S.J.Budd

The Outsiders is a really cleverly written horror anthology featuring some pretty fine horror talent from critically authors such as Stephen Bacon, James Everington, Gary Fry, V.H.Leslie, Rosanne Rabinowitz and Kevin Lucia contributing the introduction.I loved how these stories were written by different authors but the stories work really well together creating a really quirky horror anthology. What's really clever about this is that the five stories all are centred around a mysterious cult like gated community known as Priory. In this very small and secular society they worship a strange eldritch sea creature who communicates via colours offering them wisdom and enlightenment in return. The cult is headed up by a nefarious Charles Erich who is worshipped, adored and feared by his fellow residents all hand picked by him to come an live inside Priory an exclusive neighbourhood that everyone wants to live in. At first glance it seems the perfect neighbourhood, no crime, ever...

"In the quiet of the forest, the darkest fears are born." Sally thought she'd found her happily ever after when she finally moves with her boyfriend, David McCavendish,back to his ancestral home of Dunballan, a remote town in the Scottish Highlands. She struggles to adapt to country life after spending many years in London. Once more she is the outsider, everyone  is guarding a secret, even David, the family curse of the McCavendish clan. The curse soon takes hold of David and Sally must work with ancient primitive magic to save the man she loves. This is yet another great book from Crystal Lake Publishing who are building up quite a reputation as publishers of great horror fiction. I've read many of their titles fiction and non-fiction and they're all brilliant. What really stood out for me straight away was how original the book was, for a novella it really packs a punch. There's some pretty deep questions raised in here which will le...

Hailed as the UK's answer to Stephen King, this guy deserves to be a horror star in his own right. His stories are genuinely really creepy and it's not often that I come across horror stories than genuinely scare me and leave me creeped out long after I've finished reading. But Adam L.G.Nevill is one of them. So far I've read quite a few of his short story anthologies, Before you Sleep, Tales from the Crypt and now, Some Will Not sleep. Each tale is amazing, with Adam Nevill tales there are no duds. He has incredible range as a writer using a variety of settings providing a really diverse landscape of tales. There are 11 short stories featured in here,  some of which you may be familiar if you've already read his free ebook, Before you sleep. A few of these I had already read, such as The Ancestors, Florrie and Where Angels Come in but it didn't matter. I couldn't wait to read them again particularly The Ancestors, a seriously creepy tale. Some Wil...

I'm a horror chick at heart but every now and then I do like to delve (sheepishly) into the world of literary fiction. There's been so much praise for this book and of course for the writer, Eimar McBride who on an over crowded stage has invented an entirely new way of writing. Released just last year The Lesser Bohemians has won the James Tate Black Memorial Prize, long listed for the Bailey's Women's Prize, Goldsmith's Prize and the Bord Gais Irish Novel of the Year. The cover is gorgeous, simple but really eye catching. This book is quite unlike anything I have ever read before. The language reminded me a little bit of Ulysses by James Joyce. At first it was really hard to get into and to be honest a couple of times I gave up, but I persevered. Why? Because there was something really compelling about the writing, half poem half prose, and after a while I got into it and then, I really got into it. It quickly became one of those books where I couldn...

Aphotic Realm is a brand new magazine dedicated to strange and sinister fiction. Recently they have produced their first issue themed around - Apparitions. If the first issue is anything to go by this horror fiction magazine is going to be making some big waves on the horror scene. This issue is available both in print and kindle but do buy it in print it is worth every penny. The content is absolutely divine. The magazine is full colour and in each page you can see the love and care that has been poured liberally over each page. Each story comes with it's own illustration, shout out to Gunnar Larsen for his amazing artwork. So before I'd even started reading the stories I absolutely fell in love with it! First off I started reading Dustin Schyler Yoak, one of the editors. I did think it was strange at first that the magazine would  start straight away rather than a brief introduction from the editor  as what I was reading was clearly the first horror story. ...

Hindered Souls: Dark Tales for Dark Nights is a really astounding debut collection from Hindered Soul's Press. This is a relatively new indie horror publishing company formed in 2016 and they have really started off with a bang. I have to admit I do love reading short horror fiction and had to buy this one even though I have so many queued up on my kindle. It features 25 brilliant dark tales and many of the authors featured in this are really starting to make a name for themselves. This had to go straight to the front of my kindle queue. What's great about this anthology is that there is a really wide range of horror styles, some are scary, some are weird whilst others are creepy and some have a really beautiful feel to them. There is something for everyone because we all have our own preferences. There were so many that I really enjoyed and whittling them down into my favourite pile was really very tough as the bar has been set really high. Highlights for me inclu...

This story was crazee!!! I've never read anything like it before. Leo X.Roberston is an author I discovered after reading his amazing short story Kelpies, as featured in the Monsters Exist Anthology from Deadman's Tome. So I leapt at the chance to have a sneak read of this before it officially comes out in August 2017 from Unnerving Never before have I read a horror story set in an abandoned nuclear energy plant which immediately stresses me out. Why would anyone ever think it a good idea to go poking around there? Nuclear energy really unnerves me, it's power is just so deadly, the side-effects last for hundreds of years. It's a naturally occurring energy source but just seems so at odds with what nature has to offer us. When not being an author, Leo X Robertson moonlights as a process engineer and he's used his technical know-how and flair into writing a really believable book on the dangers and mysterious qualities of "t he ineradicable nature of...