{Book Review} Hybrid: Edited By Donald Armfield & Maxwell Ian Gold

Hybrid: Edited By Donald Armfield & Maxwell Ian Gold

Reviewed By Sarah J. Huntington

As I have mentioned before, and will no doubt mention another thousand times, I adore short story collections and anthologies. It’s a great way to showcase an author’s style and an ideal way to discover new and talented writers.

I have found all of my favourite authors from anthologies so far.

This anthology looks beautiful, the image is striking and who doesn’t love monsters and misfits? Perhaps all of us are one, or maybe both of those things deep down inside. For that reason, I tried hard to love this book.

First off, there were more than a few authors I had not heard of and I liked this a lot, for me, that’s a really positive aspect of any collection.

The stories contained are quite short but the majority have enough depth to impact the reader. From alien-abduction to Druids, almost everything was attempted and covered.

A couple of the tales, I did not enjoy at all, and although perhaps metaphorical in nature, still made no real sense to me in any way.

A few I did enjoy and the rest, I liked enough to remember the plots. There was no standout tale for me in this one, no single story that resonated with me on a personal level.

The entire book was either hit or miss and that was the most striking thing.

Every reader will pick a favourite and I expect they will all choose vastly different ones. Dark fantasy, science fiction, and many cultures are present and that adds to the uniqueness of the book.

The poetry and prose were thought-provoking for the most.

Will I buy it? Probably.

Did I love it? No. But I liked it well enough.

Hybrid

Stories and poetry with themes of otherness, outcasts, and creatures birthed by random or purposeful mutation, evolution, or perhaps even, a curse. Hybrids have always persisted in our cultures, fused through the construction/deconstruction of our own nightmares, dreams, and fantasies. Give us the literal, metaphysical dualities that created something blended, something bizarre, something that didn’t quite belong, but will always remain.

Sarah Jane Huntington

I am the author of several short horror story collections, Paint it Black, Iron Maidens, Between light and shadow and Waves of Mutilation.

Cabin Terror is my first full-length novel.

My stories have appeared in a few anthologies so far.

I am a nurse, currently working in hospice care.

You can follow Sarah on Twitter @SarahJaneHunti1