From a ginormous spider to cancer to human sacrifice, this trip through the nine levels of hell show us that in our human condition, we are capable of creating hell on earth.
The Stories:
“The Cave Robber” – This story has the potential to creep you out even if you aren’t scared of spiders. A trio of boys plus one girl set out to explore a cave that the boys found. They find a ginormous spider waiting inside for any intruders into its domain. Do any of the kids manage to escape the spider’s lair?
“The Monster Within” – There is a monster inside each of us, but most of us manage to keep this unwelcome visitor under control. What happens if that monster is allowed to scheme and carry out his or her psychotic plans?
“The Battle of Gate Pa” – This is the story of how a tribe in New Zealand outsmarted the British who were more concerned with food and enjoying themselves than strategizing on how to win the war they were taking for granted they would win. This is a solemn reminder that we need to focus on the situation at hand rather than assuming we know the outcome before it happens.
“Boxed In” – A kidnapping gone wrong, avarice, betrayal, and a prodigal son show just how deadly greed can become.
“Do Not Go Gently” – If you found out you had cancer and that you were going to die from it, how would you feel? Would you be mad and take it out on everyone you met? How about those taking care of you? You might want to consider being nice. Otherwise, you might just die before the disease kills you.
“The Final Victim” – Some people will believe anything. Some can be persuaded to do just about anything, even murder. The fact that this is based on a true story makes it even creepier.
I believe the cover was taken from this story. Note the cruel, murderous intent on the face of the man holding the hammer who appears to already be in the midst of the fires of hell.
“KILLAL” – I am a huge fan of Scrabble and other word games, but I have never played any of them on my phone. After reading this story, I think that is a good thing.
“The Mirror” – A man of limited intelligence who had been working on a farm and staying at a bunkhouse is killed by a hit-and-run driver. Fragments of a broken mirror from a vehicle are the only clue. This very special mirror is heated, so the vehicle it came from shouldn’t be that hard to find.
“A Losing Hand” – Harsh feelings and a card game lead to murder and deceit.
All of the stories were good, but I love spider stories, and they really give me the creeps. So, my favorite was definitely “The Cave Robber”.
Favorite Sentences:
The acrid odor of sweat and blood filled his nostrils.
The crunching, snapping noise represented the worst imaginable horror the human body can endure.
John’s eyes, peering through the slats of the Venetian blinds, were dark, glowing coals, mirroring his inner turmoil.
If there was a picture on the page, sometimes Lee could guess at the meaning of the word, but the letters themselves, were as useless in conveying meaning to Lee and as mysterious as the marauding birds on his lawn.
New Words Learned:
beller – Beller is a variation of the word bellow, which means to shout in a deep voice.
obfuscation – confusion or bewilderment
preternatural – unnatural or unusual
rout– an overwhelming defeat
spiel – a glib plausible style of talk
sporadic – intermittent
tony – high-toned; stylish
Trogloraptor spiders – No definition for this word, but I have provided a YouTube video that talks a bit about this breed of spider whose existence was discovered in 2012. Yes, they are real. The spiders in this video aren’t nearly as large as the ones in “The Cave Robber” were. I wonder, have they not yet been discovered?
ubiquitous– having or seeming to have the ability to be everywhere at once
The author sent me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. If you would like to purchase your own copy, all you have to do is click on the Amazon link below.
Amazon link: Hellfire & Damnation III
Recommended Article: Hellfire & Damnation II – a Review
About the Author:
Connie Corcoran Wilson graduated from the University of Iowa with a degree in English and Journalism, but she began writing for her hometown (Independence, Iowa) newspaper at the age of 10 and was Editor-in-Chief of her high school newspaper. She continued her education, including a Ferner/Hearst Journalism Scholarship and a Freshman Merit Scholarship at Iowa, and then at Berkeley, WIU, NIU and the University of Chicago.
She holds a Masters (+30) in English, Journalism and Education. Her career path led to teaching 7th and 8th grade language arts (Silvis, Illinois) and teaching writing at 6 IA/IL colleges or universities, including a class teaching film at Black Hawk Junior College. She then established the second Sylvan Learning Center in the state of Iowa and a Prometric Testing site, in conjunction with ETS of Princeton, NJ. She has taught writing and literature classes at all 6 IA/ILQuad City colleges.
Constance (aka Connie) was Midwest Writing Center Writer of the Year, Content Producer of the Year for Yahoo, and Illinois Women’s Press Association Silver Feather Award winner (Chicago chapter.) She was named one of the “10 Most Creative Teachers in America” in a TAB Scholastic Books competition. Her Sylvan Learning Center (#3301) in Bettendorf, Iowa, was named Best Business of the Year by the Bettendorf Chamber of Commerce that year and the free reading program for poor kids she established was the largest scholarship program of its kind among a 900-member chain, for which she was personally awarded a Bi-State Literacy Award by then sitting First Lady Barbara Bush in 1993.
She lives in East Moline, Illinois with husband Craig and in Chicago, Illinois, where her son, Scott and daughter-in-law Jessica and their four-year-old twins Elise and Ava reside. Her daughter, Stacey, a graduate of Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, recently returned from a year spent living and working in Australia and now lives and works in Nashville, Tennessee.
Thanks for taking part in the tour. I’m so glad you enjoyed ‘Hellfire & Damnation III’!