Cassilda's Song: Tales Inspired by Robert W. Chambers King in Yellow Mythos

A mind-bendingly creepy anthology of stories from 18 female authors here, with lots of interesting spins on Robert W Chambers' King in Yellow mythos.The strongest stories are packed together at the start of the collection, with Black Stars on Canvas, a Reproduction in Acrylic by Damien Angelica Walters, Yella by Nicole Cushing and Exposure by Helen Marshall increasing the nightmarish atmosphere and terror so effectively, I actually had to put the book down for a break midway through.With such awesome openers, the more typical stories in the bunch tend to lose their impact, though there are some notably imaginative and creey tales to be found amongst the less effective ones.Old Tsah-Hov by Anya Martin is the most unusual and brilliant story here, a masterclass in revealing just enough, leading you through the many shocks and surprises to keep you both shocked and surprised. Dancing the Mask by Ann K Schwader also draws you in with some wonderfully vivid imagery.You definitely get value for money in terms of variety here, and some of the stories manage to surpass Chamber's original tales in terms of scares. If you like the originals or any kind of cosmic horror, this is well worth a look.