Review: These Lingering Shadows by Last Waltz Publishing

These Lingering Shadows is a collection of fifteen gothic tales compiled by Last Waltz Publishing with a little something for every flavor of horror fan—ghosts, witches, revenge, vampires, haunted houses, demons—both literal and personal, and so much more.

 

“The Far Field” by Heather Miller - a secret romance between a field worker and the field owner’s son, once sweet soon becomes inconvenient and must be handled. Haunting, beautiful tale of vengeance.

“Hallow House” by Jo Kaplan – Sixty years ago on Halloween night, Jordan’s friends went missing after a dare gone wrong. Now as an elderly man of 72, he is going back to Hollow House to find his friends. Dizzyingly creepy and unsettling!

“Nory’s” by Michael J. Moore – An old-timer out for his daily stroll overhears a group of teens sharing an outlandish tale about the creepy origins of local pizzeria. When he arrives at the pizzeria to share the laughable gossip with his friend who owns it, he gets the shock of his life.
 “Behold, Death Arrives, A Duet of Ash and Fang” by Jae Mazer- Vero lives with her dead sister and feeds a monster in the woods to gain its loyalty to exact revenge for her family.
“Hell Hath No Fury” by Diana Olney – After receiving a bouquet of roses from her ex-lover, Claire is ill at ease. Dark, heart-wrenching, haunting with an unexpected ending.

“A Halloween Ghost Story” by Christy Aldridge – After teenage Kenzie is grounded after a drunk driving incident by her parents she is forced to stay home on Halloween and can’t go inside until she gives out every single piece of candy. If she runs out of candy before a particular trick-or-treater arrives, things will not go well for Kenzie. A creepy good campfire-type tale.

“Mine” by Matt Scott- A power-obsessed man is intent on building his mansion, to his exacting specifications and disregard for the lives of his workers, in the town that bears his name. The townspeople are fed up and want him gone, by any means necessary. Years pass, and the mansion is associated with numerous deaths, when a descendent of the original owner takes ownership of the mansion. The past meets the future of one family with a violent explosive result.

“The Dare” by Tony Evans - Tim, the new boy in town, takes a dare to walk through every room of the rumored to be haunted Baily House. The prize—a date with Gina! Footprints in the house lead Tim to believe that others have taken the dare before him, and he’s not sure what he will find inside.

“Cries of the Night” by Guy Quintero – Matilda is forced to serve her drunken father’s wishes and take his abuse without complaint. On her nightly chore to fetch his ale, she is captivated by a stranger who kidnaps her. A life-changing event bonds her to a being who seeks to avenge her innocence to those who have wronged her.
 
“The Feeding” by D.E. Grant- Selene is born into a line of witches and offered up as a sacrifice to the vampires by her mother, a powerful mage. Now a powerful Witch Vampire hybrid, she seeks to create a clan of her own kind. A vampire and witch war erupts and only one side can win.
“Belladonna’s Curse” by Danielle Manx - Grace is a witch whose cancer hasn’t responded to traditional or holistic treatments. Next best plan is a body switching spell on Halloween with a guest of her B&B who has issues of his own.

“Devlin’s Manse” by Daemon Manx - Devlin's Manse, a once beautiful Victorian house, is in dire need of renovation due to decades of vacancy. When workers come into the house and begin to work and bring it back to its former glory, the lives of inhabitants James and Mary become more threatened.

“Flesh and Chocolate” by James G. Carlson – Felix has been looking forward to Halloween night and going trick-or-treating with his older brother Parker and his friend Tig, much to their dismay. Eager to be one of the treated like one of the older kids, he follows their plan to go trick-or-treating in the rich area of town. When bullies steal Felix’s candy, he encounters a stranger and makes a bargain with her—she gets the bullies and he gets a wish granted, one that yields sweet results.
“Riding the Ghost Train” by Jack Wells - An affluent, but angry drunkard has sunk to a new low—he has now struck his wife in front of their children. In shame and remorse, he has exiled himself to the family cabin to detox alone —so he believes. Is he going insane from alcohol deprivation or is he really losing his mind? Very creepy and atmospheric story.
“A Dream of Dead Leaves” by Jeremy Megargee – Years after her sister Fiona has taken her own life in a haunted house on Halloween night, Olive enters the house seeking a connection to her sister and is met with dreams of Fiona beckoning her to an unending Halloween. Haunting and heartbreaking.

 

This anthology was excellent, and I really loved how the stories were arranged to achieve the maximum emotional impact on the reader.  Heather Miller’s story “The Far Field,” “Hell Hath No Fury” by Diana Olney, Daemon Manx’s story “Devlin’s Manse,” and Jeremy Megargee’s “A Dream of Dead Leaves” were emotional gut punches that hit me especially hard. I also loved how the Halloween-themed stories, “A Halloween Ghost Story” by Christy Aldridge and “Flesh and Chocolate” by James G. Carlson were also spread out through the book along with the haunted house stories, “Hallow House”, “Mine,” and “The Dare” were sprinkled throughout so as not to lose their effect. They were perfectly placed. I absolutely LOVED “Behold, Death Arrives, A Duet of Ash and Fang” by Jae Mazer. Last Waltz Publishing knocked this anthology out of the park and I look forward to their next outing.

 

5/5 Stars

Thank you to Last Waltz Publishing for providing me with an eArc for review purposes. All thoughts and opinions of this work are my own.