EMBRACE THE DARKNESS AND OTHER SHORT STORIES: COLLECTION I
Twin sisters with prophetic dreams are confronted by their abilities by the terrified townspeople. A man tests out a brand new watch that records and plays back your dreams while you sleep. The monster from a young man’s childhood bedroom follows him into the woods on a camping trip and terrorizes he and his coworkers. These are three of the six short stories that make up Embrace the Darkness.
All six of the stories deal with themes of evil, consciousness, and relationships and how these characters embrace or deny the darkness within themselves and others. This book is a quick read with intriguing premises and oftentimes surprising outcomes. The stories are short enough to hold your interest but long enough to establish its characters, backstory, and outcome. Many are written in the first person, sometimes unnecessarily given their endings.
I found the first few stories to be the strongest in the series. Many of the stories protagonists are unassuming and undeserving of their fates. Whether it’s a patient who just needs a simple operation to remove a lump in their foot or a granddaughter who inherits her grandmother’s pocket watch. Sometimes horror sneaks up on us when we least expect it, sealing our fate without provocation or warning, and the darkness swallows us whole.
Review by Laura Smith
EMBRACE THE DARKNESS AND OTHER SHORT STORIES: COLLECTION I is available on Paperback, Kindle and Audiobook