Not everything that emerges in springtime is meant to come to life.
The proverbial expression “Hope springs eternal” was coined by English poet and satirist Alexander Pope, meaning people will keep on hoping, no matter the odds. But what if the odds aren’t in your favor? We decided to change the phrase into something a little more unsettling: Hope Screams Eternal.
Spring hearkens thoughts of rebirth, rejuvenation, renewal, resurrection, and regrowth. What happens when creative minds nurture a more sinister mindset, awakening twisted and nefarious interpretations of the season of eternal hope?
Authors, poets, and artists from around the globe accepted our challenge to answer that question. Within these pages, they do their best to unsettle you as they explore the dark side of spring. The seeds of doubt they sow will burrow into your subconscious, lying in wait to hatch when you least expect it.
So get cozy, settle into your comfiest seat, and relax (but don’t let down your guard!) as we bring your hopes and fears to life.
Stories, poems, and art by:
- ‘Hope Comes to Exhilaration’ © 2021 Ellen Hall
- ‘The Flames of Hope’ © 2021 Zenni Abdon
- ‘Hope Is the Thing with Feathers’ and ‘Scream’ © 2021 Fawn Allesee Russell
- ‘Hope Rekindled’ © 2021 Robin Knabel
- ‘Hope for the Future’ © 2021 Matias Travieso-Diaz
- ‘Hope from Rana-257’ © 2021 Joseph Hirsch
- ‘Hope Amid Shelves’ © 2021 Karen Lethlean
- ‘High Hopes for Hassenpfeffer’ © 2021 Caitlin Moon
- ‘hope is yellow-coloured’ © 2021 Kai Leung
- ‘The Eternal Hazard of Hope’ © 2021 John Riebow
- ‘When the Rabbit Screams’ © 2021 A.C. Grant
- ‘The Scream Series’ © 2021 Moses Ojo
- ‘Screams from the Hinterland’ © 2021 H. Dair Brown
- ‘Burning Cities, Screaming Bodies’ © 2021 Sandip Baidya
- ‘Screaming at the Moon’ © 2021 Elyse Kallen
- ‘A Murder of Screams’ © 2021 Mark McCallum
- ‘Screams from the Gallery’ © 2021 Alex Woodroe
- ‘Screams in Space’ © 2021 Nicholas Knight
- ‘Hope Screams Internal,’ ‘Hope Screams Nocturnal,’ and ‘Hoppy Screams Eternal’ © 2021 Jonathan Reddoch
- ‘Eternal Rest’ © 2021 Chris Lilienthal
- ‘The Eternal’s Hidden Queen’ © 2021 Eric Knabel
- ‘The Eternal Mr. Tremblay’ © 2021 Brian J. Smith
- ‘The Cure Eternal’ © 2021 A. Bratton
- ‘The Eternal Slumbering Terror’ © 2021 Ryan Day
- ‘Eternally, Swans’ © 2021 Ashley Winter
- ‘Eternal Wake’ © 2021 Grayson Natale
- ‘The Eternal Huntsman’ © 2021 Katherine M. McDowell
- ‘Eternal Spring’ © 2021 Alex Carpenter
- ‘Eternal Victory Aboard the Mammon’ © 2021 Linda McMullen
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Unsettling Reads, founded by fiction authors H. Dair Brown and Robin Knabel, offers spoiler-free reviews and recommendations on books from the Crime, Fantasy, Horror, Literary, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Suspense, and Thriller genres. And just to keep things spicy, they throw in the occasional author interview.
If you’re contemplating picking up Hope Screams Eternal, you probably enjoy books that make you check for monsters under the bed before you go to sleep. Let Robin and Dair help you decide what to read the next time you’re ready to sink down into the “safety” of your blankets and crack open the kind of book that will make you shudder (and maybe even think) a little.
★ They love to interact with fellow readers and authors on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook (@unsettlingreads). That’s where the truly unsettling stuff usually happens.
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