The 13 Story Asylum

by Carl V. Dupre

13 more mind-bending tales of horror, science fiction, and fantasy from the twisted pen of Carl V. Dupre. Within this asylum's walls, you will find a deadly imagination, doomed explorers, hellbent apparitions, the deceptive intelligence of a world in decay, wicked witches that refuse to die, and some very very hungry pets. Pray these night terrors stay locked up in their cells at least until daybreak. And pray for us all if should ever escape The 13 Story Asylum.

306 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 15, 2023

Reviews

[Progress Wings · Rating 5 out of 5]

Keeps Pages Turning

This book mixes real-life problems with spooky, mysterious events. It's mainly about Pastor Stockard Rowan, who is not being true to himself or others, and a mysterious woman named Shanann Daire, who seems impossible to kill and has her own secrets.

The author does a good job of showing how tough it can be to hide who you really are, especially for Rowan, who struggles with his secret feelings and his role as a church leader. The way the story combines everyday issues with creepy, unexplained events keeps you interested and a little scared.

Shanann is an interesting character because she's more than just a typical bad guy. Her connection to nature and mysterious powers make you want to know more about her and why she's causing so much trouble for Rowan.

The story gets scarier as it goes, mixing Rowan's personal problems with spooky, supernatural parts. This keeps you reading, even though sometimes the story moves too fast or introduces big changes without enough explanation.

The ending is intense and makes you think, as it wraps up Rowan's story in a surprising way and leaves Shanann's powers as something to ponder. It's a mix of being very sad and a little bit scary.

However, the story sometimes move too quickly and some parts seems too unbelievable. But overall, it's an interesting mix of real-life issues and supernatural stuff that makes you think about secrets, lies, and facing the truth.

[BookNerd1965 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Missing words, "You're" instead of "your", "Puss" instead of "Pus", horrible punctuation. The missing words drove me crazy. Was this thing even proofread? I thought it was the author's first book (not that that excuses the in-your-face mistakes), but there's a 12 Story Asylum, so not the author's first book. As far as the tales themselves, I skipped over some because I was bored. The ones I did read were ridiculous, and childish. There was no moodiness, nothing scary, just stupidities like - *spoiler* - a woman's child gets sucked into another dimension, and she barely screams. She's texting her husband instead of calling him and breaking down (as would be the normal reaction). Prior to that, she's tossing household items into this other dimension and documenting it on social media like it's a normal thing to do. It could have worked if it was supposed to be satire, but that's not what this book is categorized as. Then the whole world is sucked into this dimension that is housed in a silver turkey platter. If you enjoy that kind of silliness, go ahead and read. One story, The Darkest Hour, just ended. Like the author forgot to finish it. This collection was advertised as 13 more mind-bending tales of horror. Dear author, that's false advertising.