"Thirty Scary Tales" by Rayne Hall

Thirty Scary Tales by Rayne Hall

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Rayne Hall kindly sent me a copy of this eBook in exchange for an honest review. I originally didn't know what to say for this review when I first finished the book. I enjoyed it, I just didn't know how to word what I wanted to say, but here goes:

When I settled down to read this book, I was a little apprehensive as I am not a horror fan. I'm not really fond of blood and guts and gore and I am fairly squeamish - I close my eyes at the bloody bits when I am watching "Bones" on TV LOL. Regardless, I started to read.

My original rating for this book was going to be a four star one because I wasn't scared by any of the stories. I was able to read them without flinching, which disappointed me. I was expecting to find myself squealing in disgust or horror or something.
I changed my mind when I scared the bejeepers out of myself out by recalling one of the stories - "The Devil You Know" - whilst using an empty, unlit, public toilet one night about a week after I read the book.
My hubby was waiting outside on some benches so rationally I knew I was safe. However, whilst sitting on the toilet, my mind wandered and I started recalling this particular story. Remembering how "Lucie" felt whilst she tried to sleep on a bench on an empty train station platform, I found myself peering around and checking the top of the stall to make sure no eyes were watching me. I didn't feel at ease until I had hubby back in view and those public toilets were well behind us LOL.
That is what makes a scary tale good and that is why I gave the book a five star rating.
To me, if a scary, creepy story which I didn't really get creeped out at while I was reading the book, comes back and bites me in the ass, it deserves a high rating.

Each story was well written, each character brought to life. Each tale is as creepy as the one before it. None of the stories were boring. I read each and every one and like another reviewer said, I was also pleasantly surprised by the little notes at the end of each tale. Especially when I knew most of the locations as I live within an hour's travel of them. Each tale was like a 5 minute movie and not a crappy 5 minute movie either.

Is this book worth reading? Yes it is. It may not be bloody and gory etc but it is creepy enough to lodge itself into your sub-conscience and jump out and shout BOO!! when you least expect it.



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