Halloween stories are best read in October, which is why I waited 11 months to dig in to WICKED KARNIVAL HALLOWEEN HORROR, an all-original anthology from the folks behind the indie WICKED KARNIVAL magazine. Literally dozens of stories litter this collection, all having to do with Oct. 31 in some way, shape, form or fashion.

Perhaps the biggest name among the contributors, Graham Masterson, kicks it off with “The Press,” which is exactly what that’s about. James A. Moore offers “Cody’s Pumpkin,” an evil fable with a devilish twist. Speaking of twists, William Gagliani’s “Carried on the Wind” carries one that’s an utter cheat; the story shouldn’t exist just for the sake of a punchline, especially one that’s such a stretch. Among the little-known or unknown names, David Bell’s “The Man Behind the Mask” is among my favorites, a first-person lament from the forgotten slasher star of a HALLOWEEN-type horror flick.

Though most of the tales aim for out-and-out terror (with half missing), a handful strive for a different touch. Tim Clifton reaches for poignancy in “Halloween Picnic” and earns it, while Jenny Schwartz’s “Hallow’s Inn” tells of a cantankerous ghost who hangs around a hotel because he was killed there mid-coupling before he could orgasm (unfinished business and all that). It can’t sustain its flights of fancy, but at least it stands out, which is more than can be said for much of this KARNIVAL’s contents.

It’s in need of heavy editing (despite the credit for such going to Tom and Billie Moran), as well as a design overhaul. The letters are so huge, it looks like a large-print title, and the illustrations accompanying each story are amateurish, as if scanned off the front of some preteen misfit’s Trapper Keeper. But the passion these people have for horror is infectious (as evidenced by Rick Hautala’s introduction, titled “I Live for This Shit!”), making the KARNIVAL worth a visit, even if it one of those chintzy, one-weekend-only affairs. –Rod Lott

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OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THESE AUTHORS:
• THE PACK: SERENITY FALLS, BOOK II by James A. Moore
• WOLF’S TRAP by W.D. Gagliani
• WRIT IN BLOOD: SERENITY FALLS, BOOK I by James A. Moore