The Alchemy Press Book of Horrors 2 edited by Peter Coleborn and Jan Edwards

Publisher - Alchemy Press

Published - Out Now

Price - £10.99 paperback £1.99 Kindle eBook

Strange stories and weird tales and all of the creeping horrors in between. Horrors 2 features seventeen fabulous writers, including Sarah Ash, Paul Finch, John Grant, Nancy Kilpatrick, Garry Kilworth, Samantha Lee ... to lead you on a spine-tingling tour from seaside towns to grimy cities, to the lonely and secret places, from the fourteenth precinct to Namibia ... and so many places in between.

Horror like any genre has some extremes. It could a gentle scare to full on bloodbath. Sometimes reading helps you work out where your boundaries are or how far into the deep waters I’m prepared to go before turning back. The second Alchemy Press Book of Horrors managed to do just that as many of the stories were brilliantly done but blimey there were often chilling.

So if you’re feeling ready for rich darkness here are a few of the tales in the collection I got struck by

Beneath Nambian Sands by Pauline E Dungate

This is a atmospheric tale of someone trying a rescue mission in the desert. Its clear something weird has happened but Dungate winds up tension to the last possible moment. And then bloodily unleashed.

Promises by Nancy Kilpatrick

This story in the collection that tells of love, loss and Whitstable. Horror movie fans may recall it’s famous resident. Melancholy and strange with a haunting ending.

The Secret Place by Samantha Lee

A mother and her daughter move to a old house or a writing retreat. The daughter left to her own devices make a new friend but tragedy is coming, This story is dark and unfair and chilling all at once. You’ll feel a shiver in the end.

Lirpaloof Island by Garry Kilworth

This story is dark comedy tale of an office prank that goes awry with deadly consequences. It mixes the absorb and the horror skilfully.

The Hate Whisperer by Thana Niveau

A really cold story where a young woman investigates how certain people when photographed experienced a massive and deadly change in their personalities. Nasty events spiral and the end is shocking and bloody.

We Do Like To Be Beside by Peter Sutton

A summer horror holiday that covers a nasty nightmare and that plays with the desire to be free of our families in a very unpleasant way. Great sense of building horror for the incident child experiencing events.

Foot prints in the Snow by Eyglo Karlsdottir

This tale mixes a weird world event with family grief. The dead can return when it snows and now snow can happen at any time. A mother finds her dearest wish can be deadly. Unsettling and bittersweet.

A collection with many strands of horror in there and I think gives a variety of experiences but when it wants to get its teeth into you it does. A set of tales I think seasoned horror fans will enjoy a lot