Ellen Datlow - The Best Horror of the Year. Volume 6

Suffered from the Night: Queering Stoker’s Dracula , edited by Steve Berman (Lethe Press), is an anthology of fourteen new stories, but unfortunately the narrow focus (in contrast to a broader one of “vampires” or the editor’s Where Thy Dark Eye Glances: Queering Edgar Allan Poe —see mention below — which would be/is more successful because it’s not concentrated on one work by Poe) limits the variety and imagination of most of the contributors. Few do more than adding a gay character or changing one of the character’s sexual preferences. Notable exceptions are the stories by Laird Barron, David Shaw, Livia Llewellyn, Seth Cadin, Traci Castleberry, and editor Steve Berman.

Dark Fusions: Where Monsters Lurk! , edited by Lois H. Gresh (PS Publishing), is an entertaining all original anthology of eighteen supernatural, sf/horror, dark fantasy, and horror stories, many containing monsters. The most interesting are by Cody Goodfellow, Nicholas Kaufmann, Nancy Kilpatrick, Lisa Morton, Norman Prentiss, David Sakmyster, Darrell Schweitzer, and Ann K. Schwader.

In Four Summoner’s Tales by Kelly Armstrong, Christopher Golden, David Liss, and Jonathan Maberry (Gallery Books), each contributor takes a crack at the premise: what if the dead could be summoned from their graves.

Dueling Minds , edited by Brian James Freeman (CD), is #10 in the publisher’s signature series. Six stories, two original, with jacket art by Alan M. Clark, and interior illustrations throughout by Erin S. Wells. There, a notable story by Gerard Houarner

All-American Horror of the 21st Century: The First Decade: 2000–2010 , edited by Mort Castle (Wicker Park Press), is a volume of thirty stories by American writers dealing with “uniquely American” themes and written in an “equally unique style.” Two of the stories were actually published in the late Nineties. And while I’ve always appreciated editors using a few unknowns in anthologies, it seems counter to the spirit of the showcase that this volume intends to be because several writers are missing — influential and flat-out brilliant new horror writers who started publishing in the late ought’s and are currently flowering during this second decade of the twenty-first century.

ISF 2012 Annual Anthology , edited by Roberto Mendes and Ricardo Loureiro (International Speculative Fiction in association with Hipper Tiger Books and IndieBookLauncher.com), is the first anthology of science fiction, fantasy, and horror published by this international organization promoting speculative fiction from around the world. The stores are all reprints from various magazines and the organization’s webzine.

Weird Detectives: Recent Investigations , edited by Paula Guran (Prime), features twenty-three dark reprints published between 2004 and 2011 by writers such as Neil Gaiman, Charlaine Harris, Jim Butcher, Joe R. Lansdale, Ilsa J. Bick, and many others.

After Death… , edited by Eric J. Guignard (Dark Moon), has thirty-four original stories about death, some but not all dark. The more interesting ones are by Lisa Morton, Joe McKinney, and Ray Cluley. After the End: Recent Apocalypses , edited by Paula Guran (Prime), presents twenty previously published dark, mostly sf tales of what might happen after the world as we know it ends — for whatever reason.

In Heaven, Everything is Fine: Fiction Inspired by David Lynch (Eraserhead Press) features thirty-nine intriguing original and reprinted (nine of the latter) stories, vignettes, and dreamscapes. Most of the pieces are surreal and very effective. Some don’t work at all. A few are laced with horror. The original dark pieces I liked the best are by Edward Morris, Cody Goodfellow, Jeffrey Thomas, Matthew Revert, Andrew Wade Adams, and Garrett Cook.

Where Thy Dark Eye Glances: Queering Edgar Allan Poe , edited by Steve Berman (Lethe Press), presents twenty-six fantasy, dark fantasy, and horror stories and poems about or influenced by Poe, all involving gay or lesbian relationships. There are notable pieces by John Mantooth, Richard Bowes, Ray Cluley, Ed Madden, Tansy Rayner Roberts, and Cory Skerry.

End of the Road , edited by Jonathan Oliver (Solaris), mixes sf/f/h in fifteen new stories about travel along the road. There are notable horror stories by Jay Caselberg, Helen Marshall, Paul Meloy, Benjanun Sriduangkaew, S. L. Grey, and Adam Nevill.

Rustblind and Silverbright , edited by David Rix (Eibonvale), is a terrific anthology comprised of twenty-three stories and one poem about railways. Several of the stories treat the theme obliquely, to marvelous effect. Although not all the stories held my interest, most did, and some were excellent, including those by Andrew Coulthard, Christopher Harman, Andrew Hook, John Howard, Joel Lane, Danny Rhodes, Steve Rasnic Tem, Aliya Whiteley, and Charles Wilkinson. There’s also a notable poem by Gavin Salisbury and a brilliant novella by Nina Allan. In addition, the interstitial material by editor David Rix is consistently fascinating.

One Small Step: An Anthology of Discoveries , edited by Tehani Wessely (Fablecroft Publishing), features sixteen original stories by Australian women on the theme of exploration and discovery. There are notable dark stories by Kathleen Jennings and the collaborative teams of Joanne Anderton and Rabia Gale and Lisa L. Hannett and Angela Slatter.

Shades of Blue & Gray , edited by Steve Berman (Prime), has twenty-two original and reprinted fantasy and dark fantasy (with a bit of horror) stories about American Civil War ghosts. Of the fifteen new stories, there were notable dark stories by Ed Kurtz, Chaz Brenchley, Melissa Scott, Laird Barron, Christopher Cevasco, and Cindy Potts.

Rags & Bones , edited by Melissa Marr and Tim Pratt (Little, Brown), has twelve new stories inspired by classic tales of various types ranging from “The Monkey’s Paw” and “Carmilla” to “Sleeping Beauty,” The Man Who Would Be King , and The Awakening . The strongest of the dark tales are by Holly Black, Gene Wolfe, and Kami Garcia.

Horror Without Victims , edited by D. F. Lewis (Megazanthus Press), is an interesting all-original anthology with twenty-five stories: some horror, some just weird. And despite the title, there are indeed occasional victims. With notable dark stories by DeAnna Knipling, Katie Jones, Gary McMahon, David Murphy, John Travis, Charles Wilkinson, and L. R. Bonehill.

Shadows of the New Sun , edited by J. E. Mooney and Bill Fawcett (Tor), features eighteen original stories in honor of the great sf/fantasist (including one by Wolfe himself). There are notable dark stories by Neil Gaiman and Nancy Kress.

Beyond Rue Morgue: Further Tales of Edgar Allan Poe’s 1st Detective , edited by Paul Kane and Charles Prepolec (Titan), features eight new stories, the original “Murder in the Rue Morgue” by Poe, plus a reprint by Clive Barker. There are notable stories by Lisa Tuttle, Stephen Volk, Elizabeth Massie, and Joe R. Lansdale.

Red Spectres: Russian Gothic Tales from the Twentieth Century , selected and translated by Muireann Maguire (The Overlook Press/Ardis), features eleven stories, all but two translated from Russian into English for the first time — subtlety creepy and weird.

Queen Victoria’s Book of Spells: An Anthology of Gaslamp Fantasy , edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling (Tor Books), is a mixture of fantasy and dark fantasy with the darkest stories by Kaaron Warren, Veronica Schanoes, Maureen F. McHugh, Leanna Renee Hieber, and Dale Bailey. The Bailey is reprinted herein.

By Faerie Light , edited by Scott Gable, Caroline Dombrowski, and Dora Wang (Broken Eye Books), is a charming anthology of dark fantasy tales about faeries. A few stories, such as the fine one by Andrew Penn Romine, verge on horror.