Dark Occult

Of all the things aspiring artist Haven Marbury expected to find while clearing out her late father's remote seaside house, Bedtime Stories for Monsters was not on the list. This secret handwritten manuscript is disturbingly different from his Pulitzer-winning works: its interweaving short stories crawl with horrific monsters and enigmatic humans that exist somewhere between this world and the next. The stories unsettle but also entice Haven, practically compelling her to illustrate them while she stays in the house that her father warned her was haunted.

Frank Bishop has been at war with fallen angels since he was five years old. That's when they first tried to kill him. A group of supernatural warriors called the Watchers saved Frank that fateful day. They taught him how to be a powerful wizard and warrior. But nothing could prepare him for what Jessie and Arraziel have planned. Frank blurs the line between good and evil in his all-consuming quest to stop Jessie and the Fallen in book one of the dark urban fantasy series, The Second Death.

A series of seemingly motiveless murders of supernatural creatures points to a vigilante targeting the supe community of Scranton. Markowski wouldn’t normally have much of a problem with that, but his daughter may be next on the killer’s list... Justin Gustainis was born in Northeast Pennsylvania in 1951. He attended college at the University of Scranton, a Jesuit university that figures prominently in several of his writings. He is currently a Professor of Communication at Plattsburgh State University.

Today the names of H. P. Lovecraft, Robert E. Howard, August Derleth, and Clark Ashton Smith, all regular contributors to the pulp magazine Weird Tales during the first half of the twentieth century, are recognizable even to casual readers and listeners of the bizarre and fantastic. And yet despite being more popular than them all during the golden era of genre pulp fiction, there is another author whose name and work have fallen into obscurity: Seabury Quinn. Quinn's short stories were featured in well more than half of Weird Tales's original publication run.

As Vampire Sorcerer Athan travels the world of Anatolia freeing demi-humans, an ancient threat lurks in the most remote parts of the world. It forces him to join hands with an unlikely mantis girl, an ancient dragon chick that is too powerful for her own good, and a voluptuous mimic that can morph into a deadly sword.

One of Canada’s most acclaimed horror writers, Gemma Files presents a mosaic of interconnected stories about interconnected families. After fleeing Scotland, five clans settled in the fictional town of Dourvale in northern Ontario. Known as the Five-Family Coven, they are the descendants of witches and witch-children, none of whom were spared persecution in their native country. Now shamans, spellcasters, singers, and thieves, the members of the Devize, Druir, Glouwer, Roke, and Rusk families survive by trading their occult powers and talents.

Outlining the scientific evidence behind psi research, Dark Cognition expertly reveals that such anomalous phenomena clearly exist, highlighting that the prevailing view of consciousness, purely as a phenomenon of the brain, fails to account for the empirical findings.

Leah needs space to understand her relentless angst, depression, and drinking problem, so she leaves her high-profile career behind and accepts the inheritance. But from the moment she enters Ravens' Wood, Leah knows something is wrong. Someone, or something, haunts her replica Southern plantation. After several supernatural events in the house, Leah questions her sanity.

A hilarious, shocking, terrifying thrill ride across the American landscape, The Damned Highway combines two great flavors of weird: the gonzo journalism of Hunter S. Thompson and the uncanny terrors of H. P. Lovecraft. Horror legend Brian Keene and cult storytelling master Nick Mamatas dredge up a tale of drug-fueled eldritch madness from the blackest depths of the American nightmare.

Indiana's Monroe House is a place of mystery, darkness, and strange occurrences. It has a reputation for occult rituals and violent paranormal activity that has sent visiting investigators running off into the night. The discovery of human bones in the basement, the identity of which remain unexplained to this day, may hold some of the answers. But the Monroe House holds its secrets close, and has been known to lash out at those who spend time within its walls.

Saskia de la Cruz is a verity witch and investigative reporter for The Blood Web Chronicle, the biggest news outlet on the paranormal Blood Web. After escaping murderous vampires in snowy Moscow, Saskia can't imagine a more difficult or more dangerous mission. That is, until her editor sends her to Barcelona to investigate a high profile disappearance at the Mage Association, which just happens to be run by her evil mother Solina.

Here are 23 terrifying tales, dark reflections of the silver screen from both sides of the camera. James Dean gets a second chance at life and death. The Wicked Witch is out of Oz, and she's made some very unlucky friends. When God decides reality needs an editor, what and who gets cut?

Kali, the dark mother of the Hindu pantheon is oft the most misunderstood Goddess in all human spiritual endeavor. Her images often depict her as being an evil and demonic force that few should ever dare call upon whilst others worship her as benign Goddess whom bestows blessings upon her supplicants. She is, in fact, both of these.

In France, the brilliant young battle-mage Napoleon Bonaparte has summoned a kraken from the depths, and under his command, the Army of the Dead have all but conquered Europe. Britain fights back, protected by the gulf of the channel and powerful fire-magic, but Wilberforce's own battle to bring about free magic and abolition has met a dead end in the face of an increasingly fearful and repressive government. In Saint Domingue, Fina watches as Toussaint Louverture navigates these opposing forces to liberate the country.

It’s been 12 years since Jack Masterson last set foot on Lestaron Island. Fresh out of college and lacking a clear direction in life, he’s been asked by his aunt and uncle to travel back to the place he once called home to settle his recently deceased grandfather’s estate. Jack has little to look forward to in regard to his return, outside of a chance to reacquaint himself with Katie, his childhood friend and former crush.

A family mysteriously murdered. A haunted farmhouse. A town rich with secrets. Still on the move, Lance Brody finds himself in the tiny town of Ripton’s Grove, living in a neglected farmhouse in which, six years earlier, Mark Benchley murdered his wife and teenage daughter before turning a shotgun on himself. But while the town has accepted the Benchley family's fate, it doesn’t take long for Lance to realize there might be much more to the night the Benchley family died, and the farmhouse itself, than anybody knows. Anybody alive, that is.

Yancy Lazarus is having a bad day: there's a bullet lodged in his butt cheek, his face looks like the site of a demolition derby, and he's been saran-wrapped to a banquet table. He never should have answered the phone. Stupid bleeding heart - helping others in his circles is a good way to die - just ask the gang members ripped to pieces by some kind of demonic nightmare in LA.

For longtime Stephen King fans, the highlight of this volume will be The Little Sisters of Eluria, which is something of a prequel to the Dark Tower series. For "Constant Readers" and neophytes alike, all of the dark tales herein are intense, eerie, and instantly compelling. King "develops characters and atmosphere more fully in the span of 50 pages than many authors can in a full novel," says Amazon.com.

Fiona managed to save her town from demons. Now there’s a bounty on her head. When Fiona consumed the demon king’s aether, she half expected that it would kill her. Now she’s stuck with Lord Balor’s dark energy ravaging her soul. Gabriel has left Mountain Shadow, and the town has been invaded by ghost hunters and the crew of a hit reality-TV show. To make matters worse, Fiona’s fight at Busk Fest attracted the attention of the most powerful hunters in the Brotherhood. They’ve put a bounty on Fiona’s head, making her a target for freelance hunters.

Something is wrong with the souls of Chicago's dead. Ghosts are walking the streets, and Agent of Death Madeline Black's exasperating boss wants her to figure out why. And while work is bad enough, Maddy has a plethora of personal problems too. Now that Gabriel has been assigned as her thrall, their relationship has hit an impasse. At least her sleazy ex-fiance Nathaniel is out of the picture - or so she thinks....