Small Town Terrors

By: Roger Alderman Jr.

Narrated by: Katrina Medina

Length: 2 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's summary

A carefully crafted collection of short stories derived from the urban legends of small-town America. Each fictional supernatural thriller inside was made to get your heart racing and question whether they were in fact stories or something far more sinister.

©2019 Roger Alderman (P)2019 Roger Alderman

Solid Performance of a Decently Creepy Collection

Small Town Terrors was a decently creepy collection with varied stories and different kinds of horror from the quiet to the loud. Each story was short and fairly minimalist but at the same time able to provide enough of a structure to make it hit hard and feel something. I don't really have a favorite as they were all fairly even without any holding the collection back.

The narration was great and definitely enhanced the experience. With short stories such as these that definitely helps as the voice adds more personality, drama, and terror to the story than can be done solely through writing.

I received the review code for this audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this honest review.

I wasn't impressed

I can't say I was impressed with this book at all. It is a compilation of short stories that I didn't find even spooky let alone a terror. I was really looking forward to something spooky at least but it took me quite a few listens to even get through the 2 hours and 5 min.
I was given this book for an unbiased review

Good collection of eerie stories

At my request, I received this book in exchange for an honest review.

I love a good spooky story and I'm always searching for new ones I've never heard before. Small Town Terrors didn't disappoint. I really liked that each chapter was a different stand-alone short story. A few of the stories weren't as much scary as they were strange but others totally creeped me out. It probably didn't help that I listened to the sleepwalking story right before bed. I think that one was my favorite. I also really enjoyed the one about the cats. Good book!

Dark & Twisted & Horrific

This is definitely a dark, twisted and horrific collection of horror stories. If you remember Tales from the Crypt and enjoyed it then you will thoroughly enjoy this collection. I wouldn't say that these stories kept me up after listening to them but they do linger and makes you wonder why you enjoy such stories, and most certainly not a town I would want to be anywhere near. The stories are well written and will keep you listening wondering what the next horror will be. The narration was well done with my only complaint being that at times the narrator's voice goes a bit distant. It doesn't really take away from the story but doesn't help it either. Katrina Medina is very talented with giving the many characters their own voices and emotions. She really helps the stories to come "alive" for the listener. A collection worthy of any horror fan.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

A Small Town I Might Visit

I received an Audible code for an honest review. What follows is my opinion and mine alone. There was no compensation for this review.

Small Town Terrors is a collection of horror stories all centered around a small town in Florida and its residents. If you think the news stories about Floridians are scary, wait until you read or listen to this book.

There were some short stories that didn't resonate with me and I felt were used often, but Alderman started and ended the book on a strong note. He left the mythos open for something more and I wouldn't mind seeing a more expanded universe of the small town he crafted in this collection of short stories. 

There were two in particular that really stood out for me. One about a family who are having money and food troubles and the other is about a girl during Halloween night. With the first story, I'm not sure how it fits with the small town. It felt like it belonged in a more dystopian like horror book, but I do think it was unique. I would love to see that expanded and made into something more full length or even see more of that strange setting.

The same goes for the Halloween story. It would make for a great book. It had a mythology to it that I wanted to know more of and fits perfectly with the small town Alderman crafted.

This was a good quick horror collection with a bit of something for all types of horror fans. I wouldn't mind seeing more of the small town or even a full-length book based off of one of Alderman's stories (there seemed to be a hint of something like that in the last two stories).

Final Rating: 3/5

Great Collection!

A quirky collection of psychological horror. A lot of them had some pretty unexpected endings though almost all of them were gruesome in way. If you’re a fan of slasher horror, you’ll enjoy this short collection.

These stories were narrated beautifully by Katrina Medina who gave just the right amount of suspense at the perfect moments.

This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review.

A collection of short stories

Small Town Terrors..
Some great some not so great, but that is what you get with collections . On balance far more good and just a few off course.
A good read for lovers of shorts.
I was given a free copy of this audio book at my own request, and voluntarily leave this review.

Twisted horror filled tales

Small Town Terrors is a book filled with horrid tales that will give you nightmares. The descriptive language will send tingles up and down your spine. The tales of terror are well written and imaginative. A couple of the stories are repeats that I have read in another of the author's books. I asked for and received this book at my request. I am voluntarily leaving an honest review of my own volition.

3.5* - strange tales

I enjoyed this audiobook because the ideas for the stories were creepy and bizarre. I think my two favourites were 'Bus Ride' and 'Dinner Time'. All of the stories were well-written - I don't recall pausing at any time to wish that the author had used an editor. Seems like a minor thing, but a poorly edited book is a crime (given the effort required to produce an audiobook). The only reason why I didn't give a higher rating for the story is that they seemed to have 'meh' endings; I hoped to hear a good hook or twist at the end of (at least some) of the stories, but I was able to predict the endings fairly accurately. They weren't bad endings, it's just that they were 'ah, yes, okay' endings instead of 'jeebers, did NOT see that one coming' endings. One of the unifying themes of the book was the small-town setting. I like it when authors provide continuity with their short stories - sometimes, when the assortment of short stories is random, I feel a sense of disconnection after each story. Even with this tenuous link (the small-town theme), I felt less of that disconnection. It's somewhat important to me, since I typically listen to several stories in one sitting.

I really enjoyed the narrators speaking voice (although I increased playback speed to 1.25x to suit my preferences). Like many audiobook narrators, the other-gender dialogue voices (in this case, male character voices) didn't resonate with me at all. She's a good story-teller, though, so I can see why other reviewers gave her a full five stars.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Delightful range of gore!

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

This book is not for the faint of heart! Full of horror and gore. Great variety of short stories keep you interested. Like a grown up version of scary stories to tale in the dark. Very fun listen. A couple of the stories left me absolutely giddy.

Narrator was very pleasant to listen to. Very good flow.

Would recomend to lovers of such things as tales from the dark side, and twilight zone. very good!