A song that turns people into maniacs, a terrified street where only one child is allowed to trick ‘r treat, a broken man who is slowly turning into a Christmas tree, or a ghost with no home left to haunt. These are strange and frightening things, and the words needed to describe them must be stranger and more frightening still because who knows when such horrors might show up at your own door…

Hmmmmm now I’m a bit conflicted about this one because out of the 14 stories that were in the book there were a few that I would have definitely given 5/5 to and I rather enjoyed. But then there were others that were just blurrrggghhhh and I didn’t enjoy in the slightest. Which for me is why the whole collection kinda ended in a middle of the road rating for me.

His writing style is great and at times for a horror writer can be very poignant but for me I think the collection just didn’t merge well together, or maybe I was just in a particularly meh kinda mood when I was making my way through it.

However, I have not gave up hope completely and I will check out some more of his work because there definitely were a few wee hidden gems in there - particularly being of the female gender I thoroughly enjoyed ‘click-bait!’ Hahaha! Not for the faint hearted or males of a sensitive disposition.

With words that are really nowhere near as strange as the worlds they describe, this collection of short stories takes the reader to some dark, dark places and does it with style, imagination and originality you just have to admire.
I’ve never heard of the author, prior to finding his book on Netgalley. Now, having read it, foreword and afterword and all the things in-between, it seems that Rouner is a man who’s been to some dark places and emerged with stories to tell. Really, really good stories.
These short stories are on a longer side and read like compete and completely disturbing tales. The author appears to have a knack for setting up a perfectly normal seeming scenario and that twisting it into something terrifying or morbid or both. But more than that, there’s some genuinely good writing here, especially character writing, Enough to have you connect with the protagonists, engage with their narratives, and immerse in their stories.
That’s what a good scary story ought to do. Disturb its readers in a profound, even cathartic, way. Literature in general, and genre fiction specifically, is therapeutic by nature. Science fiction allows you to dream of a future. Fantasy takes you away from this world completely. And horror allows you to process your inner fears. Rouner seems to have a profound understanding of this fact and utilizes it perfectly. His tales are macabre in just the right way.
I enjoyed this collection tremendously and absolutely would recommend it for any genre fan. These tales are literary, engaging, terrifying and take abyss gazing to a new darker still level. Very good, indeed. Recommended. Thanks Netgalley.

This is one of the most interesting collection of stories I've read in months. Rouners writing is fresh, his ideas were very unique. I was expecting horror only, but I found a lot of variety in the topics, which I liked a lot. I think the last story was my favorite. The only thing I didn't like was that some of the stories seemed to be unnecessary long. Some of these stories did deserve most of its details, but not all of them. Sometimes keeping them short and sweet is better.

When I first began Stranger Words my expectations were weren't too high because I wasn't really in the mood for short stories, but I try to make my netgalley books a priority so off I went. I immediately knew that my expectations were off base and that this was going to be fun. The title "Stranger Words" is very apropos. The stories are all strange and weird, some are creepy and some are rather sweet or bittersweet. They aren't exactly terrifying, but that's okay. I like them the way they are. A couple of my favorites are Sleep Deprivation (I have my own bouts of Sleep Paralysis, yikes!) and How To Sell A Holiday. When you've read the story be sure to read the author's Liner Notes at the end. I found those very interesting and telling and they give the stories a very personal and meaningful slant. Thank you #netgalley for allowing me to read and review #StrangerWords. I enjoyed this one.

The first few stories in the collection seemed promising and then they fell flat. I was disappointed. Lots of very obvious editing mistakes as well

Amazing set of stories. I was able to gain a digital copy of this book from Netgalley for my honest review. My honest review is that there was only one story that I thought was just okay. The rest were absolutely great. It starts off with a unpredictable story, and then just keeps going. While most of it is horror, not all of it is. I will definitely read more from this writer

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC of this book. I had never read this author before and was really shocked at how good it was. I thoroughly enjoyed each and every story. Weird, strange,creepy, and scary. There's something for everyone.

I don't think I've read any horror since reading a lot of Stephen King in the 80s and 90s, so this was a very different book for me. I find nearly all short-story collections are hit and miss, but this one was at times too much for my tastes.

Some highlights:

The first story, Earworm, was suitably creepy and intriguing. It strongly captured my attention, but ended with an anti climactic finish.

How to Sell a Holiday was amusing and very clever.

Slim and Almost-Queen was probably my favourite story, although the twist was predictable. I was surprised to read in the notes at the end it is generally not as well received.

Tannenbaum was sweet and, while unusual, didn't seem to fit the horror theme. I liked the author's note about it at the end.

However, there were a couple of very big misses. New Game and Just a Kiss Away were back to back and both really didn't work for me. They were both OTT and gratuitous with violence. While in New Game that unfortunately reflects a reality that exists in our society - I don't want to read about it or dwell on it. When I reached Click Bait, which was also offensive (but clearly done as a comment about males who are offensive in our society), I wondered if I would finish the book, but the good stories kept me going..

I enjoyed the horror, not so much the violence and misogynistic sex.

Thanks to the publishers for sharing this one. It isn't what I expected but I really liked it. My full review appears on Weekend Notes.

This collection of stories held some unique gems, a couple chilling tales, but mostly, for me anyway, it had stories I couldn't get into. The writing style rubs me the wrong way; I either find passages confusing or out of place so much so that I can't get back into my it.