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Certain Dark Things
What grotesque surprises will you find in the secret place between the shadow and the soul? In her debut short story collection, M.J. Pack offers up a new breed of terror sure to delight any true horror fan. Don’t miss out on tales of telepathic twins, a campfire ghost story gone terribly wrong, pills that induce life-threatening nightmares, and the disturbing new sideshow at Coney Island: Lady Alligator. Take a haunting trip down infamous Bubblehead Road and follow Danny around the country as he’s pursued by unseen (and unrelenting) creatures. Prepare yourself, you’re about to indulge in some certain dark things...
192 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 1, 2015
16 people are currently reading
666 people want to read
About the author
M.J. Pack
29 books60 followersM.J. Pack, a horror fiction writer, has been obsessed with all things scary since she was a little girl growing up in the Midwest. Graduating quickly from Goosebumps to Stephen King at the tender age of 8, she dreamed of becoming a writer one day. After a brief stint in the world of marketing, she was able to make this dream a reality thanks to an amazing opportunity from the popular website Thought Catalog.
She now spends her days producing creepy content for the horror-loving masses, from short fiction to serials to true crime coverage. She considers Stephen King her role model and chief source of inspiration as a writer — as well as the ultimate career goal.
M.J. is the author of "Certain Dark Things," "Ravenous: Small Stories With Big Appetites," and "Highville State Asylum."
She now spends her days producing creepy content for the horror-loving masses, from short fiction to serials to true crime coverage. She considers Stephen King her role model and chief source of inspiration as a writer — as well as the ultimate career goal.
M.J. is the author of "Certain Dark Things," "Ravenous: Small Stories With Big Appetites," and "Highville State Asylum."
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews
October 20, 2022
This was really enjoyable
Alive- ⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Prom Queen is Dead- ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Got to Give- ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Tracking- ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Women Seeking Men- ⭐️
Drains in the Floor- ⭐️⭐️
I Hope my Sister Dies Soon- ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Dovere- ⭐️⭐️
Close the Door and Have a Seat- ⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Skinstealer- ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
If I Should Sleep with a Lady Called Death- ⭐️⭐️
Gracie is Gone- ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Bubblehead Road- ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Let’s Begin at the End- ⭐️⭐️⭐️
We Find Ourselves Infested- ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Fuimus Non Sumus- ⭐️⭐️⭐️
For Everything there is a Season (Danny’s Story)- ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Best Wishes, Irene Miller- ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Once Bitten- ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Previous Occupants- ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Haima- ⭐️⭐️
The Nightmare Club- ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
July 14, 2016
2.5 stars.
I'm familiar with some of M.J. Pack's writing on Creepy Catalog, which I really think is her best platform. "Message board horror" is a bit of a craft, and Pack is great at it. Her work really reads like something you could have stumbled across in an Internet rabbit hole, or heard over a campfire with friends.
In a short story setting, though, a lot of her smaller weaknesses become exacerbated. Certain turns of phrases and literary techniques are over-used, the male machismo in some of the stories feels pretty forced, and the similarity between stories becomes obvious when you're binge-reading them.
I think Pack maybe also relies too much on her favorite horror movies, books, true crime stories, etc. to form the basis for a lot of her work. She does best when she's exploring her own ideas (as in "Everything Has a Season") rather than re-telling sequences from Trick 'r Treat or reimagining the story of the Silent Twins.
I should probably also add that part of the reason for the lower score was the choice of subject matter. I guess I should have known what I was getting with a title like "Certain Dark Things," but the use of subjects like rape, spree shootings and domestic violence really turned me off. This isn't to say the stories dealing with these subjects aren't effective - they are (particularly "The Axe"), I just wonder whether including them as light entertainment is very tasteful.
I'm familiar with some of M.J. Pack's writing on Creepy Catalog, which I really think is her best platform. "Message board horror" is a bit of a craft, and Pack is great at it. Her work really reads like something you could have stumbled across in an Internet rabbit hole, or heard over a campfire with friends.
In a short story setting, though, a lot of her smaller weaknesses become exacerbated. Certain turns of phrases and literary techniques are over-used, the male machismo in some of the stories feels pretty forced, and the similarity between stories becomes obvious when you're binge-reading them.
I think Pack maybe also relies too much on her favorite horror movies, books, true crime stories, etc. to form the basis for a lot of her work. She does best when she's exploring her own ideas (as in "Everything Has a Season") rather than re-telling sequences from Trick 'r Treat or reimagining the story of the Silent Twins.
I should probably also add that part of the reason for the lower score was the choice of subject matter. I guess I should have known what I was getting with a title like "Certain Dark Things," but the use of subjects like rape, spree shootings and domestic violence really turned me off. This isn't to say the stories dealing with these subjects aren't effective - they are (particularly "The Axe"), I just wonder whether including them as light entertainment is very tasteful.
October 27, 2025
This was such an enjoyable read. I often struggle to find horror books that don’t rely solely on atmosphere to scare you but are actually terrifying in their storytelling. This one wasn’t exactly “terrifying” all the way, by my standards, but it struck a great balance between a fun creepy vibe (fun for me, at least, it’s still solid horror) and genuinely disturbing moments. One story, in particular, I couldn’t finish and had to skip because I’m a bit squeamish when it comes to body horror.
Some of the twists and endings were so cleverly written that I had to pause and let them sink in before moving on to the next story.
Some of the twists and endings were so cleverly written that I had to pause and let them sink in before moving on to the next story.
September 21, 2016
A few good ones in here, but nothing really outstanding.
January 9, 2018
Certain Dark Things by M.J. Pack is my first completed short story collection for 2018. While I wanted to love this and all the dark, twisted stories in it, I came up at the end giving it 3.5 stars out of 5. There were a couple stories that I absolutely loved and thought were incredible, but most of them were just okay and a couple relied too heavily on that last sentence or paragraph “twist.” I listened to this on Audible because it was free a year or two ago. I think I may have given it closer to a 4 out of 5 had I read it because the narrator was a little monotonous for me and there were a lot of female leads in the stories and he did not really change his voice at all, causing a little confusion at times. Some of her tropes, mannerisms, and sayings are a little repetitive as the you progress through the stories, too. BUT, this IS the debut short story collection from M.J. Pack, and I can really see her growing as she refines her craft and gets deeper into that spot between the shadow and the soul. She knows how to choose topics that can get under your skin and make you cringe: rape, incest, spree shootings, etc.
My FAVORITE story was one about telepathic twins. Twins fascinate me; I am not sure why I am so obsessed. Perhaps because my twin niece and nephew just turned three on January 4th, the same day that my best friends welcomed IDENTICAL twin boys into the world, too (is this not the craziest small world?! And do I need to mention that the mother was our officiant and said twins were in her belly at the time, too??!) But the way twins can supposedly communicate with each other differently, have been reported to feel things/emotions of the other twin at times, etc is something that is on another level for me. And in Pack’s short story, there is a dominant twin and a submissive twin. The story is told from the POV of the submissive twin and, without giving too much away, the child is ready to stop playing second fiddle.
"You’re supposed to love your sister. Aren’t you? When I search my heart for that feeling I always come up empty, and yet there’s still that phantom cord running between the two of us, a kind of passageway from my mind to hers like the tunnels that ran under ancient asylums."
Do I recommend this? Yes. Do I recommend it with the fire of a thousand suns and all the approval ratings (like I would Full Dark, No Stars by Stephen King)? Nope. M.J. Pack is an author that I will continue to read!
My FAVORITE story was one about telepathic twins. Twins fascinate me; I am not sure why I am so obsessed. Perhaps because my twin niece and nephew just turned three on January 4th, the same day that my best friends welcomed IDENTICAL twin boys into the world, too (is this not the craziest small world?! And do I need to mention that the mother was our officiant and said twins were in her belly at the time, too??!) But the way twins can supposedly communicate with each other differently, have been reported to feel things/emotions of the other twin at times, etc is something that is on another level for me. And in Pack’s short story, there is a dominant twin and a submissive twin. The story is told from the POV of the submissive twin and, without giving too much away, the child is ready to stop playing second fiddle.
"You’re supposed to love your sister. Aren’t you? When I search my heart for that feeling I always come up empty, and yet there’s still that phantom cord running between the two of us, a kind of passageway from my mind to hers like the tunnels that ran under ancient asylums."
Do I recommend this? Yes. Do I recommend it with the fire of a thousand suns and all the approval ratings (like I would Full Dark, No Stars by Stephen King)? Nope. M.J. Pack is an author that I will continue to read!
January 13, 2025
3.5*
A solid collection of stories but not sure how long it will stay in the memory
A solid collection of stories but not sure how long it will stay in the memory
February 19, 2017
Some mixed feelings here.
On one hand: This is well done. It is very, very well written in the respect that some of these stories WILL in fact make you uncomfortable. They will confuse you, chuck you outside of your box, and make you think about things that the vast majority of people would prefer not to think about.
However, on the other hand: One can only read about rape and kidnapping and murder for so long. These are, obviously, sensitive subjects (and it takes a lot to write about them, I'm very sure)... But these themes came up so often, that by the end of the book, I felt like I was just reading different versions of the same story.
Were they meant to all tie in together somehow? Were they supposed to sound all alike, sans the smatterings and shorts which were even further outside of these human horrors? (I, in truth, can't tell.)
Goodness knows. I suppose that's the bottom line though, for people debating about reading this book: Well done, but quite, quite repetitive.
On one hand: This is well done. It is very, very well written in the respect that some of these stories WILL in fact make you uncomfortable. They will confuse you, chuck you outside of your box, and make you think about things that the vast majority of people would prefer not to think about.
However, on the other hand: One can only read about rape and kidnapping and murder for so long. These are, obviously, sensitive subjects (and it takes a lot to write about them, I'm very sure)... But these themes came up so often, that by the end of the book, I felt like I was just reading different versions of the same story.
Were they meant to all tie in together somehow? Were they supposed to sound all alike, sans the smatterings and shorts which were even further outside of these human horrors? (I, in truth, can't tell.)
Goodness knows. I suppose that's the bottom line though, for people debating about reading this book: Well done, but quite, quite repetitive.
December 18, 2019
CREEPY GOOD FUN!
I really enjoyed this book. All of the stories were intriguing and eerie. I look forward to reading more from M.J. Pack. I especially enjoyed the brilliant narration of Jacob York and I hope to hear more from him as well.
None of the stories are scary, more like Twilight Zone type chills and thrills with a little sprinkling of The Night Gallery, two classic shows of which I am a huge fan!
I have and will continue to recommend CERTAIN DARK THINGS:Stories. I anxiously await her next horror anthology!
I really enjoyed this book. All of the stories were intriguing and eerie. I look forward to reading more from M.J. Pack. I especially enjoyed the brilliant narration of Jacob York and I hope to hear more from him as well.
None of the stories are scary, more like Twilight Zone type chills and thrills with a little sprinkling of The Night Gallery, two classic shows of which I am a huge fan!
I have and will continue to recommend CERTAIN DARK THINGS:Stories. I anxiously await her next horror anthology!
October 4, 2018
Loved these stories! Excellent horror. Some parts can be a bit harsh and may be too much for some people as they deal with sensitive subjects. I think all of the stories were well written and those that included these elements worked to move the story forward, and they were not done to add shock value. Bubblehead Road was one of my favorites. It was scary, but also sad and makes you think about how we view ourselves and outsiders, and how outsiders view us. I will be checking out the author's other works.
September 20, 2022
A few of the stories were compelling and a bit creepy but the majority I felt fell a bit flat. Also a huge trigger warning for indications of sexual abuse in about 4 of the stories - potentially a tough read for some, and also felt like a bit of an unnecessary plot device.
January 9, 2018
A must-read if you like horror short stories.
November 2, 2020
I've read about 3/4 of the stories. Most of them are very short short. A few are longer. All of them are good. They're all super creepy more than being terror-inducing. Every one of them left me with a sense of unease. Some of them were in the 1st person which especially leaves you wondering if the story was from an unreliable narrator (my favorite). All the stories end at a point in the story where I was left wondering what happens next.
I still have some stories to read but I've been meandering through the book picking off one or two in between other books I read. I'm going to mark this as "read" now otherwise I'll forget
I still have some stories to read but I've been meandering through the book picking off one or two in between other books I read. I'm going to mark this as "read" now otherwise I'll forget
November 8, 2022
A pretty darn impressive collection of stories and surprisingly scary!
I listened to the audiobook and genuinely had to turn it off and have a break during For Everything There Is a Season (Danny’s Story) because I was so creeped out. If you can get your hands on the version narrated by Jacob York (currently available in Audible’s Plus Catalogue) I’d highly recommend it!
However some of the subjects of certain stories, such as domestic abuse and rape, did make me feel genuinely uncomfortable - and not in a Fun, Scared & Entertained way, which is why I choose not to give this full marks.
4/5 stars.
I listened to the audiobook and genuinely had to turn it off and have a break during For Everything There Is a Season (Danny’s Story) because I was so creeped out. If you can get your hands on the version narrated by Jacob York (currently available in Audible’s Plus Catalogue) I’d highly recommend it!
However some of the subjects of certain stories, such as domestic abuse and rape, did make me feel genuinely uncomfortable - and not in a Fun, Scared & Entertained way, which is why I choose not to give this full marks.
4/5 stars.
March 6, 2025
I bought this book for the story “For Everything There is a Season (Danny’s Story).” I’d heard it on the No Sleep Podcast a few times and it was among my top 5 scary stories. It was the first story I read when I got this collection. It did not disappoint.
Aside from that story, the best in the collection is “The Skinstealer.” It has great build up. I also really enjoyed “We Find Ourselves Infested.” It was…gross. If you read it, you’ll understand.
All in all, this was a fantastic collection of stories.
Aside from that story, the best in the collection is “The Skinstealer.” It has great build up. I also really enjoyed “We Find Ourselves Infested.” It was…gross. If you read it, you’ll understand.
All in all, this was a fantastic collection of stories.
May 9, 2022
I love me a scare so this was one of those I was initially listening to to pass the time. HOWEVER. it got me good. I usually don’t enjoy anthology style horror books but this one is probably the best I’ve read. The length of the stories ranges. Some are funny, some are weird and some genuinely got me (cockroaches. Ya feel) I will say that it need about 263748 trigger warnings as horror often does so tread carefully. But girl did good. Can’t wait to read more from this author.
October 18, 2021
2.5⭐ there were 2 or 3 of the stories that were pretty creepy but otherwise they were neither here nor there and I found myself either bored or so unengaged by the story that I tuned out. Not an awful selection and it was ok to listen to but I wouldn't recommend for anyone whos an avid horror fan as it will likely end in disappointment.
December 3, 2021
My first short stories collection and boy was it awesome. There were a couple of stories that I thought were a bit iffy but most of them were brilliantly freaky. M J Pack is a great storyteller. Do give this a read xx
At one point I was freaked out. Especially loved the stories about Gertrude, cockroaches, and Danny. I hope you all enjoy a good scare xx
At one point I was freaked out. Especially loved the stories about Gertrude, cockroaches, and Danny. I hope you all enjoy a good scare xx
January 15, 2022
These stories are hit and miss. You can clearly see Pack's inspiration, rewriting stories isn't a terrible thing for an author to do. Except when those stories were always rooted in Ableism and classism.
Having I look like a monster in certain light doesn't make that okay, it makes me think you're not actually media literate in the genre you're writing in.
A lot of these stories do have lacklustre endings.
Having I look like a monster in certain light doesn't make that okay, it makes me think you're not actually media literate in the genre you're writing in.
A lot of these stories do have lacklustre endings.
October 2, 2023
I'm beginning to think that short story collections are not for me. There are some really good ideas in this collection but I jyst want them flushed out from what I see as an outline for a publisher into a full length novel. I'm going to read the collections I've already bought but no more for me. It's just not fair if I review them.
June 14, 2018
Book of short stories, not necessarily all horror genre, but also the macabre and darkly unusual. Stories were okay, but I never got that WOW moment from the majority of them. The narrator was outstanding however...he really made the most of bringing the characters to life in each of the stories.
July 31, 2019
Well this had a lot of creepy stories. My favorite is the 3 part starting with damned snow. Very chilling but really there were a number of well crafted reads. However there was also a number of uncomfortable reads so fast forward through those of you need to. Great writing though.
February 22, 2022
I love horror short stories, but some of these weren't scary at all, they were boring and then they abruptly ended. The narrator did his best but the material just wasn't there.
The ones that were interesting ended way too soon, overall very disappointing!!
The ones that were interesting ended way too soon, overall very disappointing!!
March 8, 2023
I have really enojyed this book; some stories more than others. It was an easy read and has kept me entertained throughout. The mix of supernatural and "true" horror was nice to have also as it made the certaing things even darker.
June 7, 2023
A nice variety of tales. Jam packed with all kinds of stories to suit everyone's taste. This book was my return to Audible and Horror genre so trying to not pigeonhole myself into specific subgenres.
The narrator was good, overall a great read. Now in search of more short stories
The narrator was good, overall a great read. Now in search of more short stories
September 11, 2024
As a general rule, I suspect that I just don't like short stories. That being said I really enjoyed this collection. Some really creepy stories, great narration, but would have benefited from the female POV stories being narrated by a woman.
September 16, 2024
I absolutely loved the variety of stories. Some will definitely leave you thinking about them once you've put the book down. There are several stories that left me exclaiming “Oh my God” after reading the last sentence. I love when the author can flip the entire script in one sentence.
October 31, 2020
2.5 a couple of the stories are good but everything else was meh
November 12, 2020
This book was so very wickedly good. The stories were creepy and odd...my kind of thing. If you like Twilight Zone, Creep Show types of stories...get this! The narrator was just perfect!
January 24, 2021
An excellent collection.
October 10, 2021
Not bad at all, but nothing amazing here. There were a couple I didn't like at all, but the others all had something good going for them.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews