The famous novelist Samuel Bayer is stuck in the middle of the first writer’s block he has ever known. Hoping to be inspired, he returns to his hometown for the first time in years to investigate the mystery of a seemingly unsolved murder of a young woman, Pauline Ostrova, whose boyfriend was convicted of the crime and later died in prison. But the further he looks into the crime, Bayer begins to question the validity of the conviction. As he navigates his childhood memories and the eerie ...

Winner of the British Fantasy Award for best novel.Recovering from a recent nervous breakdown, Harry Radcliffe, known for his visionary, award-winning architectural marvels that blur the lines between buildings and abstract sculptures, embarks on a unique project in the Middle East: the construction of a Dog Museum commissioned by a powerful royal family there. His journey takes a mystical turn when, after the museum is threatened by an opposing warlord there, the project is...

This "toothy follow-up to Datlow's first-rate Blood Is Not Enough " offers "admirably inventive variations on vampirism" ( Kirkus Reviews ).Featuring stories by Jonathan Carroll, Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, and Robert Silverberg, A Whisper of Blood is a "consistently engrossing anthology" from award-winning editor Ellen Datlow ( Publishers Weekly). Continuing to expan...

The Marriage of Sticks by Jonathan Carroll is a surreal and introspective novel that blends elements of magical realism with psychological drama. The story revolves around Miranda Romanac, a successful and independent woman in her thirties who works in New York City as a dealer of rare books. Despite her career success, Miranda leads a somewhat detached and self-centered life, prioritizing her own needs and desires over meaningful connections with others.Mirandaa’s life make...

From one of the great modern masters of the fantastic, “A beautiful, brilliant, meditation on art, love, inspiration and what makes life worthwhile."-- Neil Gaiman"[Carroll's] prose is spare, polished and quick-moving, sometimes lightly comic, always immensely engaging... Mr. Breakfast is pure pleasure to read. It will surprise you, make you laugh and scare you — and then, just when you think it’s over, add several extra twists." - Michael Dirda, T...

Five individuals from the same New England town, some acquainted and others not, all have the same remarkable dream one evening. Upon awakening, they realize they were once “mechanics,” a kind of celestial repairmen tasked with maintaining the universe's order and rectifying the disruptions caused by both conscious beings and the occasional, inevitably destructive Chaos. Being a mechanic is an arduous and draining profession. So after a certain amount of time, all mechanics’ memories are w...

Bones of the Moon is the story of a young woman named Cullen James who leads a dual life, one in the real world and the other in her vivid night dreams set in a magical land called Rondua. In these dreams, Cullen embarks on a quest to find the Bones of the Moon, five bones that hold power over Rondua. As the dreams intensify, they begin to impact her waking life, leading to unsettling and frightening intersections between the two worlds. Alongside an enigmatic little boy also seekin...

One day Ben Gould slips on the ice, hits his head, and is supposed to die. But he doesn’t. Instead, Gould finds himself in a strange situation where he continues to live as if nothing happened. As a result, a ghost that was originally sent to guide Ben to the Afterlife is stuck on earth while its bosses try to figure out what went wrong. The situation catches the attention of various supernatural entities, besides the ghost. The story weaves through the perspectives of Ben, the ghost, his ...

For some, the magic of certain books lasts a lifetime. For Thomas Abbey, the works of reclusive children’s fantasy author Marshall France have been an essential part of his life ever since he was a boy.Son of a famous movie star, Abbey is now approaching middle age having spent too many years trying to get out from under the shadow of just ‘being the son of…’ and finding something meaningful in his life.When he meets the puppeteer Saxony Gardner, who shares his passion for ...

We all know a Tony Areal: Nice guy, inoffensive, semi-invisible, living a mostly gray day to day. As the old saying goes, throw a stick on a busy city street and you’ll hit at least three men just like him.We don’t know the Tony Areal who dreams at night about a stampeding pack of rhinoceros and bull terrier dogs, Cro Magnon men who just happen to have been Tony in an earlier incarnation and want to have a chat now, and a beautiful alluring woman who keeps reappearing night after n...

The Crow’s Dinner weaves a tapestry of tales, spotlighting striking, poignant moments of raw human emotion and fleeting connections, keenly and compassionately observed by Carroll. This collection is a nocturnal journey through intimate encounters in cafes, episodes of beautiful youth without shelter, and the subtle unraveling of personal facades. As one critic wrote “It captures a magic akin to the invisible, compassionate observers in Wim Wenders’ Wings of Desire, who peer ...

Vincent Ettrich is a charming carefree man who discovers he has recently died but been mysteriously resurrected. As he tries to piece together the circumstances of his death and the reason for his return, he learns his resurrection is not just a second chance at life but also a pivotal event in a cosmic battle.Vincent's lover, Isabelle, plays a crucial role in this mystery. She is pregnant with their child, who is destined to be a key figure in this vast struggle. Their child, howe...