Moon on the Water

I love each and every story in this collection! All of them sucked me in and I got to meet so many different people and go to so many different places! I'm fairly socially out of the loop so that's saying something. Mort Castle is definately one of the reasons if not the reason I decided to get into Horror Writing. And stuff like this reminds me of how great Mort Castle really is.

This is one of the most amazing works I've ever read. Literary and haunting, this one stays with you long after its over. Each story is a taste of darkness, deep and black, yet humorous at times as well. There are stories in here that are magic and must be read while listening to Lady Day or Coltrane. One of those is "Moon on the Water", a beautiful, stirring tale of heroin shooting jazzmen and the woman who comes into their lives and changes it forever. The ending of this story is amazing and atmospheric. Let's just say I made a few people I know read the story and they are buying the book because I couldn't part with it. "If you take my hand, son" is a horrifying look into a dying man being crossed over to the other side. And it doesn't end the way you think it will. "Buckeye Jim in Egypt" is another powerful story about racism, unions and a look at what might happen if someone supernatural came to earth. I won't give anything else away, but its wonderful. "Love, hate and the Junkyard Sea" is another favorite. However, all these stories are great in different ways and there isn't one bad story in the bunch. That is a rare achievement.This book is one to pick up if you love literary horror that makes you think. As poetic as a Tom Waits song, these characters are real and you will never forget them. Beautiful!

This is a well written collection of short stories. There's very little supernatural content but the horror is firm. This writer's style is mainstream and as far as the writer's personal ability to write, I'd give him ten stars if possible. Though I found many of these stories very satisfying, I found the theme of some a bit thin. But five stars for style. Worth a read...........................

This is a book that you won't read in one sitting. The stories are short and the book is thin, but the writing in each story will grab you and hold on for a while. I read the first story, "If You Take My Hand, My Son," in a half hour. In ten short pages Mr. Castle made me care about this young man, brought tears to my ears and a shiver to my spine. There were moments I could almost hear the father's voice! I closed the book because I needed a moment to sit with the story.Each story has it's own personality and calls the reader into a different kind of relationship. I spent an enjoyable time with some heroin-shooting jazzmen, some thought-provoking time in Southern Illinois and several very disconcerting moments inside Henderson's head. This isn't just great horror writing, it's simply great storytelling! This is a book to own ... you're going to want to visit these stories several times. This is the first book by this author that I've read; it won't be the last!

I've read many of Mort Castle's works for years. Each one either terrifies, touches or invokes some other powerful emotion in me. The man can create an image that is so real you can smell it. A credit to the horror genre - just wait for the chills and goosebumps.