Lights Out: Collected Stories

by Douglas Clegg

Dark, Scary, Thrilling, Strange, Creepy, Mysterious, and Weird — a mega-collection from a master of the fiction of nightmares. From New York Times bestselling author Douglas Clegg comes this giant gathering of classic dark fiction of suspense, horror and nightmare logic, including the previously-uncollected novelette, Funerary Rites, as well as the critically-praised novelettes, White Chapel and I Am Infinite, I Contain Multitudes, and The Dark Game. A total of 700+ pages if in print.


Also included in this collection are all the short stories from his three collections, The Nightmare Chronicles, Night Asylum and Wild Things. This is a great collector’s ebook for the fan of Douglas Clegg’s award-winning stories as well as for the new reader of his work.


The Nightmare Chronicles, within this collection, won both the Bram Stoker Award and The International Horror Guild Award.


Table of


1. Foreword by the Author


2. Funerary Rites


3. White Chapel


4. The Stain


5. The American


6. Belinda in the Pool


7. The Skin of the World


8. O, Rare and Most Exquisite


9. The Little Mermaid


10. A Madness of Starlings


11. Subway Turnstile


12. Where Flies Are Born


13. Underworld


14. The Rendering Man


15. The Fruit of Her Womb


16. Becoming Men


17. People Who Love Life


18. Fries with That?


19. The Machinery of Night


20. The Wolf


21. The Wicked


22. 265 and Heaven


23. The Night Before Alec Got Married


24. Ice Palace


25. Why My Doll is Evil


26. The Five


27. The Dark Game


28. Only Connect


29. The Ripening Sweetness of Late Afternoon


30. Chosen


31. Damned If You Do


32. The Hurting Season


33. I Am infinite, I Contain Multitudes

Genres: Horror, Short Stories

738 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 14, 2014

Reviews

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

That was extremely intense.

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finished. A great collection of mind bending stories that will have you looking over your shoulder . Character driven stories, with eerie atmospheric conditions that will haunt your sleep. Douglas Clegg has the power of words to darken your nights and question peoples real motives. Nightmares that will draw you from sleep to awaken with cold sweats and leaving the lights on.

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't figure out why Douglas Clegg is not a household name. In my mind he is a giant of horror fiction and deserves to be up with the likes King, McCammon, etc. In many ways I think his work is even better. From quiet to extreme, Lights Out covers all aspects of dark fiction and does it perfectly. If you aren't familiar with Douglas Clegg yet, it is time to correct your mistake. 5 stars, highly recommended.

[Eero · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read a few of Clegg's novels, but after reading this collection I think I prefer his short stories. They are often subtle, like sketches that hint at the underlying worlds instead of bludgeoning the reader with details, and that, I think, is often the more unsettling tactic. He mostly avoids the familiar horror cliches here. Some stories can get disturbingly erotic in a sort of Cronenberg way.

Perhaps this book should be read at a slower pace than I did, alternating these stories with other reading material.

This was also the first ebook I read with a Kindle (10th generation basic variety).

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5*

[Rebecca · Rating 2 out of 5]

I got through a few stories. They were interesting enough. If you're looking for stories that will scare the pants off you, look somewhere else.

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

The description made it sound scary, but at one point, I fell asleep while reading and had pleasant dreams!

[Doug Hohbein · Rating 4 out of 5]

A decent read by a talented author. He can fulfill my need for a good, creepy story in as little as 2 pages. That is an accomplishment. As with any anthology, there are hits and misses, hence the 4 stars, but the good ones Sent some chills up my spine.

[Jimmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Douglas Clegg delivers the perfect collection of short stories for fans of Stephen King, H.P. Lovecraft, & Clive Barker. I couldn't have had better to read in October for Halloween!

[Edward Brock · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clegg never fails me. This collection of short stories is equal to Stephen King's Skeleton Crew & Bentley Little's The Collection in quality & imagination. A feast for Horror fiction fans.