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Bedtime
As a child, we all have fears of the strange and unexplained, from monsters under the bed to strangers looking in through open windows to ghosts running through our houses. One of the most common fears we as children tend to have is that of a monster dwelling within our bedroom closets, waiting to come out and feast on our bones.For Nancy Rice, that fear strikes close to home as her daughter Felicity begins having unwarranted and unexpected nightmares about some unseen force in her room. Felicity, a four year old girl who behaves like a twenty year old, is suddenly afflicted with nightmares about a bloodthirsty creature in her closet, and Nancy and her husband Timothy are at a loss as to what could be causing their daughter's nightmares.One night, her daughter's nightmare suddenly begins to become a reality, as a mysterious voice and strange sounds begin to emit from Felicity's bedroom. What can you do when an unseen, unknown force invades your home? How do you stop a creature born of darkness and made out of the stuff of nightmares? That is the story and theme explored in writer Anthony Avina's latest short story, Bedtime. With an afterword and author bio included, the latest story comes just in time for the Halloween season, and is a must read book this fall. The tale is so creepy, so disturbing, that you'll be looking suspiciously at your bedroom closet for weeks to come.
- GenresHorror
62 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 4, 2014
24 people want to read
About the author
Anthony Avina
29 books200 followersAuthor Anthony Avina has been an indie author for over the past decade and is quickly approaching his 12th year. An avid fan of the horror genre and hungry to showcase the true nature of society, the author has always written tales that entertain and scare and bring out genuine and heartfelt emotion. His characters are truly unique and showcase that no one is ever what they seem, whether good or bad, and you can never assume anything because sometimes evil wears a beautiful and trustworthy face. Anthony Avina lives in Virginia at age 34 and works as an author, book blogger, book editor/proofreader, and paranormal investigator.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
January 5, 2015
10/4/2014, a storm was about to hit Southern California.
Nancy Rice (28, California Institute of the Arts, wife/mother, artist/gallery owner, Hollywood) was more worried about what was in her daughter Felicity (4) closet?
Felicity was quite artistic also & had an imagination as well as frequent nightmares.
Timothy (husband/father) supported/loved the both of them. Timothy owned
On Request Entertainment his own gaming company & had created the Nightmare Wars game.
Felicity insisted there was a monster in her closet.
The parents got into a huge argument.
Nancy headed for Felicity’s bedroom.
Sooooo huuunnngaryyyyyyyy! What was that?
There was no-one else in the room but Felicity & the closet door was closed.
Nancy did a little research on the paranormal & The Darkman came up.
Nancy was going to discuss security equipment with Timothy.
Timothy got take-out for everyone & was going to apologize when he got home.
Upon arrival what he saw was horrifying. Blood everywhere Nancy was dragged into the closet.
The creature tore at Timothy arm.
Timothy took Felicity & left the house.
911 Detective Joan Billings (32, Asian American, LAP/D homicide) &
Officer Lewis arrived.
Later something was heard in the closet.
It’ss minee.
I did not receive any type of compensation for reading & reviewing this book. While I receive free books from publishers & authors, I am under no obligation to write a positive review. Only an honest one.
A very awesome book cover, great font & writing style. A very well written mysterious horror book. It was very easy for me to read/follow from start/finish & never a dull moment. There were no grammar/typo errors, nor any repetitive or out of line sequence sentences. Lots of exciting scenarios, with several twists/turns & a great set of unique characters to keep track of. This could also make another great horror movie, animated cartoon, or mini TV series. It will keep you on the edge. Was as exciting as I thought it would be, but I will still rate it at 5 stars.
Thank you for the free (Goodreads; PDF) book
Tony Parsons MSW (Washburn)
Nancy Rice (28, California Institute of the Arts, wife/mother, artist/gallery owner, Hollywood) was more worried about what was in her daughter Felicity (4) closet?
Felicity was quite artistic also & had an imagination as well as frequent nightmares.
Timothy (husband/father) supported/loved the both of them. Timothy owned
On Request Entertainment his own gaming company & had created the Nightmare Wars game.
Felicity insisted there was a monster in her closet.
The parents got into a huge argument.
Nancy headed for Felicity’s bedroom.
Sooooo huuunnngaryyyyyyyy! What was that?
There was no-one else in the room but Felicity & the closet door was closed.
Nancy did a little research on the paranormal & The Darkman came up.
Nancy was going to discuss security equipment with Timothy.
Timothy got take-out for everyone & was going to apologize when he got home.
Upon arrival what he saw was horrifying. Blood everywhere Nancy was dragged into the closet.
The creature tore at Timothy arm.
Timothy took Felicity & left the house.
911 Detective Joan Billings (32, Asian American, LAP/D homicide) &
Officer Lewis arrived.
Later something was heard in the closet.
It’ss minee.
I did not receive any type of compensation for reading & reviewing this book. While I receive free books from publishers & authors, I am under no obligation to write a positive review. Only an honest one.
A very awesome book cover, great font & writing style. A very well written mysterious horror book. It was very easy for me to read/follow from start/finish & never a dull moment. There were no grammar/typo errors, nor any repetitive or out of line sequence sentences. Lots of exciting scenarios, with several twists/turns & a great set of unique characters to keep track of. This could also make another great horror movie, animated cartoon, or mini TV series. It will keep you on the edge. Was as exciting as I thought it would be, but I will still rate it at 5 stars.
Thank you for the free (Goodreads; PDF) book
Tony Parsons MSW (Washburn)
January 7, 2015
Being a horror fan through and through I am always looking for a great scary story that I can sink my teeth into. I was introduced to Stephen King at a fairly early age, and some of my favorite stories of his come from his short story collections. It can be hard to find a really chilling short story these days, so when I saw this one I was hopeful that it was going to creep me out sufficiently. I can say without blinking an eye that 'Bedtime' was all about the creepy factor.
The cover of the book and synopsis intrigued me right away. Who wasn't afraid of the "monster in the closet" growing up? This is something everyone can relate to in one way or another. I like that the book grabs you immediately and refuses to let go, right up to the grisly end. I really liked the length of the story also. Sometimes you find a short story and they can drag out the setup, back story of characters and imagery so much that it really doesn't feel like a short story at all. Not the case with this one. It had me going from the first couple pages and got right to the action, and before you knew it you were just gutted and it was done. It left me wanting more of it, or more stories like it from the author. Let's hope for more like 'Bedtime.' Highly recommend.
The cover of the book and synopsis intrigued me right away. Who wasn't afraid of the "monster in the closet" growing up? This is something everyone can relate to in one way or another. I like that the book grabs you immediately and refuses to let go, right up to the grisly end. I really liked the length of the story also. Sometimes you find a short story and they can drag out the setup, back story of characters and imagery so much that it really doesn't feel like a short story at all. Not the case with this one. It had me going from the first couple pages and got right to the action, and before you knew it you were just gutted and it was done. It left me wanting more of it, or more stories like it from the author. Let's hope for more like 'Bedtime.' Highly recommend.
January 23, 2015
*I was given a free electronic copy of this book by the author in exchange for an honest review.*
The problem I encounter when reviewing books is that I promise that I will be truthful when reviewing anyone's work. The question sometimes arises (in my mind): how honest is too honest? I highly respect anyone who has put forth the immense effort it takes to write a book. Any book (good or bad) takes work, and often beginning authors are sensitive about their creations. Understandably so. However, I believe that to give a book a higher rating just to spare an author's feelings is not only dishonest, but also does a disservice to that author.
'Bedtime' by Anthony Avila has the potential to be a terrific novella, however in it's current incarnation it is a bit of a disaster. What 'Bedtime' really needs is an attentive proofreader and a diligent editor. The plot is interesting and the characters aren't bad, but this novella is so full of grammatical and editorial errors that it is difficult to read. For example: " and never shied away from eating whatever her hearts content." The author probably meant to say, "... and never shied away from eating whatever she desired." Or even '... she always ate to her heart's content." Of the two options I would have chosen to use: "... and never shied away from eating whatever she desired." There are so many of these types of errors that I could list over fifty examples. A good editor and/or proof-reader would help the author catch these errors before the novella was released. In fact, thanks to the wonders of electronic books, it is not too late to make the changes necessary and to re-release this book.
On the first few pages the author mentions California four times. This is unnecessary, and I have never heard of "California sun drenched skin." Is this different from sun drenched skin in Oregon? Or New York? Sun drenched skin is descriptive enough without adding the word 'California' in front if it. Other examples of poor proof reading occur when incorrect words are used, such as "detour her" instead of "deter her" and "infuriation" (which I do not think is an actual word) instead of "frustration." This happens again when Timothy "balls" his eyes out. It should be 'bawl' not 'ball'.
Timothy and Nancy are a young, married couple with a four year old daughter named Felicity. They live in California and both have successful careers. When their previously calm four year old daughter starts waking up screaming in the middle of the night they are unsure what is happening. When Felicity tells her parents that there is a monster in her closet it causes different reactions for each parent. Timothy is inclined to disbelieve her claims while Nancy gives her the benefit of the doubt. Is there really something lurking in the little girl's closet? Or are her nightmares just a figment of her imagination? You will need to read 'Bedtime' to find out.
The storyline sounds promising and the plot isn't bad. It's just too bad that I was unable to really enjoy it due to poor editing. This could have been a 3.5 or even 4 star story, but with all the errors I cannot rate it higher than 2 out of 5 stars.
To read more of my reviews, visit my blog at http://amiesbookreviews.WordPress.com
The problem I encounter when reviewing books is that I promise that I will be truthful when reviewing anyone's work. The question sometimes arises (in my mind): how honest is too honest? I highly respect anyone who has put forth the immense effort it takes to write a book. Any book (good or bad) takes work, and often beginning authors are sensitive about their creations. Understandably so. However, I believe that to give a book a higher rating just to spare an author's feelings is not only dishonest, but also does a disservice to that author.
'Bedtime' by Anthony Avila has the potential to be a terrific novella, however in it's current incarnation it is a bit of a disaster. What 'Bedtime' really needs is an attentive proofreader and a diligent editor. The plot is interesting and the characters aren't bad, but this novella is so full of grammatical and editorial errors that it is difficult to read. For example: " and never shied away from eating whatever her hearts content." The author probably meant to say, "... and never shied away from eating whatever she desired." Or even '... she always ate to her heart's content." Of the two options I would have chosen to use: "... and never shied away from eating whatever she desired." There are so many of these types of errors that I could list over fifty examples. A good editor and/or proof-reader would help the author catch these errors before the novella was released. In fact, thanks to the wonders of electronic books, it is not too late to make the changes necessary and to re-release this book.
On the first few pages the author mentions California four times. This is unnecessary, and I have never heard of "California sun drenched skin." Is this different from sun drenched skin in Oregon? Or New York? Sun drenched skin is descriptive enough without adding the word 'California' in front if it. Other examples of poor proof reading occur when incorrect words are used, such as "detour her" instead of "deter her" and "infuriation" (which I do not think is an actual word) instead of "frustration." This happens again when Timothy "balls" his eyes out. It should be 'bawl' not 'ball'.
Timothy and Nancy are a young, married couple with a four year old daughter named Felicity. They live in California and both have successful careers. When their previously calm four year old daughter starts waking up screaming in the middle of the night they are unsure what is happening. When Felicity tells her parents that there is a monster in her closet it causes different reactions for each parent. Timothy is inclined to disbelieve her claims while Nancy gives her the benefit of the doubt. Is there really something lurking in the little girl's closet? Or are her nightmares just a figment of her imagination? You will need to read 'Bedtime' to find out.
The storyline sounds promising and the plot isn't bad. It's just too bad that I was unable to really enjoy it due to poor editing. This could have been a 3.5 or even 4 star story, but with all the errors I cannot rate it higher than 2 out of 5 stars.
To read more of my reviews, visit my blog at http://amiesbookreviews.WordPress.com
May 30, 2015
This was an interesting short story. Super quick read. If you like horror stories it's worth the twenty minutes or so it takes to read it. You can find my full review here: http://courtneysreads.blogspot.com/20...
April 20, 2015
I really liked this book. I enjoyed the way it made a childhood terror be reality for adults, as well. I already own several of his books, and have put the rest on my wish list. I'm looking forward to those as well!
January 29, 2015
Received for free from the author! A good story, which definitely did dwell on childhood fears! Every child at one point or another has been scared of their wardrobe/closet and feared what could be behind that door. There are just two things I would like to point out. The first is that on page 5 you have stated within like one paragraph "she had" "and she had also" "she had also," which is repetitive so I would change the structure/wording. I would also like to point out a spelling mistake (sorry) but on page 22 "how pigheaded your being right now." which is the wrong use of your and should be you're.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews