Book excerpt: 4 out of 5 stars, “Canny and thought provoking” San Francisco review of books “A Standout, frequently profound story collection” Kirkus Reviews of Vincent Macraven’s collection of short stories, “A Diverse Gathering” Unsettling was unsettling, in the best way possible. There were a few times throughout the book that I actually had to put it down for fear of nightmares. Macraven takes the innards of our souls and hangs them out there for us to see, bloody and dripping. The images are disturbing and real and the storytelling is horror fiction at its finest. In Where the Dead Dwell, we visit the most haunted of houses, alive in its own evil. In Watching Black Mountain, the reader is introduced to a charismatic leader, a man with true belief in his own God-like abilities. His pride will leave you breathless. Finally, in The Devil Incarnate, a detective is faced with the murder victims he has failed at the hands of a much larger, much scarier force. These stories will entrance you and keep you up at night, willing you to face the demons in our world. Sarah Ghoshal