My Two Cents (Book Review): TINY TERRIBLE TALES by Sarah Jules

Having read and loved "You Invited It In" by Sarah Jules late last year, I was excited to recently download and tuck into her Tiny Terrible Tales series, a collection of three short stories.

"Creepy Little Bastards" is told in epistolary style, a series of correspondences from an unnamed narrator in which he details his growing suspicion that there's something sinister behind the sudden popularity of a new toy. At first, it seems humorous, the way everyone seems to be carrying one of the ugly things around. However, it becomes less and less funny because the damn things are everywhere, and the narrator can't help but notice how the people who own them seem...different somehow.

In "The Things in the Woods," a young man feigns an interest in horror movies and ghost stories in the hopes of endearing himself to a new girlfriend. The ploy works -- with unexpected and terrible consequences.

And in "She Waits," a family's festive New Year's ritual takes on horrifying undertones as year after year, a young woman watches the slow but steady approach of her ghostly doppelganger.

As with her longer works, in this trio, Jules expertly layers tension and dread as the plots develop. They're short, but she doesn't skimp on the scares. Her writing is top-notch, and each of these has its unique style and creates its own distinctive atmosphere. For example, there are moments of dark humor and playfulness in "Creepy Little Bastards," while "She Waits" evokes liminal feelings and a sense of melancholic longing. Of them, "Creepy Little Bastards" was my favorite, but it's difficult to choose because it's hard to compare them. They're all brilliantly written, wildly different, and highly recommended.

The Tiny Terrible Tales Collection is available here.