Book 34 of my 2023 Reading Challenge
read from March 15 - April 10
Chilling Crime
by various authors
My Opinion
3 stars
I usually get a volume of this series whenever I'm at Half Price Books because I love the outer art and the books themselves have been interesting as well.
This collection is a mix of old and new stories, with the oldest being written around 429 BC and the newest being multiple stories published here for the first time.
I feel kind of 'meh' about the collection overall but I've included small reviews of each story. T.H.O.R.N. and Monsters were my favorites.
Dinner Date
The pacing was good, although knowing more of the "before" (like hearing scratches or strange things) may have added suspense. It went from 0 to 60 to 0 so quickly I didn't really have time to react or become invested.
The Peculiar Affliction of Allison White
Entirely unexpected ending!
The Grim
That would be a great concept for a longer novel. I didn't see the culprit coming.
She Walks
Really good writing but I wish there had been more of a resolution.
A Name for Every Home
I didn't understand that one at all.
Screams Don't Echo
This story was very short so there wasn't much time to digest what was happening. The ending is one of the worst ways to die in my opinion.
The Belled Buzzard
I didn't like that one for many reasons. I knew what was happening immediately so it took a long time to get to the point. Plus the casual racism (even the name of the location had the n word in it) made it strange that this story was picked - leave it in the past and read "The Tell-Tale Heart" if you want the concept instead.
The Dream Woman
There's the author Wilkie Collins...he's been featured in each collection I've read so far (and I had never heard of him before).
The middle of the story was gripping but overall it felt too long, both by short story standards and by the plot points (it dragged at the end).
Gallegher
That was a really entertaining story but it was more about the characters than the crime for me. Any crimes that did happen were only mentioned as a way to continue to story of Gallegher (not a criminal or employed in the justice system in any way).
The Convict's Return
Charles Dickens is a very famous author but I was surprised to see him in this collection - crime stories are not the first thing I associate with him.
The story itself was really good but the ending was abrupt and unsatisfactory.
The Old Man's Tale About the Queer Client
Another Dickens story but even without the author I would've known this is an older style based on the wordiness and title.
The story didn't really fit in with the collection because there was no crime. I also didn't really like the story itself; it relied too much on unlikely coincidences to move things along and I'm not clear where the funds magically came from.
The Great Gatsby
Wait, what? This is a well-known novel. I'm not the short story police but this is way too long for a short story.
I skimmed it because I've read it a million times for classes over the years.
T.H.O.R.N.
Best one so far! It was gruesome with a classic cliffhanger ending - a scream, the phone went dead, then I frantically turned the page to see the story was over.
The Second Bullet
That felt overly long and drawn out for what turned out to be an inconclusive and fairly implausible ending.
A Tragedy of Error
I don't fully understand what happened. The author used 100 words when 10 would do; an example is the sentence, " 'Come, come,' said he, in the tone of one who wishes to coax another into mistrust of a danger before which he does not himself feel so secure of that the sight of a companion's indifference will give him relief."
"Trigger"
That was a visceral story. Even though I predicted the first twist, the second (and third) ones jolted me.
Justice
Abrupt ending but the title fit.
Shadows
I could feel the hopelessness in that one.
The Present
I was expecting something along those lines but I was not expecting her to be correct in her paranoid thinking so it was a pleasant surprise that she was able to help.
The Horrible
The story didn't interest me but the author's bio did. He lived from 1850-93 and apparently contracted syphilis early in life leading to mental issues and nightmare visions which helped his horror writing.
Invisible Death
The plot was good but the story felt incomplete. I'm left with more questions than answers and would've liked a few more pages to explain things further.
To Prove an Alibi
It was fairly predictable, especially with the title of the story, so I was waiting for the characters to catch up with what I already knew.
Monsters
This is a top contender. I love the concept of it and think it would make an excellent novel or even a series if the author chose to expand it.
Princes in the Tower
Since this was written in 1535 it required a lot of concentration to decipher because of spelling and grammar differences. Luckily it was very short.
Rockin' Around the Murder Tree
It had an unexpected ending. I thought I would be saying how early I predicted the outcome but the author banked on that and changed it up. I fell for the red herring.
Move-in Weekend
The sentences were short and clipped which accentuated the instability of the narrator. I'm more bothered by the idea of harming animals than people...is that just a 'me' thing?
The Ninescore Mystery
I could tell it was an older story since there was so much focus on both a woman's "reputation" and the shock of a lady detective. It had a good plot and while the crime was solved through spontaneous confession, it took the detective's work to get them in the room to have the opportunity for that confession so it still felt plausible.
The Walker
I wasn't expecting the twist in the middle but the way it came together and how it ended was so quick and coincidental it took me out of the story.
The Murders in the Rue Morgue
That story was really wordy so it felt even longer than it was. I read the first paragraph, found my mind wandering, re-read the first paragraph, found my mind wandering, read it a third time, found my mind wandering, gave up and skimmed the story.
Spontaneous Combustion
The story held my interest from start to finish. It was an old-fashioned mystery relying on detective work and the slightest bit of medical testing (since it was written in 1910). Very good.
The Dead Man's Dog
The story was fine but didn't seem to fit in this collection. Her job is illegal but there wasn't really a crime in the story.
The Tale of Three Apples
I didn't get it.
Oedipus King of Thebes
This excerpt from a play was fine. It's amazing something written around 429 BC is still being published and read today.
The Bulldog Ant Is Not a Team Player
Catchy title. It was a tense read and it reminded me of the reader's bias to root for the first character you meet even if they're the bad guy (although everyone in this story were the bad guys) - I wanted her to prevail.
Chit Chit
That was incredibly unique. I wish there had been a little more to the ending, such as why they were needed and what his motivation was, but as a crime it was haunting.
The Ringer
Grrr, it was another one of those "complete and unabridged text online at their website" stories. 42 pages in the book in already long for a 'short story' and then that's not even all of it? But what was even more annoying is after I took the time to go to the website (because I am interested in the outcome), this story is not listed and was nowhere on the site when I searched it. So I guess they published part of a story with no resolution? No thank you.
The Mystery of the Boat Express
Good length and good pacing.
