Ugly Little Things: Collected Horrors

Ugly Little Things: Collected Horrors

Overview

Ugly Little Things: Collected Horrors by Todd Keisling

THIS IS GOING TO HURT.

The eleven stories in Ugly Little Things explore the depths of human suffering and ugliness, charting a course to the dark, horrific heart of the human condition. The terrors of everyday existence are laid bare in this eerie collection of short fiction from the twisted mind of Todd Keisling, author of the critically-acclaimed novels A Life Transparent and The Liminal Man.

Travel between the highways of America in “The Otherland Express,” where a tribe of the forsaken and forlorn meet to exchange identities. Witness the cold vacuum of space manifest in the flesh in “The Darkness Between Dead Stars.” Step into the scrub of rural Arizona and join Karen Singleton’s struggle to save her husband from a cult of religious fanatics in “When Karen Met Her Mountain.” Visit the small town of Dalton in “The Harbinger” and join Felix Proust as he uncovers the vile secrets rooted at the heart of Dalton Dollworks. And in the critically-acclaimed novella “The Final Reconciliation,” learn the horrifying truth behind the demise of the rock band The Yellow Kings.

With an introduction by Bram Stoker Award-winner Mercedes M. Yardley and illustrations by Luke Spooner, Ugly Little Things will be your atlas, guiding you along a lonely road of sorrow, loss, and regret. This is going to hurt—and you’re going to like it.

Proudly represented by Crystal Lake Publishing - Tales from the Darkest Depths.

Interview with the Author:

What makes this collection of horror stories so special?

Todd Keisling: These stories represent some of the darkest fiction I’ve ever written. I was in a bad place when I wrote most of them, and I put my thoughts to paper with the intention of sharing my dread with potential readers. These stories will cut deeply. They’ll make you weep and they’ll make you bleed.

Tell us more about the theme you were going for in this horror collection?

Todd Keisling: There’s a story in the collection, “The Harbinger,” which is about a doll maker who infuses her creations with the pain of her victims. The title “Ugly Little Things” comes from that story, as each tale in the collection is intended to be one of those dolls, each filled to the brim with the darker qualities of the human condition.

Categories:

  • Horror
  • Horror Short Stories
  • Horror collection
  • Thriller
  • Suspense
  • Weird Fiction
  • Dark Fantasy
  • Short Fiction
  • Single Author Collection
  • Speculative
  • Literary Horror
  • Occult

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781640074729
Publisher: Crystal Lake Publishing
Publication date: 09/14/2017
Pages: 432
Sales rank: 1,216,308
Product dimensions: 6.00(w) x 1.25(h) x 9.00(d)

Table of Contents

Foreword by Mercedes M. Yardley

A Man in Your Garden

Show Me Where the Waters Fill Your Grave

Radio Free Nowhere

The Otherland Express

Saving Granny from the Devil

The Darkness between Dead Stars

Human Resources

House of Nettle and Thorn

When Karen Met Her Mountain

The Harbinger

The Final Reconciliation

Story Notes

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Ugly Little Things: Collected Horrors 4 out of 5 based on 0 ratings. 1 reviews.
19269684 More than 1 year ago
I was referred to read Ugly Little Things, Collected Horrors, by Todd Keisling through Goodreads.com. I love that people think to send me book titles. The summary there didn't lead me to think it was going to be a huge read, but I was wrong. I really enjoyed this book. Short stories are fun because they don't require a great deal of explanation. With Ugly Little Things, Keisling took advantage of that nugget, giving just enough fright to not gross you out or have you jumping at the paranormal. No, his writings left me in wonder. I literally sat in the middle of the night, at the end of one of the shorts, thinking of how the "true" ending would have ended. The story mentioned above was my absolute favorite, though there were many that fascinated me. Without giving away the story, I loved Show Me Where The Waters Fill Your Grave. It tells of an elderly man who's lost the love of his life. He's waiting for her. Yes, waiting as in present tense. She's come back before; had it been his wife? There's a particular time she returns. Will it be her? Will she come back? Will she do what she did last time? The story connected me to poor Jonathan, the widower. It was an emotional tale, which is probably why i loved it so much. It wasn't just about something scary, it was about a broken heart that had wanted to be reunited with its better part. I'd awakened one night and decided to download the ebook. I was pleasantly surprised with what I read, from beginning to end. I think the stories are intelligently crafted, well-thought out and placed before the reader with a hint of realism to the fright. That there are monsters, even in the simplest and saddest of things. Check out Todd Keisling's Ugly Little Things: Collected Horrors. It's pretty darned good! *http://bit.ly/UglyLittleThingsReview Ugly Little Things, Collected Horrors Todd Keisling Crystal Lake Publishing, Sept. 15, 2017 287 pages Horror, Short Stories, Anthologies