Roots of My Fears: Terrifying Stories of Ancestral Horror

by Gemma Amor, Gabino Iglesias, Hailey Piper

British Fantasy and Bram Stoker-nominated author Gemma Amor brings together a unique line-up of authors to explore heritage and horror, featuring stories from Gabino Iglesias, Erika T. Wurth and many more

It’s a bedtime story, ancient family lore, a secret passed down from generation to generation. Stories that have deep dark roots, ever-growing, ever-creeping. 

This anthology explores stories of heritage and horror. The tales we grew up on, hometown rumours and legends. 

The things we pass down through our bloodlines. 

Featuring stories
Erika Wurth 
Ai Jiang
Usman T Malik
Adam Nevill
Nuzo Onoh
Premee Mohammed
Gabino Iglesias
Nadia El-Fassi
Ramsey Campbell
V Castro
Hailey Piper
And more!

Genres: Horror, Short Stories, Anthologies, Paranormal, Fiction, Horror Thriller

320 pages, Paperback

First published September 9, 2025

About the author

I'm a horror fiction author, podcaster, artist and voice actor from Bristol, in the U.K.

I write for the wildly popular NoSleep Podcast and various other horror fiction audio dramas. My traditionally published debut FULL IMMERSION is out from Angry Robot in September 2022.

Find me at @manylittlewords on Twitter and Insta.

Repped by Mark Falkin at Falkin Literary.

Reviews

[Gyalten Lekden · Rating 4 out of 5]

This dark and intimate collection spirals around an interesting theme, bringing it to unexpected places. There is a good mix across the collection but most of the stories share a darkness, the type of horror that will unsettle you for far longer than a mere bloody corpse might, though the collection has its share of those, too. There’s a strong folk horror vibe to the collection, which makes sense given the central theme of ancestry and the often-violent clash between the new and the old.

The anthology sets the tone with a deeply unsettling opening story about child-rearing by Eliza Sichrovsky and continues with stories that have heart, none feeling sanitized or austere. I don’t know that any story blew me away, but I enjoyed the whole collection, with stand-out stories by Sichrovsky, Premee Mohammad, Nadia El-Fassi, Hailey Piper, and Erika T. Wurth. Darkly sentimental without ever being treacly, these stories ask question about what we inherit and why, and what responsibilities come with those roots that anchor us, that bind us.

(Rounded from 3.5)

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

5⭐

Trigger Warnings
violence, gore, grief, death of children, body horror, abuse, addiction, suicide, trauma, psychological horror

The Vibe
Everything you could ever want from some of the best names in horror. This is a haunting anthology that digs deep into the roots of fear, pulling from folklore, body horror, and the terror of everyday life. Each story has its own voice and style, yet together they create a collective nightmare that lingers.

What I Enjoyed
This anthology is a remarkable showcase of diverse and unforgettable voices shaping the horror genre right now. What I loved most was how different each story felt, yet how they still flowed together. The voices and approaches varied, but every piece felt like it belonged. This is the kind of anthology that makes you stop after each story, sit with it, and then brace yourself before moving on to the next. I may or may not have read certain ones over and over..

What Didn’t Work for Me
Like with most anthologies, not every single story landed with the same intensity, but the variety worked in the book’s favor. Different fears will strike different readers.

Read This If You Like
folklore-inspired horror anthologies
short fiction that explores different fears through unique voices
collections that balance variety with a unified mood

Final Thoughts
Roots of My Fears is more than just a collection. It’s a careful exploration of how fear takes root in us in personal, cultural, physical, and psychological ways. Some stories crawled under my skin with grotesque imagery, others made me stop and think, and made me sad in a way that I didn't expect. Together, they left me unsettled but satisfied which I really appreciated.

ARC Disclosure
I received an advance reader copy of this book through NetGalley. Thank you to Titan Books and editor Gemma Amor for the chance to read it early. These thoughts are my honest opinion.

[Blodeuedd Finland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lamb had a Little Mary by Elena Sichrovsky:
It started with a weird one, about a Lamb who had a little Mary. Mary who was clearly human, but what was lamb?


The House that Gabriel Built by Nuzo Onoh:
This is the only one of these that I truly remember because the beginning is really really disturbing. Like ewwwww.
And then we get to the freaky house...

The Faces at Pine Dunes by Ramsey Campbell:
A young man thinks his parents are strange...they do seem to be

In Silence, In Dying, In Dark by Caleb Weinhardt

One of Those Girls by Premee Mohamed:
A girl finds out she is pregnant and does not want to be

Juracan by Gabino Iglesias:
A hurrican is coming, and something is coming with it...

The Saint in the Mountain by Nadia El-Fassi:
A girl gets her period and is taking to the mountains. Where something creepy lives.

Crepuscular by Hailey Piper

Laal Andhi by Usman T. Malik

The Woods by Erica T. Wurth
A stop at a strange hotel

Unsewn by Ai Jiang
A woman is trying for a son as she has been told to get, but she births only daughters. Sad how the world can be

To Forget and Be Forgotten by Adam Nevill
A security guards learns some secrets

The Veteran by V. Castro
End of the world, alcoholic veteran finds a purpose. Interesting world

Chalk Bones by Sarah Deacon
Creepy end, ohhh. Nicely done


Something was going on with GR, I had written something, now it is gone, and now I really do not remember anymore because there were so many stories.

Lots of horror, fold legends and strangeness going on. Some I remember more, some less. I felt at times that the times between were so short so they bled into each other. Lots of narrators too.

[Norrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This anthology is like those chocolate taster boxes with the many different sweets. Some I'll absolutely devour, others are fine and the rest I'll just leave for someone else. Most of the short stories featured in this collection were written by authors I've heard about but I discovered a couple of new authors I didn't know before. I loved how different cultures and folklore inspired these stories, but I'd have definitely benefited from a little author's note before them, to get a fuller experience and context because I feel like some of the nuance just flew over my head.

Personally I prefer horror stories to be more the in-your-face variety rather than vague and abstract with heavy symbolism and I definitely found some to my liking.

My absolute favourites were To Forget and Be Forgotten by Adam Nevill featuring a foreboding old building full of creepy residents and cultish vibes, The Woods by Erika T. Wurth with is lush descriptions, loss and raw emotions and One of Those Girls by Premee Mohamed about pregnancy, choice and revenge.

I received the ARC from the publisher via Netgalley. Opinions are my own.

[myreadingescapism · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️, rounded up

[☽ Mél · Rating 5 out of 5]

5/5 stars

Thank you Netgalley and Titan Books for the ARC.

I was so happy to get approved for this anthology of short horror stories! I did not know any of the authors featured, though I read some reviews and it seemed that they were all very good. And I must say YES, they were all very good!

First, I would like to preface that Roots Of My Fears is NOT for non-horror fans. And that is great because it is not toned down. It is not generic. It's vivid, varied, yucky, chilling. I loved most stories, and I was SO happy to read more African and Middle East horror rather than the generic European-centric tropes we know by heart by know (at least I do?).

Roots Of My Fears is perfectly crafted in that way: it gives a voice to the guys at the back of the classroom we never hear. Women, POC, LGBT+. It gives these people a space to exist and what a lovely space it is.

The theme of this collection is ancestral horror, which is solid and interesting. I could see some "found family" tropes in some stories as well, so to speak; I liked it very much because blood is blood and ancestry and family do not equal genetic inheritance.

It's hard to pick a favorite story - I definitely cannot pick *one* in particular. A lot of these I liked for different reasons, be it the atmospheric ambiance, the writing style, or the morale of the story.

This is a gem of a short stories collection, and I really hope to read more horror anthologies like this.

[Milt Theo · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Roots of My Fears" is a beautifully crafted anthology of dark fantasy and horror, full of atmosphere, subtlety, elegant prose, and enthralling story ideas. It collects fourteen stories, of varying length, with a foreword by the editor, Gemma Amor. About half of the tales lean towards dark fantasy, dark fairy tale, or folklore and dark lore, the rest turning more properly to horror. There's a lot of ethnic and cultural variety in the stories, a feature that enhanced the volume as a whole and offered fascinating glimpses into more than the expert employment of standard horror themes. As expected with authors such as Hailey Piper, V. Castro, Ai Jiang, Nuzo Onoh, and Usman T. Malik, all the stories are of extremely high quality, on all fronts: writing, structure, pacing, characterization, imagery and endings. They're genuinely fun to read if you enjoy dark speculative fiction, and cover so many different themes there's something for everyone.

My personal standouts were the Ramsey Campbell folk horror reprint, "The Faces at Pine Dunes," which even on a second reading disturbs and unsettles with its expertly designed slow burn structure, blending coming-of-age themes and family issues with legends and witchcraft; Premee Mohamed's "One of Those Girls," a harrowing tale of unwanted pregnancy that finds its resolution in the supernatural; Gabino Iglesias' "Juracan," a suspenseful and pleasantly complicated story of a father trying to warn his son about an entity appearing during storms that has targeted their family; and another reprint, Adam Nevill's "To Forget and Be Forgotten," a triumph of liminality and isolation, about a nightwatchman discovering sinister and unexpected truths about the place he's working in, be it about the residents or the strange vibes of the corridors and the noises in the vacant rooms.

The monsters in this anthology are seldom human, though humans are not far behind. There is a lot of variety in purpose and scope, from troubles with one's family to abuse and addiction, every little detail handled with great care. The inventiveness found in each tale will leave a lasting impression."Roots of My Fears" was a joy to read and would highly recommend it!

[Jaclyn Hogan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a digital ARC of this book from Netgalley.

Lamb had a Little Mary by Elena Sichrovsky: The collection starts with an eerie, troubling dark fairytale of Lamb and her daughters Mary and Tiny. Lamb isn't always a good mother, but she's all that Mary has, until she doesn't have her either. Mary has to reckon with her upbringing and do what she can for her little sister while wondering how much like Lamb she really is.

The House that Gabriel Built by Nuzo Onoh: I didn't really care for this one. Gabriel looks to break a generational curse and ends up building a luxurious house that his neighbors never enter. This one kind felt like a pile of sorta scary things that never quite make a story.

The Faces at Pine Dunes by Ramsey Campbell: Michael is a young man living with his parents in a caravan in Pine Dunes. His parents are sketchy and Michael spends as much time away with his girlfriend June as he can, until he begins to wonder why they've decided to settle in this particular little town. Very Ramsey Campbell with an increasing sense of dread and claustrophobia.

In Silence, In Dying, In Dark by Caleb Weinhardt: The transmasc narrator has just died, and watches as his identity is stripped from him and his wife is humiliated. Heartbreaking and all too timely.

One of Those Girls by Premee Mohamed: Benita has just found out she's pregnant and she's being haunted by a ghostly pregnant woman as she tries to arrange an abortion and tell the teacher that impregnated her about her situation.

Juracan by Gabino Iglesias: A young man's father tells him about the dark shadow that took his mother during a hurricane as they wait out another hurricane. Creepy but slight.

The Saint in the Mountain by Nadia El-Fassi: A girl tries to hide getting her period from her cruel mother, but gets found out. Her mother takes her on a journey back to her village to meet the Saint in the Mountain. Of course she learns the horrible secret behind her mother's hunger. Very well done sense of dread and despair.

Crepuscular by Hailey Piper: Two women take their daughter to a remote Pacific island, hoping to cure her of the horrible inhuman strength and rage she expresses at sundown. Turns out a cure isn't available, but their daughter finds a place for herself anyway.

Laal Andhi by Usman T. Malik: A "laal andhi" is a red storm, usually caused by dust in the atmosphere. This is the story of a boy and his friends growing up in Pakistan and the game they play of visiting places of death to read horror stories to each other. Great sense of place that really makes the scares hit home. One of the best in the collection.

The Woods by Erica T. Wurth: A woman and her boyfriend stop at a hotel called The Woods. The hotel is strange, as the concierge says "every room is unique, every room is different." Some good atmosphere, but I might have enjoyed this more if I didn't find the characters so annoying and unlikeable.

Unsewn by Ai Jiang: A lyrical story of a peasant woman and her struggle to give birth to a son after multiple daughters. This is told in second person, giving it a kind of melancholy immediacy.

To Forget and Be Forgotten by Adam Nevill: A man tries to drop out of the world by becoming a security guard at an old apartment building, but is soon troubled by the very weird residents. While this leans a little hard on how horrible old people's bodies are, it's genuinely disturbing and hard to get out of your brain.

The Veteran by V. Castro: A man meets an elderly woman with a child in the post apocalypse and decides to stay with them to protect them. Interesting mix of folkloric horror with the post apocalyptic.

Chalk Bones by Sarah Deacon: A bypass built through a town starts a series of events that disturb an ancient barrow mound and the tree growing on top of it. The town's fate seems entwined with the mound, and a young girl is determined to save her home, no matter what she has to sacrifice. Very well done and chilling.

This is ultimately a pretty slight collection, but there are a few standouts that I'm sure I'll be thinking about for a long time.

[Maya · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and Titan Books for providing me with the ARC.
Pub Date 9 Sep 2025
The theme of this short story collection is the ancestral horror that roots us to the traumas and curses of our ancestors. Unfortunately, I found most of the stories to be lacking originality. The story that was further away from the theme was my favorite one - To Forget and Be Forgotten. I also very much enjoyed Chalk bones and The saint in the mountain, but the majority of these stories didn’t impress me. Based on the ratings I gave each story, this is 3.5 stars as a whole. I would recommend it if you love reading short stories.
My individual ratings and comments for each story are as follows:
Lamb had a little Mary – Elena Sichrovsky 3.5/5 Very poetic, reminded me of Lamb by Lucy Rose.
The house that Gabriel built – Nuzo Onoh 3/5 There was a lot of repetitiveness to this storytelling.
The faces at pine dunes - Ramsey Campbel DNF This had me confused from the very beginning. How old was Michel? He read as a 10 y old boy at the start, but then he makes himself a coffee and is looking for his mom’s contraceptives, like what?? Then he goes to a night club, so he’s 18 maybe, but why his parents spoke to him like he was in the 5th grade? Yeah, big hard DNF for that one
In silence, in dying, in dark – 3.5/5 Very good storytelling
One of those girls – 3/5 I expected some grand ending, but the end was very, very disappointing
Juracan – Gabino Iglesias 3.5/5 There were some good creepy scenes.
The saint in the mountain – Nadia El – Fassi 4/5 One of the good stories
Crepuscular – Hailey Piper 3/5 It was okay.
Laal Andhi – Usman T. Malik DNF
The woods – Erika T. Wurth – 2.5/5 I didn’t like the way the story was unfolding, too choppy
Unsewn – Ai Jiang 3.5/5 Good body horror, but not as detailed as I would’ve wanted.
To Forget and Be Forgotten – Adam Nevill 5/5 The best story in here, reminded me of Nestlings by Nat Cassidy
The veteran – V. Castro 3.5/5 This book was like in the middle of nowhere, but still it was interesting enough
Chalk bones - Sarah Deacon 4.5/5 I love reading from the perspective of a child, this story was very good as well.

[Cat Treadwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This anthology has been on my radar for months - I was so happy to get an ARC! Diving in, I was not to be disappointed.

As with any collection, it has its ups and downs, stories I liked and didn't, but the constant throughline of this book is the sheer depth of it. The authors here are not joking when they say the focus is on 'roots'. From familial to forested, physical and metaphorical, these tales all go deep. I learned quickly that I was best reading a story and then pausing for a cup of tea and a break to decompress (ie ponder WTF just happened?!).

I don't like to play favourites, but there is a clear (if unusual) winner here in my 'top' entry: Gemma Amor's introduction. I love her writing, but the words of wisdom here struck me hard as I went in, staying with me like an undercurrent on each page. So many of the stories felt like love-letters to the reader, but those first few pages presented a love-BOOK to us - and I'm very thankful for it.

Amazing work by authors at the top of their game.

An early copy of this book was kindly sent to me by the publisher, but the above opinions are entirely my own.

[luceski · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love a good short story collection - perfect for dipping in and out without getting bogged down in one tale. This one brings together horror voices from across the world, blending folklore, ghosts, curses, and some wonderfully unsettling imagery 👀

Like with any anthology, some stories worked better than others, but the mix of styles and perspectives kept things fresh and surprising.

✨ My favourites were:
🦴 Chalk Bones - Sarah Deacon
🕰️ To Forget and Be Forgotten - Adam Nevill
🗡️ Laal Andhi - Usman T Malik
🪦 In Silence, In Dying, In Dark - Caleb Weinnhardt

📖 Roots of my Fears releases on 9th September.
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

[Dana]

A wide range of stories, which is why I am not rating it. I think this is worth a read, but there were a few stories I DNF.

Standouts were:

Adam Nevill - creepy and mad
Ai Jiang - broke my heart
Elena Sichrovsky - relatable and well told

[Erin Crane · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sigh! Disappointing. I liked the first two and then Ramey Campbell’s story really killed the good vibes with his commentary on a young woman’s body. WHY. Incredibly inane commentary, to be clear.

The first story probably is my favorite. It’s very weird. A bit fable-like, which I don’t normally enjoy. A creepy fable apparently *does* work for me.

[Brian Shevory · Rating 5 out of 5]

Many thanks to Titan Books and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this excellent ancestral horror anthology Roots of My Fears: Terrifying Stories of Ancestral Horror. I was really excited to find this collection because it included stories by Erika Wurth, Ai Jiang, and Gabino Iglesias; writers whose books I’ve thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated their unique takes on horror. Furthermore, I was really excited to find stories by V. Castro and Adam Nevill, whose books I’ve had on my to be read list for some time. Gemma Amor, the editor of this collection, has compiled an interesting mix of stories, many of which are inventive and terrifying, in their own unique ways. As she defines the word “root” in the introduction, she elaborates on noting how it can take on different meanings, enabling her to remain connected, but also exploring how those attachments are not always healthy or helpful. “Horror is the perfect playground for such explorations: it is a genre highly bound in identity, in existential explorations, in matters of belonging, or of being alone.” These stories all focus on some kind of connection to family, whether it is healthy or harmful, but also on the identity, and how searching for one’s own identity, trying to discover who you are and break from these familiar constraints can also be a terrifying experience. This is a great collection of stories, and while they are not all excellent, I felt that most of the stories were truly inventive, surprising, and scary. Furthermore, I wasn’t expecting so many references to cosmic horror and Lovecraft, but I felt like many of the stories had some kind of connection to the old ones, tentacled creatures, or ancient traditions that seemed to pass down in ways that superseded blood. If weird, cosmic, or folk horror grab your attention, then this is a collection for you. I also appreciated the diversity of this collection and how it explored cultures, traditions, and superstitions from Nigerian, Caribbean, Puerto Rican, Mexican, Chinese and Pakistani perspectives. These were some of the more creative and interesting stories. I’ll briefly outline these stories and share what I liked about each one.
“Lamb had a Little Mary” by Elena Sichrovsky was a strange story that involved body horror and childbearing. It’s a play on the nursey rhyme, but imagining the kind of dependent relationship between Mary and her lamb as if it were in a medieval forest during a famine and plague. It’s truly disturbing, and a great way to start off this anthology by shocking readers. It’s definitely a story I will also need to revisit to further analyze its meaning.
I loved “The House that Gabriel Built” by Nuzo Onoh. It was another strange story about familiar revenge and power, imagining how a young boy whose uncles murdered his father would do anything to get revenge and retain his inheritance. The story also features some truly shocking instances of revenge, but there’s also a message about the power that this kinds of patrilineal societies wield and how it impacts women. It was interesting to read this story about Nigerian traditions because I could see a lot of connection to blues music and traditions. In particular, the idea of the seventh son serves as a kind of talisman- a blessed child whose often the hoochie-koochie man, endowed with special abilities.
It's hard to choose a favorite from this collection, but Ramsey Campbell’s “The Faces at Pine Dunes” was a strong contender from this collection. It is one of the longer selections, but it is so atmospheric and creepy. This is the story that is probably the most “Lovecraftian” as well. It’s a story about a boy who camps around England with his parents, but eventually seeks to get away from them, obtaining a job in town as a bartender. After meeting a girl in the bar, he realizes how different his experiences have been, and he desires something new, but also begins to question his parents and their actions. As one of the longer stories, the woods where his family camps takes on its own kind of character within the story and had enough creepy and eerie qualities to keep me reading until I finished. I was surprised to learn that this story is also older, but it makes sense since the teens in the story don’t have social media or phones, and there’s a kind of 1970s counterculture vibe throughout the story. I’ve heard of Campbell before, but never read anything by him, and with “The Faces at Pine Dunes”, I can understand how he is considered a master of horror.
“In Silence, In Dying, In Dark” by Caleb Weinhardt is a shorter story that details mystery letters the narrator receives from their old life. It’s a quick read, and has a tough act to follow in Campbell’s piece.
“One of Those Girls” by Premee Mohamed is a great story about Benny, a first generation college student whose immigrant parents would not approve of her unplanned pregnancy. She solicits help from a friend, but some strange events occur that prevent her from finding answers and confronting man who fathered her child. At the same time, she begins to see a ghostly woman in white. This story has some great and unexpected twists, and Mohamed uses some clever events in the story to engage the reader and propel the action forward.
I was really excited to read Gabino Iglesias’s “Juracan” since I haven’t read any of his stories, but I absolutely loved the novels The House of Bone and Rain and The Devil Takes You Home. This story was interesting, and it seemed like it was connected to The House of Bone and Rain. Both feature a deadly hurricane and describe the kinds of strange and potentially supernatural events that happen during these hurricanes. Both described babies being born during a hurricane that have 7 rows of teeth, and both feature supernatural characters who emerge during these times of intense weather. I wondered if maybe this was another direction that Iglesias was taking with his book, but abandoned it. Although I liked this short story, I wished it was longer.
“The Saint in the Mountain” by Nadia El-Fassi was also a terrifying story of young womanhood, and how societies seek to control women’s bodies. There’s lots of strange events and foreboding in the story, and I really enjoyed those moments leading up to a surprise ending.
“Crepuscular” by Hailey Piper was also a terrifying story about having children, especially those with unique needs. This was also one of those Lovecraftian stories that also incorporated elements of The Exorcist. As a parent, this story spoke to me about the lengths people will go to and the kinds of wild advice they might seek out to try to “solve” their kids. It was a gruesome but compelling read.
“Laal Andhi” by Usman T. Malik was another interesting story that takes place in Pakistan, and jumps from 2008, when the narrator was a man in his 30s to his boyhood in the 80s. A surprising figure suddenly appears as he is driving, and this shock enables him to reminisce. There’s some really weird stuff (think of Takashi Miike’s Audition) that the narrator and his friends encounter in a haunted house in the neighborhood, and this will eventually change all of their lives. This story is not only an interesting take on the haunted house story, but it’s also a story of young friendship and adventure.
Erika T. Wurth’s “The Woods” is a strange, but compelling story about family, love, and a mysterious hotel made from trees. As I was reading, I kept thinking about Wurth’s novel The White Horse, which takes place partly in the Overlook hotel, made famous by The Shining. There are some elements of weird hotels in this story. I loved how the setting in a tree hotel with roots throughout transported the narrator back to her family and roots. The incorporation of folktales and family stories passed down also created a kind of weird atmosphere where the narrator felt both unsettled, but strangely comfortable. It’s another moody and eerie story full of uncanny experiences.
Ai Jiang’s “Unsewn” was a heartbreaking story about the pressure of valuing male children over female children in China (although the story could have taken place elsewhere). The story didn’t seem like traditional horror until the ending, which is both heartbreaking and horrifying. However, looking back, I can see how expectations and familiar duties, especially around childrearing and lineage, things often out of our control, can be terrifying experiences in themselves. Jiang’s story takes place in a society rampant with inequality and division, and it helps to contextualize the main character’s actions.
Adam Nevill’s “To Forget and Be Forgotten” was another favorite. It was such a strange and unexpected story with hints of Rosemary’s Baby and other Lovecraftian elements. The story involves a man who is hired as a night porter in an apartment building where none of the residents are under 90. He observes their strange behavior and only interacts with their equally odd caregivers. One night, one of the caregivers asks the narrator to watch her client, and the story just gets stranger from there. The story has a great ending and some amazing reveals. I would love to see this as a short film--- I think it would be a little too long for a 30 minute show, but it might work better in the 40-60 minute range. It also plays on our fears of aging.
V. Castro’s “The Veteran” was a story that started rather bleak, but ended up being redemptive. I also appreciated the twists she developed for this kind of pandemic/survival story. I usually don’t like these kinds of stories or movies, but this one was cool, and also has some Lovecraftian elements to it. The story also had some Stephen King traces in it—children in danger from some kind of mysterious, older evil, while a down-on-his luck loner finds his place with a curandera and a kid. It’s an economical, but powerful story, and I’m looking forward to reading more of Castro’s works.
“Chalk Bones” by Sarah Deacon was an interesting story that verged on a kind of folk horror, but also had some Lovecraftian elements in it. The narrator is moving from her family’s home to her grandfather’s farm. They are displaced by the construction of a bypass. While the narrator, a young girl, moves, she begins to feel stronger connections with the land, feeling and hearing things that others seemingly cannot. It’s another inventive play on the kinds of roots and connections we have with not only family, but the land, and how those experiences and knowledge can get in our bones.
Overall, this was a great anthology, with some really great stories in them. While not stories I would necessarily include for the classroom, I would recommend them to friends. There’s a great variety of stories that appeal to all different types of horror fans. A great collection that I will definitely recommend and revisit.

[Ed Crocker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Roots are tricky things. As Bram Stoker and British Fantasy Award nominated author Gemma Amor explains in her introduction to her edited collection of ancestral horror Roots of My Fears, they can both tie us to positive forces in our lives but also constrict and trap us. I’ve often found horror rooted in where we come from to be disturbing, as I’ve always felt unmoored from family, country, ancestry, demanding freedom from it all like a hermit Braveheart. But even for those whose roots are forces of good in their lives, horror linked to our familial and ancestral identities is often the most unsettling, not just too close to home but home itself. And in this collection, a group of acclaimed authors combine to drag you down in the tangled dirt with them, and the result is a genuinely terrifying, vivid, and often beautiful smorgasbord of intense family ties horror.

In the strongly interpretive opener “Lamb Had a Little Mary” by Elena Sichrovsky, part symbolism, part brutal reality, a child of an abusive mother is forced to protect their younger sibling. It’s a tale of parental failure versus their offspring’s strength, a vivid punch to the senses, more exposed root canal than family roots.

Parents continue to not get a great rap in Roots of My Fears: in Premee Mohamed’s stand out “One Of Those Girls”, an American university student from an immigrant family must hide her abortion from her strict parents when she falls pregnant by her college professor, unhelped by the ghostly apparition of a pregnant woman who’s driving her to madness. As always Mohamed’s unique and uncompromising voice drives this story. Meanwhile, in Nadia El-Fassi’s deeply terrifying female body horror/cosmic horror blend “The Saint in the Mountain”, the mother is thinking of anyone but her daughter’s best interests with horrifying consequences. In Ai Jiang’s “Unsewn”, the author uses her precise prose and inventive storytelling to examine the traditions of favouring the birth of sons over daughters and the tricky concept of the simultaneous culpability yet blamelessness of the women participating in this process.

But parents can be powerful nurturing forces too: in Hailey Piper’s strange ode to parental love and eerie transformation “Crepuscular”, a gifted yet dangerous child and her two mothers travel to an Indonesian island in the hope of a cure to ease their daughter’s more dangerous tendencies, but encounter something terrible from the sea instead. Piper blends parental desperation and hope with the eerie and sci-fi in this powerful tale.

Some stories examine the cultural and political generational spanning effect of roots. In Usman T. Malik’s terrifying timepiece “Laal Andhi”, we are transported to Pakistan in the 1980s and the horror that three young boys discover in an abandoned house, Malik expertly combining supernatural horrors rooted in the region’s lore with the violent political upheavals of the time to paint an unflinching picture of how both humans and legends can conspire to poison our roots as adults. In the unflinching, punchy, and nightmarish tale by Nuzo Onoh “The House that Gabriel Built”, the theme of infernal ancestral vengeance is examined when a villager seeking vengeance for the crimes against his family makes a demonic deal, with consequences for both his descendants and their colonial masters. This tale memorably blends The Fall of the House of Usher with the mythos of the Nigerian Igbo people.

The roots in this collection aren’t put off by concrete. In Erika T. Wurth’s “The Woods”—a bitingly well-written acid trip exercise in hope and horror—a troubled couple beset by grief, arguments, and misplaced machismo check into a Tennessee hotel to discover the vine wallpaper seems to be moving and the forest might have taken root inside as well as outside. And in “To Forget and be Forgotten”, Adam Nevill takes the unique approach of giving us a rootless protagonist, whose only wish is to be apart from a world they find annoying (I emphasised far too much with their wish to be “a gentleman of absence”). But when they get the perfect job as a nightwatchman in a nearly empty apartment block, they discover the place is more sinister than they realised. Like so many stories in this collection, the creeping sense of utter terror is fierce here.

The collection concludes with two intense hits of horror: V Castro’s “The Veteran,” a hauntingly powerful tale of a homeless veteran close to giving up who finds potential salvation in two strangers even as the dark closes in—as strong a story of hope among the horror you’ll read for a while—and Sarah Deacon’s “Chalk Bones”, whose shocking ending is the ultimate demonstrations of the dark power of the roots that bind us all.

Overall, Roots of My Fears is a stand-out collection whose sinister branches conspire to reveal your inner fears, exposing you to vividly well written horrors and the ills of family but also the hope that ties can bring. Amor has curated an unstoppable growth of beauty and terror here—let the roots take hold of you.

[ScarlettAnomalyReads · Rating 5 out of 5]

I snagged this off Netgalley and I am so excited I got to read it early! So thank you NetGalley and Titan.

There are so so so many good stories in this collection, but I am going to pick a few of my favorites, so you have something to read about too ha!

This collection was full of dark horror, emotions and well terror. Each story had something different they brought to the table and it hit the mark, a good blend of voices and backgrounds really made this whole thing sing beautifully. Every story was different but they also belonged together in this specific collection, does that make sense?

There is absolutely something for everyone in this and I had a hard time putting it down, I’m going to be honest and say I hope this is a audiobook in the future because I would love to sit back and listen to this, I cannot even begin to imagine the atmosphere it would create ( so please please please haha).

I think this is for anyone that likes folklore/legend type horror tales and short story collection, this is one of the really good, don't miss ones.



Juracan by Gabriel Iglesias there was just something about this story that had me in a chokehold, a dad trying to warn his son about something, a thing that is targeting their family that just sounds so wild and it appears during storms? Cue normal skepticism, but maybe the dad is onto something, however like in all families there are other factors that are causing the communication not work so well between these two.
Hands down one of my favorite short stories this year I think.

Crepuscular by Hailey Piper this was a story, I have this joke I make about not having kids until we can teleport them out, but there’s something true about that, its a little horrifying thinking about popping out a whole human, from your body ?? But I cannot imagine having a child and thinking I need to fix them in anyway, help them absolutely but fix, no.
Two women take their child to an island to fix her issue of rage after sundown, which yes, needs to be helped but it just hit me in a way that made me so sad, maybe this way their way of helping but..
This was just a really jarring read for me about the lengths some people go to fix something that isn’t broken, I loved this. It hit hard for me.

The Woods by Erika T Wurth if you have read this one you will not be shocked I loved it, creepy hotel made from trees, and I don't mean processed wooden planks..
Sorry was this written for me ??
It was creepy and atmospheric and I loved how well she wrote this, I felt like I could almost picture the roots and felt like I was there, fantastic job. This story was a whole vibe that does not need to be missed.

The Veteran by V Castro this one was rough at the start, it felt so so heavy. But it had something that had me invested and ended up being one my of top picks, very Lovecraft feeling in the best way. I dont want to say much about this one because it will absolutely spoil it but trust me, keep reading it, it is so so good.

To Forget and Be Forgotten by Adam Neville this story, was something else. It had that ring of work and isolation horror that seems to dig into my brain and not let go and this one was about a nightwatchman learning some hard and quick truths about the very fucked up place he works at, I could have read an entire novel about this one folks. Sometimes a nose or a creak isn’t just the building, sometimes its the very soul of the place and it isn’t all good..

This collection is one of the best I’ve read this year, I actually read through it twice before writing this review, that good.

Check it out.

[Marta · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a horror enthusiast, when I saw the impressive names attached to this anthology, I thought it would be a great way to discover authors I hadn’t yet read and to revisit others whose work I already enjoy. The truth is, though, that overall, it left me with a disappointing impression, and if I were to judge these writers solely on what I found here, I probably wouldn’t be eager to pick up much more of their work.

That said, there are stories I found worth highlighting, and I’d like to begin with them. One of Those Girls by Premee Mohamed (an author I was already familiar with and definitely want to keep reading) drew me in through her distinctive voice. The story itself may not have been wildly original or ended with a spectacular twist, but I appreciated the themes it tackled, the way they were explored, and the life she gave to her characters. Laal Andhi by Usman T. Malik, in terms of atmosphere, narrative voice, and story, was for me the true highlight of the collection. I hadn’t read him before, but the blending of folklore with the tale he chose to tell kept me hooked and impressed me. To Forget and Be Forgotten by Adam Nevill also gave me chills. Even if I struggled a bit to see how it tied in with the anthology’s overall theme, I still enjoyed the escalating tension and the balance of weirdness and dread that built throughout. Finally, the closing story felt very deliberately placed at the end for good reason. Chalk Bones by Sarah Deacon perfectly balances a return to origins, a sense of ancestry, and the kind of horror that springs directly from it.

All in all, being able to single out four strong pieces in an anthology of fourteen is not insignificant (the others weren’t disasters, just somewhat underwhelming). What left a slightly bitter aftertaste was that too many of the stories felt half-formed: written with a childlike voice that wasn’t always intentional, blurred around the edges. In some cases, they read almost like outlines, sketches, if I may, of what could have been enthralling stories, compressed into short pieces just to meet the requirement of inclusion.

[chloe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Roots of My Fears was the perfect book to get me ready for autumn. By the end all I wanted were crunchy leaves underfoot, a cold breeze, and a hot drink. Oh, and perhaps a haunting whisper on the wind.

My favorite stories were:

The Faces at Pine Dunes by Ramsey Campbell, a wonderfully witchy tale of cosmic horror that left me reeling. This is one I think I’ll have to read a few times to catch every nuance.

One of Those Girls by Premee Mohamed, a good for her (sort of?) story about a young woman desperate to get out from under the thumb of her parents and get an abortion without them knowing. She begins to see a pregnant ghost and wonders if she’s losing her mind.

The Saint in the Mountain by Nadia El-Fassi, a coming of age story about a girl getting her first period and being taken to do a terrible ritual by her mother. This one was crazy. I can’t say much more without spoiling it.

Crepuscular by Hailey Piper, a story about a married couple seeking help for their daughter’s uncontrollable psychic abilities. I loved this story and I wanted more by the time it was over.

The Woods by Erika T. Wurth, a beautiful yet creepy exploration of grief about a couple who checks into what they think is just a nice hotel but turns out to be so much more.

To Forget and be Forgotten by Adam Nevill, a story about a night watchman at a fancy apartment building who discovers his new job is so much more than he bargained for. Adam Nevill is the modern master of horror to me and I loved this story.

Unsewn by Ai Jiang, a story about a woman desperate to give birth to a son but cursed to only have daughters. I loved how this story wove the red string of fate myth throughout.

I enjoyed them all though! Each one fit perfectly like puzzle pieces in this collection and they complemented each other wonderfully.

Thank you so much to Titan for the arc!

[Candi Norwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the prologue to season 5 of the horror podcast “Old Gods of Appalachia” the host Steve Shell talks about Appalachia, where “traditions feel like obligations” and a world outside Appalachia “where generations of judgment and expectations don’t hang over your head”, and I thought of these phrases and my own childhood in (and desire to escape) Appalachia as I was reading Roots of My Fears.
The stories in Roots of My Fears (edited by the talented Gemma Amor) , although fiction, read like deeply personal horrors, and, though quite distinct from one another, the feeling of voyeurism into the protagonists’ and, by proxy, the writers’ darkest minds and hearts carried throughout the collection - so much so that at times, I felt discomfort and dread which bordered on fear - and may have once or twice tipped over.
Amor does not ease us into the horror. She punches us hard and doesn’t let up until the cover closes, starting with Lamb Had a Little Mary from Elena Sichrovsky, told from the point of view of a child through whose eyes we realize is protecting her infant sibling from their abusive mother.
Parental issues pop up several more times throughout the collection, such as in the cosmic horror-laced The Faces at Pine Dunes from Ramsey Campbell, where a young man is dragged from town to town by his parents until he learns who they really are and what his legacy is - and Nadia El-Fassi’s The Saint in the Mountain - whose protagonist has a challenging relationship with her mother until she learns for herself why her mother is the way she is.
Many of the stories, by nature of the theme, lean towards folk horror, including those already mentioned, but especially - and perhaps my favorite of a strong collection - Sarah Deacon’s Chalk Bones, about a village whose inhabitants are being displaced by a highway and a young girl who feels the village’s fate is her responsibility.
Not only do the stories speak to universal experiences of family and ancestry, they are also beautiful written. For literal days, I’ve had images in my mind from In Silence, In Dying, In Dark by Caleb Weinhardt thanks to three words, “roots embrace me.”
This collection is one that I see myself going back to time and again to reread stories or even paragraphs from some of the stories, and I think any horror fan will find something in it that speaks directly to them - or at least scares the hell out of them.
Thank you to NetGalley and Titan Books for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

[Meg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley and Titan Books for this ARC.

'Roots of My Fears' is exactly what you need to get you in the Halloween spirit this year. Pick it up! This collection of horror stories spotlights an array of voices and themes. If you're a horror fan, you will definitely find something here you'll love!

Every single story here is deeply personal to its author and will take you on a ride across the emotional spectrum. Highlights for me were Usman T. Malik's 'Laal Andhi', Ai Jiang's 'Unsewn', and 'The Saint in the Mountain' by Nadia El-Fassi. With my favourite stories, the common thread seems to be that they offered rich depictions of cultures unlike my own, and I really believe this is the book's greatest strength. I devoured it in three days. Every time I finished a story, I couldn't wait to turn the page and see what world I found myself in. Each section was a good length (I say this because I believe firmly that horror works best in short form), with suitable variation, so each story felt brand new.

I gave this 4 stars because I think it could have been even stronger. Some of the stories were lacklustre compared to others, which is a shame because I know for a fact their authors have some brilliant work behind them. But as with everything, you can't win them all, especially with this much variety in voice and theme. But, again, that's one of the great things about the book. You might love the stories I disliked, or hate the ones I loved, but you'll find something in here to enjoy.

Thanks again to the publisher and NetGalley, but most of all, thanks to the authors for sharing their craft and to Gemma Amor for bringing it to us.

[M. K. French · Rating 4 out of 5]

This anthology explores bedtime stories, family lore, and secrets that are passed down throughout the generations. It contains stories by V. Castro, AI Jiang, Usman T. Malik, Adam Nevill, Nuzo Onoh, Premee Mohamed, Gabino Iglesias, Nadia El-Fassi, Ramsey Campbell, Erika T. Wurth, Hailey Piper, Elena Sichrovsky, Caleb Weinhardt, and Sarah Deacon.

Roots offer connections, obligations, duties, and traditions. Horror often transforms identity and connections, breaking, making, or remaking them. This collection opens with "Lamb Has A Little Mary" by Elena Sichrovsky, and you can tell by the title that the story will have inversions of the nursery rhyme, that stories will hold weight; the truth is hidden between the lines written. So it is for the other stories in the collection, where horrible things are waiting within families. Sometimes, keeping the secret is meant to protect the next generation, but in other stories, the next generation gets pulled into the horror without any preparation.

The Guyanese family of Premee Mohamed's "One Of Those Girls" is like many immigrant families, refusing to talk about the legends of their culture or where superstitions come from. Unlike some of the other stories in this collection, there isn't intentional malice behind it, just the usual wish to appear successful. I liked Benny in that story and really felt for her. I also felt sorry for Mina of "The Saint In The Mountain" by Nadia El-Fassi. The stories here are haunting in different ways, with the specter of families hanging over them. To me, that heightened the horror of it, since families are supposed to protect themselves, not throw members into harm's way.

[Alison Faichney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Damn, what a grouping of amazing stories and authors. I’ve read work by a few of these writers, but the majority were new to me. There is a vast diversity among them which really added a bit of extra grit for me. Their work feels so authentic which makes it being an anthology centered around the roots we put down all the more appropriate. I rated every story at least a 4 but the majority were 5s.

I want to be very direct that most of these stories are very intricate. I would direct this anthology more to people who vibe with authors like Stephen Graham Jones who are a bit more chaotic within the usual confines of storytelling. If you need to feel resolved and satiated after finishing a story, this isn’t that collection. These stories are strange and abrupt and often leave quite a bit for interpretation. Personally, I love that style but I do recognize many readers prefer to feel buttoned up upon completion and this may not scratch that itch. As I mentioned before, all of the stories I truly enjoyed. I loved the variation it contained. Often theme-specific anthologies begin to blend after several stories, but these were all so different from each other that I never felt that burnout.

If you vibe with horror that tends to fall into the literary fiction category, I’d absolutely recommend Roots of My Fears. This was a great anthology and these are authors I’ll be watching to snatch up more of their work. This book tackled some difficult themes but absolutely nails it with the oddities described within its pages. Great read.

[Mariah · Rating 5 out of 5]

The root of fear is hidden in the bones of the fairy tales we thought we buried, yet our subconscious keeps reminding us through our quirky phobias. This is exactly the vibe that the collection Roots of My Fears delivers. Myriad creepy tales to keep you up at night and have you turn each page craving more. This collection yearns for an audience that loves everything dark fantasy and horror – straight from our cultural lores. This is an expansive and inclusive collection that I wish had even more stories included. There are many ways we can use the horror lens to view our society – but our cultural lore is rooted in something ancient and an extension of oral traditions that are passed down through these modern rewritten narratives.
A collection that opens with a grisly Mary Had a Little Lamb. This one almost reads like a Blumhouse production in the making. Then you have V. Castro who is a personal favorite of mine presenting “The Veteran”. There is a way we look at things mundanely and then twist a critique through the lens of horror to truly show what it means to embody these everyday cultural norms. And truly a diverse list of writers that contributed to this fantastic collection. This is one to keep on your shelves and read on Samhain! Thank you Titan Books and Net Galley for this advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

Read more on https://brujerialibrary.wordpress.com/

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Otherworldly horrors are passed down from parents to offspring, or whatever it is that Sydney Sweeney said in that incredibly monotone voice. Alternately, you could quote that Philip Larkin classic and say “They fuck you up, your mum and dad / they may not mean to, but they do.”

That, in a way, is what the stories are about in Roots of My Fears, edited by Gemma Amor. This anthology titles itself as being one of “ancestral horror,” and that takes many forms, from direct trauma inflicted upon descendants by their elders to something much deeper, much more generational.

As anthologies — and particularly horror anthologies, given that what styles and themes scare us vary so much between both authors and audiences — often are, this is a mixed bag. But while there are a few stories I found forgettable, the standouts I’m sure I will be thinking about for some time.

I don’t know if it’s a coincidence that my three favorites — Premee Mohamed’s ‘One of Those Girls,’ Nadia El-Fassi’s ‘The Saint in the Mountain,’ and Ai Jiang’s fantastic ‘Unsewn’ all deal heavily with womanhood, motherhood, and the mother-daughter relationship. Rounding out the top five for me are ‘Laal Andhi’ by Usman T Malik and ‘In Silence, In Dying, In Dark’ by Caleb Weinhardt.

While I’m not sure if I’d be strongly recommending to add the entire anthology to your to-read list, I do think that those five stories at least are well worth seeking out.

[little blue haired old lady X · Rating 4 out of 5]

Roots Of My Fear: Terrifying Stories of Ancestral Horror Anthology Edited by Gemma Amor
Published by Titan Books

The idea of linking horror and ancestry makes sense. Our ancestors have struggled, overcome odds, harmed someone, maybe even harmed us- whether they meant to or not. We will always remain rooted to them in some way.

All of these stories are well-written, well-thought out and enjoyable. Each story contains a journey, and adds different emotions into the mix of fear and horror. I appreciate the different cultural aspects the writers blend in with their stories.

Four of these stories really touched me and I want to mention them: Ai Jian’s Unsewn is devastatingly psychologically brutal and beautiful, it will haunt me. Nadia El-Fassi’s The Spirit In the Mountain is beautifully detailed, heart-wrenching, and imaginative. V Castro’s The Veteran has an easy, ambling pace and gave me hope on many levels (I was delighted to see it in another anthology that has recently come out that honors my favorite author). Lastly, Sarah Deacon’s Chalk Bones really tapped into the theme of this anthology and the roots we share with our ancestors. It was beautifully written and macabre, I hope that Sarah will publish more in the near future.

My thanks to Titan Books for allowing me to read this ARC.

[Eva · Rating 5 out of 5]

This anthology had some very strong pieces, particularly from Premee Mohamed whose story revolves around a young girl from a strict background who has to deal with a life-changing situation and gets visited by a spectre that haunts after one finishes reading. I thought Ai Jiang's story was also very gripping. It combined the real-life horrors of the pressure on women in China to give birth to boys, and the protagonist only has girls, along with some very tragic and painful situations, how her own mother treated her, a story that wraps up in a visceral and haunting way, and is a stand-out of the stories. Usman Malik's story was also really mesmerizing with its suffusion of history--not only the protagonist's as it concerns events in 1982, and some truly messed up things, including the supernatural--and a circle-back moment that will leave the reader unsettled for a long time. Other excellent stories included the one by V Castro. As with all anthologies, some pieces will resonate more with depending on who is reading, their tastes and sensibilities, etc.; I think it is a well put together horror anthology that does a good job delivering on the title, getting to roots in ancestral horror from several backgrounds in addition to the white writers whose stories are featured.

[AitziST · Rating 4 out of 5]

(I received this book from the editor and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review)

I always find it difficult to review anthologies because I do not like to pinpoint exactly which stories I liked and which ones not. I suppose I feel this could attract some kind of ‘prejudice’ to readers that look for reviews before reading the anthology themselves.
Roots of my fears is an anthology about heritage and horror, a perfect mix for someone like me. Gemma Amor, editor, has done a fantastic job recruiting some of the best and more interesting voices for this topic, and it never feels as if the stories are repetitive or shallow. Even if all anthologies are irregular (I am of the opinion that it is impossible for them not to be this way), the general feeling was a very positive one.
I very much enjoyed ‘In silence, in dying, in dark) by Caleb Weindhardt; ‘Juracán’, by Gabino Iglesias; ‘The Saint in the Mountain’, by Nadia El-Fassi; and ‘Chalk Bones’, by Sarah Deacon, but, as I already said, I found each and every one of the stories to have something interesting or unique, either on the theme or the writing style.

[Caitlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to Netgalley and Titan books for the ARC of this book!

Roots of My Fears was everything I wanted from an anthology based on familial and ancestral horror. It was a varied range of stories that took us through many subsets of horror, and I particularly liked that with the variety of backgrounds of authors, the stories were not all Anglo-centric. We are shown family through different cultures and it's an in-depth discussion about where people find horrors in the roots of where they came from. I definitely enjoyed some of the stories more than others, but overall it's a very solid collection of genuinely scary tales. The stories felt personal, which only added to the suspense and realism, the tales are often very grounded and easy to imagine it being either a true family tale, or an oral tradition used by older generations to prove something to the younger.

It's a perfect spooky read for this time of year, especially if you're looking to get away from more western horror!

[Mandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm fond of a good anthology, and this one has a few writers in with whom I'm already familiar, and plenty of writers that are up and coming, and worth keeping an eye on. Of course, it came to my attention because I'm an unashamed Ramsey Campbell fan, and Goodreads put him front and centre on the page recommending this text. I was only slightly disappointed to find his contribution was a reprint, but hey-ho, you can't have everything, and The Faces at Pine Dunes is definitely suitable for a re-read, as little details slot into place quite nicely on a second or third run-through.

But enough Ramsey; the other stories are a mixed bag, as you'd expect, simply because some of them resonated with me more than others. Definitely one to have a look at, especially as Titan books seem to be knocking it out of the park recently with their horror anthologies, and it's nice to see. Long may it continue!

[Chantelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 Stars

I firstly want to say a big thank you to Netgalley and Titan Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. Roots Of My Fears promises to explore stories of heritage and horror, showcasing ‘the tales we grew up on, hometown rumours and legends.’ And it certainly did do that. I will say this was quite the easy read, I’m big on horror and I read it fairly quickly, but other than that I’m not really sure what was missing for me but I do know that I found these stories lacking in something but I cannot pinpoint on what. Some stories did grip me, I enjoyed The saint in the mountain, To Forget and Be Forgotten and Laal Andhi but the others were fairly forgettable sadly.

I am going to give it the benefit of the doubt and I know many people will enjoy this, but this is my first anthology and I feel like I’ll skip these from now on as they’re not my vibe.