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Shadow Bound: A Gothic Quartet
Here in one place are four gothic horrors from the pens of writers Stephanie Ellis and Alyson Faye. From the grime and misery of London’s East End in Ellis's 'Asylum of Shadows' and 'The Face Collector' to the supernatural darkness of rural England in Faye’s 'Night of the Rider' and 'When Dead Eyes Weep', you will experience the chill that only this branch of literature can give.
88 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 1, 2020
3 people are currently reading
12 people want to read
About the author
Stephanie Ellis
171 books114 followersStephanie Ellis writes dark speculative prose and poetry and has been published in a variety of magazines and anthologies. Her longer work includes the novels, The Five Turns of the Wheel, Reborn and The Woodcutter, and the novellas, Paused and Bottled. Her new post-apocalytpic/sci-fi/horror novel, The Barricade is due out this year!
She is a Rhysling and Elgin nominated poet, co-authoring the poetry collection, Foundlings, with Cindy O'Quinn, Lilith Rising with Shane Douglas Keene and solo work Metallurgy.
She can be found at https://stephanieellis.org
She is a Rhysling and Elgin nominated poet, co-authoring the poetry collection, Foundlings, with Cindy O'Quinn, Lilith Rising with Shane Douglas Keene and solo work Metallurgy.
She can be found at https://stephanieellis.org
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
August 17, 2020
** Edited as review is now live on Kendall Reviews! **
You may have seen a few of my reviews lately featuring the fantastic Stephanie Ellis or Alyson Faye. Alyson recently re-released her Christmas collection, and both Alyson and Stephanie appeared in the well done charity anthology; Diabolica Britannica.
When I reviewed Alyson Faye’s ‘Darkness Calls: Tales From the Shadows,’ I mentioned my sorrow over one of her stories not appearing. She messaged me and let me know why, and this duology is the reason.
‘Shadow Bound: A Gothic Quartet‘ features two novellas from Ellis and two from Faye.
What I liked: I loved that this quartet starts off with a double forward. Both authors give us a brief intro and it was such a great thing to see, that they both share such a love and passion for the horror genre.
Ellis starts off with her stunning Short Sharp Shocks release ‘Asylum of Shadows.’ which is a brutal and horrific page-turner.
The story opens up giving the reader hints that it is set in London during the time of the plague. After suffering some heartbreaking losses, our main character Marian is invited to come live in the local hospital by one of the Doctor’s. Once she gets there, she’s given her tasks and she feels a sense of comfort knowing she’s found a home, no matter how temporary.
Ellis creates a claustrophobic environment early on, which she continues to work and suffocate the reader more and more. I found it elevated just how creepy the setting was, of living and working in a hospital, surrounded by the ever-mounting numbers of the dead. To think about walking through the hospital morgue, at night, the only light being that of a candle you held – love it.
To wrap the story up, Ellis then injects a new job that Marian is assigned, this one devastatingly amazing. I never saw this bit coming and it was such a great narrative adjustment, working to amplify everything to another level.
This was such a quick, horrific read.
The second story from Ellis is the fantastic ‘The Face Collector.’ What a creepy tale. A simple man with a checkered past is enjoying some beer at the local inn. A stranger begins to converse with him and before long, the two have agreed on the man working for the stranger. Ellie just knocked this one out of the park. From the eerie business card, the stranger’s movements and arrivals, to the housemaid – it just kept pulling me in. Outstanding stuff and when you get to the ending, wow. Gruesome done right.
From here Faye takes over with her two stories. I’ve mentioned before how Faye is a must-read author for me, and these two stories show why. Much like Ellis, the first story is her Short Sharp Shocks release ‘Night of the Rider.’
This is a dark fantasy with horror on the fringes. I don’t read much fantasy, really only sticking to George RR Martin and Patrick Rothfuss, but this has no problem sitting beside those two literary giants.
We follow Barnabas, a man rushing home after racking up gambling debts and then running afoul of a hunchback. He soon realizes he is being chased by the mythical Rider, out to serve justice.
What I really loved about this story was that in a short page count we get a stunning story, but also a fantastic look at the backstory of the Rider. Usually, when something is this short the author will frequently leave the background details a mystery of the antagonist or monster (heavens knows I’ve done this!), but Faye tackles it full on and because of that we get a substantially deeper, richer experience.
The ending of this is superb.
To finish things off is the stunning ‘When Dead Eyes Weep.’ Originally a bonus story in Faye’s ‘Christmas Terrors‘ this was perhaps my favorite story in that collection. To see it get a proper release warms my heart.
Such a haunting and devastating story, we arrive as a boy and his family prepare to take a mortuary portrait with his dead younger brother. As the picture is taken, he spots what he believes is a tear falling from the deceased eyes. Things unravel from there. I loved this story so much. It was morbid, creepy, unsettling and just destroyed me emotionally.
What I didn’t like: Nothing. Truthfully. These are four stories from two amazing authors who are firing on all cylinders at the top of the short fiction game.
Why you should buy it: Faye and Ellis are clearly writing from a place of love and passion. Even when the stories are dark and horrific, the attention to detail and development of story and character show just how much joy these worlds bring them. Faye has long become one of my favorite writers and Ellis has joined that alongside her. To see them team up and deliver this brought a smile to my face. I sure hope more people discover these two.
You may have seen a few of my reviews lately featuring the fantastic Stephanie Ellis or Alyson Faye. Alyson recently re-released her Christmas collection, and both Alyson and Stephanie appeared in the well done charity anthology; Diabolica Britannica.
When I reviewed Alyson Faye’s ‘Darkness Calls: Tales From the Shadows,’ I mentioned my sorrow over one of her stories not appearing. She messaged me and let me know why, and this duology is the reason.
‘Shadow Bound: A Gothic Quartet‘ features two novellas from Ellis and two from Faye.
What I liked: I loved that this quartet starts off with a double forward. Both authors give us a brief intro and it was such a great thing to see, that they both share such a love and passion for the horror genre.
Ellis starts off with her stunning Short Sharp Shocks release ‘Asylum of Shadows.’ which is a brutal and horrific page-turner.
The story opens up giving the reader hints that it is set in London during the time of the plague. After suffering some heartbreaking losses, our main character Marian is invited to come live in the local hospital by one of the Doctor’s. Once she gets there, she’s given her tasks and she feels a sense of comfort knowing she’s found a home, no matter how temporary.
Ellis creates a claustrophobic environment early on, which she continues to work and suffocate the reader more and more. I found it elevated just how creepy the setting was, of living and working in a hospital, surrounded by the ever-mounting numbers of the dead. To think about walking through the hospital morgue, at night, the only light being that of a candle you held – love it.
To wrap the story up, Ellis then injects a new job that Marian is assigned, this one devastatingly amazing. I never saw this bit coming and it was such a great narrative adjustment, working to amplify everything to another level.
This was such a quick, horrific read.
The second story from Ellis is the fantastic ‘The Face Collector.’ What a creepy tale. A simple man with a checkered past is enjoying some beer at the local inn. A stranger begins to converse with him and before long, the two have agreed on the man working for the stranger. Ellie just knocked this one out of the park. From the eerie business card, the stranger’s movements and arrivals, to the housemaid – it just kept pulling me in. Outstanding stuff and when you get to the ending, wow. Gruesome done right.
From here Faye takes over with her two stories. I’ve mentioned before how Faye is a must-read author for me, and these two stories show why. Much like Ellis, the first story is her Short Sharp Shocks release ‘Night of the Rider.’
This is a dark fantasy with horror on the fringes. I don’t read much fantasy, really only sticking to George RR Martin and Patrick Rothfuss, but this has no problem sitting beside those two literary giants.
We follow Barnabas, a man rushing home after racking up gambling debts and then running afoul of a hunchback. He soon realizes he is being chased by the mythical Rider, out to serve justice.
What I really loved about this story was that in a short page count we get a stunning story, but also a fantastic look at the backstory of the Rider. Usually, when something is this short the author will frequently leave the background details a mystery of the antagonist or monster (heavens knows I’ve done this!), but Faye tackles it full on and because of that we get a substantially deeper, richer experience.
The ending of this is superb.
To finish things off is the stunning ‘When Dead Eyes Weep.’ Originally a bonus story in Faye’s ‘Christmas Terrors‘ this was perhaps my favorite story in that collection. To see it get a proper release warms my heart.
Such a haunting and devastating story, we arrive as a boy and his family prepare to take a mortuary portrait with his dead younger brother. As the picture is taken, he spots what he believes is a tear falling from the deceased eyes. Things unravel from there. I loved this story so much. It was morbid, creepy, unsettling and just destroyed me emotionally.
What I didn’t like: Nothing. Truthfully. These are four stories from two amazing authors who are firing on all cylinders at the top of the short fiction game.
Why you should buy it: Faye and Ellis are clearly writing from a place of love and passion. Even when the stories are dark and horrific, the attention to detail and development of story and character show just how much joy these worlds bring them. Faye has long become one of my favorite writers and Ellis has joined that alongside her. To see them team up and deliver this brought a smile to my face. I sure hope more people discover these two.
August 11, 2020
Shadow Bound is a treat, a collaboration of tales from two gifted authors who create such vivid atmospheres in their work, the reader is drawn in, teleported to the scenes represented on the page. When they bring us to the Victorian era, you’ll feel the curves of the cobblestones beneath your boots, carefully walking with purpose in case they might be slick from the ever-present fog and mist. When you reach that alley, walk on past… you don’t want to stroll down there.
That they do their homework and fuel that research with their imagination and skill is evident from the first page, and you will enjoy the journey all the way through to the ending that arrives too soon.
Stephanie Ellis and Alyson Faye are the authors that bring us these gifts, for which this reader is very grateful indeed. By all means, get yourself a copy and join the party!
That they do their homework and fuel that research with their imagination and skill is evident from the first page, and you will enjoy the journey all the way through to the ending that arrives too soon.
Stephanie Ellis and Alyson Faye are the authors that bring us these gifts, for which this reader is very grateful indeed. By all means, get yourself a copy and join the party!
November 6, 2021
This is a slim volume of four gothic tales of horror. Two tales each by Stephanie Ellis and Alyson Faye gives you the dark and brooding feelings of dread you come to expect from the writings of these amazing authors. The total book is 80 gages so it’s a fantastic day read for lovers of the genre. Grim and haunting, you will wish each story could just go on longer.
Grab a copy to add to your collection and enjoy!
Grab a copy to add to your collection and enjoy!
August 31, 2020
Gruesome, shocking, moving - what a fabulous collection of stories from two very talented authors.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews