Naughty imps, missing socks, cunning thieves and baffled gods feature in this collection of short fantasy fiction. Winner of the 2018 Best Fantasy on NN Light Book Heaven
Dark tales of ghosts of war, blood from the Autumn of Terror, the wrath of nature, an unusual murder and a cynical vampire. Twisted poetry of loss and mayhem. Some adult themes and language. Winner of the NN Light Best Short Story Category 2021
A dozen tumultuous years after the dramatic events at the Paris Opera House Raoul, Comte de Chagny is still haunted by the mysterious Opera Ghost – the creature of legend who held staff at the Opera House under his thrall, kidnapped Raoul’s lover and murdered his brother. In Raoul’s troubled imagination the ghosts of the past are everywhere, and strange and powerful music still calls in his dreams. Madness, obsession and the legacy of the past weave their spell in this short, tragic tale based on the Phantom of the Opera.
The year is 1888, and the place is Whitechapel, in the very heart of London. But the heart is bleeding. A mysterious killer is stalking women of the streets - his true name is unknown, but his legend will go down in history. This is a short tale of Jack the Ripper. 18 rated for scenes of violence.
When a young nurse accepts a job at a former military hospital, she unearths a family secret and finds the spectral occupants a little too familiar. A short ghost story.
This collection brings together five different fantasy tales. The Last – Terrorized by the thought of death, a man lets himself be contaminated by vampirism to prolong his life indefinitely. However, when Hell and Heaven’s legions face each other in the ultimate battle, he becomes the last human being on Earth. Will he let himself be dragged peacefully into one of the afterlife kingdoms? Sasabonsam – During the War of Guinea, a group of Guinean guerrilla fighters bring down a Portuguese airplane. When investigating the wreck, they discover not only that the pilot survived, but also that he isn't human. Intellectual, one of the guerrilla fighters, is forced to face the monster, as well as the tribalism that infects the minds of his comrades. The Castle – Thomas gets a last minute invitation from his cousin Michael to Christmas dinner. But Michael's motives are darker than Thomas could have ever imagined. Susan – After a short and awful life, Susan faces death. Recalling her days on earth, she tries to deduce to which of the postmortem kingdoms she will be sent. However, her final destination reveals itself as surprising in more than one way. A Literary Quest – In his search for rare books, Cirio finds the elusive bookstore of Mormont, the location of which changes constantly, but is said to contain some volumes almost impossible to find. However, even after everything he went through to get there, will Cirio's quest be completed?
Deep in the walls of a witches' cottage lays an ancient magical kitchen. Dangling over that kitchen's cauldron, pinched between the fingers of two witches, is a toad. And the Toad has no idea how she got there, and no memory of even her name. All she knows is she doesn't think she was always a Toad, or that she's ever been here before. Determined to recover her memories she sets out on a journey to the oracle, and along the way picks up a rag-tag team of friends: an iron-handed imp, a carnivorous fairy, and a few friendly locals. But the Kitchen won't make it easy. It is pitch black, infinite, and impossible to navigate, a living maze. Hiding in dark corners are beastly, starving things. Worse yet are the Witches themselves, who have sent a procession of horrific, deadly monsters on her trail. With some courage and wisdom, the Toad just might find herself yet-and with that knowledge, the power to defeat the mighty Witches. Filled with forty stunning pencil illustrations from the author, the Witches' Kitchen is a rich, well-imagined fantasy setting unlike any other.