Snapshots 

HORROR/ANTHOLOGY:  Set in the present day, this horror anthology attempts to take moments in time, snapshots so to speak, that can change the course of a life forever. Each character is explored in their own story, with their choices dictating what the eventual results end up being, sometimes with an edgy horror twist, but an unhappy ending is not guaranteed. The protagonists’ stories lead to their own conclusions, but it seems that more often than not, the only option left is to face the consequences of their decisions. A collection of quick reads, all penned by the same author, giving the reader a glimpse into his thought process and an introduction to what might be expected in his fuller length works.

Often an anthology can be a rather mixed bag, depending on the authors involved, but that factor is removed here with all the stories stemming from the same hand. Unfortunately, although the stories themselves were new, the twists adopted were more often than not a slightly changed version of very common themes that removed the shock factor for the reader, making the endings seemed predictable. Each story is complete, and whilst not all have tragic, macabre results, the theme was definitely not edged towards a happily ever after. Although this collection was predictable, the writer does employ interesting descriptions, and it does beg the question of what the author might be able to achieve in a full-length novel as opposed to these brief character encounters.

Melanie Newton