Cheapskate Bill starts small, but somehow none of his curses work out quite the way he hoped, and Denise emerges from every disaster smelling more and more like a rose. The site promises to lay any kind of curse, small or large, on anyone you choose. So it seems like a dream come true when Bill goes online and discovers a link to "Curses, Inc." in his Services menu. Bill is put-upon and decides that he wants revenge on Denise for turning the whole school against him. Not only that, Denise's friends and Bill's alike are disgusted with his cheapskate ways, and they are not shy about showing their contempt. He abruptly and callously breaks their date after Denise has already bought her dress, and she is furious. Bill has invited Denise to the school's end of the year dance, but decides to spend the money for the dance on video games instead. Vande Velde expertly mixes horror and humor as well as the best and worst that human nature has to offer in this collection of short fiction, and she does it without relying on blood and guts.The best of these stories is the title piece.
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