Slush

By: Glenn Rolfe

Narrated by: Joe Hempel

Length: 3 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

A collection of short stories, flash fiction, and micro works. Slush includes previously published stories "Skull of Snakes", "Jackie Boy", and "Sweet 16" alongside a fresh batch of terrifying stories to help you sleep at night.

This is Glenn Rolfe's first collection.

©2013, 2014 Glenn Rolfe (P)2015 Glenn Rolfe

defintely recommend this

Any additional comments?

(I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review.)

I do not give this book five stars, simply because I didn’t “love” it. I enjoyed it, yes, but it made me feel dirty in the way that a really good scary movie makes me feel dirty. I feel as if saying I “loved” it makes me seem as if I related deeply with one or more of the characters or situations found within these pages. And I refuse to even imply that.

I give this listen 4 ½ stars, because it is well-written, the images it creates in my head are vivid, and it holds truth like good stories should. And I hope that many more people are lucky enough to find this in their collection.

There are few times when reading something new that I become completely disturbed. There are even fewer times when something I read becomes a place I refuse to return.

It is truth to say that these stories disturb. It is truth to say that some of these stories disgust. It is also a surprising truth that even though I listened almost three times to this audiobook, there was one story that I skipped the second and the third time. That is a very rare thing for me.

It wasn’t that the story was bad in content or terrible in grammaticism, quite the opposite. It was good. It was so good that it reached into a deep part of me that hasn’t existed since I walked the halls of my high school. It disturbed me, made me uncomfortable. Made me squirm in my seat and shake my head and absolutely refuse to ever return to it.

If that doesn’t peak your curiosity…

Plus, I do not do this often because people compare everything to Stephen King, to the consequence that the comparison loses its desired effect. But I have to. Every story took me back to long nights under the covers with a flashlight pouring through his books that were deemed contraband in my house (not for the fear or disturbing images, but for the “vulgar language”).

These stories are not for the faint of heart. These stories, reach into your soul and twist until your finger touches the pause button, or the skip ahead button repeatedly. But like all of us who can’t help ourselves, I listened to the very end.

These are the stories you want in the dark nights leading up to Halloween when the veil between worlds thins. These are the stories that remind you it is not the monsters from the past or theorized future that we should be afraid of. These are the stories that shove home the realization that humans are the monsters, humans are the one we should fear. And most of all we should fear the fact that what we fear may lay hidden deep within ourselves.

New to Glenn Rolfe? Start Here.

As a fan of Glenn Rolfe, I couldn't wait to hear the stories in Slush brought to life by Joe Hempel. Slush is a collection of short stories that vary between the loss of innocence to the unknown. This is a great selection for anyone who likes short stories or those who are new to this author or narrator. Some of my favorite stories in this collection include "Skull of Snakes," "Jackie's Boy," and "Henry." Each story is unique and all will capture your attention with realistic characters, chilling and intense story lines and a little humor thrown in along the way.

As I've come to expect, Joe Hempel's narration is crisp and clean, and he manages to set the mood in each story perfectly. Hempel is quickly becoming one of my favorite narrators and I always look forward to his latest releases.

A delightfully scary collection

A delightfully scary collection of short stories that touch on a variety of common nightmares!  How many of you have found a coin and picked it up?  How many have you left lying on the street for some other lucky soul?  Every child, high schooler and college age student has had a favorite coach, teacher, etc.  Just as many have had mean ones; ones that you wish the tables could be turned.  Even love and romance has their dark side filled with lurking and unseen evilness.

Glenn Rolfe captures those insistent moments of fear when one walks through a dark house or down a lonely dark alley knowing that something is lurking nearby.  Several short but poignant tales of fear will bring on a nearly terminal case of goosebumps and whiplash from looking behind you.   Rolfe is a masterful story-teller capturing fears and expounding on them in vivid imagery.

Joe Hemple narrates these short stories in a steady voice; yet shaky when appropriate.   He does not waste time on being scary or distracting with noises; rather he uses his voice and its inflections to demonstrate the right level of fear and strength.

If you enjoy short stories, this is a wonderful collection.  If you’re a young adult, the chances are the fears Rolfe writes and Hemple puts voice to will scare you!  The down side was the collection was not long enough and while I would have loved to have more, Rolfe ended them in a good spot leaving the reader to contemplate.  My only complaint was the audio was not long enough!!!

There were no issues with the production quality of this audiobook.

Audiobook was purchased for review by the narrator.

Please find this complete review and many others at my review blog

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Recommend this new author

I loved these stories that I cannot choose just a couple. Didn’t want it to end! He is a good horror author and will check out more of his books. This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Blast. Thank you

Stephen King may have competition

Where does Slush rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

In the upper third.

What did you like best about this story?

It was a collection of stories. All were very imaginative Horror stories.

Which scene was your favorite?

When the Zombie author is introduced to an actual zombie.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

When the sadistic coach got her come upends.

Any additional comments?

“I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review via AudiobookBlast dot come”A really good collection of original horror short stories. The author shows a lot of promise and may be s serious competitor with Stephen King

A great collection from a future star

Any additional comments?

This is Glenn Rolfe's slush pile, a collection of twelve dark and seductive dances. But don't mistake this for a collection of held over, dismissed, not ready for prime time cast aways. You will be bludgeoned by twelve heavy hitters. Twelve pins jammed into the hide of a voodoo doll.

Loss of youth and erosion of innocence are the common threads being spun throughout the spindle of these tales. With cursed items, cursed people, first loves, dark appetites, revenge, the unknown and the beyond being the blood that flows from the pinprick. Joe Hempel chaperons you through Glen's dark landscapes by candlelight, but tread lightly. The trail isn't always smooth and never is it straight, and Mr. Rolfe isn't guaranteed to match your pace. Just ask Parker Stephens.."

Took me by surprise, not for the faint of heart

Where does Slush rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I enjoy Sci/Fi, fiction and horror, this is a wonderful book and would land into my favorites pile for short stories.

Who was your favorite character and why?

There were several great characters because this is a book of several short stories, and I didn't really have just one favorite... I enjoyed all the boys in the "Skull of Snakes" short because it brought me back to my youthful, bike riding days.

Which character – as performed by Joe Hempel – was your favorite?

Jackie boy

Who was the most memorable character of Slush and why?

Jackie boy, just listen to the story and you'll know why he's hard to forget

Any additional comments?

At first I thought this book wasn't going to be scary enough, party because of the short description and the narrators more refined voice (that's a good thing though). I really enjoyed the narration, I almost felt like "oh this guy sounds too smooth to be telling a really scary story" Then I was pleasantly surprised to discover I was wrong :). I like my horror with some dark, gritty descriptions, but not over the top. This book nailed it, as well as having a great narrator.
I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review via AudiobookBlast dot com

A Fun Quick Listen

Any additional comments?

A great listen and well written story that kept me hooked. The narrator was excellent and really brought the story to life. I don’t usually listen to books in this category, but will be looking for more from this author in the future.

* I was given a free copy of the book from AudiobookBlast dot com in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Creepy and Bone Chilling!

I received this audio free from the author/narrator in exchange for and honest and unbiased review. I have never read/listened to anything by author Glenn Rolfe. Every story is delicately evil in it's on sorts. I found each story to be entertaining, chilling, suspenseful, and Each one made you feel something and that tells me the author succeeded at writing a perfect collection of short stories. The author brought some unique and intriguing twists and turns, a variety of different characters, and each story seems to call out to you. This isn't my favorite genre but I like to make changes and I figured if I love horror movies then I would enjoy a horror story. I'm happy I decided I'd like to listen to a new story by a new author to me.

Joe Hempel did a great job with his narration of this collection of horror stories. He gave me goosebumps and I felt like I was watching a movie as Joe was telling the story. I would've give Joe 5 stars but I felt like he needs to work on his female voices. They just didn't sound feminine. I know there wasn't many female characters but in these short stories but with some more work on female accents/voices then I would've given him 5 🌟 but I still gave him 4.5 🌟. Overall, a 5 🌟 rating!

A well done collection of horror shorts!

Any additional comments?

I listened to this one on audio and painted my entire bedroom while listening. While painting is not my bag, at least I was thoroughly entertained. At just a hair under 3 and a half hours it was timed perfectly too. The narrator did a great job and the voice fit perfectly with the characters while not over or underacting the heavier parts.

All 12 of the tales in here were written very well and the collection was evenly paced with short to super short stories that flowed together nicely. The standouts for me here were: Jackie Boy, Halloween Worm and The Ballad of the Best Selling Author.

Overall, a very enjoyable read (listen) with some very solid shorts and some genuine “eww” moments. I look forward to reading and/or listening to more from Mr. Rolfe.