Vampires Don’t Sparkle, edited by Michael West (Seventh Star Press), has fifteen anti-Twilight vampire stories, all but three new. The strongest are by Lucy A. Snyder, Maurice Broaddus, and Douglas F. Warrick.
Gay City 5 Ghosts in Gaslight, Monsters in Steam, edited by Vincent Kovar and Evan J. Peterson (A Minor Arcana Press Incantation), is an interesting anthology of gay and lesbian horror. The title is misleading — few, if any of the thirty-seven stories, poems, and graphic novel are steampunk. There’s notable work by Ocean Vuong, Steve Berman, Gregory L. Norris, and Anthony Rella.
Anatomy of Death: In Five Sleazy Pieces, edited by Mark West (Hersham Horror Books), is an original anthology intended to provide a taste of the old lurid horror of the ’70s. It does, for better or worse, and while some of the stories are entertaining, most don’t stay with the reader longer than it takes to read them. There are notable stories by Stephen Bacon and John Llewellyn Probert, plus one by Stephen Volk that rivals the movie The Human Centipede for repulsiveness.
The Haunted Mansion Project Year Two, presented by Rain Graves and edited by Loren Rhoades (Damnation Books), is the end result of a writers retreat attended by seventeen horror writers in the fall of 2012. It includes essays, poems, and stories inspired by the weekend. The strongest stories and poems are by Weston Ochse, Sèphera Girón, Rain Graves, and Dan Weidman.
The Book of the Dead, edited by Jared Shurin (Jurassic London in partnership with the Egypt Exploration Society), has nineteen stories about mummies. The best are by Maria Dahvana Headley and Maurice Broaddus.
Eulogies II: Tales from the Cellar, edited by Christopher Jones, Nanci Kalanta, and Tony Tremblay (HW Press), contains thirty-two stories, with proceeds going to Tom and Michelle Piccirilli. There were strong stories by Michael Boatman, Gary McMahon, Gary A. Braunbeck, Eric J. Guignard, Malcolm Laughton, Thad Linson, and Monica O’Rourke.
Halloween: Magic, Mystery, and the Macabre, edited by Paula Guran (Prime Books), is a varied mix of seventeen original (and one reprint) stories about Halloween. All of the stories are readable, most are dark, a few are dark enough to consider horror. The strongest stories are by Brian Hodge, A. C. Wise, Lawrence C. Connolly, Maria V. Snyder, Stephen Graham Jones, Laird Barron, and Laure Bickle. There’s also a very fine horror novella by Norman Partridge.
The Burning Circus: BFS Horror 1, edited by Johnny Mains, is one of two special anthologies intended for members of the British Fantasy Society. The other is Unexpected Journeys, a fantasy anthology edited by Juliet E. McKenna. The Burning Circus is short, with no apparent theme, despite the title and includes eight stories, one a reprint. Ramsey Campbell provides the introduction. The strongest stories were by Stephen Volk, Adam Nevill, Lynda E. Rucker, and Angela Slatter.
The Mountains of Madness, edited by Robert M. Price (Dullahan Press), is an entertaining theme anthology of twelve stories centering and/or inspired by the H. P. Lovecraft’s novella of the same title. Some notable stories by Stephen Mark Rainey, Edward Morris, and Brian M. Sammons.
Bad Seeds: Evil Progeny, edited by Steve Berman (Prime), has twenty-seven horror stories about really nasty kids. With reprints by Stephen King, Peter Straub, Cassandra Clare, Holly Black, Joe R. Lansdale, and others. The best of the five originals is by Joel D. Lane.
Shadows Edge, edited by Simon Strantzas (Gray Friar Press), takes as its theme the edges between nightmare and reality, and although individually each story is quite good, unfortunately, as a group of fifteen, they seem awfully desolate/static. The standouts are those by Richard Gavin, Gary McMahon, Lisa Hannett, Simon Strantzas, Peter Bell, R. B. Russell, and John Langan.
Impossible Monsters, edited by Kasey Lansdale (Subterranean Press), is an entertaining anthology of twelve (all but one new) stories about new monsters. The meatiest stories are Chet Williamson’s tour de force that will make anyone who stays in hotel rooms totally paranoid and Joe R. Lansdale’s new adventures about supernatural sleuth Dana Roberts.
There were two volumes in the Terror Tales anthology series, edited by Paul Finch (Gray Friar Press): Terror Tales of the Seaside has fourteen horror stories taking place in the seaside towns of England. All but two stories are new. The strongest were by Gary Fry, Paul Kane, Reggie Oliver, Sam Stone, and Stephen Volk. Terror Tales of London features thirteen stories, ten published for the first time. The best were by Barbara Roden, Mark Morris, Nina Allan, Adam Nevill, and Rosalie Parker. The Allan is reprinted herein.
Barbers & Beauties, edited by Michael Knost and Nancy Eden Siegel (Hummingbird House Press), is a clever concoction. Created as a double book, with one half dubbed Beautyshop Quartet, consisting of four original stories by women, and the other half dubbed Barbershop Quartet, consisting of four original stories by men. The stories all take place within either a barbershop or beautyshop. The strongest stories are by Lee Thomas, Tim Lebbon, and Rhodi Hawks.
Weirder Shadows over Innsmouth, edited by Stephen Jones (Fedogan & Bremer), is the third in a trilogy of anthologies inspired by the H. P. Lovecraft novella The Shadow over Innsmouth. The volume contains a poem by Lovecraft, sixteen reprints by various writers, and seven originals, including notable work by Conrad Williams, Michael Marshall Smith, Angela Slatter, and Brian Hodge. The Hodge is reprinted herein.
Psycho-Mania, edited by Stephen Jones (Robinson), features thirty-four stories, a little more than half of them new, with interstitial material by John Llewellyn Probert pulling the anthology together (so that all the stories are seen as “case histories” of patients in Crowsmoor asylum for the criminally insane), and an introduction by Robert Bloch (a previously unpublished essay). While all the originals are good, the strongest are by Brian Hodge, Robert Shearman, Rio Youers, Michael Marshall, and Kim Newman. The Shearman and Newman are reprinted herein.
Zombies: Shambling through the Ages, edited by Steve Berman (Prime), has more than thirty zombie stories, eight of them reprints, all taking place from pre-history through the early twentieth century. There are notable originals by Paul M. Berger, Samantha Henderson, Carrie Laben, Livia Llewellyn, L. Lark, and Aimee Payne.
Appalachian Undead, edited by Eugene Johnson and Jason Sizemore (Apex Publications), features twenty all new zombie stories. There are notable ones by Maurice Broaddus, Michael Paul Gonzalez, Paul Moore, Steve Rasnic Tem, and a good collaboration by John Skipp and Dori Miller. Mountain Dead, edited by Jason Sizemore and Eugene Johnson (Apex Publications), is a chapbook extension of the anthology (ebook only) with four more zombie stories.
Zippered Flesh 2: More Tales of Body Enhancement Gone Bad!, edited by Weldon Burges (Smart Rhino), has twenty-two stories, all but three new. The best are by Shaun Meeks, Lisa Mannetti, Christine Morgan, and Michael Bailey.
Space Eldritch II: The Haunted Stars, edited by Nathan Shumate (Gold Fusion Media), is an all original anthology of eleven Locraftian space operas.
For the Night is Dark, edited by Ross Warren (Crystal Lake Publishing), has twenty original stories about fear of the dark, and the best stories are by Ray Cluley, Benedict J. Jones, and Carole Johnstone. One story is by publisher Joe Mynhardt, something I’ve never before encountered. Sometimes editors include their own stories — in the case of big name author-editors, occasionally they are required by their publisher to include their own stories for marketing purposes—because they’re a big name. I personally think it’s a lousy idea because it means there’s no editorial choice at play and that’s one of the most crucial jobs of editing an anthology. There’s no excuse for a non-name to do so. But for the publisher to force his editor to include that publisher’s story? That’s a conflict of interest.