Grave Warnings: a short story collection

Pencil Tip Publishing, 2016
Editors: Bob Furnell, Robert Mammone & Jez Strickley
Contributing authors: Sarah Parry, Hamish Crawford, Jodie van de Wetering, Craig Charlesworth & Hannah Parry.

Review by Paula Roberts

Do you like horror thrillers the likes of Dean Koontz or Stephen King? Do you like to be enthralled by the mysteries of the spirit world? Do you crave tales that give you goose bumps? Then this anthology of short stories will both inspire and thrill you. In Grave Warnings there are five short stories from up-and-coming inspiring authors from around the globe.

Sarah Parry’s Deceased Estate will take you on a walk through an old colonial mansion with professional renovators. They find the old worn-down building is not quite dead or alive. Is it rats? Ghosts? Or is it just a local prankster?  And what is the mystery about the front door? So many questions, not enough answers, too little time…

Craig Charlesworth’s Dumb Show, set in 1900s England, where one man’s life is altered forever when his new cheap rental has a secret. Or rather, a secret show. Should he tell? For when you are dealing with karmic spirits, nothing is ever as innocent as it seems, and the consequences of his actions will test him to his mental limits.

The Specimen, by local Australian author Jodie van de Wetering, will leave you feeling the heat and wanting more. A scientist discovers a new species of insect in the back of beyond, if only he knew what those mysterious lights were and why they affect him so. You will reread this tale repeatedly until you are bugged out. 

Hannah Parry’s The Citizen, set in French revolution Paris, deals with a man whose lover only comes to him at night. The daily public hangings outside of his workshop door have him dealing with the big questions of life, and death. Can he ever find peace and love again? Is his lover real? Or is she just a figment of his imagination? 

Hamish Crawford’s Vacancy is stunning. Follow one man’s life after he welcomes in a new flatmate who is not quite what he seems and which coincides with a mysterious run of missing person reports around his apartment building. When his friends and colleagues start to question him and his changed behaviour, he starts to question, just who is behind these strange goings on?

All in all, this anthology’s authors will stun you with precision, mystery and fear. With penmanship the likes of Dean Koontz or Stephen King, this will be one for your library. You will want to read it over and over again. Every single one of these five stories will leave questioning, second guessing your own answers and leave you wanting more. 

As a lover of all things science fiction, fantasy and thriller, this anthology will be taking pride of place in my library, sitting right beside my copy of Stephen King’s The Mist. Perfect for reading whilst travelling, this book will fit in your bag, heart and soul.