Sometimes it's better not to. Sometimes the truth is downright haunting. Alex watches from her bedroom window as the small, secluded town of Amberton sleeps: a bright, pleasant town with a dark, disturbing secret. Helen, her foster mother, is gone all hours of the night with no explanation. The neighbors, always friendly, always smiling, are also always watching. They know something Alex doesn’t. Something she shouldn’t… When three outsiders become ensnared in the town’s dark conspiracies, Alex witnesses for herself the nightmare hiding in plain sight. Together, haunted by their own pasts, these outsiders threaten to unstitch the town at its rotten seams, uncovering the gruesome truth writhing beneath the surface.

    Music, beer, skateboarding, and tragedy star in this coming-of-age lesson on love and lust and the line that divides them, as 19-year-old Jex experiences a life that meets River’s Edge and Kids with Dazed & Confused––a parentless indie yarn with the dark heart Lutzke is known for.

    When environmental consultant Jack McDarvid's boss is killed in a shootout near the Capitol, McDarvid becomes enmeshed in a diabolical plot behind the scenes of the environmental movement.

    He also liked to write about psychotic and psychopathic killers. This solid anthology, put out by the Horror Writers Association (HWA) and completed after Bloch's death, honors his legacy with 22 tales about murderers and crazies of various stripes. A good many of the stories, most memorably Esther Friesner's "Lonelyhearts," have Blochian twists at the end. The weakest of the bunch have no other flaw than predictability, and the strongest, such as Ed Gorman's powerful "Out There in the Darkness" are classics of traditional storytelling. You'll find excellent stories here by Denise M. Bruchman, Del Stone Jr., Edo van Belkom, Gary A. Braunbeck, and others. Stephen King contributes a little gem of a tale in which the narrator finds himself in an autopsy room: "It fits. It fits everything with a horrid prophylactic snugness. The dark. The rubbery smell.... Dear God, I'm in a body bag." Note: the two previous HWA anthologies are Under the Fang, edited by Robert R. McCammon, and Peter Straub's Ghosts, edited by Peter Straub. --Fiona WebsterContents:Autopsy Room Four by Stephen KingHaunted by Charles GrantOut There in the Darkness by Ed GormanPlease Help Me by Richard Christian MathesonThe Lesser of Two Evils by Denise M. BruchmanPoint of Intersection by Dominick CancillaDoctor, Lawyer, Kansas City Chief by Brent MonahanGrandpa's Head by Lawrence Watt-EvansLonelyhearts by Esther M. FriesnerLighting the Corpses by Del Stone Jr.Echoes by Cindie GeddesLifeline by Yvonne NavarroBlameless by David Niall WilsonDeep Down There by Clark PerryKnacker Man by Richard ParksSo You Wanna Be a Hitman by Gary JonasThe Rug by Edo van BelkomInterview with a Psycho by Billie Sue MosimanIcewall by William D. GaglianiA Southern Night by Jane YolenThe Forgiven by Stephen M. RaineySafe by Gary A. Braunbeck

    Portsmouth, England. A global particle physics experiment releases a pulse of unknown energy with catastrophic results. Scientists in their laboratories search desperately for a solution to the broken fabric of existence, but they are already too late, the sanctity of the grave has been sundered. There is no virus or bacteria to combat, just chaos and horror as a million graveyards expel their tenants from eternal slumber. The world is unaware of the impending apocalypse, realisation only dawns with the appearance of the mouldering corpses who devour everything they encounter. Governments crumble and armies are scattered to the wind. Kurt Taylor, a self-employed plumber, witnesses the start of the horrifying outbreak. Desperate to reach his family before they fall victim to the ever growing horde of shambling corruption, he flees the scene, watching the unfolding cannibalism and destruction in his rear view mirror. In a society with few guns, how can people hope to survive the endless waves of zombies that seek to consume every living thing? With ingenuity, planning and everyday materials, the group forge their way and strike back at the Hellspawn legions. Rescues are mounted, but not all survivors are benevolent. The evil that is in all men has been given free rein in this new, dead world. With both the living and dead to contend with, is there any hope for the Taylor family?

    Spirits from their graves will rise.Panic through the streets will spread.One ghost shrieks and rants and cries.One demon feeds upon the dead.Kill the evil if you dare.Nightmares fill with devils from hell.In the dark are death and fear.Goblings and ghouls, spooks and spells--Halloween comes and they appear.Terror rules the world -- Beware!

    The Kransens live in an expensive, elegant home in the small town of Flening, Florida. Majestic and private, the grounds are surrounded by lush trees and colorful flowers. But there is an ugliness underneath the manicured and perfect facade... Secrets hide within the walls and curses whisper through the air. Newlyweds Ben and Ana Kransen are moving into the house with their in-laws. They’ve got high hopes and expectations for a better life. But soon after they move in, strange things start to happen. Noises fill the air, dark rooms unlock nightmares of the past, and it becomes clear that some people are not welcome in the Kransen House. Their lives are infiltrated by death, evil, and an unspoken religion. Ana knows something is wrong and her family is in danger. Left with few choices, she must find a way to save the ones she loves or face the consequences of an evil legacy.

    The Devil's Bed?Brandy Petracus, touring a ruined castle in the south of France, is led to the unhallowed graveyard of Templar knights executed for practicing Black Magic. Long forgotten by the world, this ancient cemetery is known to the locals as – the Devil's Bed and its occupants do not rest in peace.In this fast-paced clash of Good vs Evil, Brandy soon finds herself the ad hoc leader of an eclectic group besieged by resurrected Templar knights - craving their blood. Vampirism, madness, dark humor, and flashbacks to 14th century Paris tell Brandy's very human story of commitment, trust and sacrifice.These aren't your daddy's zombies! They are an all new form of undead creature; former monks and Crusaders to whom symbolism is everything. They wear crosses but cannot abide a crucifix. They can enter a chapel but not its sanctuary. They chant Latin curses while chasing their victims, pray to evil while killing them, and drink their blood in a corruption of the sacraments.Before the appearance of these resurrected horrors, Brandy is feeling trapped by life. Her best friend, Vicki, is horribly murdered (with three others) near the Templars' graveyard. Angry and overwhelmed by guilt, she finds little comfort in her emotionally detached fiance (Vicki's brother). She fights to come to grips with her loss, her failing relationship, and the local authorities suspicions she is involved in the murders. Then Brandy's nightmare really begins. The Templars, keeping a seven centuries old covenant, rise from their graves to avenge their executions. Brandy and company are forced to hole up in an ancient chapel and fight for survival.Even then, the Devil's Bed has yet to surrender all of its secrets.