Fear the Reaper, edited by Joe Mynhardt

(eBook; 2013: horror anthology)


Overall review:

Good mainstream horror anthology, worth owning.


Standout stories:

1.)  "Stumps" - Jeff Strand:  Darkly funny story about a man who seeks immortality and finds it.


2.)   "Death Squared" - Rena Mason: Two boys' friendship is tested when they visit a death site and encounter something more than ghosts.  The scenes will be familiar to those well-versed in ghost works, but the writing is fun and solid.


3.)   "The Death Catcher" - Robert S. Wilson:  Especially well-written and real-world plausible (within the context of this work) tale about a man whose ability to resurrect the dying brings heartache as well as relief.


4.)   "Cedo Looked Like People" - E.C. McMullen Jr.:  A boy's strange next door night- and day-divided neighbors make for equally strange - and later disturbing - friendships.  This Ray Bradbury-esque is one of the most memorable and one of the more original stories I've read in a long time.


5.)   "The Tubes" - Jeremy C. Shipp:  This is one of my favorite works in this anthology.  In a not-quite-bizarro science fictional world, death's dominion is political.  Like the preceding story, this one is memorable.


6.)   "A Life in Five Objects" - Ross Warren:  An interview involving the titular five objects takes a surprising turn.  Good read, entertaining.


7.)   "The Last Resort" - Sam Stone: Solid, plot-twisty piece about a man (Charlie), dying of cancer, whose eyes are opened to certain untimely revelations.


8.)   "Der Engel der Liebe" - Dean M Drinkel:  This story reads like a mid-Sixties to early Seventies Hammer film, with its ritualistic murder, sadism and blasphemous-religious elements.  It's predictable, aside from a Hammer-esque tale-expansive twist at the end, but this well-written work is all about enjoying the ride not the destination.


9.)   "The Final Peace" - Gary Fry:  A man, mourning his recently deceased wife and fearful for their offspring, goes to the fair with his too-curious-for-his-comfort children.  Well-written tale, with an effective, grief-realistic tone and a finish that made me smile.


10.)   "Do No Harm" - Joe C. McKinney:  Provocative, memorable work about a doctor (Turner) who's forced to help a group of creatures - who prey on mankind - conquer a disease that's held them in check.  One of my favorite stories in this collection.

Dead City, by Joe McKinney

(pb; 2006)

From the back cover:

"Battered by five cataclysmic hurricanes in three weeks, the Texas Gulf Coast and half of the Lone Star State is reeling from the worst devastation in history. Thousands are dead or dying -- but the worst is only beginning. Amid the wreckage, something unimaginable is happening: a deadly virus has broken out, returning the dead to life -- with an insatiable hunger for human flesh. . .

"Within hours, the plague has spread all over Texas. San Antonio police officer Eddie Hudson finds his city overrun by a voracious army of the living dead. Along with a small group of survivors, Eddie must fight off the savage horde in a race to save his family. . .

"There's no place to run. No place to hide. The zombie horde is growing as the virus runs rampant. Eddie knows he has to find a way to destroy these walking horrors. . . but he doesn't know the price he will have to pay. . ."

Review:

Solid entry in the well-shuffle-leg-dragged, zombie-horror genre. Dark wit and the everpresent humanity of the characters (who are familiar and distinctive) keep this adrenalin-read from being a mere first-person-shooter-game-put-to-paper work.

McKinney also gets additional points for avoiding the usual nihlistic, sequel-courting denouement that's so popular in chomping-undead novels.

Not a genre-juddering read, but worth your time.

Check it out.