I’m a big fan of short fiction. Short horror, even better. I remember, as a child, devouring Stephen King’s Skeleton Crew, Night Shift and Nightmares & Dreamscapes. There is just something about an author’s ability to convey a sense of terror in just a handful of pages that is magical.
Mr. Stahl has this magical power. Show Me Where It Hurts is an eclectic collection of both prose and poetry with a definite dark slant. The first story, “The Weeds and the Wildness Yet” hooked me immediately. It had a very classic Creepshow feel that really fostered nostalgia in me.
“Ghosts on Drugs” was a fever dream of chaos that I actually had to read twice. It was such an amazing snippet of pure creativity that conveyed the quick plot perfectly.
I could go on and on, but part of the joy of short fiction is discovering how each piece makes you feel. I will say, however that “The Trouble with Goblins” was my absolute favorite. It’s not often that I laugh out loud at the office lunch table, but that one got me. I also closely aligned with “Death By Kittens,” a lovely tableau that builds an entire scene in a single delightful paragraph.
Do yourself a favor and pick up this collection.