What is your opinion?
thrilling
"You touch on the kind of fear that is within all of us, the deep subconscious fears that are kindled within childhood and somehow stay with us, even though logic trumps them as we grow older. Very very well done, I couldn't stop reading."
Alexxxx
"Holy hell, that took a turn I did not expect, The writing style here is incredible - easily my favorite part of this story. Short sentences used extremely well to build up tension. Descriptions are unique and vivid. The descriptions of running also made me feel like I was actually the one running, breathing in, breathing out, feeling the burn... Very, very well done. That said, some of the running descriptions near the middle of the story felt a little drawn out, and maybe took away from the tension built up in the beginning. Docked grammar points for confusion of laying/lying ("I always felt as if I were laying on an island...") and its/it's ("...wake up, sweetheart. Its time to go outside..."). Everything else looked great. Plot would be a solid 5/5 except I didn't understand why the cottage or "Mother" were in there...but the ambiguity did add to some of the creepiness. I loved the dual meaning of the title. The creature's dialogue was flawlessly frightening, and my other favorite feature of this. Loved, LOVED the eerie rhymes. Actually, the "animal" was just horrifying in general. And again, the amazing writing style is what kept me locked in to the end. Altogether very nice! If you have a chance, I would love a review on a short horror story of mine, also a "creature" piece: http://www.inkitt.com/stories/19224 PLEASE keep writing! You have talent!"
Nightmare Fuel
"Terrifying does not quite do this piece justice. As a rule, I don't read (or watch) much from the horror genre, and this story is exactly the reason why. The overall pacing is handled extremely well, shifting from short, abrupt phrasing to build tension, to the longer, more descriptive lines that give you chills. The stump (in both sense) serves as a reminder of those imaginary boundaries that keep us safe from irrational childhood fears. The dialogue of the creature itself is potent fuel for nightmares, delivering disturbing threats with a whimsical tone that makes you certain it likes to play with its food, and there will be no quick escape. In contrast, I think the description of the actual chase and attack could have been stronger. The tension that was established early on began to fade, and even during the creature's munching and crunching, I wanted to worry more about Alex's survival."
Good Effort
"The story was compelling and it had a lot of energy. I felt throughout that the narrator was female, but there was no clear indication anywhere. The sensitivity and intelligence of thoughts suggested a feminine narrator, though. The horror of the animal on the stump was very real and I felt really scared as I breathlessly rushed through the narration of the pursuit. The creature's association with Alex was downright disgusting. I was left nauseated by the animal's description of how it sucked young Alex's pee in bed. The creature's desire for Alex was not very well described, I'm afraid. The process of eating the leg was gruesome, but much more accessible to the readers. I was able to feel Alex's pain as my own. There was a lot of confusion left for us in the end. Alex sums it up too: The cottage, Mother, and the creature's voice sounding like her mother's. What does it all mean? Perhaps the next chapters will shed some light on this. The ending was very beautiful, containing the best thought of the narrative. The connection of the stump in the forest to Alex's stump of a leg wasn't immediately apparent to me, which speaks of its subtlety. The creature's horrific presence and the importance of its teeth were alluded to as well. The grammar and punctuation was satisfactory. I would love to read more of this story."
