{Book Review} Daughters Of Darkness II: Edited By Stephanie Ellis & Alyson Faye

Daughters Of Darkness II: Edited By Stephanie Ellis & Alyson Faye

Reviewed By Yvonne Miller

Daughters of Darkness II is an anthology of horror that makes you question reality, think outside the box, and fear everything! This is another anthology that just proves that women belong in the genre. They bring something new, but you can feel the darkness running through the pulse of these stories. It contains the work of Beverley Lee, Lynn Love, T.C. Parker, and Catherine McCarthy. I’m new to the work of Lynn Love but I enjoy everything the other three ladies’ release. It was a kickass anthology with heart-stopping stories.

The stories penned by these ladies are all poignant and delivered with chest slashing veracity. When you have recalled loving a book what are the reasons for it? Well for me, Daughters of Darkness II spoke to me on some psychological level, it spoke to me, it drew out connections. It knew how I as a reader ticked. The Secret of Westport Fell by Beverley Lee, The Spider and the Stag by Catherine McCarthy and The Body Tree and Undeserving by TC Parker had this effect. The stories had this addictive pull that left me unable to do chores until I had finished the book.

Daughters of Darkness II had everything to keep your attention. Vivid imagery. Unsettling psychological horror. A level of dread that could sink the titanic.

The work from Lynn Love was new to me but her talent is going to have me seek out more of her delightful prose. The Mistress of Mayhem – this is how I would view her work Mayhem and chaos is the ingredients that bring her full circle – characterisation and plot combined made me feel very uncomfortable, her stories are an entity that take on a life of its own.

TC Parker is an author that leaves her own stamp on things. She doesn’t do things traditionally and that is an awesome thing. She takes the rules and the passed down whispers of how things are done in the horror genre and rips them up. She has no time to follow the rules of patriarchy, she creates something new, undeniably queer. Her characters are dying to be heard with stories that make you feel everything. Parker is an author that will become synonymous with horror fiction.

The ladies of this anthology have created a real skin crawler. If you enjoy deep, psyche breaking horror, this should hit the spot. This book blew my mind to fragments, an altogether triumph in original horror.

Daughters Of Darkness II

The Daughters are back! This time, editors Stephanie Ellis and Alyson Faye have chosen a new quartet of women horror writers to thrill and scare you in the latest anthology, Daughters of Darkness II, from the women-run indie horror press, Black Angel.

Within these shadowed pages you will journey into the depths of the myth-rich Scottish countryside, into the horrors of suburban life, where beneath the skin of Hummingbird Academy the truly macabre ferments. You will encounter haunted girls and young men, with dark and deadly secrets, and travel into the Gothic heartlands, culminating in the hell of WW1 and encounter who or what comes home from the trenches.

These are four women horror writers at the top of their game, conjuring stories of quiet, skin-creeping terror.

You can buy Daughters Of Darkness II from Amazon UK & Amazon US

Yvonne Miller

Well, what can I say about myself? I’m a 33-year-old married woman and mum to 3 crazy boys, aged 13,6 and 4. My eldest has a genetic condition that causes a visual impairment so as you can imagine life can be very chaotic and provides many challenges along the way but I would 100% never change any of them. They fulfil my life beyond measure.

I adore books – I adore shouting about books! I’m a reviewer of mainly horror and dark fantasy.  Whether that’s featuring werewolves, evil creatures or the depravity of humanity,  I will read them all.

You can follow Yvonne on Twitter: @coycaterpillar 

Please visit Yvonne’s Official Website: www.thecoycaterpillarreads.blog