Nightmare “Rotten Little Town: An Oral History (Abridged)” by Adam-Troy Castro
“How to Break into a Hotel Room” by Stephen Graham Jones
“Darkness Metastatic” by Sam J. Miller
“I Let You Out” by Desirina Boskovich
Reviewed by Tara Grímravn
Nightmare Magazine rings in the new year with a plethora of great stories in honor of their 100th issue. Four original tales can be found on the website (reviewed here) along with several reprints, but ebook readers will have the pleasure of a couple of additional bonus stories.
“Rotten Little Town: An Oral History (Abridged)” by Adam-Troy Castro
The hit TV show Rotten Little Town was on the air from 1993 to 1999, spanning a full six seasons. It was an interesting mix of the American western and horror genres, garnering a huge following during its time. Today, the show’s creators and cast have come together to discuss the legacy it left behind.
Castro has an interesting style that I’ve always liked. Several pieces that I’ve read of his are written as if they’re a journalistic work. One of the reasons I like this approach is that it makes the narrative feel more realistic, and this story is no exception. The weirdness and horror are a bit subtle at first, what with the occasional mishap to people who, for one reason or another, took a stand against the show. The further one reads, though, the stranger things get. Still, it all remains sort of covert, giving the reader just enough to know that something wasn’t entirely on the up and up when this show was in production without ever really pointing a finger at anyone outright—it never moves beyond veiled suggestion, which makes it all the more intriguing as the reader tries to work out just what the co-creator was up to all along. A very good story, indeed.
“How to Break into a Hotel Room” by Stephen Graham Jones
Javi’s friend, Tran, is dying. Best friends since childhood, the two have grown up together turning scamming and stealing into an art form. They had never hurt anyone, of course. Well, except possibly once, but that was never clear and doesn’t matter now. What matters is that Javi is about to lose his best friend and, as a tribute to his failing accomplice, he has planned a scam that’ll bring some bit of joy to Tran in his final days…if he can pull it off, that is.
Jones’s story makes for a decent read. The ending is particularly satisfying as there’s little about Javi that makes him genuinely likeable, even if he does have at least a small degree of conscience. The narrative sets him up as being a small-time criminal that, for the most part, deserves whatever misfortune he gets, even if he never intended to do anyone physical harm directly through his actions. The fact that he opens the doors for others to do so is bad enough and doesn’t absolve him of any responsibility—which is more or less the point of this story.
“Darkness Metastatic” by Sam J. Miller
Aaron’s boyfriend, Caleb, disappeared months ago. No note, no goodbye—he just left one day to follow up on a news story about a hate crime at a synagogue on which the two of them were working and never returned. Aaron was nearly over the pain of being abandoned so abruptly, but tonight that equilibrium has been disrupted by a call from one of Caleb’s old flings. According to the caller, Caleb stopped in for a visit and is now threatening to kill him. Aaron hangs up in disbelief but can’t shake the feeling that something isn’t right. The next day, he follows up with their producer at VICE, who gives him a copy of the pitch Caleb had submitted on their story. That was his first mistake.
Since its inception, social media has certainly introduced a wide variety of boons and banes into modern life. Miller’s story capitalizes on the ever-evolving threat that viruses and malicious bots pose to our safety and well-being, both in a physical and mental sense. The story’s premise is unsettling to say the least, even without the fantastical bits revealed at the end. The tension and sense of dread keeps building as the story continues, culminating in a terrifically frightful ending. Readers will enjoy being unsettled by this one.
“I Let You Out” by Desirina Boskovich
For years, Rebecca has been running from a monster that’s chased her since childhood. After fleeing her home, she’s lived in her car, moving from state to state to avoid being closed in a room with a door so the monster doesn’t have anywhere from which to enter this world. Upon hearing of the death of an old high school friend, however, she returns home for the funeral. Unfortunately, she might never get the chance to leave.
The main themes running through Boskovich’s story center around abuse and healing. I like the bait-and-switch that the narrative pulls on the reader, as I really did not expect the story to go in the direction it did. The opening paragraph appears to set up for a different sort of fright than the one that is actually delivered, as the cultists don’t quite play the role one is first made to think they will. Don’t get me wrong, they’re still frightening in the role that they do play, but it’s just not the one readers will expect given the monster aspect of the tale. Then again, on second thought, maybe it is. Either way, readers will enjoy this one.