I feel like this collection has some potential. Most of the stories had an interesting core idea, but what was a miss for me was the writing itself. A lot of it seemed a bit... flat? I found it difficult to connect to the characters, as many of them didn't seem quite fleshed out. It also felt like there was a lot of telling instead of showing.

A decent collection of short stories. I would have liked to see some of the entries developed more to have more depth and description. I found it to be a little boring/dry at times.

Definitely a good book to read for spooky season, or for short bursts of horror.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Brigids Gate Press for a copy!

This is a bunch of good fun, traditional scary stories!! These were really entertaining and nostalgic, taking me back to some of the spooky books I used to read in my teens! There’s a definite theme of family dysfunction running throughout but each story tells its own tale of terror. It’s the perfect kind of collection to pick up in between some heavier reads. I would class these as cozy horror. Yes…it’s a thing!!! Read this and see.

Throwing Shadows; A Dark Collection by Jerry Roth was alright! Some stories were alright and a bit spooky but it was not for me to be honest. I found it a little boring! Thankful to read this before it was published but it will be a pass for me! Thank you!

A Woman’s Strength

Interesting story, not a new concept though, offering up a child to something in exchange for something else. Story ended in a way that I didn’t expect, but that wasn’t altogether unheard of. I liked the execution of the ending. The scarecrow was a nice touch - although I’m not sure I liked where the story went with the scarecrow. Kind of made me think of Jeepers Creepers, but tamer. A decent short story.

Always Say Goodbye

This one was interesting - we all know that we shouldn’t mess with Ouija boards, and now we’ve got an even better reason why. To be honest, the story was a bit confusing at first. I thought Merrill Emerson was possibly Matt’s grandfather - after all, why would Matt’s mother have a box of Merrill’s things. But as time goes on you start to realize that’s not the case and that there’s something even more interesting going on. The ending was pretty cool and I’d love a sequel to this story to see if Matt’s family figures anything out.

The Keepsake

This one was interesting. You think the story is one thing but then it turns out to be a completely different thing. Blended families can be difficult but when it seems as though someone is trying to kill one of the siblings, it’s even more difficult. But the ending to this one will startle the hell out of you - I know it did me.

Whispers from the Cellar

I wasn’t as impressed by this story as I was by some of the previous stories. This one didn’t make a lot of sense in the way that it was written, and the ending just didn’t make any sense either. I’m not sure what was going on but it wasn’t my favorite story.

The Idiot Box

This one is like a mixture of the Zombie Apocalypse & Halloween III: Season of the Witch. This one is one of the better stories in the anthology. It’s interesting and moves fairly quickly, I think it might have taken me 10 minutes max to read this story. Probably would have been less if I hadn’t read it at 4AM.

The Teddy Bear

This one was pretty interesting. I liked the concept of this one - with a psychic, a teddy bear, and an unexpected connection. This is definitely one of my favorites from this anthology, if not my favorite so far out of the stories.


Ice Cream Man

An ice cream man who hates kids… hates his job… and still sells ice cream. You don’t really understand the horror part of the story until the very end, and even then, it’s not really that scary. Not my favorite - probably less so than Whispers from the Cellar, which is saying something because I didn’t like that one very much.

My Soul to Take

This one was relatively interesting. It had a unique concept to it that I’ve never seen before. It wasn’t a great story but it wasn’t horrible either. It had a decent ending to it. Not my favorite but not horrible either - entertaining but not overly so.

Lightning Crashes

This one was just plain weird. It didn’t make a whole lot of sense and I think that’s what kept me from liking it very much.

Overall, this anthology of short stories just wasn’t what I was hoping for. Most of the stories didn’t make much sense and I’m not sure if it was the writing style or simply the fact that I just wasn’t impressed with it. It was horror but not the kind of horror I usually read - it just wasn’t that scary.

I never expect much from short stories and I always end up disappointed or love half and dislike the rest. However, this short story collection is so perfect for Halloween I loved most of it. I read this back in October just before Halloween and it gave me all the creepy vibes that I was wanting. This haunting collection brings together all the aspects of Halloween you know and love creating brilliant short stories based on each factor. It is homely horror and although the collection although it does have aspects of horror it is easy to ready.

“That other person went away away. It’s just me now.”

These nine stories have something for everyone: a woman’s obsession with a scarecrow, a boy discovers his families Ouija board, two sisters convinced the other is toying with them, a girl’s bedroom which has a door only she can see, the obsession with television, a psychic on a police case, a man with an ice cream van, a man killed and brought back to life and a woman whose pregnancy doesn’t go as expected. Roth does an amazing job of diving into each of these stories and delve deep into the horrors of everyday life. The themes that this book covers, and the relatable characters makes this even more haunting.

My personal favourites were The Keepsake and Ice Cream Man. The Keepsake had you guessing the entire way through the book, and you could not tell where the horror aspect was going to come from until the very end. However, the Ice Cream Man went in the completely other direction, and you knew exactly where the story was going to go yet you did not know when the ending was going to happen. I do have to mention Always Say Goodbye which was so creepy and thrilling to read and it left you on the edge of your seat the entire time.

“The fire was a beast, eating, devouring everything in its path until it reached the porch.”

The only issue I had with this book as with most short stories is that I wish it was longer. Some of the stories could have benefited from just being a couple of pages longer such as Whispers from The Cellar. Other than that, the atmosphere was perfect for Halloween and the characters were so interesting to see their reactions and relate to them. This collection definitely had a vintage book vibe to it which I always love. There was plenty of variation between the stories which kept it fun and entertaining the entire way through.

Overall, I loved this collection and I really want to read some of his backlist short story collections. I gave it a three and a half stars as with any short story collections I loved some and did not like others as much. The atmospheric vibe gave me Stranger Things mixed with My Best Friends Exorcism so anyone that loves those things should definitely pick this one up.

Thank you to NetGalley for this copy to read and review!

I have an immense love for anthologies and horror short stories and this book did not disappoint. This is the first book by Jerry Roth, and I think an anthology was a perfect introduction to his writing style. Each character drags you into their world and keeps you reading to find out how it all ends and after you keep thinking about some stories.
While each story is good, my favorite was Always Say Goodbye. Stories about Ouija boards creep me out and this was one of the most original I have read in a while.
This was a fast read that makes you feel like it’s Halloween no matter when you read it.

Thanks to the author and Netgalley for this read.

I love a good scary story. But this ebook had random words in a color so light I couldn't read them without focusing extremely hard. It kept pulling me out of the story as I had to stop to figure out what the word was and then kept wondering if there was a deeper reason why those words were chosen. If I read only those words, would it give a secret message? There also seems to be an emotional disconnect by the author in the way he writes about the emotional experience/responses of men versus women. The male characters feel authentic and full. The female characters feel like cardboard caricatures. I did give two stars because I really enjoyed the plots of the stories. I just couldn't go higher because of the text distractions and the gender issue.

Unfortunately, I didn’t enjoy reading this book. I found the stories quite boring and actually not that scary. Maybe two of the stories made me feel… well, something. Other than that, I can’t really say much about this ‘dark’ collection. It was just… meh.

Thank you NetGalley for giving me this arc❤️

Thank you NetGalley and Brigids Gate Press, LLC., Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Titles for accepting my request to read and review Throwing Shadows A Dark Collection.

Author: Jerry Roth
Published: 09/25/22
Genre: Horror | Sci Fi & Fantasy

You never know until you try: I tried and while this was okay, I realized horror is not for me. I believe I am a thriller reader.

There are nine short stories. Each one has its own creep factor.

I would recommend picking this up in October, reading one story at a time, over the entire month as opposed to reading in one sitting.

Of note: I accidentally shredded my notes and can't recall if there was any profanity or other facts.

I really enjoy short stories. Especially horror short stories. These were the perfect scary stories that I wish I had read around Halloween. Jerry Roth did an excellent job of giving us the perfect creepy visual of each tale.

This was my first book written by Jerry Roth. I was really apprehensive to start this book as it consists of 9 short stories. Myself and short story collections don’t get along very well as I find it hard rating them from loving one story, disliking another etc. However this pleasantly surprised me as I loved all 9 stories in this book. They were all a good mix of being creepy and unsettling. The twists were great and as an avid horror reader I was surprised that I didn’t see anything coming. The endings of the stories were extremely satisfying with only one story (My Soul to Take) having quite a sad ending. Each story was different so the book didn’t feel repetitive and I was so surprised how fast I read this. I’m sure the book wasn’t perfect in a lot of ways however I had so much fun with it and enjoyed my time reading each story. 5 stars!

I love a good collection of short stories and this one did not disappoint. It has a mix of horror, thriller, and science fiction. Each story is well written and there is a great variety. Perfect for the Halloween season.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves a good scare and a quick read!

I want to thank NetGalley, Jerry Roth and Brigids Gate Press, LLC., Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Titles for the e-ARC of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are honest, my own and left voluntarily.

Nine uniquely creepy short stories. These stories go from creepy to dark and into terrifying. I loved the strong world building and the twists at many of the endings which surprise the reader.
If you want a solid scary story collection, this not one to miss. Excited to read more from the author.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the free ARC. All opinions are my own.

This short story collection was okay. I don't think any of the stories stood out as being better, worse, or more memorable than the others. The writing itself is pretty good, and I liked that the stories always had a twist at the end--it made the collection feel like Tales from the Crypt or Creepshow, which is fun. Some of them feel a little too similar to each other, but I did like some of the characters, especially the child protagonists that were featured in a few of the stories.
Overall, this was a quick, fun read, but to me, nothing too special.

This was a decent horror short story collection. All of the stories were well-written and good on a technical level. I liked the concepts of the stories, and there was good exploration of themes. It just wasn’t an outstanding collection. I’ve read better, and I didn’t really get the horror in many of these stories.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Great bunch of short stories! Excellent quick read at night time and for spooky season!

I will be recommending this book in the future especially when fall come back again next year

Throwing Shadows
A Dark Collection
By Jerry Roth

What's it about 🎃
A woman develops an unhealthy obsession with a scarecrow. A boy plays with a Ouija board and receives a terrifying warning of murder. A down-on-his-luck father learns what happens when you die in your sleep. These stories and six more frightening tales await the reader within the pages of Throwing Shadows: A Dark Collection.

My thoughts
This is a collection of 9 short stories, as such there will be one that work well and others that don't, I really enjoyed most if not all of the stories with in this collection. I think there is something for everyone here and would really recommend this book to anyone looking for a bunch of creepy and thrilling stories.

Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐

A creepy collection of 9 stories, all well put together. In fact I think there is something for everyone here.
I really like the horror and thriller feels of most of the stories.
Not the biggest fan of the Sci-Fi stories, but they didn't lose my interest any.

The darkness really draws you in with these stories.

This was a great Halloween read. A collection of fun short stories with plenty of variation. It was like Goosebumps for adults! Not every story landed as well as others but all were enjoyable regardless. The themes really varied which I liked and there's definitely something for everyone in this collection. Highly recommend for anyone who enjoys a spooky tale or two.