When the Dead Don't Stay Dead: Stories to Take To Your Grave -- Mortuary Edition is a haunting collection of tales from the slab

 

 

Stories to Take To Your Grave – Mortuary Edition

By Multiple Authors

Undertaker Books, 2024

ASIN: ‎ B0CYQVHXVS

Ebook, 145 ppg.

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Some people are scared of funeral homes. Either they have a fear of being around dead bodies, have let too many scary stories get to them or they just have bad vibes when being in such a place.

 

When it comes to the anthology Stories to Take to Your Grave – Mortuary Edition, visitors to the funeral homes within the pages of this book have every right to be scared. Should you take the chance to read this book of stories, I should warn you: Be afraid. Be very afraid.

 

From stories of corpses coming to life (but without the zombie effects) to stories of shady visitors to the mortician performing his job, these stories will haunt you and have you cringing in terror.

 

I enjoyed reading the stories in this book. Here are some of my favorites, as well as some of the stories that I REALLY enjoyed reading:

 

"Smoking Kills"

"Souls 4 Sale"

"Quite A Scare"

 

The story “The Monster Maker” really hit home for me. Seriously, this was a story I could relate to on so many levels, mainly because the person with facial disfigurement who was bullied and ostracized by society echoed my own experiences as a person with burn scars on her face. This passage right here also really hit home for me, because I have had the exact same experience:

 

“I know how most normies react to terrible facial disfigurements, especially. They don't see the person underneath the scar, the torn flesh, the burns. They just see what's on the surface, and act like it goes all the way through to the soul.”

 

Yes, it’s shallow and stupid, but it’s true. Thank goodness I am not a “normie” because then I’d miss out on knowing some pretty amazing people, which I have had the pleasure of when meeting people with facial disfigurements who I was thankfully able to know better. I am grateful to my husband for being one of those people who sees past my facial scars, too!

 

But, anyway! Back to my review of this book. Well, this story. It was triggering, y’all. There is a character in it who was tortured severely before she died. It was heartbreaking to read. It also triggered some unpleasant memories of abuse from my past. So, be warned: This story requires a reader with thick skin!

 

I also really liked “The Night Hearse.” It was so creepy! At first, it was a little silly, but as things happened, it started to get spooky. Then it got creepy. The ending of that story blew me away! It was totally unexpected. Really chilling and really morbid. It was brilliant!

 

Stories to Take To Your Grave – Mortuary Edition is a collection of stories taking readers where many fear to tread. For some, their fears of funeral homes, mortuaries and crematories are justified, especially in this book where many of the worst fears become horrible realities.

 

 

Five stars

 

 

 

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Finding Comfort in Times of Pain and Lack of Sleep: Perturbations is a touching collection of poems about turning to nature to heal from grief and relieve insomnia

 

 

Perturbations

Sam Calhoun

Alien Buddha Press, 2025

ISBN-13: 979-8302237866

Ebook, 39 ppg.

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While adjusting to our grief, we look for things that provide comfort and guidance. We turn to things that help us to heal from our pain and find our way in the dark. As the poems show in the new collection Perturbations by Sam Calhoun, nature is what he has turned to in his time of grief.

 

Through his connection with nature, he finds solace, understanding and peace. It is in nature where he is better able to express his pain and his need for connection with others.

 

As he writes on page 23:

 

“Speak to me

like the trees

do not believe

in love anymore”

 

It is where he calls for open, honest dialogue with those closest to him.

 

When we are struggling with grief, we tend to relate to things outside of ourselves in a different way. Our pain brings us to another perspective and we see things differently. That is what happens here with these poems. (Example: "Smoke climbs/like rose branches,/thermals through bones/bare of the world").

 

This short collection of poetry provided a huge impact for this reader. Filled with poems containing imagery and metaphor, these almost lyrical verses swept me away to a calmer state of nature that offered hope and comfort. It’s certainly a sweet collection of poems I enjoyed reading, and one in which I shall turn to again in trying times. 

 

Five stars.

 

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book as part of my digital subscription with the publisher.

 

Unnatural Bodies in the Water: Girl in the Creek offers a harrowing tale of loss and cosmic horror

 

Girl in the Creek

Wendy N. Wagner

Tor Nightfire, 2025

ISBN-10: 1250908647

ISBN-13: ‎978-1250908643

Ebook, 146 ppg.

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NOTE: This review is based on an ARC I received from the author. The book will release on July 15. The “buy link” provided is for pre-orders of the book.

 

 

Erin Harper is not just a travel writer. She is also someone with a loved one who is missing. And when she goes to the town where her brother went missing years ago, under the guise of a writing assignment, she ends up becoming involved in a horrible scheme of people going missing in that very town that has gone on for years. Girl in the Creek by Wendy N. Wagner is a powerful, gut-wrenching story of one sister’s quest to find out what really happened to her missing brother and the horrible web of deceit and mystery surrounding his and others disappearances.

 

Writers never know what kinds of things they step into when they take on an assignment. That’s what happens for Erin. She’s there to learn anything she can after her brother had gone missing in the area, but when she and her friends end up coming across a poacher camp and finding a body in the creek, things take a horrifying turn. Plus, Erin’s mission to learn more about the town where apparently a lot of people have gone missing gets her in the middle of a town rivalry.

 

Even as Erin tries to play it neutral with the local deputy, the deputy does not trust her. She is suspicious of Erin’s motives and remains tight-lipped about anything outside of Erin’s interests. As she tells Erin at one point, “I’m not telling you anything, Nancy Drew.” It’s apparent the deputy does not trust writers – even travel writers, at that – and her referring to “Nancy Drew” instead of “Lois Lane” gets me thinking that the deputy feels that Erin is sticking her nose where she shouldn’t.

 

Well, in a way, she does, but only because her life and her friends’ lives were threatened. I mean, she’s not going to just sit there and let the police handle it. And somehow, trying to figure out what is going on gets her involved in the mystery surrounding the missing person cases that are rampant in that town.

 

As an Oregonian, I loved reading this book, and not just because it’s set in Oregon. I loved it for the outdoors theme, the description of Oregon forests and wetlands (as well as the constant rain!), and even the exploration of places less traveled through. I thought it was cool this story is set in Oregon; there were so many Oregon vibes I could relate to!

 

I also noticed how this story explores the theme of missing loved ones. The themes of people tearing up in sharing their stories over missing loved ones, the sadness of seeing those “Missing” posters, and the different ways in which people relate to this subject were strong in the story. I do not know anyone with a missing loved one, but after reading this novel, it felt like I did, through the characters in it dealing with this.

 

The part about the “strangeness” in the story and how it affected the body of the girl floating in the creek was confusing. However, I stuck with reading through the whole story, and as certain mysteries were revealed, so, too, was an understanding of what the “strangeness” was. I was shocked by what I learned, but in a way, it made sense. And it gave this story a whole new meaning.

 

I loved how the author wrapped everything up at the end. There was a sense of sadness, regret and longing in those last chapters, but the ending was a satisfying read. After I turned that last page, I walked away from that book with a better understanding of how mysterious nature can be, how unforgiving the forests and trails of Oregon are, and the sorrowful reality people with missing loved ones live with every day.

 

Girl in the Creek is an eye-opening story of horrible truths, unrecognizable nature, and the need for answers to help bring closure when a loved one goes missing.

 

 

Five stars

 

 

 

Disclaimer: I received an advanced review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.