You Shall Never Know Security

Apr 22, 2012 karen rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: hey-shorty

on saturday, when i was having this book signed in at work, the guard chuckled at the title, and murmured, "iiinteresting." had she known that one of the last sentences i had read before coming through the door was, "no, not the image of his sister's vagina carved out like a halloween pumpkin..."
she may have chosen a different word

this is a collection of horror stories fusing the quotidian with the ineffable. all of the stories start off in a more or less familiar territory that slowly starts to...more

like 63 likes · see review

Apr 09, 2013 Trudi rated it 3 of 5 stars

Recommended to Trudi by: Crowinator

Shelves: short-stories, horror, just-plain-weird, what-the-bleep, love-the-title, 2012-reads, fantastical-speculative

Solid collection of unsettling and weird (with a capital W) short stories. First, I want to put a plug in for Crowinator's review here. It was her review that brought the book to my attention and made me want to read it. I also love how she breaks down all the stories and gives you a chance to figure out if this collection is for you or not. And hey, the best part? If you feel like taking a chance, the ebook is on sale right now for 0.99 cents. That is some serious bang for your buck. What have...more

like 17 likes · see review

Jul 19, 2012 Will Byrnes rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror, short-stories

Updated - 7/19/12 - see link at bottom

When I got into work at 11:30pm that night, the first words I heard were, "Hey, Byrnes, a package came for you. It's in the closet." I had no idea what Nic was talking about. I put my Red Bull and Vitamin Water in the pint-sized fridge at the back of the office, and then settled in at the dispatch desk. I would have asked him about the delivery, but all I had left of Nic, our late day dispatcher, was a fleeting glimpse as the outer door closed behind him. Th...more

like 10 likes · see review

Jun 04, 2012 Jacob J. rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror, top-notch-terror, 2012, short-stories

If Horror can be a genre, so can Madness.

Complaints (Not About the Book):
The wonderful thing about literature in our modern era is that one can feel almost elite, sophisticated, and elegantly antiquated by the mere mentioning of a writer who isn’t a pundit, a preacher, or a reality-television star. (I can only speak for my country, the U.S.A.). Reading, among a significant amount (if not a majority) of my generation is viewed as a vestigial and archaic entertainment. (And it’s so boring and time...more

like 13 likes · see review

Jul 17, 2012 The Chaotic Reader rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: anthologies, horror, short-stories

My review of You Shall Never Know Security is posted on The Chaotic Reader.

like 4 likes · see review

Jan 16, 2013 Katy rated it 5 of 5 stars

Recommended to Katy by: J.R. Hamantaschen

Please note: I read this in February 2012. I'm just updating the formatting and adding the disclosure that the author provided me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Book information: Genre: Dark Urban Fantasy, Lovecraftian short stories
Reading Level: Adult
Triggers: Weirdness, violence
Recommended for: Fans of Lovecraft, dark fantasy

My synopsis and musings on the book: This is a short story anthology, with stories in the vein of H.P. Lovecraft – dark fant...more

like 3 likes · see review

view all 10 comments

Katy !) no need to defend yourself on working a strip club. I have no problem with strip clubs and have enjoyed going in more than a few times. Haven't gon...more
Mar 03, 2012 10:54pm

Michael Fierce ...well, that's good. honestly, Donnie runs about as respectful a strip club that i've ever heard of and there's no funny shi+ going on in there and i...more ...well, that's good. honestly, Donnie runs about as respectful a strip club that i've ever heard of and there's no funny shi+ going on in there and it was one of the funnest AND funniest jobs I've ever had. I imagine most of the same people work there coz it was a tighnt-knit family so-to-speak. I'm sad for you that you missed out on Boneshaker's. It was truly a one-of-a-kind experience and the clientele all became great friends of mine and the drag queen shows were hilarious and crazy memorable. It's a type of entertainment I never thought I'd enjoy so much but having experienced it in its' top form, I have a much greater impression of it all than I would've expected. Boneshaker's had a karaoke thing and American Idol wa HUGE then, with Diana Degarmo being from Georgia that season, so, we had our own karaoke contest with judges and all, and I was one of the 3 main one's so it was a blast. I'm a part-time vocal coach and wanted to take the winner and the 2nd runner up, Deanna and Chassidy, to the next season tryouts but they both sadly chickened out. I think Deanna would've made the Top Ten. :( So, that helped me determine it WASN'T 10 years ago, it was from 2003 to 2004 that I lived there though a part of me feels like it's longer and the other part feels like it's been shorter! All the time I was there I had only been to Atlanta for the plane rides to and from, but 4 yrs ago I got flown over to help build the AT&T lab but didn't have a chance to revisit any of my friends or Athens, however (!), as soon as I went to a local mall that had a food mall center, as soon as I walked in the 1st person I focused on was one of my best friends in Athens at the time that I met at DialAmerica, Cat (Caherine Garcia). But, we we're almost romantic and she was engaged to a lawyer in Arizona so she was a bit distracted by that to resume our friendship but it was a jolt of surprise for us to run into eachother and have lunch out-of-the-blue. Wow. Just so many memories from there! Take care and you don't have to worry 'bout me hittin' on you, I know you're married but you have extraordinary taste in fiction and I just was so surprised that someone who likes the stuff you do lives there since nearly no one I knew liked gothic anything or horror books for that matter. One of my gf's over there used to joke that besides her and me, we knew about one handful of goths and that was the entire goth population, though Star (real name, Kim) was about as goth as Avril Lavigne (not!) and the others we knew were like Macy's goths and my goth days were more 10 yrs in my past when I lived there -- but it never quite leaves you completely. In fact, I read a funny thing in the paper, because I'm a bit more into Steampunk nowadays: Steampunk is what happens when goths discover brown! God, I love that one! OK, take care and I really enjoy your words and experiences! :)(less)
Mar 04, 2012 02:11pm

Oct 31, 2012 Quinn rated it 4 of 5 stars

I wrote an entire review of this book, which I then lost.

Here is the short version: I loved these stories. I will definitely re-read them. JR Hammantaschen is a wonderful talent who should have a long and successful career.

The longer version discussed several stories at length, but it's late and I'm tired and aggravated. So let me just mention, briefly, some highlights:
"College" was thought provoking and sparked a lengthy discussion with my husband regarding the nature of ethics.
"Jordan" (I've a...more

like 1 like · see review

Dec 14, 2011 Marvin rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror

It took me longer than usual to read this fascinating collection of stories by J. R. Hamantaschen because I read many of them twice. Once to experience the exceptional style of the author's writings and another to figure what the heck he was writing about.

Before you misinterpret the above paragraph let me say that it is a major compliment. Hamantaschen can really turn a phrase. His fiction merits attentive reading. But he also has a rather dense style of writing with themes and plots that can se...more

like 5 likes · see review

Aug 25, 2012 Majanka rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror, read-2012, short-story-collection

You Shall Never Know Security is a horror short story collection by author J.R. Hamantaschen. I’m a big fan of horror novels, as you may or may not know. I’m especially fond of ghosts, but I’ll take anything as long as it gives me chills. Zombies and gore fests aren’t always my preferences, but I enjoy them once in a while. J.R. Hamantaschen’s collection is unique in that it dares to venture outside the box of what’s considered normal and reasonable for the horror genre. It tells us creepy stori...more You Shall Never Know Security is a horror short story collection by author J.R. Hamantaschen. I’m a big fan of horror novels, as you may or may not know. I’m especially fond of ghosts, but I’ll take anything as long as it gives me chills. Zombies and gore fests aren’t always my preferences, but I enjoy them once in a while. J.R. Hamantaschen’s collection is unique in that it dares to venture outside the box of what’s considered normal and reasonable for the horror genre. It tells us creepy stories about parasites residing in the protagonist’s brain, companies coming up with plans to catch sexual offenders by using androids, people searching for portals to other dimensions, and much more. The collection is very diverse, but one thing remains the same throughout all the stories: they’re scary.

All right, not all of them are equally scary, but some of them really gave me goosebumps. “A Parasite Inside Your Brain” made me feel highly uncomfortable, and “Come in Distraction” gave me genuine chills. Don’t go in expecting the usual – zombies, slayer fest, ghosts. You won’t find them in this book. What you’ll find instead are concepts, the slow, gripping build-up of tension and terror, the terrifying truth about things we sometimes encounter in daily life, the aftermath of horrific events, plausible ideas gone wrong. The author finds horror in the mundane and by doing so pulls the readers deeper into the stories, gradually removing them from their normal, safe world, and throwing them into a world where evil lurks around every corner, sometimes in the most innocent of forms.

Overall, this collection is intriguing, and definitely worth a read. Not all stories worked as well as others though, in my opinion. My favorite, by far, was “There Must Be Lights Burning Brighter, Somewhere.” This story talks about the aftermath of a monster attack. Three characters hide in a closet, contemplating on what to do next. Tension is cutting-edge from the start of this story. Things don’t work out as planned and many years later, we see the same characters trying to deal with the traumatic events of that day, and searching for the truth, and what truly happened. I thought this story was the most unique, and the strongest. It was also one of the simpler stories to understand, and I think its simplicity definitely made it stronger. Some of the stories I had to read twice to fully understand, but this one I wanted to read twice just because I enjoyed it so much.

My second favorite was “Sorrow has its Natural End”. I thought that story was both amazingly sad and also very disturbing. The protagonist in this story is still a young man when he gradually grows blind and has to find a way to deal with that. Another one I enjoyed a lot was “A Parasite Inside Your Brain”. This one didn’t leave me, even as I put down the book to go to bed, or when I got up the next day. It lingered on in the back of my mind, a single, disturbing paralyzing thought. I also very much enjoyed “There is a Family of Gnomes Behind My Walls, And I swear I Won’t Disappoint Them Any Longer” although I really wish that one was longer.

What didn’t work for me, was “Jordan, When Are You Going To Settle Down, Get Married and Have Us Some Children?”. I did enjoy the story, but not as much as the rest of the collection. I liked the premise behind “Endemic” but wasn’t entirely convinced with the execution.

Writing short stories isn’t easy. It’s completely different from writing a full-length novel, and I applaud everyone who can get as much characterization in his short stories as J.R. Hamantaschen can. He builds up tension quickly, reaching new heights of creepiness by page three or four of the story, something some authors don’t even manage to achieve in 200 plus pages. Combined with the rich imaginary, the absence of any ‘villains’ in the narrow sense of the word in most stories, has got me very impressed.

Don’t go in this looking for actual plots with start-middle-end. Some stories are built up like that, but others are more conceptual or abstract, and these deserve attention as well. The author isn’t scared to step out of the box, throw out established conventions and try out something new.

You Shall Never Know Security stays true to its name. After I finished reading this book during the first and second sitting (I had to read it twice, jut to ‘get’ everything), I couldn’t look at ordinary objects anymore without thinking ‘what the heck are they going to do to me’. If you want to turn the regular world upside down, this book is a decent choice. Dark fiction at its finest, a hommage to both Lovecraft and Poe, but truly original in its own way. Recommended to all dark fiction and horror fans. If you want to feel disturbed, and lose any sense of security you might have, try this book. You won’t be disappointed.(less)

like 1 like · see review

Oct 25, 2011 Akz rated it 4 of 5 stars

This young writer understands and channels what is best about the horror and science-fiction genres. His stories are riveting, imaginative playgrounds for the human psyche. The characters are young and their problems relatable, and their motives for love, sex, and friendship are tested by the desire for self-preservation in some truly interesting scenarios. The result is believable, sometimes sad, sometimes poignant, and sometimes truly frightening.

One of my favorite pieces is about three stran...more

like · see review

Feb 23, 2012 Jon rated it 4 of 5 stars

J.R. Hamantaschen is the guy at the back of the bar secretly planning to kill you. Don’t worry, you’re safe – for now; any death that he could realistically deal you couldn’t possibly live up to his caustic imagination, and the last thing he wants is to be a disappointment.

He needn’t worry. His debut anthology, You Shall Never Know Security, makes a hell of an impression and forebodes a long and distinguished career writing dark fiction. The stories feature a variety of themes and tones shaped b...more

like · see review

Mar 11, 2012 Tanja Seppä rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror

This being a collection of short stories, they are of varying quality. However, most of them were refreshingly original with a mixture of the cruel and the funny. I read two thirds of the book in one sitting as it was a bit like a box of mixed pralines - the one you just got through was delicious, and what might the next one be?

There were a few irritations along the way. Spelling mistakes such as "what would you like here" and "along time ago". Then there was the incessant use of German, "Gedank...more

like · see review

May 13, 2013 Christian rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction, horror, weird-fiction

You Shall Never Know Security is definitely a wild collection of weird fiction. I churned through it faster than most books I pick up. Which I suspect means I enjoyed it.

Hamantaschen's writing style is very casual but very philosophical. His themes seem to dwell on loneliness, mundane existence turned upside down, and the minuteness of the character in the Grand Scheme. At times the text became rather thick for me - the final story in particular - high-tension scenes diluted by a derailed train...more

like · see review

Dec 27, 2011 trishtrash rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror-supernatural-paranormal, short-stories

There are thirteen stories in this collection and none of them are called ‘You Shall Never Know Security’. That, as it turns out, is J.R.’s personal message to the reader. Prepare to mutter ‘what the goddamn hell?’ and look up from the book and find a good, solid, ordinary object in your home to focus on by way of relief before being dragged inexorably back down into his almost conversational narratives on things that are more horrible than most people can be bothered to imagine.

Truly dark fict...more There are thirteen stories in this collection and none of them are called ‘You Shall Never Know Security’. That, as it turns out, is J.R.’s personal message to the reader. Prepare to mutter ‘what the goddamn hell?’ and look up from the book and find a good, solid, ordinary object in your home to focus on by way of relief before being dragged inexorably back down into his almost conversational narratives on things that are more horrible than most people can be bothered to imagine.

Truly dark fiction, it turns out, doesn’t come in just one flavour… Wonder is a short crescendo of revenge, an example of craftsmanship that is awe-inspiring, in that it takes a mere three-and-a-half pages (of largish text) to achieve a state of absolute horror. Some authors would have eked that imagery out over three books. A Parasite Inside Your Brain is terribly sad and Come In, Distraction has sadness cohabiting with chilling and blunt horror. “Jordan, When Are You Going to Settle Down, Get Married and Have Us Some Children” is the most disturbing shit I have read in my life. There’s Always Something in the Misfortune of Friends that Doesn’t Displease Us is utterly enjoyable. The end of the first story, A Lower Power, energised me with fear, as did the beginning of the last story, There Must be Lights Burning Brighter, Somewhere; a pitch which settled into a desperate desire not to know what the hell had gone on in that bar.

Most of the stories involve some wordplay, which I love, but some include some style-play, too, like Truth is stranger than Fiction, enormously effective when coupled with the author's preference for instilling in the reader the sense that we are far further down the food chain that we think, and any attempt to understand what’s going on up the chain will result in failure and mangled body parts.

Read the collection. Lose a little sleep (maybe a little lunch). Keep the light on in the stairway. Glance out of darkened windows at night and consider what might be out there, with fresh insight into how impossible our survival would be against it. Go to work and pretend everything’s okay. And don’t say you weren’t warned. It's all in the title.(less)

like 2 likes · see review

May 04, 2012 Matthew Hunter rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: horror-dark-fiction-ghosts, short-stories

Futile, all is futile. That's the message J.R. Hamantaschen bludgeoned into my head repeatedly while reading "You Shall Never Know Security". And why should I know security based on sentiments like the following from 'There's Always Something in the Misfortune of Our Friends that Doesn't Displease Us':

"These humans were a joke. It knew that much. Their petty, stupid worries, these worries that meant so much to them and so nothing in a cosmic sense. A job; a family; a social life. The external si...more Futile, all is futile. That's the message J.R. Hamantaschen bludgeoned into my head repeatedly while reading "You Shall Never Know Security". And why should I know security based on sentiments like the following from 'There's Always Something in the Misfortune of Our Friends that Doesn't Displease Us':

"These humans were a joke. It knew that much. Their petty, stupid worries, these worries that meant so much to them and so nothing in a cosmic sense. A job; a family; a social life. The external signifiers of a contented life, relentlessly pursued. And when they got them? Nothing. Their problems never went away. The successful man was always haunted by something: a reliance on others for affirmation of his worth; the fear of disappointing his family; the supple suspicion that his cushy life could unravel at any time, and then what? Where would everyone be then? And if it never came, something came. Death came. Pain came. It was always coming."

Sure, it's a negative moment, but consistent with the mood of the collection. Who was it that described life as a sexually-transmitted terminal illness? Such cynical quotes get to the core of ennui and hopelessness portrayed in these stories. Throughout "You Shall Never Know Security", Hamantaschen takes a number of insecurities linked to human experience, thought and behavior - failing at work, being overweight, experiencing bullying at school, being a loner in a crowded bar, dying tragically, coming out of the closet, underperforming academically, losing control of your bowels on a first date, and so on - applies his own fertile imagination, and spins horrifying tales of what's happening inside individual and collective minds.

It's interior landscapes that interest Hamantaschen most. Physical descriptions of characters are sparse. But the demented and disturbingly normal thoughts that go through people's minds? Readers are granted open access to these private spaces. What is the stranger sitting next to me at the wedding reception really thinking? What does the shrinking violet I make fun of at a party really want to happen to me? What's behind so-and-so's apparent altruism? Hamantaschen gives answers that I don't necessarily want to hear.

At the time of writing, Hamantaschen was 27 years old. His writing reveals inexperience at times. Does he need to use an avalanche of German and high point value Scrabble words? Probably not. Could another editor or two have scanned the work for spelling errors, omissions and duplications? Probably so. Do some narrators get a bit carried away with their "ooh ohhs" and "ahhhs"? Yep. But in the end, "You Shall Never Know Security" stands up as an impressive first effort of imaginative, extremely dark fiction.

'Wonder', 'Endemic', 'A Parasite Inside Your Brain', 'College' and 'Nothing' are my personal favorites. They'll make you run to Sartre and Kierkegaard for comfort!

Good stuff J.R.(less)

like 1 like · see review

Nov 28, 2011 Yianna Yiannacou rated it 4 of 5 stars

Let me start off by saying that I think I actually feel smarter after reading this book. I am so used to the pre-teen books that are such an easy read that I actually forgot what an intellectual book was like. The author has compiled a bunch of his favourite short stories that he has written and published them into a book. None are alike the other. I love how informant the author can be. He really brings you into the dark depth of these people’s minds. It’s weird how the author can almost make y...more

like · see review

Jan 26, 2012 Lianne Burwell rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror, short-stories

First of all, a disclaimer. I received a copy of this book as a free review copy.

This was an intersting collection of stories to read. On the one hand, it's 'horror', and yet, not exactly. The stories didn't scare me so much as they left me... disturbed. In fact, the best way to described the stories is 'disquieting'. They stick with you. As a result, I spaced these over time, reading one every few days, rather than reading them all in one chunk, the way I normally read books.

A lot of the storie...more

like · see review

Jan 13, 2012 sarah rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: owned

I don't know where to start with this book. Normally scary stories don't do anything for me. I can watch a dozen horror movies in a day and not get nightmares. I can read a horror book and usually laugh at how pathetic the author's attempts are to scare the reader. I'm going to tell you right now: that is not the case with this book. I can't recall the number of times I got chills reading the stories (especially "Wonder"). These stories go behind the typical ghosts and monsters and things that g...more

like 1 like · see review

Jan 20, 2012 Jason rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror, read-2012, favorites

The type of story within You Shall Never Know Security is a favorite of mine to read, so my opinion on J. R. Hamantaschen could be considered biased. The stories are weird and very dark. They’re also intelligent and linger in your thoughts after reading. I found that I had to stop sometimes just to digest what I had just read.

You Shall Never Know Security is full of raw emotion and themes that are the obvious result of some very deep thought. Each story is actually about something. They are real...more

like 6 likes · see review

Jan 20, 2012 Andy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012, horror, collection

J. R. Hamantaschen's collection of thirteen stories of dark fiction proves that the author is definitely onto something. The collection contains disturbing, unsettling stories, many of which resonate with a shadowy, chilling force that sticks with you, the way all good horror should.

Many of these stories deal with broken or damaged relationships, lost love and regretful decisions. The strongest of these stories, "Come In, Distraction," "Truth is Stranger than Fiction," and "Wonder" face these s...more

like · see review

Nov 22, 2011 Kevin rated it 3 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. As a friend recently reminded me we are influenced in our reading by what came before. I've just finished with a ton of old ghost stories from the turn of the last century, very slow and deliberate and plodding. Stories meant to be read aloud to friends sitting around a fireplace with glasses of port in hand, you know?

This book is a radically different style, very modern and rapid, and so it took me a while to adjust. I had the same criticism with some of the stories as I do with M. R. James or...more

like 1 like · see review

Feb 19, 2012 Kristine Muslim rated it 3 of 5 stars

You Shall Never Know Security is a short-story collection that is intended for someone who is looking for a quick fix. It equates to a B-movie. Some of the stories (especially the piece entitled “There is a Family of Gnomes Behind My Wall”) show remarkable daring, but I’m put off again and again by the extremely clunky prose (and the preponderance of ellipsis).

All of the stories can really use a thorough do-over plus a lot of editing.

For example, the story “A Parasite Inside Your Brain” was en...more You Shall Never Know Security is a short-story collection that is intended for someone who is looking for a quick fix. It equates to a B-movie. Some of the stories (especially the piece entitled “There is a Family of Gnomes Behind My Wall”) show remarkable daring, but I’m put off again and again by the extremely clunky prose (and the preponderance of ellipsis).

All of the stories can really use a thorough do-over plus a lot of editing.

For example, the story “A Parasite Inside Your Brain” was enjoyable until the final two sentences which ruined it. The attempt to deliver a punch line at the end deflated the whole story.

Moreover, there are so many “big” words which seem to me have been padded for effect. Some examples are cynosure, prestidigitation, kinesalgia (cramp or muscle pain will fit perfectly in the context of the sentence), scheudenfreude (according to Google, it’s shadenfreude), vermiculate, recrudesced, opprobrium (when the word “disgrace” would have sufficed), ukase (to mean “decree”), etc. All these words distract if the overall tone and the prose styling is not that sophisticated. “Big” words need to be interspersed with well-constructed prose, otherwise they will stick out in an off-putting way because they clearly don’t belong there.

The violence, the overplayed sex scenes – they all sounded forced and at times, unnecessary. There’s a story containing a badly written scene of a character who is taking a crap; it stretched for two paragraphs until the character used the toilet paper. Bentley Little wrote something similar in “Against the Pale Sand,” and how the scene came out masterfully -- the effect was disturbing and mesmerizing. The one in You Shall Never Know Security is just gross.

“Sorrow Has Its Natural End” was the strongest piece in this collection. It reminded me of a watered down version of the excellent “Muscae Volitantes” by Chet Williamson.

The back cover blurb must have raised my hopes because it states that the stories in the book are in the same vein as those of luminaries like Ligotti, Etchison, and Klein – writers I worship because of their writing flair and originality. Many of the stories in this book, specifically their execution, need professional editing and tightening to realize their vision. You Shall Never Know Security had promise if only the prose were sound.
(less)

like 1 like · see review

Jan 31, 2012 Aloha rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: genre-horror, a-collections-anthology, z-hamantaschen-j-r, a-paper-book, a-own, a-ebooks, genre-dark-fiction

We go through our daily routine, surviving economically and psychically, taking what comfort we can from life's pleasures, hoping that we can count on our beliefs, belief in ourselves, belief in others, and belief in our world. In the delicate world of our psyche is a built in distaste for anything that creates conflict in our beliefs. J.R. Hamantaschen's 13 short stories is a collection of philosophical horror. These are not horror of the type in which the monster chases you, and, in the end, y...more We go through our daily routine, surviving economically and psychically, taking what comfort we can from life's pleasures, hoping that we can count on our beliefs, belief in ourselves, belief in others, and belief in our world. In the delicate world of our psyche is a built in distaste for anything that creates conflict in our beliefs. J.R. Hamantaschen's 13 short stories is a collection of philosophical horror. These are not horror of the type in which the monster chases you, and, in the end, you triumph with your sense of self and sanity intact. Instead, it's the type of horror that we all know very well in our lives. It's that sense of dread and fear that turns your stomach today, that something bad is going to happen to you and your world, when yesterday, the sun was shining and you feel you can conquer the world. These stories are written with beautiful and thoughtful prose. Monsters, creepy things, personal demons and desires, and threat to personal safety create a cognitive dissonance.

The horror unfolds excruciatingly. You never truly know the nature of the terror. If there is a monster in the story, it is not of the hero vs. monster in mythology, in which the hero defeats the monster and wins. Even the monsters in some of these stories are never described explicitly, but their monstrosity is felt more than imaged. Often, the protagonist has to make decisions that goes against his belief, forcing him to validate his action so he can live with himself, somehow lessening the impact of the traumatic event in his mind.

The 13 stories, thirteen being the number in superstition signifying bad luck, are imbued with a deadly sense of dread. The stories are varied. Some are of the monster kind, never explicit but gruesomely suggested, such as "A Lower Power", which has the evocative potency of a Richard Matheson or a Thomas Ligotti short story monster. Another, "A Parasite Inside Your Brain" gives us a differing perception of what a parasite is. "Jordan, When Are You Going to Settle Down, Get Married and Have Us Some Children?" features a different kind of monster, in a disgusting yet comical way.

Often, these monsters are more alarming in the fact that they were not seen. "Wonder" contains prose that repeatedly starts with the "You won't think of me...", with each imagery revealing an increasing sinister tone as the entity smuggly reveals a supernatural revenge on his victim. In "There is a Family of Gnomes Behind my Walls, and I Swear I Won't Disappoint Them Any Longer", the title is all that explains what the monsters are, but you know they're there by the unfolding events as seen through the eyes and mind of the protagonist. The most disturbing monster story of this collection is "Truth is Stranger than Fiction", in which the monster is revealed through a court document of a woman's trial. These monster short stories are brilliant in their unconventional and clever tackling of the monster idea, counting more on the reader's imagination to create the monster.

Among these short stories are also stories that challenge the cognition and perception. "Sorrow Has Its Natural End" deals with a man who was given a second chance to regain his eyesight, but has to make a predatory choice. The emotion is intense as we feel his reasoning for his decision. In "Nothing", a man muses about a lack of control over his life, that he is a puppet to the function of his brain. "College" has a student being forced to make a life or death choice. A man in "There Must be Lights Burning Brighter, Somewhere" has to deal with the huge guilt over his forced action during a calamity.

A couple of the stories have overtones of Sci-Fi. In "Endemic", beautiful AIs were used to lure and capture rapists in a morally questionable way, with questions about the nature of pornography thrown into the mix. "Come In, Distraction" deals with one of the last survivor of the apocalypse that decimated his country.

Most of the stories are only a few pages long, but are potent in their psychic punch. The fear commits a guerrilla warfare on the mind, making you doubt the safety of this world and erodes your reason. In the end, you shall never know security, as fear creeps down your spine like the shrieking of the chalk board.(less)

like 12 likes · see review

Mar 29, 2012 Bill rated it 5 of 5 stars

I truly love short story anthologies—especially those that are so gleefully disturbing that they threaten to give me nightmares. I recently had the great fortune of coming across just such an anthology.

A few weeks ago, I picked up J.R. Hamantaschen's You Shall Never Know Security, a terrifically twisted book of dark fiction. I was tempted to read the entire book over the course of a couple of nights, but decided that I’d be happier rationing the stories, and I was right!

Mr. Hamantaschen's stori...more

like · see review

Dec 28, 2011 Jamie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads

This easily flowing and quirkily comic collection of short horror stories glides right off the edge of sanity and into an ever-darkening abyss, pulling the reader along in an inescapable current of incredible inner monologues, great dialogue, and diverse strange-iosities. Locating the horror in the uncanny, then turning it just a bit stranger and more terrifying, Hamantaschen paints a new world with monochromatic paint that still manages to be luminous and vivid. The villains are not the usual s...more

like · see review

Oct 17, 2011 Jason rated it 5 of 5 stars

o.k. I am a lucky guy, for many reasons, but today's reason...I got a free copy of this great book! I had entered to win it in a goodreads giveaway and didn't win, and then the author emailed and said - Hey - i see you'd like to read my book and you've liked other books I like...I'll send you one. So I said..well heck yeah! Lucky. Cuz it's a great set of very creepy tales (out of all of them there was only one I only sorta liked) that is written with an expertly and eerily effervescent prose. No...more

like · see review

Nov 18, 2011 Joe Baptiste rated it 5 of 5 stars

Masterful collection of tales that reminded me of a fine seven course meal; each tale standing alone as a brilliant piece to a great read. One needs to pause after each tale to absorb what has just took place. It is extremely hard to say that any story stands out over the rest, they all have points that excel, and none fall short in providing food. Food for thought, food for fear, food for phobia, food for the mind. The tale of "Wonder", hit just as deep as the tale "There's always something in...more

like · see review

Oct 09, 2012 James Everington rated it 4 of 5 stars

Can you judge a writer on how good his story titles are? Probably not, but let's just play the game for a little bit. Scanning the contents page of J.R. Hamantaschen's début collection You Shall Never Know Security (a nifty title in itself) I see stories called:

Sorrow Has Its Natural End
There Must Be Lights Burning Brighter, Somewhere
There Is A Family of Gnomes Behind My Walls, And I Swear I Won't Disappoint Them Any Longer

Speaking as a writer whose titles often leave me vaguely unsatisfied, the...more Can you judge a writer on how good his story titles are? Probably not, but let's just play the game for a little bit. Scanning the contents page of J.R. Hamantaschen's début collection You Shall Never Know Security (a nifty title in itself) I see stories called:

Sorrow Has Its Natural End
There Must Be Lights Burning Brighter, Somewhere
There Is A Family of Gnomes Behind My Walls, And I Swear I Won't Disappoint Them Any Longer

Speaking as a writer whose titles often leave me vaguely unsatisfied, the sight leaves me envious and not a little grumpy.

Anyway. The stories in this volume of dark fiction are a varied bunch in terms of outward plot and action: parasites in brains; John Rawls; vaguely Lovecraftian horrors; and ingenious plans to trap rapists all feature. However there is a tone, a philosophical strain of pessimism, common to all the tales here. Too many authors nowadays miss the point that Lovecraft's stories were written because he had a view of the world he wanted to articulate, rather than just a penchant for tentacled thingamabobs that could drive men dotty. Thomas Ligotti similarly has a point to his stories, albeit one we may not want to hear. J.R. Hamantaschen strikes me as the same kind of writer.

If I'm honest, sometimes the 'message' was too jarringly obvious for me - the action and characters occasionally too flimsy constructs for ideas invested in them. And the prose is dense with modifiers and descriptions of internal moods, such that occasionally that style seems to come unmoored from the prosaic need to convey what is going on. But these are not major gripes.

The best stories here are impressive and original; my favourites were: A Lower Power, which told the story of a supernatural relationship which goes horribly sour at the end; Come In Distraction, a story which seems just to be about the chat-up power of a British accent until the horribly disturbing back-story comes to the fore; and the aforementioned There Must Be Lights Burning Brighter, Somewhere a novella of supernatural terror and its aftermath, which I took to be a metaphor for survivor's guilt.

Nice cover, too.

Recommended.(less)

like 1 like · see review

Jul 19, 2012 Gregg Bromgard rated it 4 of 5 stars

I am not a huge fan of short stories...Don't know why? there are some I enjoy (Steven the King, Lovecraft) and I even finished an anthology (999 - totally awesome). so when this book was recommended i was hesitant. i finished the book in two days and was so delighted that the author responded to an email i sent him. every story is well thought out and based in academic knowledge (ranging from philosophy to psychology), in fact, i am working to invite the author to give a talk at the university w...more

like 1 like · see review

Nov 12, 2011 Lisa rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

like · see review

title link	preview: You Shall Never Know Security
avg rating	preview: You Shall Never Know Security Goodreads rating: 3.86 (116 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12632143-you-shall-never-know-security?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327221073l/12632143.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12632143-you-shall-never-know-security?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]You Shall Never Know Security by J.R. Hamantaschen[/url]

You Shall Never Know Security

Friend Reviews

Lists with This Book

Community Reviews

new topic
Discuss This Book

combine
Other Editions (1)

Genres

Readers also enjoyed similar books

Books by J.R. Hamantaschen

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website

Trivia About You Shall Never K...

You Shall Never Know Security

Friend Reviews

Lists with This Book

Community Reviews

new topicDiscuss This Book

combineOther Editions (1)

Genres

Readers also enjoyed similar books

Books by J.R. Hamantaschen

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website

Trivia About You Shall Never K...

new topic
Discuss This Book

combine
Other Editions (1)