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The Rack II: More Stories Inspired by Vintage Horror Paperbacks
You’ve been here before. You’ve spun THE RACK, marveling over the garish covers and embossed titles that drip blood or sprout teeth. Perhaps you’ve even held a few, skimming the back cover to figure out what story could possibly inspire such lurid images. But have you sampled its wares?
Go ahead, take another spin. These covers are all different than last time you visited. So many stories. See the bats? And look at those covers with the Ferris wheel and trapeze artists…who doesn’t love a circus? What about those creepy masks and that ventriloquist doll, those look fun, don’t they? Or you could take a trip to The Mall. Maybe buy one of those cute electronic pets that are so popular. Beep, beep, beep! The choices are endless when you spin THE RACK.
From ancient gods to tentacled monsters to houses you should never enter, these twenty-three stories have something for everyone’s taste. Today’s masters of horror know what you like, and they’ve made sure this book is filled with tales that will haunt you. And make you want to come back and spin THE RACK again and again and again...
Featuring stories
Alyssa Alessi
Poppy Z Brite
Christa Carmen
Mike Deady
Jamie Flanagan
Maxwell I. Gold
Larry Hinkle
Ai Jiang
Todd Keisling
Jenny Kiefer
Kristin Kirby
John Langan
Joe R. Lansdale
Eric LaRocca
Jonathan Lees
Jonathan Maberry
Jessica McHugh
Lee Murray
B. D. Prince
Michael Rowe
Mike Sullivan
Morgan Sylvia
Tamika Thompson
Jessi Ann York
Go ahead, take another spin. These covers are all different than last time you visited. So many stories. See the bats? And look at those covers with the Ferris wheel and trapeze artists…who doesn’t love a circus? What about those creepy masks and that ventriloquist doll, those look fun, don’t they? Or you could take a trip to The Mall. Maybe buy one of those cute electronic pets that are so popular. Beep, beep, beep! The choices are endless when you spin THE RACK.
From ancient gods to tentacled monsters to houses you should never enter, these twenty-three stories have something for everyone’s taste. Today’s masters of horror know what you like, and they’ve made sure this book is filled with tales that will haunt you. And make you want to come back and spin THE RACK again and again and again...
Featuring stories
Alyssa Alessi
Poppy Z Brite
Christa Carmen
Mike Deady
Jamie Flanagan
Maxwell I. Gold
Larry Hinkle
Ai Jiang
Todd Keisling
Jenny Kiefer
Kristin Kirby
John Langan
Joe R. Lansdale
Eric LaRocca
Jonathan Lees
Jonathan Maberry
Jessica McHugh
Lee Murray
B. D. Prince
Michael Rowe
Mike Sullivan
Morgan Sylvia
Tamika Thompson
Jessi Ann York
- GenresHorrorShort Stories
457 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 14, 2025
17 people are currently reading
34 people want to read
About the author
Tom Deady
47 books235 followersTom Deady's first novel, HAVEN, won the 2016 Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in a First Novel. He has since published several novels and novellas. He has a Master's Degree in English and Creative Writing and is a member of both the Horror Writers Association and the New England Horror Writers Association. He resides in Arizona where he is working on his next novel.
Be sure to follow Tom on BookBub for the latest on sales: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/tom-d...
Be sure to follow Tom on BookBub for the latest on sales: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/tom-d...
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
November 17, 2025
This collection is an absolute love letter to the golden age of horror paperbacks. With an introduction by the wonderful Sadie Hartmann (Mother Horror herself), this second installment leans even harder into that vintage, pulpy nostalgia.
Featuring 23 stories, each with its own flavor of dread, weirdness, and retro charm. Every author taps into that classic horror energy while still bringing something fresh and modern to the table.
If you enjoyed the first book in the series, consider this one a must read. It’s definitely an anthology I can get behind and one I’ll keep recommending to fellow horror lovers.
Featuring 23 stories, each with its own flavor of dread, weirdness, and retro charm. Every author taps into that classic horror energy while still bringing something fresh and modern to the table.
If you enjoyed the first book in the series, consider this one a must read. It’s definitely an anthology I can get behind and one I’ll keep recommending to fellow horror lovers.
October 14, 2025
An outstanding horror anthology - and that cover! "The Rack" anthology series (this is the second volume of short stories inspired by vintage horror paperbacks), deserves to be a classic, right up there with other long-standing horror anthologies of similar extraordinary quality and wide range!
"The Rack II" contains 23 stories (Lansdale's tale the only reprint), one poem ("The Rarest of Terrors (All I Could See)" by Maxwell I. Gold), an Introduction by Sadie Hartmann (Mother Horror), and an Afterword by the editor, Tom Deady himself. With names such as Joe R. Landsdale, Poppy Z. Brite, John Langan, Jonathan Maberry, Eric LaRocca, Ai Yiang, and Todd Keisling, there's no point dwelling on the writing or the story ideas: they're both superb, triumphs of originality, haunting prose, and fine characterization. Utterly next-level! I'll go straight to the stories themselves, mentioning my favorites - picking which was a very hard task for me, since I devoured them all in a couple of sittings, hugely excited and impressed.
From the get go, two heavy hitters set the tone perfectly: “The Laffin’ Man” by Poppy Z. Brite and “The Mall” by Lee Murray - both horrifying tellings of the worst disasters which can happen to a family, both meant to leave scars in heart and memory. Brite's tale is a real punch to the stomach, though the Murray story perfectly captures a harrowing situation much closer to reality, with a couple of creepy and disquieting moments included. The atmosphere and the descriptions are so good, I'd recommend the book for these two alone! Christa Carmen's "Comeback Kid" immediately follows (three favorites in a row!), and is an entirely different thing altogether: it goes deeply into the toxic environment of top gymnasts and their elite coaches, combining dread and suspense with body horror. Sheer perfection! “The Green” by Michael Rowe is next (four favorites in a row!), and takes on transphobia and homophobia head on, the focus on a teenager who's faced discrimination and bullying all their life - enter the little green creatures with the sharp teeth! Absolutely fantastic ending!
“The Creak on the Attic Stairs” by Tamika Thompson is a moving ghost story, about family, murder, and fateful consequences. I'd pair it with another favorite ghost story in the collection, the equally brilliant “We Have (Never) Been Here Before” by Jonathan Lees, in which a viewer watching a haunted house movie, expecting most predictions of theirs to be confirmed, find themselves on the wrong side of the screen.
Finally, three stories I'd suggest reading together: “Daughter of Dogs” by Jessi Ann York, about domestic abuse, war trauma, dogs, and a hint of witchcraft; “beepbeepbeepbeep” by Jenny Kiefer - wow, just wow! And “The Light You Follow Can Burn” by Jessica McHugh: an unpredictable tale of cult horror, mental trouble, and spouse conflict, filled with nostalgia and regret, and ending in ritualistic resignation. Marital bliss has never been so dark before!
I also eagerly recommend checking out Ai Jiang's tale of religious horror and revenge, “Red God Waiting”; “Black Thumb” by Larry Hinkle (animal and plant horror); “Sickle-Shaped Claw” by Eric LaRocca (dinosaur ghosts - yep, you read that right!); “The Woodhill Wet Nurse” by Todd Keisling (freakish urban legend); “The Cartographer of Blades and Stars, Of Flesh and Agony” by John Langan (WTF did I just read?); and “Bats! Bats! Bats! (Fun for the Whole Family)” by Jonathan Maberry (the only one with some dark humor).
Closing the book I was ready to burst from excitement! If this is "vintage," sign me up - I can't wait for the third volume of "The Rack"! Highly recommend!
"The Rack II" contains 23 stories (Lansdale's tale the only reprint), one poem ("The Rarest of Terrors (All I Could See)" by Maxwell I. Gold), an Introduction by Sadie Hartmann (Mother Horror), and an Afterword by the editor, Tom Deady himself. With names such as Joe R. Landsdale, Poppy Z. Brite, John Langan, Jonathan Maberry, Eric LaRocca, Ai Yiang, and Todd Keisling, there's no point dwelling on the writing or the story ideas: they're both superb, triumphs of originality, haunting prose, and fine characterization. Utterly next-level! I'll go straight to the stories themselves, mentioning my favorites - picking which was a very hard task for me, since I devoured them all in a couple of sittings, hugely excited and impressed.
From the get go, two heavy hitters set the tone perfectly: “The Laffin’ Man” by Poppy Z. Brite and “The Mall” by Lee Murray - both horrifying tellings of the worst disasters which can happen to a family, both meant to leave scars in heart and memory. Brite's tale is a real punch to the stomach, though the Murray story perfectly captures a harrowing situation much closer to reality, with a couple of creepy and disquieting moments included. The atmosphere and the descriptions are so good, I'd recommend the book for these two alone! Christa Carmen's "Comeback Kid" immediately follows (three favorites in a row!), and is an entirely different thing altogether: it goes deeply into the toxic environment of top gymnasts and their elite coaches, combining dread and suspense with body horror. Sheer perfection! “The Green” by Michael Rowe is next (four favorites in a row!), and takes on transphobia and homophobia head on, the focus on a teenager who's faced discrimination and bullying all their life - enter the little green creatures with the sharp teeth! Absolutely fantastic ending!
“The Creak on the Attic Stairs” by Tamika Thompson is a moving ghost story, about family, murder, and fateful consequences. I'd pair it with another favorite ghost story in the collection, the equally brilliant “We Have (Never) Been Here Before” by Jonathan Lees, in which a viewer watching a haunted house movie, expecting most predictions of theirs to be confirmed, find themselves on the wrong side of the screen.
Finally, three stories I'd suggest reading together: “Daughter of Dogs” by Jessi Ann York, about domestic abuse, war trauma, dogs, and a hint of witchcraft; “beepbeepbeepbeep” by Jenny Kiefer - wow, just wow! And “The Light You Follow Can Burn” by Jessica McHugh: an unpredictable tale of cult horror, mental trouble, and spouse conflict, filled with nostalgia and regret, and ending in ritualistic resignation. Marital bliss has never been so dark before!
I also eagerly recommend checking out Ai Jiang's tale of religious horror and revenge, “Red God Waiting”; “Black Thumb” by Larry Hinkle (animal and plant horror); “Sickle-Shaped Claw” by Eric LaRocca (dinosaur ghosts - yep, you read that right!); “The Woodhill Wet Nurse” by Todd Keisling (freakish urban legend); “The Cartographer of Blades and Stars, Of Flesh and Agony” by John Langan (WTF did I just read?); and “Bats! Bats! Bats! (Fun for the Whole Family)” by Jonathan Maberry (the only one with some dark humor).
Closing the book I was ready to burst from excitement! If this is "vintage," sign me up - I can't wait for the third volume of "The Rack"! Highly recommend!
October 15, 2025
I enjoyed the second anthology in this series, which is inspired by vintage paperbacks. It begins with a haunting poem called "The Rarest of Terrors (All I Could See)" by Maxwell I. Gold. The first story, The Laffin Man by Poppy Z Brite (Billy Martin) is about a friendship that becomes more like a relationship, even if the two boys don't realize it yet. They share joy and heartbreak. Both have dysfunctional families, but are very different from each other. It goes into true crime territory, and it is a very good story that will devastate you.
I also enjoyed the Comeback Kid by Christa Carmen. I love a well-done "good for her" type story, and this one is full of feminine rage.
My other favorite is Bats! Bats! Bats! (Fun for the Whole Family) by Jonathan Maberry. The title alone intrigued me. I think bats are cute, interesting creatures. The characters were witty and realistic. The scenes with the bats were immersive and I could almost feel the bats flying above me. Despite the title, the story turns serious, touching on the effects of domestic abuse.
The anthology ends with a quiet, eerie story called By the Hair of the Head by Joe R. Lansdale. It is atmospheric and I swear I could smell the sea salt. In the story, I liked how all of the conversations between the college student and the retired lighthouse keeper kept going back to the topic of witchcraft. Even with the foreshadowing, the ending is completely unpredictable. I honestly enjoyed every story in this anthology and would definitely read another if a third came out.
I also enjoyed the Comeback Kid by Christa Carmen. I love a well-done "good for her" type story, and this one is full of feminine rage.
My other favorite is Bats! Bats! Bats! (Fun for the Whole Family) by Jonathan Maberry. The title alone intrigued me. I think bats are cute, interesting creatures. The characters were witty and realistic. The scenes with the bats were immersive and I could almost feel the bats flying above me. Despite the title, the story turns serious, touching on the effects of domestic abuse.
The anthology ends with a quiet, eerie story called By the Hair of the Head by Joe R. Lansdale. It is atmospheric and I swear I could smell the sea salt. In the story, I liked how all of the conversations between the college student and the retired lighthouse keeper kept going back to the topic of witchcraft. Even with the foreshadowing, the ending is completely unpredictable. I honestly enjoyed every story in this anthology and would definitely read another if a third came out.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews