Tim Jeffreys

I received this book for free as part of a First Reads give-away, and I'm jolly glad I did, too.

The Haunted Grove is a collection of nine stories ranging in length from the flash fiction The Well to the eponymous novelette. The styles of writing in each of the stories are as varied as their lengths, as is the particular kind of horror being evoked. From the simple prose narrative of the opening Three Winters that uses a quaint coming-of-age tale to explore the circumstances leading to an show more ordinary person committing terrible deeds, to the indecipherable The Secret Season, which is either two pages of purple prose or an evocative piece of prose poetry depending on one's inclination.

Personal favourites included the aforementioned very-short story The Well that managed to chill me more in its single page then many horror books have done in several hundred times that. I also had a soft spot for Rain Songs; one of the simplest tales in the collection and with undertones of noir fiction, it built up slowly but concisely to its satisfying conclusion. In fact rushed endings to a couple of the stories were the only real fault I discerned in the collection. That being said, in the horror genre erring on the side of brevity and allowing the reader to scare themselves is undeniably preferable to rambling on and ruining the carefully constructed allusion of terror. Thence, so as not to ramble on, I'll end this review and recommend this book to any fans of well written horror. show less

I received this book for free as part of a First Reads give-away, and I'm jolly glad I did, too.

The Haunted Grove is a collection of nine stories ranging in length from the flash fiction The Well to the eponymous novelette. The styles of writing in each of the stories are as varied as their lengths, as is the particular kind of horror being evoked. From the simple prose narrative of the opening Three Winters that uses a quaint coming-of-age tale to explore the circumstances leading to an show more ordinary person committing terrible deeds, to the indecipherable The Secret Season, which is either two pages of purple prose or an evocative piece of prose poetry depending on one's inclination.

Personal favourites included the aforementioned very-short story The Well that managed to chill me more in its single page then many horror books have done in several hundred times that. I also had a soft spot for Rain Songs; one of the simplest tales in the collection and with undertones of noir fiction, it built up slowly but concisely to its satisfying conclusion. In fact rushed endings to a couple of the stories were the only real fault I discerned in the collection. That being said, in the horror genre erring on the side of brevity and allowing the reader to scare themselves is undeniably preferable to rambling on and ruining the carefully constructed allusion of terror. Thence, so as not to ramble on, I'll end this review and recommend this book to any fans of well written horror. show less

In the near future, overpopulation is dealt with by a special force of individuals known as Sterilization Agents. Each one is tasked with tracking down deadbeat fathers and ensuring (legally) that these men no longer procreate by zapping them in the groin with a special gun that effectively neuters them. Danny Seraphine is one such agent who finds particular satisfaction in his job, perhaps due to the fact that his own father left his family when Seraphine was only 9 years old.

Aside from his show more job, Seraphine leads a somewhat normal life, though not without complications. Seraphine and his wife, Emily, are having pregnancy issues. After their first child, Marnie, was stillborn, Seraphine isn't sure if he wants another, despite Emily's eagerness. Also, Seraphine's little brother, Zack, is in prison, known as The Farm, and Seraphine has yet to visit. And then there's the little matter of the ethereal transparent shapes Seraphine keeps seeing wherever he goes, the mysterious, titular voids.

Add to the above mix an introduction to a future society and its various technologies and you've got a recipe for an enjoyable read. Voids is also a quick read, and not just because it's a novella. The prose sings as it leaps from the page, urging the reader on to the next. And by the time the reader reaches the end, all of the plot threads have been neatly resolved. I highly recommend Voids to anyone who reads Science Fiction or to anyone with any kind of experience (be it firsthand or otherwise) with deadbeat dads. show less

Stories are of uneven quality: one is unreadable, .a couple let down at the end by stereotype (demonish female spirit),a few awkward, some sophomoric though to be fair even the latter two sorts are sometimes enjoyable. Some are so good that I'm keeping the book. Worth looking into for a spot of undemanding reading.