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O Horrid Night: Chilling Holiday Tales for the Black-Hearted
Pristine, white snow shrouds evil things that revel in the longest, darkest night of the year. A fresh waft of peppermint brightens a monster’s foul breath. World weary ghosts have only until dawn to seek their retribution. The wind howls through the trees, or is that a choir of unearthly voices? “O Horrid Night” revives the tradition of telling ghost stories on Christmas Eve, when it is said that the barrier between the living and the dead is thinnest, and spirits may walk the earth. Such tales were in vogue in Victorian England (remember good old Jacob Marley), but the origins of the tradition stretch back in time, in celebrations of the Winter Solstice, Yule, and Sol Invictus. Gather your friends and loved ones together, get cozy with warm drinks or a roaring fire, and give them the gift of a spine-chilling ancient holiday tradition.
210 pages, Paperback
First published November 25, 2016
About the author
Amber Newberry
12 books59 followersAmber Newberry is a writer from Salem, MA. She's written a few things and she'll probably write a few more. Amber is currently working on a new historical gothic novel that is expected to release in late 2024.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
December 3, 2016
These stories have spooky holiday vibes, and anyone who enjoys Dickens' A Christmas Carol should read this anthology. There are different writing styles from both sides of the pond. Great to read during the holidays while munching on Christmas cookies and sipping hot cocoa!
December 21, 2016
'Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house WAS A WHOLE BUNCH OF CRAZY CREEPY AWESOME!! Krampus was lurking with nightmarish carolers, hexed figgy-pudding, a vampire... and before I could finish reading it all, I had to open my door to make sure a carriage of death hadn't pulled up to claim lives!
But I did finish the works and lived to say that Newberry has Done It Again! A superb collection of traditional tales with a spin dark enough to make Santa Claus himself check that milk a cookies twice, or three times before he takes a bite.
But I did finish the works and lived to say that Newberry has Done It Again! A superb collection of traditional tales with a spin dark enough to make Santa Claus himself check that milk a cookies twice, or three times before he takes a bite.
April 21, 2021
2020-12 – O Horrid Night: Chilling Holiday Tales for the Black-Hearted. 10 x Authors. 2016. 210 Pages.
Traditionally in the English-speaking countries before the 20th century advent of Halloween, Christmas and Yuletide was the time of telling ghost stories. The Victorians relished tales of the supernatural with a didactic bent, though the tradition is far older. Nicholle purchased this book as a way for our family to re-engage with that historic tradition of the seasonal macabre of Yuletide. This book is a collection of short stories of that genre. These stories though are heavier on the supernatural and lighter on the guided moralizing. The majority of the stories are in the 8-12 page length like a 19th century weekly serial and convenient for a family reading aloud salon in the days of Yuletide … spreading the tales out over time. Some of the stories are set in that Victorian time past and one of them feels lifted from the serialized “The Mysteries of London” … replete with atmosphere and characters of 1840’s London. Other stories are more wistful and modern involving spirits outside of the traditional English-speaking areas and traditions. I enjoyed this book, devoured it. Several of the stories stayed with my thoughts long after the cover was closed, the book shelved, and its words were but a memory of image and tale.
Traditionally in the English-speaking countries before the 20th century advent of Halloween, Christmas and Yuletide was the time of telling ghost stories. The Victorians relished tales of the supernatural with a didactic bent, though the tradition is far older. Nicholle purchased this book as a way for our family to re-engage with that historic tradition of the seasonal macabre of Yuletide. This book is a collection of short stories of that genre. These stories though are heavier on the supernatural and lighter on the guided moralizing. The majority of the stories are in the 8-12 page length like a 19th century weekly serial and convenient for a family reading aloud salon in the days of Yuletide … spreading the tales out over time. Some of the stories are set in that Victorian time past and one of them feels lifted from the serialized “The Mysteries of London” … replete with atmosphere and characters of 1840’s London. Other stories are more wistful and modern involving spirits outside of the traditional English-speaking areas and traditions. I enjoyed this book, devoured it. Several of the stories stayed with my thoughts long after the cover was closed, the book shelved, and its words were but a memory of image and tale.
November 29, 2019
DNF; way too much moralizing
Krampus going after a kid who gets physically abused by his parents along with other stories of kicking those who are down, is not so much horror as torture porn. Perhaps readers who like the Saw movies will be satisfied with these tales but I had to stop before getting halfway through.
Krampus going after a kid who gets physically abused by his parents along with other stories of kicking those who are down, is not so much horror as torture porn. Perhaps readers who like the Saw movies will be satisfied with these tales but I had to stop before getting halfway through.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews