Some people tend to look down on short stories for some reason, especially stories that are based off of another fictional story. “It just comes across like glorified fan-fiction” or similar things are thrown out there by those people. “Hellbound Hearts,” though, might be able to grab and keep the attention of any of the people who love the “Hellraiser” franchise, regardless of whether or not they like short stories.
Authors, directors and illustrators came together to celebrate the long-lived franchise’s mythology. While Clive Barker, the man behind the franchise and writer of the foreword of “Hellbound Hearts,” admits that although he is the writer of the franchise, at least in part, he is not the creator of the mythology. He gives that credit to fetishists (who were the inspiration for a lot of the imagery), other artists of various forms who adapted his work into something new, and the fans, regardless of race, religion or creed.
Some of the names of the writers in the book might sound very familiar, and why not? The foreword is written by the mastermind Barker, who gives a great deal of insight on his thoughts towards the fans that made his work as prevalent as it is now. The afterword, written by a friend of Barker’s and continued fixture on the “Hellraiser” series, is a respecting letter of thanks to everyone involved (Barker, writers, directors, all the way to us readers). Then there are names like Neil Gaiman (“Neverwhere” and “Mirrormask” to name a few), Richard Christian Matheson (son of Richard Matheson and an award-winning writer himself), Peter Atkins (screenwriter for “Hellraiser II,” “Hellraiser III,” and “Hellraiser IV”) and Mick Garris (director and writer of many Stephen King-based movies and producer of “Masters of Horror”). There are multiple others, but these are probably the most recognizable names.
Just from the group that you see listed above, you might have some high expectations. Don’t worry, they won’t let you down. While you might be expecting something dead-on similar to the “Hellraiser” film series, the stories tend to follow more the literary version of Barker’s work. While the original “Hellraiser” film was closest to the source material, being directed by its writer, the rest of the franchise did take on a life of its own. These short stories are very close to the original source material, a novella titled “The Hellbound Heart,” but the writers have their own flair in that specific world.
In a way it takes on the same kind of quality of Lovecraft-based stories, simply because, even at its most understated, it creeps into the imaginations of the reader in a way where they want to write. They want to do what he does, not exactly as he does it ,but very similar. Also, much like “The Hellbound Heart,” the stories in “Hellbound Hearts” aren’t scary, but they do creep into the minds of the reader and stay. There’s just something primal and beautiful in something that should horrify us. It’s not horrifying but it is mystifying and maddening to a certain extent. That’s what makes works like these incredible.
If you’re a fan of the “Hellraiser” movies and the novella that inspired them, this book is perfect for you. Even if you just enjoy dabbling in a little bit of darkness here and there as a reader, it would still be a good buy.