Thursday, March 24, 2022

Irish Gothic: Tales of Celtic Horror by Ronald Kelly

The Spawn of Arget Bethir ★★★★★ 
A young monk has violent dreams that lead him to discover the legends that tore apart his family.  Kelly combines The Book of Kells and werewolves to create a legend that deserves its own series!

Postcard from Kilkenny ★★★★½ 
A man receives a postcard from his long lost uncle, an uncle who should be dead, an uncle who was rumored to be a vampire.  Kelly even managed to slip in a joke about his vampire novel Blood Kin, a book Graeme recommended!

Diabhal’s Timepiece ★★★★☆ 

“…once in the grasp of Hell, you would Always remain there and you would Never be able to escape.” 


Battling Benedictings face the forces of Hell without Gods blessing, news at 11.  This felt a cheerful addition to the other book I’m currently reading, The Name of the Rose.

The Wee Village ★★★★ 
Children are monsters!

Flanagan’s Bride ★★★☆☆ 

Ah to love a monster… well, I’m not sure Joe Flanagan did.  I think he saw a lovely body and counted himself lucky.  I do believe he was loved.


A Fine Wake for Nana Ferree ★★★☆☆ 

I feel like he missed a trick here.  Just a little more plot, a few more pages, and it could have been an awesome Irish version of The Skeleton Key.  


O’Sheehan!  DNF

I lost interest.


I finished 6/7 stories that averaged 3.916 stars that I happily rounded up to four.

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