Beautiful Nightmares: Women of Horror Anthology

by Elizabeth A. Lance (Editor)

Demons, Vampires, Dark Readers of the Mind, Unspeakable Horrors and Ghosts that lurk in the night. When the sun fades behind the horizon and darkness falls, these are the things that chill your bones. Every bump, every whistle of the wind, every distant cry a nightmare waiting to unfold. Frightening. Terrible. Beautiful.
Beneath this cover you will find twisted tales of the macabre from some of the best in modern Horror,
Skye Knizley
SJ Davis
Laurencia Hoffman
October Weeks
Kindra Sowder
Faith Marlow
Petronela Ungureanu
P. Mattern
T.M. Scott
Nicolajayne Taylor
Cover design from Rebecca Poole of Dreams2Media
Read them, if you so dare, but leave the lights on. You never know who, or what, is lurking at the edge of darkness.
Beautiful Nightmares, a Horror Anthology from Vamptasy Publishing, the leader in Indie Horror.
All proceeds to be donated to the Los Angeles LGBT Center.

Genres: Horror, Short Stories

251 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 15, 2017

Reviews

[Jenni · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF at 27%. This collection is embarrassingly bad and I feel swindled for having paid 99 cents for it. This collection desperately needs an editor, better authors, or to not exist at all. I've read better short stories on Literotica, and that's an incredibly low bar. The crown turd in this pile was the inclusion of a 'novel teaser' that had clearly never been spell checked to any degree. As evidenced by a woman being pushed up against a 'baloney wall' (I can only presume the author meant balcony?)

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked it!

This book is several short stories from women of horror. I think they did well, but could have used a bit more suspense.

[Kris · Rating 2 out of 5]

Skimmed most of these. Wasn’t a fan. Also, many little editing things (perusing instead of pursuing, for example) that I think should’ve been caught by one fresh beta reader that would’ve helped make me happier (Although unfortunately wouldn’t help the stories, which I was disappointed in.) I enjoy Skye’s work, which is why I tried this out (and yes, I know she didn't write all these stories! But her name is why I opened this antho). Thank goodness for Kindle Unlimited.

[Christina Eleanor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Vamptasy Publishing has put together a fun grouping of stories for this anthology by women authors. I picked this up a few years ago and finally got around to checking it out. Here are a few of my favs from the anthology.

“Bad Religion” by Laurencia Hoffman is a vampire story with a hell of a twist. Most stories about vampires are about the vampire in control of a situation. Melina releases her rage on men but has a soft spot for women and children and leaves them alone. She finds herself in a pickle this time when she becomes the hunted.

“Card Trick” by P. Mattern is a story about three friends who decide to take an adventurous route in the cave system. But when their guide gets hurt, can they find their way out?

“Diary of a Dead Bimbo” by Petronela Ungureanu had me laughing so hard. This story is told from the perspective of a corpse in her coffin and what she hears and sees. Will she ever get her tunnel to appear?

“Poveglia” by A. Giacomi is a story loosely based on a haunted island in Venice. This island has a lot of history and death attached to it. I like that there is a short back story about the island and the history connected to it before this story. That quick synopsis helps to set the scene nicely. A tourist gets lured in to the beauty of the place, but what will she find around that next corner?

Lastly, “The Legend of Old Jack” by October Weeks is a fun retelling of the origins of the Jack-o-Lantern.

I enjoyed reading this anthology by authors I have never heard of before. I’ll have to keep my eyes peeled for the authors of these that I enjoyed so much. Check this one out!

[Shannon Schoolcraft · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding

This was an outstanding read. I loved each of the stories in this book. Can't choose a favorite because I liked them all. If you haven't read this book, I highly recommend it.

[Ilene G> · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good short story collection.

I like the variety of horror stories in here. It does not concentrate on one type of horror. Each building up to its climax. There twists and surprises. I recommend this for anyone who likes horror stories.

[Julia Andrizzi-Gold · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very Powerful Women

I originally got this book because of one fabulous author, Lily Luchesi. However, after reading her amazing story, I was honored to to be introduced to some other amazing women authors. Great job ladies.

[Colleen Taule · Rating 4 out of 5]

Each story was great at drawing me into it

Each story was great at drawing me into it. I felt like I was right there with the characters as I read.

[Ryan Coughlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome collection

These ladies take on a wild ride. Fun stories and remarkable craftsmanship. Especially enjoyed the last two. Great work! Excited to read more.

[Danielle Goodwin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lily Luchesi's "Criminally Undead" is part of the Paranormal Detectives series. This appears in the Beautiful Nightmares collection. It's a short story that gives us another piece of the puzzle. This one feels like a cross between a Grimm episode and a CSI episode. There are so many interesting connections. I love this for the same reason I love reading about Jack the Ripper! I can't wait to read the #5 tale in the series!

[Heather Henkel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good mix

As always there were some stories that were better than others but overall I enjoyed them all. I definitely recommend this collection.

[Janice Kujawa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing Anthology

Well worth the read. So many great authors and stories. Read with the lights on. Will definitely recommend to friends and fellow readers.