Midnight Somewhere: A Short-Story Collection

by Johnny Compton

From Bram Stoker Award–nominated author Johnny Compton, Midnight Somewhere is a frightening collection of thought-provoking stories perfect for fans of Stephen King’s Night Shift , Tananarive Due’s The Wishing Pool , and the work of Junji Ito.

A man gets into a car that can take him anywhere he can imagine—including the past, into the worst mistake of his life, a memory he does not want to relive, cannot escape, and is even more afraid to alter …

A seemingly harmless, forgettable film about “alien hand syndrome” inspires a wave of self-harm among viewers—and even stranger things among those who become obsessed with it …

A woman tries to bring her dead lover to life through a macabre ritual that requires attacking his corpse. Is it because she longs to be with him again … or because the two of them have unfinished business?

The assorted characters in this thrilling collection encounter horrors that range from mysterious to murderous, discovering that darkness can find anyone, anywhere, at any hour of the day. After all, it’s always Midnight Somewhere …

Genres: Horror, Short Stories, Fiction, Crime

310 pages, Hardcover

Published December 9, 2025

Reviews

[Niki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading this book feels like visiting a theme park filled entirely with haunted houses. Each one different, each one darker than the last. It starts with a disturbing supernatural horror, drifts into lighter tales about monsters and ghosts, and ends with an unsettling techno-horror that forces you to question your morality.

I love short stories, and this collection offers a great mix of them. Each story explores a different kind of fear: technology, obsession, guilt, trauma, grief, or simply the unknown. Not every story gave me the chills I usually expect from horror books, but some were so powerful they lingered in my mind for days.

I do have a few favorites, so here’s a little peek at my top three in this collection: “The Death Grip Challenge,” “The Merge Monster Incident: One Year Later,” and “Dead Bastards Revival Services.”

“The Death Grip Challenge” is a deeply disturbing take on stupid online trends, the kind you’ve probably seen in real life. Remember the Blackout Challenge? Imagine something similar, but darker, and much more violent. This story mirrors our psychological chaos, our obsession with validation, and our addiction to adrenaline. The scariest part isn’t ghosts or monsters. It’s the human mind itself, full of violent impulses just waiting for a reason to surface. And the worst part is that it could happen anytime, anywhere, to anyone.

“The Merge Monster Incident: One Year Later” is uniquely terrifying. Imagine you’re scared of roller coasters (for obvious reasons), and then one suddenly comes to life. It disappeared into the woods with people still strapped in. The concept sounds ridiculous at first, but it gets darker fast, and it terrified me in such an unusual way. It shows what happens when humans become obsessed with making things come alive. We already do it with cars (as shown in another story, “Everywherever”), but what if it extended to trains, ships, buildings, or a roller coaster? What if they were brought to life by something unexplainable?

I’ll admit, some of the stories in the middle didn’t quite scare me, and I hoped the ending would bring it back strong, and it did. “Dead Bastards Revival Services” is the perfect finale. Two inventors discover a way to trap souls inside digital vials and resurrect them in robotic bodies. When a religious community hires them to bring back a child murderer, everything spirals out of control. The story blends religion, technology, and morality into a horrifying truth about revenge. It shows just how far humans—even the most devout—can go to play God in the name of justice. This one easily takes the crown as the most chilling horror story I’ve read this year.

Interestingly, both “Ffuns” (the first story) and “Dead Bastards Revival Services” (the last) share a common theme of resurrection. They raise the question: is bringing someone back to life truly an act of love, or just human selfishness? Their executions, however, are completely different. “Ffuns” is abstract, violent, and brutal, while “Dead Bastards Revival Services” tackles the same idea with emotional depth and a sorrowful, almost biblical tone.

While some stories are unforgettable, others feel weaker by comparison. A few start strong but lose tension halfway through. They felt a bit too conventional for me, like watching horror movies I’ve already seen. That’s subjective, of course, and I still think they’re good. It’s just that Compton has proven he can craft far more unsettling and original tales with some of my favorite stories, so I expected more.

Horror works best when it mirrors our own human impulses, and Compton absolutely nails that in this dark, thought-provoking collection. It reminds us that the scariest monsters aren’t always the ones lurking in the shadows. They’re the ones born from our own guilt, anger, and desire to play God. Definitely worth reading!

Midnight Somewhere is a collection of 21 horror stories by Johnny Compton. I’m grateful to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. It’ll be out on December 9th.

[AgoraphoBook Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 / 5

I had made up my mind, earlier in the year, to turn down any short story collections. I've discovered I'm usually not a fan.

Thank goodness I have no willpower or convictions, and changed my mind instantly the second I saw this collection was written by Johnny Compton.

This collection was an absolute banger. Like every collection, some stories are better (or rather more personally appealing) than others. But overall, this is the best short story collection I've read in many, many years.

Eerie, shocking, gory goodness.
Highly recommend.

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

I absolutely loved The Spite House and was very excited to see Johnny Compton had written not just a new book but a collection of short stories.

His voice clearly comes through and although there were a couple of dips, the majority of the stories were brilliant. A real selection box of spooky, horrific tales.

Compton is very much on my list of "I will read everything" authors.

[rowan | gloomandgrimoire · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been enamored with Compton's writing since the release of The Spite House. He has such a strong voice in his writing that cuts deep into your soul as you traverse the stories that he's lovingly crafted and are sent hurtling through the full spectrum of emotions. Midnight Somewhere is an excellent cross-section of all the things I love about Compton and his storytelling.

One thing about Compton is while he has horror and atmosphere mastered, at the same time, his characters have so much heart. For the most part, they come off as ordinary, everyday people that you can see yourself in that happened to have been put into a terrible situation. Seeing how they react to and interact with the world around them in the face of the most horrifying realities is such a profoundly relatable and sympathetic experience.

Compton's prose is sharp and discerning without ever coming off as pretentious. Every word he puts down on the page serves a purpose to the story, and it's fascinating to me how he not only manages to construct such an intricate world in so few pages per story, but appears to thrive within the short format.

My favorites from this collection are A Story Overheard in a Room, Everywherever, Charakakon, and The Merge Monster Incident: One Year Later, but I think several of these stories will stick with me for a long while to come. At times I feel like this reminded me of grown-up Goosebumps, in the sense that it captured the nostalgic feeling I had reading Goosebumps as a child while maintaining the backdrop of existing as an adult and being aware of societal and systemic issues that impact everything and are sometimes even the real root of horror.

I definitely need to pick up Devils Kill Devils soon and I can't wait for the release of Dead First!

Thank you to Netgalley and Blackstone Publishing for this ARC!!

[Amanda (Smitten For Fiction) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three Words That Describe This Book: unique, emotional, creepy
About The Author

"Johnny Compton is a Stoker Award nominated author whose short stories have appeared in Pseudopod, Strange Horizons, The No Sleep Podcast and several other publications. His fascination with frightening fiction started when he was introduced to the ghost story “The Golden Arm” as a child. He is the author of The Spite House, Devils Kill Devils, and Dead First, as well as the short story collection, Midnight Somewhere."

https://johnnycompton.com/

Behind Your Face There is a Place podcast: Open on Spotify

Healthy Fears podcast: https://healthyfears.com/category/season-1/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/comptonwrites

Other Books by This Author

The Spite House
Devils Kill Devils

› Don't be fooled by Johnny Compton's kind face; he's trying to scare the crap out of his readers. Although Devils Kill Devils was just okay for me, I enjoyed The Spite House, and I am grateful to have received an advance copy of Johnny Compton's new anthology called Midnight Somewhere.

› Here are the 21 titles and their 1st lines:

FFUNS
Originally published in Pseudopod (March 6, 2020, episode 692)

"Holding the unlabeled black video cassette somehow reassured her of the legitimacy of its contents."

THE DEATH GRIP CHALLENGE
Originally published in Strange Horizons (May 18, 2020)

"The award-winning talent assembled for Death/Grip, juxtaposed with the pitiful product, made an argument for it being the most disappointing horror film ever made."

SAFETY IN NUMBERS
Originally published in On the Premises (issue #35)

"I've been told that I'm 'one of those guys who never learns'. I disagree with this, but it doesn't matter what I think right now."

MONSTER BITES
Originally published in the Nightlight podcast

"The thing hunched on all fours in the grass was more shadow than substance despite the moonlight."

A STORY OVERHEARD IN A ROOM
Originally published in The No Sleep podcast (season 14, episode 13)

"The numbers of the digital clock displayed 11:33."

A DEVIL WE USED TO KNOW
Originally published in The Rack Anthology (September 2024)

"Enough seasons had passed for the seasons to no longer be what they once were."

NO HUNGRY GENERATIONS
Originally published in Death in the Mouth: An Anthology (October 2022)

"The bird looked like the last descendant of a prehistoric mishap."

THE GENIE AND THE INQUISITOR
Originally published in Arkham Tales

"Gray smoke billowed from the broken glass ornament, and from the smoke emerged a face."

EVERY TIME YOU LOOK AWAY
"Lincoln had long tried to imagine something comparable to the dread of seeing a ghost, something he could use to describe the feeling to those who would never understand."

WHEN YOU PUT IT THAT WAY
"They rarely made each other laugh, but they made others laugh, which was good for their marriage, wasn't it?"

THE REF
"Laz Marron returned to the table with the rye whiskey Brian had ordered, as well as the question he'd wanted to ask all evening."

DOCTOR BAD EYES IS AT THE TOP OF THE STAIRS AGAIN
"Kelly hustled the kids out of the house and into the car, then drove seven minutes to her sister Roxy's house before she parked, turned to her daughter and said, 'Now tell me again who you saw on the stairs?'"

EVERYWHEREEVER
Originally published in Obsolescence: A Dark Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Horror Anthology (2023)

"The car was black from tires to glass."

CHARAKAKON
Originally published in Weird Tales (issue #370)

"Tell me something about yourself you thought you'd never tell anyone."

THE ONE
"When I was seventeen this lady approached me after a game with her baby, and she asked me to put my hand on her son's forehead just for a second."

THE MERGE MONSTER INCIDENT: ONE YEAR LATER
"I gave up my spot to the couple behind me who wanted to ride together."

I CAUGHT A GHOST IN MY EYE
"I caught a ghost in my right eye a week ago at the haunted house 'Shadows of Grier Street'."

HE USED TO SCARE ME BY ACCIDENT
"Our first real date was a horror movie."

WHATEVER HAPPENED TO CRASH TEST CHRIS?
"I've always had poor impulse control, which has done me plenty of harm, but is also how I found out about my ability."

THE HAPPY PEOPLE
"Laugh through the pain."

DEAD BASTARD REVIVAL SERVICES
"Twenty-five people had gathered in the small church to witness the resurrection of Lyle Lee Everly, and partake in his reckoning."

APPEAL FACTORS
Storyline: character-driven, unconventional
Pace: fast
Tone: bittersweet, moody, thought-provoking, edgy, sinister, bleak, creepy, disturbing, gross, gruesome, haunting, violent
Humour: offbeat
Writing Style: well-crafted dialogue, attention-grabbing, descriptive, gritty
Character: complex, flawed
Racial Representation: Black, Multiracial

Read Alikes:
Out There Screaming by Jordan Peele
Different Seasons by Stephen King
Slasher Girls & Monster Boys by April Genevieve Tucholke
A Perfect Likeness by Richard Wagamese

› Final Thoughts
• These twenty-one stories are unique, strange, shocking, scary, emotional, darkly funny, and creepy. My five-star favourites are A Devil We Used to Know, No Hungry Generations, The Genie and the Inquisitor, Doctor Bad Eyes Is At The Top Of The Stairs Again, CharaKakon, The Merge Monster Incident, I Caught A Ghost in my Eye, and He Used to Scare Me by Accident. I'm looking forward to reading Johnny Compton's new supernatural noir thriller, coming in February 2026, called Dead First.

 Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Connect With Me

Blue Sky | The Story Graph | Goodreads

[Philip · Rating 4 out of 5]

2026 Book #5:
Midnight Somewhere (2025) by Johnny Compton

I met Compton at a book fair for local horror writers here in Austin, where I obtained a signed copy of this book. A volume comprised of stories written over the past decade or so, Midnight Somewhere is probably one of the better examples of contemporary horror that I’ve read, though it’s somewhat difficult to put my finger on why. I wouldn’t call Compton’s writing style all that distinctive, especially when compared to some other contemporary horror practitioners like Stephen Graham Jones. (For all my quibbles with him, one can’t fault Jones for not having an immediately recognizable authorial voice.) If anything, Compton chooses to write in the tried-and-true mode of classic horror authors such as Stephen King: a fairly plain prose-style regularly interspersed with powerful and elegant metaphors. The King comparisons go further when we consider Compton’s stories from a thematic angle. While Midnight Somewhere features a huge variety of horror subtypes, most of the stories use supernatural horror to reflect upon the mundane but eminently relatable flaws of everyday people trying to understand themselves in the world. Common themes include guilt (and the hauntings that attend it) and personal identity. These have always been great topics for horror, and Compton explores them with incisiveness, solid pacing, and an admirable attention to character. While some tales are inevitably scarier and more memorable than others, it says a lot that there are no bad stories in this collection. Some of the best are “Ffuns,” “A Devil We Used to Know,” and “Doctor Bad Eyes Is at the Top of the Stairs Again” (one of the funnier stories in the collection). However, my absolute favorite story was “The Merge Monster Incident: One Year Later,” a tale that forgoes Compton’s usual tendencies and instead ascends into peak weird-fiction territory. If you’re curious about a new voice in horror literature, give this book a try. (4/5)

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This collection is dark, grim, sometimes spooky, always unsettling.. All the stories were well-written and gripping. Each story is a world in itself, one filled with characters with questionable motives,often on the verge of leaning into their darker urges. My favorite stories were "A Devil We Used to Know", "Charakakon", and "The Merge Monster Incident." They were all different but gave insights into humanity's flaws.

[Steph · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy for review.


This is my favorite short story collection I’ve read this year. Every story was good. Every story was unique. Some of them were previously published elsewhere, but all were new to me.

My favorites:

The Merge Monster Incident: One Year Later
Told in an epistolary format, this was from the point of view of a journalist researching an insane incident that happened at an amusement park. A rollercoster seemed to gain sentience and simply uproot itself and walk away. Killing dozens and taking the people on the ride with it. Sounds crazy but the way this tale was told you’d believe it could actually happen and it will make you second guess getting on the next coaster.

No Hungry Generations
There aren’t enough Thanksgiving horror stories in the world and this one’s a gem. A family hunts their own game for Thanksgiving and cooks up a strangely delicious bird. They fall upon it ravenously, only to be filled with a growing hunger….all other food tastes spoiled and they begin to starve.

Johnny Compton is becoming one of my favorite authors. Definitely recommend this book of horror short stories.

[lfthndofdrknss · Rating 4 out of 5]

received as a NetGalley arc in exchange for an honest review

This was a great mix of short stories. They are horror, but many are casual and cozy enough to be told around a campfire or give off similar vibes to a museum of oddities. The characters and plot are eclectic but the writing is consistently clear and quirky.

[Josephine Sorrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Midnight Somewhere is like reading tv episodes of TheTwilight Zone, Outer Limits or more recently Black Mirror. Each one different but each is very dark and disturbing.

Here is a collection of 21 horror stories by Johnny Compton.
While all are weird and creepy, some began strong but lost momentum halfway through causing me to skim to the end of a few entries.

But Johnny Compton is a masterful writer of horror. Here are a few nuggets…

A car that can take you anywhere you can imagine. And that includes the past. A man returns into the worst mistake of his life, a memory he does not want to relive, cannot escape, and is even more afraid to change its outcome.

Then there is the second rate film about "alien hand syndrome" that like tic toc today, inspires a wave of self-harm among viewers who take on the challenge.

A woman tries to bring her dead lover to life through a macabre ritual that requires attacking his corpse. Is her motive love or revenge?

From mysterious to murderous, readers discover that darkness can grab you at any hour of the day, because….
it's always Midnight Somewhere

[Jessica Plopper · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an advanced copy of this book from NYCC. I always enjoy reading spooky books and horror stories during October and this collection of short horror stories hit the spot. There were some that I absolutely wished were longer! I really enjoyed reading this one ☺️

[Cece Cruz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley for the advance copy of the book!

WOW, I’m blown away by this short story collection! Each story delivers a unique and unsettling experience, offering a fresh kind of horror every time. I loved that every piece stood firmly on its own with no repetition of ideas or recycled tropes. I found myself excited to start the next story instead of my usual lack of enthusiasm with other collections.

A few of my favorites include:

“Ffuns” – A haunting exploration of grief that leaves you wondering if the protagonist is consumed by sorrow, or by something far darker?

“Monster Bites” – A chilling yet tender tale that reminds us love can be its own form of protection.

“No Hungry Generations” – A story about nature reclaiming its strength and balance.

“The Merge Monster Incident: One Year Later” – A Frankenstein rollercoaster. Need I say more?

Overall, Midnight Somewhere is a standout collection that goes far beyond jump scares or bumps in the night. It’s thought-provoking, imaginative, and lingers in your mind long after you have finished reading.

[Jess Reads Horror · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley for giving me the chance to read and review!

My first Johnny Compton book was The Spite House, and it was quite enjoyable. So when I saw another one of his work up for grabs, I went for it.

I’ve always found it difficult to rate and review books with multiple stories, and this one had like over 20 short stories? If one was top tier and others were mid, how do you lump them together as one? Somehow I didn’t have this issue, because most of the stories in this collection blew my mind. So good.

You have a bit of everything. Black mirror vibes? Check. Ghosts? Check. Human nature? Check. Monsters? Also, check. It’s amazing how many different horror genres Compton managed to capture in these stories, and for sure, everyone will be able to find at least one story that terrifies them. Many of them will be swirling around in my head for days, I know that for sure.

Writing wise, depending on the narrator, background, and vibe, Compton is able to make it all flow smoothly. Some are witty even, and when something is more dark, expect to find the tone and style a lot more serious. In short, it is so versatile. I would highly recommend this to anyone who loves short stories. Or even if they don’t love short stories, they should still check it out.

[The Blog Without a Face · Rating 3 out of 5]

BWAF Score: 7/10

TL;DR: Twenty-one stories of deals, curses, memes, and miracles that all curdle into horror, Midnight Somewhere is a sharp, mean little playground for Johnny Compton’s obsessions with guilt, performance, and resurrection. The hit rate is high, the lows never tank the collection, and the best pieces are clever as fuck and surprisingly tender under all the blood.

Johnny Compton comes in already decorated: Bram Stoker Award finalist for The Spite House, long time short fiction guy with credits at PseudoPod, Strange Horizons, NoSleep, plus his Healthy Fears podcast where he nerds out about horror history and tropes. Midnight Somewhere feels like the place where all those lanes collide – podcaster brain, working writer grind, and a Texan fondness for grimy crime stories. A lot of these tales originally lived in audio venues, and you can feel that storyteller cadence baked into the bones.

The throughline of the collection is ordinary people making desperate choices in a world where the rules of reality are slightly fucked. A grieving woman beats her dead lover back to life for a snuff syndicate in “Ffuns.” A viral flop of a horror movie spawns a self mutilation craze in “The Death Grip Challenge.” A screw up criminal literally steps outside his own death in “Safety in Numbers.” Elsewhere you get generational doom via the family curse of the charakakon, wrestling stunt lore that goes cosmic, and “The Happy People,” where torture experiments turn laughter into a survival mechanic that works until it absolutely doesn’t. The stakes are usually simple: live, atone, or protect someone you love, in a universe that wants receipts.

Compton’s real weapon is how he blends internet age horrors with old school moral comeuppance. “The Death Grip Challenge” should not work as well as it does. On paper it is “creepypasta about a meme that makes people hurt themselves.” On the page it hits like a brick because he grounds it in a fractured family, a one handed dad trying to laugh off his trauma, and the way online “challenges” seduce damaged people into staging their own destruction. It is sad as shit and then it suddenly turns properly terrifying.

“Ffuns” takes what could have been grimdark edgelord nonsense (resurrection snuff tapes for rich freaks) and flips it into a revenge story where love and rage coexist in one brutally controlled woman. “Charakakon” is almost a folk tale told over drinks, the curse not being the disaster itself, but the knowledge that you are doomed. And late game pieces like “The Happy People” or “Dead Bastard Revival Services” hit that bleak, slightly absurd vibe that feels like Tales From the Crypt after a philosophy seminar.

Compton keeps the sentences lean and conversational, with occasional poetic spikes when the moment needs to hurt. He likes direct POV, often first person or tight third, and he trusts the characters to ramble, joke, or bullshit their way into horror. The pacing is brisk. Most stories are built around one big turn of the screw, but he still makes room for weird sensory details, like the uncanny weight of a resurrected body or the stink of a not quite human stranger on a city street. Dialog crackles, especially in crime adjacent pieces where gangsters sound like actual guys who fuck up for a living instead of Tarantino parrots. When stories stumble, it is usually because the concept is cooler than the emotional landing, not because the writing itself falls apart.

The big recurring engines here are guilt, performance, and the urge to fix what death or fate already stamped out. Characters beat corpses back to life, carve up their own bodies to prove a point, or bargain with entities that only offer information, not mercy. Family is everywhere, estranged siblings, exhausted parents, found partnerships in trauma, and the horror usually hits hardest when someone realizes they cannot protect the person they love without becoming something monstrous themselves. Body damage and resurrection become metaphors for living with trauma that never quite heals. You’re left with the thought “Jesus, people will do some wild shit not to feel powerless,” plus a chilly little whisper that the universe is watching and taking notes.

Midnight Somewhere feels like the logical bridge between Compton’s debut novel and whatever bigger, weirder project he tackles next: proof that he can do high concept horror that still cares about people, not just plot mechanics.

Midnight Somewhere is a strong, nasty, surprisingly emotional set of tales where even the weaker entries are decent company, and the best ones are the kind of fucked up, thoughtful horror stories you want to shove at friends while saying, “You have to read this shit right now.”

Read if you like morality tales where the universe has a fucked up sense of humor and a long memory.

Skip if graphic violence, self harm, and resurrection body horror are hard limits, even when handled thoughtfully.

[Candi Norwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

👻🩸🏚️𝕭𝖔𝖔𝖐 𝕽𝖊𝖛𝖎𝖊𝖜🏚️🩸👻
Most of the stories in Johnny Compton’s Midnight Somewhere were published before in magazines, anthologies, or podcasts, and my guess is his story was one of the darkest, bleakest, and/or saddest of the lot because these were bleak.
They were good, a surprisingly strong collection from beginning to end, just dark, with themes of vengeance, trauma, murder - though there were some occasional moments of humor, the humor was usually - say it with me - also dark. I’m thinking especially of the reveal in Doctor Bad Eyes Is at the Top of the Stairs Again, which was one of my favorites in the collection, even though it gave me a Gene Simmons earworm, “ain’t no haint gonna run me off!” 🎶
Two more highlights for me were I Caught a Ghost in My Eye and He Used to Scare Me by Accident with their slightly twisted endings. These would both translate to exceptional short films with the ironic punches at end.
I will be thinking about The Merge Monster Incident for a while because as soon as I finished reading it, I could only think, there’s a new Appalachian cryptid for me to watch for when I’m driving through the hills.
I could go through almost every story and tell you why it’s one of my favorites, from the ultimate dad jokes in The Death Grip Challenge to the cosmic horror of A Devil We Used to Know, so I will just say, read this collection. There’s folklore and haunted houses and sports stories and twist endings and sad endings and something for every horror reader.
Thank you to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for the review copy for my unbiased opinion.

[Alison Faichney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another dope short story horror collection. This one from Johnny Compton, an author whose work I’ve always enjoyed. The stories vary in length from flash fiction to short novelettes and there’s over 20 stories in this bad boy. The motifs have a good bit of variance so there’s some mind bending stuff, classic ghosty boi vibes and plenty of psychological horror all thrown in there.

My favorite from this collection was Doctor Bad Eyes is at the Top of the Stairs Again. It has more humor in it than I’m normally accustomed to with Compton’s work, and I was *dying* of laughter when they were debating on the fearsomeness merits of a PHD vs MD holding ghost. Ffuns was also great; super petty and something I’d totally do. Additionally I enjoyed Safety in Numbers (trippy and weird asf), Every Time You Look Away, The Ref, Everywherever, Charakakon, The Merge Monster Incident and I Caught a Ghost in My Eye. So most of the weirder ones, but that tracks since I’m a self identified oddball. I enjoyed all of the stories and there was only one or two that didn’t captivate me, but they’re short so no biggie 🤷🏻‍♀️.

Anyways, if you vibe with short story horror collections this is one I’d recommend. Plenty of diversity within the horror tropes and also within the characters making for a collection that never felt too repetitive or cliche.

[Leigh Wilkinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a solid collection of short horror stories from an up and coming fresh voice in the genre. My knee jerk reaction to finding out that a lot of the stories were previously published elsewhere was a feeling of being shortchanged, but then it occurred to me this would only be true if I actively followed this author and/or subscribed to the many publications that I wish I could afford to subscribe to. Publications like Pseudopod, Strange Horizons, etc. But since I do neither of these things I dismissed this pesky little reaction and settled in to a wonderful collection of stories.
The stories themselves range from weird fiction to scifi to psychological horror to cosmic horror to jump scarey kind of horror - a good mix!
I tried to read Devils Kill Devils earlier this year but couldn't stick it out - I was admittedly distracted and had trouble focusing on the many obscured plotlines and characters and lost patience waiting for the story to coalesce into cohesion. Reading this collection makes me feel like reading Compton's short fiction is the way to go, but I'll reserve any definitive proclamation until I actually devote dedicated time to one of his novels. Overall, would recommend!
Thanks to Blackstone Publishing and NetGalley for the eARC!

[Gerika · Rating 5 out of 5]

Johnny Compton's horror story collection blew it out the water. I have been enjoying these stories, taking in one to a few per night or just during breaks. They all have different lengths...some are short, for shorter reads and some are pretty darn long. I only had a kindle arc copy, so I really don't know how many physical pages, but some stories, I was reading for 20 minutes and I am a really fast reader. Every story hits differently—some sneak up on you with quiet, creeping dread, others punch you straight in the gut. Some are darker than others. They all are very atmospheric and detailed...again, they will suck you right in. There’s a perfect balance of psychological tension and straight-up scares...each story is very different...not just the same thing over and over again. Usually, I get bored with some short story collections, but not this one. This is great for any horror fan and I will be coming back to this with my husband for the Halloween season.

[Living My Best Book Life · Rating 5 out of 5]

Midnight Somewhere is a thought-provoking collection of horror short stories that is perfect for readers who enjoy horror that keeps them up at night. It is more than just a scary tale; the scary part is how the collection leaves you questioning while adding in fear and the unknown that goes bump in the night. I loved how it captured the theme of darkness and how it took many forms, whether it be a social media challenge, a person realizing the bad things they have done, or a figurative dark cloud following you. I will definitely be reading more books written by Johnny Compton.

[Katie Brunecz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very strong collection! I enjoyed the quick, punchy length of the stories. They were all weird and unique, beautifully written and dark, but also with a huge dose of humanity. Every story seemingly managed to tackle grief, regret, loss, rage and other deep emotions. It felt almost like reading a season of Twilight Zone. There is a good mixture of ghosts, folklore and mythology, human monsters, and a bit of scifi.

I definitely recommend picking this one up. After Spite House and this collection I'm officially a Johnny Compton fan!

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC!

[ElphaReads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this short story collection!

What a fun short stories collection! It had such a variety of tones and sub-genres, ranging from really scary to creepy to wholesome to emotional. I really loved the stories THE DEATH GRIP CHALLENGE, MONSTER BITES, and HE USED TO SCARE ME BY ACCIDENT, but there weren't any duds in the bunch (perhaps some that didn't connect as much, but never a dud). It's been a year of short story collections and this one was another winner.

[Jess Hagemann · Rating 5 out of 5]

MIDNIGHT SOMEWHERE is a remarkable collection of short horror in the sense that every story included is wildly different. There are monsters here, and ghosts, and stories about the horrors of technology, and stories about the scariest creatures of all: humans. There's also plenty of death. But in the stories that open and close this collection especially, death isn’t the final frontier—it’s a place you can be brought back from, or where you can be made to suffer even more greatly than you did in life. *shudders* Well done, Johnny.

[Bookish Satty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most of the stories were awesome but ther were some that I didn't much enjoy but pleasantly I didn't dislike any of them. I generally don't pick up anthologies but I loved the author's debut novel so much that I couldn't resist picking this up. I'm very happy to say that this short story collection is great.

[Emma]

A stellar collection of short stories. I have loved Johnny's novels and wasn't sure if he would be as effective in short form, but I shouldn't have worried. Fantastic grasp of the form, he gives you just enough to feel unsettled and creeped out. Particularly loved Monster Bites and Dead Bastard Revival Services. Thanks to the publisher for sending me the ARC!

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

THIS WAS SO FUN. This horror anthology experimented with new and interesting horror ideas and succeeded at them. Maybe my favorite horror anthology I've read so far?

[JXRReads · Rating 5 out of 5]

interesting collection of short stories set in horrific worlds filled with weird events. all were quite good. 5 stars. tysm for the arc.

[unstable.books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review to come

[Orsayor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full review on www.bookreferees.org

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

so many brilliant stories!

[Alysia Kidwai · Rating 2 out of 5]

An okay collection of short stories. Nice for killing a couple hours, easy to pick up and put down, but nothing that really stands out.