Our book review thread is back! P.G. Bell dives into Dead Souls, a collection of short tales that charts the murky depths of mankind.ย
Reviewing short story anthologies can be a tricky business. Each tale has to be judged on its own merits while the anthology as a whole – with its various authors, tones and voices – has to be considered as a cohesive unit. Many anthologies make life easier by opting for a particular theme, motif or character around which to group their stories but Dead Souls is a little more abstract.
As editor Mark S. Deniz makes clear in his foreword, the anthology uses its title (taken from a song by Joy Division) as its starting point, launching an examination of โhuman nature through short stories about people, people who do terrible things.โ
That sounds clear enough, and you could be forgiven for assuming the book sits firmly in the horror genre, especially given Reece Notleyโs gorgeous, if disturbing cover.ย But it soon proves to be a rather more nebulous beast.