The Bell...FROM HELL!!! By: Jeff Strand Star Rating:

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Synopsis

Howie owns a cheap plastic bell, which he claims was forged in hell and will summon Satan himself if rung 666 times. He has no real designs on using it unless he can come up with a way to destroy Satan once he's summoned. But when one of his skeptical co-workers pokes a little too much fun, Howie can't resist giving the bell a try to prove that's he's telling the truth.

Review

"The Bell...FROM HELL!!!" is an extremely short story of only about ten pages. I guess I would probably categorize it as urban fantasy even though nothing of a paranormal or fantastical nature actually occurs within it. This one is about a guy named Howie, who owns a bell, which he claims was forged by Satan and can be used to summon the Prince of Darkness by ringing it 666 times. Needless to say, all of his co-workers are skeptical of his assertions. Considering himself to be a good guy, Howie doesn't plan to use the bell's power until he's figured out a way to destroy Satan, but when one of his co-workers needles him a little too much, Howie can't resist proving that he's telling the truth.

This was a rather cute, maybe even slightly whimsical story. Given its brevity, there isn't a whole lot to it, but it does contain a positive message about not letting bullies make you do something you might regret. Thanks to a twist at the end, we don't really learn whether Howie's bell is indeed from hell, but I appreciated that the story wasn't as dark, nor as thoroughly weird as some of the other stories in the Blood Lite anthology where it's found. It also made me smile, which is a plus.

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Jeff Strand