The Wages of Belief and Other Stories from the Dark Side
Elizabeth Massie
Macabre Ink (February 4, 2025)
Reviewed by Carson Buckingham
Elizabeth Massie is a Bram Stoker Award-winning author, and it isn’t hard to see why. She had a knack for seeing right through the motivations of humanity and the falls it takes for not paying attention. Her writing style is also reader-friendly and it is easy to dive right into her work.
The stories are all wonderful and follow:
“The Wages of Belief” – This novella picks up where Elizabeth Massie’s previous novel, Sineater, leaves off, but the story stands alone, if you haven’t read Sineater. This is a story about the destructiveness of blind, unthinking belief, in a small hamlet that had, and must have, a Sineater, and shows how lives can be ruined over a crazy, horrific belief that people come to worship. This story draws you in deeply right away. Brilliant.
“Cruising the Aisles” – Fauna, one of the idle rich, loses her personal shopper and her cook on the same day. Her worthless life is spent living for a soap opera, where she sends a multitude of scripts that are never acknowledged. When she decides to give grocery shopping a try, we see how disconnected she really is.
“Inside Out” – George Ricketts, a campground proprietor, finds a new way to get rid of headaches from an odd little camper. I loved this one.
“It’s in the Cards” – a self-published author attends her first sci-fi convention with her first book. She is bullied by a famous author at a nearby table, but karma is a real bitch.
“Those Who are Terrified” – Two grandparents, three children, and one fantastic ghost story. Another favorite.
“Keeping the Peace” – Be careful about teaching children that there are no exceptions to rules. Loved it.
A couple of cute horror poems—one funny and the other a clever parody of Poe’s ‘Annabel Lee’.
“Tunnel Vision” – Memories, a life ill-lived, and a kiddie train ride.
“In the Cow Pasture” – three kids decide to dig a hole to hell in a neighbor’s cow pasture.
“Stink Hole” – A story about environmental responsibility and how the Earth got tired of waiting.
You’ll want a copy of this book for your personal library. Not only is it a great first read, but will stand up nicely to re-reading. And think about Christmas and birthdays. It’s an inexpensive gift that anyone who loves horror will adore! Beautifully written.
5 out of 5 stars
