A compilation of short stories all pertaining to...you guessed it. Aahhrrrooooo! There were some absolute gems and a few clunkers. My absolute favorites were Maberry, Meikle, Newman, and Smith. Here's the breakdown of each story:

Like Part of the Family - Jonathan Maberry

Mr. Hunter is a private detective that moved to Philadelphia. He can be very persuasive to get what he wants. Even if he's up against something not quite human. Great story.

5 out of 5 stars

Baby - James Roy Daley

It's good to know who the man really is that you're marrying, especially if you ever plan to have a family with him.

4 out of 5 stars

Anniversary - John Everson

Every month Margaret prepares for her date with Charles when the moon is full. When the sex is that good, you'll do anything for your partner no matter how unorthodox their relationship is.

4 out of 5 stars

The Virgin O' Full Moon Falls - James Newman

Quick little tale of revenge when a pack of rednecks attack the high school virgin queen.

5 out of 5 stars

The Trojan Plushy - David Bernstein

Another revenge tale that combines the werewolf with witchcraft and the Trojan Horse. Has a Twilight Zone-kind of feel.

4 out of 5 stars

Jesus When The Sun Goes Down - Simon McCaffery

The church camp counsellors are hell-bent to save the souls of their campers. But, who is going to save the counsellors?

5 out of 5 stars

Three Dog Night - John F.D. Taff

An animal control officer brings in a strange stray dog.

4 out of 5 stars

Grandma, What Big Teeth You Have - Rob Rosen

Grammy has a secret. Sammy thinks he know what is. He's right...and he's wrong.

4 out of 5 stars

Scarred For Life - Michael Laimo

Fairly predictable yarn about the birth of a father's child.

3 1/2 out of 5 stars

Hairs and Graces - William Meikle

Set in a fairy tale, magical and medieval Britain which makes for the perfect setting for a werewolf story. A female investigator is hired by a Lord to find the original owner of a belt he recently purchased. Ah, but this is no ordinary belt. Love, love this story. The only downside is that it ended when I wanted it to keep going. But, isn't that the sign of a good story - you don't want it to end?

5 out of 5 stars

Out of the Light - Douglas Smith

Jan is a hunter of shape-shifters from the old country. After a tragic mistake takes the life of the girl he loved, Jan moves to Toronto into the big city and away from their habitat. But as time passes, all things evolve. Great story.

5 out of 5 stars

Hungry Like The Moon - Rob E. Boley

A tale about what happens if you're a werewolf and are caught in the zombie apocalypse. Nice merge of genres.

4.5 out of 5 stars

Unlucky Moon - T.J. May

Be careful when you answer those ads on Craigslist.

3.5 out of 5 stars

A Taste of Blood and Roses - David Niall Wilson

A woman's disabled veteran husband is a werewolf. While the writing was decent, the story had no substance and went nowhere.

2.5 out of 5 stars

Under A Civil Moon - John Grover

Werewolves Union soldiers racing through the south. This southern belle knows what to do. Not a lot of meat in this story to gnaw on.

2.5 out of 5 stars

Unleashed - Nina Kiriki Hoffman

What to do about childcare when you're a new mom AND a werewolf. Could've been so much more entertaining than this mess.

2 out of 5 stars

Steak - Randall Lahrman

Turning into a werewolf is like discovering the Fountain of Youth. Simple and fun story.

3.5 stars out of 5

Silver Anniversary - Stephen M. Wilson

Wedding gifts can come in handy. Another simple, fun one.

3.5 stars out of 5

Buy A Goat For Christmas - Anna Taborska

A werewolf attacks an African village, but the blacksmith has a secret weapon. Great storytelling with a nicely fleshed out setting

4.5 stars out of 5

Sq389 - David Wesley Hill

A werewolf attack in virtual reality, blah, blah, blah. Don't even waste your time.

1/2 star out of 5

You can also follow my reviews at the following links:

https://kenmckinley.wordpress.com

https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5919799-ken-mckinley

http://www.amazon.com/gp/profile/A2J1JOKW56F2YT

3/5 stars

“Happily ever after, my hairy ass.”

An interesting concept, Snow wakes up from the Prince’s kiss but she doesn’t wake up right. Rather than the fun and beautiful (and in this interpretation, vulgar) girl she was before she has become a Horror, this story’s equivalent of a zombie.

It is a very, very vulgar story that actually managed to make me uncomfortable at times. That’s saying a lot because in real life I unintentionally cuss like a sailor, apparently my subconscious is a potty mouth. It did give a reason for the constant cussing but it was still abundant throughout the entire book.

It was told from multiple points of view. In some ways, how you got insight into a character’s mind and background, it was nice, but overall it just managed to make the story jump around. An event would happen but in the next chapter you were back before the event took place.

My favorite part of the story was learning about the background of each of the dwarves. Some people may argue that it is filler and unneeded but I have a huge interest in psychology, specifically behavior and what has happened in a person's life to cause that behavior. For me, the insight into how they got taken in by Bones (Doc) was what made this story special.

In the end, I had enjoyed the experience but the way it ended with nothing solved and an even bigger problem added to the mix upset me greatly. Yes, I do want to read the second book and see if things get resolved. Although I am annoyed that the reason I want to read the next book isn’t because I loved the writing in the first book, but rather because I want the real ending that the first book didn’t have.

“It hurts, yes? Don’t let that stop you. Don’t let pain or fear stop you. Keep rubbing, and you will mold that stone—that darkness—to your will.”

Zombie Fallout by Mark Tufo

The Ghost Files by April  Baker

That Risen Snow: A Scary Tale of Snow White & Zombies by Rob E. Boley

Because I need more books and I'm sure you all do too :)

Snow White bites the apple offered by the old woman and she is placed into a deep slumber until Prince Mikael wakes her with true love's kiss- but this is all of the normal fairy tale that you will find in That Risen Snow.  Snow White wakes up, but she isn't acting right and immediately takes a bite out of Prince Mikael.  As Snow White spreads her disease, the dwarves try to fight back only to be taken down themselves. The dwarves believe that a cure can be found to save their beloved Snow in a nearby town, but trying to survive the Horrors to get to the town proves harder than they thought.  Along with the Prince's soldiers, the remaining dwarves make it to town only to find that Snow's curse is bigger than they thought. 

I loved the idea of Snow White mixed with zombie;  bringing parts of the well known fairy-tale together with nightmarish horror. My favorite parts were some of the flashbacks to Snow White's past; we learn she wasn't the perfect little Princess in this version of the story.  The dwarves history is also very interesting. I liked learning about how they came to be and how they earned their names; these dwarves are far from perfect also.  The narration begins with Grumpy the dwarf, he probably has the strongest voice and character.  However, the point of view skips around through all of the other dwarves, the Prince, the soldiers and the Queen.  All this jumping around provided a few too many voices, I think it would have been more effective sticking to one point of view.  The twist at the end was a surprise to me, I'm glad that the story will continue and it seems like we will get to learn more of the Queen.  

This book was provided for free in return for an honest review.  

The first 10% has been torture. This was supposed to be a twisted dark fairy tale of Snow White with zombies. Sounds great right ? The lines are so silly, like the author was trying ti keep it kid-like disney + with made up words that sound like cuss words but aren't even words. It felt like a Dumb and Dumber trying to talk over the kids while stuck in dwarf bodies. Snow White ? She never did anything but bite and chew, no lines, no emotions, nothing. <Whinning> I wanted a good fun nightmare ! My heart is broken.

I

Quitting a book is the hardest thing to do