Book picks similar to
When the Devil Writes by Matt Shaw


horror
anthologies-and-short-stories
fiction
matt-shaw

The Found World


Hugo Navikov - 2018
    To entice him to travel underneath one of the most dangerous volcanoes on Earth to find the scientist, this shadowy organization will pay him the only thing he cares about: information that will allow him to avenge his family's murder. But before he can get paid, he and his team must enter an underground hellscape of killer plants, giant insects, terrifying dinosaurs, and an army of other predators never previously seen by man. At the end of this journey awaits a revelation that could alter the fate of mankind ... if they can make it back from this horrifying found world.

Silence of the Whippoorwill


Ditter Kellen - 2020
    Until a hiking trip to the mountains of Arkansas with some friends, takes a dangerous turn.Breezy soon discovers, they’re not alone. A group of crazed psychopaths are hunting them, picking them off one by one. With no hope of escape, Breezy is forced into a cat-and-mouse game of death and survival.But her attackers made one mistake. They left her alive…*****WARNING***** This book contains violent scenes that may be considered offensive to some readers. Purchase with caution.

The Nightmare Collective


PlayWithDeath.comJenny Ashford - 2015
    With 12 terrifically spine chilling short stories, this anthology contains contributions from some of the best young horror writing talent out there, and was curated by the editors of the PlayWithDeath.com, the premier destination for online horror entertainment. If you're searching for stories that will frighten you to your very core, look no further. List of Short Story Authors Tom Wortman M. B. Vujačić Manen Lyset Jenny Ashford Kyle Yadlosky G. T. Montgomery Ari Drew Patrick Winters Trevor James Zaple John Teel Dexter Findley Kyle Rader

Plague


Max Hawthorne - 2016
     “Holy --- Steve, the Taser’s not stopping him!” “It has to! Nobody can take that. Hit him again!” “Look out! Here he comes!” Ron charged again, powering his way past the jolts of pain. He smashed into the nearest intruder with bone-jarring force, grappling with him, tearing at him. The struggle intensified as the two rolled around on the alley’s blood-soaked cobblestones. The second creature joined in the battle, striking at his head with a hard stick in an effort to aid his comrade. Ron laughed. The intruders were pathetically weak. He could sense it. He snatched the light from the closer one and backhanded him across the face with it, sending him sprawling. Then he turned toward the other one. He was stumbling backward, clawing at his hip, and obviously terrified. Amused, Ron turned away and focused on the one on the ground. He took a deep whiff, smelling the hot blood that ran in rivulets from the downed newcomer’s brow, and listened to the jackhammer beating of his heart. More food. THE DEADLIEST KILLERS ARE THE ONES YOU CAN'T SEE. Three weeks have passed since the monstrous Kronosaurus imperator’s attack on Harcourt Marina stunned the world. The death toll was horrific, but Paradise Cove’s traumatized survivors soon discover they have more to worry about than just burying their dead and rebuilding their shattered lives. Accompanying the pliosaur were hordes of primeval pathogens. With their host destroyed, the Cretaceous-era bacteria are forced to find new homes for themselves. They do: tiny, bipedal life forms whose warm, iron-rich blood provides perfect growing conditions. They begin to multiply and spread, their mutagenic qualities quickly warping their unwitting host’s delicate bodies and minds. Soon, the infected are transformed into mindless beasts, consumed with a burning hunger for flesh. And like all ravening beasts, they must feed . . .

In Search of Vindication


Ethan Westfield - 2020
    Deputy Marshal in Kansas for a great deal of his life. As soon as his brother Tommy stops answering his letters, he gets extremely alarmed and decides to take matters into his own hands. When he puts a plan in place to travel to Texas, little does he know that a shattering surprise awaits him there; his brother has been found dead, next to the body of one of the most powerful ranchers in town. Will Lee manage to unravel the truth behind these enigmatic and shocking deaths?While Lee is still aghast, the local sheriff declares Tommy's death a suicide, and also accuses him of attempting robbery and murder. On the spur of the moment, the case is considered closed, which makes Lee highly suspicious. Feeling that they drag Tommy's name through the mud, he decides to defy the law and seek vindication. Will he succeed in this lonesome yet risky mission? How will he solve this demanding riddle and clear his brother's name?Lee's hazardous quest begins, having Susan Marsh and Ki'Somma, a young Cherokee medicine man, on his side. Doubts, lies, deceits, serious injuries as well as many other roadblocks will derange their endless undertaking. Will they manage to join forces triumphantly and complete this challenging mission? Or will Tommy always be remembered as a ruthless criminal?

The Skin Show


Kristopher Rufty - 2014
    There is no cover charge, the drinks are free, and rules do not exist within the walls of The Skin Show. However, once you’ve entered, you’ll never leave, for what exists underneath each club is something of fairytales. Danny Raab was drawn into The Skin Show's inescapable clutch, and he never returned. Now, Andy Raab is in the midst of a desperate search for his brother. Accompanied by Karen, Danny’s probation officer, they will infiltrate The Skin Show’s living nightmares of debauchery, only to learn they have been on the guest list all along.

Unbortion


Rowland Bercy Jr. - 2018
    Following an undeniable call to pursue the one who abandoned it and seek revenge the quest for retribution had begun, and nothing or no one would stand in the way.

The Face of Midnight


Dan Padavona - 2016
     She might even be sleeping in your bed right now. But danger is closing in on Becca. New York's most-feared serial killer, The Midnight Killer, is butchering victims on his way across the state. After Becca flees from a deranged stalker, she takes shelter inside an abandoned farmhouse. Something evil lurks within the house, and a freak October storm has trapped Becca inside. And it's Halloween Night.

React


Jack Harding - 2021
    A crowded fairground. A simple sequence of numbers that appear over and over again... and a horrible feeling that something is very, very wrong.Nina Vogel is haunted by a recurring nightmarish vision - but what does it mean?In this powerful short story by Jack Harding, step into this nerve-racking, fast-paced fever dream that blurs the lines between the real and the unreal.

Gifted


Ainsley St. Claire - 2019
    My non-profit has been wildly successful with the kids, but now I'm forty mentors short for the Christmas season. It didn't look like we would be able to find enough help, until Jim Adelson got involved. He may have solved my mentor problem, but he's created another: I can't concentrate with this panty melting God around. Jim: The community has been good to me. I'd built my successful security business with hard work and determination, and when I got approached to help Kate Monroe's non-profit, it seemed a fitting way to give back. I'd offer to spend time with some kids, but it’s Kate that I find myself wanting to spend time with. With beauty obvious to everyone, and a compassionate heart she wears on her sleeve, she has me reevaluating my priorities. When the children's Christmas gifts go missing, Jim and Kate are forced together in the hunt. Can true love fight through the drama to find a happy ending? Gifted is the first book in the holiday series Clear Security Holidays. This is a standalone holiday romance suspense novel, but characters from the Venture Capital series and from Tech Billionaires can be known to make appearances.

The Haunting of Galsbury Inn: Haunted House


Caroline Clark - 2019
    He was a man who believed what he could see, but even he knew that something was very wrong. FREE with Kindle Unlimited. The Galsbury Inn is a magnificent structure, nestled in the idyllic English countryside. The place is rundown and spooky from being abandoned over the years. Then there were the rumors about deaths and disappearances. Some say the first owner tortured and killed people, including his own wife, but that happened a hundred years ago, or more, and besides, there’s no such things as ghosts. Only Charles may have to change his mind. Based on the Inn’s history, Harriet has a hunch that something more sinister—and paranormal—is at play. She’s a paranormal investigator, an amateur sure, and eagerly jumps on the chance to investigate the Galsbury. But soon, she quickly realizes what she’s playing with is far out of her league, and she’s a bit in over her head. But she’s persistent and won’t let a poltergeist intimidate her into heading back home with her tail between her legs. With the help of an unwitting policeman, Harriet takes on the Galsbury and its secrets. Is she strong enough to face the Inn’s horrible past and find the truth? Or will the spirit that resides within scare her away, or kill her in the process? Also by Caroline Clark: Don’t Close Your Eyes The Spirit Guide Series: The Haunting of Seafield House The Haunting on the Hillside The Haunting of Oldfield Drive The Ghosts of RedRise House 4 book box set Single Books: The Haunting of Brynlee House Daddy Won’t Kill You The Spirit Behind You The Haunting of Shadow Hill House

GORGE


Katherine Carlson - 2010
    But her fantasies about heroic outdoor survival flop as hard as her marriage. Dejected beyond measure, she takes a bus to Montana to visit an old high school suitor–someone she once suspected too sinister to pursue. Turns out her initial suspicions about him were spot-on. She soon finds herself in the exact predicament she'd so long imagined. Only now she must outwit a vast wilderness ... and sheer evil.Marty Clawson's got a big problem: 264 pounds’ worth. Doc warns of dire consequences if something doesn't change, but Marty's already tried every diet on the market plus an endless list of her own concoctions. Still, she devises a NEW PLAN–and unlike the others–this one is terrifying: a rendezvous with the state park, a place she considers the very heart of darkness (and snack-free) where she won't emerge again until she is thin. Hubby Raymond believes the method too dangerous–abandoning his super-sized wife like a broken dresser–and refuses to help with her scheme; his crap attitude, along with everything else, changes when she catches him in bed with an aging porn star. Surviving the backwoods alone is challenging for a seasoned outdoorsman but unthinkable for a woman nearing red-alert obesity; yet, she believes it's her last chance to avoid eating herself to death. Despite Ray's newfound assistance, Marty fails at her plan. Desperate and depressed, she contacts Logan Myers, a peculiar boy from her past. Her hopelessness prompts her to accept his offer of bus fare north into the unforgiving Montana bush where he hunts and traps wild animals.Logan soon reveals himself to be far worse than she remembered. So bad that he tosses her to the elements as punishment for rejecting him. In a wicked and ironic twist, her once farfetched idea morphs into an epic web of repetitious terrain and pure malevolence. Now she needs to make it back to the Greyhound station before nightfall, without getting mauled by a random grizzly or discovered by a roaming psychopath determined to hunt her down.THE CHASE IS ON.

The Labyrinth: A Joey Mancuso, Father O'Brian Crime Mystery Book 8


Owen Parr - 2021
    Just to be sure (or else to portray himself as a properly mourning husband), he hires P.I.s Joey Mancuso and Father Dom to solve the murder. Only they can’t help noticing he’s pushing them to come to the gang conclusion as well. Hey, is something fishy here?Joey Mancuso, his priest half-brother--Father Dom--and their crack team have got their work cut out for them. A year ago, a Brooklyn politician’s wife was brutally murdered, seemingly in a terrible burglary gone wrong. But no one really knows: the case remains unsolved. The mourning politician hires Mancuso to solve the cold case--right before announcing his plan to run for mayor of New York City. Oh, and in that same speech, the politician blames his wife’s death on gang violence. And the politician tries to convince Mancuso to come to the same conclusion.Well….none of the gangs in Brooklyn seem to have it out for the politician’s family. Plus, the politician may have a straying eye--there are rumors of the affair. It's a labyrinthine puzzle, the kind Joey (forever inspired by his hero, Holmes) delights in. Mancuso and Co. take to their office--which doubles as a bustling, Lower Manhattan cigar bar--and delve into Joey’s strangest mystery yet.Joey Mancuso’s latest adventure is a gritty tour of a side of Brooklyn that’s rarely seen anymore; any fan of The Wire will find a lot to love in the gripping gang politics. Plus, author Parr weaves in the ritzy drama of upper class New Yorkers, all of whom have sordid secrets...Anyone who loves Matt Scudder or Father Brown will adore Joey and Father Dom. Fans of both New York PI novels and police procedurals like Nelson DeMille’s John Corey, and those by Raymond Chandler, Joseph Wambaugh, Lawrence Block, and Rex Stout will love this motley detective team. As will devotees of clerical mysteries and the greatest detective of all time, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes.

The Girl from Dark Dakota


Bryan Devore - 2021
    Now four lives will be forever changed. High school senior Rachel Black hears Annabel's ghost crying out in her dreams. Madam Bovell, a medium who sells fraudulent readings since losing her gift years ago, finds her abilities mysteriously returning—and guiding her to Rachel. Jason Hardy, an auditor up from Chicago, sees inexplicable things while working late in Williston's old hospital wing. And Dr. Donovan Graves, bereaved father and renowned debunker of paranormal research, feels his son's spirit urgently trying to reach him. Only five days before the next Halloween, time is running out for all four to uncover the secrets of a small town, and the lurking evil that threatens everyone in it.

The House


P.M. Prior - 2016
    Their home. Her sanctuary. When Prue Bridgewater first glimpses the abandoned old house, it's love at first sight. Her husband Ray is not so sure. The property has been neglected for decades, and Ray can’t help wondering why. But with Prue on the brink of a nervous breakdown, he’ll do whatever it takes to keep her sane, even if it means he has to live there. Once ensconced in their new home, Prue begins fixing up the place while Ray is away at work. But after a series of disturbing discoveries, she fears she's losing her mind. She hears things and sees people who couldn’t possibly be there, and she can’t shake the feeling she’s being watched. As Prue’s hold on reality begins to disintegrate, along with her marriage, she struggles to tell truth from delusion. But things go from bad to worse, and soon not just her sanity, but her survival hinges upon the long-buried secrets of THE HOUSE. This is a novella of approximately 27,287 words