Bloody Mary and Other Tales for a Dark Night by Stefan R. Dziemianowicz

Bloody Mary and Other Tales for a Dark Night Reviews

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  {U n s o l v e d M y s t e r y}

  
  Each tale is based on Urban Legends.
  Full of cheese (some more than others)
  Full of fun (They were all fun to read)
  Some I've heard, some were new to me
  
  I have rated each story; even had some 5 stars in the bunch!
  
  Tall Tales For the Campfire
  Campfire Story - 4 stars
  Initiation Into Terror - 5 stars
  Funhouse of Fear - 4 stars
  Body Snatched - 2 stars
  Summer of Cropsey - 4 stars
  
  Tales For After Dinner
  Doom of the House of Gaskell - 4 stars
  Secret Ingredient - 5 stars
  Just Desserts - 5 stars
  
  Urban Legends
  Brainy Type - 3 stars
  Cocoon - 3 stars
  Mule - 3 stars
  Coat Carrier - 4 stars
  Giving Kind - 4 stars
  Crazy Sally - 4 stars
  
  Slumber Party Terrors
  Don't Turn On the Light! - 3 stars
  Final Call - 3 stars
  Why the Doctor Went Mad - 5 stars
  Ginger Snaps - 3 stars
  
  Short Shivers for Long Car Rides
  Stay Away From Wilson Drive! - 4 stars
  Backseat Driver - 5 stars
  One More - 5 stars
  Death Takes Its Toll - 5 stars
  Roadside Stop - 5 stars
  Hook Ending - 4 stars
  
  Frights For the Christmas Fireside
  He Sees You When You're Sleeping - 4 stars
  Yule Love Him - 2 stars
  O' Christmas Tree - 3 stars
  .....In Small Packages - 4 stars
  Hearth of Horror - 3 stars
  
  Halloween Horrors
  Tricks & Treats - 5 stars
  Masquerade - 4 stars
  Scarecrow - 5 stars
  Sweets To the Sweet - 4 stars
  Bloody Mary - 3 stars
  
  This book would have benefitted with better editing.
  Regardless, it was a lot of fun to read.
  I'd most definitely recommend to anyone who loves a good fright before bed.
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  Jenny

  Registered on Bookcrossing -
  https://www.bookcrossing.com/journal/...
  
  Really enjoyed these spooky stories.
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  Amanda

  I was pleasantly surprised by how well written these stories were. Each story is based on an urban legend that is summarized at the beginning or end of the story. Some of the stories are very well known and others were stories that I have never heard. I found each story enjoyable because they were told in a unique way with a few twists that I didn't expect. A great read for October and definitely recommended.
• 
  Scooter

  A good little read for a rainy night!
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  Autumn Greer

  The stories are pretty boring and lack any type of spookiness or scariness. Some of the urban legends in the book are the more popular ones that I feel were better done in tv shows or other stories. Some of the legends I had never heard of but were lackluster in their presentation.
  I give it 2 stars because I enjoyed a few of the more well-written stories. Although, I genuinely wonder if this book was proofread because that is the scariest thing about this book. In "The Summer of Cropsey" story, the name of the camp goes from Beechside to Beechwood in the span of one paragraph. In "He Sees You When You're Sleeping" who is Linda? The main character is named Elizabeth except for one paragraph where her name changes and becomes Linda. In "Sweets to the Sweet" who is Ellen? The main character is named Esther.
  In the story "... In Small Packages" you are greeted by this delightful line "a hank of hair and black shriveled thing depending from it." That makes no sense. This leads me to the next point about the very outdated language of the book. Some of the stories are full of words that no one uses anymore, making the story seem like it's taking place in a different period while also using modern technology (well modern for a 20+-year-old book).
  Who is the narrator for the majority of the stories? Most of the stories lack a defined narrator which makes it very strange to read especially when the story has the addition of narration points or things the characters wouldn't know. A defined narrator would have made some of the stories actually well done.
  There is also blatant misinformation or half-truth statements made in the introduction sections denoting a new grouping of stories. A perfect example would be the Halloween introduction. The author goes into the origin of Halloween saying the holiday was 'supposedly piggybacked on a pagan day of celebration, the day we call Halloween was formally known as All Hallows' Eve...' The pagan holiday was known as Sowhain and it was a celebration of the fall harvest and a time to remember lost loved ones. All Hallows' Eve was the Christan faith's attempt at converting the pagan people to Christan beliefs. The introduction for the Christmas section talks quite a bit about the rules to follow to not have bad things happen to you but read any Christmas tradition book and none of those things are mentioned. I know the book is fiction but making claims based on truth would be helpful to have some type of source for that claim.
• 
  Sarah

  I read this book in fifth grade, and was up until 3AM, terrified, after crafting a decoy sleeping body of pillows under my blanket to take the first stan from a murderer. So glad I found it! Two or three are particularly well done-- the first one with the rest-stop dinner and the cave exploration ones stick out.
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  Keri Ann

  I love horror anthologies, they are beneficial to readers like myself who get bored easily. This horror anthology was good, not the best I've read and not the worst. It's basically a collection of urban legends and old ghost stories you would hear in junior high, some with a gory twist. There were a few stories in the collection of 35 that I hadn't heard before and that made the whole book worth the read. I don't scare easily, but after finishing this book last night I did find myself less than excited to turn the lights off. I would recommend this collection to anyone who likes classic scares or urban legends or as something to read around Halloween.
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  Kelly

  I'm always on the lookout for a really creepy story, but unfortunately, I think I'm just incapable of being scared! That said, I don't think this book of short stories would really be scary to anyone, except for maybe younger readers. All the stories are taken from common urban legends, and there isn't much more to them than what we've all already heard time and again. However, I suppose if you read them on a dark and stormy night while you're home all alone, or around a campfire deep in the dark woods, they might succeed in giving you the chills.
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  GracieKat

  You would be better off reading a collection of urban legends because that is really all that this is. And they're not very well written out as stories because they're just the legends with hardly any surrounding detail or changes to make them interesting as a fictional short story.
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  Brett

  Horror
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  Jaime

  Aside from "Bloody Mary," the other spine-tingling tales included in this excellent 'campfire tales' collection are: "Cocoon," Don't Turn On The Light," "Scarecrow," and " Roadside Stop."
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  Dixie Diamond

  Nothing outstanding here, but the stories are old classics. Simplicity is probably their most commendable characteristic.
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  Jacqueline Selecky Selecky Selecky Selecky

  Really terrifying actually, but great stories that make you believe they could happen. Great book.