Vincent Macraven Books

4 out of 5 stars, "Canny and thought provoking" San Francisco review of books "A Standout, frequently profound story collection" Kirkus Reviews of Vincent Macraven's collection of short stories, "A Diverse Gathering" Unsettling was unsettling, in the best way possible. There were a few times throughout the book that I actually had to put it down for fear of nightmares. Macraven takes the innards of our souls and hangs them out there for us to see, bloody and dripping. The images are disturbing and real and the storytelling is horror fiction at its finest. In Where the Dead Dwell, we visit the most haunted of houses, alive in its own evil. In Watching Black Mountain, the reader is introduced to a charismatic leader, a man with true belief in his own God-like abilities. His pride will leave you breathless. Finally, in The Devil Incarnate, a detective is faced with the murder victims he has failed at the hands of a much larger, much scarier force. These stories will entrance you and keep you up at night, willing you to face the demons in our world. Sarah Ghoshal

"Hearing those stories through your eyes went straight to my core" Rebecca Rosenblat, B.Sc. Hons(Psych) Cert LC, ADL,EFT. Psychotherapist, Relationship & Sexuality Therapist, Tv Host, Media Personality, Author

"Testament of the dead" centers on eight persons who are now among the nonliving. Telling their tales of having once lived the now dead watch Jeff. Having seen the atrocity he has committed the dead are assigned to haunt the living. See Jeff grow from a disturbed child into a disturbed man, learn of his crime against his fellow man and watch the dead pick apart the remains of Jeff's sanity. Read a tale giving voice to the dead who would otherwise remain silent, listen to their stories, see their haunting and watch the living bleed and be driven to madness. for we are all being watched.

A Diverse Gathering is a series of short stories that touch on many themes. Explore horror as a man losses his mind in "Prior to my madness" Read about the decision to end another's life, in "Murder". Come into a small town that has a mysteries scream in "12:01." Find out what a schizophrenic experiences in "A case of madness." See a long night in the life of a man of the cloth in "Monk." See an elderly woman confront her solitude in "Longing." Find out what happens to a guitarist when he sells his soul, then breaks the deal at the last minute in "20 Years." There are thirty one tales in all.

In the first story, a novella titled Thoughts of a Killer, we find Detective Merrick searching for a serial killer with a liking for prostitutes. As the bodies pile up and the ghosts of the dead follow Merrick, he is lost in a river of dead ends. In the second story, a novelette, titled Missing Jezebel, the reader follows a legend dating back to the 1800s. A tale about two sisters, one a black witch hell-bent on revenge, and the other dealing with evil and the unimaginable loss of a daughter.