Another fine collection of tales by the great Joyce Carol Oates. The stories are all very believable, which perhaps makes them more horrifying. Many of them leave you with the thought "Oh my gosh! What happens next?!" And as I'm reading some stories I think, "Is this happening or is the character just imagining it?". A couple of the stories, "The Doll Master" and "Big Mamma" are really quite creepy. One story, "The Soldier" is a tough one to read because it has happened and is so timely today. My favorite though, may be "Mystery, Inc", probably because it takes place in a bookstore, but the ending is great as well. Once you start the book it is hard to put down! ( )

An excellent set of stories. Thoroughly enjoyed all of them. Oates is such a good writer. ( )

An eclectic mix of short stories, part thriller, with elements of horror.
"The Doll Master" is a tale of a young boy who “finds” his own dolls to play with after his father decides to take away a much beloved toy he kept after his cousin passed away. A fairly good story, I would give it 3 and a half out of 5 stars

"Soldier" concerns a murder trial in which elements of racism are a factor, reminiscent of the Zimmerman trial and made me wonder if the author followed the TV coverage. 3 out of 5 stars

In "Gun accident" a young teen has a terrifying experience while house sitting. I would give it 3 and a half out of 5 stars

"Equatorial" is the story of an insecure wife visiting the Galapagos with her husband. Maybe she is paranoid... or maybe he really is out to get her.
4 out of 5 stars

"Big Momma" is the story of a lonely girl who is somewhat neglected by her mother. She is fairly new to the neighborhood, where an alarming number of children and pets have gone missing. When she is befriended by Rita Mae and her father she couldn’t be happier, until........well you will have to read it and see. 5 out of 5 stars

"Mystery Inc" concerns a book store, and the man who wants to possess it. I just could not get into this story at all 2 out of 5 stars

I received an advance copy for review ( )

Contains:
The doll-master --
Soldier --
Gun accident: an investigation --
Equatorial --
Big momma --
Mystery, inc.

I received an ARC copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A very fine collection of dark stories by a master writer in her prime. Really, it is a matter of taste with regard to which of the individual stories you will prefer, but Oates genius is evident in every word.

I found the first story, the title story--The Doll-Master to be a bit predictable and that took away from my enjoyment but it also reinforced for me something I really enjoy about Ms. Oates' writing. Mainly, that despite her numerous accolades that place her at the top of the literary scene, she isn't afraid to acknowledge her affection for Lovecraft and other "pulp" writers and engage in playfulness that other "serious" writers avoid. That just makes her not only great, but fun to read.

"Soldier" was a very interesting character study that approaches a fairly frequent headline event from an interesting and cynical angle. "The Gun Story" was probably the most literary of the bunch as it explores criminal violence through the eyes of a young girl who deliberately refuses accept evil around her. I found it to be very moving and quite sad.

"Equatorial" was a fresh story, set in the Galapogos Island and other exotic locals. Wife #2 is facing the very real possibility that this exotic vacation is the opportunity for her to be removed in favor of a new and younger model. This story for me was exceptional in that while it wasn't a completely novel concept, the the exotic locations and the wonderful voice of the protagonist made this story very moving as well as enjoyable.

"Big Momma" is a wonderful Southern Gothic creep show and my favorite of the bunch.

"Mystery, Inc." was an homage to "pulp" mysteries and could have been pulled from an Ellery Queen's or maybe even more likely Alfred Hitchcock's mystery magazine.. The story line and narrative voice actually made me think of creepy comics from the 50's in the way the story lead to what gradually became a more an more obvious, but appropriate ending.

First rate collection. ( )