Transcendence

by Charles Hash

A twisted tragedy wherein the predator becomes the prey, set in ancient Mesopotamia.

37 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 20, 2015

About the author

Charles Hash is a reclusive individual that doesn't like to talk about himself often. He has finally published two novels after years of struggling with writer's block, and he has written a few short stories along the way as well.

His work tends to explore the darker, grittier side of life, where there are no happy endings. There is always a price to be paid for everything, and usually the cost is too great a burden to bear. He writes with a hammer hidden behind his back, waiting patiently for the perfect moment to drop it in a series of blows that leaves the reader reeling.

In his plots, he explores hot-button topics between his characters whenever possible, pushing boundaries wherever he finds them. Within his published works you will find transgender characters, suicide, failure, grief, hopelessness, coping, survival; all of which are integral components in the specific brand of horror he creates, incorporating a wide variety of different styles into his writing as well.

Reviews

[Christina McMullen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm very picky when it comes to horror because there is only so many ways the genre can be done without a story resorting to shock value to set itself apart. This story has shock value of a different sort. The story itself is told in layers, with each building upon the last until we reach what we expect is the final resolve, only to find that... Well, I'm not going to ruin that part.
I will say that this story does contain some graphic scenes and sexual language that may be out of the comfort zone for some readers, but it is not, as one often finds in horror, gratuitous. Aside from a single raised eyebrow at one particular word choice, there was nothing so stark that it pulled me out of the flow of the tale.
I'd recommend this to fans of horror and dark fantasy who are looking for something a little different.

[Dwayne Fry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent, short read that will give you the creeps. I generally don't read a lot of horror as, frankly, it usually doesn't scare me. This short story definitely disturbed me.

Set in Mesopotamia in ancient times, the story deals with evil, the purest of evil, and seems to laugh at the folly of mortals that try to conquer it.

Chilling and weird, disturbing and disgusting... yet Hash writes it with such eloquence. Think Edgar Allan Poe taken up about ten notches.

[Joselyn Moreno · Rating 4 out of 5]

it was an interesting read, I think I didnt understand everything but I enjoyed it either way.

a good short read :)

[Georgia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Transcendence is a horror-mystery  short story by Charles Ed. Hash.
My attention being caught at the very beginning of the book, it was difficult to actually put it down.
Short stories-if are well written-are intended to give you a unique and full reading experience, especially if the author succeeds in shocking you. Transcendence did that to me. I did not get bored and I didn’t want it to end.. (again)
Every chapter is suspenful covered by actions not easy to tell and describe. The author though flows you easily through it. I will not mention anything about the characters-better read it than spoil it to you. The story is dark and macabre in an alluring way and it involves virgins of a temple who seek love and if fortunate they will live to experience it, to unnatural ..creatures.. who exist before the beginning of time and who seek anyone unfortunate enough to cross their path.

This short story made me look more into the genre, opening new options to me (since I was always keen on reading fantasy and science fiction).
I am officially a fan of the author and I can’t wait to read more of his work!

[Vibha Hegde · Rating 4 out of 5]

Creepy to the max level!! If I were to be asked to go to any place after dark after reading this, I won't. I won't even look under my bed at night after reading this! It's that super scary and very disturbing.

My first book by this author was Promise of Eden. I was scared with that but after few minutes I realized, that I do like the way it's written- honest, dark and perfectly deadly. It's how a horror or dark book is supposed to be. After that I attempted this book and I need a few days to recover to read another book by this author. If you have a weak heart, this book is not for you, but if you are an adventurous person, then you can definitely give this book a shot.

[Serenity · Rating 2 out of 5]

Had potential

I found the story hard to follow at times. There was an over use of the phrase, "... never seen before". The story ended very abruptly. I wouldn't recommend.

[Andreas Laurencius · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting art of writing, a well-done piece. The setting was so humble that the end came as unexpected. I was beguiled by the descriptive passages and had to read to the end of the story to finally understand it. It was truly brilliant that the story started with a virgin who had no longing but to be loved. There were five main characters, five desires, one path, five ends, one virtue. Death is everywhere, but true chivalry is rare.