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The Monsters We Forgot: Volume 1
Have you heard the grisly truth about the real tooth fairy?
Or why certain children must never play in the rain?
What about the witch who lives in the projects?
Do you know the real reason we no longer recognize the ancient constellation Noctua?
Or the secret history of Canada’s most tragic monster?
Did you hear about that creepy tape that cures loneliness forever?
Or the weird pet with the big eyes, gorgeous fur, long stinger, and otherworldly powers?
A demonic wolf that hunts its quarry to the ends of the earth…
An inhuman abomination hidden deep in the Mexican countryside…
A bloodthirsty spirit perpetuating the brutal horrors he committed in life…
A beautiful god with a single, horrific command…
These are just a few of the monsters we forgot.
Within these pages, you’ll find a treasure trove of myths, legends, folktales, urban legends, historical accounts, and stories about horrors, both ancient and modern, that have been hidden, ignored, or forgotten entirely.
“The Monsters We Forgot” is a massive anthology of horror stories by an international team of authors ranging from award-winners and bestsellers to visionary newcomers. These stories draw inspiration from the folklore traditions of countries including Russia, Brazil, Mexico, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, Ireland, Wales, England, Norway, Nigeria, Greece, Poland, the Caribbean, the Middle East, Canada, and the United States, the tales in this three-volume collection range from original folktales and chilling myths to information-age monsters and modern urban legends, and everything in between.
Turn on the lights, check the locks, and settle in. You’re about to remember The Monsters We Forgot.
Or why certain children must never play in the rain?
What about the witch who lives in the projects?
Do you know the real reason we no longer recognize the ancient constellation Noctua?
Or the secret history of Canada’s most tragic monster?
Did you hear about that creepy tape that cures loneliness forever?
Or the weird pet with the big eyes, gorgeous fur, long stinger, and otherworldly powers?
A demonic wolf that hunts its quarry to the ends of the earth…
An inhuman abomination hidden deep in the Mexican countryside…
A bloodthirsty spirit perpetuating the brutal horrors he committed in life…
A beautiful god with a single, horrific command…
These are just a few of the monsters we forgot.
Within these pages, you’ll find a treasure trove of myths, legends, folktales, urban legends, historical accounts, and stories about horrors, both ancient and modern, that have been hidden, ignored, or forgotten entirely.
“The Monsters We Forgot” is a massive anthology of horror stories by an international team of authors ranging from award-winners and bestsellers to visionary newcomers. These stories draw inspiration from the folklore traditions of countries including Russia, Brazil, Mexico, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, Ireland, Wales, England, Norway, Nigeria, Greece, Poland, the Caribbean, the Middle East, Canada, and the United States, the tales in this three-volume collection range from original folktales and chilling myths to information-age monsters and modern urban legends, and everything in between.
Turn on the lights, check the locks, and settle in. You’re about to remember The Monsters We Forgot.
344 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 16, 2019
653 people are currently reading
189 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
May 5, 2024
A Treasure!
A delightful anthology. Filled with stories of horror and suspense from around the world.
I don’t know these authors. Never heard of them, but am so glad to have met them.
The book is an original piece of work that is so well written that I am so grateful that I found it.
Five stars. ✨✨✨✨✨
A delightful anthology. Filled with stories of horror and suspense from around the world.
I don’t know these authors. Never heard of them, but am so glad to have met them.
The book is an original piece of work that is so well written that I am so grateful that I found it.
Five stars. ✨✨✨✨✨
June 24, 2020
This is an intriguing collection of fiction that takes the stories and viewpoints of the lesser monsters, the forgotten and sidelined. The standout piece for me was John Di Donna's "Igoraphoria," a tale of Igor and the family business. What a ride! My absolute fav.
December 29, 2019
A solid collection of 34 horror short stories
The book is packed with superb horror stories. Some are better than other, as expected, and a couple are plainly terrible but the overall quality is excellent.
Not all of the stories feature an exotic monster, as the title would suggest: some of them are for example simple ghost stories. The mood that each story inspires varies quite a lot as well, ranging from extremely broody to (in some cases) much more relaxed.
Here are my thoughts on three of the stories I liked the most:
Les Maudits: an interesting take on an archetypal and well loved monster. Very well written, with plenty of clever ideas. Written by David J. Thirteen.
Quarry: easily one of my favorite story of the whole collection. A likable protagonist, a goth girl, night swimming in the titular quarry. What's not to like? I liked this story so much that it prompted me to search other narrative written by Bryan Miller.
Walker: this short story features one of the most interesting monster of the whole collection. Characters are well fleshed out and it's easy to follow the narrative. Written by Dan LeRoy.
I recommend this book, it's worth your money: you won't be disappointed.
The book is packed with superb horror stories. Some are better than other, as expected, and a couple are plainly terrible but the overall quality is excellent.
Not all of the stories feature an exotic monster, as the title would suggest: some of them are for example simple ghost stories. The mood that each story inspires varies quite a lot as well, ranging from extremely broody to (in some cases) much more relaxed.
Here are my thoughts on three of the stories I liked the most:
Les Maudits: an interesting take on an archetypal and well loved monster. Very well written, with plenty of clever ideas. Written by David J. Thirteen.
Quarry: easily one of my favorite story of the whole collection. A likable protagonist, a goth girl, night swimming in the titular quarry. What's not to like? I liked this story so much that it prompted me to search other narrative written by Bryan Miller.
Walker: this short story features one of the most interesting monster of the whole collection. Characters are well fleshed out and it's easy to follow the narrative. Written by Dan LeRoy.
I recommend this book, it's worth your money: you won't be disappointed.
January 1, 2020
A few really good stories and a few stinkers. I liked it enough to download volume 2 and see if that one is any better.
April 8, 2020
This is a pretty good collection. None of the stories was offensively bad, and most of them were pretty good. My main complaint is that most of them rehashed well-known tropes and concepts. A few of them save the day, especially that one story that compels you to read it outside. In this time of quarantine, it is quite an interesting and unsettling read. Overall worth checking out, but I wish there were more highlights.
January 6, 2020
Awesome Collection, Even Some Funny!
My favorite story in this book is Silver Market. It's so strange and yet so funny that I recognized this store immediately. Many tales are familiar like this. Easy, enjoyable reading.
My favorite story in this book is Silver Market. It's so strange and yet so funny that I recognized this store immediately. Many tales are familiar like this. Easy, enjoyable reading.
January 8, 2020
Excellent writing, excellent editing.
Excellent. Not a bad story in the bunch, and each one fit together perfectly. I'm impressed. This was one of the best collections I've read.
Excellent. Not a bad story in the bunch, and each one fit together perfectly. I'm impressed. This was one of the best collections I've read.
January 2, 2020
Very good
A wonderful selection of short fiction introducing a variety of lesser known and surprising monsters from horrifying to enchanting. Well worth the read.
A wonderful selection of short fiction introducing a variety of lesser known and surprising monsters from horrifying to enchanting. Well worth the read.
January 25, 2020
Awesome
Very enjoyable reading. Some of these books are scary, some thought invoking and a few that will touch your heart.
Very enjoyable reading. Some of these books are scary, some thought invoking and a few that will touch your heart.
September 14, 2025
Admittedly, I only I picked up this collection because the always delightful M. Regan has a story in it. And "How Crow Became a Scavenger of Corpses (An Excerpt from Oral Histories of the Quinnip'iac)" is as excellent and well researched as I would have expected from them. I feel like it is also dancing around some themes of heaven, hell, afterlife, and religion that are definitely a focus of their first solo collection.
Otherwise, I would likely have skipped this PoD, kind of cheaply made, collection from a publisher that has virtually no information about themselves anywhere.
And I would have been missing out.
Don't get me wrong, all the failings of the above are present as one might expect: its cheaply made, the editing is passable but not great, the formatting and sort of thematic and tonal ordering of the stories could use significant improvement, and its missing some regular QoL stuff (titles of stories and authors on every page, author names on the table of contents, an about the author section).
But...the selection of stories and their individual quality is fantastic with only a few weak entries. And other than Regan, these are virtually all authors completely unknown to me. We also have both authors and stories from a variety of countries, cultural backgrounds, sexual and gender identities. I have a couple other volumes of theirs, primarily because other authors I know were featured in them, and I'll see how consistent this quality level seems to be. If this is representative though, and they (hopefully) treated their contributors well, I'm curious how Soteira could have done with more of a budget since they seem to be defunct now.
There's a strong opener with Joel Hunt's "The Little Tooth Crone", a pretty horrific version of a tooth fairy story. Ian Ableson's "Blame it on the Cat" keeps the fairy theme going with a story both funny and terrifying concerning the little folk. Dustin Chisam gives us a sapphic and nordic shaded monkey's paw esque story with "The Oostel" that was a lot of fun. Joti Bilkhu's "Omophagus" feels legendary and dream like, an old fashioned morality tale but in the style of omelas written by Lovecraft.
I *loved* Leah Velez's "Requiem for a Troll", which is one of a few truly sad stories here along with Jeremy Megargee's aptly named final inclusion of "The Last Fairy Tale" and R.C. Bowman's "Because You Are My Baby" all of which are stars of the collection. I think Victoria Delpe was actually striving for something much more disturbing in the the vein of the Williows, but I think "The Seven Acre Forest" also falls firmly in this sad, heart-rending territory.
Bill Davidson's "A Stranger's Skin" is a great twist on a fairy/changeling story as well.
Bryan Miller's "Quarry" is a good coming of age horror story that I wish there was more of. I feel similarly about "The Sarcophagus of Sekhmenthet" which at times feels like its going to take a comedic turn but is instead a quality, weird fiction/mummy story and "El" by Eleanor Sciolistein. B.T. Joy's "The Laughing House" also falls into this lovecraft/weird fiction adjacent territory.
Daniel Crow's "The Ocelot" is a fabtastc ghost story.
"A Lonely Death" by Yevgeny Abramovich feels a bit like a creepy pasta or SCP, but is still of high quality. And Igoriphobia by John Di Donna is a funny, silly diversion about, well Igors.
While I hadn't read Tim Jeffreys The Ginneyghoul, a story ultimately about social class and poverty, I'm pretty sure I've read *something* about the Ginneyghoul before and am going to have to wrack my brain.
Otherwise, I would likely have skipped this PoD, kind of cheaply made, collection from a publisher that has virtually no information about themselves anywhere.
And I would have been missing out.
Don't get me wrong, all the failings of the above are present as one might expect: its cheaply made, the editing is passable but not great, the formatting and sort of thematic and tonal ordering of the stories could use significant improvement, and its missing some regular QoL stuff (titles of stories and authors on every page, author names on the table of contents, an about the author section).
But...the selection of stories and their individual quality is fantastic with only a few weak entries. And other than Regan, these are virtually all authors completely unknown to me. We also have both authors and stories from a variety of countries, cultural backgrounds, sexual and gender identities. I have a couple other volumes of theirs, primarily because other authors I know were featured in them, and I'll see how consistent this quality level seems to be. If this is representative though, and they (hopefully) treated their contributors well, I'm curious how Soteira could have done with more of a budget since they seem to be defunct now.
There's a strong opener with Joel Hunt's "The Little Tooth Crone", a pretty horrific version of a tooth fairy story. Ian Ableson's "Blame it on the Cat" keeps the fairy theme going with a story both funny and terrifying concerning the little folk. Dustin Chisam gives us a sapphic and nordic shaded monkey's paw esque story with "The Oostel" that was a lot of fun. Joti Bilkhu's "Omophagus" feels legendary and dream like, an old fashioned morality tale but in the style of omelas written by Lovecraft.
I *loved* Leah Velez's "Requiem for a Troll", which is one of a few truly sad stories here along with Jeremy Megargee's aptly named final inclusion of "The Last Fairy Tale" and R.C. Bowman's "Because You Are My Baby" all of which are stars of the collection. I think Victoria Delpe was actually striving for something much more disturbing in the the vein of the Williows, but I think "The Seven Acre Forest" also falls firmly in this sad, heart-rending territory.
Bill Davidson's "A Stranger's Skin" is a great twist on a fairy/changeling story as well.
Bryan Miller's "Quarry" is a good coming of age horror story that I wish there was more of. I feel similarly about "The Sarcophagus of Sekhmenthet" which at times feels like its going to take a comedic turn but is instead a quality, weird fiction/mummy story and "El" by Eleanor Sciolistein. B.T. Joy's "The Laughing House" also falls into this lovecraft/weird fiction adjacent territory.
Daniel Crow's "The Ocelot" is a fabtastc ghost story.
"A Lonely Death" by Yevgeny Abramovich feels a bit like a creepy pasta or SCP, but is still of high quality. And Igoriphobia by John Di Donna is a funny, silly diversion about, well Igors.
While I hadn't read Tim Jeffreys The Ginneyghoul, a story ultimately about social class and poverty, I'm pretty sure I've read *something* about the Ginneyghoul before and am going to have to wrack my brain.
March 13, 2020
A good mix
Some of the stories I loved and some I didn’t care for. The good ones made me believe there are other worlds, some wonderful and mystical and others with darkness waiting just out is sight. But there were a few that ended abruptly and caused me to think the author just wore out. Overall I enjoyed it.
Some of the stories I loved and some I didn’t care for. The good ones made me believe there are other worlds, some wonderful and mystical and others with darkness waiting just out is sight. But there were a few that ended abruptly and caused me to think the author just wore out. Overall I enjoyed it.
April 14, 2020
Charming!
The Monsters We Forgot: Volume 1 was an interesting and well edited collection of short stories. The range of stories went from scary to charming. I recommend this book to anyone who likes a bit of horror with a side of irony and a dab of fantasy. I have ordered the second and third volumes.
The Monsters We Forgot: Volume 1 was an interesting and well edited collection of short stories. The range of stories went from scary to charming. I recommend this book to anyone who likes a bit of horror with a side of irony and a dab of fantasy. I have ordered the second and third volumes.
August 30, 2020
Some really great stories
There are some terrific stories in this book. Some that you shouldn't read just before bedtime if you are prone to vivid dreams. Quite a few do not have a happy ending, so don't be surprised. I enjoyed reading them all, and I bet you will too.
Results: worth reading. Some stories I would give an 'R' rating, so not for kids.
There are some terrific stories in this book. Some that you shouldn't read just before bedtime if you are prone to vivid dreams. Quite a few do not have a happy ending, so don't be surprised. I enjoyed reading them all, and I bet you will too.
Results: worth reading. Some stories I would give an 'R' rating, so not for kids.
January 21, 2021
The horror. Or more the strange.
We’re all too jaded and spoilt and maybe too corrupted to be spooked by horror. Yeah I know that’s just asking for it ...
But anyway there are many solid and interesting stories in this collection, and one rare gem. Be careful when you go looking for the ancient gods. You might find them.
We’re all too jaded and spoilt and maybe too corrupted to be spooked by horror. Yeah I know that’s just asking for it ...
But anyway there are many solid and interesting stories in this collection, and one rare gem. Be careful when you go looking for the ancient gods. You might find them.
November 12, 2022
An interesting collection of horror stories about monsters / mythical creatures that readers might not have heard about. Some are completely new to me, others are retelling of the origins of such creatures, usually a much darker and scarier version. My favourite is the first story: the four rules you must know about the so-called “tooth fairy.”
December 1, 2025
The Last Fairytale
All the stories were amazing but the last one..oh my! The last Fairytale had me in tears. I went to my child home a few years ago. The barn was gone but the brick and cement bottom walls. My paintings were mostly gone but some of the magic was still there. I was 70 that year, hadn't been there in 40. Your story reminded of that
All the stories were amazing but the last one..oh my! The last Fairytale had me in tears. I went to my child home a few years ago. The barn was gone but the brick and cement bottom walls. My paintings were mostly gone but some of the magic was still there. I was 70 that year, hadn't been there in 40. Your story reminded of that
February 2, 2020
Read this over a period of days between other books. Nice compilation of creepy. Horror in bite sizes.
March 4, 2020
Good collection of Short stories. If you want read about some of the not so popular monsters this if for you. Really enjoyed it and would suggest it to horror fans.
April 10, 2020
Good stories.
The writers in this horror book did well in entertaining me. As usual, some stories were rather weak. Still, a good book to read.
The writers in this horror book did well in entertaining me. As usual, some stories were rather weak. Still, a good book to read.
Read
April 14, 2020I liked the book. Some of the stories were better than others. But in the whole it was a good read.
June 10, 2020
I really liked most of the short stories included in this compilation. A few were boring or had unsatisfying endings but most held my attention and were enjoyable.
July 20, 2020
Hits and misses.
August 2, 2020
A few stories were "meh", but most were pretty good. There were a few I liked so much they I looked up the author for their other works.
January 17, 2024
Worth reading. Not too scary. Several excellent stories in this collection.
February 13, 2022
A solid collection of monsters!
September 17, 2020
I see most people give this more stars than me, and it might have been one of the reasons why I bought it - I mean the bunch of 4 star reveiws, but I was bored to TEARS. I had to give up halfway, and never got around to finish it, and I guess it's a personal preference thing, it is not the quality.
Read
March 11, 2021Decent Anthology
Like many kids, I grew up loving monster books, and this book was a welcome way of reveling in that bit of childhood.
Like all anthologies, this is a mixed bag, but there were four stories in it that were truly excellent, so I can't give this less than four stars.
Like many kids, I grew up loving monster books, and this book was a welcome way of reveling in that bit of childhood.
Like all anthologies, this is a mixed bag, but there were four stories in it that were truly excellent, so I can't give this less than four stars.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews