The Asylum (Volume 1): The Psycho Ward

Edited by Victor Heck
DarkTales Publications, $15.00, trade pb

Fans of extreme horror will want to take note of The Asylum, an anthology series of nightmare journeys through insanity in all its forms. This is fare not for everyone, I admit; Volume 1 is an uneven but enjoyably over-the-top collection teeming with tight, frightening stories that question our sanity while frequently twisting our reality into a pretzel.

 The highlights are superb stories by the reliable and often unforgettable Douglas Clegg ("The Machinery of the Night"), along with Sephera Giron ("Release"), Scott Nicholson ("Do You Know Me Yet?"), Gerard Daniel Houarner ("Child Jar"), J.F. Gonzalez ("Love Hurts"), Thomas Deja ("Too Needy") and eight more. Though the occasional story seems underdeveloped (John Platt's "Flames in the Night" comes to mind as more of an outline), and the "Wall Poems" scattered throughout don't quite jell into the desired symbolism, there's enough here to give almost anyone nightmares for a month (which is not necessarily a bad thing, if you like fiction with impact). Write: DarkTales Publications, PO Box 675, Grandview, MO 64030 for information