If you were to ask me why I enjoyed this collection of short stories so much it would be because after only sampling a few of the tales contained therein I got the distinct impression that Ed Kurtz dictates what his imagination writes. You might argue that this is a talent all authors enjoy, but I’d beg to differ. It’s no easy feat to take that spark of an idea, entertain and nourish the notion, then transcribe those very thoughts to page in a semblance to how each lastly existed within the mind’s eye, but Kurtz appears to have mastered that craft. He’s a storyteller who treats his readers not as some faceless entity but a companion to share, scare and shock with old yarns of terror and suspense. Read “Corpse Lights”, Wolves”, “Red Animal” or “Deathless” and regardless of your surroundings while reading suddenly you’ll be transported to some rustic campsite out in the middle of nowhere with the night sky twinkling above as logs in a fire pit crackle and spit flames while Kurtz gives life to the shadows all around. Or maybe it’s some seedy bar you picture yourself seated in, an hour before last call, where time is measured by the number of cigarette butts discarded in an ashtray and there’s Kurtz stoking the dark tethers of a nightmare that will only find fruition after you’ve long fallen into a deep slumber. “Blood They Brought” is that window into the mind of a genuine author of horror, a superb collection of the macabre with a narrator who truly relishes sharing tales of terror. So, grab yourself a copy, settle in with a drink and let Kurtz invoke some good, old-fashioned fear.