What the Dark Brings: A Collection of Horrors

by Edward Lorn

Follow Edward Lorn out of the light and into the darkest recesses of his mind.

What the Dark Brings is a collection of 19 short stories, beginning with "Literary Sweets", a tender jaunt into Christmastime that proves all is not lost for one jaded gentleman. But by the time you reach the final tale, "Come to Jesus Meeting", the darkness is all encompassing.

Tales of hope, heartache, and horror abound.

Come find What the Dark Brings

***As an added bonus to new fans, Edward Lorn has included his mini-anthology, Three After, complete and uncut, at the end of this collection. A total of 22 tales of terror coming it at over 40,000 words.***

Genres: Horror, Short Stories, Anthologies

145 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 17, 2012

About the author

Edward Lorn (E. to most) is a reader, writer, and content creator. He's been writing for fun since the age of six, and writing professionally since 2011. He can be found haunting the halls of Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram.

E. lives in Alabama with his wife and two children. He is currently working on his next novel.

Reviews

[Zoeytron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Visceral images, voracious appetites, violent ends. 22 short stories to whet your appetite for Halloween. The table is set with all manner of creepy fare, recipes courtesy of the dark and creative mind of Edward Lorn. A crooked witch's hat, malevolent shadows hovering over a baby's crib, a statue that won't stay put, and a little one who really likes pie. Standout for me was "The Land of Her" - it was absolutely stunning.

[Cody · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before I begin, let it be known that I am e-friends with E. I think he's one of the coolest motherfuckers this side of the Mississippi, matter of fact. He's a great guy. That said, our friendship did not impact my rating of this collection in any way. If it had, I would have given this five stars, declared Edward the literary King Midas — by shouting everything he writes is gold — and be done with it. I can't do that.

I do, however, think this is a very strong collection of 22(!) stories, all crammed into 145(!!!) pages. Yeah, I didn't like all the tales, but I did like a good deal of them . . . hence the four stars.

Lorn mostly writes horror fiction, but this collection is not just scary stories. Some are simply bizarre, some are borderline mainstream, and others are damn-near unclassifiable. There is a great deal of variety here; there are options for lovers of every genre.

Simply put: I had a lot of fun with What the Dark Brings, and I only wish it was longer. My favorite entries include 'Sissy' and 'Holes' — two very short stories that won't be leaving my mind any time soon. The ones I didn't care for (e.g. 'The Monitor') were few and far between.

Highly recommended!

[Gregor Xane · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you like short short stories, you'll really like this collection. Short shorts are exceedingly hard to write, and Mr. Lorn seems to have a real knack for them.

This book has 22 stories crammed into 145 pages!

Lorn is primarily thought of as a horror writer, but the bulk of the stories to be found here are more quirky and bizarre, not so much out-and-out horror. There are some straight up horror pieces near the end (including the three bonus stories), but I enjoyed the somewhat lighter, funkier pieces more.

My favorites include:

"A Purchase of Titanic Proportions"*
"What the Dark Brings"
"He's Got Issues"*
"That Thing about a Picture and a Thousand Words"
"Machinations"
"He Who Laughs Last"
"The Attraction"
"Sissy"
"Holes"
"Come to Jesus Meeting"

Well, it seems I've listed nearly half the stories as favorites. That should tell you something.


Full Disclosure: I received an electronic copy of this book from the author as a gift. I was under no obligation to read or review it.



*Great story

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are some excellent stories here. Some horror, some bizarre, most pretty dark and all very well done. As a format, I struggle with short stories on occasion, but Mr. Lorn seems to thrive here. Highly Recommended. A solid 4+ Star collection! 22 tales of terror. Sweet!

[Evans Light · Rating 4 out of 5]

Story reviews are not necessarily in order.

The first seven stories in this book are all beautifully written and cleverly executed. I wouldn't necessarily describe them as horror, though they are rewarding regardless. The stories are growing increasingly darker as I read deeper into the volume.

*** Literary Sweets

The first story was well-written, enjoyable and quite unique. Not horror in the slightest, but bought smile to my face anyway. Sweet and melancholic, reminiscent of some of Bradbury's more sentimental output.

*** A Friendly Reminder and *** The Monitor

Both very short and well written, though I'm not quite clever enough to understand A FRIENDLY REMINDER.

The stories are well-written, but much shorter and less horror oriented than I had hoped.

**** The Southbound Triple-Six

Groovy. I liked this bite-sized story of deadly sin.

*** Nothing is out There to Get You

Another story snippet. Well-written, but more of an idea than an actual story.

*** A Purchase of Titanic Proportions

A cute little weird tale about a man who buys a chessboard made of wood salvaged from the Titanic.

***** THE LAND OF HER

Wow. That's the best way to sum up my initial reaction to this short but powerful tale.

If you have any intentions of reading this book, I highly recommend not reading this review any further until you have read this story.

Spoilers follow.

I was carried along with the simple fantasy scenario for the first few pages, amused but slightly confused as to what exactly was going on, and puzzled by the childish simplicity of the language, and then it clicked.

I stopped reading right then and started back at the very beginning and it was like reading a whole other tale, much darker and more adult this time around.

Even though the story was very short, it was perfectly written down to the word. Simply brilliant.

***** What the Dark Brings

A short, sweet and disturbing little ditty about a hungry boy in a basement. A tasty morsel indeed, but I'm still hungry!

*** That Thing about a Picture and A Thousand Words

A woman finds an unusually detailed painting of her neighborhood under the door. What can it mean?
I see the cleverness the author was going for here, but in the end this story didn't do a lot for me.

**** Smitten

The corn-pone dialect used in this story put me off a bit at first, but once I adjusted to it I enjoyed this tale. This is closer to the length I like in short stories - anything less than ten pages is usually little more than a single idea - and this story was complete. I think it could have been a little better if the ending had been extended a bit more, but an enjoyable read nonetheless.

*** Machinations

Another story that leaves me with the feeling I had after "A Friendly Reminder" - a niggling notion that I understand but am yet missing some deeper meaning simultaneously.

It starts off with a British tone that seems to evaporate towards the end for some reason, and things become so bizarre that I'm not sure how I'm supposed to take it: a lucid dream, steampunk fantasy or some sort of metaphor? While I liked a lot about how this story was shaping up, it ultimately wasn't for me.

*** each to the following: He Who Laughs Last, The Attraction, He's Got Issues, Sissy, and Holes

It's not that I don't like these five stories, I do - they're well-written and have interesting premises - it's just that they're not short stories, per se. They're much more akin to flash fiction, a single scene or scenario and not much else. It leaves me wanting more, which is usually a good thing, but here the amount of story on offer is so slight as to be downright frustrating. Kind of reminds me of a more adult version of The Curse of the Campfire Weenies and Other Warped and Creepy Tales.

**** The Kissing Booth

Very original storyline - liked this one quite a bit.

***** Come to Jesus Meeting

Now that's what I'm talking about! I really enjoyed this one, and the length was just right - a perfect way to round out the collection. Three kids find a creepy Jesus statue, and with it get more than they bargained for.


And that's it for this collection. Edward has also been kind enough to include as a bonus his first short story collection, Three after, which I will review separately.

Overall I liked this book, and would recommend it to people who don't mind extremely short fiction. As long as you approach this collection with the knowledge that it is comprised primarily of flash fiction with a few slightly longer tales thrown in the mix, you should be good to go.

The formatting, writing and editing was impeccable, earning it an overall 4 star review from me. I look forward to checking out more of Edward Lorn's writing in his longer-format works.

[Thomas Stroemquist · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this even more than I thought I would. My relationship with short stories is a complicated one - more often than not, I prefer a longer story format with all the getting to know the characters and their world that encompasses. At times though, the shorter stories fits me nicely and I have a number of them that I’m very fond of; Edgar Allen Poe, Forsythe's No Comebacks, the Sherlock Holmes shorts, Ray Bradbury and Stephen King (of course). I enjoy essays also, and poetry on occasion.

Oh, I just remembered, one thing up front: Edward Lorn, the author of these stories, is a good friend of mine. I was, however, a reader before I knew him (actually, I was a fan before I knew him) and I have no intention to stop enjoying his work now, and since I write about what I read...

This is a mixed bunch of mostly early ones and most of them are really short. To my surprise, I liked this very much – perhaps it’s so that if a story is to be short, it can just as well be really short. That way you don’t end up with that “I got to know parts, but wanted to know more”-feeling. Or, it may be that this suited me perfectly at this time. Or it may be that Edward writes really well. Or any combination thereof. Anyway, this is highly recommended and these will fit perfectly when there’s 5 minutes to the next bus or you are waiting for the barber or dentist or during any other moment of free time that you sometimes realize that you have.

The stories:

Literary Sweets I think this is what many wish for, anima senex in corpore sano (I guess).

A Friendly Reminder Probably one of the best I’ve read on addiction, at the same time excruciating and bringing some hope and blessed relief. One of the top.

The Monitor A little feel good ghost story. Liked this very much also.

The Southbound Triple-Six We’re on a down bound train and there is obviously no light at the end of the tunnel.

Nothing is out There to Get You A short that packs a punch – this guy obviously missed a good girl. A really good one!

Up on the Rooftop Ow, how nice – hitting my greatest fears, I read this one with a racing heart. Mercifully it’s a short one.

A Purchase of Titanic Proportions A little “twilight zone”-type horror.

The Land of Her Something is rotten in her kingdom, but she will fight it.

What the Dark Brings Someone’s idea of light night snack.

That Thing about a Picture and a Thousand Words I actually read this one twice and I think I got it, but can’t seem to picture it clearly now. I do know I liked the atmosphere of it.

Smitten This one came with kind of a strange coincidence, but developed into a good and different take on a very used theme.

Machinations Sci-fi horror with a heavy metal twist.

He Who Laughs Last This is actually a great theme for a short, reminiscent of John Carpenter’s ‘In the Mouth of Madness’ and King’s ‘Cell’ (if memory serves), but it is sufficiently different and holds up very well in this format. Another favorite.

The Attraction Another carnival comes to Bay's End! Carnival! Bay's End! What's not to like?

He's Got Issues Oh, the man has more than issues, he’s got vermin also.

Sissy Does anyone remember the Larry Cohen 70’s film ‘It’s alive’? Me neither, until now.

Holes Another one on heavy addiction, this is really only unsettling, though.

The Kissing Booth The gate and gatekeeper of downstairs are obviously different to the cloud versions.

Come to Jesus Meeting Never trust a statue.

The final three are originally from the collection Three after, but has been included in this in later (current) edition.

An Affair To Remember Another one on the ‘Smitten’-theme, this starts out like a hardboiled thriller. Another top one.

Snuggles My least favorite of the bunch, it is a bit far-fetched, but that’s really just an excuse and the truth is I’m too soft on felines to enjoy this romp.

World's Greatest Dad The longest of the collection, a good, action-filled and sad modern horror story.

[Richard · Rating 3 out of 5]

In a certain type of horror film, you know that the voluptuous blonde cheerleader who treats all the other girls like dirt is going to be the first victim of the psychotic killer. The careless guy who ignores the warning to stay out of the cemetery (or haunted house, or swamp or whatever) is going to be the first one slaughtered by the forces of darkness, be it a ghost, a mutant creature with a grudge, a long-dormant demon, or whatever. The person who gives in to a besetting sin, to obsessive ambition and greed, to ill-considered compassion or to overweening curiosity is sure to pay the price. Or sometimes the victim is not all that bad; she just happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Edward Lorn's stories are like that. His protagonists are often cocky or overconfident. Sometimes they are naive and lonely. Occasionally they turn their backs just for a second--and then it's too late.

Sometimes the violence goes rather too far for my liking. There is a lot of nastiness and gore in many of the stories, and people or creatures who kill for the fun of it. Sometimes--perhaps because many of the stories are very short and would qualify as flash fiction--the reader is left wanting a little more background or explanation. Where did the monster in the water or the basement or the cupboard come from in the first place?

But where Lorn excels is in the creation of a feeling of foreboding, of inevitable doom. You know something is wrong, but you are on the edge of your seat waiting for the trap to be sprung. The author is also good at narration. Sometimes the story is told in the first person (a gentleman who likes candy and Shakespeare, a little girl who misses her pet cat, or a country bumpkin who doesn't quite get what's going on), and other times in the third. But in all cases he creates the mindset of the victim (or of the predator as the case may be).

[Irene Well Worth A Read · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was pleased but not surprised at how much I enjoyed this collection of stories (and the 3 bonus stories at the end!) This was a perfect October read. I devoured each and every one. There was not a sour note in the bunch but I would have to say my absolute favorites were "The Monitor" where a kindness is repaid, "The Southbound Triple-Six" about a man who awakens on a train with no memory of how he got there or where he is headed. "Nothing is out There to Get you" where a blind date goes about as badly as you would expect "Up On The Rooftop" Which reminded me very much of a similar incident I saw on the news. "A Purchase Of Titanic Proportions" In which a man regrets his winning bid at an auction. "What The Dark Brings" about a rescue that doesn't quite go as planned. "That Thing About A Picture And A Thousand Words" A woman finds a picture has been slid under her door and as the saying goes the devil is in the details. "Smitten" I want to call it a love story... but I won't go there. In "An Affair To Remember" a man extracts revenge on his cheating wife.. sort of, and last but most definitely not least "World's Greatest Dad" in which a child goes missing while trick or treating with her dad.

[Sjgomzi · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great collection of stories! Every single one is worth your time! Even shed some tears. The last story, World’s Greatest Dad, just about destroyed me. 😢

[Shawn Thornton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to the audio book version of this and thoroughly enjoyed it. Twenty two creepy short stories from Edward Lorn. Some of these tales were pretty dark but also had a dark humour which made me laugh out loud. My top three tales in this collection were "Come to Jesus meeting", "Snuggles" and the excellent "World's greatest dad". If you are a fan of short stories or just like damn good horror this book is for you.

[Bandit · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my third read by Edward Lorn and he continues to impress. The last quarter of this book is Lorn's first short story collection Three After, which I had read before and now reread, quite possibly liking it more the second time, but really here it primarily stands to highlight just how much stronger Lorn's become as an author as the first three quarters of the book showcases. What The Dark Brings is a terrific collection. And, while few of the shorter pieces ranges from just ok to pretty good, the rest is very good to excellent. Lorn exhibits verve, aplomb and versatility, not to mention considerable talent and fabulous imagination creating disturbing demented whimsical bizarre haunting and genuinely original stories that are so much fun to read. Very entertaining quick collection that includes an awesomely hilarious author's bio. Highly recommended.

[Nate · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an enormously enjoyable collection of short stories. While some were very short, they were also effective. I really liked the arc throughout, in that the stories had a twilight zone feel trough the first half of the book, and stories seemed to take on more horror elements in the second half. By the end, the horror was in full flight and magnificently realized. This version also has three additional stories, which really topped things off in a major way. I would get more specific, but I hate to give anything away.

I read this off and on for a couple of weeks in between novels, until I got to the last 7 or 8 stories which I blew through consecutively with much joy. I highly recommend to any fans of the macabre and horrific. Enjoy!

[Ty · Rating 5 out of 5]

This review I'm doing a little different than most. I'm going to take each story as it comes to me and write a little about my impressions, but I'll try to do so without giving any of the plots away.

The first story, "Literary Sweets," I found an interesting choice to begin a collection of horror tales. It is horror, but only barely, dipping into fantasy or almost magical realism. It's a tale that could have been much more horrific, but instead turns toward a sense of wonder that does the story justice. Start with a glass of Ray Bradbury, toss in a shot of Stephen King, then add just a dollop of Charles Dickens, and you've got this story.

It would be easy to label the second story, "A Friendly Reminder," as a drug addiction story, but I believe that is an oversimplification. Oh, there's plenty of nightmarish drug resonance here, but at its deepest core I believe this is a tender story about friendship and, perhaps, what with the mention of a church and then an opening quote by C.S. Lewis, about spirituality. Only two stories in, and so far I have to admit to being surprised. These are somewhat literary stories and not overly dark for a horror collection, in my opinion, but I do not mean that as a criticism; if anything, having read only one earlier novel by this author, these stories show this writer has not only stories to tell, but stories with meaning.

The third story, "The Southbound Triple-Six," I find difficult to discuss without giving away anything, but I will say its basic theme is one I've found familiar among horror short story writers. It seems this type of story is a staple, one many writers tackle at least once in their career, kind of like stranded astronaut tales are common among some science fiction authors. Here, however, there are some nice changes from other such, similar stories, with a nod to Dante and an ending with some dark humor.

"The Monitor" is a touching story that creeps up on you, though it's not necessarily a creepy story in and of itself. This is a quick read, almost flash fiction, but that makes it work all the better, for to linger would be to derive this little tale of its magic.

"Nothing is Out There to Get You" is another story difficult to talk about without giving away too much. I'll simply say that this story leads the reader along a path with strong shades of Spielberg's Jaws, yet ends up in an unexpected place. This is not a twist ending here, but still one somewhat different than most horror tales, with an element of added humor.

During a review of one of this author's novels, I gave his work a label of being "Stephen King lite," and I meant that in a positive fashion. The plot and characters of that novel reminded me somewhat of King's work, yet Lorn's writing was more to the point and less wordy than that of King, all positives as far as I was concerned. Yet while reading this collection of short stories, I had seen different styles not so reminiscent of King. That is until now, the story "Up on the Rooftop." This tale is the first I think of as true horror in this collection, meaning it's dark and has some gore. The interesting thing about the gore I mentioned is that most of it is in the reader's mind. There's actually very little true gore in the story itself, but the imagery lets the reader know what is going on while also allowing the reader's mind to imagine the worst. This story is another that contains themes similar to what I've seen other horror writers tackle, but here there is definitely a difference, that being the imagery I mentioned. It's difficult to describe without spilling the beans (so to speak), but there's a level of genius here in the writing that puts images in the reader's head, but images that are not actually on the written page (or digital screen). So, bravo to the writer.

"A Purchase of Titanic Proportions" is another tale I think of as King-esque. As always, however, Lorn keeps his prose from rambling and rambling, which King is wont to do from time to time. Still, this is a short horror tale that gets to the point, something I quite enjoy instead of meandering about. The theme here, even the basic plot, should be one familiar to horror literature fans, but what Lorn does with this story is unlike anything I've seen before. He takes a basic idea and plays with it, builds upon it until the reader has something fresh and new.

Wow. Just ... wow. So far, I have to say "The Land of Her" is the strongest of these tales. It opens in a fantasy world besieged by evil, yet it ultimately travels ... elsewhere. To say more would be to ruin the story for others. All I'll add is that, and this might be a spoiler, but whether the author meant it or not, there are shades of the Pearl Jam song "Jeremy" within this tale.

As a writer myself, I sometimes feel like readers don't make enough use of their own imagination. They sometimes seem to want everything spelled out for them. While there's nothing wrong with such in and of itself, as a reader, I sometimes want to be challenged, to be given only enough information to allow my own imagination to run wild. In horror, such can be more horrifying than what any writer actually puts on a page. "What the Dark Brings" is a story that does this, allows the reader's imagination to work for itself. This story is quite short and to the point, with just enough to tease the reader with what is going on. Then along comes a dark, somewhat humorous ending. I like that.

"That Thing About a Picture and a Thousand Words" walks a fine balancing act between the spooky and the merely strange. This is another tale that gets right to the point, which I appreciate. That being said, this is probably my least favorite story in this collection so far. It's not that it's a bad story, because it is written well, but I felt almost from the first paragraph that I knew where this story was going.

Then along comes "Smitten." While by no means a laugh-out-loud kind of story, I did find it quite amusing, perhaps because of the use of a Southern dialect. Being a native Kentuckian, and having spent almost all my life in the South or Appalachia and/or in or near rural areas, and being a writer, I feel I've got a pretty good reader's ear for Southern dialects (there are thousands of them, by the way, for those who don't know ... that could be a blog post of its own). Here, Lorn pulls of the dialect pretty well, better than most. There were one or two verbal cliches that made me cringe a little, but that's because they are cliches, and because, despite being cliches ... yeah, I've actually heard people say those things at one time or another. For my money, "Smitten" is also the best plotted story in this collection so far, but I felt it ended far too abruptly, leaving me wanting more. Without going into details, this story takes a fairly standard (but mostly modern) horror trope and gives it the author's own spin, which was one I found so fascinating that I would love to see a whole novel in a similar vein.

A lot of these stories have been fairly straight forward, though a handful are somewhat thoughtful. "Machinations" stands out as being the most philosophical so far. At first it might seem to be fairly standard horror, but if one pays attention there is a lot more going on here, at least in my opinion. Look deep.

"He Who Laughs Last" isn't exactly a zombie story, but it sort of is. That being said, it's the most unique zombie-like story I've read in a long while, enough so to make me a little jealous as a writer.

Everybody has been to the county fair and been spooked at the sideshows, right? "The Attraction" takes you there and beyond, and while I wouldn't claim the conclusion is exactly a twist ending, it's definitely unexpected (at least it was by me) and I found somewhat humorous.

"He's Got Issues" has probably the most pithy of all the titles in this collection. Reading along, it took me a little while, but then I caught on to the double meaning. The story itself is fairly standard horror fare, but it's funny in its own way, or else I'm just a sick person who likes to giggle when really bad things happen to story characters. It would seem a certain '80s movie influenced this tale, but I won't go into what it is, for the very name of the movie would give much away here, though I think most will recognize it.

Short. Sweet. Brutal. That's "Sissy." The story raises a lot of questions without providing very many answers. Some readers might gripe about that. I'm not one of them. I loved it.

As for physical carnage, "Holes" is probably the most disturbing of these tales. It hits hard and fast, and gives a different kind of view into drug addiction.

"The Kissing Booth" is one of those stories that takes you in one direction before you realize you're not headed where you thought you were. Often enough I don't care for these kind of tales, feeling betrayed by the writer, but I have to say, it worked here. Why? Some faint foreshadowing early in the tale helps a lot, something too many writers seem to ignore. Not here.

Readers who hold strongly to their religious convictions probably shouldn't read "Come to Jesus Meeting." I wasn't personally offended, but the overtones of religious oppression and the backlash against it are impossible to ignore. In many ways I felt this was one of the strongest of these stories, at least concerning structure and character, probably because it is a longer than many of the tales here, leaving a little room for extra development.

Looking back over this collection, I have to say there is a lot to recommend it. There are some staple horror tropes as well as enough new and unusual ideas to keep the interest of most readers. Fans of writers such as Stephen King and Richard Laymon will feel right at home. However, fans of horror literature who like the overly gory or existential might not be as interested in this material, because these aren't blood-bath reads nor tales that leave one without a sense of hope.

One of my favorite elements of all these stories is that they are not overly long and they get to the point. The reader doesn't have to wade through some character's emotions for page after page, nor have to follow thousands upon thousands of words of back story or philosophical rambling. Little of that is here. None of these stories start slow, and they belt you in the gut soon.

If I had one point to be critical about, it would be that I felt a few of these tales ended a little too soon. It might seem I'm contradicting myself here, but I do not mean to suggest any of the writing here should have included more pages of material. A paragraph or two would have sufficed in most cases. In a few of the tales, I was reading along quite happily, ensconced in the world of the story, when bam! Everything comes to a screeching end. Sometimes this works, but other times I wanted more.

Over all, these are excellent horror tales, some amusing, some that might keep you up late at night afraid to go to bed, some that will make you think. The author has done himself proud.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been trying to find a copy of this book for a long time. Finally was able to find a copy. This was well worth the price and wait. I love all of Lorn's books. He is my all time favorite author. He definitely knows how to write awesome shorts. These range from bizarre to dark stories.

[A Voracious Reader (a.k.a. Carol) · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Book source ~ Picked up for free on Amazon

A horror anthology filled with 22 short stories. Starting off with a deceptively light sweet taste Edward Lorn takes us by the hand and leads us with a knowing smirk down into the dark and dank pits of hell with each story darker than the previous. Except for the last story. Yes, it is sinister and bad things happen, but I consider it more of a paranormal/horror hybrid. It was nice to climb out of the pit and shake the dark from my feet as I finished World’s Greatest Dad on a note of hope.

Literary Sweets ~ Not bad if you don’t mind the results. And are they permanent?
A Friendly Reminder ~ I didn’t really get this one.
The Monitor ~ Now, this I loved.
The Southbound Triple-Six ~ Oh, my.
Nothing is Out to There to Get You ~ If Jaws didn’t make you scared of the ocean then this one will.
Up on the Rooftop ~ You never know what you’re capable of until you do something really stupid or have incredibly bad luck.
A Purchase of Titanic Proportions ~ This is downright creepy!
The Land of Her ~ I have no words.
What the Dark Brings ~ No more basements for me.
That Thing About a Picture and a Thousand Words ~ Reminds me of Twilight Zone
Smitten ~ Red-neck zombie love. Ugh.
Machinations ~ Dafuq did I just read?
He Who Laughs Last ~ Now, this. This is disturbing. And Chucklers? Is this going where I think it’s going?
The Attraction ~ See? This is why I never go into those things.
He’s Got Issues ~ Hoarders. I can’t…I don’t…ugh.
Sissy ~ Holy shit! Thanks for ruining cherry pie for me. *shudders*
Holes ~ No. Just no.
The Kissing Booth ~ I like. Gross, but very imaginative.
Come to Jesus Meeting ~ Great. Now even statues are off limits.
An Affair to Remember ~ Payback is a bitch.
Snuggles ~ *shudders*
World’s Greatest Dad ~ My favorite story.

[Anthony Creane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having found Lorn's YouTube channel, and enjoyed his videos, I was keen to give his writing a go.
I believe What The Dark Brings is Lorn's first short story collection - I would assume either his first book, or at least a very early release - but not that you would know it from the stories.

Lorn's writing is assured, the stories all have suitably twisted endings and is well worth a read.
Although I won't review each story individually here, as with all short story collections you'll prefer some stories more than others and that's to be expected. (Having written my own collection, I prefer some of my own stories more than others!). But, in Lorn's collection, there isn't a BAD story - I just found some better than others, purely on personal preference. In fact I feel confident that every reader walks away from this book with different favourites and, when it comes to a short story collection, that's all you can ask for.

All the stories are well written, many have fresh and original ideas behind them, his style is somehow familiar yet new and you feel safe that you are being told tales by somebody who knows what they are doing.
And Lorn does. In fact Lorn nails it.
He's an author who has taken me on one hell of a ride, and I can't wait to pick up another of his books and let him do the same to me again.

[Lila Lockhart · Rating 4 out of 5]

An awful, yet fantastic series of tales. Lorn's imagination spins a series of worlds that are unique and horrifying, but also layered in humor, a curious view of humanity, and the absurd.

Like many collections of short stories, some of these were a miss for me, but the majority of these make this book well worth the read (or listen, in the case of the audiobook).

[Jerri · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love short story collections. For them to work, they have to make a powerful impact in a very short amount of time. My first experience with this author came from his Youtube videos detailing the whole Nocturnal Readers Box fiasco. Shortly after, I stumbled across this collection of horror stories and simply had to try them out. This was one of the best things I have done in a long time. Generally I feel lucky to come out of any collection with a few exceptional stories and the rest are ok. This was the complete opposite. Most of the stories were excellent with just a few that were "ok". It is hard to give much information with short stories so I will simply say that all are worth reading. There is quite a bit of originality and several styles of writing demonstrated (all with equal skill). My favorites would include The World's Greatest Dad, What the Dark Brings and The Southbound Triple-Six.

Again, this was my first experience with the author. I will be looking for more of his works.

[DoodlePanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm normally not a huge fan of horror short stories, but I did enjoy this one!
Quite a few of the stories were really interesting, and I am glad I read it!

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

First off, a huge thank you to Edward Lorn for leading me back into the darkness. That might sound odd, but let me explain. Up until recently I've been so busy reading contemporary fiction that I forgot all about my love of reading horror. Watching it or reading it, I used to devour all things related to creepy occurrences and things that go bump in the night. This collection of stories reminded me of that love, and brought it back tenfold. So, thank you!

I'll admit this up front: I have a rather twisted sense of humor. Which is most likely why What the Dark Brings settled so well with me. That's not to say that all the stories felt this way. That's actually what I loved about this collection. Things start out rather tame, and almost sweet in a way. "Literary Sweets" felt almost like Poe to me, which is honestly the highest compliment I could give this story. Then they slowly get darker. You've been warned.

I don't want to spoil anything, so I'll just give you some highlights. "Up on a Rooftop" was deliciously twisted, and one of my early favorites. "The Land of Her" blew me away. That's all you get from that. I adored "Sissy", although I never want to meet her. My absolute favorite though? That award goes to "That Thing about a Picture and a Thousand Words". Pardon my french, but HELL YES. That story just wouldn't let me go. In fact, I had my husband read it, then promptly had all my coworkers read it too. If I was going to keep thinking about it, so were they. Honorable mention also goes to "He Who Laughs Last". What can I say? It's infectious.

The point is that I was entertained the entire time I was lost in What the Dark Brings. Even the stories that didn't become my favorites still meshed perfectly into the whole. If you can entertain me, and creep me out in equal measures? You have my attention. Read this. Preferably in the dark. Once again a big thank you to Edward Lorn! I can't wait to descend further into the darkness.

[Laura Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection has everything!

A man on awakens on a train headin who knows where, no memory of how he got there.

Detective Franklin learns why the caretaker said, “The thing is no good, I tell ya.”

Penny always believed what her father said about the water, “There’s nothing out to get you.”

The sign said:

Opening December 20th:

Literary Sweets

Books and Candies for all ages

A combination of Treasures Await!

Raul had no idea how giving the homeless a few bucks would change his life.

Walter just had to have the chess set, the one made from the wood of the legendary ship, Titanic.

Everyone’s heard the urban legend about the man who goes missing on Christmas, only later his family finds his rotting body in the chimney.

A picture does paint a thousand words for Valerie. She just should have looked more closely.

Two young men, high on pot, watch the news as Chucklers gleefully rampage around the world.

Two young friends meet The Beast of Briar Bank.

There are so many delightfully wicked and twisted tales in this collection.

They each have their own flavor and many may seem a bit familiar. But that’s where the author steps in and takes you in a whole other direction.

I’ve read his anthology, Three After, so I knew where he might take me with these.

If you like the macabre, the noir, the twisted and the darkly humorous, you’ll like this collection.

There was no stopping when I started, as I sped from story to story. Each one so different, so engrossing.

I’d love to see these as episodes for Tales From The Darkside or The Twilight Zone.

Or, maybe, the From The Mind of Edward Lorn Show!

Thanks for some really great writing and plenty of shivers. Edward.

What The Dark Brings gets 5 Stars for bringing it on!

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection of 19 short stories totally satisfied the horror fan within and kept me turning the pages as I needed to see where Edward would take me next.

If you like mystery, darkness, and horror in tales that make you shudder then this is the book for you. Not only are the stories complete, but the characters are fully developed which is not easy to do within a short work.

I look forward to reading more by Edward Lorn, he is certainly a man who writes what I like to read.

[Angela(demonsangel) Fitzgerald · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review will be posted on Audible. I'll post it on here when it's available.

[Bryan O'Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun group of shorts, I can't say I really disliked any of them.. A few just ended to fast

[Cory A Tatum · Rating 5 out of 5]

Get this book!! A frightful introduction to the world of Edward Lorn.

[Bryan Alaspa · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent collection of disturbing short stories. In fact, some of them are VERY short, almost flash fiction. Scary things lurk in every corner, and nothing is what it seems. Children attack their mothers and statues come to life. A great introduction to the disturbing works of Edward Lorn.