These stories do revolve around Halloween but they are more than just horror. They are tales of grief, of love and loss, spirits with unfinished business, all surrounding the most otherworldly night of the year. They can be savored slowly to help you get into the spirit of Halloween or devoured quickly for a rush of spooky fun any time. I read them over a particularly hot week in July while I was away from my home and my air conditioner. I was almost able to convince myself that I could hear rustling leaves and a cool October wind. All were good, but for me the most notable in the bunch were...

Strange Candy- A story about a grieving man who finds peace after consuming an odd confection brought home in his child's trick or treat bag.

#MakeHalloweenScaryAgain -in which a writer who wishes to draw some interest and attention to his work stirs up a serial killer with his simple hashtag.

The Rage Of Achilles - A priest hears a haunting confession on Halloween from a man who has suffered a tragedy.

Highly recommended to all lovers of horror and Halloween.

I received an advance copy for review. ( )

Halloween has been my favorite holiday since childhood. Costumes. Ghost Stories. Jack O'Lanterns. Gruesome legends. Things that go bump in the night. Love it all! So when I saw the awesome cover for this short story collection, I had to read it! Sucked me right in -- I'm already SO ready for autumn with pumpkin-flavored everything and Halloween! Bring on the ghosties!

Halloween Carnival,Vol 1 features five Halloween theme stories. I was not familiar with any of the authors and that made me even more excited about this book. I love discovering new-to-me horror writers! I'm already planning my October TBR pile -- all things scary!

This collection of creepy stories includes:

Strange Candy - Robert McCammon. A weird, unwrapped piece of Halloween candy sends a man on a supernatural mission. McCammon is the author of several books including They Thirst and Blue World. Check out his website here: http://www.robertmccammon.com/ Strange Candy is an excellent story! Great way to start out this anthology!

The Rage of Achilles or When Mockingbirds Sing - Kevin Lucia. A new priest hears an unusual story in the confessional on Halloween night. Author of The Jabberwock and Things Slip Through, Kevin Lucia's website is here: http://www.kevinlucia.com/ The covers for his horror novels look so creepy-cool! If this short story is any indication of his talents as a horror writer, I can't wait to read more by this author!

Demon Air - John R. Little. A discount flight to Australia takes a hellish turn. John R. Little is the author of several books including Soul Mates and DarkNet. Check out his website here: http://www.johnrlittle.com/ Demon Air defnitely made me rethink discount airfares!

La Hacienda de los Muertos - Lisa Morton. A Mexican legend turns out to be true. Author of horror stories and non-fiction books about the history of Halloween, Lisa Morton definitely entertains with this short story about spooky occurrences on a Mexican film set. For more information on the author and her books, check out her website here: http://lisamorton.com/zine/

#MakeHalloweenScaryAgain - Mark Allan Gunnels. A Facebook post by a writer about bringing fear back to Halloween has unexpected consequences. This story is set in a town 40 minutes from where I live....definitely made it a creepy read for me! :) Loved it! If Halloween in Greer and Spartanburg gets all shades of horrific crazy this year, we all know who to blame! :) Mark Allan Gunnells has written nearly 50 horror novels, novellas and short stories. Check out his website here: http://markgunnells.livejournal.com/

I enjoyed all 5 stories in this anthology. #MakeHalloweenScaryAgain is my favorite....not only because it's well written, but also because it's set in my neck of the woods. All 5 writers showcased in Halloween Carnival Vol 1 are new to me....I look forward to reading more by each of them!

I highly recommend this book to any fan of short stories and Halloween-theme horror. There will be five volumes in the Halloween Carnival collection. I'm definitely going to read all five!

**I voluntarily read an advanced readers copy of this book from Random House Publishing (Hydra) via NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own**



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Halloween Carnival Volume 1 is a tasty treat for horror lovers everywhere!

First off, I have to mention the opening story, Robert McCammon's Strange Candy . I'm a huge McCammon fan and this story was originally found in the FANTASTIC collection Blue World. Poignant and sweet this tale will always remain one of my favorites.

With that out of the way, the story that impressed me the most here was Kevin Lucia's The Rage of Achilles, or When Mockingbirds Sing. At first, what started out to be a story of the difficulties of parenting a special needs child turned into a story of such bittersweet pain and love, I thought I heard my heart crack. Beautifully written with prose that cuts straight through your chest, this was the star of Volume 1.

La Hacienda de los Muertos by Lisa Morton was a neatly wrapped up tale about shooting a movie in Mexico. And maybe a ghost?

John Little can always be counted on to deliver and that he does with Demon Air .

Lastly, Mark Allen Gunnells' #Makehalloweenscaryagain was my first read of this author's work. While I generally don't care for hashtag anything, and even though I partially guessed how this story would end, I still enjoyed the journey and I look forward to reading more from Gunnells in the future.

Other than Strange Candy, I am not sure if these other stories have been published elsewhere previously. If so, I haven't come across them. I enjoyed the fact that these tales were mostly gore free, quiet horror since that's the type I prefer these days. If quiet but powerful horror is your thing, I highly recommend this collection-especially for your Halloween reading pleasure!

You can pre-order your copy here: Halloween Carnival Volume 1

*Thanks so much to Hydra and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion. This is it!*

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STRANGE CANDY - by Robert McGammon - A ghost story that is not scary, but sad and bittersweet.

THE RAGE OF ACHILLES or WHEN MOCKINGBIRD'S SING - by Kevin Lucia - Another sad ghost story.

DEMON AIR - by John R. Little - This is a more traditional scary story. Interesting concept.

LA HACIENDA DE LOS MUERTOS - by Lisa Morton - My least favorite of the bunch. Maybe because I have read too many La Llorona stories.

MAKEHALLOWEENSCARYAGAIN - by Mark Allan Gunnell - The longest one in the bunch. Easy to figure out the bad guy. Another great concept

I enjoyed this collection very much. There was not a bad story in the bunch. Ranging from scary to sad, this book has everything. I recommend it. ( )

I received this book in return for an honest review.

This is one of those "I wish I liked it, but I didn't" kind of books.

I had such high hopes for this book because, it's September, got the whole Fall and Halloween vibe going on late. I was really wanting to kick it off with a creepy scary read.

And this book failed to do that.... on a massive level.

the first two stories were okay but hadn't much to do with Halloween. What they really had in common was making me cry my eyes out because they broke my heart into a thousand million pieces.

Story three just made zero sense. there was no plot, story line, nothing worth even reading.

The fourth story really just made me roll my eyes... a lot. There wasn't anything special about it. This kind of story has been done by anyone and everyone. I get it's a legend but... eh. Not to mention this story did kinda come off as insulting. After all, who likes the term "Mexican peasant"? But, whatever.

I honestly didn't like how the first four stories were told. I understand they were short stories, but there is a huge difference between short story and rushing to get something done with no actual ending. Don't get me wrong, the last story didn't have much of a ending either but it was still long enough to hook me and honestly, I think it had GREAT potential. The last story is what saved this from being a 1 star book. But yet it wasn't enough to make it a three star book.

Personally this book wasn't worth my time (harsh, I know but I had such high hopes for it, and it let me down so bad)

If you are looking for a simple quick - really really quick - read, this is great for you. But if you are looking for a ghostie/horror fix, I'd recommend the older books from the 80s/90s. Lol Y'all know the ones that you would read as a kid and they left you with nightmares for days afterward and a lifetime of childhood trauma? Those. Lol ( )