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Graveyard People: The Collected Cedar Hill Stories: 1
Gary A. Braunbeck
399 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2003
3 people are currently reading
113 people want to read
About the author
Gary A. Braunbeck
224 books233 followersGary A. Braunbeck is a prolific author who writes mysteries, thrillers, science fiction, fantasy, horror, and mainstream literature. He is the author of 19 books; his fiction has been translated into Japanese, French, Italian, Russian and German. Nearly 200 of his short stories have appeared in various publications.
His fiction has received several awards, including the Bram Stoker Award in 2003 for "Duty" and in 2005 for "We Now Pause for Station Identification"; his book Destinations Unknown won a Stoker in 2006. His novella "Kiss of the Mudman" received the International Horror Guild Award in 2005."
His fiction has received several awards, including the Bram Stoker Award in 2003 for "Duty" and in 2005 for "We Now Pause for Station Identification"; his book Destinations Unknown won a Stoker in 2006. His novella "Kiss of the Mudman" received the International Horror Guild Award in 2005."
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
August 18, 2017
So you're reading a short story collection and every second or third story is about a puppy getting tortured. The stories don't repeat themselves and show great creativity in getting those puppies tortured. Poor puppies! Only by the time you're at the end of the collection, you twitch every time you finish each new story, because you're still waiting for a puppy to get tortured.
This book is worse; it's babies. But that's okay; each story carefully explains why it has to be babies, or elder abuse, or child abuse, or spouse abuse, or ripping fetuses out of a woman's body (it's because she tried to abort it three times, ahahahaha, stupid), or whatever.
There's also a lot of empty dialogue (which I realize was a thing at the time these stories were written, but still annoys me) and these huge paragraphs full of internal monologue justification for whatever monstrosity the story has to offer. A lot of the stories could have been tighter; it feels like there's an effort to write American Gothic in the Nineteenth Century British tradition (rather than as Southern Gothic), but with more gore. Only instead of picking out the fun parts of that tradition (giants, picturesque castles, unusual monsters, inter-dimensional travel, ghosts, etc.), the laborious parts that I tend to skim were chosen. A lot of the plots are, "But it's okay that I'm doing this, because a) I tried not to first, and b) I have feeeeeelings."
There were a couple of stories where, if they hadn't been in this collection, I would have liked reading as part of an anthology. Mostly I was just going, "What is it, Lassie? Is it a dead baby down the well again? What a surprise! IT IS."
I left feeling like those babies were positively pushed. NOT a collection for yours truly.
This book is worse; it's babies. But that's okay; each story carefully explains why it has to be babies, or elder abuse, or child abuse, or spouse abuse, or ripping fetuses out of a woman's body (it's because she tried to abort it three times, ahahahaha, stupid), or whatever.
There's also a lot of empty dialogue (which I realize was a thing at the time these stories were written, but still annoys me) and these huge paragraphs full of internal monologue justification for whatever monstrosity the story has to offer. A lot of the stories could have been tighter; it feels like there's an effort to write American Gothic in the Nineteenth Century British tradition (rather than as Southern Gothic), but with more gore. Only instead of picking out the fun parts of that tradition (giants, picturesque castles, unusual monsters, inter-dimensional travel, ghosts, etc.), the laborious parts that I tend to skim were chosen. A lot of the plots are, "But it's okay that I'm doing this, because a) I tried not to first, and b) I have feeeeeelings."
There were a couple of stories where, if they hadn't been in this collection, I would have liked reading as part of an anthology. Mostly I was just going, "What is it, Lassie? Is it a dead baby down the well again? What a surprise! IT IS."
I left feeling like those babies were positively pushed. NOT a collection for yours truly.
November 29, 2009
This book has been my Moby Dick. A lovely limited edition collecting some of Gary A. Braunbeck's Cedar Hill stories, I bought it in 2007 and finished reading it in 2009, dipping in and out over the whole three years. The stories within are amazing - beautifully written, often bleak, mournful, emphatic, and disturbing, and strike a real chord with me nine times out of ten. There lies the problem. When I come across a Braunbeck story in an anthology, it's a heartfelt highlight. Piled one after the other like this, I found the experience of reading it too overwhelming, hence the piecemeal reading over a couple of years. If a novel is this unrelenting, you push on through, and arise triumphant at the other end. With a collection, it's too easy too finish the story you're on, and take a break. I genuinely look forward to the second volume, sitting on my shelf right now, which I expect to finish somewhere around.2011...
May 20, 2007
The first volume of Braunbeck's collected stories set in Cedar Hill, Ohio, a fictional version of Newark with a touch of Buckeye Lake, Hebron, Heath and Columbus mixed in. The book has about thirty short stories, along with several framing pieces that link the stories more tightly. For the most part they're all wonderful stories, really excellent work. "Tesselations" and "Kite People" were my favorites. My only complaint was that the binding broke and the book fell apart after I'd read two-thirds of it.
January 23, 2017
This is a super long book of collected short stories. It's only about 400 pages, but the print is ver small, and it was more like reading a 600+ page collection. It took me awhile to get through these stories, but I was glad I did. As expected there are some real good stories here, and some not so good ones. Gary really writes a ton of short stories, and my advice would be to slow it down, or just release the ones that are good. Because this could have been an excellent collection of short stories if it were shorter, but as it stands now, it's just good, because of the fluff between the great stories.
The cool thing is that I was born in Columbus, OH (where the author lives), and Cedar Hill is a fictional town that is based off of Newark, OH. Newark is almost a suburb of Columbus, so it was fun for me to read about Columbus, and others local areas, like Buckeye Lake. These stories basically emanate from my own home town and it gives a little extra bonus for myself as a reader. Anyway that's all just personal experience. Gary is a great writer, and there was some fantastical stuff in this collection that blew me away, but because of the few less than great stories, I would say it's only a good collection of horror stories. I'd still recommend reading it, though.
The cool thing is that I was born in Columbus, OH (where the author lives), and Cedar Hill is a fictional town that is based off of Newark, OH. Newark is almost a suburb of Columbus, so it was fun for me to read about Columbus, and others local areas, like Buckeye Lake. These stories basically emanate from my own home town and it gives a little extra bonus for myself as a reader. Anyway that's all just personal experience. Gary is a great writer, and there was some fantastical stuff in this collection that blew me away, but because of the few less than great stories, I would say it's only a good collection of horror stories. I'd still recommend reading it, though.
September 6, 2022
Please note that this review is ONLY for "Tessellations"--
a piece of monotonous, depressing, nonsensical dreck, and people need to know that.
a piece of monotonous, depressing, nonsensical dreck, and people need to know that.
October 1, 2008
I got nothing, people. After a total of 5, yes 5, write-ups, I am still unsure of what I want to say. Have you ever read a book and put it down and wondered what the hell you just read? Now, that isn’t to say it was bad or good, just that it was… forgettable. Well, welcome to my world, have a seat and pass the popcorn.
30 stories in all, divided into 5 sections – Graveyard people, To Rest at Last, hangman’s Blues, Coffin County, and Matters of Family –complete with a visitor’s guide, this book is a pretty package. Sadly, that’s all it is. Beautiful artwork filled with beautiful words in between the covers, but devoid of any heart or soul. What the hell??!
When I hear the name Braunbeck, I think of words like inspiring, rich, and intense. The man’s style has made me cry on more occasions than I care to tell and I have loved and admired him for it. Rarely has an author brought me to my knees begging for release and crying Uncle. When I received this book, I grabbed the tissues and turned off the phone expecting to rediscover that author again. To once again explore the depths that he can bring you to. I never found my adventure. What I did find was a collection that was written from a detached narrator, who had outgrown his stories.
As always with a collection, the atmosphere and pace are hard to pin down because they change and morph with each story, so what I can say is limited. The atmosphere was intended to induce a sense of false safety. In other words, you were welcome to the circle, but be careful of what lurks in the dark. It didn’t work. The pace in each story was calculated, staying loyal to the story but moving you along quietly; neither worked. I saw the author’s intentions a mile away and it ruined what little ambience I had going.
The characters are realistic, heart-rending, but completely vacant of any life. Although, their perspectives are understandable and their flaws are easy to associate with, it’s their lack of heart that kills any sympathy. How can you care for a player when there dimensions are only drawn, but not colored in?? You can’t, and I didn’t.
Now, as I have said, the plots in this collection remind me of one simple line: You can never go home again. The old adage has never been truer than when applied here. Maybe it’s because these stories span over time, or maybe it’s because Braunbeck changed over time; either way, this collection is completely disconnected. Some stories such as: Tessellations, At Eternity’s Gate, and Small Song shine with a devilishly brilliant and intriguing story that captures you and keeps you there; while others, such as: Tenants, Kit People, and Wishing it Was only serve to remind you that, while the words are pretty, they’re only skin deep. Whether it was a need to recapture the experiences of his youth or to put them to rest, this collection turned out to be a misguided attempt that failed to show you the raw emotion I know Braunbeck possesses.
My rating? I give it a 2. I expected a lot more from Braunbeck and so should you. Even if you’re a Braunbeck fan, borrow this book from the library and save your money.
-As reviewed for Horror-Web.com
30 stories in all, divided into 5 sections – Graveyard people, To Rest at Last, hangman’s Blues, Coffin County, and Matters of Family –complete with a visitor’s guide, this book is a pretty package. Sadly, that’s all it is. Beautiful artwork filled with beautiful words in between the covers, but devoid of any heart or soul. What the hell??!
When I hear the name Braunbeck, I think of words like inspiring, rich, and intense. The man’s style has made me cry on more occasions than I care to tell and I have loved and admired him for it. Rarely has an author brought me to my knees begging for release and crying Uncle. When I received this book, I grabbed the tissues and turned off the phone expecting to rediscover that author again. To once again explore the depths that he can bring you to. I never found my adventure. What I did find was a collection that was written from a detached narrator, who had outgrown his stories.
As always with a collection, the atmosphere and pace are hard to pin down because they change and morph with each story, so what I can say is limited. The atmosphere was intended to induce a sense of false safety. In other words, you were welcome to the circle, but be careful of what lurks in the dark. It didn’t work. The pace in each story was calculated, staying loyal to the story but moving you along quietly; neither worked. I saw the author’s intentions a mile away and it ruined what little ambience I had going.
The characters are realistic, heart-rending, but completely vacant of any life. Although, their perspectives are understandable and their flaws are easy to associate with, it’s their lack of heart that kills any sympathy. How can you care for a player when there dimensions are only drawn, but not colored in?? You can’t, and I didn’t.
Now, as I have said, the plots in this collection remind me of one simple line: You can never go home again. The old adage has never been truer than when applied here. Maybe it’s because these stories span over time, or maybe it’s because Braunbeck changed over time; either way, this collection is completely disconnected. Some stories such as: Tessellations, At Eternity’s Gate, and Small Song shine with a devilishly brilliant and intriguing story that captures you and keeps you there; while others, such as: Tenants, Kit People, and Wishing it Was only serve to remind you that, while the words are pretty, they’re only skin deep. Whether it was a need to recapture the experiences of his youth or to put them to rest, this collection turned out to be a misguided attempt that failed to show you the raw emotion I know Braunbeck possesses.
My rating? I give it a 2. I expected a lot more from Braunbeck and so should you. Even if you’re a Braunbeck fan, borrow this book from the library and save your money.
-As reviewed for Horror-Web.com
April 15, 2008
You must read this author. One of a kind and kicks you in the guy with powerful emotion.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews