It’s Dark Inside by Karen Heard
There’s a sub-genre known as “quiet horror,” an alternative to the explicit gore or overtly supernatural fare that’s been prevalent in horror since the eighties. Charles Grant’s much-praised Shadows series is one of the best examples you’ll find of this type of writing. There aren’t a lot of writers today who try this type of story and even fewer who succeed. Karen Heard is one of those rarely talented authors who can unsettle a reader without ever explicitly stating what has happened. It’s Dark Inside is her first collection and these six stories are hopefully only the beginning of many more to come.
The collection begins with “The Lighthouse,” a tale of isolation in the wake of some manner of unspecified disaster. “Snap” is set in what may be a not-too-distant future, wherein a photo-journalist is on a quest to find and photograph the last living elephant. “The Picture” is a different type of ghost story, where we learn about the things that can scare a man who is already dead. “Out of Order” surprises the reader by starting as one type of standard horror story before shifting into something very different as the reader is left unsure of not only what the “monster” is, but where exactly it is hiding. “The Promise” was a bit frustrating, as it depends on the protagonist not figuring out what is fairly obvious to the reader, but makes up for it with a wonderful twist ending. The collection wraps up with “Inside,” a story that leaves the reader unsure if the protagonist is beset by a supernatural menace or merely losing her mind, still managing to surprise with an unexpected (yet in retrospect completely logical) solution.
It’s Dark Inside is available in paperback for the low price of $6.50. For those of you on a budget, there’s the even lower-priced e-book edition for only 99 cents. For those of you on an even tighter budget (come on, already), you can preview one of the stories, “The Lighthouse,” on Ms. Heard’s blog, Misheard Fiction. Check it out and then decide if one of the best quiet horror story collections you’ll read this year is worth the cost of half a cup of coffee.
Thanks for the recommendation! Sounds very interesting, and I just bought the Kindle version.
I’m curious and intrigued. I’ll definitely check out “The Lighthouse.” If it’s good, I’ll buy Ms. Heard’s collection.
I consider myself a fan of horror but I rarely like the new stuff. (One HUGE exception: Laird Barron!) For example, I’ve been fairly disappointed with most of the stories in the recently started online Nightmare Magazine and even many of the Ellen Datlow latest anthologies have few of what I consider to be good horror stories.
Again and again, I find myself returning to Lovecraft, Howard, Smith, Blackwood, etc.
In your opinion, is “quiet horror” more in line with this older tradition of horror?
mcglothlin, I wouldn’t say it’s Lovecraftian since the focus tends to be more on the individual rather than some external threat. If I’m picking an old school horror author for comparison, I’d really go all the way back to Poe.
I haven’t gotten around to reading Nightmare Magazine yet (it’s on my list); but you might find the Shadows & Tall Trees series more to your liking.
Thank you so much for this fantastic review, which I have just found through Google.
I’m thrilled that you enjoyed my collection and took the time to post such a thoughtful review. Poe is one of my favourite authors, so I’m honoured that you might compare my style to his.