I was expecting this to be more in the vein of her comic book fiction, but was pleasantly surprised to find it to be a more than acceptable anthology of Southern Gothic fiction based on Collins’ roots in the Deep South.

Enjoyable and not too schlocky.

So, have you guys heard of Nancy A. Collins or read her work?

I hadn't either. Maybe I've read a short story by her in an anthology somewhere along the way, I couldn't honestly say. But this book, Knuckles and Tales, I have had since 2002. I have picked it up numerous times over the last 15 years, and I've put it down again. You know why? This horrible cover.

I'm sorry J.K. Potter, I have no doubt you do amazing beautiful art, but this wasn't it. I would look at this title (which I hate) and I looked at the cover and believed it reflected the fourth string, b-flick writing I just knew was inside.

I couldn't have been more wrong and this is definitely a case of don't judge a book by a cover.

This is the best group of short stories I have read in years. That includes Stephen King, Joe Hill and Karen Russell -- my three favorite of all time short story writers. The language was authentic for the characters and the locations -- I was there with these people. I felt the heat, I smelled the smells, I heard what they heard, I felt their feelings. The writing was beautiful. It's been a long time since I have read a book this quickly and hated putting it down.

Usually in a short story compilation, there are good and so-so stories probably evenly represented. I found one story that didn't hit a note for me. One. The rest carried me along. There were stories in this book that I could easily see being published in The New Yorker.

The Southern Gothic is definitely her forte and I would love to know there were more short stories in this genre coming. Or maybe there is one out there already? I have to find it if so.

I also think it was a bit serendipitous that I chose this work at this particular time, given that I'm really big into ancestry.com DNA stuff right now. Her people were my ancestors. The area of the country throughout the tales are my roots in America. Maybe I wouldn't have connected with this work had I read it 15 years ago, but it sure speaks to me now.

Loved it loved it loved it. Some people take great glee in being naysayers, so naysayer away. I will not take one clap away from Nancy A. Collins in my enthusiastic applause.

I don't know anything about publishing. But, this needs to be reissued. New cover, maybe change the name (hahahaha!) and get it back out there. Small publishers don't have a marketing machine with cash to spare, but this needs to go out mainstream and there needs to be a real push by the publishers to promote it. This was a HWA Bram Stoker and International Horror Guild Award nominee book -- I'd like to know what won each of these awards up against her.

Amazing talent, Nancy A. Collins. ( )

Knuckles And Tales by Nancy Collins is a collection of gothic short stories and novelettes all set in the South. Some of the things you’ll find in this anthology include a half catfish half woman that lives in the Mississippi River, a half alligator half man that attacks fishermen, a traveling sideshow with a snake charmer, a geek that bites the head off of chickens, a voodoo priest who is leading his undead family out for revenge and an old witch who can turn your luck around for a price.

One of my favorite stories in this collection and really there isn’t a bad story in this anthology is Billy Fearless. Billy is not the sharpest knife in the drawer and hes not exactly stupid but he does have a tendency to take everything at face value and is immune to fear. Thinking that he is an idiot his father sends him away with some money and tells him to go out into the world, make your fortune and never return. Billy leaves and comes to a little hotel in front of a haunted mansion on a lake. Billy gets dared to spend three nights in the mansion. Several people have been brave enough to enter the mansion but none have lived to tell the tale . Billy is not a normal guy though and the evil spirits that haunt the house may have met their match. I loved how Billy is presented in this story, hes a nice person that wants to help people but because he is a little slow and never scared, people get the wrong idea. The end of the story is hilarious and I loved it when the evil spirit in charge of haunting the mansion confronts Billy. This story teaches that being righteous does have its rewards.

Another great story from Knuckles and Tales is The Two Headed Man. This is kind of a bizarre love story with an equally bizarre sex scene. It all starts when a man shows up at a diner just before it closes, he unzips his coat and the waitress and cook are surprised to see that he has two heads…or does he? I don’t want to tell any more about this story because it would ruin the surprise. What makes this story good is that it teaches that even people who are a little different can find love and never judge a book by its cover. Also the characters were beautifully written, I could relate to all of them and wanted to see them have a happy ending.

Nancy Collins makes the rural south come alive in Knuckles and Tales and I enjoyed the fact that three of the stories uses a traveling carnival and sideshow as its settings. If you like horror with a mix of comedy and old legends then you’ll want to check this one out. ( )