions would be - what are the creatures? Are they clones? Are they doppelgangers? How is the wife suppose to be in two places at once? Are the creatures aliens? See - there are tons of questions, but you never learn "what has actually invaded" the house or what is the purpose of the creatures or even if it is a creature - it might be an alien life form for all we know.
The point is there's really nothing here to grab onto or even sink your teeth into. As much as I would love to give this book more than two stars I just cannot do it as I was unsatisfied with the story and then again as with some horror stories you are left with burning unanswered questions sometimes. Maybe this is one of those horror books. You are not suppose to know. Giving this book two Disappointing stars!
Backstory:
Larry has retired and just wants to spend his time home to do the things he hasn't been able to get to while he was working. But his plans for the day are interrupted when his neighbor, Zach rushes over to his house wanting Larry to come over to his house as something is lurking inside Zach's home and he wants conformation that Larry is seeing what Zach is seeing. When Larry gets over there - things are awry as Zach's wife is suppose to be not home and yet she is upstairs peeking over the steps at them. How is that possible??
Thoughts:
This book was just plain odd and after reading this author's book "Kin" which was really a great book, this one fell flat for me as there wasn't nothing to the story of what is actually lurking in the house. Lots of questions with no answers. My questions would be - what are the creatures? Are they clones? Are they doppelgangers? How is the wife suppose to be in two places at once? Are the creatures aliens? See - there are tons of questions, but you never learn "what has actually invaded" the house or what is the purpose of the creatures or even if it is a creature - it might be an alien life form for all we know.
The point is there's really nothing here to grab onto or even sink your teeth into. As much as I would love to give this book more than two stars I just cannot do it as I was unsatisfied with the story and then again as with some horror stories you are left with burning unanswered questions sometimes. Maybe this is one of those horror books. You are not suppose to know. Giving this book two Disappointing stars!
April 18, 2023
This was a weird, uneasy and very enjoyable short story.
“Officer, my reclusive elderly neighbors subjected me to some weird kind of hide-and-seek game. Can you send someone over to chastise them?”
This made me think of The Hanging Man or The Invasion of the Body Snatchers to some extent. Well worth checking out, especially if you enjoy short horror or science fiction tales.
“Officer, my reclusive elderly neighbors subjected me to some weird kind of hide-and-seek game. Can you send someone over to chastise them?”
This made me think of The Hanging Man or The Invasion of the Body Snatchers to some extent. Well worth checking out, especially if you enjoy short horror or science fiction tales.
November 19, 2018
Short, concise and terrifying, kealan burke has become one of my favorite horror authors, reading this short story was terrifying and if you some day bump in to the short film based on this hold your self from watching it and read this first because the short film has nothing on this, I often wonder how he does it, to be honest he is inspiring me to write, I love his well written short stories and novellas you definitely get what you where looking for... Get scared to the bones.
January 27, 2015
Larry Morgan wanted to enjoy his retirement. Things just got in the way.
This is a short story, well written by Mr. Burke and appears to have been filmed and shown, at which this chapbook was given away.
Watch the film
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10diu...
(Thanks Charlene)
This is copy 100 of 100 printed copies.
This is a short story, well written by Mr. Burke and appears to have been filmed and shown, at which this chapbook was given away.
Watch the film
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10diu...
(Thanks Charlene)
This is copy 100 of 100 printed copies.
January 25, 2015
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10diu...and whilst we are here, check this one out too
July 23, 2016
Great short story and very original. Only reason for the loss of a star was editing. Really wish the story had kept going as I was just getting into it.
April 17, 2017
A creepy premise, not fully realized, with some annoyingly lazy typos.
May 8, 2024
This was so creepy. Larry is retired and wants nothing more than to just relax and enjoy his retirement. Unfortunately his neighbors next door have other plans arguing, racing their dirt bikes and obnoxiously revving them. His neighbor across the street (Zach) asks him to come over so he can show him something. Larry isn’t too thrilled with this and feels uneasy. What he sees is definitely not what I was expecting. The whole story was strange and creepy. Freaked me out a little to be honest, but I really enjoyed it!
October 3, 2018
Ok, even though it was a short read, it was menacing and creepy. Now I'm going to be afraid of looking up my stairs and in the kitchen. Great short read.
November 25, 2022
I usually really enjoy Kealan Patrick Burke’s work, but this one just wasn’t for me. There wasn’t much meat on the bones here, and I didn’t really understand what he was going for at all. It was way too ambiguous for my taste and felt underdeveloped.
October 12, 2024
Got the heebies as well as the jeebies. Mission accomplished.
May 8, 2023
The way this author writes horror always puts a smile on my face.
October 27, 2021
2.5 stars
November 21, 2022
This was a smart intriguing short story.
October 27, 2011
So glad I read this short. Thank you free books from Smashwords for introducing me to this author!
This short was absolutely creepy as hell. Gave me a shiver, which is hard to do. I just downloaded a novella, novel, and some more free shorts from Burke. He was a 2005 Stoker finalist and I can see why.
I can't wait to read them all.
Highy recommend to all of my HA and LH friends.
UPDATE
Just read this short for the second time. Still creepy as hell even though I knew what was coming. This may well be my favorite all-time short story.
This short was absolutely creepy as hell. Gave me a shiver, which is hard to do. I just downloaded a novella, novel, and some more free shorts from Burke. He was a 2005 Stoker finalist and I can see why.
I can't wait to read them all.
Highy recommend to all of my HA and LH friends.
UPDATE
Just read this short for the second time. Still creepy as hell even though I knew what was coming. This may well be my favorite all-time short story.
October 26, 2013
Larry Morgan's mundane plans for the day are disrupted by a reclusive neighbor whose wife has apparently been replaced by a creepy, grinning doppelganger....and that's just the start of something much bigger....and creepier.
This short story is currently being adapted for the big screen and is slated for a 2014 movie release.
4 STARS
This short story is currently being adapted for the big screen and is slated for a 2014 movie release.
4 STARS
March 16, 2016
Fun and creepy.
This is a really short story with a great premise. However, I wanted more from this concept. As an exercise in nameless horror and a chilling idea, Burke executed this well, but I was angry when it was over because of its abrupt conclusion that felt too forced. I think it's still worth a read -- I got a kick out of it.
This is a really short story with a great premise. However, I wanted more from this concept. As an exercise in nameless horror and a chilling idea, Burke executed this well, but I was angry when it was over because of its abrupt conclusion that felt too forced. I think it's still worth a read -- I got a kick out of it.
June 7, 2025
what happened?
For the first time, I was (at least slightly) disappointed with a Keelan Patrick Burke story; not so much for the substance of the tale as for a befuddled sense of what to make of the ending. It was a little like enjoying an ice cream only to have it suddenly melt into complete obscurity. What happened indeed?
For the first time, I was (at least slightly) disappointed with a Keelan Patrick Burke story; not so much for the substance of the tale as for a befuddled sense of what to make of the ending. It was a little like enjoying an ice cream only to have it suddenly melt into complete obscurity. What happened indeed?
April 20, 2018
Sucked.
I read "Sour Candy" by Kealan Patrick Burke, and I really enjoyed it. So much so, I thought I would give this one a try. I hated this story! It was boring and stupid. I watched the short film, and it was crap, as well. It should have been free.
I read "Sour Candy" by Kealan Patrick Burke, and I really enjoyed it. So much so, I thought I would give this one a try. I hated this story! It was boring and stupid. I watched the short film, and it was crap, as well. It should have been free.
March 24, 2024
"Peekers" by Kealana Patrick Burke is a short but spooky read with a somewhat sudden ending. Despite it being very short, I enjoyed the eerie vibe it brought. With only 14 pages, there's not much to analyze, but I've read and enjoyed some of Burke's other books too.
May 6, 2012
Another winner from Burke. Damned creepy.
May 9, 2016
A few typos, otherwise, found it interesting but ending abrupt.
August 3, 2017
It was OK
After reading how much other people liked this story, I feel like I must have missed something. I was very disappointed by the ending.
After reading how much other people liked this story, I feel like I must have missed something. I was very disappointed by the ending.
May 2, 2020
interesting concept, maybe could be a little longer.
May 10, 2024
Wth?!! It was just getting really good and then it was over. 🤷🏻♀️
January 18, 2021
Originally posted over at my personal blog site, Night Terror Novels
“I… I don’t know how to describe it. It’s not a threatening look, but I feel threatened. And the way she stands there, half-hidden, with a slight smile on her face...”
– Kealan Patrick Burke, Peekers
If you’re a reader of the horror genre, and have kept up to date with it over the past decade or so, you’ll likely be familiar with the author Kealan Patrick Burke. Over the past fifteen years, he has established himself at the forefront of the genre, and steadily become one of its most versatile and engaging talents. If you’re a horror fan but AREN’T familiar with his writing, firstly: what the heck are you playing at, read some right now, and secondly: you’re almost certainly going to have seen some of his terrific artwork under his design service, Elderlemon Design, which consistently produces fantastic book covers.
Peekers (2008) was the story that first introduced me to Burke’s stuff, and jump-started my love for anything he writes. Funnily enough, this was one of those rare cases in which I watched the adaptation prior to reading the story that it was based on. I stumbled upon it way back in my teenage years, when binge-watching horror shorts online was something of a nightly ritual for me.
Like the story itself, the film version is only short, but is certainly creepy in spite of its slight runtime. Released on YouTube in 2008, it was directed by Mark Steensland, who has since become an accomplished horror fiction author himself – his novel In The Scrape (2019), co-authored with James Newman, was one of my favourite new reads this year. It’s a very faithful adaptation – the script is more or less verbatim.
As for the written story, it is short but pretty sweet. Steensland’s film terrified me when I first watched it, all those many years ago – but I don’t feel that seeing the film version first ruined reading it for me. The way Kealan introduces Mrs. Hoffman as a so-called ‘peeker’ is incredibly chilling. This is definitely a case of trying a ‘less is more’ approach, and as a result it does feel a little underdeveloped, but nonetheless it’s a swift spooky read.
VERDICT: Peekers is an unsettling little short, whose lack of explanation or rationale for the events is both its greatest strength and biggest weakness – the simplicity of the idea is hugely creepy and bewildering in a sense, though it does leave you craving some more development or fleshing out of the concept it introduces. That said, both film and story will always hold a special place in my heart for introducing me to Burke’s writing!
It’s a ⭐⭐⭐💫/⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ from this reviewer.
Book Information
Title(s): Peekers, in the collection, The Number 121 to Pennsylvania and Others
Author(s): Kealan Patrick Burke
Publisher(s): Cemetery Dance Publications
Original Publication Date: 28th May, 2008
Page Count: 14 pages
Format Read: Digital
Advance Review Copy (Y/N): N
Website(s): https://www.cemeterydance.com/
“I… I don’t know how to describe it. It’s not a threatening look, but I feel threatened. And the way she stands there, half-hidden, with a slight smile on her face...”
– Kealan Patrick Burke, Peekers
If you’re a reader of the horror genre, and have kept up to date with it over the past decade or so, you’ll likely be familiar with the author Kealan Patrick Burke. Over the past fifteen years, he has established himself at the forefront of the genre, and steadily become one of its most versatile and engaging talents. If you’re a horror fan but AREN’T familiar with his writing, firstly: what the heck are you playing at, read some right now, and secondly: you’re almost certainly going to have seen some of his terrific artwork under his design service, Elderlemon Design, which consistently produces fantastic book covers.
Peekers (2008) was the story that first introduced me to Burke’s stuff, and jump-started my love for anything he writes. Funnily enough, this was one of those rare cases in which I watched the adaptation prior to reading the story that it was based on. I stumbled upon it way back in my teenage years, when binge-watching horror shorts online was something of a nightly ritual for me.
Like the story itself, the film version is only short, but is certainly creepy in spite of its slight runtime. Released on YouTube in 2008, it was directed by Mark Steensland, who has since become an accomplished horror fiction author himself – his novel In The Scrape (2019), co-authored with James Newman, was one of my favourite new reads this year. It’s a very faithful adaptation – the script is more or less verbatim.
As for the written story, it is short but pretty sweet. Steensland’s film terrified me when I first watched it, all those many years ago – but I don’t feel that seeing the film version first ruined reading it for me. The way Kealan introduces Mrs. Hoffman as a so-called ‘peeker’ is incredibly chilling. This is definitely a case of trying a ‘less is more’ approach, and as a result it does feel a little underdeveloped, but nonetheless it’s a swift spooky read.
VERDICT: Peekers is an unsettling little short, whose lack of explanation or rationale for the events is both its greatest strength and biggest weakness – the simplicity of the idea is hugely creepy and bewildering in a sense, though it does leave you craving some more development or fleshing out of the concept it introduces. That said, both film and story will always hold a special place in my heart for introducing me to Burke’s writing!
It’s a ⭐⭐⭐💫/⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ from this reviewer.
Book Information
Title(s): Peekers, in the collection, The Number 121 to Pennsylvania and Others
Author(s): Kealan Patrick Burke
Publisher(s): Cemetery Dance Publications
Original Publication Date: 28th May, 2008
Page Count: 14 pages
Format Read: Digital
Advance Review Copy (Y/N): N
Website(s): https://www.cemeterydance.com/
January 8, 2019
Enjoyed it. Went into it without reading a blurb so I had no idea what to expect and so was thrilled to see it turn Sinister the way it did. I was disappointed it was as short as it was due to the fact that the idea was so beautifully simple it could easily have been expanded over a bigger scale - not too big mind as that was part of its charm, subtle and small scale. Gave me a shiver though with Agnes on the stairs, I must say. Very creepy.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 6, 2019
2nd story by this author
A short story but an excellent read!
The first story I read by Kealan Burke was "Kin". Also a very good story! Neither ended as I expected and that is very exciting! I am looking forward to reading more of Mr. Burke's work.
I recommend, not just this story, but the one I mentioned before too. And this author's work should be part of a horror fan's reading list for sure!
A short story but an excellent read!
The first story I read by Kealan Burke was "Kin". Also a very good story! Neither ended as I expected and that is very exciting! I am looking forward to reading more of Mr. Burke's work.
I recommend, not just this story, but the one I mentioned before too. And this author's work should be part of a horror fan's reading list for sure!
December 31, 2017
Great Short Story
The only reason I'm giving it four stars rather than five is because of the length. This is a short story. Not a novella or novel. Just understand this.
However, with that fact dismissed, the writing is impeccable. The story is AMAZING. I loved it for what it was and enjoyed it very much. This is my first book of Burkes and it certainly will not be my last.
The only reason I'm giving it four stars rather than five is because of the length. This is a short story. Not a novella or novel. Just understand this.
However, with that fact dismissed, the writing is impeccable. The story is AMAZING. I loved it for what it was and enjoyed it very much. This is my first book of Burkes and it certainly will not be my last.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 65 reviews