With horror short fiction the reader is always looking for the trapdoor or what is awaiting you around the corner or via the door. The anticipation and suspense is just as crucial to the eventual reveal of the threat. I tend to think even more so. In Mark Morris’ cunningly titles Darkness Beckons we get a great collection of modern horror stories where the reader is on edge throughout

Among the stories I enjoyed were

Hare Moon by HV Patterson – an unusual mix of SF future tale and folk horror. Our narrator and her family have been chosen for the annual festival as a key part of the day. We get a constant unsettling set of scenes, a headless hare, very worried parents and sinister doctors and priests. Things are off from the start, and we know it is going to get worse and it really really does. Sacrifices are hard choices indeed in this story.

Under Cover of Darkness by Stephen Volk – a topical tale with an unusual narrator – a funeral director. A prominent celebrity he buried is now known to have committed serious crimes and work is underway to remove all trace of him. Volk achieves a worrying degree of menace just by explaining the situation and we can’t quite see where the horror of the story will come from. Its magnificently taut and keeps us on our toes until the very end. It really created a sense of menacing dread throughout.

Dusk by Angela Slatter – A nurse who is not a nurse tends to a very wealthy old lady in her isolated mansion. Slatter ads a touch of noir as we follow the main character Sissy who is in serious need of cash and this job is the only way to do it. Slatter though makes us wonder what else is wrong with the picture we are seeing. A house that has secrets; an elderly patient who cannot talk; a housekeeper not telling the truth and it all suggests something is being underestimated and when it comes out of the blue it takes us still by surprise. Very effective storytelling.

A Face Leaving No Traces by Brian Evenson - this is my favourite in the collection. Our narrator wakes in his sleep believing he is bitten and thinks there may have been a face at the window. It’s a single night of a tale where it weaves our narrator’s past and possible future battles against a former lover into a terrifying context. Evenson doesn’t explain things greatly leaving just hints and suggestions of what may have happened and what the foe (if there is one) may be capable of. Everything has a sinister edge to it from streetlamps to our narrator’s kind wife. We are left to face a new day and have no idea what awaits our character next and that is terrifying.

Good Bones by Sarah Read – Jim is a useless but desperate handyman and is hoping an elderly neighbour offers work, but this job is full of nasty surprises. Body horror, nasty creatures and a high degree of making the reader squirm makes this very effective horror.

Facts Concerning The Disappearance of the Orloff Six by Alyssa C Greene – a very impressive found footage tale of a famous 1990’s mystery where six young people vanished without a trace and now one of their relative and her student friends re-trace their footsteps. I loved the exploration of how such stories grow arms and legs in various conspiracy groups but then as the journey starts, we get a sense that there is a lot more to the tale few understand and its likely going to be too late for this modern group to avoid their own brush with death and danger. Very well crafted and melancholy.

He Wasn’t There Again Today by Peter Atkins – It feels like a standard urban fantasy detective tale as Kitty Donnolly Occult Detective is asked to investigate the case of someone seeing a ghost (but of someone who hasn’t died). It’s a good hook but is further enhanced by Kitty’s no-nonsense voice and she’s a fascinating character with a past as a drug dealer just one of her many other jobs and there is a delicious dark strand that only comes apparent at the very end. A really impressive story.

Dodger by Carly Holmes - Another favourite in the collection as its so unsettling. Lorna is attending a party and suddenly a strange child grabs her calling her Mummy. Then her husband also says its their child. A troubling Jacksonesque tale of making us wonder like Lorna what is going on and how do you deal with such a solution. It is uncomfortable and touches on ideas of what women are expected to be when they are apparently a mother. It keeps us worried all the way through.

The Service by Ally Wilkes – Another impressive story where we are with the staff of a rundown seaside hotel. One whose strange owners have unusual rituals such as being served in total silence. Wilkes throws in lots of good ideas such as how immigrant labour is used and abused; how bosses treat people and then slowly sets in strange ideas that leads to a set of conclusions and dangers. Our main character Karolina must decide is she in danger and what can she do about it. Its wonderfully ambiguous and we must decide what actually happened and neither idea is a great one.

The late Mrs Applegarth by Mark Gatiss - a widower eats a meal seems fairly straightforward, but this neatly very short tale serves up a fine final course of a last line.

The Fig Tree by Lucie McKnight Hardy – folk horror in modern Wales as a young family find a strange house in an increasingly strange village. Lots of odd sights slowly coalesce into a very disturbing an horrific finale and its very deliciously dark.

Il Crepuscolo by Helen Marshall is another magnificent, troubling tale that has the feel of doom throughout starting with the future drowning of Venice and Europe entering a dark age. The human race start to look towards new cities I the stars and our main character designs his tribute to Venice on Mars but things start to go wrong again and again. Its weeping epic almost horror opera in how things fall apart, and we wonder if the end has come once and for all. Beautiful storytelling.

A very impressive set of stories await the reader and even the ones I did not respond to where more cases where the style wasn’t to my tastes. Perfect for dark and cold evenings as enter the more eerie part of the year and strongly recommended!

Horror is my favourite genre, and having read novels, and short stories and watched plenty of horror movies and television, it's really getting trickier to find new ideas. Collections of short stories generally have a lot of options and different ideas, and yet many of these felt familiar to me. My favourite stories here were the ones that felt more fresh to me, like He Wasn't There Again Today, and Dodger which felt all too real. Remember me feels more familiar, and yet I liked this one a lot too because of how it ends. There were a few stories here that I struggled with, but that's the thing with short stories, is that they don't take too long before you're onto something new. Overall a good collection, just not amongst my favourite.

Thanks to the authors and Netgalley for the advanced copy.

Great short story collection, perfect for this time of year! There were a couple in there that weren’t as good as some of the others, I won’t say which ones as it’s just a personal opinion, but overall a great book to dip in and out of and a great mix of tales!

I think there's a sort of horror renaissance and a new generation of authors is becoming famous. I requested this arc because i love Malfi and was curious about Gatiss and other authors.
I enjoyed it as there's all type of horror and most of the story are very creepy and kept me on the edge.
An excellent read for Halloween.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

My favourite stories from this anthology:

‘Saint Barbara’ by Nina Allan. You knew I was going to say this – but it’s genuinely my favourite of hers in years, a story I wanted to read again as soon as I’d finished it (and putting it first in the book is a bold move because it sets the bar high.) Two women meet at a book signing, become unlikely friends, and encourage one another in their dreams of revenge. And then there are all the details: Deb’s love of the writer Olena Pohorska, and her own writerly aspirations; her assessment of Barbara’s appearance, and how that first impression evolves; the imagined stories, the imagined art. Deb’s descriptions of Pohorska’s work feed, playfully, into Allan’s fictional universe like an ouroboros – as though Allan is speaking to her dedicated reader, or maybe that’s just how I felt, but it fits so neatly with the story that I couldn’t stop thinking it. Like all the best short stories, ‘Saint Barbara’ feels like a whole world in miniature.

‘Under Cover of Darkness’ by Stephen Volk. While it’s essentially a fictionalised version of real events, this is a narrative Volk makes his own, adding a twist scarcely more horrible than the true story.

‘Facts Concerning the Disappearance of the Orloff Six’ by Alyssa C. Greene. A plausible urban legend, smartly told, full of foreboding.

‘The Service’ by Ally Wilkes. A Spanish waitress in a run-down English seaside town, a shabby 1970s hotel, a missing girl... I’m really looking forward to reading a collection of short stories by Wilkes one day as she is stunningly good at capturing atmosphere and mood succinctly.

‘The Fig Tree’ by Lucie McKnight Hardy. An excellent example of the family drama/folk horror combination that is becoming this author’s trademark.

Of the rest, I liked Ronald Malfi’s ‘Remember Me’, which nails the atmosphere of Halloween (a surprisingly rare thing), and Carly Holmes’ uncomfortable and deeply terrifying ‘Dodger’.

There are 20 stories in this book, which in my opinion is a few too many; I prefer my anthologies more tightly edited and selective. It also (broadly speaking) leans away from the ghostly, strange and ambiguous and more towards the supernatural, animate and gory, so most of it just isn’t in line with my tastes. I admit I was starstruck by Allan’s name (and the generally impressive list of contributors!) and didn’t pause to think about whether the concept was likely to appeal. Every stripe of horror is represented here – no doubt a plus for lots of readers, but this is not the best anthology to pick up if you have strong ideas about which subgenres you love and hate.

This anthology was slow for me at first. I had a difficult time following the first few stories, but that might be because it seems many of the authors are English and used terms I wasn’t familiar with. Once I got going into the book I experienced some incredible stories I will not soon forget. There is definitely a little bit of everything for everyone in this carefully tailored collection. There was some great body horror, cosmic horror, sci-fi, ghost stories and creature features. What I found most amazing about this book was how unique the stories were. Many of these will live rent free in my mind for a long time. Some of my favorites were: Heebie Jeebies by Amanda Cecelia Lang (so beautiful and heartbreaking), Killing Bones by Simon Clark (such a crazy unique ride with an unforgettable ending and amazing descriptions), Dodger by Carly Holmes (Holy real life horrors and unreliable narrator ! Whew!), and Remember Me by Ronald Malfi (an incredible ghost story). This is the perfect spooky season read.

Thank you to @netgalley and @flametreepress for this ARC

The Darkness Beckons anthology has some real heavy hitters such as Ed LaRocca and Ronald Melfi but they also had riders that were unknown to me like Amanda C Lang and Simon Clark mr. LaRocca even shows us his poetic side with If Your Soul Were a Pitchfork, I’d Despise You trust me when I say whether you’ve heard of the author or not the stories are really good ones usually in an anthology or short story collection there will be a few that seems like filler but everyone reads like a legitimate horror story my favorite story in the book is the last story Camp Nowhere although I did love the story about the fig tree in the vacation holiday house I could go on and on they had so many great stories this really is a great buy for any horror fan it’s a book I definitely recommend I want to thank flame tree press and net galley for my free arc copy please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

Darkness Beckons by Mark Morris is a horror short anthology which brings to you some creepy tales from the dark. I have already read many books by Mark Morris, so had high hopes for the book. The stories are not which are going to give you jump scares but they are basically silent horror. The book slowly engulfs you in the darkness. Some of the stories lacked the charm, but all the others were good. Also, the stories are by some of the famous horror authors.

The characters have been portrayed dark and secretive to boost the plot. The book is a perfect read for the Halloween. The book deserves 4 stars. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with an opportunity to read and review the book.

I love short stories and anthologies. Even the best author must flex their writing skills to deliver quality short stories. In less than a usual chapter length, they must introduce us to the characters and their communities/ back stories, commit to an "event" and then solve it, all while keeping the reader engrossed and flipping pages. I often find that an author will switch genres in an anthology, which gives me an even better appreciation for their talent.
Many have a similar theme with the writers giving their story an unusual “spin” to meet the theme’s intent without copying each other. This one has a theme too....scare you as quickly as they can. And it works well in many of these excellent stories. It is not unusual to find a true gem mixed in with the overall excellent stories, making anthologies a triple threat/ treat.

I find it hard to rate short story books as a whole, as generally there are good stories and bad stories throughout the collection. Everyone’s tastes are different and it’s hard to catch everyone in a collection of stories.

However that being said, the diversity in this book of stories was great. I loved each story and didn’t really have any I wanted to flick beyond. I can’t wait to see future editions!

‘Darkness Beckons,’ published by Flame Tree Press, is the fourth entry in the horror anthology series edited by Mark Morris, containing twenty new horror stories, wide-ranging, all enjoyable, all high quality tales by skilled writers. Look at those names: Ronald Malfi, Brian Evenson, Eric LaRocca, Simon Clark, Nina Allan, Sarah Read, Reggie Oliver, Stephen Volk, Angela Slatter, Simon Strantzas, ... Expectations are justifiably high, and, indeed, the book delivers aplenty. Malfi’s, Evenson’s, and Clark’s contributions are worth the price alone. "Facts Concerning the Disappearance of the Orloff Six" by Alyssa C. Greene was a nice surprise, worth reading just for the terrific ending. There are ghost stories, body horror, folk horror, sci-fi horror, some stories ending on a very nasty note, others chilling the heart with cruel tales of motherhood and dark family histories. Check this one out and then go read the other three books in the series: they’re all excellent reads and cudos to the editor for an impressive job!

Thanks to NetGalley and Flame Tree Press for an advanced copy.

Darkness Beckons is the fourth annual horror anthology edited by Mark Morris and published by Flame Tree Press. Like its predecessors, this one is filled with an excellent array of dark tales, written by some of the best practitioners of short fiction working today. As Morris states in his engaging introduction, this book marks the first time that one of his anthologies has contained more female authors than males. I only mention this because it’s important to note that the genre is in constant evolution – not just with regards to gender parity or an emergence of writers from different social backgrounds – but also in terms of thematic tone and subject matter – and it’s certainly refreshing to see so many editors keen to bring new voices and viewpoints to a wider readership.

The stories in Darkness Beckon cover a wide range of what constitutes the horror genre; from folk horror to the more traditional ghost story, from the darkest heart of humanity to the weird tale’s outright macabre. There must be something here to satisfy the majority of horror fans.

As with every anthology or short story collection, every entry stands alone and, as such, each reader will find different favourites within the pages of the book. The standouts for me were the contributions I’ll mention here, but it’s important to state that I think the overall quality is of such a high standard, there wasn’t really any of them that I didn’t enjoy. In Dodger by Carly Holmes motherhood is painted in nightmarish terms, made even more unsettling by the thread of skewed truth discernable in its prose. The brilliance of He Wasn’t There Again Today by Peter Atkins is driven by a narrator with a strong voice; this one is quirky and fun. Reading Good Bones by Sarah Read actually induced a nightmare of bones and cobwebs in my bed, such is its power, where we find Jim visiting the home of elderly Mrs Kelsey in order to do some odd-jobs around her dilapidated house. The sinister subject of Stephen Volk’s Under Cover of Darkness is a recognisable character, and Volk’s story depicts what feels like an approximation of one of the grisly real-life events surrounding him, complemented by the author’s masterful prose. The Fig Tree by Lucie McKnight Hardy shows what happens when a couple and their two young children spend a weekend away in a Welsh cottage; this one has elements of folk horror and references elements of grossness that might just put you off figs for life.

They keep saying that the short story market is done, that nobody reads this stuff any more. But the quality of writing in these Flame Tree Press anthologies suggest that there’s a thriving industry in short horror fiction that should not be ignored. There are still wonderfully skilled writers willing to work at this length, honing their craft and developing ideas that speak about the very fears we have in the modern world. The Flame Tree Press anthologies in particular are important, because although each book includes commissioned contributions from seasoned writers, the publisher also allows emerging writers to submit original stories during an advertised submission window, which keeps the books feeling fresh and relevant. This one, like the other three before it, comes highly recommended.

Darkness Beckons is a short story anthology which provides readers with a mixture of tales that portray life on somewhat of an angle. Featuring tales of the unexpected, it is perhaps not as dark as I usually like my horror fiction, but is full of stories that will get the skin crawling, draw you in and, on occasion, confound your expectations. I liked the mix, from a very modern take on witchcraft, to a true little shop of horrors, there really is a little bit of something for everyone.

Featuring twenty very unique stories, I actually read this book over a couple of weeks. That's what I like best about collections like this - there is no need to race through all of the tales (unless you want to, of course) and you can savour them over time, dipping in and out over a lunchtime or in between household tasks. With spooky season upon us, and Hallowe'en bit a few days away, it's a perfect book to tuck into, whether you are looking for a quick and ghostly tale just as The Late Mrs Applegarth by Mark Gatiss, or want something little longer, like Facts Concerning the Disappearance of the Orloff Six by Alyssa C. Greene (I couldn't help but think of a Venus flytrap whilst reading this one and when you tuck in, you'll understand why), or even something quick but with skin crawling efficiency like From The Man Seat by Reggie Oliver (not as rude as it sounds but doesn't help my deep rooted distrust of clothes shop changing rooms).

It's a collection I can see me coming back to in the future when I am looking for a quick hit of something a little different. So many different styles of horror tales here, many of which brought a smile to my face for all the right reasons. Hare Moon, for example, is a beautifully dark tale of sacrifice, and from the very beginning you can feel that sense of foreboding, the author delivering a story which was far more gory than I had expected. Not gratuitously so, but it certainly took me a little by surprise compared to the story that preceded it. And that's why I love an anthology like this. It's the short story equivalent of a box of Liquorice Allsorts. A lucky dip, if you like.

A great collection just in time for Hallowe'en. Might have to check out some of the other collections now to see what I've been missing.

Darkness Beckons, includes 20 short stories from both previously established authors as well as some you’ve never heard of. There is definitely a story for everyone in this anthology, as they all vary a lot from one another.

Like most anthologies, there were some I liked better than others. There were none that I hated, but most were just fine, and a very few special ones that really caught my eye. My personal favorite was Facts concerning the disappearance of the Orloff Six By Alyssa C. Greene.

I recommend this to lovers of horror anthologies and especially readers new to horror as genre, if you’re not sure what you’re looking for, this collection of short stories is a great place to start, as you get a taste of a little bit of everything.

Big thanks to Netgalley, Flame Tree Press, and the editor Mark Morris for allowing me to read an E-Arc of this Anthology.

I’m starting to think Morris’ anthologies are the only quality books Flame Tree Press puts out anymore. Or at least, for me. My idea of quality genre fiction is subtle and literary. And what is precisely what this anthology delivers, story after story.
Then foreword strikes an almost-apologetic, hyper woke note both from the editor and industry itself for absence of proper representation and inclusion for so long. Which yes, sucks, but also that’s just the state of the world, especially the past. Morris rectifies this the best he can, by amping up female representation, featuring lesser and more well-known women authors all over this collection. It’s a solid effort for equality, kudos to the editor.
I’m all about equality. But for me as a reader, authors genders are less important than the quality of their work. This collection shined brightly because the quality of the stories was so good. Definitely a worthy read for a thinking/discerning genre fan. Recommended. Thanks Netgalley.

A horror anthology that includes stories from Ronald Malfi and SImon Clark was enough to gain my interest in reading this book. And both of their contributions alone made it worth reading. But aside from two stories that I found I just couldn't finish, pretty much all the remaining entries ranged from reasonably enjoyable to really great. Among my other favorites were "Dusk" by Angela Slatter, "Good Bones" by Sarah Read, the YellowBrickRoad/Blair Witch-esque "Facts Concerning the Disappearance of the Orloff Six" by Alyssa C. Greene, and "Heebie Jeebies" by Amanda Cecelia Long. The stories range all over the place, but any horror fan should find something to like in this anthology.

This is a wonderfully diverse collection with some real stand out gems and no weak stories to let it down. All killer no filler!

Great anthology from Mark Morris in what is becoming an annual must read. As with any collection, not everything hits the mark for me, but the good far outweighs the bad, and the variety is pleasing- unsettling ghost stories, folk horror, gross-out body horror etc. There are a few standouts for me:

H.V. Patterson’s Hare Moon is chilling and atmospheric
Sarah Read’s Good Bones is nasty. In a good way.
Mark Gatiss’ the Late Mrs Applegarth is very short and very effective
Helen Marshall’s Il Crepuscolo is particular interesting - a science fiction story that addresses the very concept of a ghost story
Roland Malfi’s Remember Me is rather haunting and ultimately rather sad.

Very much worth a winter read.

Excellent. Enjoyed all the stories to a certain degree. Nice read for Halloween. Thanks for the review copy.

While some of the stories were not very good the others made up for it intensely. Even if it is only around four of them that I absolutely loved they made up for the rest of the ones that jyst kind of fell flat for me.