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Little Deaths
 
 

Little Deaths [Kindle Edition]

John F.D. Taff , Books of the Dead
5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)

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Product Description

Product Description

Named the #1 Horror Collection of 2012 by Horror Talk
Named top 5 books of 2012 by AndyErupts

“Little Deaths is a treat for fans of horror. Taff’s prose is tight but malleable, changing its nature to adapt to every story. The diversity of the collection is outstanding, the writing is the kind that gets nods for the Stoker, and all the elements of horror fiction are there in spades. The Mellified Man was one of the best short stories I read this year and this collection ensured that I will be getting my hands on anything Taff publishes the second it comes out. When it comes to superb short horror stories, this tome stuck with me and I’ll surely go back to it at some point in 2013.”
~ Horror Talk, on naming Little Deaths the #1 Horror Collection of 2012

"Before 2012, I’d never heard of American author John F.D.Taff until I read his short story Cold Calls in Best New Vampire Tales Vol I. After that, I had no hesitation in picking up Taff’s collection of his own short stories, Little Deaths. The tales contained therein, much like the author himself, are quite unique and don’t rely on horror archetypes in the traditional sense, no mean feat in and of itself. Taff’s range of storytelling is ably demonstrated in Little Deaths with some of the highlights for me being: Here, a touching story, despite being a horror yarn; The Mellified Man, a modern day fairytale with more than a hint of The Twilight Zone about it; and Box of Rocks, a short sharp shock of a read that had tremendous impact on me."
~ AndyErupts, on naming Little Deaths as one of the top 5 books of the year

About the book:

You think you’ve got bad dreams? Consider author John F.D. Taff’s nightmares. How about the one where a guy resurrects his dead girlfriend with a set of the prop neck bolts used on Boris Karloff in the 1932 classic Frankenstein? Or one where the ghost of the author’s dead dog keeps coming back to entice him into death so they can be together? Or the one where a guy loves candy…to death?

Taff has the kind of nightmares no one really wants. But it’s nightmares like these that give him plenty of ideas to explore; ideas that he’s turned into the short stories he shares in this new collection Little Deaths.

Little Deaths features 19 pieces of short horror fiction; some have appeared previously in print elsewhere, others appear for the first time here. All of them are chilling, weird looks at the human condition from a decidedly dark perspective.

Product details

  • Format: Kindle Edition
  • File Size: 534 KB
  • Print Length: 218 pages
  • Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
  • Publisher: Books of the Dead Press (20 April 2012)
  • Sold by: Amazon Media EU S.à r.l.
  • Language: English
  • ASIN: B007WFK3DU
  • Text-to-Speech: Enabled
  • X-Ray: Enabled
  • Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #107,840 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Little Deaths brings new life to horror 6 Jun 2012
Format:Kindle Edition
John F.D. Taff is an author who has more than 65 short stories and seven novels in print but I had never heard of him until I read his short story Cold Calls within the excellent anthology Best New Vampire Tales Vol I. I absolutely loved Cold Calls and the unlikely hero of the piece, Buddy Burnett.

It was without hesitation that I started to read Little Deaths; a collection of Taff's own short stories.

I often find the quality of anthologies can vary wildly and although I was a fan of the author's work that I had encountered before, I had only read one piece by him...

What we have here in Little Deaths is a selection of Taff's best work from his career and some new pieces that are not only novel in nature but are sure to entertain; and as is suggested in the title, death is ever present in every story within. Each tale within Taff's anthology is very different and although it may well be criticised for not being outright horror, I would suggest that this book sits quite nicely within the genre. The overarching feeling permeating throughout all of Taff's work in Little Deaths is something that is reminiscent of episodes of The Twilight Zone or The Outer Limits. The author moves between science-fiction type tales, the macabre, psychological thriller, body-horror and more, effortlessly whilst maintaining his distinctly charming, pulpy and entertaining writing style. This style may be attributable to the fact that Taff seems to stick to the advice "Write what you know, write what you love"; since there seems to be a little bit of the author in many of his stories. Some of the highlights for me within Little Deaths were:

The Mire of Human Veins: A neat little story about a young girl with an overbearing mother that is decidely macabre and doesn't quite turn out the way I had anticipated...

Helping Hands: A wonderfully enjoyable story about Victorian body horror that has the feel of a weird Sherlock Holmes tale.

The Mellified Man: A well-researched short story that turns out to be a veritable modern day fairytale that is filled with moral messages where one man's sweet tooth proves to be his undoing.

Here: Despite being a horror yarn, this is an incredibly personal and touching short story where it is perhaps most evident that the author has poured much of his heart and soul into the telling of the tale.

Box of Rocks: This particular tale genuinely shocked me. Taff guides you through one man's violent upbringing, with an ending that has tremendous impact.

The Tontine: This, among all of Taff's tales here, was undoubtedly my favourite. For me, this was Taff's love letter to the way the genre was and should be, while slickly commenting on the current state of horror simultaneously.

Despite his clear fondness for the classics of the genre, Taff's stories contained within Little Deaths are unique and don't rely on horror archetypes in the traditional sense of the genre; no mean feat in and of itself.

There is effectively a story here to cater for all horror tastes and I am of the opinion that Little Deaths would be perfect for the horror fan seeking to get back into reading; or perhaps for the reader who does not have the time or patience to settle into a full novel due to other commitments.
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Amazon.com: 4.2 out of 5 stars  22 reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Care to scare up a good story? 16 Aug 2012
By Jerry R - Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback
Taff's style will ease you into the story like an old time folktale, then turn on you when you least expect it. Gory or not gory? Each story has just what it needs, but waiting to find out--or not find out--is a good part of the fun.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Good horror anthology 21 July 2012
By David - Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback
What do you do when your girlfriend dies and you have a problem letting her go? If you're a collector and you own a pair of neck bolts that Boris Karloff wore in the original Frankenstein movie you might be able to bring her back to life. Of course that could become a problem once the body decomposes.

This is one of the story lines from John F.D. Taff's Little Deaths. This anthology includes 19 short horror stories that take a look at how humans react to bizarre situations. Another story in this collection looks at a woman named Melinda who marries a man named Josh. Josh has a book that tells every detail of his and Melinda's life from birth to death. Despite her husband's warnings to not look at the book, she does look and doesn't like her destiny. She decides to rewrite the book and change everything but now she has to face the consequences.

My favorite stories in this anthology were the ones that mixed Science Fiction and Horror such as But For A Moment...Motionless which tells the tale of a man walking the streets of a deserted city and discovering that he may be the last one alive. I liked how the main character describes what he will miss about humanity and how he reacts when he learns what really happened.

I also enjoyed Snapback which tells what happens in the future as people learn how to master time travel. This one is told through a series of scientific reports and I thought it was interesting hearing how the tone of the reports change as the scientists discover that there is a problem.

Other good stories for the hard core horror fan include include The Mire Of Human Veins that had a Neil Gaiman feel to it and is about a girl who has a strange home life. Another one is Child Of Dirt about a baby who's father may not be human. Also if you are into ghost stories, The story Here is a ghostly love story that has a good sense of humor and will appeal to all dog lovers.

I enjoyed John F.D. Taff's Little Deaths more or less. I thought all the stories were well written and I like how the author describes the action and setting in each story. I also like the way he describes his characters. That being said I did have a problem with some of the stories. Such as The Scent, Bolts, Helping Hands and Calander Girl which were based on good ideas but had endings that left me confused. John F.D. Taff does make up for this though in the end of the book when he tells his idea behind each story and your able to find out what he was thinking as he wrote it. I do think Little Deaths is a good anthology and I look forward to seeing a novel by John F.D. Taff in the future.
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Enjoying the feeling of unease 9 Aug 2012
By littlevoice - Published on Amazon.com
Format:Kindle Edition
I'd seen and enjoyed John Taff's work here and there before reading "Little Deaths", so it was a treat to receive his collection for review. This is dark speculative fiction that caters perfectly to my tastes - well-crafted and imaginative, brimming with original concepts, and relying largely on developing a sense of unease rather than shock-and-gore to affect the reader. Personal favourites include -
"Child of Dirt", which explores a taboo question that must enter the minds of many a new father; what if my child isn't really mine?
"The Mellified Man", putting a new spin on another old taboo - cannibalism.
"Snapback", a cleverly constructed sci fi horror that takes on time travel.

(Disclosure: the publisher provided a free copy for review purposes.)
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