A poor collection of short stories. They is little theme, and just poor story writing. I wish I could find some redeeming factor to the book, but, there really isn't any. It's not the subject matter, but the writing style. I'm sorry; I wish I could be more positive. ( )

A series of short holiday stories, mostly winter themed, I found each to be entertaining in its own way. Some were certainly more amusing or entertaining than others, but all had a quality of what-happens-next about them that I found interesting for the short story genre. I was surprised at just how interested I was by this collection, especially since I'm not typically a fan of gore or horror.

It should be said that none of the stories in this set are graphic or bloody. There is no over the top mention of any horrible thing happening. The hints of the acts are better than the descriptions of the acts themselves, in much the same way that Poe leads readers through his suspenseful stories.

Note: Though this book was a free gift from the author, the content of my review was in no way influenced by the gifting. The book speaks for itself and my review would have been worded just this way even if I'd gone out and bought it. I also give bonus points for Text To Speech enabling on Kindle format.... but that also wasn't a factor in the above review. ( )

I was lucky enough to win an e-copy of Season of the Macabre by Damien Kelly in a Librarything Giveaway.

Season of the Macabre is a small collection of seasonal short stories, all set in the cold.

I was a little torn by this collection, if I'm honest. Some, I enjoyed. I enjoyed that the action is more implied than tangible, that the suspense is built up through what is not said or done but alluded to. Some stories I just got, and they gave me a little spine tingle at the end. Others, I just didn't get at all. I didn't find them chilling, I didn't find them suspenseful or thrilling; I suppose you can't win 'em all.

I would have liked to have seen some of these short stories developed further, explained more, used as scenes from full length novels, or at least novellas. The writing style is good: when it works, it really does work for me. However, I think I may have found that I just don't like short stories, and prefer my literature full length, explored in detail, played out in full, gratuitous, graphic glory. ( )

Season of the macabre
Damien Kelly
4 stars
Short stories for the winter season and the open minded.
An eclectic collection, ranging from a calculating little boy to a murderous wife. I enjoyed the mixture of stories as much as the authenticity of the writing which changed tone beautifully with each character: an upset little boy from Washington, a cynical and sassy pathologist, a stressed and busy Vicar’s wife with a secret. My only wish would have been to have even more sting in the tale of each story.

Mr. Kelly writes beautifully about horrifying things. The quiet horror reminds me of Roald Dahl as well as the better episodes of the Twilight Zone. The stories are holiday related and most have a surprise ending. The collection is both wonderful and disturbing. Each story is like a faceted jewel. I didn't care for the subject matter in some of the stories, but the writing and the endings never failed to impress. ( )