Review - Staring Into the Abyss by Richard Thomas

Title: Staring Into the Abyss

Author: Richard Thomas

Publisher: Kraken Press

Release Date: March 1, 2013

Reviewed by: Nick Tab

First off, let me say that I’m usually not a fan of short story collections.  I would rather sink my teeth into a 300-500 page book where I can get into a story and live it for a few weeks, than the immediacy and instant gratification of reading a short story.  So when I found out that Staring Into the Abyss by Richard Thomas was a short story collection, I had my misgivings to say the least.  I am pleased to say that Staring Into the Abyss may have changed my attitude toward the short story format, it’s that good.  There are 20 stories that span a number of different styles and genres.  Yes there are straight-up horror stories, but smattered among the 20 gems are also stories that have obvious science-fiction and fantasy themes.  Take for instance the story Stillness which pays an obvious homage to Vincent Price’s The Last Man on Earth.  Then there is Maker of Flight about a mysterious mechanical bird maker locked in a room where his only task is to make a certain number of toy birds every day.  For what purpose and for who, you’ll have to read it to find out.  But of course, this is a horror collection by and large.  And there are plenty of intense and downright horrific stories here to satisfy any horror reader’s cravings.  Committed tells the story of a video-gamer with serious anger-management issues.  Steel-Toed Boots is an especially disturbing entry describing what happens when a wife decides to find out what is really going on when her husband goes out at night for a couple of beers. Splintered shares some insights into a situation that many people find themselves in: a relationship that just isn’t working anymore for one party.  His girlfriend has an interesting way of addressing the problem and you’ll be both disturbed and delighted by how it turns out.  These are just some of the horror treasures that you’ll find in this fine collection.  The thing that I most enjoyed about these stories was the way Thomas told them through the characters’ own eyes as if you were seeing things in real time as they happened.  The style of his writing really captured my attention.  There was an almost poetic quality to the writing as well.  Thomas used a lot of staccato sentences and sometimes fragmented thoughts as opposed to spelling out each and every detail of the story.  I thought that this style worked very well and added to my enjoyment of the stories as a whole.  My final thought on Staring Into the Abyss is that it is truly aptly-titled in the respect that these stories come across as describing the human-condition at its worst and best.  These are stories where the characters are forced to look at their lives (some of which have not been lived on the straight and narrow) and come to a final resolution that is both real and intense.  If you are looking for a collection of stories that won’t take very long to read but will leave you forever changed, then Richard Thomas has a treat for you.  It is called Staring Into the Abyss and you should pick it up and read it.  Hopefully you will enjoy it as much as I did.

(4 out of 5 stars)