Even in the Grave by James Chambers and Carol Gyzander (editors)
Genre: Ghost Stories, Horror, Paranormal, Short Story Anthology
3.2 Stars
One Liner: Great variety but mixed results
Even in the Grave is a collection of short stories with a common theme- ghosts. The author’s note at the beginning sets the tone and provides information about how the editors came up with the idea for the book.
The stories belong to a range of genres and settings- futuristic to historical, contemporary to dystopian, and more. We also have a plethora of ghosts- helpful, friendly, creepy, vengeful, and terrifying.
Some stories are a little shorter than others, but they all seem to be within a specific word count. That makes the collection more compact in terms of pacing. A few stories were brilliant, and a couple of them were meh! Some had great potential but didn’t wow me much.
As with every anthology, every reader will have their favorites, hits and misses. Here’s what I liked the best (4-5 stars)
In the Machine: How does an old dead woman communicate with her granddaughter using a computer? Easily the best and least scary ghost story in the book. It was so cute!
Taps: What happens when a ghost communicates with a drummer from high school? Compact and well done, with a good dose of drama.
The Bells: Not all debts are money, and no one can escape their past, especially if the ghosts are determined to have their way. This one ups the impact as the story progresses, and the end is too good.
Moshigawa’s Homecoming: A Japanese historical retelling. Takes time to set the stage but delivers a worthy climax.
These were good but not great (3-4 stars):
House of Cracks: An injured army vet with PTSD tries to move on and start fresh. The ghosts from the past have a role to play. The only thing this didn’t go to the first category was the somewhat bland (detached) POV.
Fetch: Moves between past and present in a historical setting. Who does like a vengeful ghost story? Felt a bit too long.
After Trevor Vanished: Forgetting your first love is not easy, definitely not when it ends in tragedy. Good plot, but the ending felt rushed.
The Spectacles: The spectacles can help solve a past crime but remember that ghosts always know more than humans. Well-written and has a good twist. But feels diluted at the end.
Bruised and Battered Nevermore: Restless ghost, rented apartment, and the quest for truth. An entertaining ghost story.
Rawhide Rex: The title is self-explanatory. A good ending to the collection. I liked it more for the innovative concept.
**
I realized that the more I read about the past, the more it triggers me. The Source of Fr Santiago de Guerra de Vargas Monstrous Crimes is about the Spanish conquest of the Maya, with descriptions of heathens being tortured and killed in hundreds to accept the True God and spread peace and light. The story is gory, too, though it won’t trigger the intended target audience.
To summarize, Even in the Grave would work much better if you spread it over a few days. It wasn’t wonderful, but I wasn’t bored either. There’s no denying the variety of stories in this collection. None of the stories feel repetitive or similar despite having a common theme.
Thank you, NetGalley, eSpec Books, and NeoParadoxa, for the eARC.
#EvenintheGrave #NetGalley
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