Reviewer’s Note: This is unrelated to the review itself, but for this book I tried something a little different. I read the book aloud with my wife, taking turns reading different stories. It was a great way to spend time together, and to involve her in my interests. I highly recommend you try it.
Winner of the Home Grown Horror Awards 2019 2nd Place!
Under Rotting Sky: Stories is Matthew V. Brockmeyer’s debut collection of short, dark fiction. With an emphasis on dark. These stories are shockingly disturbing and brutal. I legitimately cannot recommend this book without giving that warning upfront. That being said, I absolutely loved this collection, and highly recommend it. Brockmeyer has no qualms whatsoever about crossing every line imaginable, and he does so with brutal bluntness. These stories make you feel. They hurt the soul and make you question the decency of the human race. If you aren’t afraid to be taken to some dark, bleak and terrifying places, this is the collection for you.
One thing about this collection that I found interesting is the publication history included at the end of the book. A large number of the stories were originally published on various online horror forums over the last 5 years. I think it’s fascinating and inspiring that Brockmeyer seems to have gotten his start writing stories in horror forums, and now has such a well received collection, as well as his novel, Kind Nepenthe. In fact, my top three stories originated on those forums.
Of the 20 stories included, I absolutely loved 13 of them, quite liked 5 of them, and there were only 2 that didn’t really do it for me.
My Top Three Stories
Under Rotting Sky- The namesake of the collection, Under Rotting Sky tells the tragic story of a punk-rocker named Garbage. He falls madly in love, and of course, that is his downfall. This story paints a vivid picture of the 80s punk-rock subculture. The ending is haunting and terrifying and tragic.
The Number of Darkness- This story is told through the journal entries of Charles Cooperton, a member of an entrepreneurial family in California in the late 1800s. After the Cooperton family moves across the continent to California to etch out a living in farming and milling, a series of misfortunes dwindle their funds and the members of their clan. When Charles’ two young daughters fall ill, he exhausts all other options before eventually calling for a priest. The stylistic voice Brockmeyer uses for Charles’ journal entries really adds a different layer and perspective to this classic tale of demonic possession.
The Abalone Thief/ Call- I’m including these stories together, despite appearing as two seperate tales. The Abalone Thief is a cosmic horror story that takes place in the small fishing town of Shelter Cove, California. Here, our main character Theodore is conducting research for his PhD in marine biology. His specialty is the red abalone, a type of sea mollusk. During his research, he notes a sudden mass disappearance of the red abalone. Determined to discover who poached the large quantity of abalone, Ted stumbles upon the dark, cosmic secrets of the town. Call takes up where The Abalone Thief left off, describing the aftermath of the horrific events from the perspective of a new character, Jimmy. I’m a big fan of cosmic horror, and the mythos and creatures that Brockmeyer has come up with for these stories really did it for me.
A Note On The Stories That Weren’t For Me
There were only two stories in the collection that just didn’t do it for me. Those stories were Carried Statues and Mall Santa. I think it’s worth mentioning that both stories were well written and interesting. Carried Statues just didn’t really resonate with me. Perhaps if I had a bit of a different life perspective, it may have worked better. The issue that I took with Mall Santa was actually the ending. I felt it simply wasn’t dark enough. It was a stark contrast to the rest of the stories in the collection. Perhaps that juxtaposition is why it didn’t quite do the job for me.
Conclusion
Matthew V. Brockmeyer has put together an astoundingly diverse collection of horror here. I thoroughly enjoyed glimpsing into such dark and depraved worlds. If you have a weak stomach or are easily offended by extremely difficult topics, you should absolutely not pick up this book. There were several stories that were hard to read at times, especially reading aloud as I did. If you think you might enjoy sinking to the depths of filth and depravity, Matthew V. Brockmeyer is a fine tour guide.
Home Grown Horror 