 Suffer Little Children is part of the Black Shuck Shadows range - slim, novella length volumes that collect a small number of single author short stories in often themed collections. The theme of Jones’ collection is, as the title implies, children and parenthood. It’s a subject area rife for horror, dealing as it does in elemental matters of human emotion and vulnerability. Jones navigates the territory with considerable skill, producing six short stories that have a range of styles and voices that explore the theme from a variety of angles.  Beneath Still Waters is a stunning study of parental guilt and the fallout of tragedy. Using a series of vignettes, the narrative gradually peels back the layers of a marriage in a state of slow collapse. It’s emotionally intelligent writing, and a pittyless study of the impact of guilt and PTSD on a relationship. The Changeling feels in some ways a development of the themes of the first story; as the lead character is increasingly forced to confront an impossible possibility; that his child is not his child. This is a theme that dates back to antiquity, and Jones plays it straight, bringing the narrative to a modern setting and then just letting it play out. I loved how this tale walked the line between reality and unreality, using perspective ruthlessly to prevent the possibility of giving the tale an objective conclusion. Swansong takes on similar ground, but from the POV of an older sibling. Jones nails the voice of the young narrator here, and that child’s perspective gives events a sinister edge. Jones plays out the tension of the tale superbly, and I was carried along, engaged but unsure where things were going, until the gut punch lands on the final page. Swimming Out To Sea was my favourite of the collection - another first person character piece, this time a teenager whose banal fury at her parents leads her to swim out just a bit farther than is wise on a beach holiday. What I especially enjoyed about this one was how the essentially mundane horror of finding oneself suddenly too far out from the shore slowly transforms into something wilder and more strange, all the while preserving the core voice of the narrator. An accomplished short horror story with a strong narrative voice and an incredible sense of atmosphere. It’s Not Just How Beautiful They Are is a lovely tight, nasty tale that does a fantastic job of misdirection before totally flipping the script in the final page. Brilliance. Waxing closes out the collection in strong fashion, with a harrowing tale from the point of view of a child recently removed from a cult. Never breaking out, we see the world entirely through this paranoid lens, and the documentation of how the child’s love and tenacity have been weaponized against her is powerful and emotionally punishing, and a fine way to close out this collection. Suffer Little Children is a superb collection; diverse in both voice and story type, thoughtful, and emotionally intelligent and resonant. Penny Jones is one to watch. KP 12/10/19   Comments are closed.
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