Lost Highways: Dark Fictions from the Road [Anthology Review]

Releasing today:
Lost Highways: Dark Fictions from the Road
Genre - Horror/Anthology
Year Published - 2018
Published by +Crystal Lake Publishing
Length - 267 (digital) pages
Edited by D. Alexander Ward

Plot Summary:
It’s dangerous out there. . .on the road.

The highways, byways, and backroads of America are teeming day and night with regular folks. Moms and dads making long commutes. Teenagers headed to the beach. Bands on their way to the next gig. Truckers pulling long hauls. Families driving cross country to visit their kin.

But there are others, too. The desperate and the lost. The cruel and the criminal.

Theirs is a world of roadside honky-tonks, truck stops, motels, and the empty miles between destinations. The unseen spaces.

And there are even stranger things. Places that aren’t on any map. Wayfaring terrors and haunted legends about which seasoned and road-weary travelers only whisper.

But those are just stories. Aren’t they?

Find out for yourself as you get behind the wheel with some of today’s finest authors of the dark and horrific as they bring you these harrowing tales from the road.

Tales that could only be spawned by the endless miles of America’s lost highways.

So go ahead and hop in. Let’s take a ride.

Line-up:
Introduction by Brian Keene
Doungjai Gam & Ed Kurtz — “Crossroads of Opportunity”
Matt Hayward — “Where the Wild Winds Blow”
Joe R. Lansdale — “Not from Detroit”
Kristi DeMeester — “A Life That is Not Mine”
Robert Ford — “Mr. Hugsy”
Lisa Kröger — “Swamp Dog”
Orrin Grey — “No Exit”
Michael Bailey — “The Long White Line”
Kelli Owen — “Jim’s Meats”
Bracken MacLeod — “Back Seat”
Jess Landry — “The Heart Stops at the End of Laurel Lane”
Jonathan Janz — “Titan, Tyger”
Nick Kolakowski — “Your Pound of Flesh”
Richard Thomas — “Requital”
Damien Angelica Walters — “That Pilgrims’ Hands Do Touch”
Cullen Bunn — “Outrunning the End”
Christopher Buehlman — “Motel Nine”
Rachel Autumn Deering — “Dew Upon the Wing”
Josh Malerman — “Room 4 at the Haymaker”
Rio Youers — “The Widow”

Review:
Are you planning one last road trip before Summer ends?  Then be sure to grab a copy of this book before you head out, as it contains 20(!) stories that are sure to entertain you while on the road.

It is difficult to pick a favorite from this collection, though I will say that Bracken MacLeod's Backseat has stuck with me the hardest. (In the heat of summer, you will feel the bitter cold of this winter tale!)

Other favorites include Joe R. Lansdale's Not from Detroit, Robert Ford's Mr. Hugsy, Lisa Kröger's Swamp Dog, Jonathan Janz' Titan, Tyger, Josh Malerman's Room 4 at the Haymaker, and the closing story, Rio Youers' The Widow. (Story placement matters in an anthology, and this last one is a doozy of a story!)

Some other honorable mentions:
Michael Bailey's The Long White Line (a very "Twilight Zone" type of story), Kelli Owen's Jim's Meats (I would have liked more of this story), Nick Kolakowski's Your Pound of Flesh (this one has a good twist), and Rachel Autumn Deering's Dew Upon the Wing.

There are plenty more good stories within this collection, the above were just the standout stories, for me. So, before you hit the road, grab this book and enjoy your travels. Like D. Alexander Ward stated in his dedication to this anthology: the roads are legion and there are such strange sights to see!

Rating: 4/5 Skulls