Monster Brawl!

by Ben Howels, Hunter Shea, T.R. North

It's time to let the monsters loose!For this book, we collected stories of monsters doing epic battle with other monsters! The beasts could be classical by design with a unique twist, or they could be spawned straight from the author's imagination. The only rule: there must be a clear-cut winner at the end of each story; one of the creatures had to die!Some of the stories in this collection pit a single monster against another, while others are all-out gang warfare. Some are campy, some serious, but all a fight for the ages!It's time to get your game face on for twelve tales worthy of the title Monster Brawl!**No monsters were hurt in the writing of these stories**

Genres: Horror

308 pages, Paperback

First published June 4, 2017

Reviews

[Mya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay so let me preface this review with admitting that I have a story in this anthology. The topic of the call was something that I have been highly obsessed with for a long time. Monsters!! I was soo happy and am still stoked to be included in this collection, but so reading the finished product was a definite must. If you are a fan of ye ole Weird Tales, Creature Features and even a bit of Tales from the Crypt, like I am then this anthology has something for you. It's got biker demons, shape shifting creatures, and fiends from other dimensions...in COMBAT. Saying that in my Mortal Kombat voice. Giving major shutouts to Hunter Shea for his story "Monsters Milk," Ben Howels and his story "Market Forces" and "Save it for the Cameras" by T.R. North. There are some really good stories, but those kinda stood out for me. If you're looking for an anthology of enjoyable shorts, brawling action and chills, I really do recommend you check it out. Again, I am biased, but I have my copy and enjoyed it.

[Lydian Faust · Rating 4 out of 5]

This anthology of monster-battle tales could best be described as literary versions of the dark-fantasy role-playing board games of the 1970s, 80s, and 90s. These stories are pretty diverse, stylistically, but if you're a fan of the Forgotten Realms books or authors like Tanith Lee, Joan D. Vinge, Ursula K. Le Guin, Piers Anthony, or Raymond E. Feist, you'll probably find much to enjoy in this anthology. My personal favorites involved my arch nemesis- spiders! There were many original and creative monsters here, including gadfly shapeshifters and an elephantine killer. Overall, this was a decent mix of sci-fi and fantasy tales that transported me back to my sword and sorcery battle days.

[Dale · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book absolutely delivers what it promises in the title: monster versus monster fights, and lots of them. And there's a fair amount of variety within that unifying theme: sometimes the POV protagonist is a human caught in the middle of dueling nightmares, sometimes it's a human working with one of the monsters, sometimes it's a sympathetic monster who runs afoul of another monster, sometimes it's a less sympathetic creature hunting an even worse abomination. Each battle brings something different, from comedy to pathos, adventure to horror. My one complaint, such as it is, was that some of the stories felt like the opening chapters of novels, establishing the hero-monsters bona fides before the real adventure could begin. But others were complete, self-contained standalone pieces, which I appreciated.

[N.D. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice collection of short stories. My favorite is written by Mya Lairis.

[John R. Dailey Jr. · Rating 3 out of 5]

YOU WIN SOME, YOU LOSE SOME, YOU DO....

Hello, this is a pretty good collection. The cover is definitely misleading. The vampire story was, by far, the best of the bunch. Thanks.