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Bray
This splatterpunk collection includes five extreme and disturbing short stories.
A true crime crew sneaks into a forest after hours to cover one of the most gruesome unsolved crimes in history. Only they're not alone.
Gay for A psychopath falls in love with a gay porn star, but once he finds out he's straight, he decides to take extreme measures.
A Hopeless Dark A woman obsessed with dark romance books falls for her very own stalker. Only he has much darker motives than she realizes.
One Bad An abusive daycare worker accidentally kills a child while punishing them, leading to an unbridled massacre.
A Dish Best Served A man with a fetish for old food has a date with the kitchen sink.
This is not meant to be read by the faint of heart or easily offended. This is your final warning.
A true crime crew sneaks into a forest after hours to cover one of the most gruesome unsolved crimes in history. Only they're not alone.
Gay for A psychopath falls in love with a gay porn star, but once he finds out he's straight, he decides to take extreme measures.
A Hopeless Dark A woman obsessed with dark romance books falls for her very own stalker. Only he has much darker motives than she realizes.
One Bad An abusive daycare worker accidentally kills a child while punishing them, leading to an unbridled massacre.
A Dish Best Served A man with a fetish for old food has a date with the kitchen sink.
This is not meant to be read by the faint of heart or easily offended. This is your final warning.
- GenresHorror
232 pages, Paperback
Published August 29, 2025
7 people are currently reading
16 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
September 27, 2025
I'm a sucker for short story collections and this is a top favourite of mine! M.E. Smith is back and he's not holding back! This collection features five stories that will have your jaw on the floor. After each story, there is an author's note explaining the background of them which I thought was a nice touch. Such an excellent job done by Smith! I can't wait to read more from him. Splatterpunk and Extreme Horror lovers will really enjoy this one!
Bray: The famous YouTube channel called Eyes On Killers is so close to hitting 10 million subscribers! To reach that goal, they head to the Shasta-Trinity National Forest where the 10th anniversary massacre of 5 people happened. They never found the killer, Stuart Bray. These YouTubers are in for a hell of a surprise!
Gay For Payback: Phil Yorgutz was one of the most popular gay pornstars in America. He had quite the fan base. Derek being his biggest fan. Derek knew everything about him and couldn't wait to go see him at his meet and greet. But when he goes and finds out Phil isn't really gay, he accepts this challenge to make Phil his. This isn't Derek's first rodeo after all.
A Hopeless Dark Romantic: Helen is in love with the dark romance genre. When the newest book in her favourite series comes out, she devours it! She loves the stalker falling for the gorgeous girl. She wishes she were the woman in the books. When she sees a hooded stranger outside her house, instead of protecting herself, she invites him in.
One Bad Apple: Lisa was the daycare director of Petite Apples. A daycare for little kids and infants. She's always been very tough on them. When her least favourite kid starts to act up, she brings him in to punish him. But she takes this way too far.
A Dish Best Served Cold: Brent makes a strange and gross discovery about himself at a young age. He has to keep it hidden from his family. He keeps his secret hidden for years until he grows up and gets a house of his own. He can finally live out his desires in comfort. But one wrong step and everything is ruined.
Bray: The famous YouTube channel called Eyes On Killers is so close to hitting 10 million subscribers! To reach that goal, they head to the Shasta-Trinity National Forest where the 10th anniversary massacre of 5 people happened. They never found the killer, Stuart Bray. These YouTubers are in for a hell of a surprise!
Gay For Payback: Phil Yorgutz was one of the most popular gay pornstars in America. He had quite the fan base. Derek being his biggest fan. Derek knew everything about him and couldn't wait to go see him at his meet and greet. But when he goes and finds out Phil isn't really gay, he accepts this challenge to make Phil his. This isn't Derek's first rodeo after all.
A Hopeless Dark Romantic: Helen is in love with the dark romance genre. When the newest book in her favourite series comes out, she devours it! She loves the stalker falling for the gorgeous girl. She wishes she were the woman in the books. When she sees a hooded stranger outside her house, instead of protecting herself, she invites him in.
One Bad Apple: Lisa was the daycare director of Petite Apples. A daycare for little kids and infants. She's always been very tough on them. When her least favourite kid starts to act up, she brings him in to punish him. But she takes this way too far.
A Dish Best Served Cold: Brent makes a strange and gross discovery about himself at a young age. He has to keep it hidden from his family. He keeps his secret hidden for years until he grows up and gets a house of his own. He can finally live out his desires in comfort. But one wrong step and everything is ruined.
October 5, 2025
Holy shit this was such a ride, this is a short story collection ranging from a whole youtuber crew getting slaughtered to a daycare employee absolutely obliterating all the children at a daycare. All of these stories were absolutely brilliant. It has been ages since i’ve actually physically cringed at a book and have gotten nauseous from a story. Some of my favorites had to be….
Bray- A group of youtubers eager to reach 10 million subscribers decide to go to a spot where it was the anniversary of an absolutely brutal massacre, They never ended up finding the guy, but he most definitely wants to make a splash for the anniversary of one of his favorite days ever….
A Dish Best Served Old- A boy finds a love for old food that’s been sitting in the bottom of the sink. He loves it more the longer it sits there, as he gets older it’s no longer just a love to eat it, it also is his biggest and only turn on.
These were just two of the stories that I read but ALL of the stories in here were a ten out of ten. Like I said it takes a LOT to get me feeling sick or to cringe from a book, But there was countless times in this book that I had to take a step back and breathe because of the anxiety it gave me or drink some water because of how my food almost came back up. So for me this was a 5 star read!
Bray- A group of youtubers eager to reach 10 million subscribers decide to go to a spot where it was the anniversary of an absolutely brutal massacre, They never ended up finding the guy, but he most definitely wants to make a splash for the anniversary of one of his favorite days ever….
A Dish Best Served Old- A boy finds a love for old food that’s been sitting in the bottom of the sink. He loves it more the longer it sits there, as he gets older it’s no longer just a love to eat it, it also is his biggest and only turn on.
These were just two of the stories that I read but ALL of the stories in here were a ten out of ten. Like I said it takes a LOT to get me feeling sick or to cringe from a book, But there was countless times in this book that I had to take a step back and breathe because of the anxiety it gave me or drink some water because of how my food almost came back up. So for me this was a 5 star read!
September 28, 2025
Brutal! Bray has 5 short stories and an introduction by Stuart Bray. I’ve read when the mockingbird sings by Bray so I was excited for this collection! The collection:
1. Bray - A true crime YouTuber and his crew go to the site of a grisly murder that took place 10 years ago. What they don’t know is that the murderer came back to celebrate the anniversary.
2. Gay for Payback - A gay fan becomes obsessed with a gay porn star. When he’s rejected, he tries to win his love by force.
3. A Hopeless Dark Romance - A woman finds herself a part of her very own dark romance story with a stalker visiting her at night.
4. One Bad Apple - Daycare worker accidentally kills a child in a fit of rage. Not knowing how to explain herself, she decides to take everyone out.
5. A Dish Best Served Old - After developing an old food fetish as a teenager, a man finally fulfills his ultimate fantasy.
This was such a great collection of stories! I enjoyed the order of the stories and thought it was genius to put A Hopeless Dark Romance in the middle. It helped put a break on the depravity (even though that story was pretty gruesome too!). I also liked the last story (A Dish Best Served Old) because it gave some variety to the collection and it was sickening! My top two favorite stories were Gay for Payback and A Hopeless Dark Romance. Excellent writing and pacing. Great introduction to M.E. Smith’s writing!
Thank you to M.E. Smith for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!
1. Bray - A true crime YouTuber and his crew go to the site of a grisly murder that took place 10 years ago. What they don’t know is that the murderer came back to celebrate the anniversary.
2. Gay for Payback - A gay fan becomes obsessed with a gay porn star. When he’s rejected, he tries to win his love by force.
3. A Hopeless Dark Romance - A woman finds herself a part of her very own dark romance story with a stalker visiting her at night.
4. One Bad Apple - Daycare worker accidentally kills a child in a fit of rage. Not knowing how to explain herself, she decides to take everyone out.
5. A Dish Best Served Old - After developing an old food fetish as a teenager, a man finally fulfills his ultimate fantasy.
This was such a great collection of stories! I enjoyed the order of the stories and thought it was genius to put A Hopeless Dark Romance in the middle. It helped put a break on the depravity (even though that story was pretty gruesome too!). I also liked the last story (A Dish Best Served Old) because it gave some variety to the collection and it was sickening! My top two favorite stories were Gay for Payback and A Hopeless Dark Romance. Excellent writing and pacing. Great introduction to M.E. Smith’s writing!
Thank you to M.E. Smith for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!
September 27, 2025
M.E. Smith is such an amazing storyteller. The way he describes his characters, what they're seeing, doing, feeling, etc, is nothing short of amazing.
Each story in this collection is unique in pure M.E. fashion. These stories are brutal, vile, gory, and thrilling, and some have humor.
If you haven't read anything from M.E. yet, this book is a perfect smorgasbord of his talent.
Each story in this collection is unique in pure M.E. fashion. These stories are brutal, vile, gory, and thrilling, and some have humor.
If you haven't read anything from M.E. yet, this book is a perfect smorgasbord of his talent.
September 27, 2025
Bray is raw, brutal, and unapologetically human. M.E. Smith doesn’t just tell a story—he drags you into it, forces you to sit with the grit, the violence, and the heartbreak until you’re fully immersed in Bray’s world.
The pacing is relentless, balancing moments of harsh reality with surprising flashes of vulnerability that make the characters feel all too real. It’s the kind of book that leaves you unsettled but thinking about it long after you’ve turned the last page.
This isn’t a comfort read—it’s a gut punch. But if you’re drawn to dark, gritty fiction that doesn’t hold back, Bray is one you won’t want to miss
The pacing is relentless, balancing moments of harsh reality with surprising flashes of vulnerability that make the characters feel all too real. It’s the kind of book that leaves you unsettled but thinking about it long after you’ve turned the last page.
This isn’t a comfort read—it’s a gut punch. But if you’re drawn to dark, gritty fiction that doesn’t hold back, Bray is one you won’t want to miss
November 8, 2025
This was a great collection of stories! There’s no “theme,” just 5 splatterpunk stories, and I kind of love that. I loved how different each story was. I think my favorites had to be “Gay for Payback” and “A Hopeless Dark Romantic.” I felt for the mc, Helen, in the dark romance story. She was just lonely, and quite a bit delusional, but she didn’t deserve what happened to her. I did find the medical terms distracting at times when they were mentioned, particularly during the torture scenes in the stories. Full discloser, I did have to skip “One Bad Apple” simply because I didn’t think I was in a good mental space to read that story. I did enjoy the author’s notes at the end of each story. This was a fantastic collection, and I can’t wait to see what else M.E will produce!
September 15, 2025
Impressive debut from M E Smith Author a collection of short stories that are varied, brutal and fantastic to read,some of the torture/brutal scenes are long so check your triggers! with authors notes after each one describing the details, this is excellent Splatterpunk I loved it!
November 7, 2025
Short story collections, especially splatterpunk or extreme horror, are one of my favorite things. I prefer the short bursts, twisting my stomach and making me question my life's choices.
This one starts out pretty tame (comparatively speaking) and just gets more brutal. I laughed while reading about the daycare, which should tell you a lot. The last one, "A Dish Best Served Old," was the one I read this morning and wasnt disappointed. The ending actually made me cringe a little, even though I knew what was going to happen.
All in all, well worth the price on Godless (seriously...a great place to find books) and worth the time spent reading it.
This one starts out pretty tame (comparatively speaking) and just gets more brutal. I laughed while reading about the daycare, which should tell you a lot. The last one, "A Dish Best Served Old," was the one I read this morning and wasnt disappointed. The ending actually made me cringe a little, even though I knew what was going to happen.
All in all, well worth the price on Godless (seriously...a great place to find books) and worth the time spent reading it.
September 15, 2025
An amazing debut from https://www.facebook.com/author.mesmith a collection of short stories that are brutal, I don't review my short stories but I may start reading more of them after this experience. These stories torture scenes awed me with their straight depravity. I have read so much splatterpunk and these scenes were insane, I could feel them and they had me turning my head away from the words for all of the best reasons. I literally cannot wait to see where this author goes with his career and I will be there the whole way.
October 7, 2025
I loved how it had an introduction by Stuart Bray , I thought this was cool ! I was excited to read this collection of short stories. I loved how M.E took the time to describe characters in moments of what they see , do and feel during the scenes. I loved how each story in this collection was unique and different from one another but still a fun time and did not hold back either and had great pacing. I can't wait to read more books written by this author excited to see what's to come next.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews