Monsters at Dusk - Kyle A. Massa

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Author: Kyle A. Massa

Genre: Short Story Anthology, SFF.
Rating: 4.25 stars.

A delightful collection for SFF lovers.

I had not heard of this author before, but the cover of this book created a high level of curiosity in my mind. I appreciate indie authors who take time out to invest in apt covers for their works. Thankfully, in this case, the book not only matches but exceeds the expectations set by the cover.

This anthology contains 9 short stories and a novella. Each belongs to the SFF genre but is still quite different from the rest. The stories start off pretty innocently and it's only after a few paras that you realise there's something stunning/sinister/sad/horrifying underneath that casual beginning. The tales come from horror, dark humour, satire, and fantasy, and each deals with a specific type of monster, not necessarily the kind you have been exposed to commonly in these genres. Some of the stories are hilarious, some are scary, some are reflective. All of them kept me engaged from start to end. None went into needless digressions but stayed true to the purpose of the narrative; very few short story writers can manage this art perfectly.

Of the 9 short stories, only one story failed to reach the 3 star mark for me, and that too was because it ended abruptly without satisfying my mind, not because of any paucity of writing imagination. Six stories (including the novella) reached a rating of 4.5 stars and above for me. My favourite story was the very first one, “Several Messages from Abby to God (Regarding her Cat)”. The title itself should give you a clue about how funny the story is. Never have I laughed so much at a story in ages! I read it twice in a row and wouldn’t mind rereading it once in a while to get my regular fix of intelligent humour.

I simply loved the creativity and writing skills of this author and I look forward to reading more of his works. Definitely a recommended collection for SFF lovers and those on the lookout for a fabulous indie anthology.

4.25 stars, based on the average of my ratings for all the stories and the novella.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author through ‘Voracious Readers Only’ and these are my honest thoughts about it.

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