Brave New Weird: The Best New Weird Horror, Vol. 2 — A Review

The Brave New Weird World is here, and it’s an eye opener 

Cover image courtesy of Tenebrous Press
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A brave series of shorts from Tenebrous Press where tales of the increasingly weird don’t feel so outrageously impossible at the dawn of the new world we’re living in. A new world where many of the wonderful stories within it could quite possibly get it banned. That isn’t hyperbole. These stories touch on a broad range of topics from transgenderism to environmental negligence to autonomous healthcare decisions to the advancement of AI for all the wrong reasons. Which is why you should check them out, because the Brave New Weird is here and now. 

Like most anthologies, not every story is going to hit you in the right way, but I didn’t find one story that was less than worthy of a 3 ( the average "I liked it" grade), with most being well worthy of 4s and 5s ("really liked it," or "best read ever!"). The list of the ones that resonated most for me include: 

In That Crumbling Home, by Thomas Ha—A post apocalyptic tale about a girl and a blood tree and the hope that resides in a future generation. 

A Balanced Breakfast, by Eirik Gumeny—A diabetic podcaster summons a demon for an interview by casting a spell with the use of sugary breakfast cereals. 

The Man Outside, by Simone le Roux—He's always present in a young girl's life, beginning at age eleven, and as she grows year after year toward adulthood, he creeps closer and closer. 

As the Music Plays Groovy, by Michael Bettendorf—When the voice of reason comes from Nic Cage through your AI assistant device, maybe you should rethink things. 

The Sound of Children Screaming, by Raechel K. Jones—Because the best defense in a school shooting is a portal to a different world. 

Quietus, by Premee Mohamed—The quest to find meaning through the eyes of an RPG soldier. 

These are by far not the only picks that I enjoyed, but they’re a good sample of what to expect. These thoughtful pieces of horror all have something to say about the world we live in now and the challenges we face in the very near future. Things to think about, things to defend in our lifetime, things to resist if we want to preserve our general humanity. And yes, I am writing this after the disappointing results of our 2024 election. But I was ready to give this book high praise before that. I find many of the stories here all the more relevant.

Click on the cover image for a direct link to Tenebrous Press, or look for the book at most online book retailers.