The Gathering Dark An Anthology of Folk Horror

creepy but somewhat comforting to read.

It’s an anthology so some are stronger than others. Lots of more in depth reviews than mine. If you like the authors you’ll probably like their story in the book.

okay first, each story by itself: stay by erica waters (⅗) unsettling right off the bat. i could feel Melissa's panic and just had that feeling of wrongness in my gut. i want to know more about the town and like the history of shelly's dad and other families. def had the southern gothic feel. the tallest poppy by chloe gong (⅕) i didn't really enjoy it and i didn't feel like the elements of the story were really cohesive. like this story was something i'd find another high schooler writing. it was like all of the spooky things gong could've thought of were just shoved into this story and then the asian identity was slapped onto it. this was not a good short story. loved by all, save one by tori bovalino (⅗) i liked how barbara ended up saving them and the commentary on how she was only ever remembered because of how she died. jenna obviously thought of barbara as a person and that's why barbara helped. jenna at least wasn't punished for just being a teenager. one-lane bridge by hannah whitten (⅗) listen this felt like southern indiana even though i know it was tennesse. loved that jules was angry and i loved that she didn't waste that anger. i also love how despite everything simon did have that lingering power of friendship. i love how it left off with her limping away and the convo with the monster. ghost on the shore by allison saft (⅘) from reading just the the first few pages, it wasn't great to me, but it kept getting better. and obviously, carolina being involved was pretty obvious, but maud went through some pretty good emotional revelations for a story that was like twenty-something pages long. i enjoy a good horror story centering around grief. petrified by olivia chadha (⅗) i mean it was fine and this story just really hit home that i wish these stories were longer or just had more time. most of them just don't feel complete enough, especially this one. i did like the revenge and the descriptions of the forest though. third burn by courtney gould (⅘) this story did everything it was supposed to and i am thankful for it. i luv arsonist queens. and one of the creepiest things to me is those inhuman smiles and they make me so fearful, so loved to see that. it stays with you by aden polydoros (5/5) this is definitely my favorite and what i think is the best out of all of these. the way the plot unfolded was really good. this was a good horror story that incorporated trauma and depression without making it unrealistic. truth or dare by alex brown (⅕) biggest meh. it wasn't unsettling at all. i don't think this was a horror story at all. the burning one by shakira toussaint (⅗) do i understand what really happened? slightly, but not really. do i think this was still good? yes. originally i was planning on combining all of the individual ratings and whatever median came out i was going to make that the score, but instead of rating it a 3, i'm going to give a 2. because this disappointed me. i wanted folk horror and a lot of what i got was some poorly done short stories where the only folk horror aspect was there just being a horror story that gets passed down or is just known by people. i was just expecting so much more and perhaps it's the fault of how short these are but :(

I didn't realize this was a YA anthology when I picked it up. I'm not sure I would have grabbed it, just because I've recently read a ton of YA for a committee I'm on, and I'm more than ready for a book for adults. That said, this was still a satisfying collection of YA horror stories. I think my teenage students will like it, as it's heading to my classroom library after this. The stories are creepy, with some being incredibly tense. A few stories will have me watching for other books by their authors, especially Chloe Gong, Erica Waters, and Courtney Gould.

Stay - 5 stars

The Tallest Poppy - 4 stars

Loved by All, Save One - 4 stars

One-Lane Bridge - 5 stars

Ghost on the Shore - 3 stars

Petrified - 5 stars

Third Burn - 3 stars

It Stays With You - 3 stars

Truth or Dare - 2 stars

The Burning One - 1 star

I haven’t read very many anthologies before but I’m always down to read a horror one. This was definitely a fast read, even though it took me months to finish. When I would actually sit down to read it the pages flew by. As you can tell by my ratings there were some stories I enjoyed far more than others but overall it was a pretty good book. Some of the stories honestly did spook me and freak me out while the others were just okay. I’ve read and loved other books by some of the authors in this anthology and now I have some new authors to look up and read their other works.

Many thanks to Page Street Publishing, Page Street Kids for the complimentary copy for my honest review

Overall, a great anthology with all sorts of spooky, goosebump-raising rural tales and urban legends come to life. Favorites were Ghost on the Shore, One Lane Bridge, and Truth or Dare (which resonated so chillingly. I wish I had a tunnel to drown my ex in).

Content warnings (general): gore, blood, phobias, psychological horror and fear

Additional content warnings specific to “It Stays With You”: suicidal ideation, cancer, sexual abuse, child abuse