Sawney Hatton

I read horror for the scares. I'm all about the chills and less about the shock factor or the gore. Not that gore bothers me, it just doesn't terrify me. So with that in mind I took no heed of the "graphic material" warning, and plowed ahead. Not all of the stories were my cup of tea but I did love the first 3. In The Good Touch we meet two friends with very different personalities. One quite selfish and the other his polar opposite. Perhaps that is why their friendship works. But when one comes into possession of a gift from God it sparks a jealousy in the other that is the undoing of both.
Cutting Remarks is the story of a bullied housewife who at last finds happiness in her marriage. It was both humorous and darkly disturbing. The Boy Who Cried Alien was another dark comedy, if only someone had explained about the birds and the bees to this boy it may have avoided such a catastrophe.
When I got to the 4th story Pet I put the book down and almost didn't finish it. I am not a fan of animal cruelty. I don't care how many people may get beheaded or dragged to hell in any book but I need you to leave the animals alone. To me the only saving grace to this story is that no such animal exists on this planet. I don't mean that it was badly written because it wasn't. It's just my own personal limit of what I choose to read. I do not actively seek out animal abuse stories and I guess this is what the graphic content warning was for.
I liked The Mortality Machine, in which a couple who is running out of time together don't really make the most of what they have left. I loved Mr Gregori who is the lonely ghost haunting an apartment, watching people move in and out but never being able to engage with any of them.. until now.
So although every story was not a hit with me, that is the joy of short stories, take what you like and leave the rest. I would recommend this collection to all who have a dark sense of humor and those with a stomach for disturbing subject matter.

I received a complimentary copy for review.… (mais)

A substantial collection of creepy little stories exploring the dark side of us all, hence the excellent title based off the excellent Mark Twain quote.

While not all of them are great, most of them are good and some a really good. Particularly “Pet,” in which the horror and sense of wrongness just mounts and mounts until it breaks. For the amount of stories, there’s quite a few original themes as well.

“The Good Touch” - 5/5
A man is gifted one of God’s own fingers so that he may heal, but his best friend is a little jealous. A truly original premise to me, with a wonderful main character (the best friend) and ironic ending.

“Cutting Remarks” - 1/5
A woman grows tired of her husband’s behavior. It’s been done before.

“The Boy Who Cried Alien” - 3/5
A boy is convinced he’s stumbled upon an alien invasion in progress. Not the most original, again, but well-done enough to be entertaining.

“Pet” - 5/5
After a breakup, a woman leaves her pet with her ex. See above; one of the highlights of the collection.

“In Memoriam the Ostrich” - 3/5
A man’s final wishes deeply disturb the local pastor. Not the most original, but well-executed.

“The Mortality Machine” - 25
A man builds a machine so he and his wife can be together forever. It was almost there, but it just needed some more development. Though it did make me sad.

“The Lord is my Rocket” - 4/5
After her mentally disabled charge is terminally diagnosed, his nurse takes him to a monastery so he can accept Jesus into his heart before he dies. Surprisingly poignant and bittersweet.

“The Beholder” - 2/5
A homeless man discovers something new. A good little vignette, but that’s it.

“Mr. Gregori” - 3/5
The ghost of the previous tenant becomes obsessed with the current one. Interesting, spooky, and quick.

“FYVP” - 3/5
A man in search of a penis piercing gets way more than he wanted. Surprising and a little gross.

“The Dark at the Deep End” - 4/5
A view into the mind of a serial killer reminiscing on his youth. Great senses of character and overall unease. The scene where he thinks about torturing the homeless woman is brutal and unflinching

“Suitable for Framing” - 3/5
A photographer finds new inspiration. Not bad, but suffers directly after “the dark at the deep end”.

3 star average.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.… (mais)

Being a romance author as well as a voracious Book Reviewer that I am, I don’t have the luxury of being able to have read each of the 11 well-crafted dark fiction stories one story at a time to allow each story’s intensity to sink in, the way the author intended his book to be read; I’d been somewhat coerced into reading it straight through.

The Mr. Hatton knows how to pull his readers into these stories by creating plotlines and locations that each of us has experienced or been at. If you take Alfred Hitchcock and throw in a little Rod Sterling you get the kind of chilling, macabre and surprising storylines they’re noted for giving their fans. And like these two individuals, the author has made sure that each story ends with an unexpected, convoluted and at times even a somewhat gruesome ending.

The author’s writing is unquestionably quite intense to have created the captivating, suspense-laden stories this collection contains. And for doing so for his readers, and myself, I’m giving this book 5 STARS.… (mais)