Best of
Gothic-Horror

2012

Dark Tales of Lost Civilizations


Eric J. GuignardRob Rosen - 2012
    Tread not lightly on ancient lands that have been discovered by this collection of intrepid authors. In DARK TALES OF LOST CIVILIZATIONS, you will unearth an anthology of twenty-five previously unpublished horror and speculative fiction stories, relating to aspects of civilizations that are crumbling, forgotten, rediscovered, or perhaps merely spoken about in great and fearful whispers. What is it that lures explorers to distant lands where none have returned? Where is Genghis Khan buried? What happened to Atlantis? Who will displace mankind on Earth? What laments have the Witches of Oz? Answers to these mysteries and other tales are presented within this critically acclaimed anthology by the enclosed authors. TABLE OF CONTENTS: Introduction by Eric J. Guignard Angel of Destruction by Cynthia D. Witherspoon The Door Beyond the Water by David Tallerman To Run a Stick Through a Fish by Mark Lee Pearson Quivira by Jackson Kuhl Directions by Michael G. Cornelius Quetzalcoatl's Conquistador by Jamie Lackey Königreich der Sorge (Kingdom of Sorrow) by C. Deskin Rink Gestures of Faith by Fadzlishah Johanabas Bare Bones by Curtis James McConnell British Guiana, 1853 by Folly Blaine The Nightmare Orchestra by Chelsea Armstrong The Funeral Procession by Jay R. Thurston Requiem by Jason Andrew Gilgamesh and the by Mountain by Bruce L. Priddy Buried Treasure by Rob Rosen The Small, Black God by Caw Miller In Eden by Cherstin Holtzman We Are Not the Favored Children by Matthew Borgard Rebirth in Dreams by A.J. French Whale of a Time by Gitte Christensen Sins of our Fathers by Wendra Chambers The Talisman of Hatra by Andrew S. Williams Sumeria to the Stars by Jonathan Vos Post The Tall Grass by Joe R. Lansdale The Island Trovar by JC Hemphill (with interior illustration by Ron Perovich)BLURB: "Bright new voices offer chilling glimpses of the darkness beyond mere night." -David Brin, author of Earth, The Postman, and Otherness.

The Big Book of Ghost Stories


Otto Penzler - 2012
    Here, Edgar Award-winning editor Otto Penzler has followed his keen sense of the supernatural to collect the most chilling and uncanny tales in the canon. These spectral stories span more than a hundred years, from modern-day horrors by Joyce Carol Oates, Chet Williamson and Andrew Klavan, to pulp yarns from August Derleth, Greye La Spina, and M. L. Humphreys, to the atmospheric Victorian tales of Rudyard Kipling, Edith Wharton, and H. P. Lovecraft, not to mention modern works by the likes of Donald E. Westlake and Isaac Asimov that are already classics. Some of these stories have haunted the canon for a century, while others are making their first ghoulish appearance  in book form.  Whether you prefer possessive poltergeists, awful apparitions, or friendly phantoms, these stories are guaranteed to thrill you, tingle the spine, or tickle the funny bone, and keep you turning the pages with fearful delight.Including such classics as “The Monkey’s Paw” and “The Open Window” and eerie vintage illustrations, and also featuring haunted mansions, midnight frights, lovers from beyond the grave, rapping, tapping, wailing shades, and ghosts, ghouls, and specters galore! AlsoFeaturing haunted mansions, midnight frights, lovers from beyond the grave, rapping, tapping, wailing shades, and ghosts, ghouls, and specters galore!

Whispers on Shadow Bay


Raquel Byrnes - 2012
    She is enticed by hope in the arms of the dark and brooding Simon Hale, but people keep dying at Shadow Bay Hall, and Rosetta hears something in the walls.Simon Hale finds the reclusive Rosetta both beautiful and intriguing, but when she seeks out the truth behind Shadow Bay Hall’s unexplained happenings, he is torn between hope for the future and his need to protect a dangerous secret.With dark forces determined to keep truth at bay, Rosetta and Simon fight to uncover lies that imprison the island with fear. His wife’ death, tangled memories, a Romany feud; Rosetta must decide if she is strong enough to discover what’s behind The Whispers on Shadow Bay.

The Haunting at Blackwood Hall


Barrymore Tebbs - 2012
    Nine-year-old Alice Fenn communicates only through her music. Jonathan Fenn and his sister Judith guard a terrifying family secret. The servants refuse to discuss the mysterious disappearance of a former governess. A drawing room séance attempts to make contact with the spirit of Elizabeth Blackwood. And when a diabolic madman holds the residents of Blackwood Hall hostage to an insidious reign of terror, governess Claire Ashby finds herself in a living nightmare of drug addiction, pagan rituals, and murder. In the tradition of the great Gothic Romances, The Haunting at Blackwood Hall is a thrilling ghost story brimming with bold new twists on the beloved conventions of a bygone era: drawing room seances, rumors of witchcraft, phantom lights in the abbey ruins, mysterious piano music in the night, and plenty of inclement weather. Perfect reading for chilly autumn nights.

The Devil's Coattails


Jason V. Brock - 2012
    Features all original material from a great group of writers, masters and new talents a like: Ramsey Campbell, Jason V Brock, Dan O'Bannon, John Shirley, William F. Nolan, Melanie Tem, Jerry E. Airth, J. Brundage, James Robert Smith, Norman Corwin, Steve Rasnic Tem, R. C. Matheson, Earl Hamner, Sunni K Brock, Nancy Kilpatrick, Paul J. Salamoff, Marc Scott Zicree, W. H. Pugmire & Maryanne K. Snyder, Richard Selzer, Gary A. Braunbeck, and Paul G. Bens, Jr. Illustrated and with a cover by Vincent Chong. Dark Fantasy at its finest!