What do you think?
Rate this book
The End in All Beginnings
THE END IN ALL BEGINNINGS is a collection of horror that's a literary tour de force through the emotional pain and personal anguish of the human condition. Praised as one of the best collections of heartfelt and gut-wrenching horror written in recent history, it's a disturbing trip through the ages exploring the painful tragedies of life, love and loss.
Each of the five masterfully written novellas included in THE END IN ALL BEGINNINGS examine complex themes running the gamut from the loss of childhood innocence, to the dreadful reality of survival after everything we hold dear is gone, to some of the most profound aspects of human tragedy.
As one of the best storytellers of the modern age, John F.D. Taff takes readers on a skillfully balanced emotional journey into nostalgia, through personal pain and beyond the everyday terrors that are uncomfortably real over the course of the human lifetime. His straight-forward, nuanced writing style is at times darkly comedic, often deeply poetic and always accurate in the most terrifying of ways.
Evoking the literary styles of horror legends Mary Shelley, Edgar Allen Poe and Bram Stoker, in THE END IN ALL BEGINNINGS also pays homage to modern genre masters Stephen King, Ramsey Campbell, Ray Bradbury, Rod Serling and Clive Barker, solidifying author John F.D. Taff as modern horror's new King of Pain.
Each of the five masterfully written novellas included in THE END IN ALL BEGINNINGS examine complex themes running the gamut from the loss of childhood innocence, to the dreadful reality of survival after everything we hold dear is gone, to some of the most profound aspects of human tragedy.
As one of the best storytellers of the modern age, John F.D. Taff takes readers on a skillfully balanced emotional journey into nostalgia, through personal pain and beyond the everyday terrors that are uncomfortably real over the course of the human lifetime. His straight-forward, nuanced writing style is at times darkly comedic, often deeply poetic and always accurate in the most terrifying of ways.
Evoking the literary styles of horror legends Mary Shelley, Edgar Allen Poe and Bram Stoker, in THE END IN ALL BEGINNINGS also pays homage to modern genre masters Stephen King, Ramsey Campbell, Ray Bradbury, Rod Serling and Clive Barker, solidifying author John F.D. Taff as modern horror's new King of Pain.
319 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2014
25 people are currently reading
633 people want to read
About the author
John F.D. Taff
85 books258 followersJohn F.D. Taff is a multi-Bram Stoker Award short-listed dark fiction author with more than 30 years experience, and more than 100 short stories and seven novels in print.
He has appeared in Cemetery Dance, Eldritch Tales, Unnerving, Deathrealm, Big Pulp and One Buck Horror, as well as anthologies such as Hot Blood: Seeds of Fear, Hot Blood: Fear the Fever, Shock Rock II, Lullabies for Suffering, Gutted: Beautiful Horror Stories, Behold!, Shadows Over Main Street 2, Horror Library V, Best of Horror Library, Dark Visions Vol. 1, Ominous Realities, Death's Realm, I Can Taste the Blood and Savage Beasts. His work will appear soon in The Seven Deadliest and I Can Hear the Shadows.
His novels include The Bell Witch, Kill-Off and the serialized apocalyptic epic The Fearing. Thunderstorm Books and Grey Matter Press will release a one-volume version of The Fearing in 2021, in limited edition hardcover, soft cover and digital. Short fiction collections include Little Deaths: The Definitive Collection and Little Black Spots, both published by Grey Matter Press.
Taff's novella collection, The End in All Beginnings, was called one of the best novella collections by Jack Ketchum and was a Stoker Award Finalist. His short "A Winter's Tale" was also a Stoker Finalist.
His upcoming anthology Dark Stars, a tribute to that seminal '80s work Dark Forces, will be published by Tor/Nightfire 11/2/21.
His website is at johnfdtaff.com. Follow him on Twitter @johnfdtaff.
He has appeared in Cemetery Dance, Eldritch Tales, Unnerving, Deathrealm, Big Pulp and One Buck Horror, as well as anthologies such as Hot Blood: Seeds of Fear, Hot Blood: Fear the Fever, Shock Rock II, Lullabies for Suffering, Gutted: Beautiful Horror Stories, Behold!, Shadows Over Main Street 2, Horror Library V, Best of Horror Library, Dark Visions Vol. 1, Ominous Realities, Death's Realm, I Can Taste the Blood and Savage Beasts. His work will appear soon in The Seven Deadliest and I Can Hear the Shadows.
His novels include The Bell Witch, Kill-Off and the serialized apocalyptic epic The Fearing. Thunderstorm Books and Grey Matter Press will release a one-volume version of The Fearing in 2021, in limited edition hardcover, soft cover and digital. Short fiction collections include Little Deaths: The Definitive Collection and Little Black Spots, both published by Grey Matter Press.
Taff's novella collection, The End in All Beginnings, was called one of the best novella collections by Jack Ketchum and was a Stoker Award Finalist. His short "A Winter's Tale" was also a Stoker Finalist.
His upcoming anthology Dark Stars, a tribute to that seminal '80s work Dark Forces, will be published by Tor/Nightfire 11/2/21.
His website is at johnfdtaff.com. Follow him on Twitter @johnfdtaff.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
April 8, 2020
Thank you, Grey Matter Press, for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
Over a year ago, Grey Matter Press reached out to me and offered to send me a few of their books in exchange for honest reviews. I was over-the-moon about this because I had been hearing great things about Grey Matter's catalogue, and I was even more excited when a big box of their books showed up on my doorstep. Unfortunately, life got busy at that time. Work was demanding, I wrote and published a book, I bit off more than I could chew when it comes to accepting review books, I moved, then I took a few month long hiatus from Library Macabre. During that hiatus, however, I traced back and attempted to catch up on some reading. It was a struggle because I was in this emotional slump I couldn't seem to pull myself out of, but I knew that if I found the right book, I would heal. After all, that's what books do best. I picked up The End in All Beginnings at random, hearing it was the best John F.D. Taff book to start with. As it turns out, this was exactly what I needed to read.
Taff writes my favorite kind of horror; dark, achingly beautiful fiction that wears its bloody heart on its sleeve. Its goal isn't to scare the reader, but to make the reader feel something. At the end of the day, horror is a deeply empathetic genre, more so than any other. In order to work, the reader has to care about what's happening, to feel some kind of emotional connection to the narrative, whether that be fear, humor, or sadness. Leave it to Taff to make the reader care.
The End in All Beginnings features five novellas with themes of childhood, love, grief, and aging, of letting go of the past in order to move on. The book begins with "What Becomes God", the story of two young boys whose friendship is threatened when one of them is diagnosed with cancer. The story is steeped in nostalgia, of playing out in the woods on muggy summer days and feeling like this time in your life will never end. Until it does. "What Becomes God" hurt me in the best possible way.
The next story, "Object Permanence", is a strange one. It is about a town in which nothing changes. People never age, decay doesn't exist, and death is nonexistent. This is all caused by one person with too much power, a person the town fears. This story was extremely unique and strange. I've never read anything quite like it.
"Love in the Time of Zombies" was a surprise to me. When I first started it, I thought, "Here we go. More zombies." But by the end, I found it very tender and also quite funny. The zombie sub-genre is always attempting to be "more than just zombies", but this one actually stuck the landing.
I would say "The Long, Long Breakdown" is the one story in this book that can't be considered horror in any way. It is simply a post-apocalyptic story about erosion, a world eaten by its own waters, forcing a father and daughter to live on their own. This isn't a story about survival, however, but one about parenthood and allowing a child to leave the nest, no matter how scary it may be.
The final story in the book, "Visitation", is a science fiction/ghost story about a haunted planet called Visitation that allows visitors from other parts of the galaxy to come and speak to their dead. It's another story that deals with grief, love, and letting go. It is also surprisingly gothic for taking place on another planet. This one stumbled at the end with an overabundance of exposition, but it was still an interesting tale and a nice way to wrap up the book.
The End in All Beginnings definitely succeeded in pulling me out of my reading slump and gave me something to connect to in a time where I was feeling very disconnected. I needed this book, and I can't wait to familiarize myself with the rest of Taff's work.
Overall, 4.5 stars
Over a year ago, Grey Matter Press reached out to me and offered to send me a few of their books in exchange for honest reviews. I was over-the-moon about this because I had been hearing great things about Grey Matter's catalogue, and I was even more excited when a big box of their books showed up on my doorstep. Unfortunately, life got busy at that time. Work was demanding, I wrote and published a book, I bit off more than I could chew when it comes to accepting review books, I moved, then I took a few month long hiatus from Library Macabre. During that hiatus, however, I traced back and attempted to catch up on some reading. It was a struggle because I was in this emotional slump I couldn't seem to pull myself out of, but I knew that if I found the right book, I would heal. After all, that's what books do best. I picked up The End in All Beginnings at random, hearing it was the best John F.D. Taff book to start with. As it turns out, this was exactly what I needed to read.
Taff writes my favorite kind of horror; dark, achingly beautiful fiction that wears its bloody heart on its sleeve. Its goal isn't to scare the reader, but to make the reader feel something. At the end of the day, horror is a deeply empathetic genre, more so than any other. In order to work, the reader has to care about what's happening, to feel some kind of emotional connection to the narrative, whether that be fear, humor, or sadness. Leave it to Taff to make the reader care.
The End in All Beginnings features five novellas with themes of childhood, love, grief, and aging, of letting go of the past in order to move on. The book begins with "What Becomes God", the story of two young boys whose friendship is threatened when one of them is diagnosed with cancer. The story is steeped in nostalgia, of playing out in the woods on muggy summer days and feeling like this time in your life will never end. Until it does. "What Becomes God" hurt me in the best possible way.
The next story, "Object Permanence", is a strange one. It is about a town in which nothing changes. People never age, decay doesn't exist, and death is nonexistent. This is all caused by one person with too much power, a person the town fears. This story was extremely unique and strange. I've never read anything quite like it.
"Love in the Time of Zombies" was a surprise to me. When I first started it, I thought, "Here we go. More zombies." But by the end, I found it very tender and also quite funny. The zombie sub-genre is always attempting to be "more than just zombies", but this one actually stuck the landing.
I would say "The Long, Long Breakdown" is the one story in this book that can't be considered horror in any way. It is simply a post-apocalyptic story about erosion, a world eaten by its own waters, forcing a father and daughter to live on their own. This isn't a story about survival, however, but one about parenthood and allowing a child to leave the nest, no matter how scary it may be.
The final story in the book, "Visitation", is a science fiction/ghost story about a haunted planet called Visitation that allows visitors from other parts of the galaxy to come and speak to their dead. It's another story that deals with grief, love, and letting go. It is also surprisingly gothic for taking place on another planet. This one stumbled at the end with an overabundance of exposition, but it was still an interesting tale and a nice way to wrap up the book.
The End in All Beginnings definitely succeeded in pulling me out of my reading slump and gave me something to connect to in a time where I was feeling very disconnected. I needed this book, and I can't wait to familiarize myself with the rest of Taff's work.
Overall, 4.5 stars
May 29, 2015
"The End in All Beginnings" is described in the blurb as a collection of five novellas exploring the horrors of life, love and loss. Although they're based on the same theme each one is a very different type of story. If I had to choose a favorite it was "Object Permanence" but I really enjoyed them all. I'm looking forward to reading more of this authors work.
September 23, 2014
The Best of What Makes Horror Work
Horror works best when the fantastic, the macabre, the twisted, (you name it) is used to highlight the universal human experience. When it is done to bring forth the most basic of human emotions and relationships and throw a spotlight on it through speculation. That is what I found inside these novellas. They are smart and rewarding, and the situations the humans find themselves in are familiar: childhood friendships, family ties, lost loves, and the things that are important and hold us together (or tear us apart). The writing itself is the kind that makes me marvel at the writer's talent. The plot twists and depth of characters kept me reading. The human emotion, where the author tends to his characters as much as God may be tending to us, give the stories a powerful impact that makes these stories shine.
Horror works best when the fantastic, the macabre, the twisted, (you name it) is used to highlight the universal human experience. When it is done to bring forth the most basic of human emotions and relationships and throw a spotlight on it through speculation. That is what I found inside these novellas. They are smart and rewarding, and the situations the humans find themselves in are familiar: childhood friendships, family ties, lost loves, and the things that are important and hold us together (or tear us apart). The writing itself is the kind that makes me marvel at the writer's talent. The plot twists and depth of characters kept me reading. The human emotion, where the author tends to his characters as much as God may be tending to us, give the stories a powerful impact that makes these stories shine.
February 21, 2016
It was Josh Malerman who recommended this book on the Booked. Podcast.
This collection of five novellas was, well, just terrific. I went into them knowing absolutely nothing about them other than Malerman highly recommending it. This is the way I go into most novels and stories. The surprising thing about this collection is that they weren't as horrific as I thought they'd be. Certainly the cover implies this. Sure, they're dark, but really the overlying theme will all of these stories is love and loss. Did I mention they're terrific stories?
A couple of them turned in such a way that reminded me of the old Gold Key horror comics I had as a kid, and that was a hoot. Most of these, though, is an author showcasing his skill through different genres and plotlines. Some themes were tried and true, and when I started one I thought, "Oh, another ______ story. I'm really not in the mood..." but he really makes it his own and draws out a very engaging and readable story. Every time.
This is similar in quality to that other giant of novella collection, one we all know and love as Uncle Steve, and like the master, Taff ends this with an afterword to explain his mind space while writing these. Great stuff.
Five stars. Great writer here!
This collection of five novellas was, well, just terrific. I went into them knowing absolutely nothing about them other than Malerman highly recommending it. This is the way I go into most novels and stories. The surprising thing about this collection is that they weren't as horrific as I thought they'd be. Certainly the cover implies this. Sure, they're dark, but really the overlying theme will all of these stories is love and loss. Did I mention they're terrific stories?
A couple of them turned in such a way that reminded me of the old Gold Key horror comics I had as a kid, and that was a hoot. Most of these, though, is an author showcasing his skill through different genres and plotlines. Some themes were tried and true, and when I started one I thought, "Oh, another ______ story. I'm really not in the mood..." but he really makes it his own and draws out a very engaging and readable story. Every time.
This is similar in quality to that other giant of novella collection, one we all know and love as Uncle Steve, and like the master, Taff ends this with an afterword to explain his mind space while writing these. Great stuff.
Five stars. Great writer here!
June 21, 2019
Just, WOW, and that's not hyperbole, folks, Taff is a damn good writer, as many of you already know. If you've never read one of his books, THE END IN ALL BEGINNINGS is a great place to start. Taff’s writing has a way of pulling at your heartstrings, never letting up, and as the reader, I’m more than okay with that. If I had to pick my favorite novellas in this collection, it would be all of them, but, those that made me laugh and cry: ’WHAT BECOMES GOD’, and ’THE LONG, LONG BREAKDOWN’.
THE END IN ALL BEGINNINGS - Highly Recommend!
THE END IN ALL BEGINNINGS - Highly Recommend!
October 17, 2014
I have so much respect for this writer. These stories go beyond horror, science fiction,or thriller. They should come up with a new genre named Taff, for John F.D.Taff writes stories like no one else. The characters created in John's mind come to life. Beautifully written, almost hypnotic. I have never read a collection of stories where I had a hard time picking a favorite, so I won't. They're all my favorite. In fact, John F.D.Taff is my new favorite writer.
John, you Rock!!!!!
John, you Rock!!!!!
January 22, 2015
If there’s a reason John F.D. Taff is called “The King of Pain” it’s because of the stories found in the pages of The End in All Beginnings. From the opening novella titled What Becomes God, he immediately tears our hearts out with strong emotion. This felt like my life as a kid. The story is about two young kids, not quite teens, and how life is spent when days are endless and summer stretches forever. I was instantly taken back to the same time in my young life and how I spent all those great days with my best friend. In What Becomes God tells the tale of Brian and Charlie, who is sick but refuses to slow is pace as any kid his age. We’ve all seen young kids with the unlimited energy and as I look back while reading this story I wish I had that energy now.
Brian and Charlie have great adventures, the kinds most of us who were lucky enough to have back in the day before the world became scary and unsafe. The story is told by Brian as he looks back on their childhood and he pieces together the events from the perspective of an adult. The perspective only someone who has lived those years can do. There is plenty of raw emotion, excitement and even some heartfelt heaviness within these pages. The horror that unfolded on me as the story neared the end was a fantastic twist, I had to pause a think “what just happened”. I am continuously surprised and amazed at the range John F.D. Taff shows in his writing, I first knew his books as horror or dark fiction then seeming out of nowhere he smacks me with emotions and stories that I don’t easily forget. This kind of emotional story telling can be found in his story Some Other Day from Death’s Realm. This first story is one of those that will stick with me for some time.
Object permanence is a fantastic tale of remembering and forgetting, but mostly forgetting. The story starts out hard and fast, hits the ground running and doesn’t let up. Chris has to keep remembering himself while kept in an asylum. This part of the story is like a nightmare better read about than dreamt. As we follow Chris’s journey to remember we find out that everything he has been through is meant to keep things the same. His aunt Olivia has a hold on him and in fact everyone in the small town. The idea of objective permanence is clever and brilliant, the power to keep things the same through remembering and the power to have something disappear through forgetting. But Chris has a trick or two in store for aunt Olivia before it’s all said and done.
Love in the time of zombies takes a zombie story and makes you want to read it. So many zombie stories are the same but John F.D. Taff puts his special twist in the mix and the story isn’t as straight forward as I thought it would be. Durand learns the end of the world has arrived and as he enters town he finds out how it ends, zombies are everywhere. With the quick thinking of a young kid in a cafe he is spared the fate of the majority. Scott the young man fills him in on what has happened. The action and vivid descriptions are more than enough to give it a good horror and shock factor. As the story progresses the love story unfolds and Durand isn’t the only one in love and it’s quite a love story at that. Never one to miss the opportunity for a good twist John F.D. Taff delivers in fine style.
The long, long breakdown was an unexpected treat, I love end of the world stories and Mr. Taff delivers a great story. The long long breakdown is about a father and daughter who for the past 10 plus years have lived in a penthouse suite surrounded by water. The world has been flooded and little remains of cities around the world. The story is heartbreaking as the father realizes he can not longer keep his daughter from living life, not just surviving. Their life consists of scouting for what they can manage to recover from a broken world. Cassie is mostly interested in exploring the world and her father is mostly interested in protecting her from the unknown. The basis of the story is about a father learning the hard lesson of letting go as his daughter grows up and wants to be more independent. Again an emotional story hidden behind the action and a hard one every parent has experienced.
Visitation the last story in the collection for me was a great story. I really liked seeing or reading, however you like to think about it, a bit of science fiction mixed in the book. This is the first time I have read anything like it by this author and think he did a great job mixing science fiction with the ghost story which is at the heart of the story. Visitation is a story about Fen who has won the lottery to spend 14 days on a planet where ghosts are not only seen by loved ones but a place where you can talk and interact with them. Little does Fen know what awaits him on the planet Ophion and all is not what it seems and rarely is in any great horror story. The emotion and mental struggle is just as great and trying in this last story as it was in the first.
John F.D. Taff doesn’t just give us horror that scares us or makes us jump or even say “OH crap I didn’t see that coming”. He fills the horror in with deeply tied emotions and gives us something to consider or ponder. I have really come to love the story within the story and the deeper meaning he cleverly works behind the horror. He never disappoints me and I always know when I see a new story he has just finished it’s going to be a roller coaster ride. This I mean in the most positive way possible, the stories have that jolt that gets them started, the long and gut wrenching climb and the plunge as the coaster races down the seeming vertical drop. I have read nearly all of the authors work, The Bell Witch is still left to finish, and each book, short story or novella is better than the last. If you haven’t read John F.D. Taff you are seriously missing out and you should grab one of his books or an anthology that has a story by him.
Brian and Charlie have great adventures, the kinds most of us who were lucky enough to have back in the day before the world became scary and unsafe. The story is told by Brian as he looks back on their childhood and he pieces together the events from the perspective of an adult. The perspective only someone who has lived those years can do. There is plenty of raw emotion, excitement and even some heartfelt heaviness within these pages. The horror that unfolded on me as the story neared the end was a fantastic twist, I had to pause a think “what just happened”. I am continuously surprised and amazed at the range John F.D. Taff shows in his writing, I first knew his books as horror or dark fiction then seeming out of nowhere he smacks me with emotions and stories that I don’t easily forget. This kind of emotional story telling can be found in his story Some Other Day from Death’s Realm. This first story is one of those that will stick with me for some time.
Object permanence is a fantastic tale of remembering and forgetting, but mostly forgetting. The story starts out hard and fast, hits the ground running and doesn’t let up. Chris has to keep remembering himself while kept in an asylum. This part of the story is like a nightmare better read about than dreamt. As we follow Chris’s journey to remember we find out that everything he has been through is meant to keep things the same. His aunt Olivia has a hold on him and in fact everyone in the small town. The idea of objective permanence is clever and brilliant, the power to keep things the same through remembering and the power to have something disappear through forgetting. But Chris has a trick or two in store for aunt Olivia before it’s all said and done.
Love in the time of zombies takes a zombie story and makes you want to read it. So many zombie stories are the same but John F.D. Taff puts his special twist in the mix and the story isn’t as straight forward as I thought it would be. Durand learns the end of the world has arrived and as he enters town he finds out how it ends, zombies are everywhere. With the quick thinking of a young kid in a cafe he is spared the fate of the majority. Scott the young man fills him in on what has happened. The action and vivid descriptions are more than enough to give it a good horror and shock factor. As the story progresses the love story unfolds and Durand isn’t the only one in love and it’s quite a love story at that. Never one to miss the opportunity for a good twist John F.D. Taff delivers in fine style.
The long, long breakdown was an unexpected treat, I love end of the world stories and Mr. Taff delivers a great story. The long long breakdown is about a father and daughter who for the past 10 plus years have lived in a penthouse suite surrounded by water. The world has been flooded and little remains of cities around the world. The story is heartbreaking as the father realizes he can not longer keep his daughter from living life, not just surviving. Their life consists of scouting for what they can manage to recover from a broken world. Cassie is mostly interested in exploring the world and her father is mostly interested in protecting her from the unknown. The basis of the story is about a father learning the hard lesson of letting go as his daughter grows up and wants to be more independent. Again an emotional story hidden behind the action and a hard one every parent has experienced.
Visitation the last story in the collection for me was a great story. I really liked seeing or reading, however you like to think about it, a bit of science fiction mixed in the book. This is the first time I have read anything like it by this author and think he did a great job mixing science fiction with the ghost story which is at the heart of the story. Visitation is a story about Fen who has won the lottery to spend 14 days on a planet where ghosts are not only seen by loved ones but a place where you can talk and interact with them. Little does Fen know what awaits him on the planet Ophion and all is not what it seems and rarely is in any great horror story. The emotion and mental struggle is just as great and trying in this last story as it was in the first.
John F.D. Taff doesn’t just give us horror that scares us or makes us jump or even say “OH crap I didn’t see that coming”. He fills the horror in with deeply tied emotions and gives us something to consider or ponder. I have really come to love the story within the story and the deeper meaning he cleverly works behind the horror. He never disappoints me and I always know when I see a new story he has just finished it’s going to be a roller coaster ride. This I mean in the most positive way possible, the stories have that jolt that gets them started, the long and gut wrenching climb and the plunge as the coaster races down the seeming vertical drop. I have read nearly all of the authors work, The Bell Witch is still left to finish, and each book, short story or novella is better than the last. If you haven’t read John F.D. Taff you are seriously missing out and you should grab one of his books or an anthology that has a story by him.
September 16, 2025
This collection was a blast! All five novellas were great, but the one about trying to fuck a zombie was a classic. I also got big feels from What Becomes God.
October 6, 2014
The End in All Beginnings is a collection of unrelated novellas that span a variety of horror devices and themes, from the zombie story, to a childhood horror story, to science fiction horror. While not particularly frightening, they are all solid stories in their own right, comprising a book that is a quick, enjoyable read. Nothing here felt particularly deep and earth-shattering, but all were well constructed tales with a few interesting ideas in each.
"What Becomes God" is probably the most scary story in the collection. In it, a young boy tries to deal with turmoil in his family and with a very sick friend. The ground in this story felt well-trodden, but the ending gives an original take that, for fans of comic books, leaves you feeling unsure of the reality of the situation, which is a good sort of feeling for a horror story to leave you with.
"Object Permanance" was, for me, the highlight of the collection, utilizing a interesting idea combined with a sort of genre shift about midway through. Both parts worked and I felt like the story was not only successful, but the most engaging.
"Love in the Time of Zombies" is a zombie tale about a couple of weird dudes in the apocalypse. While as fresh as it can be in such a well-worn genre. The twist on the zombies here is that unlike something like 28 Days Later, where the zombies are super charged, here they are all even slower and less ambitious than you are used to seeing. This gives space for the story to emerge which you can possibly guess from the title. The story is solid and the ending dark and creepy, but I have such fatigue about the zombie genre in general that I have to see something really spectacular for me to give up my bias against them.
"The Long, Long Breakdown" is a postapocalyptic novel that is stripped of most of the things that make PA such a frightening genre. It is set in a world where the polar icecaps have melted, flooding the coastal areas, and features a man and his daughter who were trapped in Miami and have survived by savanging for roughly 15-18 years. The darkest part of the story is a flashback where the father remembers getting stranded and losing his wife. That part I could really feel. Again, it is well-written, and paced well, but lacking in the sort of frights or stress you expect to see in this kind of story.
"Visitation" was an interesting science fiction idea. It barely fits into the "horror" genre at all but that it features ghosts. Perhaps it's just me, but when I see SF and something being labeled as a ghost, I immediately jump to science fictiony-type conclusions. Well, needless to say the main character takes a bit longer to get there than I did. However, long reveal is pretty cool and reminded me of some of my own ideas. It ended up being a solid science fiction story. Not scary at all really, but kind of interesting and thoughtful.
The sum total of the collection is one that is well-written, but to me felt a bit weak. Nothing wrong with anything in here, and I'm sure there is an audience for this style of horror. None of it was exactly up my alley either. I gravitate toward visceral feeling and emotion, whereas this left me feeling a bit separate from the action. Perhaps it was the lack of time to develop characters in the novella format. I'm not sure. I feel like this author probably has many much better stories within him, but I'm not convinced this represents his best work.
"What Becomes God" is probably the most scary story in the collection. In it, a young boy tries to deal with turmoil in his family and with a very sick friend. The ground in this story felt well-trodden, but the ending gives an original take that, for fans of comic books, leaves you feeling unsure of the reality of the situation, which is a good sort of feeling for a horror story to leave you with.
"Object Permanance" was, for me, the highlight of the collection, utilizing a interesting idea combined with a sort of genre shift about midway through. Both parts worked and I felt like the story was not only successful, but the most engaging.
"Love in the Time of Zombies" is a zombie tale about a couple of weird dudes in the apocalypse. While as fresh as it can be in such a well-worn genre. The twist on the zombies here is that unlike something like 28 Days Later, where the zombies are super charged, here they are all even slower and less ambitious than you are used to seeing. This gives space for the story to emerge which you can possibly guess from the title. The story is solid and the ending dark and creepy, but I have such fatigue about the zombie genre in general that I have to see something really spectacular for me to give up my bias against them.
"The Long, Long Breakdown" is a postapocalyptic novel that is stripped of most of the things that make PA such a frightening genre. It is set in a world where the polar icecaps have melted, flooding the coastal areas, and features a man and his daughter who were trapped in Miami and have survived by savanging for roughly 15-18 years. The darkest part of the story is a flashback where the father remembers getting stranded and losing his wife. That part I could really feel. Again, it is well-written, and paced well, but lacking in the sort of frights or stress you expect to see in this kind of story.
"Visitation" was an interesting science fiction idea. It barely fits into the "horror" genre at all but that it features ghosts. Perhaps it's just me, but when I see SF and something being labeled as a ghost, I immediately jump to science fictiony-type conclusions. Well, needless to say the main character takes a bit longer to get there than I did. However, long reveal is pretty cool and reminded me of some of my own ideas. It ended up being a solid science fiction story. Not scary at all really, but kind of interesting and thoughtful.
The sum total of the collection is one that is well-written, but to me felt a bit weak. Nothing wrong with anything in here, and I'm sure there is an audience for this style of horror. None of it was exactly up my alley either. I gravitate toward visceral feeling and emotion, whereas this left me feeling a bit separate from the action. Perhaps it was the lack of time to develop characters in the novella format. I'm not sure. I feel like this author probably has many much better stories within him, but I'm not convinced this represents his best work.
October 17, 2014
REVIEWED: The End in All Beginnings
WRITTEN BY: John F.D. Taff
PUBLISHED: September, 2014
“The End in All Beginnings” is a solid collection of novellas by John F.D. Taff, who’s been writing dark fiction for nearly a quarter of a century. Each of the stories is a thoughtful take, relating in some way to death and sorrow. Probably the least morose story happened to be my favorite, “Love in the Time of Zombies,” which was quite funny and with great content. “What Becomes God” is a long path into tragedy with a ‘killer’ ending. “The Long, Long Breakdown” was a gloomy, drowning post-apocalyptic ‘world’ that this author really needs to expand upon in future works. The other stories were fine in their own ways, but these listed were my top three picks from the T.O.C.
Four-and-a-half out of Five stars
WRITTEN BY: John F.D. Taff
PUBLISHED: September, 2014
“The End in All Beginnings” is a solid collection of novellas by John F.D. Taff, who’s been writing dark fiction for nearly a quarter of a century. Each of the stories is a thoughtful take, relating in some way to death and sorrow. Probably the least morose story happened to be my favorite, “Love in the Time of Zombies,” which was quite funny and with great content. “What Becomes God” is a long path into tragedy with a ‘killer’ ending. “The Long, Long Breakdown” was a gloomy, drowning post-apocalyptic ‘world’ that this author really needs to expand upon in future works. The other stories were fine in their own ways, but these listed were my top three picks from the T.O.C.
Four-and-a-half out of Five stars
January 10, 2018
This was the first book I read by John F.D. Taff, and I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it. The End in All Beginnings is a collection of five novellas, each of them, playing with a different genre. I personally loved What Becomes God and Love in the Time of Zombies. What Becomes God starts out as a poignant story about a boy with a rough home life dealing with the imminent death of his best friend and becomes a horror story. Love in the Time of Zombies is a bit more comedic, dealing with falling in love during a zombie outbreak. Object Permanence was another story that seemed like it could've been a Twilight Zone episode. It's about a town that's being held ransom by a woman with the power to keep everyone stuck the way she wants to remember them. Taff was able to craft stories that not only had layers and depth, but were also readable.
May 3, 2020
Summary:
What Becomes God - Brian knows his best friend is dying. He makes a sacrifice in an attempt to save him, but things don't turn out at all how he expected.
Object Permanence - After escaping from a mental hospital, Chris begins to remember things from his past upon returning to his aunt's house.
Love In The Time Of Zombies - Durand and Scott are the only two men left after the zombie apocalypse. Durand falls in love with a zombie and learns Scott's darkest secret shortly after.
The Long, Long Breakdown - A father tries to protect his daughter from other people in a post-apocalyptic water filled world.
Visitation - A man gets a rare opportunity to visit a plant that's said to be the home to people's deceased loved ones. After arriving, he realizes it's not quite what he expected.
Personal Opinion:
I personally did not enjoy this book as much as John F.D. Taft's other novels. The stories felt very drawn out with little to no action in the beginnings and I had a hard time staying focused enough to finish each story.
I rounded it up to a 3 star from a 2 and a half because the overall messages of the stories were good. But I would not recommend this book.
What Becomes God - Brian knows his best friend is dying. He makes a sacrifice in an attempt to save him, but things don't turn out at all how he expected.
Object Permanence - After escaping from a mental hospital, Chris begins to remember things from his past upon returning to his aunt's house.
Love In The Time Of Zombies - Durand and Scott are the only two men left after the zombie apocalypse. Durand falls in love with a zombie and learns Scott's darkest secret shortly after.
The Long, Long Breakdown - A father tries to protect his daughter from other people in a post-apocalyptic water filled world.
Visitation - A man gets a rare opportunity to visit a plant that's said to be the home to people's deceased loved ones. After arriving, he realizes it's not quite what he expected.
Personal Opinion:
I personally did not enjoy this book as much as John F.D. Taft's other novels. The stories felt very drawn out with little to no action in the beginnings and I had a hard time staying focused enough to finish each story.
I rounded it up to a 3 star from a 2 and a half because the overall messages of the stories were good. But I would not recommend this book.
March 17, 2016
The End in All Beginnings is billed by the publisher as “a disturbing trip through the ages in five novellas exploring the painful horrors of life, love and loss”. This is certainly an apt description, and readers who are into that aspect of the horror genre may well find this to be an essential read . Unique in their plots and subgenres, all of the stories here stand on their own and are excellent in their own right. Common themes and a prevailing heavy-hearted atmosphere, however, make the whole something much more than the sum of its parts.
“What Becomes God” begins the collection on a fittingly somber note, its evocation of the intangible realm of childhood colored darkly with the shadow of impending death. It relates the strange events of the final summer two young friends will ever share, and the desperation of their respective struggles to thwart the inevitable. The prose here seems at first to be on the florid side, but this quickly becomes a benefit rather than a hindrance. Taff’s words dance, moving together to paint a living, breathing world of beauty and despair. The direction the story eventually takes is unexpected, but isn’t a cheat – it gives closure in a poetic sort of way, bringing a corporeality to mirror the already heavy thoughts and feelings that have built up in the characters’ minds over the course of the story.
While “What Becomes God” cast a darkened light on the days of summer, the next offering, “Object Permanence”, is markedly autumnal. The story takes place in November, and centers around memory in both its clearest form and its gradual decay. Here Taff explores some intriguing questions: What if the fading of memory wasn’t so gradual? What if memory could be controlled, and what if someone, in controlling it, could effectively ensnare the people around them in a particular place and time? Without death, can we really consider ourselves alive? As the story develops and its well-plotted layers of mystery begin to unravel, the answers to these questions are progressively more heart-rending.
“Love in the Time of Zombies” continues tapping the heart-rending vein with its focus on one person’s love for another (relatively speaking), and the insurmountable distance that ensures that love remains unrequited. It’s a very (almost painfully) inward-focused story with a small cast of characters. Like all the best zombie fiction, it’s concerned more about the characters’ reactions to their changed lives than the zombies themselves – at least zombies the way we’ve typically come to view them. The ending, foreseeable as it may be, packs an emotional sucker-punch, and the journey there is equal parts melancholic and cringe-inducing.
“The Long, Long Breakdown” is another post-apocalyptic yarn, set in a near-future world in which the ice caps have melted and much of the world is underwater. This elemental story centers around a widower and his daughter living in a partly submerged high-rise, as satisfied with their lot as they can be, until they spot something across the waves that changes everything. The vivid setting is a character in itself with its storm-riled waters and the skeletal ruins reaching up from them. It’s a fine survival story, made greater by the themes it deals with – the persistence of loss and how it shapes us, and the powerful will of a parent guarding their child from harm.
“Visitation” maintains the theme of loss and opens it up beyond the terrestrial plane into the far reaches of space. This soft sci-fi tale takes the idea of a haunted house and reimagines it as a haunted planet – a place where people lucky enough to win an intergalactic lottery can confront their dead and find some closure. Naturally not all is as it seems. The story explores various beliefs regarding life after death, what it means to be human (and what it means to be a ghost), and various types of faith.
The author’s notes at the end of the book are illuminating, and the cover art and the black and white tarot card illustrations preceding each novella complement Taff’s subdued take on speculative fiction. Taken as a whole, The End in All Beginnings is a quiet tour de force, a near pitch-perfect offering of the kind of emotionally charged, idea-based horror that seems to have fallen out of favor lately. It’s a brilliant collection of dark fiction from a voice that has a lot to offer. Highly recommended.
review originally posted at hellnotes.com
“What Becomes God” begins the collection on a fittingly somber note, its evocation of the intangible realm of childhood colored darkly with the shadow of impending death. It relates the strange events of the final summer two young friends will ever share, and the desperation of their respective struggles to thwart the inevitable. The prose here seems at first to be on the florid side, but this quickly becomes a benefit rather than a hindrance. Taff’s words dance, moving together to paint a living, breathing world of beauty and despair. The direction the story eventually takes is unexpected, but isn’t a cheat – it gives closure in a poetic sort of way, bringing a corporeality to mirror the already heavy thoughts and feelings that have built up in the characters’ minds over the course of the story.
While “What Becomes God” cast a darkened light on the days of summer, the next offering, “Object Permanence”, is markedly autumnal. The story takes place in November, and centers around memory in both its clearest form and its gradual decay. Here Taff explores some intriguing questions: What if the fading of memory wasn’t so gradual? What if memory could be controlled, and what if someone, in controlling it, could effectively ensnare the people around them in a particular place and time? Without death, can we really consider ourselves alive? As the story develops and its well-plotted layers of mystery begin to unravel, the answers to these questions are progressively more heart-rending.
“Love in the Time of Zombies” continues tapping the heart-rending vein with its focus on one person’s love for another (relatively speaking), and the insurmountable distance that ensures that love remains unrequited. It’s a very (almost painfully) inward-focused story with a small cast of characters. Like all the best zombie fiction, it’s concerned more about the characters’ reactions to their changed lives than the zombies themselves – at least zombies the way we’ve typically come to view them. The ending, foreseeable as it may be, packs an emotional sucker-punch, and the journey there is equal parts melancholic and cringe-inducing.
“The Long, Long Breakdown” is another post-apocalyptic yarn, set in a near-future world in which the ice caps have melted and much of the world is underwater. This elemental story centers around a widower and his daughter living in a partly submerged high-rise, as satisfied with their lot as they can be, until they spot something across the waves that changes everything. The vivid setting is a character in itself with its storm-riled waters and the skeletal ruins reaching up from them. It’s a fine survival story, made greater by the themes it deals with – the persistence of loss and how it shapes us, and the powerful will of a parent guarding their child from harm.
“Visitation” maintains the theme of loss and opens it up beyond the terrestrial plane into the far reaches of space. This soft sci-fi tale takes the idea of a haunted house and reimagines it as a haunted planet – a place where people lucky enough to win an intergalactic lottery can confront their dead and find some closure. Naturally not all is as it seems. The story explores various beliefs regarding life after death, what it means to be human (and what it means to be a ghost), and various types of faith.
The author’s notes at the end of the book are illuminating, and the cover art and the black and white tarot card illustrations preceding each novella complement Taff’s subdued take on speculative fiction. Taken as a whole, The End in All Beginnings is a quiet tour de force, a near pitch-perfect offering of the kind of emotionally charged, idea-based horror that seems to have fallen out of favor lately. It’s a brilliant collection of dark fiction from a voice that has a lot to offer. Highly recommended.
review originally posted at hellnotes.com
April 18, 2015
The first time I reviewed work by author John Taff, I offered the minor criticism that at times the author seemed dwarfed by the scope of the stories that he'd chosen to tell. It is with great delight that I report that Taff seems to have matured past that small flaw and, insofar as THE END IN ALL BEGINNINGS is concerned, he's given his readers a truly remarkable collection.
Each of the five longish short stories is a gem in its own right. Whether Taff is exploring a young boy's adolescent attempts to bargain with death as in the auto-biographical "What Become God", or whether he relates a father's growing realization in a uniquely post-apocalyptic world that the urge to protect one's loved ones from harm also has limits ("The Long, Long Breakdown") Taft has managed to fill each of these stories with multiple levels of meaning, all of which are relevant, and most of which are deeply moving.
Few authors can write emotionally laden subtext without beating their readers over the head with it; the more they try to be subtle, very often, the more overly obvious they become. In this collection, however, Taft has joined the ranks of such literary luminaries as Jack Ketchum, showing great skill in delving beneath the surface of a take in order to reveal an even more truthful meaning.
Yet, Taft is never preachy, never stilted, never contrived or derivative. In "Object Permanence", a story which is loosely reminiscent of an old Twilight Zone episode of which I am particularly fond, Taft infuses a quirky and highly entertaining freshness. At the same time, he does not hesitate to challenge his readers perceptions, to force them to actively think about the consequences that the story posits. Similarly, "Love in the Time of Zombies" attacks the timeworn trope from a completely new angle and, rather than merely stopping there, Taff finishes off with a twist that is both organic to the piece and wholly original.
Taft's characters are crisply defined, three dimensional constructs with powerful inner lives laid bare for our perusal. His settings, whether they be in a mundane local wood or a water-logged Earth or on a far off mysterious planet inhabited by ghosts, are designed so that the reader accepts them as believable without question -- no matter how divorced from our reality they might be.
His ideas, the foundations upon which each story is written, are quite simply remarkable. Unlike so many lesser authors, Taft does not stop at "what if?"; he goes several steps further in his thematic exploration and starts guiding his readers through the process of "why?" It is a journey well-worth taking as Taft's work with entertain as much as provoke thought, stir memory as well as elicit emotion, prod thought as much as it stimulates emotion.
I urge you to definitely, definitely take a look at this author.
Each of the five longish short stories is a gem in its own right. Whether Taff is exploring a young boy's adolescent attempts to bargain with death as in the auto-biographical "What Become God", or whether he relates a father's growing realization in a uniquely post-apocalyptic world that the urge to protect one's loved ones from harm also has limits ("The Long, Long Breakdown") Taft has managed to fill each of these stories with multiple levels of meaning, all of which are relevant, and most of which are deeply moving.
Few authors can write emotionally laden subtext without beating their readers over the head with it; the more they try to be subtle, very often, the more overly obvious they become. In this collection, however, Taft has joined the ranks of such literary luminaries as Jack Ketchum, showing great skill in delving beneath the surface of a take in order to reveal an even more truthful meaning.
Yet, Taft is never preachy, never stilted, never contrived or derivative. In "Object Permanence", a story which is loosely reminiscent of an old Twilight Zone episode of which I am particularly fond, Taft infuses a quirky and highly entertaining freshness. At the same time, he does not hesitate to challenge his readers perceptions, to force them to actively think about the consequences that the story posits. Similarly, "Love in the Time of Zombies" attacks the timeworn trope from a completely new angle and, rather than merely stopping there, Taff finishes off with a twist that is both organic to the piece and wholly original.
Taft's characters are crisply defined, three dimensional constructs with powerful inner lives laid bare for our perusal. His settings, whether they be in a mundane local wood or a water-logged Earth or on a far off mysterious planet inhabited by ghosts, are designed so that the reader accepts them as believable without question -- no matter how divorced from our reality they might be.
His ideas, the foundations upon which each story is written, are quite simply remarkable. Unlike so many lesser authors, Taft does not stop at "what if?"; he goes several steps further in his thematic exploration and starts guiding his readers through the process of "why?" It is a journey well-worth taking as Taft's work with entertain as much as provoke thought, stir memory as well as elicit emotion, prod thought as much as it stimulates emotion.
I urge you to definitely, definitely take a look at this author.
July 11, 2018
These five novellas—approximately 30-50 pages apiece—are a horror lover's dream! As an aficionado of the genre (as I like to fancy myself), I was delighted by Taff's command of horror plots and the traditions that define this broad realm of literature. I kept seeing echoes of the all-time greats—Poe and Shirley Jackson ("Object Permanence"), Octavia Butler and Ray Bradbury ("Visitation"), Stephen King ("What Becomes God"), Isaac Marion ("Love in the Time of Zombies")—but Taff never feels like an imitator. The stories are told with the confidence of a master storyteller. There is nothing derivative here, and nothing is a throwaway story. These are future short stories classics.
In this second edition, Taff includes some wonderful author's notes on each of the five stories. I especially enjoyed his insights on his identity as a horror writer:
This collection follows the "ages of man," from childhood to death, so to read this as a 40 year old mortal, as a father and husband and friend, is to see my life reflected back in all its grandness.
So many readers think horror stories are inherently pessimistic or apathetic, but that's a gross oversimplification. To me at least, dark fiction makes us feel larger and more hopeful—maybe because it's so easy to find ourselves in the myriad metaphors these stories offer. It's easy for us to enter the world of a horror story, imagine us moving around in there, and finding trap doors to safety and sanity. I'm convinced that horror writers are some of the best guides a reader can have, and John F.D. Taff is truly one of the very best.
In this second edition, Taff includes some wonderful author's notes on each of the five stories. I especially enjoyed his insights on his identity as a horror writer:
"I think endless, pointless bloodletting or scares without a point are boring. I don't have any desire to tell those kinds of stories. To me, horror works best when bonded with another emotion—love, loss, lust. Add a little poignancy to the mix, and the horror is accentuated, just as salt somehow makes sweet food taste even sweeter."So l guess there is no surprise that each story seemed to worm beyond sheer entertainment into something personally affective. These are dark stories ultimately about relationships and about the brightest of human emotions—above all, love—those feelings that hold those most essential relationships together.
This collection follows the "ages of man," from childhood to death, so to read this as a 40 year old mortal, as a father and husband and friend, is to see my life reflected back in all its grandness.
So many readers think horror stories are inherently pessimistic or apathetic, but that's a gross oversimplification. To me at least, dark fiction makes us feel larger and more hopeful—maybe because it's so easy to find ourselves in the myriad metaphors these stories offer. It's easy for us to enter the world of a horror story, imagine us moving around in there, and finding trap doors to safety and sanity. I'm convinced that horror writers are some of the best guides a reader can have, and John F.D. Taff is truly one of the very best.
January 3, 2018
One of the best collections I've read in years. The End in All Beginnings is both a brutal and a poignant look at the many facets of death, loss and pain. From the effects of cancer on a childhood friendship to a zombie love story, the novellas herein are written with honesty in the kind of language that doesn't just paint a picture but plays a movie in your head, while forcing you to ask yourself over and over the toughest of questions: What would I do in this situation?
These are not your typical horror stories, and that's part of what makes them great. Oh, they have their share of revolting moments, but that's not what pushes them above the average terror tales. This horror is effective, not because it's full of gore and jump scares, but because the author leads you down dark roads you know exist for real. On the surface, these stories are about zombies, apocalyptic futures and maniacs. But underneath you find many themes, such as disease, neglect, separation anxiety, lost love and grief. What would you do to save a childhood friend? How do you deal with nasty family secrets? What would you really do for love? How hard is it to watch your child grow up? Do you really want to meet the ghosts of people you've lost? Taff answers these questions in a unique voice, which is refreshing in a genre-world full of Stephen King and Dean Koontz wannabes. (Although, speaking of the masters, one of the novellas did remind me of Harlan Ellison, and that's a comparison I don't make lightly.)
There's a reason this collection was nominated for a Stoker Award. Read it, and you'll know why.
These are not your typical horror stories, and that's part of what makes them great. Oh, they have their share of revolting moments, but that's not what pushes them above the average terror tales. This horror is effective, not because it's full of gore and jump scares, but because the author leads you down dark roads you know exist for real. On the surface, these stories are about zombies, apocalyptic futures and maniacs. But underneath you find many themes, such as disease, neglect, separation anxiety, lost love and grief. What would you do to save a childhood friend? How do you deal with nasty family secrets? What would you really do for love? How hard is it to watch your child grow up? Do you really want to meet the ghosts of people you've lost? Taff answers these questions in a unique voice, which is refreshing in a genre-world full of Stephen King and Dean Koontz wannabes. (Although, speaking of the masters, one of the novellas did remind me of Harlan Ellison, and that's a comparison I don't make lightly.)
There's a reason this collection was nominated for a Stoker Award. Read it, and you'll know why.
September 6, 2023
3.5
The book cover labels Taff as the King of Pain. True, but allow me to add the King of Grief. These 5 novellas encompass a certain level of each with some embodying these emotions more than others. I wouldn’t categorize any of the stories as out and out horror as dark fiction would be a more a propos descriptor. If you like the themes of pain and grief, this’ll be up your alley.
1. What Becomes God (4/5): Losing a childhood friend through death is a cruel and cold companion.
2. Object Permanence (3.5/5)
3. Love in the Time of Zombies (3/5)
4. The Long, Long Breakdown (4/5): If McCarthy’s The Road took place in a drowned world.
5. Visitation (3/5)
The book cover labels Taff as the King of Pain. True, but allow me to add the King of Grief. These 5 novellas encompass a certain level of each with some embodying these emotions more than others. I wouldn’t categorize any of the stories as out and out horror as dark fiction would be a more a propos descriptor. If you like the themes of pain and grief, this’ll be up your alley.
1. What Becomes God (4/5): Losing a childhood friend through death is a cruel and cold companion.
2. Object Permanence (3.5/5)
3. Love in the Time of Zombies (3/5)
4. The Long, Long Breakdown (4/5): If McCarthy’s The Road took place in a drowned world.
5. Visitation (3/5)
September 19, 2018
Taff delivers five challenging, gut-wrenching novellas.
This is horror not because of blood and guts nor monsters nor some psychokiller. There are zombies and ghosts and evil in a small town, but these stories are about the humanity of horror. How everyday people deal with suffering the unimaginable. It is not torture porn, but rather a struggle to find something within themselves to hold on to. There is hope, but the possibility of losing that hope is what is the most horrific.
THE END IN ALL BEGINNINGS is next level horror. These stories will stay with you.
This is horror not because of blood and guts nor monsters nor some psychokiller. There are zombies and ghosts and evil in a small town, but these stories are about the humanity of horror. How everyday people deal with suffering the unimaginable. It is not torture porn, but rather a struggle to find something within themselves to hold on to. There is hope, but the possibility of losing that hope is what is the most horrific.
THE END IN ALL BEGINNINGS is next level horror. These stories will stay with you.
June 4, 2019
This book was awesome, a pretty and frighful surpise, i loved all the stories the first one started pretty slow but then i started thinking in the meaning behind the things that the author was trying to portray and i got hooked, from them on each story was as strong as the previous one with concepts that we don't usually see, and as someone that wants to someday write, the author notes at the ending really help understand the process behind writing a good story.
September 3, 2019
Loved this book. 4 of the 5 novellas were 5 star reads. I wasn't a fan of the last story, but it was well-written, and the problem was most likely just me...The first tale, What Becomes God, is a story that has surprisingly stuck with me since reading this book over a year ago. Every time I go for a long walk in the woods, the ending comes to mind and my eyes scan any and every log I come by. Make sure to check this book out soon, so you're walks in the woods will no longer be the same!
February 12, 2022
The last story of the book (''Visitation'') was my favorite. Such an original concept!!! Probably the best sci-fi story I've read in a while. I'm so glad I discovered John F.D. Taff, 'cause his writing is captivating.
May 14, 2022
Wish I could give half stars; this is almost 5-star worthy. Each story was emotionally gripping and tender. My only complaint comes from the fact that it did not feel like I was reading horror, it felt more akin to sci-fi, dramas.
August 14, 2022
A mix bag of stories. I’ll admit I DNF the first story as it didn’t hold my interest at all but I read the rest and there were some real 5 star gems which made up for it. The 3 star rating was just the book average.
February 10, 2020
Four short stories very different from each other but very good. Twilight Zone type of stories.
October 26, 2025
My first collection by John F.D. Taff. I've read a couple of his stories in other collections and really enjoyed them. Picking up this collection was a great idea. Just good stuff.
January 11, 2015
John F.D. Taff's The End In All Beginnings was easily one of my most anticipated reads of the summer ever since it was announced in late April by Grey Matter Press. The collection of five new novellas from Taff made its debut at this years World Horror Convention months before its late summer scheduled release date, but I was unfortunately unable to attend. I thought I would have to wait a few more months to snag a copy, so I was ecstatic when Grey Matter Press made a few of the autographed Special Advance Edition copies available for order on their website.
The cover of The End In All Beginnings describes the novellas as "emotional horrors" and I think that term sums them perfectly with their focus on themes like love, life and death. The collection's first story, "What Becomes God", is a perfect introduction to the emotional wringer the reader is about to go through. Focusing on a boy named Brian, "What Becomes God" is a heartbreaking tale that shows the lengths a person will go to in order to try to save their friend. Taff does an excellent job of capturing childhood in this story, detailing how Brian would spend all day outside until dinner during the summer playing kickball, exploring the woods and generally spending the entire day hanging out with friends. The story grabbed me immediately because these scenes reminded me of how I spent my childhood and Taff captures that feeling of magical freedom perfectly.
Even without the dark twist toward the end of the story, "What Becomes God" is pretty terrifying. I was telling my wife about the story (before I made it to the story's plot twist) and she said something along the lines of "That doesn't sound like horror, I thought you said it was a horror book?" While everyone is entitled to their own opinion as to what constitutes horror, my immediate response was what is scarier than facing death at a young age and being powerless to do anything?
One of the things that makes The End In All Beginnings such a great collection is Taff's ability to take familiar horror creatures and inject new life into them with brilliant twists. "Love In The Time Of Zombies" is an absolute must-read for any zombie fan as Taff manages to break new ground while still keeping the blood, guts and everything else people love about zombies intact. Taff also blends in some science-fiction with "Visitation", a powerful story that puts an original spin on the traditional ghost story.
Picking a favorite from The End In All Beginnings is virtually impossible, but if I were forced to choose right now, I would have to go with "The Long, Long Breakdown". Detailing the life of a father and his daughter in a post-apocalyptic Florida in which flood waters have devastated the area, Taff paints a portrait of a parent-child relationship that instantly reminded me of the emotional narrative of one of my favorite novels, Cormac McCarthy's The Road. While the post-apocalyptic setting will appeal to fans of the genre, the real power comes from the portrayal of how even when society has changed forever, the dynamic between a parent and their child remains the same.
This is truly one of the best collection of novellas I have read in a while and will definitely be in the running for one of my favorite reads of the year. I feel like this collection will not only appeal to horror fans, but could interest readers of just about any genre. So, whether you are looking for introduction to the world of horror or are already a seasoned horror fanatic, you will definitely want to give The End In All Beginnings a read!
The cover of The End In All Beginnings describes the novellas as "emotional horrors" and I think that term sums them perfectly with their focus on themes like love, life and death. The collection's first story, "What Becomes God", is a perfect introduction to the emotional wringer the reader is about to go through. Focusing on a boy named Brian, "What Becomes God" is a heartbreaking tale that shows the lengths a person will go to in order to try to save their friend. Taff does an excellent job of capturing childhood in this story, detailing how Brian would spend all day outside until dinner during the summer playing kickball, exploring the woods and generally spending the entire day hanging out with friends. The story grabbed me immediately because these scenes reminded me of how I spent my childhood and Taff captures that feeling of magical freedom perfectly.
Even without the dark twist toward the end of the story, "What Becomes God" is pretty terrifying. I was telling my wife about the story (before I made it to the story's plot twist) and she said something along the lines of "That doesn't sound like horror, I thought you said it was a horror book?" While everyone is entitled to their own opinion as to what constitutes horror, my immediate response was what is scarier than facing death at a young age and being powerless to do anything?
One of the things that makes The End In All Beginnings such a great collection is Taff's ability to take familiar horror creatures and inject new life into them with brilliant twists. "Love In The Time Of Zombies" is an absolute must-read for any zombie fan as Taff manages to break new ground while still keeping the blood, guts and everything else people love about zombies intact. Taff also blends in some science-fiction with "Visitation", a powerful story that puts an original spin on the traditional ghost story.
Picking a favorite from The End In All Beginnings is virtually impossible, but if I were forced to choose right now, I would have to go with "The Long, Long Breakdown". Detailing the life of a father and his daughter in a post-apocalyptic Florida in which flood waters have devastated the area, Taff paints a portrait of a parent-child relationship that instantly reminded me of the emotional narrative of one of my favorite novels, Cormac McCarthy's The Road. While the post-apocalyptic setting will appeal to fans of the genre, the real power comes from the portrayal of how even when society has changed forever, the dynamic between a parent and their child remains the same.
This is truly one of the best collection of novellas I have read in a while and will definitely be in the running for one of my favorite reads of the year. I feel like this collection will not only appeal to horror fans, but could interest readers of just about any genre. So, whether you are looking for introduction to the world of horror or are already a seasoned horror fanatic, you will definitely want to give The End In All Beginnings a read!
October 28, 2014
I have a love affair with John Taff’s writing style. He lulls you into comfortable conversation. You know you shouldn’t fall for it. That around the next page, he’s going to step all over your comfort until you aren’t sure how you should feel. But you can’t help it.
He has this way of holding back his biggest secrets until he wants you to know them. You spend the whole story wondering what’s the point, and then it happens, and you’re like, “OH MY GOD! WHAT JUST HAPPENED?!”
John is placed in the horror genre, but his stories aren’t ever what you expect to find in a horror novel. There’s monsters, and ghosts, but very little blood and gore. I think M said it best, when we were discussing a better label for John’s type of stories, and he said, “He makes you uncomfortable.”
Really, really uncomfortable. And not in the “oh, that is disgusting,” way. In the way that socks you right in the feels like a gut punch that knocks the wind out of you for what seems like days, but is really only a few minutes.
Which brings me to the first story in this book.
"What Becomes God" – The best part of this story is how much of John is in it. Before reading the author’s note, I felt John in Brian at almost every turn. It’s in the emotion behind the writing, and the way he captures details you wouldn’t know about unless you were there. The realism is phenomenal. It makes the end almost plausible.
"Object Permanence" – “Object permanence” is what they call the way babies experience the world. Show something to a baby, and as long as it stays within their field of vision, it’s real. Remove the object, and to the baby, it no longer exists. Think about what would happen if two adults with opposing views had an ability based on that concept. Object Permanence is just as messed up as you can imagine.
"Love in the Time of Zombies" – The love in this story is disgusting. It makes you wonder what’s wrong with the fella doing the loving. You spend your entire read going, “What the hell?” And then, WHAM. It ends, and you “get” it. The end is shocking, and once again reminds you what John’s really good at: making you uncomfortable.
"The Long, Long Breakdown" – This one’s a little…weird. Instead of freaking you out with the thrilling twists and creepy love stories, it touches on some intense emotions with which anyone can empathize; hits a nerve in a place we all feel. And all the while, you’re just strumming along like, “Yeah, this is normal,” because you could totally see parent and child behaving this way after the polar ice caps melt. The “normal” interactions almost make you forget how terrifying is their situation.
"Visitation" – Oh, "Visitation". I want to say so much about this one that I can’t say because it’ll ruin the end. This one is probably my favorite. There’s extraterrestrials, and ghosts, and space ghosts, and AI, and I’m a total geek with an obsession for the paranormal, so I was sucked right in. But the end makes it. Totally.
Would I read it again? Hell yeah. In fact, if I didn’t have so many books that require my attention, I’d read it again right now. I was tempted as I was going through the book for this review, and even reread a few of my favorite passages. It’s that good.
He has this way of holding back his biggest secrets until he wants you to know them. You spend the whole story wondering what’s the point, and then it happens, and you’re like, “OH MY GOD! WHAT JUST HAPPENED?!”
John is placed in the horror genre, but his stories aren’t ever what you expect to find in a horror novel. There’s monsters, and ghosts, but very little blood and gore. I think M said it best, when we were discussing a better label for John’s type of stories, and he said, “He makes you uncomfortable.”
Really, really uncomfortable. And not in the “oh, that is disgusting,” way. In the way that socks you right in the feels like a gut punch that knocks the wind out of you for what seems like days, but is really only a few minutes.
Which brings me to the first story in this book.
"What Becomes God" – The best part of this story is how much of John is in it. Before reading the author’s note, I felt John in Brian at almost every turn. It’s in the emotion behind the writing, and the way he captures details you wouldn’t know about unless you were there. The realism is phenomenal. It makes the end almost plausible.
"Object Permanence" – “Object permanence” is what they call the way babies experience the world. Show something to a baby, and as long as it stays within their field of vision, it’s real. Remove the object, and to the baby, it no longer exists. Think about what would happen if two adults with opposing views had an ability based on that concept. Object Permanence is just as messed up as you can imagine.
"Love in the Time of Zombies" – The love in this story is disgusting. It makes you wonder what’s wrong with the fella doing the loving. You spend your entire read going, “What the hell?” And then, WHAM. It ends, and you “get” it. The end is shocking, and once again reminds you what John’s really good at: making you uncomfortable.
"The Long, Long Breakdown" – This one’s a little…weird. Instead of freaking you out with the thrilling twists and creepy love stories, it touches on some intense emotions with which anyone can empathize; hits a nerve in a place we all feel. And all the while, you’re just strumming along like, “Yeah, this is normal,” because you could totally see parent and child behaving this way after the polar ice caps melt. The “normal” interactions almost make you forget how terrifying is their situation.
"Visitation" – Oh, "Visitation". I want to say so much about this one that I can’t say because it’ll ruin the end. This one is probably my favorite. There’s extraterrestrials, and ghosts, and space ghosts, and AI, and I’m a total geek with an obsession for the paranormal, so I was sucked right in. But the end makes it. Totally.
Would I read it again? Hell yeah. In fact, if I didn’t have so many books that require my attention, I’d read it again right now. I was tempted as I was going through the book for this review, and even reread a few of my favorite passages. It’s that good.
December 10, 2014
I loved this book. I read the advance copy. To borrow from the back cover description, it consists of five novellas on the horrors of life, love and loss.
Here they are:
What Becomes God. This one is about two boys who are best friends, one dying of cancer. It raises the question: What are you willing to sacrifice to save someone you love? The math in this story is tough, the aftermath tougher.
Object Permanence. This one is about a man who can remove things from existence and his great-aunt who can freeze things into the same existence. A struggle ensues between them over the fate of their small town. Seasons must change, life must grow and die, or we create a hell of stasis, a tyranny of sentiment. Will the young man free the town from its prison? At what cost?
Love in the Time of Zombies. This one is my favorite. Not because I feel it’s the best offering – they’re all equally strong, in my opinion – but because I love how Taff treats the theme of unrequited love in a zombie story. It’s humorous but not campy, and should appeal to everyone, because who hasn’t felt the sting of unrequited love? But it’s not all tenderness and longing. Fans of grisly zombie fiction won’t be disappointed.
The Long, Long Breakdown. All the ice caps have melted. A father and daughter have learned to live in high places that once belonged to the wealthy, their penthouse suites looking on nothing but ocean. The father struggles with his daughter’s need to step outside their circle of safety in search of new territory and other people. Like other characters in this book, he reveals a dark side in himself that shows its true face when threatened with loss.
Visitation. A widower travels to a planet where it is said you can communicate with the spirit of your loved one. What he discovers is a secret that shakes his understanding of death and threatens to explode the faith and worldview of every civilization in the Galactic Union. A profoundly moving sci-fi story.
Each of these novellas is thought-provoking, haunting and poignant. As a former obituary writer I saw the myriad ways grief can affect people. In this book Taff takes that grief and spins it into its own genre.
Here they are:
What Becomes God. This one is about two boys who are best friends, one dying of cancer. It raises the question: What are you willing to sacrifice to save someone you love? The math in this story is tough, the aftermath tougher.
Object Permanence. This one is about a man who can remove things from existence and his great-aunt who can freeze things into the same existence. A struggle ensues between them over the fate of their small town. Seasons must change, life must grow and die, or we create a hell of stasis, a tyranny of sentiment. Will the young man free the town from its prison? At what cost?
Love in the Time of Zombies. This one is my favorite. Not because I feel it’s the best offering – they’re all equally strong, in my opinion – but because I love how Taff treats the theme of unrequited love in a zombie story. It’s humorous but not campy, and should appeal to everyone, because who hasn’t felt the sting of unrequited love? But it’s not all tenderness and longing. Fans of grisly zombie fiction won’t be disappointed.
The Long, Long Breakdown. All the ice caps have melted. A father and daughter have learned to live in high places that once belonged to the wealthy, their penthouse suites looking on nothing but ocean. The father struggles with his daughter’s need to step outside their circle of safety in search of new territory and other people. Like other characters in this book, he reveals a dark side in himself that shows its true face when threatened with loss.
Visitation. A widower travels to a planet where it is said you can communicate with the spirit of your loved one. What he discovers is a secret that shakes his understanding of death and threatens to explode the faith and worldview of every civilization in the Galactic Union. A profoundly moving sci-fi story.
Each of these novellas is thought-provoking, haunting and poignant. As a former obituary writer I saw the myriad ways grief can affect people. In this book Taff takes that grief and spins it into its own genre.
February 9, 2015
Some books hit you fast, leaving you stunned by concepts and plot. Other books creep over you subtly, the characters and storytelling having an effect that stays with you long after you’re done. Then, very rarely, a book like “The End In All Beginnings” manages to do both.
A disclaimer of sorts – I became aware of John F.D. Taff’s writing after we both had short stories appear in “Dark Visions, vol.1” His work was heartfelt, cathartic, and dark. After we were slated to appear in another anthology together, I decided to check out more of his work and see why he had been granted the title ‘The King Of Pain.’
A collection of five novellas, each one has its own completely unique theme and tale, but they are roughly organized in chronological order through the passage of life. ‘What Becomes God’ tells of a young boy in early 1970’s St. Louis and the lengths he’ll go to prevent his best friend from dying of cancer. ‘Object Permanence’ details the struggle of a young man from a family who is both blessed and cursed with a strong memory. ‘Love In The Time Of Zombies’ shows how truly lonely the apocalypse can be, and the choices we’d make to keep that solitude at bay. ‘The Long, Long Breakdown’ not only tackles a world out of control, but that moment when every parent realizes they can’t always protect their child. Finally “Visitation” is a science fiction piece that is arguably one of the best stories I’ve read in years. An entire planet dedicated to communicating with the dead holds far greater secrets than those of an afterlife.
Taff is not a horror writer who splashes blood and gore on his pages. He’s not Splatterpunk, Gothic, Supernatural, or New Weird, but nor is he simply penning weak Americana Horror. It’s not really Psychological or Suspense, either. It’s just… dark. Dark and emotional. He knows what will agonize his characters, and in turn his readers, then takes them there full force. The suffering here doesn’t come from a blade or a bullet, but from love and loss. And once you’ve read this collection, you’ll appreciate that pain.
A disclaimer of sorts – I became aware of John F.D. Taff’s writing after we both had short stories appear in “Dark Visions, vol.1” His work was heartfelt, cathartic, and dark. After we were slated to appear in another anthology together, I decided to check out more of his work and see why he had been granted the title ‘The King Of Pain.’
A collection of five novellas, each one has its own completely unique theme and tale, but they are roughly organized in chronological order through the passage of life. ‘What Becomes God’ tells of a young boy in early 1970’s St. Louis and the lengths he’ll go to prevent his best friend from dying of cancer. ‘Object Permanence’ details the struggle of a young man from a family who is both blessed and cursed with a strong memory. ‘Love In The Time Of Zombies’ shows how truly lonely the apocalypse can be, and the choices we’d make to keep that solitude at bay. ‘The Long, Long Breakdown’ not only tackles a world out of control, but that moment when every parent realizes they can’t always protect their child. Finally “Visitation” is a science fiction piece that is arguably one of the best stories I’ve read in years. An entire planet dedicated to communicating with the dead holds far greater secrets than those of an afterlife.
Taff is not a horror writer who splashes blood and gore on his pages. He’s not Splatterpunk, Gothic, Supernatural, or New Weird, but nor is he simply penning weak Americana Horror. It’s not really Psychological or Suspense, either. It’s just… dark. Dark and emotional. He knows what will agonize his characters, and in turn his readers, then takes them there full force. The suffering here doesn’t come from a blade or a bullet, but from love and loss. And once you’ve read this collection, you’ll appreciate that pain.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews