Join your guide, Travis Brown, one of Reddit’s most-upvoted NoSleep horror authors, for a tour of his most chilling tales. Within you’ll find…
A team exploring a seemingly endless house, each door leading deeper into a mad world. A neighborhood where no one looks out their windows after 3 a.m. for fear of seeing the lone whistler passing through. A star-choked sky and a man determined to protect his family, even if it means cheating death.
Visit these locations and more in 22 terrifying short stories. When you go looking for monsters, don’t be surprised when they look back.
HOUSE WITH ONE HUNDRED DOORS by Travis Brown is an anthology of short stories that aims to unhinge its readers. The book earned 5 goose-bumpy stars from me!
MY TEASE…
This collection of stories is like opening a door into the Twilight Zone where the disturbing, eccentric, and ghastly are hungry to ensnare you. And no matter what your tastes are within the dimension of terror, Brown’s anthology offers a little of everything on its eclectic menu.
After partaking, the question is: Will you be full, or will you be…filling?
THOUGHTS…
This is a great book to nibble on. Meaning, that depending on your time restraints, you can select a longer story to read or choose one that’s only a page-and-a-half. Better still, you can devour the entire book in one sitting!
My favorite story is, in fact, the longest: HOUSE WITH 100 DOORS. This is a story about Aaron who, along with three other people, is invited to tour a house that is constantly shifting its floorplan, as well as its rules for visitors who wish to advance from room to room. Is the tour merely an adventure of mind games or is there a sinister purpose aimed at the unsuspecting players?
Thoughts about this read: I wish the author would develop this short story into a novel or novella! This story has so much to offer! In fact, HOUSE WITH 100 DOORS weighed heavily on my 5 star rating. I loved it!!!
In terms of writing, I really appreciated when I came across the many fresh figures-of-speech. Here are a few samples (I’ve made bold the figures-of-speech that made me say…wow!):
“All of the noise stopped at the same instant. We were left in the clearing, ears still aching, in a hangover of silence.”
Or how about…
“It was like painting a portrait in reverse. Every time I hit him, his features lost a little detail, began to blur and smudge.”
Then there’s…
“Her words were like little wasps crawling into my ears. Too distracting. Too much pain on the way.”
OVERALL:
HOUSE WITH ONE HUNDRED DOORS is a highly creative anthology that is both entertaining and eerie! Enter through its doors and see where it leads!!!
To call Travis Brown a horror author, although in many ways correct, belies much of what makes him a great writer. He weaves sentimentality seamlessly in-between moments of genuine suspense, breathing such life into his character you'd think you've known them for years. His writing pulls you in, crafted with the care and elegance of a five-star meal.
Each story included in 'The House with 100 Doors' is a universe onto itself, dropping you into worlds with horrifying creatures that stalk the night, reality-bending houses that hold terrifying secrets, and otherworldly beings that haunt your dreams. You'll scream, you'll laugh, and you'll cry - but you'll never want to book this book down (even if nightmares follow).
Do yourself a favor and pick up a copy; you won't regret it.
I got the chance to review this book through the r/nosleep (and the author's own) subreddit on Reddit. Short stories that leave the reader with an eerie feeling that there may be something more out there, and not necessarily (generally not) in a good way. I have started to enjoy short horror stories recently so I've been reading up on them. And I'm pleased to say this book provides!
General verdict: If you're into eerie and mysterious settings, with plenty of room to inject your imagination, and the feeling that there might be something more out there after reading, you're going to enjoy this book! My advice would be to take the book slow. You could read through all the stories at once, but you'll probably enjoy them more if you spread them out. A nice read in the evening before going to bed.
*Very light spoilers*
The centerpiece of this book is the House with One Hundred Doors, easily the longest story in the book at 51 pages (with the next longest clocking in at 12 pages), and still my favorite. The author manages to present a very mysterious and eerie vibe in the story without overly relying on descriptions. The environments are vivid enough to create an image in your mind, but don't bog down in details. You get the sense that a larger presence is around, messing with the protagonists in a way that you don't quite understand yet. No events feel unnecessarily shoved in, and there is only one instance where I thought that the description of events was there for shock value (looking at you Pillar Room). The story doesn't overstay it's welcome, keeps events nice, haunting and concise, and builds up well enough to where you do get a good grip on the personalities of the protagonists and the surroundings. There is no attempt to overly explain everything which I really like. It's an (admittedly horrifying) adventure and you're there for the ride, mystery and all. Really enjoyed reading it again.
The other stories are, as stated, much shorter, but that does not matter. Not every story worked for me to be honest, but obviously that heavily depends on what you're looking for and how you go into the stories themselves. The majority of the stories I truly enjoyed.
What the majority of the stories does really well is providing all the necessities for the short stories to work. Hooking you in with small, but not significant events, or simple hearsay provided by others in the book. They are eerie and well-written. I for one am definitely going to be checking the number of steps on stairs in houses. Events are portrayed through the eyes of the 'protagonists' giving them a more genuine feeling, feeling horrified and mystified right along with them. Many times no answers are given, giving you space to fill in your own ideas of what's going on.
One final thing that I liked about the stories is the fact that in most stories the events are not 'random'. What I mean is that events are generally justified, either because the protagonist forgot something important, tried some dumb stuff, or ignored some important gut feeling. There are stories where the character does not do anything like that, but in those cases it's usually just bad luck. I like the fact that there is no "evil for evil's sake", events feel like a part of the world, happening because that's simply how those events happen.
In short, I enjoyed the stories. And if you're into eerie atmosphere and mystery as well, then I think you might too.
(I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.)
This book had ups and downs. I normally like thriller short story books. But to be honest, there’s what seem to be one main story, 3 other long stories, and a bunch of filler. I think this book would have been a lot better with our so much filler. The main story and the other long stories were done well. I wish the author would have taken, less is more approach.
I bought this for "Something Walks Whistling", which is still one of my top /nosleep stories of all time.
The rest of the book is questionable. Some stories are okay, others fail to land. The title story, the house of hundred doors, had incredible promise, let down by being far too short. I could've used more time in the actual 'house' with a slower curve towards things going utterly bonkers.
Some stories are a lot better than others, though I guess that's generally the case with collections/anthologies. Would still recommend though, as there are far more good stories than so-so ones, imo.
Travis Brown is brilliant when describing unsettling atmosphere. The book is very enjoyable. Some stories longer, some just bite sized ones yet still terrifying. These are the ones that I enjoyed the most (no spoilers):
Something Walks Whistling - unsettling story about someone whistling at night at a certain time. There is only one rule in the peaceful neighbourhood, never ever look who whistles.
The House with 100 doors - a group of people are led by a Doc through a house that has loads of different overchanging rooms. An unsettling, brilliant story.
Eleven Steps - am architect warns his teenage son to never ever buy a house with a staircaae that has eleven steps. The son learns in adulthood the hard way why his dad made him promise that.
To Emilia, with love and worry - a secret admirer is sending Valentine gifts to a girl since she is 6 years old and every year the little something gets more horrible
The Night Itself - a story I read before in another collection from the publisher. One of my absolute favourites. A peaceful evening of a family is interupted when the stars on sky starts to disappear and lights go off. The way the whole situation is described is just eerie and brilliant!
The Graveyard Game - a young boy is invited by a girl from Tinder to play a game on cemetery with her friends. Little does he know, there are worse things out there than the dead.
I read horror these days with lowered expectations. Over many years as a fan, I've become harder to shock or terrify. What I look for in a book is something interesting and perhaps eerie. Imagine my surprise when one of the stories in this book pulled a W.W. Jacobs "Monkey's Paw" trick that actually gave me a solid 3 a.m. chill. That story is "Ballerina in a Box," & I won't reveal any more about it. Suffice it to say that it could hold its own in the best of Weird Tales anthologies.
The title story is another great one. It reminded me of "I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream," by Harlan Ellison. It's a long one, but well worth the investment of time. "When the World Became a Picture" is like a classic Twilight Zone, rebooted for the current time. Again, "We Cover All of the Mirrors at Night" had the feel of one of those timeless ghost stories.
Kudos to Brown & his publisher Velox Books, which is putting some damn decent stuff on the KU shelves.
I was familiar with Travis Browns stories before I read this book. So I couldn't wait to get my hands on more of his work. When I sat down to read it for the first time I was just settling into bed, I was planning on reading one or two stories before I slept. Well that didn't go to plan, I instead read the whole book! It was brilliant. This has only just been released and I already can't wait for the next one. Travis did a wonderful job on this book and I've already recommended it to everyone I know. If you love mysterious, horror riddled, cliffhangers that keep you thinking about them long after the book is over. This is the one for you.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I’ve been reading Travis Brown stories for years on Reddit. The Whistler has stuck with me all this time and I reread it at least once a year because it’s so creepy. I love that Brown leaves so much of the horror up to the imagination… what WAS behind that window?
Maria on the Moon made me sob unexpectedly the first time reading it and still does. Beautiful melancholic story of grief and fighting back death, learning to let go.
House of 100 Doors is a fun read, it’s the longest section of the book. I could probably read a series on this, with the world building.
I needed to know what the greasy nauseous red star is because I still haven’t figured it out! Time to scour his Reddit posts once again…
This book was an absolute blast to read, thank you Travis for taking me for an adventure with House with One Hundred Doors! The book starts with a couple of short stories to give the readers some background before plunging into the longer story where the characters explore the mysterious house.
The rest of the book contains a mix of short stories and longer ones.
I highly recommend this book if you love horror genre!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
ah, yes. r/nosleep. the horror experience you get there is just hits different.
this is a really underrated and solid short story collection! i know they are pretty popular on reddit, but still. some of these might give you the creeps, and some of these might tug at your heartstrings. there is something really beautiful, emotional and creepily ethereal in most (if not all) stories in this collection. definetly worth checking out.
"maria on the moon" absolutely destroyed me. i was considering a 3.5/3.75 rating but aaaa!! the last story just sealed the deal. four stars.
23 dark tales; a collection from one author. I appreciate when the work all comes from one author and they can sequence the stories in a particular way that they build on each other and/or give hints of connection. The title story was my favorite but all the stories were these creepy peeks at someones world of horrors.
My top 5: 🚪Something walks whistling 🚪The house with 100 doors (This story aligned to the title makes up the bulk of pages and is a great story.) 🚪A life in amber 🚪The mean thing that lives in the cellar 🚪We cover all the mirrors at night
This 5💫 book has me counting my steps, hesitating at doorways and ignoring mirrors!
I’ve heard about this author from a horror podcast I listen to, so I wanted to give it a try. I really liked the description and voice of his protagonists, a lot of the stories had a lot of connecting details that suggest a common mythos which I really enjoyed. The horror left me unsettled a lot of the time, and the concepts were super unique. Some of the stories were a bit too short for me (1 page and a half in some instances) and a few of them had endings that were very abrupt. Really enjoyed this collection!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Ready for 22 terrifying stories that will keep you on the edge of your seat? House with One Hundred Doors by Travis Brown is truly a masterpiece of surreal horror that is extremely believable, sucking you into the lives and misfortunes of the characters until you also just can't breathe.
This is hands-down one of the best short story collections I've read. The writing is seamless, the stories disturbing and eccentric, but they don't rely on shock or gore. Instead, there is emotion and poetry. This book is like binging Black Mirror in story form, and your imagination WILL run wild.
This book consists of a number of fiction oriented short stories. Some stories are longer than others and some shorter but they are all full of suspense and definitely leave you thinking about each story after you finish them. The way the author walks you through the stories is fantastic.
I would absolutely recommend it to those who like horror stories and cliffhangers.
I received a free ARC copy of this book but that did not affect my review in any way.
This is my first short stories collection reading. Personally brought me back to reading creepypasta as a teen.
The writing rocks. Especially the writer’s ability to paint a vivid five senses. Usually there’s a pretty fun but simple premise but explored in artistic lenses. I enjoy the loose connection between stories. I don’t personally invest in it too much but I appreciate the subtle world building of such. Excited to read more from this author!
There are two stories right in the beginning of this collection that are unquestionably 5 stars. Pretty original and excellently creepy. This is more dread horror than gore or peril based if that makes sense. Some of the later stories do not have the same impact as the early ones but the collection as a whole is still great. Some of the best horror shorts I’ve read and I have read an enormous amount of short horror in the past.
House with One Hundred Doors contains a stories to satisfy a variety of different tastes - some stories are short offer quick, creepy thrills, some are longer and filled with intrigue and at least one is genuinely sweet.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I remember the first story (100 doors house) is pretty good initially, but the ending is meh. I like the adventure premise at the beginning of the story, where the characters explore the weird house.. but it eventually becoming over the top quickly. I am talking about the idea that reality is created by this house or something silly like that
I decided to pick this one up after reading "Maria on the Moon" and being absolutely stunned by the writing style (ahem ... it's also free to read on reddit). Every story manages to be creepy and creative in its own way, but also emotional and poetic. Some even pull on your heartstrings in unexpected ways. Honestly, I could not put this down. Probably my favorite creepypasta collection so far.
Omg!You r a fantastic writer, I’m so glad I found your stories to read. I’ll keep reading every thing from u that I can find. U have such a great talent. Please keep writing, I’ll for sure keep reading, I’m so proud of u , Thank you very much, the last story was so good, I cried. Beautiful!!!
Thank you goodreads for a free copy of this title! Some of these stories were very well written and terrifying. The monster theme for some however, just seemed dragged out. An enjoyable read overall!
This was pretty great. A collection of short horror stories. Some creepier than others and a couple that were almost lighthearted but they were mostly excellent. The author is a well known writer of creepypasta on reddit and it's nice to see him spin that into a book.
This is one of the few short stories compendiums I managed to finish. I love anything horror, and the stories here captured every existential or real horror imaginable. They also made me overly emotional and made me think so deeply.
I loved how diverse this anthology was. From longer stories down to some beautifully crafted poems House with 100 doors has something for everyone. As an overall collection this has to be one the creepiest I have read recently