I would like to thank Quill & Crow for an advance copy of this collection in exchange for a fair and honest review

Publisher – Quill & Crow

Published – Out now

Price – £11.99 paperback £5.50 kindle ebook

An uncanny snowfall revives a cattleman's dead wife-with terrible secrets from beyond to spill like blood. A plague-like curse infects the memories of its victims, forcing them to go viral in increasingly grisly fashion. Twin sisters share a psychic link nothing can sever, not even the cold of the grave. Curiosity lures two stepbrothers into an imaginary haunted house-and the eager arms of its very real sole occupant. Infatuations. Trespasses. Abominations. Resurrections.

When I read an author’s collection of short stories then I am looking for variety. If every song on an album was the same, it would soon be quite painful to listen to. I want to see an author stretch, go long, go short, be prepared to take risks and perhaps an inventive cover version of an old tale. Very pleased to say that Jacob Steven Mohr achieves this in their new collection Bury Me Cold & More Last Words which I thoroughly enjoyed while being on occasion made to shive.

Among the many tales I enjoyed were

Empty Shells On A Cold Shore – A nighttime marine beach expedition to find sea turtles under an endless sky is turned into something very unexpected. An intriguing second person narration develops, and the ultimate reveal is massively unexpected and alarming. Cosmic horror when you least expect it and beautifully yet dangerously weird.

The Dear Darling Things – A lunar expedition tale but like you’ve never read it before. Gloriously strange with a touch of humour and I think best to come in cold to appreciate the inventiveness. Yes, I can tease you Gentle Reader!

Bury Me Cold - A glorious historical horror awaits in this story one of the longer tales in the collection. Three men are written to and attend a friend’s address but find the home empty and the man’s wife buried. One of the characters notices he has a letter and finds out what has happened. A beautiful bit of storytelling not going just for gore but a more emotional punch and a slow burning realisation why everyone has been brought together. While some elements are familiar its not quite the tale, I expected which I always appreciate, and the use of the cold snowbound desolate setting really enhances the tale. Wonderfully bare and haunting.

Color On The Lure – It’s a short cosmic horror story featuring an aquarium. Again, a tale you are better to just enter into, but the narrator and their view of the world is fascinating, and you question was this actually happening or in someone’s head and the final lines make you wonder which answer is best!

The Judgement – We move into dark fantasy here and this feels in some ways like a lost Robert E Howard tale. A priestess and her handmaiden go to convince a King to relinquish his faith in a death god. Its incredibly tight storytelling. A few lines of dialogue and description for most of it just setting up the characters but with a sense of doom getting bigger. It is bloody and nasty and has a really interesting magical conclusion I was surprised by but it is delivered very well and pulls the little clues all together. Sword and Sorcery fans will love this type of horror.

You Won’t Remember This – I loved this story of a twin writing to her sister. Things turn tragic for them but it’s the aftermath of that which makes the story turns into true horror and the creepiness of what happens to this young woman and her family is wrapped up in a tale of loss, grief and yet love too. Really works to pull us into the main character’s mindset.

Bag Work – In a versatile collection I really liked how this tale goes more into crime noir with a tinge of horror. Two old boxing trainers meet to discuss a recent fight between their boys, but our narrator has plans. Mohr captures the feel of the old timers and their hard and dangerous world, and it really feels like it could step from an old black and white movie with an inventive but emotional final page as revenge is finally played out.

Truth Serum – Another Impressive story and brings us more to 21st century horror is this tale of a strange event that those who witness it then seem infected with its power. All possibly to do with a TV show named Truth Serum that never existed. Mohr uses a more mosaic type story with text messages, recordings, youtube clips and news to paint the bigger picture as we follow the trail of destruction and escalation gets closer and closer. Powerfully ominous and a multimedia horror story that really got under the skin.

The Ones Who Got Away – a scientist known for her monstrous experiments finds her next body is still alive. This tale mixes light and dark and is delightfully ambivalent ass to who I the villain here and keeps us guessing all the way across. Sympathies are built, the world is created for us and it has depth and character in spades. The last paragraph makes us wonder whose side we have taken…

It’s a hugely enjoyable collection with added poetry and tales of loss, science fiction and never afraid to try different types of storytelling which means it never feels predictable and yet spotlights that Mohr lots of talent to savour. A very fine horror collection perfect for these dark and cold nights. I can highly recommend it!