City Threads - Shop now
Kindle Unlimited
Unlimited reading. Over 4 million titles. Learn more
Read for Free
OR
$2.99 with 67 percent savings
Print List Price: $8.99

Promotions apply when you purchase

These promotions will be applied to this item:

Some promotions may be combined; others are not eligible to be combined with other offers. For details, please see the Terms & Conditions associated with these promotions.

Sold by Amazon.com Services LLC.
Read with our free app
You've subscribed to ! We will preorder your items within 24 hours of when they become available. When new books are released, we'll charge your default payment method for the lowest price available during the pre-order period.
Update your device or payment method, cancel individual pre-orders or your subscription at
Your Memberships & Subscriptions
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

Follow the author

Mark Cassell
Follow
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

Sinister Stitches - a collection of short horror stories: Supernatural and paranormal Kindle Edition

by Mark Cassell (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.0 out of 5 stars 16 ratings

A darkness surrounds us, even with the lights on.


Twelve horror stories weave truths you do not want to hear.

This collection hosts standalone terror tales, but also introduces us to the best-selling Shadow Fabric Mythos. For those already familiar with cosmic horrors, it can be seen as a companion book to sit beside those ancient weapons against the dark arts and the deceiving entities from beneath and beyond.

Twelve stories, including:
  • Intensive Scare – Three teenagers dabble in the occult and learn there's a good reason to be afraid of the dark.
  • Red, White and Black – When a clinical trial goes horribly wrong, a lone survivor finds herself fleeing from a sentient infection.
  • Meeting Mum – Introducing a new girlfriend to your parents has never been so problematic.
  • Midnight Clay – An otherwise pleasant homeward journey is interrupted by a demon with a particularly grotesque skill.

And other scary tales...

Each story binds the Shadow Fabric mythos tighter, revealing that everything around us is entwined with a deep-rooted darkness. And sometimes that darkness — the fabric — tears.

What the reviewers say.


"As stated in the synopsis, Sinister Stitches is a comprehensive elaboration on the Shadow Fabric mythos. The expertly written stories gruesomely expound on the histories and happenings that take place in the novels The Shadow Fabric and Hell Cat of the Holt, taking the reader outside of those books in a concentric circle of the Shadow Fabric’s influence in the greater world. I personally found “Meeting Mum” to be the most horrific of the stories, although not the most graphic. This particular story has distinctly horrific content.

It is written so well that one might be desirous of flinging the book across the room, not advisable with a kindle but my paperback survived the impulse with minimal damage. “Next on the List” and “On the Vine” are neck and neck for shock factor. These two are short and shocking and might prompt verbal exclamation. “Disturbed,” being among the longer of the short stories herein, is the most comprehensive of the Shadow Fabric mythos, horrifically connecting dots and answering questions from the original novels. “Seeing is Believing” is a haunting and slightly graphic prose.

Each of the stories is unique and uniquely written, bringing its own stitching to the Shadow Fabric. But, my personal favorite is “Welcome Home.” This story takes a real-life horror and stitches it into The Shadow Fabric. Well written, it almost flows like a novella in spite of how short it is. This one will stay with me and I may never vacation again.

If one is curious about the Shadow Fabric, these stories have the stand-alone power to lure one in, darkly vivid in their own right. Return to the Shadow Fabric mythos or sample the genius of Mark Cassell for the first time. This beautiful horror story collection is a must read."

- Amazon reviewer
Read more
Previous slide of product details
  1. Print length
    136 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Accessibility
    Learn more
  4. Publication date
    October 31, 2015
  5. File size
    7.0 MB
  6. Page Flip
    Enabled
  7. Word Wise
    Enabled
  8. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
Next slide of product details
Unwell Hydration from Alex Cooper
Hydrate & focus with every sip Shop now

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Mark Cassell lives in a rural part of the UK where he often dreams of dystopian futures, peculiar creatures, and flitting shadows. Primarily a horror writer, his steampunk, dark fantasy, and SF stories have featured in several anthologies and ezines. His best-selling debut novel, The Shadow Fabric, is closely followed by the popular short story collection, Sinister Stitches, and are both only a fraction of an expanding mythos of demons, devices, and deceit.

The dystopian sci-fi short story collection, Chaos Halo 1.0: Alpha Beta Gamma Kill, is in association with Future Chronicles Photography where he works closely with their models and cosplayers.

His work has been compared with British horror authors such as James Herbert, Clive Barker, Dennis Wheatley, and Brian Lumley. Also, his influences spread over to the US where he admits to having been first inspired by Dean Koontz, Stephen King, Dan Simmons, and H P Lovecraft.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0136AB6XK
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Herbs House
  • Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ October 31, 2015
  • Edition ‏ : ‎ 1st
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 7.0 MB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 136 pages
  • Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.0 out of 5 stars 16 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Mark Cassell

Mark Cassell

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Mark Cassell lives on the south-east coast of the United Kingdom with his wife and many animals. His jobs have included baker, lab technician, driving instructor, actor, and was once a spotlight operator for an Elvis Presley impersonator.

As the author of the best-selling Shadow Fabric mythos, he’s written under several pen names with over 150 stories published in magazines and anthologies. Though his passion remains embedded in dark fantasy and horror, he’s written steampunk, fantasy and sci-fi, and regularly crosses the blurry lines between genres.

Most recently he’s seen publication in the children’s market. In particular, a Would You Rather game book series that has proven popular, and a successful range of pirate activity books. Mark often says how the “Pirate Thing” is a latent interest that will always astonish him.

A proud addition to his bibliography is through Caffeine Nights Publishing with the horror novel, Parasite Crop. Since signing that contract, he remains humbled in the knowledge he now shares the same publisher as one of his literary heroes from the late-1980s, a bygone time when he sneakily read novels at the back of school classrooms.

Incidentally, Mark never got caught.

~

More about the author can be found at www.MarkCassell.co.uk

Customer reviews

4 out of 5 stars
16 global ratings

Review this product

Share your thoughts with other customers
Write a customer review

Top reviews from the United States

  • Mike St
    5.0 out of 5 stars Keeps you wanting that next stitch.
    Reviewed in the United States on November 27, 2015
    Verified Purchase
    Sinister Stitches is a collection. As such questions of pace, character development and an over all plot of the book isn't exactly the best. But that's Amazon's issue. If you want a collection of quick reads, some that will leave you thinking, others that will leave your imagination flowing.. Then Sinister Stitches is the book for you.

    Old men, young boys, maids and maidens sometimes evil, sometimes good, sometimes possessed by evil, and sometimes given to good. All of which can be found in the various stories within. The best parts for me has been that the stories are various lengths some shorter than others and so a few minutes is well rewarded with a shiver, or a thought that keeps you going till your next stitch.
    Helpful
     Report
  • Mike Wolff
    4.0 out of 5 stars A Great Collection
    Reviewed in the United States on February 12, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    Sinister Stitches is an excellent collection of short stories by an aspiring author. I was first introduced to the author when I read his novel The Shadow Fabric. I was hooked. The talent that was clearly visible within that first book has spilled over into this collection. Cassell has a great ability to weave a tale that is full of suspense mixed with a bit of blood and gore. I enjoyed reading each short in this collection, though many of them seemed to end the same. I don't feel this is a negative though, as the collection is clearly based on the Shadow Fabric mythos he has created. Even with similar end results, each story was entertaining on their own. I highly recommend this collection to the fan of blood, gore, slimey black ooze, horror and terror.
    4.25 of 5 Stars (rounds to 4)
    Helpful
     Report
  • S. Herbert
    5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific collection of short stories sure to keep you awake ...
    Reviewed in the United States on November 29, 2015
    Verified Purchase
    Terrific collection of short stories sure to keep you awake at night! My personal favorite is Red, White, and Black. If you've ever thought about participating in a clinical trial, Red, White, and Black is likely to push that thought right out of your mind. Do yourself a favor and pick up a copy today.
    One person found this helpful
    Helpful
     Report
  • PenguinMommy
    5.0 out of 5 stars Creepy Collection
    Reviewed in the United States on January 11, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    Great collection of interwoven dark stories. I'll never look at mushrooms the same way again. Atmospheric horror at its best.
    Helpful
     Report
  • MarkMJ Green
    5.0 out of 5 stars It's 03:33 and I awoke at my keyboard having typed this review.
    Reviewed in the United States on February 28, 2018
    Having read and thoroughly enjoyed Mark Cassel’s novel The Shadow Fabric, it was pretty much a done deal that I was going to pick up Sinister Stitches; a collection of short stories in The Shadow Fabric Mythos.

    Now initially I did think that ‘mythos’ was too grand a word for something that was essentially one novel and a collection of short stories that have been printed online or in other short story collections; however, once I started reading the book it all made sense and I realised that mythos was actually an accurate word after all, as the tales contained within Sinister Stitches are more than just mere spin-offs as they expand on the original story and each one of the tales is linked in some way or another to the legend or the mythos if you will, of The Shadow Fabric.

    Reading The Shadow Fabric before reading Sinister Stitches isn’t essential as these are stand-alone tales, however I would recommend it to get the best enjoyment from the stories and to have a better understanding of exactly what is going on. Sure, you’ll get the overall theme that binds (stitches?) them all together but you’ll appreciate them much more when you have a broader view of the mythos (there’s that word again) from having read The Shadow Fabric. At the very least if you read Sinister Stitches first and enjoy it, then I would recommend that you then purchase The Shadow Fabric to broaden the tale and expand on the universe (see how I avoided using ‘mythos’ again).

    Be aware though that some of the stories are very short indeed and I know that is not to everyone’s taste. In fact the longest story runs at just over 20 pages in length, and one of the shortest which is only a mere 4 pages actually contains 3 short stories with each one being just over a page in length.
    Personally I don’t mind this, but as I said; I know that this may not be to everyone’s taste.
    Still, as they apparently say when trying to put in a cheap innuendo; ‘it’s not the size that matters,’ and the quality of the stories contained within are very good indeed.

    If you’ve read The Shadow Fabric then you might be pleased to hear that Leo makes a return in The Artist and the Crone, and there are plenty of other little references in the other stories that you will pick up on too.
    I can’t pick a favourite story as I enjoyed them all equally, although Meeting Mum made me chuckle when Derek’s main concern over what’s happened to his girlfriend (you’ll have to read it to find out what I’m talking about as I’m not giving away any spoilers) was mainly focused on how he couldn’t let his mother see her in the condition she was in, rather than call for an ambulance.

    If I had one tiny gripe it would be that I wanted to read more and found myself wishing there more stories simply because I was enjoying them so much. Actually I do have a second gripe and that’s that I still want to know what happened in the past between Victor and Lucas that they were alluding to in The Shadow Fabric.

    If you’re looking for a collection of horror stories that are well written, have their own unique style and have a theme that stitches (yes I’m trying to be clever again) them all together, then you really can’t go wrong with Sinister Stitches.
    And if your alarm clock should happen to go off at 03:33, then don’t worry about it…I’m sure it’s nothing; after all, they’re just stories right?
    Helpful
     Report
  • Adrian Shotbolt
    4.0 out of 5 stars Well-written and a very solid collection.
    Reviewed in the United States on March 13, 2016
    Mark Cassell has created his own mythos in the shadow fabric. This collection of flash fiction and short stories stems from the mythos. Mark is clearly a talented writer. He wears his influences proudly and the stories here are well written and well edited. The first half of the book was particularly enjoyable with stories of creeping shadows, demons and witches brought to life with Cassells's descriptive words. Why only 3.5 stars? My issue with the collection was with the over reliance on the creeping shadows and black goo stemming from the various characters. As I headed towards the finish I found the stories to become a little repetitive. Mark can clearly write, but I'd really like to see him be a little more adventurous with his stories in future. 3.5 stars for a solid collection of mythos horror.
    Helpful
     Report
  • Bonnie Racki
    4.0 out of 5 stars Four Stars
    Reviewed in the United States on March 2, 2016
    I loved this book! Mark Cassell is such an awesome writer!
    Helpful
     Report
  • Bobbers Mom
    5.0 out of 5 stars Scary collection! Beware of the mushrooms.........
    Reviewed in the United States on March 8, 2018
    I really enjoy short story collections. I do a lot of my reading in bed, at night, before I fall asleep. But this collection kept me reading way later than I usually put my Kindle aside! Clinical trials ....YIKES! I am a new fan, and am thinking of trying more works from this author. You must try one of his books, if they are half as good as Sinister Stitches, you'll be hooked!
    Helpful
     Report

Top reviews from other countries

  • Adrian Shotbolt
    3.0 out of 5 stars 3.5 stars.
    Reviewed in Australia on November 15, 2015
    Verified Purchase
    Mark Cassell has created his own mythos in the shadow fabric. This collection of flash fiction and short stories stems from the mythos. Mark is clearly a talented writer. He wears his influences proudly and the stories here are well written and well edited. The first half of the book was particularly enjoyable with stories of creeping shadows, demons and witches brought to life with Cassells's descriptive words. Why only 3.5 stars? My issue with the collection was with the over reliance on the creeping shadows and black goo stemming from the various characters. As I headed towards the finish I found the stories to become a little repetitive. Mark can clearly write, but I'd really like to see him be a little more adventurous with his stories in future. 3.5 stars for a solid collection of mythos horror.
    Report
  • Captain snaggletooth
    5.0 out of 5 stars For all those who are afraid of the dark.
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 10, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    This is a great follow on collection of 12 short scribblings with one bonus story from the universe that the Author created in his first Horror Novel The Shadow Fabric.
    It's a very light expansion too and I find it suits me when I am having a small break from the world and need a distraction.
    The stories are sometimes just limited to a few pages up to one which is about twenty. .
    One of them involves the main character from his first novel but the rest are other unconnected hapless humans.
    My favourite story so far is titled On The Vine.
    I won't spoil the surprise, but it might not be a good idea reading that story when you are out camping.
    Report
  • M Aldeburgh
    4.0 out of 5 stars Dancing with the Shadow Fabric
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 22, 2017
    Verified Purchase
    I was taken by the novel, The Shadow Fabric, some time ago, and to be honest it never really left me, so I was keen to delve into more darkness and experience some more. My favourites in this collection were:

    The Artist & The Crone - a return to the MC in the novel, with a superb ending;
    Meeting Mum - a whole different way of introducing your girlfriend to your mum;
    Disturbed - a tale which gave the potential for more depth and back story to the Shadow Fabric.

    Mark Cassell likes things to get dark and gory, and they certainly do in these tales, but occasionally it would have been nice to break away from the shadows and find a new approach into the darkness, if only to offset the risk of repetition.

    An enjoyable read I would definitely recommend to those that like things to get dark and a little messy. Horror writing at its best.
    Report

Report an issue


Does this item contain inappropriate content?
Report
Do you believe that this item violates a copyright?
Report
Does this item contain quality or formatting issues?
Report