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Johnny Mains follows in the heavy footsteps of Herbert Van Thal and Stephen Jones with BEST BRITISH HORROR 2014, the first of what will hopefully become an annual tradition along the lines of Jones' MAMMOTH BOOK OF BEST NEW HORROR. This debut edition features a wide variety of genre tales, ranging from the unsettling to the shocking to the down-right stomach-churning (see Stephen Volk's THE ARSE LICKER for this last). All in all an excellent collection and an outstanding start to a new anthology...
One of the best anthologies I've read in the last couple of years. Covers a wide spectrum of horror with only really one story not hitting the mark for me. Standouts for me were:Both contributions from Stephen Volk.“Biofeedback” by Gary Fry “Guinea Pig Girl” by Thana Niveau“Come Into My Parlour” by Reggie Oliver“That Tiny Flutter of the Heart I Used to Call Love” by Robert Shearman“The Garscube Creative Writing Group” by Muriel GrayI also have the 2015 volume as well so look forward to reading t...
Johnny Mains is a long-time fan of the Pan Books of Horror Stories. He created a fan site for the series and edited Back From The Dead: The Legacy Of The Pan Book Of Horror Stories, so it shouldn't be surprising that this anthology is reminiscent of that classic series. Here all of the stories are recent, but otherwise it has the same high standards and a range which incorporates the subtle, the classically styled and the envelope-pushingly stomach churning.You'll find some great creepy stories....
A pleasingly varied range of stories, from gross-out horror to subtle chills, and only a couple of disappointments; though editor Mains's best accomplishment is to include quality work from newer names amongst the usual contributors.
Loved this anthology of short horror fiction. With contributions from great writers such as Adam Nevill, Stephen Volk and Ramsey Campbell, there are shivers aplenty to be had.
If you're looking for a great collection of horror short stories then this is it. Everybody will find a story that he or she likes; the plots reach from body horror to monsters or killers. All in all, a good collection.
A couple of duff stories, but mostly excellent.
Contents:XI - Credit XIII - Introduction1 - “When Charlie Sleeps” by Laura Mauro (Black Static, Issue 37)14 - “Exploding Raphaelesque Heads” by Ian Hunter (The Tenth Black Book of Horror, ed. Charles Black, Mortbury Press)21 - “The Bloody Tower” by Anna Taborska (Terror Tales of London, ed. Paul Finch, Gray Friar Press)51 - “Behind the Doors” by Ramsey Campbell (Holes for Faces, Dark Regions Press)78 - “The Secondary Host” by John Llewellyn Probert (Exotic Gothic Volume 5, Part 2, e ed. Danel Ol...
I was intrigued by what new kid on the block Johnny Mains would do with the Best-Of format, and am delighted to report that I was impressed. Knowing what I know about the guy, I expected stories from the harder hitting side of the genre – the gory, the brutal, the monstrous. But no, here we have a very varied collection of fiction from a wide range of publications, as many that are subtle and suggestive as the alternative. Let me take each tale one at a time.Opener “When Charlie Sleeps” by Laura...
I'm a big fan of horror but this collection really didn't do it for me. There were some gems amongst them but most were just really...meh. Almost every story had a part where a hot 'exotic' woman inexplicably finds the protagonist soooo irresistible and they end up having loads of awkwardly detailed sex, which in most cases added very little to the story except for making them sound just like some teen boys wank fantasy. I'm not a prude, I just found myself rolling my eyes a lot like 'oh here we...
With copies seemingly hard to come by on this side of the pond, I was fortunate to be offered an ARC of Best British Horror 2014 for review. I'm always up for discovering some new horror, and there's something about the British flavor of the genre that always appeals to me, so I was eager to see what kind of authors and stories Johnny Mains pulled together.Much to my surprise, the more recognizable authors who drew me into the anthology were actually some of the weakest reads for me. Maybe it's
I'd read several of the stories in their original publications but it came across as a very varied selection of stories that showcased a lot of different styles of horror. Favourites included 'When Charlie Sleeps' by Laura Mauro, 'Behind the Doors' by Ramsey Campbell, 'Guinea Pig Girl' by Thana Niveau, 'The Arse-Licker by Stephen Volk, 'The Red Door' by Mark Morris and the utterly mind-blowing 'Author of the Death' by Michael Marshall Smith. Great work by Editor Johnny Mains. Can't wait for the
It's hard to give an objective review to an anthology like this, where I'd already read about half the stories (including crackers by Ramsey Campbell, Joel Lane, Laura Mauro and Stephen Volk). As for the other half, they were never less than interesting, and some were stunning, including stories new to me from John Llewellyn Probert, Stephen Volk (again) and especially VH Leslie's "Namesake" and Elizabeth Stott's "Touch Me With Your Cold, Hard Fingers". Lots of other good stories too - recommend...
not any of these was too short, too long, not scaring....fine collection, good read
Cam dezamagitoare colectia de Besturi britanice.Singurul ce mi s-a parut a fi "best" este Adam Nevill, ce in “The Doll’s Hands” construieste o lume post apocaliptica cu pronuntate accente horror. Foarte misto si scrierea si ideea.Au mai fost ok si :“When Charlie Sleeps” de Laura Munro - avem o creatura misterioasa ce trebuie tinuta intr-o stare de somnolenta pentru a nu afecta negativ viata Londrei. “The Secondary Host” de John L Probert - o povestire cu monstri in substanta Lovecraftiana. sau“T...