Girls & Monsters is a collection of short, dark tales from the very talented, Anne Michaud.
Michaud’s is not a name with which I am familiar, but then other than the occasional book, I don’t read a lot of dark/horror fiction. I don’t haunt the magazines the way that I once did, so I shouldn’t be surprised by the new players in the horror/dark fantasy genre. The stories collected here are solid works.
“Death Song” deals with a community that has a dark secret – there’s something living in the lake and that something (a dark mermaid-like monster) will take a tourist – just as it has done each summer. But the monster has decided to take a local this time, and some are fighting back, finally.
In “Black Dog” the monster is that little voice inside the head. In this case the voice is telling a young woman that it’s too late – the voice has won and the girl really is crazy.
“A Blue Story” is the tale of a girl and her dog. Neighborhood pets are going missing and a young girl, who hopes one day to be a veterinarian, takes an active interest in the missing animals. This definitely has a surprise ending.
“Dust Bunnies.” Shiver…. This might be my favorite (though I liked “Death Song” an awful lot as well). I’m typically not one to feel uncomfortable with spiders in a story, but this one definitely steps it up and delivers a punch.
“We Left at Night” was probably the story with the most potential but the biggest let-down because it didn’t quite deliver on the promise. What’s in it? Oh, just some people scared of zombies is all…
This is really an impressive collection and I’ll be keeping my eye out for more works by Michaud. I’d definitely like to see how she handles the long form and if she can maintain a sense of horror through the course of a novel.
Looking for a good book? Girls & Monsters is a collection of short, dark fiction, well delivered, by Anne Michaud.
I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.
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Girls & Monsters
author: Anne Michaud
publisher: DarkFuse
ISBN: 1937771849
paperback, 194 pages
