We Bleed Red & green By Jeff C. Carter

Two stories truly stood out in this collection. In “Turnspit Thomas”, a young inventor uses his creations to foil a land baron who set a hell hound upon him. At seven pages, this is the longest story in the collection and the extra pages allow it to have the depth and detail some of the shorter pieces lack. It has a timeless quality, reading like traditional folklore – with a young man on a journey, quick-thinking to vanquish a foe, and the customary neat and tidy ending. Although this piece was my favorite in the collection (and probably my favorite short story by Carter in both anthologies), it did lack a close connection to the Christmas theme of the other tales.

“He Spoke Not a Word” was the other story that stayed with me long after I read it. In it, Santa visits the house of a recently deceased woman and honors her memory. It is touching rather than scary, but masterfully blends the macabre with the sentimental. At only a page long, it introduces a heartfelt concept of how this magical being can remember us, even when the rest of the world may forget. I had not expected to cry from this anthology, but the story hit a nerve and served as a powerful ending to the book.

Overall, the book is a fun read and full of interesting premises. I would, however, have liked more depth and detail in the stories. They are all just a little too short to fully immerse yourself in them, but they certainly spark the imagination and are worth reading. This book will be one I pull out to get me into the Christmas spirit in future years.