From the far-flung corners of space, to the darkest recesses of the human mind, Write Like Hell: Dark Fantasy & Sci-Fi Vol. 2 features a carefully selected collection of short science fiction stories from both new and established authors. Tales of madness, and of discovery, of war and of isolation, the stories found within these pages explore the very nature of mankind, and the technology … technology that drives us ever onward, toward the stars.
Featuring stories from Brett Allen-White, Justin Fillmore, Kevin Murray, Justin Probyn, Mitchell Luthi, Nicholas Woode-Smith and Scott Miller, as well as illustrations from Stephen Spinas, this compilation boldly attempts to leave its own mark on a genre beloved by many.
more
I absolutely enjoyed ALL of the stories in this set. You simply can’t go wrong with this collection. Every single story is guaranteed to pique your interest and entertain you.
*I received a complimentary ARC of this book in order to read and provide a voluntary, unbiased and honest review, should I choose to do so.
What I Think: There are several delicious tales in this anthology but I will gush over my favorites so please forgive me! These tales took me back to the 14 yr old who did a marathon of Stephen King novels and couldn’t sleep at night, jumping with every shadow and sound. Fortunately, it didn’t kill my love for the night or black cats (which is simply the only color cats should come in. Cat owners, please behave). I abandoned horror for over a decade but the heart wants what it wants and I’ve found myself dipping my toes back in the deceptively calm waters of horror, especially the paranormal kind, so, this anthology was perfect based on the name alone! There are also tidbits on what I believe are horror/fantasy game characters and a horror movie review that give the collection a nerdy, horror magazine feel. So, let’s get to it!
Dregmere:
Set in true Gothic style, we meet Simon at the gate of an abandoned castle that seems impenetrable. The black in me wants to grab h and run but then there’s something almost hypnotic watching someone do something you’re certain you’re too smart to fall for, like watching an accident happen. And then the shuffling steward appears and I know this fate is sealed. So, I settled in for the ride.
Wallachia reminded me of Castlevania, calling to mind castles with sequestered vampires but something tells me this tale might not be so simple. And this is the problem with being nice and considerate. No good deed ever goes unpunished and Simon was definitely punished. Only for the Author to leave me hanging. I almost screamed. the suspense and the unfinished things kept gnawing in the corners of my mind.
Panopticon: This was a mind fuck. Seen through the eyes of an inmate, it was truly twisty and bendy, til I didn’t know what was real or imagined. But this added to the horror of it as horrific things were mentioned in an off-hand manner. We never get to know what this inmate with an amazing mind did but that didn’t make me shudder less when he managed to escape. Once again, we’re left without complete knowledge but the feeling of darkness.
Voidborn: A scary, heart-thumping race through a spaceship that becomes contaminated and spews a type of grotesque zombies. We are carried through the final moments of the last survivor, from the confusion surrounding his awakening to his final defeat. Classic X-Files worthy material when you discover the shocking twist to this tale.
Verdict: A worthy introduction to formerly unknown authors. These tales will send you on a hunt for these writers’ complete works!
Write Like Hell: Dark Fantasy & Sci-Fi Anthology Vol. 2. A collection of Fantasy & Sci-Fi shorts. Except for Nicolas Woode-Smith’s Endbreach, all were new authors to me. “I received a free review copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.” (RIP Marley January 20, 2014 – July 24, 2018).
This is an anthology of mostly science fiction stories written by a variety of authors. Some of the stories are a bit more involved than others. But they are all well written with great plots. Of course, I do have a favourite and that would be Welcome Home by Brett Allen-White. A great story involving a little girl and her AI caretaker.
Easily read in just a few hours, this book will make you think, wonder, and dream about different worlds, different species, spaceships, and imaginations. Read it and test your own beliefs.
“science fiction almost always has more in common with horror or dystopian fiction than it does with fantasy” Mitchell Luthi
This collection of stories definitely veers into horror, not so much due to what they are about but because of why those events happen. Some can be very uncomfortable to read. They are the type of stories that creep up on you and haunt your thoughts long after you finish the story, making you reweigh and reconsider things as fundamental as the sanctity of life. Tales of impossible decisions that somehow are the right choice. Death re-framed.
I had a couple favorites, but did not think there was a weak story in the bunch. Although these are short, they are dense reads. They are not about monsters that go bump in the night as much as the darker side of psyche – chich can be far more terrifying.
I guess I am not as much of a sci-fi nerd as I thought. Each story took me awhile to catch on to who, what, when and where, and then it was finished. Some left me wondering where it could/would go next, and some left me shaking my head wishing I had never started that one. I think my favorite was the NECROPOLIS by Mitchell Luthi.
I don’t even know what to rate this, so I just went middle of the scale.
I received an ARC from one of he authors. I hate giving so-so reviews, but that’s my honest opinion.
I love this collection of short stories about sci-fi and fantasy. I loved almost all of the stories and those that I was not as happy with were not bad. Interesting and compelling stories, this volume 2 made me go back and purchase vol 1. It is awesome as well.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This was a great anthology book. As is typical with anthology books, you’ll like some stories more than others, but they all are pretty memorable. It might have been a little more in the science fiction genre but definitely on the darker side. Great if you want a taste of various authors’ work in the genres.
A NEW WAY TO LOOK AT INTERGALACTIC RELATIONSHIPS
I received this book for free and am giving my honest and voluntary review
A collection of short stories with the emphasis on aliens and their interactions with humans. In some of the stories, the humans are good and benevolent and others they are not so benevolent.
Well, I liked this second anthology so much that I bought the first one! First off, these stories by various authors with their unique voices are more sci-fi/fantasy than “hell”…each one is a page-turner in its own way. I also appreciated the length of the writings and the order in which they were organized. Two thumbs up!
Each story is unique and original, with their respective authors’ creative style highly reflected. Shocking moments, non-stop action and suspense–this book has a bit of everything! A fine, durable volume brimming with imagination and sparkling, inventive and well developed characters. The fast paced scenes and unpredictable turns of events definitely keep the readers in turning the pages and guessing till the last page. Great and entertaining short stories! A definitive recommendation of both volumes 1-2!
Write Like Hell is a wonderful anthology full of many good stories. Nicolas Woode-Smith’s Endbreach is a great addition to this collection. The squogg are slowly rotting away hoping to accomplish that high honor promised, the day of an Endbreach. Guadradd is more than ready for his time however that dream is short lived when the unthinkable happens. This short story was a good insight into the squogg, a true suicide squad. This is a collection definitely worth reading.
This is a collection of short sci-fi stories. Each is unique and well written. This collection is dark and gritty. Get ready to takeoff and find the answers to “How bad can this get?”.
I received a free copy of this book for an honest and voluntary review.
In my experience, anthologies are the greatest treasure trove a reader can find. Write Like Hell, is one of the better dark fantasy anthologies I’ve read in a while. Not only does the reader get a little bit of fantasy, they get a nice combo of dark sci-fi, which I think was my favorite combination.
Among the short stories, my favorites were Option Oblivion and Tabula Rasa. The description of the ship from Option Oblivion was enough to win me over, and as a huge fan of Firefly, I couldn’t help but think of Serenity. While not as bright as the Firefly series, the author was still able to capture a similar cleverness in his words.
As for Tabula Rasa, the world building was excellent in the short time the author had to tell his story, and the ending was beautifully dark. I didn’t expect to get so attached to Cassia.
My only qualms are personal. I struggle to remember pronouns, and with most fantasy and sci-fi, there are plenty to go around. That being said, this was a fantastic read and I highly recommend.
This volume of the Write Like Hell anthology series differs from the first in that it is primarily science fiction. If you are a fan of the Outer Limits or Twilight Zone you will probably even this, several stories have a twist in them. I think Mr. Visconti’s Daughter was probably my favorite because there were several twists in the story and it had a great ending I really liked some of the stories and I understood all but one story. Everyone’s tastes are different so something I liked you may not like. A decent selection of stories and I hope to see many more anthologies like this one.
This is an anthology of short science fiction stories. I thought the authors did a good job on the stories and they kept my interest. I would recommend to those who enjoy anthologies and science fiction. (I received this as an arc and am leaving a voluntary honest review)
I really enjoyed this book immensely the stories were done really well throughout and I enjoy the fact that they all fit together into an overarching theme
I downloaded this bookset because it included a book by Nicholas Woode-Smith, which pretty much guaranteed I’d enjoy at least one of the stories. No surprise that his contribution in was easily rated 5-stars. Surprisingly though, the other contributions were of equal quality. That doesn’t mean that I actually liked them all, as I’m actually not a huge fan of dark fantasy (though obviously I am more than happy to make exceptions for books by certain authors) but I recognize quality when I read it and in that basis definitely recommend this to anyone who is a dark fantasy fan.