I’ve previously written about Anna Taborska a few times here at Horror Delve. Back in 2020, I took a look at 10 of her short horror stories ( https://horrordelve.com/2021/02/23/ten-terrifying-tales-of-anna-taborska/ ). Then in 2022 I reviewed her story collection Bloody Britain ( https://horrordelve.com/2022/02/08/bloody-britain-by-anna-taborska-review/ ). Needless to say, I’m a fan of her work and felt it was high time to examine some more of her stories.
THE STORIES:
1. “Buy A Goat For Christmas” (2012) – This is a Christmas tale with a twist, exchanging the classic winter wonderland setting for the heat of Africa. Here we find a group of foreign aid workers delivering donated goods to a small village in the form of grain, livestock and even a decommissioned military tank for the blacksmith to strip out for parts to convert into farming implements. One of the aid workers, however, had been bitten by a strange-looking wolf causing her to become ravenously hungry for meat. This is an excellent, really unique werewolf tale. Highly recommended!
2. “Tea With the Devil” (2012) – On Halloween night Lucifer flees a trio of violent trick-or-treaters to take sanctuary inside the house of a friend who collects devil paintings. There he is told the story of one painting which depicts a devil riding alongside a group of Polish partisans against the Nazis in WWII.
3. “The Coffin” (2013) – A man likes taking a shortcut through the cemetery next to his house as it shaves fifteen minutes off his commute to work. He regrets this choice when he begins to notice he’s being stalked by an unburied coffin on his way home one evening.
4. “Fish” (2013) – Two criminal underlings shove Harry’s head into his fish tank while attempting to interrogate him about the location of something he knows nothing about. While his head is submerged, his beloved scorpion fish empales his check sending poisonous venom into his face. Realizing they got the wrong person, the two thugs dump Harry and his pet, but the toxins coursing through his blood begins transforming Harry into an aquatic beast bent on revenge.
5. “Two Shakes Of A Dead Lamb’s Tail” (2021) – While traveling to stay with her uptight husband and his parents in a old farm which has been converted into a vacation home in the Scottish Lowlands, a woman spots a flock of sheep grazing around an old, rotting ambulance. The sight sickens her for reasons she can’t put her finger on. She makes a horrifying discovery when she goes out for a hike alone the next day. This is an excellent, horror tale with some great twists along the way. This story was nominated for a 2021 Bram Stoker Award. You can listen here for free: https://talestoterrify.com/episodes/539-stokers-carol-gyzander-anna-taborska/
6. “The Star” (2022) – There’s trouble brewing within the boarders of Richmond Park, the largest of England’s royal parks. People have been disappearing while inside it. Until recently, these disappearances had been kept quiet. The park manager seems to have something to hide and with such a vast stretch of woodland to cover, there are all sorts of places for anyone, oranything, with dark intentions to hide. I really enjoyed this tale which is filled with such interesting characters, granting it great verisimilitude. The mystery of what exactly is causing the troubles is masterfully handled as well!
7. “A Song for Barnaby Jones” (2022) – A shy, lonely man, rejected by his peers for being too strange, takes a job as a graveyard caretaker. The inexplicable scratching and scrambling sounds he hears when he goes to bed at night actually gives him comfort and helps him sleep. One day, he discovers a secret passageway which leads to catacombs underneath his gatehouse. Following it, he discovers eyes in the darkness watching him. This is an emotionally touching, top-notch, gothic weird tale.
LINKS:
Anna’s Website: https://annataborska.wixsite.com/horror
Bloody Britain US Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.com/Bloody-Britain-Anna-Taborska/dp/0957296290
Bloody Britain UK Link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bloody-Britain-Anna-Taborska/dp/0957296290/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1C11GZWSJ5O1C&keywords=Bloody+Britain+Anna+Taborska&qid=1643943959&sprefix=bloody+britain+anna+taborska%2Caps%2C183&sr=8-1
Anna’s U.S. Amazon Page: https://www.amazon.com/Anna-Taborska/e/B00DRIPW96%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share
Anna’s. U.K. Amazon Page: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Anna-Taborska/e/B00DRIPW96
Article by Matt Cowan
Horror Delve 