Edited By: Nathan Hystad & Samanda R. Primeau
Publisher and Copyright: Woodbridge Press, © 2016 (By the Authors
& Editors)
Price: $13.99 ($2.99 Kindle)
Cathbad’s Rating: 9 of 10
A Review by, Cathbad
The Haunting of Lake Manor Hotel
Edited By, Nathan Hystad & Samanda R, Primeau
Just when I was lamenting the loss of our Great Horror Writers (Where Will We Find the Next Classics? – Realms Explorer Magazine, Issue 2), along comes this fine, new crop, proving that the genre is far from dead! Let me first say something about each story:
Room 13: The Boy in the Lake By, Anna Dickinson: What a terrifying story to start the Anthology with! (That’s a good thing, folks; it’s a Horror Anthology!) This is a story about a girl visiting the hotel, who meets a very special boy. The boy will lead her to discover herself, and perhaps farther. An excellent read!
Room 1: Forget Me Not By, Thaddeus White: A photographer, taking a vacation on which she hopes her lover will join her, finds some odd – and disturbing – artifacts along the lake on her first stroll. Will she heed the omens in time? A delightfully wicked story!
Room 10: Dark Reflections By, David I. Thomson: A surreal tale of a life, lost first to alcohol, second to something much worse! A very enjoyable, classic story with an ending that quite surprised me! A truly frightening story of evil.
Room 8: The Lure of Light By, Scarlett R. Algee: A grieving mother might be exactly what the ghosts of Lake Manor are looking for! She should have known she couldn’t hide! A dark tale of the pain of loss, and where it all took one woman.
Room 11: Pretty Green Eyes By, E. J. Tett: Two girlfriends take a needed vacation; but will they truly be able to relax? This is a story that points out what should be an axiom: When a place is said to be haunted, there’s usually a reason! A well told monster tale, and a monster with an unusual taste.
Room 5: Verity’s Weekend By, Joleen Kuyper: A mother, still hurting from the loss of her only child, finds solace in giving comfort to a child ghost. It’s almost too perfect… Sometimes, our hearts lead us astray; but this story reveals others can do that, too. A most excellent story of the supernatural.
Room 7: Jumbled-up Jack By, Christopher Bean: A horrid story about a forgotten twin. This one sent chills up and down my spine! For a moment, I was sure of the ending… but I was wrong! This one is only for the less squeamish!
Room 3: The Long Way Home By, Victoria Silverwolf: Echoes of the past intrude on the present. A pain that never goes away, but seems to forever grow worse, until we feel unable to continue. Is it luck when an angel in human guise steps forward? These themes are superbly handled by a superb storyteller.
Room 6: Horseshoe By, Gwendolyn Kist: A macabre tale of a very disturbed young woman. Are the ghosts real? In the end, it doesn’t matter; they still want her death. A bit shaky at points, but still an intriguing, nightmarish story!
Room 9: A Room to Kill For By, D. J. Tyrer: Greed spurs a couple on to Lake Manor Hotel, in search of the key to a large fortune. But sometimes the ghosts won’t so easily depart with their belongings! Great timing helps rise this scary story to downright horror!
Room 12: The Emancipation of Olive Pickbone By, Brooke Warra: A battered woman takes refuge at Lake Manor. Hoping for rest, she finds instead a ghost from her past! But perhaps this ghost has a piece of good advice to share… One of the more predictable tales in the collection, but still told frighteningly well!
Room 2: Friends Without Faces By, D. G. Jones: An odd and spooky tale of a man who hasn’t a friend in the world. With no reason to live, he has come to Lake Manor – and finds one who is happy to help. I love a story that makes you think!
Room 4: Blood is Thicker By, Samanda R. Primeau: Two teen girls are excited about their visit to the well-known haunted hotel. It gets even better when their grandmother joins them! Or… did she? This is quite different than other ghost stories you’ve read, and I mean that in a good way! There are secret passages, a prophecy, a battle of power and will. A grand story to end the Anthology on!
The Haunting of Lake Manor Hotel – Overall: This Anthology is just the thing for reading in the dark – when you’re alone. At night. And don’t worry about those sounds outside your window – it’s just the wind.
The linking threads enhance the stories, and make all of them better! It’s very easy to believe we’re reading about a real hotel; maybe one we saw on Ghost Adventures, or perhaps even the news?
An absolutely superb selection of stories in a well edited Anthology. I certainly recommend this book to all horror fans!
I rate this Anthology a strong 9 out of 10.
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