Thou Shalt Not... [Paperback]

Michael A. Arnzen (Author), Lawrence C. Connolly (Author), Chris Stout (Author), M. Stephen Lukac (Author), Lee Allen Howard (Author, Editor), Mike Bohatch (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 8, 2006

Breaking the Commandments Anew Ever broken one of God's "Big Ten"? Of course you have. We all have. Except for murder and adultery the consequences of which are obvious what were the results? A little guilt? Did you disappoint yourself or someone else? Or did no one even notice? Thou Shalt Not... is an anthology of horror and crime fiction where someone breaks one of the Ten Commandments with dire, deadly, or disastrous results. 1. Worshiping false gods 2. Engaging in idolatry 3. Misusing God's name 4. Violating the day of rest 5. Dishonoring parents 6. Murdering 7. Committing adultery 8. Stealing 9. Bearing false testimony 10. Coveting what belongs to your neighbor TWO TABLETS, TEN COMMANDMENTS THEY'VE ALL BEEN BROKEN LET'S BREAK THEM AGAIN!

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Lee Allen Howard is the editor and a contributor to Thou Shalt Not.... Other authors include:
* Mary Aldrin * Kevin Anderson * Michael A. Arnzen * K. Tempest Bradford * Sarah Brandel * Leslie Brown * Jennifer Busick * Lawrence C. Connolly * Megan Crewe * Marguerite Croft * Cristopher Fisher * John M. Floyd * Lee Forsythe * Eugie Foster * B. M. Freman * Barry Hollander * William Jones * Simcha Laib Kuritzky * Alison J. Littlewood * M. Stephen Lukac * Derwin Mak * Barbara Malenky * Michelle Mellon * Jennifer D. Munro * Derryl Murphy * Marc Paoletti * Dave Raines * Stephen D. Rogers * Lisa Silverthorne * Barbara Stanley * Chris Stout * Mark Tullius * Bev Vincent * Heather Wardell * Jacqueline West

About the Author

Lee Allen Howard is the editor and a contributor to Thou Shalt Not.... Other authors include: * Mary Aldrin * Kevin Anderson * Michael A. Arnzen * K. Tempest Bradford * Sarah Brandel * Leslie Brown * Jennifer Busick * Lawrence C. Connolly * Megan Crewe * Marguerite Croft * Cristopher Fisher * John M. Floyd * Lee Forsythe * Eugie Foster * B. M. Freman * Barry Hollander * William Jones * Simcha Laib Kuritzky * Alison J. Littlewood * M. Stephen Lukac * Derwin Mak * Barbara Malenky * Michelle Mellon * Jennifer D. Munro * Derryl Murphy * Marc Paoletti * Dave Raines * Stephen D. Rogers * Lisa Silverthorne * Barbara Stanley * Chris Stout * Mark Tullius * Bev Vincent * Heather Wardell * Jacqueline West

Product Details

• Paperback: 410 pages
• Publisher: Dark Cloud Press; 1st edition (September 8, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0977187101
• ISBN-13: 978-0977187102
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,801,636 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Highly recommended, January 21, 2007

By 

Michael B. Mullig "Mike Brendan" (Pittsburgh, PA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Thou Shalt Not... (Paperback)

Anthologies can be a difficult thing to go over, in my opinion, because with a variety of writers, you're bound to find stuff something you like, and something you hate, and maybe even something that makes you go "Wha?" It happens. However, if an anthology is mostly crap, finding what may be the only gem might not be worth going through the muck.

That's not the case here. "Thou Shalt Not" is a fine piece of work. I have to applaud Dark Cloud Press for sticking to their guns on this one. Hopefully they'll be able to crank out more of this type of work soon.

The premise is a simple one for this themed anthology: Break one of the Ten Commandments and show what happens. Effects range from natural to logical to paranormal, and for the most part, they're all well done.

To review each short would take far too much time, so I pick out the ones that stand out the most:

"Seventy-Two Virgins" by Derwin Mak was highly entertaining, showing not only the results of using God's name in vain, but also the downside of blind adherence to religion. And the part about the dolphins was absolutely hilarious.

"The Wiggly People" by Eugie Foster just creeped me out. Foster makes great use of character voice in this story, which is what makes the creepiness so effective.

"Through the Eye of a Needle" by William Jones was the big letdown. Not only did I not get what it had to do idolatry, but the narrative read like an attempt at H.P. Lovecraft -- even down to the setting. Of the 37 stories in this compilation this one felt rather hastily composed, with some skips in logic and a climax that leads to an "everyone escaped" denouement with no real way of know how the characters got there.

"The Thief" by Jennifer Busick comes across as an excellent case of vicarious living. This one stood out because it wasn't about stealing things.

All in all, this is worth reading.