Waking the Dead and Other Horror Stories by Yvette Tan

Waking the Dead and Other Horror Stories Reviews

• 
  K.D. Absolutely

  It's one of the instances when I really devoured a horror book. The stories in this collection are all well-written. I am not really a fan of sci-fi, fantasy genre especially supernatural or horror books. However, it is always fascinates me to read this genre because of my belief that it is not a horror book if it does not scare me. Much like: what's the use of a romance novel if it will not make you dreamy if not feel in love with the story or sometimes with the characters?
  
  But this book did: IT MADE ME SCARED.
  
  One particular story is the tiyanak with Tan's direct approach in storytelling that you would like to perhaps see in the sanitized version of Edgar Samar. Here, that gruesome and scary child creature is bared in its rawness: fierce and unforgiving.
  
  My favorite story though is the hideous kapre that had a soft heart to the brave little battered yet innocent child. Your heart will bleed not for the child but for the kapre and that's a spin that only talented authors can pull off. The reason is that we hate kapres because of how they look but here it's like the Beast falling for Bella but in this case, Bella is a child and there is no romance between them.
  
  I did not like that people still picture the Marcoses as evil. Let's learn from the past but let's leave them in peace now. I have no lost love for any of them but it is just becoming too tiring for me. Let's demonize the succeeding ones and I am sure there are so many negative things that can be written about them.
  
  Overall, I really liked this book. A lot better than Eliza Victoria's
  A Bottle of Storm Clouds: Stories (3 stars) so why oh why did you let it win in the poll over this book, Jzhun?
• 
  Eliza Victoria

  Branding a story as "horror" is a promise, and the promise can set a storyteller (writer, filmmaker)up for failure. You'll have to contend with consumer expectations. If you promise me horror, you better make sure I will be scared, or at the very least, creeped out.
  
  BUT I have realized that most stories that stop people from going to the bathroom in the middle of the night do not scare me. (And the stories that people find boring are the ones that won't let me sleep.) I've been disappointed so many times with stories that purport to be horror but bore me to tears, so I stop expecting to be scared. All I hope for is solid storytelling and beautiful language.
  
  Walking the Deaddid not creep me out, but the stories made me sad, thoughtful, excited. They evoked a response, and they kept me reading. Of the stories, "Delivering the Goods" stayed with me the longest. I loved the confidence in the voice, the subtle horror, the sadness. I wanted to know more about the main character. I'm still thinking of him now.
  
  This book kept me cozy as I read in my favorite place - in my bed, under the sheets. That's good enough for me.
  
  
• 
  Anne

  This was an easy and entertaining read, though the stories didn't scare me as I hoped it would. There were a few stories that resounded to me, particularly The Bridge, Stella for Star, and Kulog. I love the author's writing style; it was very easy to relate to and enjoy.
• 
  gee | momoxshi ☽

  This book is marketed as a collection of horror stories so it was a let down that there were stories here that are anything but horror.
  
  There were hits and misses in this book. I have to say that I did enjoy the stories that revolve around Filipino Mythology, specifically:
  - The Bridge
  - Stella for Star
  - Kulog
  - Waking the Dead
  
  "Daddy" is a good short story that tackles grief and loss. It seems like a personal story from the author.
  
  "The Child Abandoned" is a good bit of folklore that ties myth and religion together. I like how the last story, "Sidhi", ties in together with this first story. However, "Sidhi" is just all over the place.
  
  "Stars" had an interesting concept but it can benefit if the story was fleshed out more. "Delivering the goods" is a good look into atrocities possibly happening in real life. However, it actually feels more tame than the horrors of our reality.
  
  "Boss, ex" felt more of an attempt at sci-fi and, together with "Fade to Nothing," reads more like a story about human behavior and relationships. Not really a fan of these last two.
• 
  Fran

  For me, the first narrative, "The Child Abandoned", is the strongest piece in this collection. On the whole, this book gave me varying degrees of horror...horror with disgust, horror with eroticism, horror with spite...
• 
  Ailla Magcamit

  Actual Rating: 4.5
  
  Had this for a long while in my shelf (I bought it at a discount price and as a fan of anthologies and collections, it was a good deal. Plus, I barely have any "horror" on my shelf) but I never got around to reading it.
  
  Fast forward to 2021, with Trese premiering on Netlix, creator Budjette Tan mentioned how one of the stories in this collection inspired the character of The Madame. It made me remember that I have a copy of this so it got bumped up the TBR.
  
  It was a different kind of horror tbh and not the kind I was expecting. It was more like a mix of lower mythology, folklore, and speculative fiction but it worked, at least for me.
  
  Majority of the pieces gripped me and had me thinking about it even afterwards.
  
  TL;DR - while it may not fully deliver on the "horror" promise, the pieces are still well-written and are worth checking out.
• 
  Percival Buncab

  I’m not fond of horror, or speculative fiction in general. And it’s quite a shame because I think the spec fics I’ve read are well-written, but I can’t appreciate them enough because I just can’t feel them. So from time to time, I push myself to read a spec fic book, hoping it would impress me. Fortunately, it does several times. Unfortunately, not in this one.
  
  The stories in this anthology are neat, but none of them horrified me in any way. But of course, a writing is more than just its genre. There are other aspects to appreciate in Tan’s writing. Although I find the settings not vivid enough, the character descriptions are beautiful. And the political overtones in The Bridge are particularly impressive.
• 
  Marlo Paniqui

  binili ko tong libro sa National Bookstore dahil sa mga magandang review tungkol sa kwentong kapre . At dahil ang manunulat nitong si Yvette Tan din sumulat sa pelikulang katatakutang Ilawod, na akin namang nagustuhan. Napagdesisyunan ko tong bilhin agad. Nagustuhan ko ang mga kwentong katatakutan. Pero mas maganda siguro kung eto ay isinulat sa wikang Pilipino ng sa ganun ay di na ako na nose bleed .
• 
  Sheryl

  I enjoyed this collection of short stories. Each story was well-written and felt full. Although I wouldn't say each one I could consider as a "horror" story, a few fit the bill and completed its mission of being eerily creepy, even grotesque but some felt far from the genre. What I appreciate the most is that each story had relationships as the overarching foundation of the main plot which made it more relatable and easy to read.
• 
  Daphne

  Delivering the goods - gory
  The bridge - makes me want to visit san Juanico
  Boss, ex? - still confused about the ending
  Waking the dead - short and shocking. The teeth
  Stella for star - reminded me of undin
  Kulog - not sure if I want to meet a kapre. Children are kinder than adults. Less judgy too.
  Daddy - made me miss my mom
  Stars - will include balicasag in my bucket list since my parents are from bohol
• 
  Shed

  This ended too soon.
• 
  Aia

  "part of me wondered if what they said about tikbalangs was true, that it wasn't only their heads that were proportioned like a horse's."
  
  now I'm hooked
• 
  Kayleen

  I bought this book from Mt. Cloud Bookshop in Baguio. Up to now, I still think the "ghost" in the bookshop recommended me this book.
  
  Okay. So much for a horror story.
  
  The stories are not your conventional "horror stories"--well, not all of them, anyway. I was kidding when I said it was recommended to me by a spirit, but I am serious if I tell you that I purchased this book because it sounded like that TV series about zombies.
  
  As I was saying, the stories are not the typical "ghost stories" or tales of a paranormal or supernatural nature like Stephen King's or Neil Gaiman. I applaud the author for being able to spin the stories that you would typically classify in a different genre into stories are *real* scary nonetheless. I find it difficult to say much but reveal and spoil very little, but I woud say that I enjoyed reading this collection and that it was definitely worth it.
• 
  D

  I like the stories, I guess? Interesting, horrific in a way that humans and human emotions are horrific. Not exactly horror like Stephen King does horror, or even M.R. James does horror. I guess this is the Yvette Tan brand of horror and all the respect for the author for that.
  
  I like the Quiapo stories best, I want to see more of that world; a city where saints and dreamers and creatures from our lower mythology all live together.
  
  The voice and narrative aren't particularly strong, the constant use of the first person perspective isn't my cuppa usually, and I guess that's why this collection doesn't make as much of an impact on me as, say, Bottle of Stormclouds. Could be stronger. Will look for her work in the future, since this feels more like someone beginning to get their grip on their writing voice.
  
• 
  Mati Serraño

  
  http://likereadingontrains.wordpress....