One of my favourite things every year is the release of the newest volume of The Best Horror of the Year which is put together by Ellen Datlow. It’s a short story collection encompassing a variety of authors and sub-genres of horror. I’ve been pretty good at keeping up with them but when I was looking at my Goodreads recently, I realized I’d actually skipped volume eleven and thirteen, as well as not reading fifteen and this year’s sixteenth volume. So, clearly, I am not that good at keeping up with them, and am just a liar.

So I’ve set out to get caught up! Check out the series HERE.

As always, let’s jump to the ‘Notable Novels’ section, and this year is 2020. Turns out I didn’t read a lot of new releases in 2020, which makes sense because I was locked in my home and unable to get to the bookstore for most of the year. The Deep by Alma Katsu is mentioned which I own but haven’t read yet. Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia was released, which I have read and am still recovering years later from the mushroom reveal scene. If you know, you know.

Survivor Song by Paul Tremblay and Malorie by Josh Malerman were both released. Both 5 star reads for me, and I have such a vivid memory of getting these two books delivered together and laying in bed for three days straight reading them back to back. You can check out my review of Malorie here. Total brag, but Malerman read that review and said he loved it so much he was going to print it out and frame it. I’ll be bragging about that until the day I die.

Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica came out. I read that two years ago while moving my entire home and two dogs from BC to Alberta. Very memorable reading experience. The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones was released, and so was The Loop by Jeremy Robert Johnson. Two books I very much want to read soon.

This was a very strong collection! There were 24 stories and 1 poem. I rated 12 of them 5/5 stars, my lowest rating was one story that was 2/5, and 7 of them were 4/5.

“In the theatre of his mind, it is constantly interrupted by windows seen at the wrong angle, water stains, and slivers of light, and scored entirely by insect screams.” - A.C. Wise

My two absolute favorite stories were “Exhalation #10” by A.C. Wise which actually opens the collection. It was absolutely incredible. A detective sends a mysterious tape of someone dying to his friend to help him try and find where this body is and who the killer is. They uncover more tapes, all the while our main character is reckoning with some childhood memories and a special skill.

My second absolute favorite was “Mine Seven” by Elena Gomel which was a very scary wintery read. A couple are on vacation in Svalbard in mid-January where the sun never rises above the horizon. One night all the lights go out…and that’s all you need to know.

“She was bumping into sharp invisible angles. There was a growling and a wallowing in the dark, sounds like a leaky faucet, like a legion of cats, like sobbing, like dying; her brain desperately sorting through a medley of images to put a name to what she was hearing.” - Elena Gomel

A couple of other stand-outs for me were “The Eight-Thousanders” by Jason Sanford, because I’m a slut for any story set on Everest. (I’m related to Sir Edmund Hillary so I like to think it runs in our blood, even though you couldn’t pay me to climb a mountain…I’ll just read about it, thanks). “Come Closer” by Gemma Files is about a house that may be moving on its own. “The Devil Will Be at Your Door” by David Surface which is also about a creepy house. And “In the English Rain” which is….also about a creepy house…but with a Beatles connection.

“The lightning flashed, and I saw them. Silent, motionless figures, standing on the stairs above me. When the lightning flashed again, they were gone. But I could feel them waiting in the dark. Then the screaming began. Not just one throat, but many, until it seemed like the whole house itself was screaming.” - David Surface

Now I’m just realizing how many creepy house stories are in this collection. Thank goodness they’re all fantastic. There were also three stories that had a pandemic/apocalyptic connection which is interesting. I’d be fascinated to know if 2020 affected Ellen Datlow’s subconscious when picking all these stories or if they were picked pre-pandemic.

Overall, this is one of the stronger collections I’ve read, it’s also one of the shorter ones. I’ve already read Volume Fourteen, so up next is Volume Fifteen which represents 2023.