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Miscreations: Gods, Monstrosities & Other Horrors

4.26 · Rating details · 57 ratings · 19 reviews

What happens when we make monsters? What happens when we make monsters of ourselves? Grotesque beings lurch from our darkest dreams. Vicious beasts stalk our twisted pasts. Lost souls haunt our deepest regrets. They are the blood on our hands. They are the obsessions in our heads. They are the vengeance in our hearts. They are Miscreations: Gods, Monstrosities & Other ...more

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Kindle Edition, 342 pages

Published February 18th 2020 by Written Backwards

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Jan 24, 2020 Sadie Hartmann Mother Horror rated it it was amazing

Shelves: cemetery-dance

Originally published on Cemetery Dance
https://www.cemeterydance.com/extras/...
I clearly remember a debate that transpired last summer on social media about anthologies. An author wondered about the future of anthologies because it seemed to him they dont make any money. Several industry people weighed in with their strong opinions either in support of anthologies or against them (not really opposed to anthologies in general but speaking more about the profitability, or lack thereof).

Watching ...more

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Jan 25, 2020 Janelle | She Reads with Cats rated it it was amazing

Shelves: horror, night-worms, short-stories-plays-essays, 2020

Review to come

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Jan 15, 2020 Jackie Cowgill (LanternsJourney) rated it it was amazing

This book had me at the Forward by Alama Katsu. And if you don't read forwards? Yeah- you. I'm shaming you.

This anthology was far from one-note, with a wide range of Monstrosities from intimately real to the fantastical. I felt every emotion on the spectrum from favorite authors and authors new to me (that I will definitely be reading more from). I really can't pick favorites. I started to type them out and it ended up being almost half the book. Just read it and find out for yourself!

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Jan 02, 2020 Angel Hench rated it it was amazing

Shelves: you-must-read-this, horror-supernatural-thriller

My usual rating for a short story collection is ⭐⭐⭐. It seems there are always a few stellar stories, a few clunkers and then the middling rest. An obvious by-product of a work with lots of different authors, really.

But, you guys, THIS COLLECTION. The theme of this horror anthology is the Frankenstein mythos - monsters as our creations, our rescuers, our tormentors and ourselves. I will admit to:
actually getting the shivers,
to saying out loud, oh my god or ew more than once,
to side-eyeing the ...more

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Mar 01, 2020 Eva rated it it was amazing

I had been looking forward to reading this anthology for a long time. And while "Gutted" is still the best Doug Murano anthology I've read, or rather, my favourite that I've read to do, "Miscreations" comes in at a close second. I would like to take a moment to acknowledge the work of the editors, Doug Murano and Michael Bailey, in seeing this project to fruition. They worked tirelessly and overcame many obstacles to make this happen so that readers could have this in their hands and to be ...more

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Jan 18, 2020 Kevin L rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

What a great collection! The writing is generally brilliant with wonderful turns of phrase and glimpses into the beauty of horror.

This collection also introduced me to several new writers that I had not read before and will now seek out their work.

Favorites in this collection:

A Heart Arrythmia Creeping into a Dark Room by Michael Wehunt - a very original story told in a fresh way.

Matryoshka by Joanna Parypinsky - Fantastic take on family and how it makes monsters.

Operations Other Than War by ...more

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Feb 03, 2020 Jamie rated it really liked it

Let it be known that 2019 was the year I fell in love with horror anthologies and began hoarding them on my shelves. In 2020, have no plans to slow my roll when it comes to this type of bookeach time I open an anthology Im not quite sure what Im going to get, and I enjoy the anticipation. I love not only the fact that it means new stories from some of my favorites, but I also tend to discover new authors in the process. Before I can finish the book, Im often so enamored with a new-to-me author Let it be known that 2019 was the year I fell in love with horror anthologies and began hoarding them on my shelves. In 2020, have no plans to slow my roll when it comes to this type of book—each time I open an anthology I’m not quite sure what I’m going to get, and I enjoy the anticipation. I love not only the fact that it means new stories from some of my favorites, but I also tend to discover new authors in the process. Before I can finish the book, I’m often so enamored with a new-to-me author that I’ve gone down the rabbit hole of looking up all of their work and adding it to my TBR list (or online shopping cart, if I’m honest).  One thing I enjoyed about MISCREATIONS is that it’s unique and unlike other anthologies I’ve read so far. The foreword by Alma Katsu is an excellent introduction, and I love the illustrations featured prior to each story. All of the little touches that might go unnoticed come together to add something special to this one—the layout and title font were other characteristics I enjoyed, and having read two other anthologies co-edited by Doug Murano, when I see his name on the cover, I know I can expect a well-edited and polished book. That brings me to a side-note: the more I grow as a reader and reviewer, the more I notice all of the factors that go into making a great book, and solid editing is one of them. I think Doug Murano and Michael Bailey did an excellent job with this one. In keeping with my typical trend for anthologies/collections, I narrowed my favorite stories down to a Top 5 (listed here in the order with which they appear in the book):
 -MATRYOSHKA by Joanna Parypinski: a haunting tale with a unique concept; I’d love to read more from this author.
 -YOU ARE MY NEIGHBOR by Max Booth III: my first and definitely not my last read from this author. This was creeptastic and a bit heartbreaking at times.
 -SPECTRAL EVIDENCE by Victor LaValle: Sorry to say this was my first read from this author; this was another haunting tale that pulled on the heartstrings. Adding more of his work to my list.
 -MY KNOWING GLANCE by Lucy A. Snyder: I loved this story—the whole concept was great, and I just got a great vibe from Snyder’s writing style. I immediately went to my bookshelf after this, as I realized I have her short fiction collection, SOFT APOCALYPSES. I added it to my TBR cart and will likely read it this month.
 -RESURRECTION POINTS by Usman T. Malik: another new-to-me author, and I’ll definitely seek out more of his work. This one was hauntingly heartbreaking as well (notice a trend here? Can’t help what I love). I’d also like to give some honorable mentions to other favorites. These stories made it tough to narrow down my top 5:
 -A HEART ARRYTHMIA CREEPING INTO A DARK ROOM by Michael Wehunt
 -OPERATIONS OTHER THAN WAR by Nadia Bulkin
 -IMPERFECT CLAY by Lisa Morton
 -NOT ERADICATED IN YOU by Bracken MacLeod
 -THE MAKING OF ASYLUM OPHELIA by Mercedes M. Yardley
  This was overall a very solid collection of stories, and the only thing keeping me from a full 5-star review was honestly that there were 2 or 3 in the bunch that fell flat for me. I found myself skimming a couple of the stories, and did not finish one of them. I think it was just my personal lack of interest in the subject matter and style of those particular stories—it does not mean that they were poorly written. I eagerly anticipate reading more from the new authors I’ve discovered through this anthology. Many of the names were familiar, but had I not picked up this book, it would’ve taken me much longer to get to their work. My shelves and book piles will continue to grow thanks to this mix of stories, and that warms this book lover’s heart.             ...more

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Mar 14, 2020 Alan Baxter rated it it was amazing

Shelves: dark-fantasy, horror, short-stories

An outstanding anthology with great variety and depth. Highly recommended.

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Jan 22, 2020 Richard Leis rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: horror, short-stories

So this is what today's pro-level horror looks like.

Miscreations: Gods, Monstrosities & Other Horrors is one of the best anthologies I have ever read, made extra special with the inclusion of beautifully crafted dark poems by Linda D. Addison, Christina Sng, and Stephanie M. Wytovich. Of Addison's poem "One Day of Inside/Out," I thought at the end that I kinda want this to happen, even if I for some reason turn out to be one of those "living things with useless hands and feet, / writhing So this is what today's pro-level horror looks like.

Miscreations: Gods, Monstrosities & Other Horrors is one of the best anthologies I have ever read, made extra special with the inclusion of beautifully crafted dark poems by Linda D. Addison, Christina Sng, and Stephanie M. Wytovich. Of Addison's poem "One Day of Inside/Out," I thought at the end that I kinda want this to happen, even if I for some reason turn out to be one of those "living things with useless hands and feet, / writhing [...]".

An anthology like this might lead one to believe there will be stories related to Frankenstein's monster included, and there most certainly are, including the fantastic poem "A Benediction of Corpses" by Stephanie M. Wytovich and the short story "Frankenstein's Daughter" by Theodora Goss that is so phenomenal, I immediately accept it as a direct sequel to Frankenstein.

But there are also tales about werewolves, Old Gods, aspects of a Toad God, ghosts, robots, and writers trying to meet deadlines, among many other miscreations. Some of my favorites include "Matryoshka" by Joanna Parypinski, "Operations Other Than War" by Nadia Bulkin, "You Are My Neighbor" by Max Booth III, "Imperfect Clay" by Lisa Morton, "My Knowing Glance" by Lucy A. Snyder, "The Making of Asylum Ophelia" by Mercedes M. Yardley... but, honestly, I might as well reproduce the table of contents here, because I love just about everything in this book, including the foreword by Alma Katsu.

I had a feeling about this book when it was first announced, and that feeling was confirmed while reading everything inside. Editors Doug Murano and Michael Bailey are already well known for previous well-received anthologies, but this is the first I have read, and I'm looking forward to reading more of their careful and thoughtful piecing together of master works by master writers.

What an incredible anthology this is! Don't miss it. And thank you to Night Worms and the editors for making it available early. This is my thankful, honest, absolutely delighted review. ...more

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Jan 24, 2020 Alex Gray (gray__pages__616) rated it liked it

3.5 out of 5
So....heres the thing about my relationship with Anthologies. I always go into them with high expectations, and I really want to like them. I end up falling in love with some of the stories, but the majority of them will fall flat for me. Thus, I have not yet found an Anthology that really dazzled me.
Let me begin by saying that the writing in every single story blew me away, regardless of how I felt about the story overall. We have some truly talented, legendary writers in this ...more

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Mar 15, 2020 Allie Anne rated it it was amazing

What we got here is a posse of talented mvther fvckers guiding you on a skeleton bobsled down an icy race track through realms of evil face down, head first, eyes wide as you white knuckle it to the very end. A gold medal in the horror anthology olympics. 🖤🥇

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Feb 07, 2020 TheCrookedHouse rated it really liked it

Shelves: anthology, horror, owned

Not a bad anthology. With a total of 19 short stories and 4 poems, this book held a remarkable collection of narrative derived from the concept of miscreations through science, magic and the supernatural. It made me realize that, aside from Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, I had very little in the way of this particular sub-genre, so this was definitely a welcome addition to my horror library.

It's not completely out of the realm of possibility to find collections like this to have lots of ...more

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Feb 25, 2020 Curtis rated it it was amazing

Great collection! I picked it up for the Barron, Malerman, and Campbell tales, but stuck around for the rest because they proved well-curated.

First off, Laird Barron is the man. He got me into "weird" horror and sent me down a rabbit hole with no end in sight. And with this new story, Ode To Joad The Toad, he's once again reaching newer, weirder heights. This tale felt like a glorious mix of Robert E. Howard and Jeff Vandermeer, but with the trademark snark only Barron can bring. I know many ...more

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Feb 10, 2020 Red Lagoe rated it it was amazing

I'm a huge fan of short fiction. This is a curated collection of stories by authors I look up to.
I took my time with this anthology, reading a story or two a night. There's a lot of original storytelling and a variety of styles. It did not disappoint.

One of my favorites was Last Transformation by Malerman. What a fantastic and fresh take on a werewolf story.

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Mar 08, 2020 Marie McWilliams rated it it was amazing

This horror anthology is absolutely fantastic. Despite being given the same brief, every writer takes it in such a different and fascinating direction. My Highlights are Josh Malerman 'One Last Transformation', Brian Hodge 'Butcher's Blend' and 'The making of Asylum Ophelia' by Mercedes.M.Yardley. Head to my Booktube channel to hear my break down and review of each story!

https://youtu.be/k0rPcDgtBgg

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Jan 31, 2020 Sarah rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2020

This was an excellent anthology. I didn't skip a single story, and I was amazed by the diversity of the narratives, considering how narrow the theme is. If you like horror, this is the antho for you!

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Feb 19, 2020 Brennan LaFaro rated it really liked it

Editors Doug Murano and Michael Bailey have now released Miscreations into the wild. The book started off in the hands of Night Worms customers in January, giving a whole lot of happy horror fans early access to what will surely be one of the most anticipated anthologies of 2020.
Murano and Bailey have talked about how much time and care goes into curating an anthology, and Miscreations has that care on display in every facet. The illustrations and title fonts fit the creating a monster theme Editors Doug Murano and Michael Bailey have now released Miscreations into the wild. The book started off in the hands of Night Worms customers in January, giving a whole lot of happy horror fans early access to what will surely be one of the most anticipated anthologies of 2020.
 Murano and Bailey have talked about how much time and care goes into curating an anthology, and Miscreations has that care on display in every facet. The illustrations and title fonts fit the creating a monster theme superbly. Adding to that the order of stories and inclusion of poetry by some of horror's top voices felt very blatant and pored over. Alma Katsu's introduction is also a can't-miss addition to the collection.
 The bookends in Miscreations, A Heart Arrhythmia Creeping into a Dark Room by Michael Wehunt and Frankenstein's Daughter by Theodora Goss, are the perfect choices to begin and end with. Wehunt's piece is a self-aware, fourth wall breaker that I almost mistook for a second introduction. It evoked such anxiety in me by the time all was said and done. Goss' piece is a direct homage, and spiritual successor to Mary Shelley's 1818 novel.
 Murano and Bailey seemingly made very conscious decisions to pull stories that would give us a worldly flavor, pulling various monsters and mythology from all over. Matryoshka by Joanna Parypinski, The Vodyanoy by Christina Sng, and Resurrection Points by Usman T. Malik are some prime examples of stories that entertained me by showing me a side of horror I hadn't been familiar with before.
 Like any anthology, not every piece resonated with me, but I found the misses to be few and far between. Since the whole book reads like a story from cover-to-cover, it's easy to shrug off a story that didn't work for me in anticipation of what comes next. One of the biggest reasons that this anthology is an easy recommendation is the sheer number of stories that blew my mind with their underlying commentary, social or otherwise.
 I won't go into detail about all my favorites because you should probably be spending your time reading Miscreations rather than a 7-page review of it, but I'll leave you with some of the stories that worked best for me: Operations Other Than War by Nadia Bulkin, You Are My Neighbor by Max Booth III, Spectral Evidence by Victor LaValle, and My Knowing Glance by Lucy A. Snyder.
 Special attention to Josh Malerman for putting a really interesting and unique take on a werewolf story, and to Ramsey Campbell for Brains, which was hands down my favorite story in the collection.  I bought this as a very satisfied Night Worms subscriber. If you aren't getting their monthly packages, what are you even doing?  ...more

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Jan 21, 2020 Aaron rated it really liked it

I received a digital copy for review early. I wanted to wait till it was out to post a review. This is an awesome book. A really great forward from Alma Katsu. This book explores the idea of being a monster. Some of the stories are actually really good either mentally or a bit more judicial in nature. I felt though that a few of the stories were a bit lacking and so I didnt feel like its a star studded book. Do check this book out! Pick it up even if your not a big monster fan!

@AaronFurq over ...more

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