We Are All Monsters Here

Monsters stalk the 19 tales of this harrowing collection from bestseller Armstrong (the Women of the Otherworld series). “Absynthe & Angels” gets things off to a strong start as a quiet Christmas night takes a nightmarish turn thanks to some unexpected visitors. Another holiday-themed piece, “The Way Lost,” brings readers to a small town plagued by the disappearance of a child each year on Halloween. Both “Nos Galan Gaeaf” and “The Screams of Dragons” take place in Cainsville, where the supernatural is commonplace; meanwhile, viral outbreaks create monsters both human and inhuman in “Last Stand,” “New Chicago,” and the title story. Past misdeeds haunt the characters of “The Ghost in the Glade” and “The Price You Pay” both literally and figuratively, while “The Girl in the Carnival Gown” asks readers who the real monsters are. In the standout “Suffer the Children,” one of the longest tales in the bunch, townsfolk are promised the resurrection of their dead children and ignore the local preacher’s protests against the bargain. The twists occasionally feel predictable, especially when the stories are read in quick succession. Taken in bite-size pieces, however, this unsettling anthology is sure to leave readers with goose bumps. (Mar.)