Hanging Corpses

by Jay Bower

From demons to cannibals…

Fifteen horrific tales explore vast landscapes of terror, whether it’s the woods at the end of the street or the icy reaches of space.

Nothing is off-limits.

Fear creeps through the tales and threatens to make the nightmares a reality.

Delve into Hanging Corpses and prepare to commune with the dead. They await your company.

Genres: Horror, Short Stories, Anthologies, Adult, Supernatural, Fiction

234 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 23, 2022

About the author

JAY BOWER is a horror author living outside St. Louis, MO in the forest of Southern Illinois. He spends his time reading, writing, and convincing his wife the dark stories he writes do not involve her.

One time punk-rock skateboarder and heavy metal kid of the 80s, Jay approaches his work with the same indie attitude as those early punk bands.

He's the author of several dark novels and short stories. He can be reached at jay@jay-bower.com.

Reviews

[Stitching Ghost · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this collection Bower really demonstrates that he can write across a wide spectrum of horror subgenres and settings. He also shows that can instill a sense of oppressiveness and bleakness pretty well without getting overly verbose.
There was one story that I felt was too long for its own good and a couple that I felt ended too abruptly and I wish Bower had given us a little bit more about his stories in the notes at the end but that's about all the negative I have about this one.

[Todd Love · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first from this author. This was a good variety of different genres of horror. The title story was my favourite. Stories ranged from 3 to 5 stars 🌟. Great to read by the camp fire 🔥, lots of haunted tales that will make you look over shoulder.

[Josh Hitch · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid collection of shorts

Its always hard to review an eclectic collection with lots of different themes and directions. They are all well written and I enjoyed most of them. In fact a lot of them I wished were longer, which is the best a short story can be, leaving the reader wanting more.

Highly recommended, looking forward in trying more of Bower's work.

[The_5ft_reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting collection of stories some were excellent some fell.a bit flat for me but overall really enjoyed 😉

[Stefanie Duncan · Rating 4 out of 5]

very interesting short stories! All very much different with different levels of horror.

My favorite stories were Accepting, the voice of a America, and Colony of the Damned.

[BooksandBacon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before I start with my review I would like to ask you a question, what's the first thing that attracts you to a book? For me, it's the cover, it's very important (I know there are great books out there with shitty covers but the story is amazing), then I go for the blurb followed by reviews or recommendations from my Twitter/Instagram friends who know my taste.

That's what happened with Jay's book "Hanging Corpses". Just look at the cover; it's perfect for a horror short story novel. I instantly reached out to the author, Jay Bower and requested an ARC which he graciously sent me.

There are 15 horrific tales, from a vampire living in a dead world (Good luck with that Mr Blood sucker!!) to a haunted hotel to a church with hellish connections!!.

Some are one or two pages long, others longer but they're all so good and creepy. It's my first read by Jay and I was hooked.

There are a few which I would love to see expanded, as they left me wanting more but sometimes the shorter the better as it leaves you with awe thinking "OMG what have I just read!!".

I highly recommend it to all horror lovers, you will not be disappointed.

[John Lynch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very nice range of stories here. I'm not the biggest fan of short story collections, but I liked Bower's range here, especially because almost everything I've read from has played with Demon's it was nice to see that he can do may different sub genres. My favorites here were Flesh Hook, Roosevelt is for Lovers, Hanging Corpses, and New World Hunger

[Jason Nickey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Impressive collection of stories from Jay Bower. Each one of these stories packed a punch, and there wasn't a bad entry in this set. Stand outs for me were Hanging Corpses, Remnants Of The War, Flesh Hook, and Rooosevelt is for Lovers.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing 😻 I recommend to everyone who loves spooky short stories. Kinda gruesome lol

[Kate Victoria RescueandReading · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Thin gelatinous tendrils escaped Steven’s eye from the space between his eyeball and his lower eye-lid, awakening him. This wasn’t the first time.”

There was a huge range of themes in this book of stories by Jay Bower. They were all pretty chilling, but the the titular story, Hanging Corpses, was by far my favourite.

I loved that the author describes his inspiration for each story; I always wonder what has inspired the writer to create their twisted tales, and with Hanging Corpses you get all the info!

Jay is an incredible writer, and if each of these short tales were expanded into a full length novel, I’d definitely read the heck out of them!! Some of the ideas were so fantastic, and I was so bummed when I finished reading! Whattt it’s over?! I want to keep going!!! 🤣

Good thing this author has quite a large bibliography! Can’t wait to dive into more tales by Mr. Bower.

[Joan Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank You Jay Bower

This is a Collection of 15 Horror/ Science Fiction stories. The stories are varied from Space Ice to Hotel California and many things in between. I enjoyed this book and I Recommend it to everyone 😊.

Creatures
Technology
Societies
Graphic Language, Violence, and Gore

[Asia Guerrero · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a fun collection!

This collection was full of great stories. I liked all, but some I absolutely LOVED.

Creepy crawlies in the eyes, cannibalism, and the terrors of America. Yes please! 🙌🏽

[John Durgin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun collection that really shows Bower’s range. I love his take on some familiar tropes! There’s a large variety here and I think there’s something for everyone. Be sure to check it out!

[Escapereality4now · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hanging Corpses


“Hanging Corpses”, by Jay Bower, is a collection of horror tales from different sub-genres

The book cover caught my eye immediately. It makes me want to sit with a cup of hot tea and soak in the Fall vibes.

The stories were disturbing and dark, that ranges from ghosts to demons to vampires.

As with most collections. I find them to be mixed bags. There are always some stories that pique my interest more than others. This collection had stories from various horror sub-genres giving the reader a taste of the author's writing. Although It’s rare for me to like every story in a collection, I enjoy reading them. I feel it gives me a well-rounded impression of the author's style.


My favorite stories included:
The cover story, “Hanging Corpses”, is my favorite from the collection. Other favorites included:

Tiny Piece of Soul
The Awful Gift
Colony of the Damned
New Worlds Hunger


Overall, it is a really well-rounded collection. There is a a tale in here for everyone. 3 ⭐️

[Wofford Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hanging Corpses by Jay Bower is a plethora of horrors all rolled up into one killer collection. Stories range anywhere from paranormal/supernatural to ones dipping into the sci-fi realm. I rather enjoyed the variety of tales presented within. It was hard to pinpoint my favorite, but if I had to choose, I would say “From the Depths, Risen” only because I haven't heard a great "battling demons" story in quite some time. That one was excellent. Other top favorites were “Tiny Piece of Soul” (the eye stuff got me good, so Kudos, Jay, for making me squirm), “The Awful Gift”, and “Flesh Hook” (those last two are stories dealing with cursed objects. I love a great cursed object story). But Jay gives you different takes on the end of the world stories, visiting other worlds tales, yarns with shape-shifting characters, narratives of ghostly revenge, and many more new original terrors. I look forward to stepping into Master Bower's dark realm again in the near future.

[Tera · Rating 4 out of 5]

Disturbingly Great!

It was the cover that caught my eye first. I am reeled in by floating bodies. The stories within were twisted and disturbing, but thought-provoking in their horror and morbidity. The first two stories really hit my heart with tales of childhood trauma and family rejection. Despite the horror aspect of both, the stories were so relatable.

I really enjoyed the monster stories with different takes on zombies, vampires, werewolves, and even cannibals. The creativity behind these stories is fantastic with the unexpected plot turns sprinkled throughout. Really worth the read.

[ScarlettAnomalyReads · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this collection so freaking much .

I don't normally end up giving a Short Story collection 5 Stars, because lets be honest, not every story is going to be a hit, its like a CD, you cant like all of them right ?

I have been proven wrong. Loved this.

I just randomly snagged it, well that's a lie, after the last book of his i read, i needed more.

Every story was so different, i was a little iffy on how each would end, and if there is one thing i love, its being bamboozled lol

I would find myself thinking , wow this character, love them, and I'm like no, don't get attached, you don't KNOW this author like that, you cant get attached .

I need more from The Roosevelt, I loved those, I need to know about more of the patrons and the staff..

I don't know where to go next, maybe Cadaverous

[Robin Ginther-Venneri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hanging Corpses
by Jay Bower

From demons to cannibals…
Fifteen horrific tales explore vast landscapes of terror, whether the woods at the end of the street or the icy reaches of space.
Nothing is off-limits.
Fear creeps through the tales and threatens to make the nightmares a reality.
Delve into Hanging Corpses and prepare to commune with the dead. They await your company.

Hanging Corpses
Tiny Piece of Soul
Remnants of the War
Flesh Hook
Damian
The Awful Gift
New World Hunger
From the Depths, Risen
Unstoppable Heart
Colony of the Damned
Roosevelt is for Lovers
Duardo (Roosevelt is for Lovers, Part 2)
Autumnal Thrill
Accepting
The Voice of America

All of these stories are freaking amazing in a horrific kind of way. My favorite, of course, must be New World Hunger because, ah, zombies! These short stories are well-written and easy to read, if you don’t mind some gore. They are written so creatively that you feel part of the story. I don’t know if that is a good thing or bad. Just kidding. It’s good. Well Done, Jay Bower. I am a fan for life.

[Brianna Bello · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love these types of books. All the short stories were great! My favorite was definitely Flesh Hook as well as Roosevelt is for Lovers part 1 and 2. My least favorite was definitely the last story, The Voice of America. However, that one also scared me the most. I mean, imagine if the world was like that? No way.

[Brandon Mccormack · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid collection. My favorites were From the Depths Risen, New World Hunger, Roosevelt is for Lovers and Accepting.

The last story is hilarious. I can imagine the author with a CNN implant in his head while writing this.

[Randi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book I've read written by Jay. I enjoyed all the stories, but a few stood out... now I must get his Dead Blood series.

If you enjoy a variety of horror and a fan of short stories, definitely give this one a go!!

[Alyssa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting

A few of the stories really had me enthralled. Some of the others fell pretty flat. Overall, enjoyable. I can see why this would be an absolute favorite of some!

[Cassie Nosko · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some cute & creepy short stories!

[Dave Wilkins · Rating 1 out of 5]

Short horror anthologies and compilations are my favorites, which is why this was so disappointing. Should have finished it in a day, but the stories were so bland and poorly written, I had to keep going back to it. I refuse to DNF a book I paid for, so I powered through each short story that dragged so badly they felt like novels (and not in a good way). Some seemed like they were written just to present a scary situation which would have been fine if they were something less cliche or at least not the same old horror tropes that have been beaten to death already. Others felt like they might have been trying to be metaphoric or allegoric, or maybe I was trying to see something where it wasn’t in attempt to make something out of a dull story… idk. Book sucked. 1/5 ⭐️

[Tasha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jay Bower can tell a story! This collection of 15 short stories is filled with human monsters, creatures of the night and day, and of horrors that could truly happen in our lifetime. The twists and turns you endure while reading this will leave you thinking about the choices you make in life. Just to be forewarned, you will be hooked on Jay’s writing and will be looking for more of his books!

Hanging Corpses is a story that not all monsters are creatures, they are our friends, neighbors, or family members. We all have a monster near us.

Tiny Piece of Soul is a gory, pain filled eye opener. I cringed the whole time!

In Remnants of the War, after you read this one, you will consider what lengths you would go to for love.

Flesh Hook is a horror historical fiction that is bloody and gory!

Damian. I had a friend in highschool whose name is Damian…this is NOT that guy.

The Awful Gift is hilarious! Be careful of where you buy your gifts for loved ones!!

New World Hunger, I love a good zombie story, but if you throw in a vampire finding sustenance during an apocalypse..what more could you ask for?

From the Depths, Risen is a fantastic story about a sinkhole opening up in a church. A group of scientists decide to lower a camera down to the bottom to see what it looks like. They should not have done that.

Unstoppable Heart is about a lonely ghost who still loves his one love in death. He haunts his home and watches over her. Mr. Bower figured out a twist you couldn’t possibly predict with this story.

Colony of the Damned is a cosmic horror story that happens on the planet Jupiter. Frighteningly fun!!

Roosevelt is for Lovers is the oddest short story in this set. A marriage is on the rocks and
the husband will do anything to help his marriage. So will the wife.

Dorado (Roosevelt is for Lovers, Part 2) is a short story of one of the characters in the previous story, Roosevelt is for Lovers. I like this additional story, it gives a new feel for the first part. Definitely a nice little bonus.

Autumnal Thrill is a howl of a good time! I liked the ending of this one, it isn’t your typical ending.

Accepting is a story of a man who finally accepts an invitation to a party. The hosts are extremely excited that he has finally decided to join them for a party and dinner. *Chef’s Kiss*

In the short story The Voice of America, is an alternative reality of what could happen in America’s future. It is thought provoking and downright surreal. It could happen, I just hope it doesn’t.

At the end of the book, there is a section where Bower tells you where his ideas came for each story. Apparently, the story New World Hunger is the basis of his Dead Blood series. I am definitely intrigued to read some more.

[RatedHforHorror · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are 15 stories in this book, Jay Bower also has an about the stories at the end which I totally loved learning about how he got these ideas and how certain stories came to be.

There are a lot of stories that I really enjoyed. Let me tell you about my top 3 (I'm going to count two stories as one because it comes in two parts.

Roosevelt is for lovers and Duardo (Roosevelt for lovers, part 2: This one is about a couple who are trying to fix their marriage. Things get a little heated and the hotel is more than what it seems to be.
Part 2: Is about Duardo who you meet in the first one very quickly and this is pretty much his story and how he became a worker in the hotel. I loved how it wraps everything up at the end and how sinister some people can be.

Colony of the damned: This one is a space horror. This is about a commander who is apart of a supply run for a base that lives on one of Jupiter's moon. We quickly find out that the base has gone dark and they have to leave the supplies there. Things escalate pretty quickly from there. In beginning you find out that our commander had a dishonorable discharge and his past comes to haunt him. I love space horror and this one was just eerie from the get go.

New world hunger: This is a vampire story. I just loved where this story went. That is all I'm going to say about it.

There is a good range of stories in here and some are fun and then some take a very serious tone (especially hanging corpses). This was a good set of stories and my first Jay Bower book. I can not wait to get into more of his books.

[Bradford · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first time reading anything by Jay Bower and I was impressed! There is a wide range of stories so there is something for everyone. Below I have my rating for each story. Favorites of mine were Accepting, The Voice of America, Hanging Corpses, and Roosevelt is for Lovers (both parts). One of my favorite parts of the collection was the short section at the end that spoke about the origin of each story. I currently live in Ohio and finding out the author was originally from Ohio and seeing some of the short stories taking place there was super cool! My overall rating for Hanging Corpses is 4.5 stars, check it out!!!

Hanging Corpses 4.75
Tiny Piece of Soul 4.5
Remnants of the War 3.5
Flesh Hook 4.5
Damian 4.0
The Awful Gift 4.5
New World Hunger 4.0
From the Depths, Risen 4.25
Unstoppable Heart 3.5
Colony of the Damned 3.75
Roosevelt is for Lovers part 1&2 4.75
Autumnal Thrill 4.0
Accepting 5.0
The Voice of America 5.0

[Lauren Gebhard · Rating 4 out of 5]

This anthology of horror stories includes a wide variety of themes and horror genres. From vampires to cosmic horror to political horror there’s a little something for everyone. The stories were well written and unique. There was even some body horror and humor. This well rounded collection of stories is a good addition to your collection.

My only advice would be to read the book, do not get it on audible. I purchased it on audible trying to get through the indie brawl books and the narrator was confusing and almost…corny, which took away from some of the creepies and horrors, and made it difficult to understand which character was speaking. He sounded just like Mr Mayhem from the Allstate commercials, drama and all. But even so, the stories were solid and the writing was great.

[MamaKate4 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, this book blew me away! 5 stars from the beginning!
This is a collection of horror stories, starting with the title story, which was creepy and beautiful. I'm not usually a short story reader, but the reviews and this cover had me wanting to give it a go, and I am so glad that I did! Some of my favorites included the first story, the church of hell story, and Autumnal Thrill.

These stories have a bit of several sub genres, and each of them leaves you with some tingling chills or moments of realizations of what the ending is truly about.

I will definitely be checking out more by this author!

[Siobhan Falen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short stories are always fun. They're like soundtracks to me. You get a bunch of variety, they're a quick read, and they're fun. This book did not fail to deliver, it was a large variety ranging from supernatural to just flat out terrible human beings.

Some stories I enjoyed more than others, but I think one of the flaws of this collection is that most of the stories felt "too" short. I would have liked to have read more, gotten a better understanding of the darkness being captured in the tale. I felt like my toes were dipped in the water but I wasn't pulled in. I would have liked to be fully dunked in the stories.

It was a fun collection.