Rosie’s #Bookreview Team #RBRT #Horror #Shortstories CHILLS & CREEPS by @NickClausen9

Today’s team review is from Robbie, she blogs here https://robbiesinspiration.wordpress.com/

Robbie has been reading Chills & Creeps by Nick Clausen

I thoroughly enjoyed this book of eight short creepy and chilling tales by Nick Clausen. The tone of his stories, and their unusual and clever twists reminded me of Roald Dahl’s style with his short story collections.

Under the skin features a young, red headed boy with freckly skin who takes shelter in a elderly strangers house one afternoon during a downpour. The granny is kindly towards him, giving him tea and cookies and drying his clothing, but she has her own frightening agenda.

Snapper the fish is a tale about the acquisition of a pet gone wrong. Mary is a spoiled girl who has recently become an older sister to a baby girl. Mary is jealous of the attention the new baby is garnering from her friends and family. When Mary acquires a most unusual pet, she makes a plan to use it for her own selfish ends.

Deadly dreams features the very topical world of gaming. Two boys are drawn into a popular game of human versus monsters. Despite various warnings that the game is dangerous to your health, it has gone viral. Daniel and Christian had better practice hard, they can’t afford to make mistakes.

All birds hate me gave me the greatest creeps of them all as I have a bit of a phobia about birds attacking people. Eagle is diagnosed with a strange disease. He is getting treatment, but is impatient to enjoy his life like everyone else his age. He decides to venture out of the safety of his home.

Ghost tennis is all about a young ghost who has an obsession with tennis. When a new family move into his historic home, he hopes that he will find a new tennis partner. If not, everyone will pay.

Drip-Drip-Drip shows what could happen if your own home turned against you. Unfortunately, it knows your deepest and darkest fears and is willing to use them against you.

When I snap my fingers is really rather unsettling tale about progressive hypnotism and what could come out if you delve into your past lives. Meddling with the mind is never a good idea.

Lights out is a rather unusual tale with a super power flavour of a different sort. It is never a good idea for one person to have too much power over nature.

In this collection, you’ll meet …

Peter, who meets an upholsterer who really likes his skin. Mary, who gets a pet fish thatwill only eat human flesh. Daniel, who plays a game that becomes real in his dreams. Eagle, who has a disease that make birds attack him wherever he goes. Joseph, who plays tennis with a ghost. Nadia, who gets trapped in a house slowly filling up with water. Calvin, whose sister visits a hypnotist and becomes someone else. And Noah, who learns to control lights with his mind.

Eight stories spanning horror, dark fantasy and science fiction, all set in everyday life while exploring the dark, the evil and the supernatural. The Chills & Creeps-series was originally published in Danish to great reviews, and is now available in English.

AmazonUK | AmazonUS

Rosie’s #Bookreview Team #RBRT #Horror #ShortStories CHILLS & CREEPS by Nick Clausen

Today’s team review is from Teri, she blogs here https://teripolen.com/

Teri has been reading Chills and Creeps by Nick Clausen

I haven’t read many short story collections, but for me, a horror/supernatural compilation is irresistable.

At the end of each tale, the author shares what sparked the idea – a nice personal touch.  I find story origins interesting.  All are eerie and enjoyable, but I have my favorites.

When I Snap My Fingers – The concept of reincarnation has always fascinated me, and the way it’s incorporated will give you chills down your spine.  And have you avoiding hypnotists.

Ghost Tennis – You might be lured into thinking this is a friendly ghost story – don’t be fooled.  The ending is wickedly perfect.

Drip-Drip-Drip – As someone who is slightly claustrophobic, I was uncomfortable reading this one.

Not all the stories worked for me.  Some had less plausible plots and character actions which I felt needed another tweak with a content edit.  Even though it’s fiction, it still needs to be believable.  Other reviewers have mentioned this book is suitable for children, but because of some language sprinkled throughout, I wouldn’t recommend it for readers under the age of thirteen.

Dark, evil, and supernatural tales may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but for horror fans, this is creepy collection that can be read in a couple of hours. 

In this collection, you’ll meet …

Peter, who meets an upholsterer who really likes his skin. Mary, who gets a pet fish thatwill only eat human flesh. Daniel, who plays a game that becomes real in his dreams. Eagle, who has a disease that make birds attack him wherever he goes. Joseph, who plays tennis with a ghost. Nadia, who gets trapped in a house slowly filling up with water. Calvin, whose sister visits a hypnotist and becomes someone else. And Noah, who learns to control lights with his mind.

Eight stories spanning horror, dark fantasy and science fiction, all set in everyday life while exploring the dark, the evil and the supernatural. The Chills & Creeps-series was originally published in Danish to great reviews, and is now available in English.

AmazonUK | AmazonUS

Rosie’s #Bookreview Team #RBRT CHILLS & CREEPS #Horror and #Fantasy #Shortstory Anthology by @NickClausen9 #TuesdayBookBlog

Today’s team review is from Judith, she blogs here https://readandreview2016.wordpress.com/

Judith has been reading Chills & Creeps by Nick Clausen

Chills & Creeps Volume 1: Eight Scary Stories by Nick Clausen

Chills & Creeps is a short anthology of horror and fantasy stories, originally published in Danish, but now available to read in English.

It seems to me most logical to discuss each story in turn, allowing the chance to share my opinions whilst (hopefully) not giving too much away.

1. Under the Skin

This was a good horror story to begin with, about an upholsterer with a liking for human skin, and it was certainly chilling. Whilst I could predict what was going to happen, it was still horrifying to see this unfold. However, although the story was tense, I thought the ending was a little lacklustre.

2. Snapper the Fish

This was a horror story about a pet fish which only eats human flesh. I found it truly gripping and scary – I almost didn’t want to keep reading because of the horror, yet I found myself reading on regardless.

3. Deadly Dreams

This was a fantasy / science fiction short story about a video game that comes to life and has dangerous consequences for its players. It was a reasonable story, but I don’t have anything majorly positive or negative to say about it.

4. All Birds Hate Me

I thought this was the weirdest story in the anthology. The main character, Eagle, is a boy with an illness which causes all birds to attack him. The idea was scary enough – and Hitchcock-inspired, I’m sure – but as all the characters happen to be named after birds, the premise came across as odd and a little silly.

5. Ghost Tennis

This was a reasonable ghost story; a family move into a new home, only for their son Joe to discover the tennis court is haunted and the only way of placating the ghost is by playing tennis matches with it – as long as Joe always loses, of course.

6. Drip-Drip-Drip

This was another horror story I found genuinely unsettling. Nadia, a young girl, becomes entrapped in her own home as it slowly fills with water…

I am not the biggest fan of deep water, and the thought of drowning is terrifying to me. I also happen to enjoy stories in which the home is transformed into a place of horror and danger.

7. When I Snap My Fingers…

This is another entertaining and thrilling horror story about two siblings; Curtis takes his little sister Rachel to a hypnotist’s tent at the fair. However, once hypnotised, Rachel no longer seems herself. In fact, it’s almost like she’s become someone else entirely. And now “Rachel” is determined to destroy her family’s life.

8. Lights Out

This was the last story in the anthology, a fantasy story about a boy who can control lights with his mind. Unfortunately, I didn’t enjoy it as much as the others, and I thought it lacked any real ‘chills or creeps’. I thought it was a shame to end on a story that wasn’t scary, when so many of the other stories heavily featured horrifying elements. In future anthologies, it might be sensible to organise the stories differently – perhaps by beginning with the least scary story, to build fear and suspense as the anthology progresses towards the most scary story.

Following each story, Clausen added an author’s note, explaining where his inspiration for the story came from. I appreciated this and found it very interesting; I like seeing where authors get their ideas from!

On the whole, whilst every story was not necessarily my cup of tea, Chills & Creeps Volume 1 was an enjoyable and well-executed collection of short stories. They reminded me of the Goosebumps series by R.L Stine, and I think Clausen has a talent for transforming the ordinary and everyday into the terrifying and repulsive, playing on childhood (or adulthood) fears we’ve faced at one point or another in our lives.

Star Rating: 4/5 Stars 

In this collection, you’ll meet …

Peter, who meets an upholsterer who really likes his skin. Mary, who gets a pet fish thatwill only eat human flesh. Daniel, who plays a game that becomes real in his dreams. Eagle, who has a disease that make birds attack him wherever he goes. Joseph, who plays tennis with a ghost. Nadia, who gets trapped in a house slowly filling up with water. Calvin, whose sister visits a hypnotist and becomes someone else. And Noah, who learns to control lights with his mind.

Eight stories spanning horror, dark fantasy and science fiction, all set in everyday life while exploring the dark, the evil and the supernatural. The Chills & Creeps-series was originally published in Danish to great reviews, and is now available in English.

AmazonUK | AmazonUS