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The Tales of Terror and Torment Vol. I: A Horror Story Collection
Take a bite, if you dare, and on the tasting, see what it is I see…
Presenting the first volume of a five-part horror collection straight from the unique, controversial, and dangerous mind of David Parkinson.
These are The Tales of Terror and novellas, novelettes, and short stories that explore the miraculous yet flawed and fragile flesh we wear through the medium of dread fantasy. They will take you to familiar places – to train stations and suburban streets - and to hidden sun-kissed islands, to the halls of hell, deep into the past, far into the future, and even across the galaxy. But wherever they send you, you’ll always return hooked and hanging, and deliriously dreaming of being bled just a little longer.
Collected here
Frank’s Rewards
DannyDawn
Lunar Lebensraum
Eve’s Evolution
Children of the Storm
Presenting the first volume of a five-part horror collection straight from the unique, controversial, and dangerous mind of David Parkinson.
These are The Tales of Terror and novellas, novelettes, and short stories that explore the miraculous yet flawed and fragile flesh we wear through the medium of dread fantasy. They will take you to familiar places – to train stations and suburban streets - and to hidden sun-kissed islands, to the halls of hell, deep into the past, far into the future, and even across the galaxy. But wherever they send you, you’ll always return hooked and hanging, and deliriously dreaming of being bled just a little longer.
Collected here
Frank’s Rewards
DannyDawn
Lunar Lebensraum
Eve’s Evolution
Children of the Storm
275 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 30, 2023
3 people are currently reading
5 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
April 2, 2026
This book was recommended to me by a number of people and I’m delighted to report the praise is well deserved. Tales of Terror and Torment is a collection of beautifully written, highly imaginative and inventive horror stories, each completely different but connected by the author’s distinct style.
From the delightfully demented Frank’s Reward to the bizarre, body horror DannyDawn, and the tropical terror of Eve’s Evolution(to name just a few of these terrific tales), Parkinson introduces the fantastic to the ordinary with brilliantly vivid, cinematic descriptions and a Barker-esque flair.
He also has a knack for creating compelling characters to invest in, whether vile or virtuous, and taking his narratives to some very unexpected places. He certainly shocked this seasoned horror fan more than once.
This is fresh, unique, unpredictable horror that is at times scary, funny, stomach-turning, heartbreaking, and always engaging.
We’ll probably never get a seventh volume of Clive Barker’s Books of Blood, but this collection is as close to it as anything I could wish for.
From the delightfully demented Frank’s Reward to the bizarre, body horror DannyDawn, and the tropical terror of Eve’s Evolution(to name just a few of these terrific tales), Parkinson introduces the fantastic to the ordinary with brilliantly vivid, cinematic descriptions and a Barker-esque flair.
He also has a knack for creating compelling characters to invest in, whether vile or virtuous, and taking his narratives to some very unexpected places. He certainly shocked this seasoned horror fan more than once.
This is fresh, unique, unpredictable horror that is at times scary, funny, stomach-turning, heartbreaking, and always engaging.
We’ll probably never get a seventh volume of Clive Barker’s Books of Blood, but this collection is as close to it as anything I could wish for.
February 12, 2026
TALES OF TERROR AND TORMENT Vol. 1 is a ghastly ride in all the right ways. Ranging in genre, the stories are written in a slick, dense prose that ties them together in a Wellsian but dark atmosphere, and that quaint, classical tone adds heavily to the madness and horror of the stories. The reader may often be caught off guard, as the narratives seamlessly shift into anomalous, dread-soaked helplessness. Though the characters are doomed, and that doom is earned, they are written in such a way that the reader may still empathize with their plight. There is something ethereal about each tale, melding horror and fantasy, but the truth of the characters' fates remains grounded in the rashness of their immorality and vanity. A must read!
November 8, 2025
A Nice Collection
This is a solid collection of horror novellas. Five very distinct tales with their own horrors. All are well written and do a good job in bringing you into their world quickly. Whether its a quiet residential street, or a space station on Europa, even Hell itself, the different settings are characters themselves.
Highly recommended, looking forward to seeing what the other collections in the series have to offer.
This is a solid collection of horror novellas. Five very distinct tales with their own horrors. All are well written and do a good job in bringing you into their world quickly. Whether its a quiet residential street, or a space station on Europa, even Hell itself, the different settings are characters themselves.
Highly recommended, looking forward to seeing what the other collections in the series have to offer.
August 31, 2025
Inside this book, you’ll find five novellas with five very different stories. There’s a journey through Hell, a night at a mysterious private party, deep space horror, a sinister jungle island, and a storm that brings terror to the suburbs. To say any more would spoil things, as these tales are best enjoyed by diving straight in.
The stories are written in detailed and descriptive prose. The characters are grounded and recognisable, real people thrown into unreal situations. I could easily see any one of these stories adapted to the big or small screen (like the best episodes of the 90s The Outer Limits, or the Hammer House of Horror television series from the 80s).
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and I’ll be buying Volumes Two and Three and reading more of Parkinson’s work. Highly recommended.
The stories are written in detailed and descriptive prose. The characters are grounded and recognisable, real people thrown into unreal situations. I could easily see any one of these stories adapted to the big or small screen (like the best episodes of the 90s The Outer Limits, or the Hammer House of Horror television series from the 80s).
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and I’ll be buying Volumes Two and Three and reading more of Parkinson’s work. Highly recommended.
April 10, 2026
Brutal. Twisted. Disturbing. Grotesque. Beautiful. A curious quintet of harrowing delights. In The Tales of Terror and Torment Vol. 1, David Parkinson flexes some serious horror muscle and unleashes an evocative collection of stories that hit hard. Provocative and compelling, these stories are the work of a sublimely dark, creative mind. Wildly different from each other, but equally extraordinary, these five stories hit the mark every time, landing perfectly. No need to go on; these collections deserve far more attention and recognition, and I can’t wait to continue with the next volumes. This is pure horror, utterly unique, and unapologetic.
December 27, 2025
Coming to review this excellent collection of horror shorts, I am shocked at how little attention it has garnered so far. This author is such a talent, each tale sinister, gorgeously written, and full of wit and imagination. Hellscapes, lush tropical islands, space stations, swingers’ mansions, all rendered in exact detail and peopled with vivid characters in hair-raising scenarios. Highly recommended. I’m off to buy Vol II now.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews