Shedding Skin

Shedding Skin
by Julian Darius
(4/5 Stars)

I'm not really a horror fan, so I didn't go into this with high hopes. But I found both stories to be good, the first more than the second. They're more suspense/psychological, not the gross-out splatterfests some people may expect from horror stories. A lot more "Twilight Zone" than "Human Centipede," which was fine with me.

The first story involves a man who has to rush to New Mexico, where his wife has give birth prematurely at her aunt's house. Her aunt is Native American and the narrator witnesses some kind of bizarre ritual. But no harm comes of it and five years go by without any problems. Then one day his wife and daughter vanish. The narrator has to return to the aunt's house, where he's greeted by some shocking revelations. It definitely ties into the book's title and cover picture.

That first story takes up the first three-quarters of the book. The second story then is what in comic book parlance would be a "backup story" or in boxing terminology the "undercard fight." This much shorter story involves a son who goes to visit his dying father. His father tells him a ridiculous story concerning his family and vampires. (No it's not anything like "Twilight.") Is the story true? If nothing else the story found a creative new use for vampires I hadn't thought of, something maybe they could use in that "True Blood" show.

Anyway, I liked both stories, though the first one was better because it was longer and thus more developed. There are a few typos and it bugs me when the author puts D---- instead of the actual last name, but otherwise no serious problems.

It took me less than an hour to read it, so it's something you can read on your lunch hour--if you dare, cue scary Vincent Price laugh.

That is all.