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The Sick Stuff
Dark southern horror from a true master: An old man’s living fluids reveal a horrible secret from his past…A mentally-unstable woman uses a sexual obsession to take an unwilling hostage…Parasites from within, self-vampirism, and spontaneous decay… all stem from a voodoo curse cast upon the unfortunate survivors of a Louisiana family…
This is the sick stuff.
This is the sick stuff.
ebook
First published January 1, 2009
103 people want to read
About the author
Ronald Kelly
98 books411 followersRonald Kelly was born and raised in the hills and hollows of Middle Tennessee. He became interested in horror as a child, watching the local "Creature Feature" on Saturday nights and "The Big Show"---a Nashville-based TV show that presented every old monster movie ever made ---in the afternoons after school. In high school, his interest turned to horror literature and he read such writers as Poe, Lovecraft, Matheson, and King. He originally had dreams of becoming a comic book artist and created many of his own superheroes. But during his junior year, the writing bug bit him and he focused his attention on penning short stories and full-length novels. To date, he has had thirteen novels and twelve short fiction collections published. In 2021, his extreme horror collection, THE ESSENTIAL SICK STUFF, won a Splatterpunk Award for Best Collection.
He currently lives in Brush Creek, Tennessee with his wife, young'uns, and an ultra-hyper Jack Russel named Toby.
He currently lives in Brush Creek, Tennessee with his wife, young'uns, and an ultra-hyper Jack Russel named Toby.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
January 14, 2020
When Ronald Kelly says "The Sick Stuff" he means it. These stories are not my cup of tea. They are vile and gross. However, they are written very well and have that touch of southern that i love from this fellow Tennessean.
I listened to the audio book. This book is read by Jonathan Hall. i loved his narration very much. 5 stars for him!
I listened to the audio book. This book is read by Jonathan Hall. i loved his narration very much. 5 stars for him!
March 11, 2024
Well well well. This was fkn great! Gross, interesting and funny. Thanks to author for the afterword because I didn’t even think twice about who Buddy rly is.
September 16, 2020
This was a great collection of short stories akin to David Bernsteins "Mixed Bag of Blood". Some were admittedly better than others, but it was a great ride nonetheless.
I just have one question for anyone out there reading this review. Was "Buddy" actually his penis the whole time? 🤔
I just have one question for anyone out there reading this review. Was "Buddy" actually his penis the whole time? 🤔
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 10, 2024
This is the first book of a trilogy full of disturbing short stories!
This was a great one! If I had to choose a stand out story, it would be the "Buddy" tale, as I was confused at the end of it and had to go back and read it again to realize who Buddy was haha. I was not disappointed!
4/5
This was a great one! If I had to choose a stand out story, it would be the "Buddy" tale, as I was confused at the end of it and had to go back and read it again to realize who Buddy was haha. I was not disappointed!
4/5
November 1, 2020
A peculiar thing happened in the early 1990's. Those who wrote in the horror genre at that time did their best to outdo each other. They wanted their fiction to be on the "cutting edge". They wanted to push the envelope to the limit, so to speak. In other words, they did their very best to gross their readers out.
August 2, 2021
4 Stars
I would like to say thank you to NetGalley, Silver Shamrock Publishing, and Ronald Kelly for my complimentary copy of "The Essential Sick Stuff". I am a horror buff and this genre is one of my favourites and this book did not disappoint. It's definitely not for the faint of heart though as it gets pretty gruesome and some of the stories contain creepy crawlies from your worst nightmares. I am terrified of spiders and there were a few stories about them that I did manage to get through entirely. It was after finishing these short stories that I found myself shivering as I was thinking about the spider stories. It's not often that I can still feel the heebie jeebies after I finish a book.
If creepy crawlers aren't your thing there are plenty of other stories to give you your jump scares. You will find everything from zombies, cannibalism, murderers, and demons. If I am being completely honest with myself I can honestly say that there were not really any stories in this book that I did not enjoy reading; although I did have a few favourites and they are "Old Hacker", "Consumption", "Exit 85", "The Thing at the Side of the Road", "Scream Queen" and it's a toss up between "Day UPS", and "The Nipples in Dad's Toolbox" as my ultimate favourite choices. It's hard to pick a favourite as I enjoyed the entire book.
This is the first time I have read any published works from Ronald Kelly and I am definitely adding him to my TBR. I love horror stories and I cannot wait to see what else he has to offer.
I would like to say thank you to NetGalley, Silver Shamrock Publishing, and Ronald Kelly for my complimentary copy of "The Essential Sick Stuff". I am a horror buff and this genre is one of my favourites and this book did not disappoint. It's definitely not for the faint of heart though as it gets pretty gruesome and some of the stories contain creepy crawlies from your worst nightmares. I am terrified of spiders and there were a few stories about them that I did manage to get through entirely. It was after finishing these short stories that I found myself shivering as I was thinking about the spider stories. It's not often that I can still feel the heebie jeebies after I finish a book.
If creepy crawlers aren't your thing there are plenty of other stories to give you your jump scares. You will find everything from zombies, cannibalism, murderers, and demons. If I am being completely honest with myself I can honestly say that there were not really any stories in this book that I did not enjoy reading; although I did have a few favourites and they are "Old Hacker", "Consumption", "Exit 85", "The Thing at the Side of the Road", "Scream Queen" and it's a toss up between "Day UPS", and "The Nipples in Dad's Toolbox" as my ultimate favourite choices. It's hard to pick a favourite as I enjoyed the entire book.
This is the first time I have read any published works from Ronald Kelly and I am definitely adding him to my TBR. I love horror stories and I cannot wait to see what else he has to offer.
May 24, 2021
Decent stories, but none that really resonated for me. Worth a look.
February 27, 2022
Ugh! Yes they are all sick stuff!
September 13, 2023
Story One. The memoir of a serial killer gave me total blood of blood. Clive barker vibes.
Story Two : the spiders. Very Stephen King, I think specifically of the short story inspired by the rats. Which also makes me think of rats by Herbert Someone. And rats in the walls by Lovecraft
Story Three. Halloween Nightmare. Reminded me so much of Sam's story. Trick R Treat vibes
Story Four. Dracula Dream. Again, Stephen King. Something in between Apt pupil and something more Clive Barker ish.
Story Five. Phlegm. I kept thinking mountains of madness, and this was one that I didn't really like. Found it really boring, and I just skipped it.
Story Six A mentally-unstable woman uses a sexual obsession to take an unwilling hostage…
Story Seven arasites from within, self-vampirism, and spontaneous decay… all stem from a voodoo curse cast upon the unfortunate survivors of a Louisiana family…
Story Two : the spiders. Very Stephen King, I think specifically of the short story inspired by the rats. Which also makes me think of rats by Herbert Someone. And rats in the walls by Lovecraft
Story Three. Halloween Nightmare. Reminded me so much of Sam's story. Trick R Treat vibes
Story Four. Dracula Dream. Again, Stephen King. Something in between Apt pupil and something more Clive Barker ish.
Story Five. Phlegm. I kept thinking mountains of madness, and this was one that I didn't really like. Found it really boring, and I just skipped it.
Story Six A mentally-unstable woman uses a sexual obsession to take an unwilling hostage…
Story Seven arasites from within, self-vampirism, and spontaneous decay… all stem from a voodoo curse cast upon the unfortunate survivors of a Louisiana family…
July 30, 2020
Unfortunately this collection wasn't as good as the last one that I had read/listened to by Ronald Kelly.
April 26, 2022
Perfect if you enjoy your stories on the extreme side with a little dark humour
Excellent Narration worth checking out
Excellent Narration worth checking out
February 7, 2013
I wasn't blown away with this one. Actually, I didn't care for the first story. But it did get better as things went along.
I think maybe the stories were too short. For the horrors the contain, it would have been so much better to have more tension build-up. But still a decent read for horror fans. Especially ones who like their skin crawling...
I think maybe the stories were too short. For the horrors the contain, it would have been so much better to have more tension build-up. But still a decent read for horror fans. Especially ones who like their skin crawling...
October 16, 2012
A fantastic short collection of stories.Creeping,dark,disgusting but
very good stories!!
very good stories!!
June 21, 2014
I've read this collection, in it's entirety, 3 times now! Some of the most unforgettable short stories I've ever read.
Highly recommended!
Highly recommended!
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews