Most of the stories are like fairy tales, fantastical and magical. I am not the biggest fan of retellings and some of the sories are like that, which was to be expected, but still I was left with more to be desired. I was highly impressed by the first story The howling place - it was absolutely amazing, this one I think is not a retelling. Strega was very disappoining Hensel and Geretel retelling, Moonlight sonata was too short and unimpactful, Green eyes was more of a sci-fi story, but I didn't vibed with it. Kiss me to sleep was boring, Ring of blood, Ring of ashes was pretty good, I probably liked it the most of the retellings. Please serve cold was so odd and weird, I liked it but I didn't get it. The last six stories were okay I guess. My favourite story is the first one. I recommend if you are a fan of the fairy tale narrative and are in a need of a good-night story to read before bed.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the ARC.

With the word "Dread" in the title and mention of the Gothic in the synopsis, I expected an anthology leaning more on horror than dark fantasy; unfortunately, the stories are all mashups of fantasy and romance, or retelling of fairy tales (Hansel and Gretel in a post-apocalyptic context, Cinderella, Bluebeard). And the writing is not so good: the stories are dull, uninspired, and boring. One story I'd exempt from this is Elana Gomel's "Thief Dreams," thanks to which I give three stars to the book rather than the two I think it deserves. That said, I did enjoy the authors' interviews found at the end of the anthology.