I really liked Partridge's "Dark Harvest" with the Halloween Boy character, which was creative and engaging, so I was hoping that this short volume would be something similar, but, unfortunately, I was quite disappointed with the included offerings. It just takes so much talent to pull off a good short story - the likes of Kurt Vonnegut and Edgar Allen Poe can get it done, but it takes a literary luminary, it seems, to formulate a superlative volume of shorts. Most are mediocre at best, but I hate to say that this one couldn't really even muster that.
There were a couple of stories herein that were interesting, including a short story featuring the "Dark Harvest" universe. The standout for me, however, was the autobiographical (I think) account of the author's memories about the Zodiac killer in Northern California in his youth, which seemingly shaped his love of horror. I would have loved to have seen more of that - perhaps a volume regarding different people's experiences, real or fictional, during those dark days. Thus, the short chapter in this book which tells a good tale about those terrifying days, entitled "The Man Who Killed Halloween," was the best of the log. The Zodiac episode in Northern California was, I suppose, analogous to another set of slayings in southern California in 1969 (I don't like mentioning the names of that particular group of degenerates, as their victims are the ones who deserve to be remembered rather than the killers), the mastermind perpetrator often being accused with "killing the '60s."
Although the premises of some of these pages-long stories were promising, they were just too short to be of any substance.
-"Johnny Halloween" tells the tale of a corrupt cop recounting the circumstances surrounding the death of his brother, but overall, as with most of the others, it just didn't make much sense.
-I think my least favorite was "Satan's Army," about some religious wackos in the vein of Fahrenheit 451, which was just nonsensical and left too much unsaid.
-My favorite was "The Man Who Killed Halloween," which was the most genuine as the author's own recollections of what occurred in the wake of the Zodiac killings in the small town of Vallejo.
-"Black Leather Kites" was similarly weird, and needed much more of a back story to be effective. It did have some more comical elements which made it at least relatable.
-"Treats" was similarly odd and fantastical, but, again, as with most of the others, it just needed more substance and back story.
-"Three Doors" was passably decent, being one of the longer stories.
-Another of my favorites was the Dark Harvest Tale, which provided some background on one of "Dark Harvest's" most loathed characters, one who meets a much-deserved end - the vicious, corrupt police officer Ricks.
Not much else to say about this one, other than it's not really worth the time. I did like the additional Dark Harvest tale, but there just wasn't anything else that was very interesting, as much as I really wanted to like this compilation of short stories from an at-last capable author whose other, longer work I very much enjoyed.
There were a couple of stories herein that were interesting, including a short story featuring the "Dark Harvest" universe. The standout for me, however, was the autobiographical (I think) account of the author's memories about the Zodiac killer in Northern California in his youth, which seemingly shaped his love of horror. I would have loved to have seen more of that - perhaps a volume regarding different people's experiences, real or fictional, during those dark days. Thus, the short chapter in this book which tells a good tale about those terrifying days, entitled "The Man Who Killed Halloween," was the best of the log. The Zodiac episode in Northern California was, I suppose, analogous to another set of slayings in southern California in 1969 (I don't like mentioning the names of that particular group of degenerates, as their victims are the ones who deserve to be remembered rather than the killers), the mastermind perpetrator often being accused with "killing the '60s."
Although the premises of some of these pages-long stories were promising, they were just too short to be of any substance.
-"Johnny Halloween" tells the tale of a corrupt cop recounting the circumstances surrounding the death of his brother, but overall, as with most of the others, it just didn't make much sense.
-I think my least favorite was "Satan's Army," about some religious wackos in the vein of Fahrenheit 451, which was just nonsensical and left too much unsaid.
-My favorite was "The Man Who Killed Halloween," which was the most genuine as the author's own recollections of what occurred in the wake of the Zodiac killings in the small town of Vallejo.
-"Black Leather Kites" was similarly weird, and needed much more of a back story to be effective. It did have some more comical elements which made it at least relatable.
-"Treats" was similarly odd and fantastical, but, again, as with most of the others, it just needed more substance and back story.
-"Three Doors" was passably decent, being one of the longer stories.
-Another of my favorites was the Dark Harvest Tale, which provided some background on one of "Dark Harvest's" most loathed characters, one who meets a much-deserved end - the vicious, corrupt police officer Ricks.
Not much else to say about this one, other than it's not really worth the time. I did like the additional Dark Harvest tale, but there just wasn't anything else that was very interesting, as much as I really wanted to like this compilation of short stories from an at-last capable author whose other, longer work I very much enjoyed.
