I recently discovered that I like spooky short stories and in keeping with a 'horror is not only for Halloween' theme, I picked up the A Cold Christmas and the Darkest of Winters short story collection. The byline says it all - Ho ho uh-oh. A collection of darkly weird winter and Christmas tales - I was definitely in the right place.

A Cold Christmas and the Darkest of Winters is probably the most eclectic and diverse collection of short stories that I've read. Tied together by the theme of Christmas or Winter, that is pretty much all they have in common with tales spanning multiple centuries, locations and realms, from the realistic to the fantastic.

It is this that makes the anthology uniquely readable. With each story taking about 20 minutes to read, you can pick up this collection any time you have some time to kill, be it at the doctor's office, waiting in a queue or, if you're especially brave, alone in the dark at 3am.

I don't want to spoil the collection but three tales stood out for me. "Patient, Marley" by T. War Powers Tilden was a very cool Ray Bradbury-esque story with a great twist cat the end; "The Heart of Winter" by Archita Mittra was a very clever little Hansel & Gretal-type tale which again has an unexpected outcome; and the story I was most looking forward to, "Copper Snow" by Zoë Markham was a fantastically gruesome tale that might be best avoided by those with a fear of clowns.

(As a lover of all things clown however, I can confirm that the combination of comical clown shoes with a classic Harlequin suit was truly frightening!)

I enjoyed A Cold Christmas and the Darkest of Winters and give it four out of five stars. Recommended to fans of diverse and spooky fiction.

★★★★☆

A Cold Christmas and the Darkest of Winters, edited by Rasta Musick and published by Cinnabar Moth Publishing, is available to buy on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com (note: both these links are affiliate links; I will receive a small commission if you purchase using these links at no extra cost to you).

I received an electronic copy of this novel for the purposes of this review. I will always provide an honest review, whether books are provided to me or purchased by me.