Genre: Horror
Length: 262 Pages
Publisher: Crossroad Press
Release date: May 23, 2018
Synopsis: Travel to the shores of an alien sea where the search for pearls may cost more than expected. Experience the early days of Viking exploration to the New World, and learn why they didn’t stay. Meet those things that hide in the darkness of attic rooms, the shadows beyond the fenced-in yard, the narrow confines of the kitchen pipes, or even right out in the open beneath a warm summer sun. Learn to be wary of lost children, the kindness of strangers, or even the promises of those you trust. Enjoy the beauty of the sea, the lush growth of greenhouse roses, the love and longing of family, and even the fondness of old memories.
“Broken things can be useful, even beautiful…” But they can also be dangerous.
Review copy provided in exchange for an honest review
Beautiful, Broken Things is filled with stories that are dark, haunting and strike a place deep inside. I’ve been reading Rose Blackthorn for quite some time. She has an excellent way of placing you in the story. Beautiful, Broken Things is filled with monsters, some of them human, and the stories have nasty endings for most part. I loved the shorter one-page tales. They were quick, sharp and dark. Something Savory was one of my favorite longer pieces, with the odd and something off feeling it gave me. For Some Peace was one of the shorter pieces I really loved. While good, Dragon Bound and Skrealings felt out of place in this collection of stories. For me, they didn’t fit the feel and flow of this collection.
Rose Blackthorn makes skillful use of monsters from the sea, a topic often visited and one I enjoy myself. The author writes about the beautiful, or once beautiful, landscapes or oceans that have become broken from the mistreatment of humanity. She captures a scene and takes the reader along on her journey, showing us the world, she has envisioned. We also see the winding down of the once rich and lavish world that has gone into decay is ever present, another topic I enjoy from this writer. I found Beautiful, Broken Things enjoyable from start to finish.
Link to purchase Beautiful Broken Things
Rose Blackthorn, biography
Rose Blackthorn writes speculative fiction from the high mountain desert of eastern Utah.
Her short stories have appeared in such places as Stupefying Stories, Necon E-books, Interstellar Fiction, BuzzyMag, Siren’s Call and Massacre Magazine. She has also appeared in many anthologies including The Ghost IS the Machine and Fear the Abyss by Post Mortem Press, Eulogies II: Tales from the Cellar by HorrorWorld, Equilibrium Overturned and Dread by Grey Matter Press, Wrapped in Black by Sekhmet Press, and Twice Upon a Time by The Bearded Scribe Press.
Her poetry has appeared in Jamais Vu, 3 volumes of the HWA Horror Poetry Showcase, Widowmakers, and Chiral Mad 3. She has also released a poetry collection Thorns, Hearts and Thistles through Eldritch Press. More information can be found at:
The Scary Reviews 
Reblogged this on Moonlight and Thorns and commented:
David Spell at The Scary Reviews just posted this wonderful review – Check out the review, and I hope you’ll check out my collection Beautiful, Broken Things as well!
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