Nightmare“Home” by Erik Grove
“Who The Final Girl Becomes” by Dominique Dickey
“A Girl Defines Herself” by Ruth Joffre
Reviewed by Kevin P Hallett
There are three original stories in the 125th issue of Nightmare. Overall, it was an entertaining collection.
“Home” by Erik Grove
In this horror short, he haunts the old house where he was born and where the lines marking his growth still appear on the door’s frame. The new woman can sense him and rightly fears him, but the new man is away too much to be aware of him.
The woman soon learns not to mention the house’s strange presence, as it results in special medication for her. But she fears the spirit even more, when she has her own boy. Especially when she discovers her son can feel him too. Should she ask her husband if they can move?
The author told the story from the ghost’s perspective, wrapping the tale in many mysteries that sometimes became a distraction.
“Who The Final Girl Becomes” by Dominique Dickey
Cinda is the final girl in this short horror story. A crazed axe murderer beheads her friends during a trip to a remote cabin. Only after her four friends die does Cinda get a chance to turn the tables to kill her would-be assailant.
Now she’s famous. Everyone wants to know how she feels. And a support group called Final Girl convinces her to join them. But in the end, it’s too much, so she retreats into a fake network character, a boy named Nathaniel. In the support group, she connects with a trans girl survivor named Ellie. After a while, Cinda decides it’s time for Nathaniel to meet Ellie in person.
This story only included speculative elements in the first few pages. The rest of the story explored Cinda’s personality transformation. Nonetheless, it was an engaging story to read.
“A Girl Defines Herself” by Ruth Joffre
The word girl has no origin in this flash horror tale. This means she can be whatever she pleases, and she was born from a field of bloody remains from a medieval battle.
This tiny flash piece was not a story in the normal sense.
You can follow Kevin P Hallett’s writing on www.kevinphallett.com. There are links there to join his mailing list for a weekly newsletter on the recent release of his second novel, The Fifth Kingdom.