Doorbells at Dusk: The Friendly Man by Thomas Vaughn

To get into the Halloween spirit, I’ll be reading (and dissecting) the Halloween-themed anthology Doorbells at Dusk. My thanks goes to Erin Sweet Al-Mehairi and Corpus Press.

~𝓣𝓱𝓮 𝓕𝓻𝓲𝓮𝓷𝓭𝓵𝔂 𝓜𝓪𝓷

“Death is always standing right behind you.”

Synopsis: A man goes to the extreme on Halloween evening, setting up his house as the most frightfully decorated attraction on the block.

The Friendly Man certainly wasn’t anything new – the concept one I’m familiar with – however there was an extra kick that set it apart, made it more distinct, and that’s what made it all the more enjoyable. It ultimately led in a direction that I found surprising, and if anything, I love a good twist. Focusing on the monsters that hide within plain sight, it established a sense of discomfort that I found pleasing to experience.

Rating: 🎃🎃🎃🎃

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When he’s not writing fiction, Thomas Vaughn is a college professor whose research focuses on apocalyptic rhetoric and doomsday cults. Most of his writing seems to stray through the realms of literary horror and dark magical realism. He has been fortunate enough to have stories accepted in four different magazines and anthologies in 2018 so far. He wrote the story in this one just for you.