The Black Book of Horror (Bk. 1) [Paperback]

Gary McMahon (Author), Mark Samuels (Author), David Conyers (Author), Paul Finch (Author), Charles Black (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2007

The Black Book of Horror contains 18 excursions into the realms of terror. Ranging from the supernatural to the macabre, the stories selected for this anthology feature black magic, the dead, monstrous beasts, and things from beyond. There are tales that witness madness, and the evil that man does. Contents: CROWS - Frank Nicholas REGINA vs. ZOSKIA - Mark Samuels THE OLDER MAN - Gary Fry POWER - Steve Goodwin CORDS - Roger B. Pile THE SOUND OF MUZAK - Sean Parker SHAPED LIKE A SNAKE - D. F. Lewis ONLY IN YOUR DREAMS - David A. Sutton THE WOLF AT JESSIE'S DOOR - Paul Finch SIZE MATTERS - John L. Probert SPARE RIB: A ROMANCE - John Kenneth Dunham FAMILY FISHING - Gary McMahon SUBTLE INVASION - David Conyers A PIE WITH THICK GRAVY - D. F. Lewis LOCK-IN - David A. Riley LAST CHRISTMAS (I GAVE YOU MY LIFE) - Franklin Marsh "SHALT THOU KNOW MY NAME?" - Daniel McGachey TO SUMMON A FLESH EATING DEMON - Charles Black

Product Details

• Paperback: 300 pages
• Publisher: Mortbury Press (June 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0955606101
• ISBN-13: 978-0955606106
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #360,430 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

David Conyers is an Australian science fiction and horror author residing in Adelaide. With John Sunseri he is the co-author of the Lovecraftian spy thriller collection The Spiraling Worm and the author of the sequel novella The Eye of Infinity. He is the editor of the anthology Cthulhu's Dark Cults, with Brian M. Sammons the editor of Cthulhu Unbound 3 and a contributing editor for Albedo One, Ireland's longest running magazine of speculative fiction.

David's short fiction has appeared in various magazines including Jupiter, Book of Dark Wisdom, Midnight Echo, Innsmouth Free Press and Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine. He has also appeared in over a dozen anthologies including Monstrous, Cthulhu Unbound 2, Best New Tales of the Apocalypse, Horrors Beyond, 2008 Award Winning Australian Writing, Scenes from the Second Storey, Macabre and The Black Book of Horror.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars AN EXCEPTIONAL COLLECTION!, June 8, 2008

By 

IAN BRUCE-DOUGLAS "AZLBRAX" (The Cat Farm, North Central Florida) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Black Book of Horror (Bk. 1) (Paperback)

I have been an avid Horror fan ever since I read "The Dunwich Horror", over 40 years ago. Horror and Dark Fantasy are still my favorite genres. Unfortunately, for every good short story or novel I read, there are 10 more that are real "dogs". This seems to be particularly true of many of the short story collections I have read, over the years. Too frequently, the storylines are clichéd-as-hell or they're really bad clones of Lovecraft...and in one particularly poor collection that I reviewed on [...] the writing was so poor and the editing even worse that the entire collection gave me the impression that it had been put together by a high-school group...a BAD high-school! So, every time I order a new collection...even ones that have been highly rated by others, I do so with great trepidation and gritted teeth!

Happily, "The Black Book of Horror", is a welcome exception to what I just described! While I won't waste your time by listing my favorite stories (why would you care?), I WILL say that there were no bad stories in this collection. There was one story that seemed a little weaker than the rest but all were well written, literate and contained fresh new twists within the plot. Beside some originality and the "creepy" factor I look for in a good Horror story, I, also, require that the writer is something of a "wordsmith", as well, and knows how to use the language in interesting ways to make characters, situations and scenery breathe and come to life. Proper syntax and spelling are a "must", as well, since a lack of either can be very distracting when I'm trying to get into the mood of the story.

Without a doubt, this is one of the best collections I have read in recent years and I hope that Mr. Black will choose to release "Volume II" and beyond. Obviously, he took a great deal of care in his selections and, just as obviously, a lot of "love" went into putting this book together.

Needless to say, I recommend this volume highly to all of those who enjoy intelligently written, literate Horror as much as I do.

And the cover art is as good as the contents! I'd find it hilarious if it turns out that Charles Black, himself, posed for the artist. It would certainly be fitting!

Please give us more, Mr. Black: more collections edited by you and more of your own stories, as well!

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Horrified, October 18, 2007

By 

C. G. Herbertson (Germany) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Black Book of Horror (Bk. 1) (Paperback)

Horrified there are not more collections like this.

If you remember the old Pan Books of Horror and you liked them you will like this more. The reason: there are echoes of the old masters, (in fact there are some old masters, notabley David A. Riley with his chilling LOCK-IN - told with all the macabre inuendo of P.K. Dick.) - But also horror has moved in time, become more surreal and fuller in metaphor and image. At times these stories move with a Daliesque brush stroke, chilling, overlit and very scary.

Difficult to pick a favourite from this bunch. I might go for "Regina vs. Zoskia" which seems Ballardian in its style but more menacing. Gary Fry's creepy zombie-love tale "The Older Man" still gives me the shivers or perhaps "Cords" by Roger B. Pile...but it would be churlish to pick a best amongst so much good stuff.

If you like your nights dark, buy it.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Horror the way it should be!, October 27, 2009

By 

JEREMY WELLS (Fort Rucker, AL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Black Book of Horror (Bk. 1) (Paperback)

I just finished the first volume of the "Black Book of Horror" and am extremely pleased. I can't remember the last time I came across an anthology with so many great stories in them. I would say that there were no stories in this collection that weren't good, but some really raised the bar. They nailed the element or eerie, creepy and scary. I can't wait to dive into volume 2 and I just got an e-mail saying there is a volume 5!!! I hope they maintained the element that they captured in the first one. I have read numerous horror anthologies and this one is top notch! You won't be disappointed.