Fragile Anthology

by Brian Keene, Michael Allen Rose (editor), Cynthia Pelayo

A box is an interesting thing. It contains the essence of mystery. What could be in it? Endless possibilities. For one moving company employee, this question takes on a razor-sharp significance, when the box begins to act in a way no box should. Could it be alive? Dead? Something intelligent? Or just some old clothes? Something terrible? Something beyond description? In the Fragile anthology, 20 different authors present 20 brand new stories of horror, bizarro, sci-fi and speculative fiction all based on a single A hapless mover knows better than to open a client's boxes, but when one of them moves by itself, choices need to be made. Reality explodes with the roll of a die and fragments into myriad possibilities.




What's in the box?




Featuring new stories by Brian Keene, Cynthia Pelayo, Christine Morgan, Christopher Hawkins, David Scott Hay, Bridget D. Brave, Garrett Cook, Laura Lee Bahr, Brian Pinkerton, Matthew Henshaw, Mykle Hansen, John Wayne Comunale, Chris Meekings, John Baltisberger, J9 Vaughn, Lauren Bolger, Susan Snyder, Eric Hendrixson, Ben Arzate, and Emma Alice Johnson. Conceived and edited by Wonderland Award winner Michael Allen Rose.




Handle with care!

Genres: Short Stories, Bizarro Fiction

296 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2024

About the author

BRIAN KEENE writes novels, comic books, short fiction, and occasional journalism for money. He is the author of over forty books, mostly in the horror, crime, and dark fantasy genres. His 2003 novel, The Rising, is often credited (along with Robert Kirkman’s The Walking Dead comic and Danny Boyle’s 28 Days Later film) with inspiring pop culture’s current interest in zombies. Keene’s novels have been translated into German, Spanish, Polish, Italian, French, Taiwanese, and many more. In addition to his own original work, Keene has written for media properties such as Doctor Who, Hellboy, Masters of the Universe, and Superman.

Several of Keene’s novels have been developed for film, including Ghoul, The Ties That Bind, and Fast Zombies Suck. Several more are in-development or under option. Keene also serves as Executive Producer for the independent film studio Drunken Tentacle Productions.

Keene also oversees Maelstrom, his own small press publishing imprint specializing in collectible limited editions, via Thunderstorm Books.

Keene’s work has been praised in such diverse places as The New York Times, The History Channel, The Howard Stern Show, CNN.com, Publisher’s Weekly, Media Bistro, Fangoria Magazine, and Rue Morgue Magazine. He has won numerous awards and honors, including the World Horror 2014 Grand Master Award, two Bram Stoker Awards, and a recognition from Whiteman A.F.B. (home of the B-2 Stealth Bomber) for his outreach to U.S. troops serving both overseas and abroad. A prolific public speaker, Keene has delivered talks at conventions, college campuses, theaters, and inside Central Intelligence Agency headquarters in Langley, VA.

The father of two sons, Keene lives in rural Pennsylvania.

Reviews

[Seb · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had high expectations for how great the concept of this multi-ending story was.

Turns out not so great.

Not all of the stories are really about the box and the mover, but they are just the excuse for other stories.

I was expecting something more humorous and bizarre too but it was a melting pot.

It's important to note that the ladies authors save the whole collection because they kick ass as they often do in the bizarro world!

3.5 ⭐ rounded down

[Milt Theo · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Fragile Anthology" collects twenty stories sharing the same premise, i.e. expanding on the same prompt, and each one going into wildly different directions. The anthology excels in originality, wide range, and terrific writing; its only weakness, I think, is some (inevitable) repetition, not because the stories are bad, but because they are far too many for an anthology building on the same premise. So, especially in each story's beginning, you have to go through pretty much the same thoughts for up to five pages twenty times. Let's put this complaint aside, however, since the anthology provides great entertainment, and there's no obligation to read it in its entirety in a single reading. I paced myself and found it hugely enjoyable, mostly due to the diversity of its themes: each author treats the same initial situation very differently. The premise is brilliant in its simplicity: a moving company employee finds that one of the boxes he's brought in the client's house, makes noises/sounds and/or moves as if it's alive. Is it an animal? A broken toy? Morally bound not to open a client's boxes, the poor guy decides to allow the roll of a die to tell him what to do. Obviously, all authors (save one) have him open the box, and surprise, surprise! The contents vary, from heads and cinema references ("What's in the box!") to Greek mythology, spanning the genres of horror, fantasy and science-fiction. Very few stories are really dark, most go for dark comedy; though the line is not always clear. My favorite stories were Brian Keene's "Head" (there's never been a Keene story I didn't like), Cynthia Pelayo's "The Sound Of Infinity," Christine Morgan's "It Wasn't a Box," John Baltisberger's "ISH-IM-LLT אִישִׁים (Messengers)," and Christopher Hawkins' "Not a Lion, Maybe a Bear". All in all, a very good read!

[David Agranoff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Editor Michael Allen Rose is an artist I have also meant to get into, and I had a great time hanging out with him and watching him do his thing at 2024 Bizarro Con. So I was stoked when he handed me this anthology, and that was long before I knew the concept. Just tons of names of bizarro and horror writers I love already. There are several authors in this collection I just don’t read enough. Laura Lee Bahr, Mykle Hansen, and Emma Johnson come to mind right away.

I was also excited to see stories from Garrett Cook and Brian Keene who I have read plenty of times. As always with an anthology I looked forward to discovering new authors Like John Baltisberger or finally reading something by Briget D Brave who has been on my radar for some time. Other names I super respect like Cynthia Pelayo and Eric Hendrickson, short of listing them all, everyone is doing fun stuff.

Michael Allen Rose clearly had a fun concept, but what is cool is how hard he is working to boost up all the authors involved. Starting from the same jumping point Fragile is a very interesting showcase for these authors and highlights how each author wields their talent like a sword fighter. The concept is the same, but the execution and style are weird and create a Rainbow of 20 styles and different colors. “I had an idea for a short story about a guy working as an independent mover, carrying boxes into a client's home, alone at the end of the day, and one of the boxes moves. He struggles with the ethical implications of opening it up, since that's against the movers code, but his curiosity gets the best of him and he finally decides to open it, and things go haywire from there.”

The writing prompt…A mover sees a box shaking. This whole anthology is about what the fuck is in the box? So it is a fun experiment to see more than twenty takes. They were all great, Chris Meekings, Cynthia Pelayo, Bridget D. Brave, and Mykle Hansen had some stand-out great stories but the three caused me to dog-ear pages and come back later.

Here's looking at you by Garrett Cook. “Is it excitement, validation, triumph? Maybe this is how it was supposed to be, even with the bizarre ghost eyes floating on my wall, opening clothing shifting back and forth, some slightly looking away, some hungry, predatory, and envious. Yeah envious they want this. They want to be me right now. I want to be me right now. FUCK.”

This part expresses a feeling you get watching Cook read these days. His readings are sorta like audiobooks where someone is turning up the volume, but the knob is also turning up tension. I am not sure this would work the same way that did for me. I enjoyed this one.

Brian Keene’s Head shows his horror chops. He is a Grandmaster of the genre and not for no reason. “We entered the master bedroom and I was surprised to see the box was now some 5 or 6 feet from where I'd left it. As we watched, whatever was inside slammed against the cardboard, moving its prison another inch across the carpet.”

Keene makes the reader want to open the box and feel nervous about it at the same time. A simple but powerful take on the subject.

My absolute favorite comes from the author of Haunt, the best novel of all the Wonderland award winners and that is saying something. Laura Lee Bahr is quietly underrated even most of us in bizarro circles think she is great, she is that good and probably better. This next passage in the moment this book most got in my soul.

“Human cruelty has its own calculus, but I always sucked at higher math. I don't understand it
No air holes. I mentioned that about the box, right?
And who knows how long the poor thing was in there. Luckily, it's still alive. Whatever it is. Shining gold eyes stare up at me, as it tries to make itself small in the corner of the box.”

Fragile is full of cool moments. Maichel Allen Rose put together a neat little book ripe with experimental storytelling, dark vibes, and moments that made me laugh. Very entertaining indeed.

[Becky Spratford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three Words That Describe This Book: Original, Range of Scares Gaming

I was scheduled to review this book for Booklist. A few weeks ago when I went to read it, I noticed that I was thanked in the opening pages, very publicly. This is sweet. I have been friend with the editor (Michael Allen Rose) for a few years. We work at neighboring libraries as well. But this disqualified me from reviewing the book in any trade journal.

However, we pivoted and I made plans to read it to kick off my 31 Days of Horror 2024 blog a thon.

I have a more about this book and Rose's new indie press here on the blog: https://raforallhorror.blogspot.com/2...

But for the Goodreads crowd-- this is a "premise" anthology that works perfectly. The set up is a mover is working and the box he has moves on its own. He rolls a 20-sided die and the 20 storied that follow answer what is in the box.

The mix of authors goes from HUGE names -- Brian Keene-- to big names-- Cynthia Pelayo and Christine Morgan-- to rising stars-- Christopher Hawkins-- to new to you names-- J9 Vaughn (not new to me though, another awesome library worker here in the Chicago burbs) .

I love the connection to table top gaming as well. This is a great handsell for anyone who likes an original idea for a themed Horror anthology, but also, recommend to anyone who also likes D&D and the like.

What makes this anthology stand out over an above the average indie press Horror anthology is Rose himself. He is a multiple Wonderland Award winning author (For context., Gabino Iglesias has won this award) and he is the President of the Bizarro Writers Association. He has put together a solid book-- from the contraction (he knows how tough people can be on books because he is a library worker) to the editing and everything in between.

You need this book because of the bigger names in it, but you will want it because it is worth it.

Since it is not out yet and there really were no advanced copies, I am not going to ruin any of the stories. I will let readers discover them.

I am excited for all of you. This one is worth your time-- and for my libraries-- your purchase.

[Rob · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love collections from different authors on a subject, and this idea of a mystery box appealed to me. Some of these were actually what I hoped for, fun and interesting. Head, Filler, Goopy and Echidna are some of my favourites here. Then there were some stories that were just too outside the box (pun intended). I wish I could have shaken the dice up to read them in a different order because when I disliked a few in a row, I honestly considered stopping, but was glad I continued because there were a few gems near the end as well.

[Shrike · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a rad concept for an anthology! Fragile starts with one intro, one dice roll, and splits into 20 different possibilities each written by a different author. Break out your D20, this book warrants some audience participation. I stuck with the concept and rolled to determine my reading order.

I enjoyed how each author ran with the prompt. This anthology is a celebration of each individual's creativity: there's love stories, drama, fantasy, cosmic horror, paranormal encounters, and more.

The same eclectic character that makes this anthology unique also makes it difficult to rate. There's a good chance that not every story will be for every reader, as was the case for me. I can say that every single story was a fun surprise as each author made this anthology their own.

Thank you so much for the chance to check this book out for free, although I was lucky enough to get a physical copy (along with my very own magic D20!) at Authorcon IV before this review. I'm leaving this review of my own accord.

[Kara (Books.and.salt) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am still reeling over the wild ride that is Fragile Anthology! What a brilliantly quirky concept for a short story collection. It starts off with a guy, a moving company, and a mysteriously moving box. Our main character finds himself in a dilemma: should he delve into its secrets or just let it be? Naturally, he decides to let fate - and a trusty d20 - call the shots. With 20 authors spinning 20 different tales, you’re in for a mix of nauseating horror, laugh-out-loud moments, and even a tearjerker that hit me right in the feels.

I had an absolute blast rolling my d20 each time to see which story I’d dive into next! While all the tales had their charm, I especially loved Head by Brian Keene and Because You’re Mine by David Scott Hay. What a chaotic little book!

[ScarlettAnomalyReads · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this, I'm in the short story mood, but I need good collections of them, and seeing Brian Keene on something, means I am going to have a good time.
This was such a fun bizarre concept, one single moving delivery guy with the most messed up customers, and the packages, the packages 😂.
My only small complaint was how the first part of each story was the same, and I understand it, I do, but it annoyed that little part of me, in the back of my brain. But not enough to drop the rating 😂

I love dice so leaving it up to chance on do I open or no, was thrilling for me, also I used to play yahtzee, the thrill is Alot and I love it lol

I really enjoyed this, and all the stories x absolutely worth the read.

Ty book sirens!

[Kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

An ordinary day moving boxes when the mover stumbles into...something. Every writer who starts with this premise comes up with something different. Highlights of the collection are Brian Pinkerton's horrific bodily transformation, Mykle Hansen's weird and bloody cuteness, and Eric Hendrixson's dry, terse, anxiety-filled hilarity.

[Cristian Rubén Melis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this one.

[Matt Henshaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

A clever prompt results in 20 wildly different stories which range from horror, to bizarre, to touching. All of the stories are excellent, and Mr. Rose did a fantastic job pulling together talent from the unknown to the well known. Highly recommended!