The Rictus Grin and Other Tales of Insanity

by Erica Summers, Chisto Healy (introduction)

A collection of eleven twisted and terrifying tales by extreme horror author, Erica Summers. Including stories of gripping psychological horror, cosmic, bizarro, body horror, and extreme.

This chilling collection of short horrors includes the following Tines, Feed the Machine, Derailed, In the Blood of the Martyr, Painted in Vermilion, All the Same Color on the Inside, Sated, Take a Breath, Secondhand Kiss, Two Lip Garden, & The Rictus Grin, PLUS an introduction by Chisto Healy, author of Two of a Kind and The Gateway in Apartment 8 and author's notes on what inspired each story.

Genres: Horror, Collections

314 pages, Paperback

Published May 28, 2024

About the author

Erica Summers is an award-winning independent author, filmmaker, artist, and film grip. She is a cancer survivor and a member of the LGBTQIA+ community. Several of her horror films have screened worldwide and garnered awars (including Obsidian & Mister White, both available on most streaming services).

Born and raised in Wyoming, Erica spent most of her life in the swampy American South. Now, she resides in southern Connecticut. She is usually slathered in garden dirt, kayak fishing, solving cold case files, or devouring movies.

Summers also writes spicy romance under the pen name Odessa Alba and hilarious cozy mysteries as Trixie Fairdale.

Reviews

[Chiara Cooper · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection of short horror stories once again shows the ability of the author to convey unexpected true dread and horror! More than once I felt myself letting out a gasp as I didn’t see what was coming!


I truly enjoyed listening to the author’s voice narrating this collection and as if I couldn’t have liked these stories even more, I loved listening to the author’s notes about the genesis of each one and how personal they are! It was a privilege to delve into the author’s mind and experiences!

What I always find baffling (in a very positive way), after reading a few of Erica Summers books, is how skillfully she writes. In particular, the way her similitudes are so on point, allowing the reader not only to picture the events, but to exactly be in the moment and feel what the characters are experiencing (sadly lol).

So if you want to experience some proficiently written horror narrated by the author, then I highly suggest this collection of short horror stories.

Thanks to the author for a code and this is my honest opinion.

[Milt Theo · Rating 5 out of 5]

OK, this is a fantastic short horror story collection, jaw-droppingly brilliant, twisty, gory, and incredibly well-written! There, I said it. What remains, then? What might a reviewer add to convey the greatness of these stories? The question is doubly hard in this case, since Chris Healy, who writes the foreword, has managed to say everything, literally EVERYTHING good about Erica Summers' style, voice, and manner of writing: her "elegant," "delicate, poignant, and concise" prose, her "characters... full of life and vibrancy," the "visceral, frightening, and intense" horror; that's exactly right, flawlessly describing every story in this book. But there's still something for me to try to impart, and that's the sheer excitement of reading these stories, the utter joy of finding terrific endings, original, highly disturbing premises, and diverse and immersive settings! I'll mention three stories as examples, leaving the remaining eight (eleven in all) for readers to discover on their own. First of all, the opening story, "Tines," a marvel of a horror story, about a teen girl getting "dumped" by her not-so-nice mother to her distant relatives; to their perfectly creepy farmhouse and the highly disturbed family staying there. This story begs to be turned into a rich novella: once you realize its fundamental ambiguity, you just need to read more about the place! "Two Lip Garden" (alternative title, "The Mother," though this might give too much away), is simply shocking for employing geriatric issues (trying to avoid spoilers here) and turning an old woman's regret for not having had children on its head! Finally, "Derailed" - about a daughter who has to be taken care of by her mentally ill mother; this one might not go down very well for some people, it's too real, too close for comfort, too upsetting; no gore, "just" mental illness, with huge emphasis on the illness. I highly recommend it, though, even to newcomers to horror, it definitely shows how good the genre can be even in a very short space, without supernatural gimmicks or extreme gore.

Special mention should be made of the Author's Notes in the end of the collection. It reveals that many of the themes are grounded on first-hand experience, on Summers' own life, both as a child and an adult. She's realistic and honest, but also gentle and hopeful about her own nasty experiences, an achievement, considering how heavy some of the stories actually are.

Take the plunge and pick up this gem today, you won't regret it!

[Bookaholic__Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely fantastic collection of short stories. Summers dabbles in various horror genres with this collection, and I love the diversity in her writing style. Like always, her written is beautiful and descriptive. Honestly, I don't know how someone can make beautifully written sentences dripping with gore, but she does, and she does it very well.

A few of the stories really stuck out for me. The first one being Derailed, this story was so intense! After reading her authors note, I love it more. Another one is In The Blood Of The Martyr, creepy church and cultish vibes will always be my jam. I just adore this trope. I, too, grew up in a religious
home, and so this resonates with me. All The Same Color On The Inside is a lot of fun too! I agree completely with her authors note that more people should read Goop horror ( Inside Out by Gislason is fantastic, so definitely check that out, too!).

I've highlighted three of my favorites, but I can say with complete honesty that there wasn't a story in this collection I didn't like. Erica Summers is an insta-read author me ( still working through her older works), and if she isn't for you, she damn well should be.

I received a copy of this in exchange for an honest review.

[𝔰𝔞𝔯𝔞𝔥 ♡︎ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really great collection of short horror stories. I got the chills, I was disturbed, and I was captivated with each story! They all held strong on their own and they dealt with different topics. I appreciate that so it doesn’t feel like you’re reading the same type of story over and over! They’re creative and plays with your emotions. Erica Summer’s writing is riveting as she pulls you into each story with the perfect words. I highly recommend for fellow dark horror lovers! Thank you Erica for the opportunity to read this as an arc, it’s fantastic!

[Happy Goat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full review at Happy Goat Horror:
https://happygoathorror.com/2024/12/0...

Erica Summers is just excellent again. This collection of short horror stories has a lot of a variety, told in Erica's distinctive voice. How she manages to make the most horrendous things vaguely humorous without ruining the tension, I don't know. But I'm jealous!

[booka_holicme · Rating 5 out of 5]

I already reviewed two of the author's previous best works and this is the third one.

All the eleven stories are unique and mind blowing. The way of writing is quite spooky and will leave you speechless at the end of each story.

I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Kayleigh Dobbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Will Erica Summers ever write anything that isn't pure brilliance? I think not.

This is one of the best, if not THE best, horror collections I've read all year. What an imagination!

[Tim Falk · Rating 4 out of 5]

I want so badly to give five stars. The stories are reminiscent of early Jack Ketchum, grim and tense and violent. It’s just, the typos. So many typos. My favorite was a soldier getting blown up by an “IUD” (I told him not to put his face so close to it!). Erica Summers I will proofread your next book for free.

[Toni · Rating 5 out of 5]

All The Same Color On The Insde

Harold is a crochety old man who displays racism with a glance and word. He sees his neighbor kissing his wife goodbye. He makes s abide comment to him. Harold goes inside and starts to feed his dog. Opening the can he cuts his finger and to his utter horror his blood runs a rancid color yellow. What's happening to him?

Take a Breath

Larry just got fired from his job after nine years. One mistake and they let him go. He head to a secret spot where he unloaded"Rusty" his board. He heads out noticing there's no one around. He has a mishap that injures his knee. Then another. Through this he can hear his Sarah humming and talking to him. Will he listen?

Each story in this book is short but it makes the reader think!!.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Dani-Lynn Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

A gory collection of short stories narrated by the author with a voice that is soothing for fans of extreme horror. Each individual story is uniquely different, underlying some insanity characteristics through different characters that will keep you on your toes. If you haven’t read Summers yet, this collection is the best dip into her gruesomely detailed stories.

•spoilers ahead•

Tines
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Lynn is having a hard time bonding with her daughter Janice. But when they decide to stay at her father’s farmhouse, ominous things start to begin starting with a hole in the field and a mysterious being named Tines.

Derailed
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
After getting in a serious car accident, she returns home to her mother’s house, where she declares war on the vermin of the house. But things escalate when she assumes her daughter is not who she appears to be.

Painted in Vermillion
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Duncan and his father Randall are devastated by the overwhelming horde of odd insects that float above them like a dark cloud. Thinking that was the cause of a lady’s death, his father will realize the horrors his son has started to become.

Sated
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A small burger stand is trying to thrive in this economy when the owner discovers a new meat that comes from health inspectors. This delicacy brings forth new customers, as the owner finds a way to keep the meat coming, even thinking about adding other new items to the menu.

In the Blood of the Martyr
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
“Tell them all what Satan made you do, you monster…”
Odessa doesn’t feel like the relationship between her and Ronald is enough, until he decides to do the ultimate choice to be a martyr for her to be cleansed of everything, even after exposing his darkest secrets which changes the way she loves her life afterwards.

All the Same Color on the Inside
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Harold is a racist who doesn’t believe in interracial couples even as one lives across the street to him. But upon hearing that everyone is the same color on the inside, he may find out that is not always the case in this gruesome body horror story.

Secondhand Kiss
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A slow-burn, cosmic horror that brutally switches genres to body horror by the climax. When Thomas finally finds the woman of his dreams, when they share their first kiss, he finds out that she is more than what the eye is showing him and that there may not be much of anything left.

Take a Breath
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
“She made it all stop forever. She always was the intelligent one…”
After Larry is let go from his company for doing one small thing wrong, he decides to pursue a hobby in surfing instead of returning to his apartment where he’s surrounded by dark memories. But once out in the ocean, he morbidly regrets his decisions.

Two-Lip Garden
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Every night, Lana tends to her garden during the hours she can't sleep. But upon doing so, discovers skeletal remains in the soil. But her lucid mind has forgotten what she has done when her dementia takes over.

Feed The Machine
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Stuart and Dash have one of the worst jobs. They're the clean-up crew for a morbid crime scene that takes place daily, as volunteers are out through a realistic VR game that ends with your death.

The Rictus Grin
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Two guys trying to host their own demolition show purchase a property for cheap without knowing a sinister presence still resides in the home, feasting on rodents with a permanent grin planted on his face.

Every story in this collection is clever and unique, with a strong sense of dread and gore to your liking. It's not overly gruesome, soft on the gore in ways, but a great selection of creepy tales to curl up with on the couch late at night. A great way to introduce yourself to Summers before diving into one of her full-length novels or novellas. As for the audiobook, her voice matches the ominous stories, soft voices for the extreme reads.

[David K. · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Rictus Grin by Erica Summers

5/5

Why is nobody talking about Erica Summers? I feel like the indie horror community has let me down by keeping her writing a secret.

This is a superb collection of literary horror at runs through an array of styles and levels of ceeepiness or grossness. I was kept guessing as to where she would go with each following story.

Despite the eclectic selection of tales on offer, they all have a very clear voice that just reeks of being a masterful storyteller. Erica will generally have you hooked from page one and reel you in with her beautiful prose and deft pacing.

It's all just bloody good fun, and that is the right word for it. This was so much fun to read! I've said before that I grew up on Tales of the Unexpected and the Twilight Zone. I adore a twisty short story that doesn't ever lag and just gets straight to the good stuff.

Every story in The Rictus Grin is The Good Stuff.

If you haven't read anything by Erica Summers. Change that today. You will be all the better for it.

[Christine HorrorReaderWeekend · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection is solid and terrifying and SOMEHOW, Summers has peeked into my nightmares and wrote a VERY SPECIFIC story to freak me out.

All the stories are terrific, and Summers opens strong with Tines which is about choices and sacrifice and a sad desperate family enthralled by a deep evil.
All the Same Color on the Inside is a quick vicious WALLOP.
The title story The Rictus Grin about an rats, and a monster, but the dialogue is so easy and on point and approachable that when horror begins to happen is is BELIEVABLE because Summers’ set up is pitch perfect and real.

But the story Derailed hit me hard. Loss of independence, a car accident, hoarding filth, paranoia, how life can go so bad so quickly. All my fears in one damn story and it was so blithely written, so comfortably UNCOMFORTABLE, so deeply terrifying.

This is some good stuff here people.

[Skwurl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Listened to this one on audio and it’s actually narrated by the author, which is pretty cool. You can tell Erica Summers really gets the tone she was going for in each story. Some of her delivery made the creepy parts hit harder, and it gave the whole thing a more personal vibe, like she’s telling you ghost stories straight to your face.

The stories themselves are all over the place in a fun way. Some are slow and eerie, others are gory and chaotic. I liked the variety, even if a few of them didn’t totally land for me. Still, her voice adds a lot, especially in the darker and weirder moments.

Overall, it’s a mixed bag but worth a listen if you like horror anthologies that feel raw and unpredictable. Definitely has that “late-night spooky story” energy.

[Shirley Nuñez · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had high hopes for this book as the reviews from others have been fantastic. However this book just wasn’t for me. I am sorry to say that I could not get into the stories and while her style of writing is poetic and excellent, the stories could not capture my attention. Thank you so much for gifting me a copy of this and allowing me to review it. I look forward to reading more from this author.

[Kimberly Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

The way Erica flawlessly weaves through multiple sub genres in this collection is absolutely mesmerizing. I enjoyed every second and can’t wait to dive into more of her works. Not to mention how GLORIOUS it is to be read to by one of your favorites. I was pleasantly surprised when pressed play and heard her lovely voice.

[Nanasbug · Rating 2 out of 5]

Did not think much of it really. One of those short story books that you look ahead to see how many pages in this story. I want to support short story writing because I always believed short story writers had to be efficient and tightly written rather than 300+ page books that can meaner forever. This one felt like it was 300 pages.

[Mort · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you haven't heard of this author yet, it's time to rectify this hole in your life that you didn't even know was there.
This name should be known by every fan of indie horror - and this collection showcases her talent.

I have said it before and I will say it again - she is a better writer than I am.

[Kathy Barrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fantastic collection!
The narration is incredible and it’s very difficult to pull yourself away. Each story has you engaged and stating out loud… omg. …. Ewwww…
Do yourself a favor and get this audio book asap

[Charlotte Randle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this collection of stories and thought the narration for them was perfect for the type of stories in the collection.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Deb O rah · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 I enjoyed the writing more than the stories. My favorites were Tulip Garden (The Mother) which was clever psychological tale, and Sated, which was very very similar to a story from tales from the crypt in the early 90's

[Louise Storey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to this on audible and it’s always nice to listen to the author narrate. Brilliant selection of different subgenres that keeps you interested to the end

[Joan Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this collection. Each story was enticing, and a real page turner. This author's body of work I really enjoy. I will definitely be reading more from this author

[David Cluck · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars. Always love author notes.

[N L Hiser · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this collection. Some of the stories are going to stick to me for a long time. Highly recommend!

[Jasmine B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a long time fan of all horror varieties and can say, without a doubt, this appeals to so many of them. With each story the perfect length to truly satisfy the horror hunger without the over stuffed bits so many scary stories try to overcompensate with: it’s the well balanced collection of scariness I hoped it’d be.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Levana · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Rictus Grin and Other Tales of Insanity is a collection of Horror stories with a story for everyone. From psychological horror, to cosmic, to body horror to gory.

The ones that stood out to me:

‘Sated’
‘Take A Breath’
‘The Rictus Grin’

These 3 stories are the ones I think about a lot.

I give this book 3.5 stars. I don’t hate it, there were stories I liked but it’s also not my favorite as I have forgotten most of the stories by now. It also took me a while to get through.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review is for the short story "Two Lip Garden" by Erica Summers, which is a part of this collection.

[Jess Boschock · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this collection of short horror stories. This is my first time reading this author writing and let me tell you she did not disappoint. I will be buying this in paperback it is worthy of a spot on your shelf. I love dark horror.

[Ali O · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic book of creepy short stories. Each one is fabulously different! There is horror, thrills, exciting and disturbing stories! All of the stories are very well written and the easy to read!
I really enjoyed them all, but a few stand outs are: Derailed, The Rictus Grin, & Painted in Vermilion.
It’s amazing that a lot of these stories were created out of personal experiences from the author.
Erica Summers is also the narrator for this book and did an exceptional job! I was super impressed from A-Z with the book and then the superb narration!
At the very end of the book, Erica gives the reader/listener a great discussion on how many of these stories came about.
Erica is quickly becoming one of my must read authors!!
Thank you to Erica Summers for the audio version of this awesome book!

[Angel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This short story collection by Erica Summers filled me with so many emotions. Dread, panic, sorrow, laughter and the feeling you get when you realize how fast the sand is slipping through the hourglass. I couldn't recommend this book more. It's incredible.