Nightscapes: Volume 1

by Jennifer Wilson (Editor), Robert S. Wilson (Editor), Mark C. Scioneaux (Editor)

From the depths of the soul to the depths of hell. From the shadows of your most frightening dreams to the shadows lurking in the corner unseen and waiting. Darkness is painted across the palette of every nightscape. And it’s waiting for you…
In this new anthology from Nightscape Press, we bring you 24 tales of bitter loss, jaded love, obsession, murder, cannibalism, hauntings, voodoo, black market horrors, demons, leprechauns, zombies, deadly mysteries, and much more!


Table of Contents:
A Dry Spell in Parnell County by Ed Kurtz
Still by Charles Colyott
A Taste of Green Voodoo Healing by Peter N. Dudar
Vision by Megan N. Moore
Autumn’s Gifts by Jeremy Terry
Game Changer by Peter Giglio
Corruption by Lisa Mannetti
Worldly Possessions by Richard Salter
Village Green by Boyd E. Harris
Angel Killer by Lisa Morton
Fly by Jonathan Templar
Wee Ones by C.W. LaSart
Mary Kelly’s Face by John Forth
How to Save a Life by Chris Marrs
In the Halls and on the Stairs by Brad C. Hodson
Surprise Inside by Tonia Brown
Chopper by Bryan Hall
House Hunting by Ray Garton
Deviant Colors by Benjamin Kane Ethridge
Guadalupe’s Tamales by Shane McKenzie
Whispers in the Trees, Screams in the Dark by Taylor Grant
The Big Dream by J.S. Reinhardt
The Rag-End of Dreams by Trent Zelazny
Skins by Richard Wright

Genres: Horror

268 pages, Paperback

First published October 16, 2012

About the author

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Reviews

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting horror anthology. As in every volume compiled with different authors there are some outstanding stories and some I didn't like too much. The first one "A Dry Spell in Parnell County" by Ed Kurz, "Fly" by Jonathan Templar, "Mary Kelly's Face" by John Forth, "Surprise Inside" (those dolls described here are very nasty) or "House Hunting" by Ray Garton (read the whole book because of his story being part here to be honest) absolutely did it for me. Brilliant tales. The rest was okay but couldn't come near (in my opinion). Nevertheless really worth reading. Great cover too!

[Newton Newton · Rating 4 out of 5]

After recently slogging through several uninspired anthologies my fear was that the short story as an art form was either completely dead or very close to dying. Fortunately for me, I then came across ‘Nightscapes Volume 1’. Don’t get me wrong, this antho has its fair share of stinkers, but it also has way more good than bad and a couple of absolute gems. ‘A Taste of Green Voodoo Healing’ by Peter Dudar alone is worth the price of admission. The Twilight Zone-esque ‘Still’ by Charles Colyott is wonderfully bizarre and decidedly disturbing. Jonathan Templar’s ‘Fly’ is another stand out. Kudos and thanks to the editors of this book for reaffirming my faith in the short story.

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

All in all, I thought this was a great mix of stories, though some definitely fell a little flat in comparison with others. I put this down for a few months --not for any reason other than distractions keeping me from reading at all, and some of the stories that I'd already read stuck with me so strongly that, with one, I actually remembered exactly where I was when I read it, and then I realized that it wasn't where I read it at all, it was just a scene from the story. The writer made it come to life so much for me, that I really felt like I was there.

After reading (and rereading, for some), I can definitely say this book was a good display of imagination and talent. Even the "weaker" stories show the same and probably only seem weaker because of the stories surrounding them (there were honestly only two or three of the twenty-four about which I felt that way).

"In the Halls and on the Stairs" by Brad C. Hodson proved to be my favorite of all. It's very well-written and really stuck with me. "Vision" by Megan N. Moore is a close second for the same reasons.

As far as the technical aspects, the editing is nearly flawless which I love because I hate being distracted by typos or having to try and figure out what something {i}should{/i} be. I have found that Nightscape Press is usually very strong in this department, and it held true with this anthology.

This was a great mix of genres, too. While all containing "dark" elements, sub genres varied quite a bit (dark or horror sometimes being a sub genre). I loved that because it kept me from getting bored or feeling like I was reading the same thing over and over. It really allowed each author and story to have its own voice.

[Tamara aka SoMysteriousLee · Rating 4 out of 5]

There were some really disturbing tales, some incredibly creepy ones, a few predictable and several surprises. All around, a gruesome, fun and bizarre collection of stories, pretty much all right up my alley. I look forward to getting full length works by several of the authors now that I've sampled their words!

[Robert Wilson]

And here it is! Introducing NIGHTSCAPES: VOLUME 1!

From the depths of the soul to the depths of hell. From the shadows of your most frightening dreams to the shadows lurking in the corner unseen and waiting. Darkness is painted across the palette of every nightscape. And it’s waiting for you…
In this new anthology from Nightscape Press, we bring you 24 tales of bitter loss, jaded love, obsession, murder, cannibalism, hauntings, voodoo, black market horrors, demons, leprechauns, zombies, deadly mysteries, and much more!


Table of Contents:
A Dry Spell in Parnell County by Ed Kurtz
Still by Charles Colyott
A Taste of Green Voodoo Healing by Peter Dudar
Vision by Meg Moore
Autumn’s Gifts by Jeremy Terry
Game Changer by Peter Giglio
Corruption by Lisa Mannetti
Worldly Possessions by Richard Salter
Village Green by Boyd E. Harris
Angel Killer by Lisa Morton
Fly by Jonathan Templar
Wee Ones by C.W. LaSart
Mary Kelly’s Face by John Forth
How to Save a Life by Chris Marrs
In the Halls and on the Stairs by Brad C. Hodson
Surprise Inside by Tonia Brown
Chopper by Bryan Hall
House Hunting by Ray Garton
Deviant Colors by Benjamin Kane Ethridge
Guadalupe’s Tamales by Shane McKenzie
Whispers in the Trees, Screams in the Dark by Taylor Grant
The Big Dream by J.S. Reinhardt
The Rag-End of Dreams by Trent Zelazny
Skins by Richard Wright

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book contained a number of excellent dark fantasy and horror stories. A few verged on just gross and creepy, but I have to highlight "Skins" by Richard Wright, which is one of the saddest dark fantasy tales I have ever encountered. In fact, another favorite was also folkloric. "Wee Ones" by C. W. LaSart was a very different take on Leprechauns, and a reminder that in Celtic lore, the Good Folk were not always kind and friendly. If you break the rules, you'll pay in some way. "Angel Killer" by Lisa Morton was a horror story within a horror story, and had clever twists.
Several of the stories would have made good Twilight Zone episodes, and most are highly entertaining. As with most such anthologies, you will probably find a couple that you won't like, but overall the book is worth picking up.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great horror anthology

Love me some good horror anthology! And do not be fooled, not all anthologies are created equal! Anyone who has taken at look at my book shelves can see, horror anthologies are my very favorite. While they do seem to be gaining popularity, short stories still sort of carry around this reputation of laziness. You ask me, I think it takes immense talent to throw together a story that scares with a word or sentence limit! Besides that, I really enjoy getting many different samples from several authors. This is the sole reason my "followed" author list is so long. I may never be able to catch up on every single one but you can bet they are now on my radar thanks to books like this.