Encampment by the Gorge by Zachary Ashford
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Well, I just read another great addition to the Short Sharp Shocks! series. This time, there were two stories. Although they're different, they both share the same subgenre.
The Encampment By The Gorge is about a group of labourers who have a job to do, but find it impossible when the local weirdos don't want them there and are trying to stop their progress with violence...
This was such an intriguing story. One that on the surface appears so normal--humans destroying the forest with their endless development pissing people off--and soon becomes a gory revenge adventure of cosmic proportions.
The imagery in this story was so vivid in its gore-filled descriptions, I could see all the disgusting stuff playing out very clearly inside my brain. 😳
Normally, I shy away from violence against animals, but strangely wasn't bothered by what happend here. Everything that happens is just so creatively monstrous.
Blood Money features a journalist trying to get a feature about the mysterious Bone Mountain. After a local kid goes missing, he decides to join the search party. Instead, he finds himself caught in the middle of a shocking, mystical situation...
This one was intriguing, interesting and full of ancient wonder. It was also a very clever observation about the many problems Indigenous Australians face in our country because our government doesn't care enough to help or respect them with the funding they deserve.
The mystic angle is also cool, and I liked the crocodile angle too. Not to mention the twist in the story that totally caught me by surprise. Nice!
I really enjoyed both of these stories, but my favourite was the second one. The atmosphere, sense of location and characters were so Australian, and really resonated with me. Like Jones says, we don't see enough Australian folklore and Indigenous mythology in stories, so it was a nice change of scenery to read a story steeped in it.
This is another great addition to this horror series. I really enjoyed these two brutal tales!
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