In the Blood and Other Stories

by Joseph Anthony Montecillo

In this debut collection, Joseph Anthony Montecillo compiles fourteen horrific tales from over a decade of writing.

In the titular story, “In the Blood,” a mother struggles to ensure that her sons don’t inherit their late father’s violent tendencies. In “Pressure and Release,” a bus driver gives in to his most self-destructive impulses while caught in an EDSA traffic jam. A child’s curiosity about his brother’s internal workings goes to the extreme in “New Toy.” And in “The Forgotten Bones,” a man living in the slums of a cemetery finds himself trapped in a labyrinth of tombs.

In the Blood and Other Stories’ mix of horror, psychological thrills, dark fantasy, and sci-fi is sure to terrify and delight in equal measure.

Genres: Horror

154 pages, Paperback

Published October 17, 2024

Reviews

[Pia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trying my best not to be biased cause my good friend wrote this but!!! SOLID short story collection! As a horror fan, I thoroughly enjoyed these. Such easily digestible bite-sized stories that pack a punch! Different horror vibes from every story: you've got your classic, monsters, bloody, psychological, sci fi, comedy etc!!! A little bit of something for everyone 😌

My Faves: In the Blood (😳), Pressure & Release (relatable!), Too Close (scariest for me!!!), The Other Side (sci fi horror which i loved), New Toy (🤯)

Runner-ups: Itching to Get Home (got sentimental with this one...), Baby Blue

Congratulations Joseph!!!!! So proud 🥲🥲🥲


4/5 💫💫💫💫

[Patrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

some were really creepy, a couple were disturbing and gory, all really good.

faves: the girl in the river, pressure and release, an aswang fight in new york, too close, the other side

[Beatrice · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this horror story collection. There’s a lot of gore and it was so good! Not to be brutal, it was greatly written and some of them gave me goosebumps.

To select my top 3 stories in no particular order:

1. Pressure and Release
>> this got me like “holy sh*t this is road rage”. It was insane and I feel like this is final destination.

2. In the Blood
>> Absolute perfection. Mind blowing. This should be a full length novel. Very psycho. I bet the author is evil laughing while writing this.

3. Road of the Dead
>> because it’s giving the underworld vibe as you tried to save someone’s soul. Creepy indeed. I wouldn’t dare opening a third eye to see supernatural creatures even if I love ghost stories.

If you read this at night, I dare you. It’s a great experience. 🫰

[Paula M · Rating 4 out of 5]

You can also read my review here.

Get a copy of the book here.

In the Blood and Other Stories by Joseph Anthony Montecillo, published by UP Press, is a short story collection spanning horror, psychological thrillers, dark fantasy, and sci fi horror.

This book genuinely unsettled me. It creeped me out, disturbed me, made me anxious in that uncomfortable “this could actually happen” way, and had me staring into space because of how wild (and brilliant) some of the concepts were.

When I finished, my first thought was: Is Montecillo okay??? Because the mind that came up with these stories is… deeply unhinged (said with admiration). 😌🙏

Reading this felt like watching Black Mirror, but through a Filipino lens. Not in an overdone or exaggerated way, but in the kind that quietly grounds the stories in familiar spaces, relationships, and realities, which makes the horror hit closer to home.

My top three stories:
• Too Close (I had to stop reading and watch something nice before continuing)
• An Aswang Fight in New York (I am a sucker for love stories…… even when there is killing involved)
• In the Blood (downright terrifying and possibly my final reason for never having kids 🤣)

There are 16 short stories in this collection, and what I appreciated most was how each one explores a different idea without overstaying its welcome. Some linger longer than others, but all of them leave an impression.

If you like horror that relies more on tension, ideas, and unease than cheap scares, this is a book worth spending time with! With this collection, Montecillo establishes himself as a solid voice in horror.

[Noelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐3.5 STARS⭐

An interesting collection of horror stories. I like how each story presents a different flavor of horror--whether it be Philippine mythological creatures, demonic rituals, violence, or the scare of giving in to your most intrusive thoughts. It definitely reminded me of Yvette Tan's horror anthologies (which I love, by the way). My favorite short stories from this collection were Pressure and Release, In The Blood, Too Close, The Other Side, and New Toy. Unfortunately, while the premises of the other stories were definitely interesting, most of them were underdeveloped, which is why I gave this book 3.5/5. Also, most of them aren't exactly keep-you-up-at-night scary (I read this at night and slept perfectly fine), but they're still entertaining. I've included my individual reviews and ratings for each short story below.

1. The Girl in the River - 2/5
Personally not my favorite from the collection. At first, I could feel the suspense--especially after reading about her creepy family members--but the ending left me a bit underwhelmed because I had already been expecting that twist. I guess for someone who watches a lot of crime shows, and occasionally some supernatural horror as well, the premise for this one was pretty standard and unoriginal.

2. The Punished of Train Twenty-Five - 3/5
I definitely found the train idea interesting and it was fun piecing together what happened as the story progressed. Unfortunately, the story as a whole still seemed underdeveloped to me and I felt like the ending was rushed.

3. Pressure and Release - 4/5
What I like the most about this story is how close it hits home, because if you think about it, the bus driver could be any of us. The real fear here is that, if we all gave in to our most intrusive thoughts and impulses, we could wreak as much havoc as he did. I still felt like the author could have built up the driver's frustrations more so the ending would have more impact, but I think, with just a few tweaks, this story would have a lot of potential.

4. In the Blood - 4/5
I absolutely loved the ending of this one because, through her son, the mother saw herself for the monster that she was. I think out of all the stories here, this is the one that I thought about the most after reading.

5. An Aswang Fight in New York - 3/5
I love how creatively homesickness and relationship tension were depicted here. Who knew that you could relate to two aswangs just trying to keep their restaurant open in New York? The ending is also wholesome and I think this story has a lot of potential as well. I just gave it three stars because I feel like it was too short and because of that, I wasn't able to connect to the characters as much.

6. Road of the Dead - 3/5
I liked the banter between the sisters here and how the story tackles grief. At the heart of this tale is just someone who misses her sister and is still learning to move on from her death. I didn't give this a higher rating because the grieving main character with the Third Eye has already been done several times before in the horror genre so it didn't seem particularly unique to me.

7. Too Close - 5/5
This is probably my favorite story from the collection. It's like a crossover between the Shut Up and Dance episode from Black Mirror and Yvette Tan's Seek Ye Whore. Even though I already had a hunch of why the American had ordered the automaton, I didn't want my suspicions to be true--and that's exactly what Gregorio must have felt, so kudos to the author for making the readers put themselves in his shoes. I like how the suspense builds up in each phase of creating the automaton--from the client's strange critique on its anatomy to the text file that he sent to Gregorio. In the end, the confirmation of Gregorio's (and my) suspicions is absolutely horrific and we fear that the same thing will happen to his daughter. Horror at its finest.

8. Itching to Get Home - 2/5
My least favorite from the collection. While I understand that the writer meant to touch on grief in this story, it just seemed boring to me since it was mostly dialogue between the father and son. The conclusion was also underwhelming and confusing since it didn't exactly address the conflict in the story.

9. Night Predators of Niladan - 3/5
The world-building in this one was definitely interesting. A fantasy world based on Spanish-colonial Philippines where dragons, bruja killers, and aswangs coexist? Sign me up! Unfortunately, the mini-stories themselves were underdeveloped (likely due to their extra short length). I did, however, appreciate the last one's allusion to the Katipuneros' fight for independence and the Spanish friars' abuse of religious authority.

10. The Other Side - 4/5
This was also a fun, thrilling read. I like how you get an idea of what's happening to the janitor's body parts without actually seeing them. As the portal is about to reopen, your fear builds up just as the janitor's does. What's scariest about this are the unknown dangers that lie on the other side of the portal--and Montecillo offers just the right glimpse of them to give you the creeps while at the same time letting some of the mysteries torment your mind.

11. Killing Her - 2/5
Also a bit on the generic side for a horror story, but it was interesting to read about how Jean's jealousy and delusions ultimately led to the downfall of their relationship.

12. New Toy - 4/5
Another one of my favorites! You can already tell what the kid will do based on the opening scene, but it's the suspense that kills you. Another one of the more disturbing short stories on this collection that's not for the faint of heart. The only flaw is that I expected a little more from the ending (and I didn't exactly get what the "red button" was for but maybe that's just me).

13. Baby Blue - 3/5
The premise of this one is also interesting since I believe it's supposed to be a take on the tiyanak myth. I also liked reading about the tensions in Raf and Pam's relationship since they seemed to have had different wants and needs, especially when it came to having a family. I just didn't give it a higher rating since I think there are stronger stories in this collection.

14. The Forgotten Bones - 3/5
The ending for this is absolutely wholesome once you realize the son was trying to protect his father all along. I also like how the son was finally able to leave the cemetery in his own way at the end. Definitely creative, but like what I said with the previous one, it's not the strongest in the collection.

Although I had my favorites, this was still a fun read and I'll definitely consider reading more from this author in the future!

[Koji Arsua · Rating 5 out of 5]

wtf (affectionate)

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

A BRILLIANT AUTHOR !!!!!!!

[Divina Gracia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Favorites:
• The Girl in the River
• The Punished of Train Twenty-Five
• Too Close
• New Toy

[Kyle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up this book anticipating horror stories in the sense of ghosts and monsters. But this book gave something else, something better.

“Scary” would be a shallow and inaccurate word to describe this collection of short stories. These pieces, to be precise, are unsettling, subtly disturbing, creepy, and strange.

I cannot count how many times I finished a story, closed the book, and said “what the fuck was that?”

The best part, however, is how short, smooth, and easy the prose feels. I read this in the middle of my last semester in the university, and even I was surprised that I was able to include it in my busy schedule.

I was also impressed with how many tales we could actually write about and around blood.

My personal favorites are, of course, the sinister and chilling titular story, In the Blood, and the last (and I would argue the scariest) story of the collection, The Forgotten Bones.

Some honorable mentions: The Girl in the River, Pressure and Release, Too Close, Killing Her, New Toy.

[Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

(Context: I received this book as a gift)

I often begin a book by reading the back cover and even the foreword. I do this as a sort of appetizer, like a trailer to a movie. This is to fully immerse myself and set the mood. Unfortunately, this time, this backfired. The comments were promising. I was assured that I would get scared, and this raised my expectations. To be fair, the first story was quite good but most of the succeeding stories fell short. At the middle, I am not even sure if I am the intended audience. Seems very YA.

Also, is it just me or were the nuances of Pinoy culture and the emotions that run in the story got diluted with the use of English?

Overall, the book offered some promise but struggled to live up to the hype. Giving it a three. I could say it was fairly decent BUT I do not think I am the intended audience though.

[MD · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounding up to 4
Overall, okay, yung read. Pero nasanay ako sa short stories na kahit maiksi, may impact na mabigat e. Dito lukewarm lang yung reaction ko. Di nakapag build enough for me para ma-attach ako. Still enjoyed the 2-hour ride!

[Kath · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stories were okay, not really that scary as others say. I enjoyed some of the stories in the book though.