What do you think?
Rate this book
MalContents
Join four of today's best horror authors as they take you on a journey through dark lands and evil minds: An unfortunate prostitute joins a freak show to get away from her sordid past only to find that death follows her everywhere. A cooking show host is targeted by a jealous chef who wields a sharp blade and a supernatural grudge. A family man is given a choice by a deadly stranger to decide between love or survival. A former lover enlists the help of a shaman to find his kidnapped girlfriend in a land of mystical demons and gods.
- GenresHorrorAnthologies
Nook
First published September 21, 2011
2 people are currently reading
69 people want to read
About the author
Ryan C. Thomas
58 books425 followersI am the author of the novels The Summer I Died, Ratings Game, Born to Bleed, Salticidae, Undead World of Oz, Hissers and more. I hope to learn a lot from the readers on this site, and get some good book recs in the process. Thanks!
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
April 3, 2018
A collection of 4 novellas from four different authors.
Howler by Randy Chandler - This story is is told from two different perspectives. The first from a thief who tries to rob a brothel, the second from a girl in the brothel after the robbery. I enjoyed the first part more, the second part reminded me of Richard Laymons writing style but it doesn't quite hit the mark.
The Mushrooms by Gregory L. Norris - A story of revenge between a celebrity chef and a failed reality tv contestant. This story didn't really gel for me until the last few pages where it seemed to hit it's stride.
Choose by Ryan C. Thomas - I loved this story, the best of the four. A story about man who is forced to make a gut-wrenching choice. The story was well paced and had just the right amount of creepiness and gore.
The Outsider Trio by David T. Wilbanks - This was an odd but interesting story about a man who is trying to find an ex-love only to find that she has mysteriously disappeared to become part of a musical group. This story was the longest novella and for me was a little too long, it was well written and I would definitely look out for this author for future reads.
Howler by Randy Chandler - This story is is told from two different perspectives. The first from a thief who tries to rob a brothel, the second from a girl in the brothel after the robbery. I enjoyed the first part more, the second part reminded me of Richard Laymons writing style but it doesn't quite hit the mark.
The Mushrooms by Gregory L. Norris - A story of revenge between a celebrity chef and a failed reality tv contestant. This story didn't really gel for me until the last few pages where it seemed to hit it's stride.
Choose by Ryan C. Thomas - I loved this story, the best of the four. A story about man who is forced to make a gut-wrenching choice. The story was well paced and had just the right amount of creepiness and gore.
The Outsider Trio by David T. Wilbanks - This was an odd but interesting story about a man who is trying to find an ex-love only to find that she has mysteriously disappeared to become part of a musical group. This story was the longest novella and for me was a little too long, it was well written and I would definitely look out for this author for future reads.
April 23, 2012
I downloaded this ebook for 99 cents for one reason only, and that is because it features a story by Ryan C. Thomas. I've only read his The Summer I Died so far, but that short novel impressed me so much that I will continue to seek his work out in any shape or form I can get it.
For me, two stories really work, while two -- the first and last -- fail miserably.
Not surprisingly, the Ryan C. Thomas story is one of the two that really work. In Choose we meet unassuming Peter Baker -- husband, father, and computer repair shop proprietor. One day Peter is assaulted and his life threatened by a hulking, shadowy figure who says he knows Peter but refuses to identify himself. He demands that Peter pay for a past sin and gives him twelve hours to "choose" -- the life of his wife or the life of his daughter. If Peter doesn't choose which one to kill, both will die.
There is a pretty nice build-up of tension and suspense here, and parts of the story reminded me of King's novella Secret Window, Secret Garden -- the elusive, unknowable villain in Choose reads a lot like John Shooter. There is a "just desserts" twist to this one too, a revenge story worthy and seemingly ripped from the pages of Tales from the Crypt or the Vault of Horror. Nice and pulpy!
The other story that works extremely well is The Mushrooms by Gregory L. Norris. Here we meet celebrity chef Sunny Weir who is at the pinnacle of her career publishing yet another cook book when she is violently attacked by an enraged fan who claims Sunny stole one of her recipes. Sunny survives the assault, but her attacker goes on to commit suicide. Sunny decides to escape to her island retreat to heal and contemplate her future, thinking her nightmare is over ... when it has only just begun. This one is deliciously (no pun intended) creepy and a whole lot of fun. Like Choose, there is a pulpy, Tales from the Crypt vibe going on with revenge as the main course. Yum!
February 22, 2013
A great collection on novellas. This one is well worth buying just for the ryan c thomas novela alone, but all of them where pretty good. Randy chandlers story kind of reminded me of boys life by Robert mccammon in the way it was written which is a collection of memoirs and stories that changed and shaped the main characters life, only here the main character is wolf girl a member of a traveling freak show. My only complaint with this story is I wish it was longer, it ended kind of abruptly and the entire novella was not really a story itself but a collection of shorter stories that where sewn together. I would love to see a sequel to this one.
December 1, 2012
MalContents is an excellent collection of 4 Novellas by some of dark fictions best. My favorite story was the first in the collection - “Howler” by Randy Chandler. It was grotesque in parts and laugh out loud funny in others. The other 3 novellas were equally as solid even though the last story “The Outsider Trio” by David T Wilbanks was a little fantasy-ish for me. Highly recommended.
March 28, 2013
The first three out of four novellas collected here were quite good, the fourth I didn't care for so much. It's worth grabbing a copy for the first three alone however. The third, "Choose", by Ryan Thomas was a five star read for me. He has a real talent for emotionally charged extreme horror and "Choose" was no exception. Good stuff.
January 8, 2014
I'm giving this a solid 3 because there were only two stories that really stood out. Randy Chandler's and Ryan C. Thomas's hands down. They were pretty awesome and well written. The mushroom story wasn't very memorable and the last story was unbelievable and a little silly, what with the demons and different dimensions, it gave off a juvenile feeling. Just wasn't my style.
February 8, 2012
Technically 4.5 stars, but rounded up for lack of half stars.
MalContents is a book containing 4 novellas, each with their own sick and twisted spin. First up we have Randy Chandler’s Howler, the tale of a prostitute turned sideshow freak at a carnival. How is she a freak you may ask…well, she’s a wolf girl and over the course of the story we learn of the horrible reality of her life. Coming off of the popularity of celebrity chefs and various cooking shows, The Mushrooms by Gregory L Norris, introduces us to a chef at a party celebrating her newest cookbook release being stabbed over the plagiarism of a recipe by a crazed woman. Retreating to her family cabin to mend, the chef soon comes to realize that something is amiss. A computer repair man is accosted by a madman and is given a choice, kill his wife or his daughter before midnight or they both die. That is the premise Choose by Ryan C Thomas which shows us that sometimes even the most subtle of choices we make can impact everyone we love. Finally there is David T Wilbanks’ The Outsider Trio where a man searches for his missing love only to find that magical/mystical events have caused her disappearance.
Each tale within the pages of MalContents is a very solid piece of work. The characters and settings were wonderfully laid out and detailed. I have to admit that Choose gave me a twisted feeling in my stomach as things unfolded and learned what was happening to the family and way. The Mushrooms, while a bit on the odd side was another fun one for me as my husband, author Tony Faville, is also a retired chef. Howler was violent and very sexual at times, but I truly felt for the poor wolf girl at times during her life. Ending the book with The Outsider Trio, a tale of love lost and found with a mixture of supernatural evil was a nice way to complete the journey I was taken on while reading MalContents.
This book reviewer definitely suggests MalContents to anyone who enjoys a fantastic concoction of magic, psychological fornication of the mind and creatures that cause you to feel pity and repulsion at the same time.
MalContents is a book containing 4 novellas, each with their own sick and twisted spin. First up we have Randy Chandler’s Howler, the tale of a prostitute turned sideshow freak at a carnival. How is she a freak you may ask…well, she’s a wolf girl and over the course of the story we learn of the horrible reality of her life. Coming off of the popularity of celebrity chefs and various cooking shows, The Mushrooms by Gregory L Norris, introduces us to a chef at a party celebrating her newest cookbook release being stabbed over the plagiarism of a recipe by a crazed woman. Retreating to her family cabin to mend, the chef soon comes to realize that something is amiss. A computer repair man is accosted by a madman and is given a choice, kill his wife or his daughter before midnight or they both die. That is the premise Choose by Ryan C Thomas which shows us that sometimes even the most subtle of choices we make can impact everyone we love. Finally there is David T Wilbanks’ The Outsider Trio where a man searches for his missing love only to find that magical/mystical events have caused her disappearance.
Each tale within the pages of MalContents is a very solid piece of work. The characters and settings were wonderfully laid out and detailed. I have to admit that Choose gave me a twisted feeling in my stomach as things unfolded and learned what was happening to the family and way. The Mushrooms, while a bit on the odd side was another fun one for me as my husband, author Tony Faville, is also a retired chef. Howler was violent and very sexual at times, but I truly felt for the poor wolf girl at times during her life. Ending the book with The Outsider Trio, a tale of love lost and found with a mixture of supernatural evil was a nice way to complete the journey I was taken on while reading MalContents.
This book reviewer definitely suggests MalContents to anyone who enjoys a fantastic concoction of magic, psychological fornication of the mind and creatures that cause you to feel pity and repulsion at the same time.
October 25, 2012
I bought this book solely because it contained a novella by Ryan C Thomas. Previously I had read RATINGS GAME and THE SUMMER I DIED, both excellent 5 star books. The 3 other writers in MALCONTENTS I'd never heard of therefore I expected the odd duff story. Instead of going straight for Ryan's story and ignoring the others I decide to read the book in order. Was I disappointed? Hell no!
The first, HOWLER by Randy Chandler, is about a wolf girl who works as a prostitute in a brothel. She escapes during a robbery and ends up working in a carnival...
THE MUSHROOMS by Gregory L Norris see's a celebraty chef stalked by a TV wannabe contestant, who claims the celeb stole her mushroom/crab recipe!
In Ryan C Thomas' CHOOSE, a computer repairman accidently comes across something he shouldn't on a computer he's repairing. Pursued by a psychopath he must choose between his wife and daughter.
Finally, in THE OUTSIDER TRIO by David T Wilbanks, a young man working abroad returns to find a love from his past, but she has disappeared and joined the Outsider Trio.
I enjoyed all three stories. The first two are horror stories typical of zines from the past such as ENIGMATIC TALES or UNHINGED. CHOOSE, as expected, is more of a splatter affair, and the final story has a fantasy twist. Something for everyone... Recommended!
The first, HOWLER by Randy Chandler, is about a wolf girl who works as a prostitute in a brothel. She escapes during a robbery and ends up working in a carnival...
THE MUSHROOMS by Gregory L Norris see's a celebraty chef stalked by a TV wannabe contestant, who claims the celeb stole her mushroom/crab recipe!
In Ryan C Thomas' CHOOSE, a computer repairman accidently comes across something he shouldn't on a computer he's repairing. Pursued by a psychopath he must choose between his wife and daughter.
Finally, in THE OUTSIDER TRIO by David T Wilbanks, a young man working abroad returns to find a love from his past, but she has disappeared and joined the Outsider Trio.
I enjoyed all three stories. The first two are horror stories typical of zines from the past such as ENIGMATIC TALES or UNHINGED. CHOOSE, as expected, is more of a splatter affair, and the final story has a fantasy twist. Something for everyone... Recommended!
September 27, 2019
Diverse, varied, manifold. All those words mean the same thing, so pick whichever one you like best and that's precisely the best thing about Gran Mal Press's MalContents, a collection of four novellas by authors with styles as divergent as their contributions to the book. Is it a horror book? Yes, but it also has a healthy dose of science fiction, some humor, and plenty of bizarre elements.
You can read Gabino's full review at Horror DNA by clicking here.
You can read Gabino's full review at Horror DNA by clicking here.
March 17, 2014
“Malcontents” or, as it is emphasized on the cover, “MAL Contents”, contains 4 very good, dark horror novellas. This collection is especially creepy, with each novella vying for the top spot in my personal opinion as to which is best. I have to say I was really quite impressed; it’s not common that each tale included in any type of collection would be so well conceived and written. I invariably find at least one dud, but not so in this case. I recommend “MAL Contents” very highly. Every fan of horror will want to read this book.
April 16, 2013
An excellent collection of short stories from the mind of Ryan C Thomas. This is a complete joy of horror and suspense and every story hits it mark with precision and wit.
Thomas has an extraordinary writing style that captures the fantastic and realistic in pop culture writing style that shines upon whatever he writes. This is a remarkable collection and a must read for anyone in love with the horror genre. He has become one of my favourites.
Thomas has an extraordinary writing style that captures the fantastic and realistic in pop culture writing style that shines upon whatever he writes. This is a remarkable collection and a must read for anyone in love with the horror genre. He has become one of my favourites.
October 3, 2013
Ok so the only reason I got this was because if Ryan c Thomas having a story in it. But the others were good too. Howler. Wasn't bad but a bit weird if I'm being honest.
Mushrooms. I didn't like that one I'm afraid.
Choose. Well Ryan didn't let us down. By far the best story in the book!
The outsider trio. I liked this, it was a bit of a slow starter but when it got going it was really good and quite creepy too.
Mushrooms. I didn't like that one I'm afraid.
Choose. Well Ryan didn't let us down. By far the best story in the book!
The outsider trio. I liked this, it was a bit of a slow starter but when it got going it was really good and quite creepy too.
February 24, 2013
I thought it was wonderful
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews