The Haunting of Lake Manor is the first publication of Woodbridge Press which is headed by Nathan Hystad. Per his site, he originally envisioned this book to be a collection of shorts written by him. He instead decided to invite a group of authors to submit their stories.  

 

It’s clear (in a good way) that he gave very little direction as to how these stories should be framed. In fact, I can see him saying something like, “So, there was a plague by this hotel a hundred and fifty years ago. All the victims were pretty much dumped into the lake next to it. Now, scare the hell out of me.”

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And that’s the one common theme they share. Beyond that, the authors of this compilation created a book that constantly serves up chills, gore, and twists. I was hooked right from the first story that actually kicked off the book on a whimsical, touching note. But be warned, it does not stay this way. I was completely unprepared for some of the stories that came from the darkest corners of their creator’s minds. It is a bit difficult to review individual pieces. Since they are mostly on the short side, I would not want to risk any spoilers. The collection consists of thirteen guests, each staying in one of the thirteen rooms of Lake Manor Hotel. All were entertaining, but the two that stood out for me were, Room 5 and Room 8.

 

I also think it worth mentioning that I wasn’t the only one entertained by this collection. Soon after its launch, it held the number one spot in the UK for Horror Anthologies and Short Stories categories, in addition to number one in Canada for Horror Anthologies. I’d say that’s a solid start for a new publisher. Both the Kindle and Paperback editions are available on Amazon. Certainly worth the read, especially with the Kindle edition priced at under $2.00.