Short fiction recs! May-June 2020
Why do so many of us love horror stories? I think that part of it—maybe even the major part—is that horror in fictional form offers a kind of control and catharsis of our fears that we can’t find in real life. When the horrors of the world seem more pressing and overwhelming than ever, some of us are—counterintuitively—drawn even more to dark fiction. The majority of stories in this roundup could be classified as “horror.” But there are stories of hope as well, and even some that manage both. Dark Tales of Body Horror, Hunger, Secrets, and More “Sleeping in Metal and Bone” by Kristi Demeester at The Dark It is summer the first time I dream of hooks at the end of my fingers. The cold metal buried in the soft tissue and then curving outward into a small, delicate point. How I creep through the shadowed damp of our backyard, the odor of soil rich and deep as I hunt through the underbrush you’ve promised for years to clear away, and snare tiny, wriggling creatures befor...