Books published by Crystal Lake Publishing

Hitch a ride with the master of setting as he blends and bends genres with science-rich, thought-provoking short stories. "Buy the ticket, take the ride.""A maestro of the field, Gene O'Neill's stories are consistently well-executed. He writes with authority, depth, and loads of worldly and writerly experience, and delivers fascinating stuff." - Darren Speegle, author of Varying Distances and The Third TwinAlong the way you will travel to the top of Mt. George, up and down Napa Valley, through Sacramento, and into the heart of the Bay Area, to the 'Loin in San Francisco, Hotel Reo, Chapel of the Chimes, the back streets of Oakland, and other familiar dark places. The stories explore quantum entanglement, Visual Migraine Events, electro-shock treatment, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, and Tourette's syndrome experimentally treated with Temporary Deep Brain Stimulation. And as you read you may start to notice all these stories are connected in a way.Includes: "Frozen Shadows" - Coming of age autobiographical "The Algernon Effect" - A transgressive love story "Transformations at the Inn of the Golden Pheasant" - A damaged vet describes a bizarre transformation "On the Right Side of the Road" - An ex-con suffering from Visual Migraine Effects may just save the world "Black Tar/Red Alien" - A heroin addict's confrontation with a horrific alien "Broken Lady" - An aging singer pays a terrible price for defending herself during a rape "The Shaking Man" - An ex-con receives an experimental treatment for his Tourette's Syndrome with unexpected results "3-Dot People" - An amnesiac man drops literally into the Tenderloin of San Francisco "A Faint Scent of Musky Lime" - A fan of the writer Tom Really finds himself experiencing one of Reamy's horrific stories "At the Lazy K" - A historic epic of a ghost plaguing a rehab clinic on an old ranchProudly represented by Crystal Lake Publishing-Tales from the Darkest Depths.

THIS IS GOING TO HURT.The eleven stories in Ugly Little Things explore the depths of human suffering and ugliness, charting a course to the dark, horrific heart of the human condition. The terrors of everyday existence are laid bare in this eerie collection of short fiction from the twisted mind of Todd Keisling, author of the critically-acclaimed novels A Life Transparent and The Liminal Man.Travel between the highways of America in "The Otherland Express," where a tribe of the forsaken and forlorn meet to exchange identities. Witness the cold vacuum of space manifest in the flesh in "The Darkness Between Dead Stars." Step into the scrub of rural Arizona and join Karen Singleton's struggle to save her husband from a cult of religious fanatics in "When Karen Met Her Mountain." Visit the small town of Dalton in "The Harbinger" and join Felix Proust as he uncovers the vile secrets rooted at the heart of Dalton Dollworks. And in the critically-acclaimed novella "The Final Reconciliation," learn the horrifying truth behind the demise of the rock band The Yellow Kings.With an introduction by Bram Stoker Award-winner Mercedes M. Yardley and illustrations by Luke Spooner, Ugly Little Things will be your atlas, guiding you along a lonely road of sorrow, loss, and regret. This is going to hurt-and you're going to like it.Proudly represented by Crystal Lake Publishing - Tales from the Darkest Depths.Interview with the Author:What makes this collection of horror stories so special?Todd Keisling: These stories represent some of the darkest fiction I've ever written. I was in a bad place when I wrote most of them, and I put my thoughts to paper with the intention of sharing my dread with potential readers. These stories will cut deeply. They'll make you weep and they'll make you bleed.Tell us more about the theme you were going for in this horror collection?Todd Keisling: There's a story in the collection, "The Harbinger," which is about a doll maker who infuses her creations with the pain of her victims. The title "Ugly Little Things" comes from that story, as each tale in the collection is intended to be one of those dolls, each filled to the brim with the darker qualities of the human condition.Categories: Horror Horror Short Stories Horror collection Thriller Suspense Weird Fiction Dark Fantasy Short Fiction Single Author Collection Speculative Literary Horror Occult

Bram Stoker Award® winners Linda D. Addison and Alessandro Manzetti use their unique voices to create a dark, surrealistic poetry collection exploring the many ways shattered bodies, minds, and souls endure. They created poems of visionary imagery encompassing death, gods, goddesses and shadowy, Kafkaesque futures by inspiring each other, along with inspiration from others (Allen Ginsberg, Pablo Neruda, Phillis Wheatley, etc.).Construction of The Place started with the first bitten apple dropped in the Garden. The foundation defined by the crushed, forgotten, and rejected. Filled with timeless space, its walls weep with the blood of brutality, the tears of the innocent, and predatory desire. Enter and let it whisper dark secrets to you.Proudly represented by Crystal Lake Publishing-Tales from the Darkest Depths.Interview with the poets:What makes this poetry collection so special?Alessandro: Collaborations are the salt of poetry, can create special, unique blends and flavours. This book is exquisite, in that way.Linda: Collaborations can create remarkable work, whether it's poetry or fiction. Alessandro and I each did a third on our own and then a third together. This book was written with us in completely different time zones (Arizona & Italy), without ego and is the best poetry I've created so far.Tell us more about the theme of this book.Linda: There was no hard rules, we agreed to riff off any of the words in the title: Place; Broken; Thing(s). The real magic is how the book flowed from us, as we allowed our imagination freedom to play, trusting the dark, surrealistic tales told would fit; and they did!Alessandro: Imagine a collage of different places, connected by invisible wires. We play the role of the explorers of that elusive, borderlands world.Why should readers give this book or your work a try?Linda: Our book has unique songs to offer, something we couldn't recreate separately. It stands alone with any work we do in the future because even the poems I wrote by myself were influenced by working in our shared arena in undefinable ways.Alessandro: If you're a curious traveler, ready to walk with us along a trail without markers, this is a good book for you.

The Legend Continues…Twenty-four heart-rending tales with elements of terror, mystery, and a nightmarish darkness that knows no end.Welcome to my lake. Welcome to where dreams and hope are illusions…and pain is God. This anthology begins with Joe R. Lansdale's The Folding Man, one of his darkest stories ever written. Kealan Patrick Burke's Go Warily After Dark pulls us into a desolated world, and reminds us of the price of survival: a guilt that seeps into the marrow. Damien Angelica Walter's Everything Hurts, Until it Doesn't places us in the middle of a family whose secrets and traditions are thicker than blood. Jennifer Loring's When the Dead Come Home explores a loss so dark, that even the stars are sucked into its melancholic vacuum.In the spirit of popular Dark Fiction and Horror anthologies such as Gutted: Beautiful Horror Stories and Behold: Oddities, Curiosities and Undefinable Wonders, and the best of Stephen King's short fiction, comes Crystal Lake Publishing's Tales from The Lake anthologies.This fourth volume of Speculative Fiction contains the following short stories: Jennifer Loring - When the Dead Come Home Joe R. Lansdale - The Folding Man Kealan Patrick Burke - Go Warily After Dark T. E. Grau - To the Hills Damien Angelica Walters - Everything Hurts, Until it Doesn't Sheldon Higdon - Drowning in Sorrow Max Booth III - Whenever You Exhale, I Inhale Bruce Golden - The Withering JG Faherty - Grave Secrets Hunter Liguore - End of the Hall David Dunwoody - Snowmen Timothy G. Arsenault - Pieces of Me Maria Alexander - Neighborhood Watchers Timothy Johnson - The Story of Jessie and Me Michael Bailey - I will be the Reflection Until the End E.E. King - The Honeymoon's Over Darren Speegle - Song in a Sundress Cynthia Ward - Weighing In Michael Haynes - Reliving the Past Leigh M. Lane - The Long Haul Mark Cassell - Dust Devils Del Howison - Liminality Gene O' Neill - The Gardener Jeff Cercone - Condo by the LakeWith an introduction by editor Ben Eads. Cover art by Ben Baldwin. Proudly represented by Crystal Lake Publishing - Tales from The Darkest Depths.Additional book categories: Horror Suspense Thriller Mystery Short stories Anthologies Horror anthology US Fiction Lovecraftian / Lovecraft Dark Fantasy Monsters Occult Supernatural Haunted house and ghosts Myths and Legends

Today's top Horror and SF authors pay tribute to C.H.U.D. in this anthology of original fiction.C.H.U.D. is a genre defying, cult classic film featuring monsters living in the sewers below New York. The stories in this anthology expand the world created by the film and add depth to the C.H.U.D. universe like never before. From stories of apocalyptic horror and all out monster action, to tales of underground parties interrupted by uninvited guests and evening strolls that end in death, this anthology will leave you both smiling and breathless.Relive the fear as these original stories take you beyond the movie to events that occurred before, during, and after the scenes we remember so well.Includes C.H.U.D. related stories by Jonathan Maberry, Tim Waggoner, JG Faherty, Mort Castle, Michael H. Hanson, Martin Powell, Ben Fisher, Jason White, Chad Lutzke, Ross Baxter, Philip C Perron, David Bernstein, Nick Cato, Alex Laybourne, Christopher Fulbright, Angeline Hawkes, David Robbins, Robert Waters, Greg Mitchell, Ryan C. Thomas, and Eugene Johnson.With an introduction by David Drake. Compiled by Eric S. Brown.C.H.U.D. Lives! also features in-depth interviews with Andrew Bonime (producer) and Parnell Hall (screenwriter), as well as never before seen behind-the-scenes photos from the classic 80s horror film.Lineup: Introduction by David Drake Interview with the late Andrew Bonime "Dog Walker" by Robert E Waters "The Dwellers" by Nick Cato "The City Will Eat You Alive" by Ryan C. Thomas "Date Night" by David Robbins "Strange Gods" by Christopher Fulbright and Angeline Hawkes "Lost and Found" by Greg Mitchell "They Are C.H.U.D" by Alex Laybourne "C.H.A.D." by Michael H. Hanson "Samsa's Party" by Ben Fisher "The Way to a Man's Heart" by Tim Waggoner "Dweller Messiah" by Jason White "That's Entertainment!" by Mort Castle "Toxic Disposal" by David Bernstein "Monstrous Me" by Martin Powell "Step Ate" by Chad Lutzke "Zero Hour" by JG Faherty "The Deuce" by Philip C. Perron "All at Sea" by Ross Baxter "You Will Never Leave Harlan Alive" by Jonathan Maberry and Eugene Johnson Interview with Parnell Hall (screenwriter) by Eric S BrownThis book is dedicated in loving memory to Andrew Bonime, the producer of the C.H.U.D. film.Proudly represented by Crystal Lake Publishing-Tales from the Darkest Depths.

An Epic Fantasy tale of action, adventure, heroism, horror and sorcery…Beyond Night is a Dark Fantasy Horror novel that pulls back the veil of nearly two thousand years of jaded history. Come tread in the bloody footprints left by monsters, soldiers and wizards and behold what lies hidden Beyond Night itself.It's Bigfoot War mixed with Lovecraftian horror on the edge of the Roman Empire.How could Rome lose a Legion? What could've happened to blot out the existence of over five thousand men not only from history but the Earth itself?As the Legion moves north to engage the forces of Pictdom, a dark horror emerges from the bowels of the Earth. Thought to be random attacks by hulking monsters, Decurion August soon learns a dire truth, that these bloody events are directed by opposing the wizards of the Picts. While one side assembles all tribes in a confederated army to battle the Legion, the other pulls these Greyman beasts from the depths of the Earth.August fights not only these creatures and workers of magicks, but internal passions in the Legion itself.Can he discover a way to survive the enormous bloodletting about to take place that will only serve to satisfy the wizards of Pictdom?Proudly represented by Crystal Lake Publishing-Tales from the Darkest Depths.Categories: Epic Fantasy Historical Fiction Horror novels Fantasy Adventure Fantasy Fiction Fantasy Horror Fantasy novels Horror adventure Dark fantasy horror Horror and dark fiction Horror fantasy Lovecraftian horror Action Adventure Monsters Dark horror

Journey through the Heart of TerrorListen.They are calling to you.Do you hear them?They are the whispered echoes of your darkest fears.From the pen of horror writer Paul F. Olson comes Whispered Echoes, a stunning dark fiction collection that will carry you down lonely twilight byways into a world of darkness and dread. It's a world of forgotten roadways, sleepy small towns, deep forests, windswept waters-a place where the uneasy spirits of your imagination roam free and anything at all can happen. A man searches for answers at an abandoned lighthouse and uncovers an unspeakable past An unassuming tourist goes for a stroll and leaves devastation in his wake An ancient voice speaks from the depths of a long-forgotten cave A violent storm rages overhead, while the scratching sounds begin in the cellar below A man inherits the family talent, but what price does that legacy demand A return to the family homestead brings overwhelming memories, but the darkest memory of all still waits outside A late-night call from an abandoned camp brings a frightened cop face-to-face with everything he fears A wild joyride ends with a surprise reunion and an encounter with the impossiblePreviously available only in a deluxe limited edition, Whispered Echoes features the resurrection of eleven classic horror stories, originally published in the '80s and '90s and out-of-print for years, along with a stunning new novella written especially for this collection. With a foreword by horror master Chet Williamson and an introduction by the author, this book is an unforgettable journey through the quiet heart of terror.Brought to you by Crystal Lake Publishing - Tales from the Darkest Depths.

Welcome back to Clifton Heights. In Kevin Lucia’s latest installment of his growing Clifton Heights mythos, Sheriff Chris Baker and Father Ward meet for a Saturday morning breakfast at The Skylark Dinner to once again commiserate over the weird and terrifying secrets surrounding their town. Sheriff Baker shares with Father Ward the story of a journal discovered in the ruins of what was once an elaborate koi pond and flower garden, which regales a tale of regret, buried pain, and unfulfilled debt. Father Ward reveals the story of a tortured man from the nearby town of Tahawus, who visited his confessional seeking solace from a cosmic horror he can never outrun. “Sophan” – Jake Burns has always been a bit...off. Rude, awkward, sometimes brutish, he's tolerated by Nate Slocum and his friends because he hits a mean line drive, and because they all know but don't discuss the abuse he faces at the hands of his troubled father, a Vietnam veteran consumed by his demons. But Jake is suffering something far worse than domestic abuse, and when Nate discovers what, he faces an impossible choice: help Jake and put himself in the path of evil, or abandon him, only to damn himself in the process. “The Man in Yellow” – Stuart Michael Evans has suffered from cerebral palsy all his life, but he’s made due. Sure, his preacher dad is always yammering about “the healing grace of God” and “God's will,” saying all he needs is faith and someday he’ll be healed, but Stuart mostly ignores him. Life isn’t perfect, but it isn’t awful either, so Stuart figures he doesn't need God to heal him, or do anything, for that matter. Everything changes, however, when a renowned faith healer – Reverend Alistair McIlvian – pays a visit to Tahawus’ annual Summer Vacation Bible School. Revival sweeps the town as Reverend McIlvian’s healing touch makes believers out of everyone. But where do these powers come from? God, or something...else?