The Crow's Gift and Other Tales

Almost everything in "The Crow's Gift"-- from story structure to tone to pacing, evokes the classic horror/suspense anthologies I grew up watching--Twilight Zone, Night Gallery, Tales From the Darkside (an overlooked favorite--yes, I'm old). Even the length of this book (you can get through it in roughly an hour depending on how fast you read) brings late-night TV horror to mind.Over just a few short tales, the author presents a variety of characters, perspectives, and narrative tones, none of which feels unnatural or out of place--no easy feat. Tying these stories together is a sense of fun--not Tales From the Crypt wackiness, mind you, more a self-aware revelry. Is "joyful horror" a sub-genre? If not it should be, and if it sounds like something you're into, there's no good reason I can give to not take an inexpensive flyer on this nice short collection.

The stories are classic, well-written Poe style horror with dashes of eroticism. Like Gorey, the author puts us in the heads of some seriously creepy characters, but doesn't tell us how to feel about them. The stories entice like a bunny hopping into a dark forest. We follow gleefully even though we are pretty sure something with sharp teeth lurks within. I was sorry to find myself at the end of the book.

Sonora Taylor’s short anthology The Crow’s Gift and Other Tales contains four brief tales of horror. I really loved her unusual serial killer tale Without Condition, so I had to give this collection a read!In The Crow’s Gift, Tabitha is being bullied by schoolmate Simon. She’s also starting to make friends with a crow she calls Timothy, who brings her pretty pebbles in return for the crackers she feeds him and his friends. This one is simple, to the point, and delightful.I Love Your Work sees Ann trying desperately to see her favorite author, Samuel Miller, at a book signing–but it seems like the universe itself is trying to keep her from getting there as one thing goes wrong after another! This is an entertaining little story that is simple-but-fun.The protagonist of I Never Knew Your Name sees a certain stranger every day on their way to work, and for some reason these two just seem to click and always say hello. Then children start to go missing, and things get weird. This one’s a little surreal, and I might have liked just a little more information, but it’s intriguing as it is.In All the Pieces Coming Together, Taylor returns to the world of serial killers. A fledgling serial killer picks up a woman at the bar, but finds he’s actually quite attracted to her. He decides to enjoy the night with her before killing her, but things don’t quite go according to plan.That last story was my favorite–Taylor seems to be particularly good at presenting serial killers in new and unusual ways! This collection is a very brief read, but definitely enjoyable.

This collection features very imaginative stories and I thoroughly enjoyed reading them. Excellent writing, pacing, characters, twists, and chills! For me, it brings to mind Stephen King with Hitchcock and Bradbury thrown in. Will make you think twice about that chance encounter... or that crow outside your window right now...

I enjoyed these quick reads. A bit scary, thought provoking and fun.