Each year, people all over the world celebrate special festivals and days, shining light on what they wish to remember and revere. But sometimes, inhabitants of the dark arrive with the desire to disturb proceedings. Dark Celebrations is a collection of twelve short stories… and the holidays will never be the same.
Dark Celebrations
By calvindemmer
Dark Celebrations by Calvin Demmer is a collection of holiday horror where every story brings something new and unsettling to the table.
I had previously read some of Calvin’s works in other collections, so I already couldn’t wait to dive into this one. But then when I learned it was holiday horror?! My FAVORITE!
As I had guessed, this collection crushes it.
There was an awesome array of dark creatures here! There are ghosts, vampires, werewolves, mummies, mermaids, witches, zombies, ghosts, fire-women, aliens, sea demons, and more!
This is a must read for fans of holiday horror!
“Lara heard the voice calling from behind. The sound was mellifluous, as if the person was almost singing her name. She sensed her body turning. Must. Not. Turn. She didn’t want to see what terror was still after her. The encroaching fear pierced her like an icicle to the heart. Maybe the ghost of the river wouldn’t let her escape. Even with the dangers thundering in her mind, Lara couldn’t resist.”
( How I feel when I’m reading horror, I can’t resist!!)
Ghosts~Vampires~Werewolves~Cannibals~
Mummies~
Vindictive Mermaids
Witches~Undead~Aliens~A deep sea creature.
What more could one ask for compiled into one super entertaining book of short stories.
Every one was unique and yet together as a whole book made it feel as if I was reading it as one complete story. A whole world was being built throughout leading us to a dark ending. An ending to Dark Celebrations of the unnatural and unusual. And “the master has come”.
I did have one that was my favorite….’She Will Rise’. It just had heart and soul to it!
I really enjoyed every story and the whole experience of reading this!!
Dark Celebrations is not my first foray into Calvin Demmer’s world and I look forward to going wherever he wants to take me in this collection of stories.
I was going to review each story separately, but with Covid -19 around and being cooped up for six weeks now, I find my motivation running a bit empty. So…
I enjoyed all the stories and spending time in the world of horror and the supernatural. Calvin Demmer is skilled at crafting tales that give me the creepy crawlies,making me glad that it is fiction.
Wantta party? The door is open. Come on in. But, lock the doors and turn on the lights.
I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Dark Celebrations by Calvin Demmer.
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DARK CELEBRATIONS is a collection of twelve tales by author Calvin Demmer. I have previously read his flash fiction in THE SEA WAS A FAIR MASTER, and some of his other stories–all of which I loved. One of his strengths is the ability to impart a large amount of information into a shorter length. When I read one of his tales, I feel as if I really “understand” the characters and their motivations–no matter how many, or few, pages are there. He utilizes his language to perfection.
In this book, we are shown monsters from all different areas and folklore–each with Demmer’s original spin.
Personal favorites of mine included:
–“Three Dead Men”: An unexpected tale of unlikely assassins. “. . . Maiko knew her attacker’s heart beat only for her . . .”
–“She Will Rise”: The bond between twins extends even beyond death.
–“Hungry Ghosts”: Not the ideal time to travel abroad . . . “. . . they realized they arrived during the Hungry Ghost Festival, or Zhong Yuan Jie, as the locals called it . . .”
–“Unidentified Fatherly Object”: A unique take on the concept of “things out there”. This is where the stories felt as if they were somehow coming together into something . . . larger.
With the exception of the opening tale, a couple of the earlier ones didn’t quite captivate me as well as the later ones. However, as a whole, this collection come together very well by the end. In my opinion, a worthy addition to any horror enthusiast’s shelves.
Recommended.
This is a great set of stories. The stories are well written and keeps your interest. I love anthologies, especially creepy ones. If you love scary anthologies then I recommend this book.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Is there really anyone out there who hasn’t yet read ‘The Sea Was a Fair Master’? Released in June, 2018, ‘The Sea…’ is a masterclass in flash fiction/short storytelling and as I said back then, really cemented Demmer’s status as the one to watch and one of the best short story writers out there.
Fast forward and Demmer returns with ‘Dark Celebrations.’ To be upfront, I will say that I had the honour of sharing a table of contents with Demmer in the ‘Horror Collection: Silver Edition’ just this past January and I’m still stunned to think that it actually happened, especially after reading this collection.
What I liked: I actually received the digital review copy yesterday and decided I’d read the first story before diving back into my other reads. Bad move on my part. I ended up reading the entire collection and each story was outstanding. If I had to pick two to really rave over, it would actually be the final two. ‘Unidentified Fatherly Object’ ticked all of my Area 51/UFO/Secret Government place boxes and the fact that it even alluded to all of the previous stories on a discovered bulletin board made me smile immensely. The final story ‘Independence Denied’ started out with an amazing storyline of earthquakes and tsunami’s as well as a Go-Pro on a Great White Shark, before suddenly blessing us with the gift of an old great one. Demmer is such a great writer when it comes to getting you involved quickly before turning on the fan and throwing everything at it.
What I didn’t like: There were a couple of stories that I enjoyed but didn’t love, but that was just my experience. As I typically say in reviews for collections/anthologies, the stories that weren’t my favourite will often be the favourites of others. That’s the beauty of each collection speaking to each reader’s experiences.
Why you should buy this: Did you not see who the author is? C-A-L-V-I-N D-E-M-M-E-R. Add a ‘freaking’ between first name and last name for added emphasis. The stories hum and crack with energy and you know full well something is going to happen. The opening story ‘Hungry Ghosts’ is a prime example of how the story will start in one direction before quickly taking a new route without even turning on a signal light. ‘Happy Dark Year’ gave us another reason to fear the water and ‘Thanks Sinning’ made sure that we were rightly distracted from what the real danger was.
Demmer is a must-read for me and this collection once again delivers the goods. Here’s hoping we see more from Calvin sooner than later!
I really liked the length if these stories. I could read a whole story and go do something else, then come back to a whole new story. Luv the way Demmer gives these traditional holidays a dark twist. The stories have paranormal beings, but there is nothing normal about them either! I have to say my favorite story was the one with the mermaid sisters, some twisted “romance” in that.
This is a really great book for anyone who likes horror, but especially so for ones on the go. RECOMMENDED