Today is Wednesday, March 30th, 2022. Only a few days left in the week, and only a few stories left to showcase. We’ve had a lot of fun, this month, reading these authors, and showing off the CHROMOPHOBIA table of contents. Had to believe we only have TWO stories left! Promo for the upcoming anthology doesn’t stop at the end of the week, though.
We still have to give you a look at the fabulous introduction by editor Sara Tantlinger, interior art exclusive to the hardcover edition, back cover art, and in a few months time we will also debut Don Noble’s cover art for the trade paperback!
Until then, you can pre-order the special hardcover edition of CHROMOPHOBIA HERE.
Today’s story:
“Five Stars”
by J.B. Lamping
An excerpt:
He looked like the first bite of ice cream on a summer night, and she wanted him immediately. He had soft brown curls with swirls of caramel highlights. She couldn’t help but smile when a chocolate lock fell in front of his eye.
She got a drink at the bar, then did her best to look lonely and appealing. Within minutes he made eye contact. She grinned sheepishly and looked down at her drink. Soon he was at her side, leaning in close to ask her name. Thirty minutes later they were stumbling out to a cab, taking a short ride to a place he’d never leave.
#
Tito’s Bar ★★★★☆
Had the best brownie sundae here! The brownie was soft and warm, even after I got it home. Ice cream was smooth and velvety; the perfect Friday night snack. Can’t wait to go back and try something new.
#
Three drinks in and she still hadn’t seen anything worth her time. She was in the mood for something fruity. There were a few guys that might have piqued her interest on any other day. A man with golden blond hair and a warm smile, like the perfect slice of yellow butter cake. Across the bar from him, sat a tanned man with light brown hair. Plain cheesecake, she thought to herself.
Finally, she saw him. He was leaning against the wall, with short dark hair and impossibly pale skin. He looked up at her, his piercing blue eyes stirring up a hunger she hadn’t felt in weeks. Lemon blueberry cupcakes.
He watched her approach, smiling as she got closer. They sized each other up for a few moments before he leaned in and whispered, “Your place or mine?”
“Mine.”
“Five Stars” by J.B. Lamping falls into the territory of “fun” horror. A narrative marriage of seemingly innocent online reviews with much more sinister couplings. It’s kind of like if you were to stumble upon one of those recipe pages that tells a person’s life story, only to find out that you are the main course. A much “lighter” short than many of the titles in CHROMOPHOBIA‘s table of contents, but a clever and entertaining story. Horror and humor are, after all, closely related.
J.B. Lamping is an up-and-coming writer in the horror community. We look forward to whatever twists and turns and fun subversions she cooks up next. Lamping doesn’t have a website but you can follow her on Twitter HERE.
Want to read the previous CHROMOPHOBIA showcases? Click a title:
“Hei Xian (The Black Thread)” by Frances Lu-Pai Ippolito
“Eat Your Colors” by Sonora Taylor
“Toxic Shock” by Chelsea Pumpkins
“Red Light/Green Light” by EV Knight
“Golden Hour” by Kathryn E. McGee
“The Dyer and the Dressmakers” by Bindia Persaud
“The Copper Lady” by Jaye Wells
“Gray Rock Method” by Lauren C. Teffeau
“Double Happiness” by Geneve Flynn
“The Color of Friendship” by KC Grifant
“The Oasis” by Christa Wojciechowski
“Greetings from Sunny Daytona Beach!” by Christine Makepeace
“From These Cold Murky Depths” by K.P. Kulski
Burn the Witch (Red) by Lillah Lawson
“Hope in Her Devouring” By Tiffany Morris
Pre-order the special hardcover edition of CHROMOPHOBIA HERE.
Check out part four of editor Sara Tantlinger’s CHROMOPHOBIA roundtable HERE.
