The Middle of Nowhere – Horror in Rural America
Edited by Jessy Marie Roberts
Pill Hill Press
Farms, open fields, woodlands and arid western plains are common settings for these various tales that range in subject matter from murdering madmen to malevolent spirits. This is an entertaining anthology of heartland horror, a collection of engrossing very short stories. Some are only 3-4 pages with most weighing in at 9-12 pages. This makes for perfect bedtime reading. I will mention a few of my favorite stories here, so you can get an idea about the collection’s contents. In ‘Hallowskreig’ by Stephen D. Rogers, a man is transported back to a WWII battlefield when a group of trick-or-treaters come strolling up his front walkway. A couple looks for a better life in the western expansion years as they attempt to settle their wagon on land that had once been Choctaw Indian burial grounds in ‘Closer By the Second’ by Rob Rosen. ‘The Cabin’ by Jack Burton features a species of crab spider who’s secretions turn an entomologist and his wife into slaves, in order to provide safe haven for it’s offspring. Lastly, and probably the creepiest of the collection, is ‘Storm Chase’ by D. Nathan Hilliard. As a brutal storm arrives and a farmer and his current love prepare to head for a shelter, he sees a female figure standing in his farm field, in the exact place where he had buried his wife when he murdered her a few years back. Middle of Nowhere is a fun collection of ghostly and ghastly stories for the horror fan no matter where the reader may reside. If you like your story short and not-at-all sweet, this anthology is a great read.
parlor of horror 