2023 Lambda Literary Award Winner 2023 Bram Stoker Award Finalist for Superior Achievement in a Novel For fans of Mexican Gothic, from three-time Bram Stoker Award–winning author Gwendolyn Kiste comes a novel inspired by the untold stories of forgotten women in classic literature—from Lucy Westnera, a victim of Stoker’s Dracula, and Bertha Mason, Mr. Rochester’s attic-bound wife in Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre—as they band together to combat the toxic men bent on destroying their lives, set against the backdrop of the Summer of Love, Haight-Ashbury, 1967. Reluctant Immortals is a historical horror novel that looks at two men of classic literature, Dracula and Mr. Rochester, and the two women who survived them, Bertha and Lucy, who are now undead immortals residing in Los Angeles in 1967 when Dracula and Rochester make a shocking return in the Haight-Ashbury district of San Francisco. Combining elements of historical and gothic fiction with a modern perspective, in a tale of love and betrayal and coercion, Reluctant Immortals is the lyrical and harrowing journey of two women from classic literature as they bravely claim their own destiny in a man’s world.

From Bram Stoker Award–winning author Gwendolyn Kiste comes an “emotionally devastating, character driven ghost story” (CrimeReads) about three childhood friends who miraculously survive the night everyone in their suburban hometown turned to ghosts—perfect for fans of Yellowjackets. The Velkwood Vicinity was the topic of occult theorists, tabloid one-hour documentaries, and even some pseudo-scientific investigations as the block of homes disappeared behind a near-impenetrable veil that only three survivors could enter—and only one has in the past twenty years, until now. Talitha Velkwood has avoided anything to do with the tragedy that took her mother and eight-year-old sister, drifting from one job to another, never settling anywhere or with anyone, feeling as trapped by her past as if she was still there in the small town she so desperately wanted to escape from. When a new researcher tracks her down and offers to pay her to come back to enter the vicinity, Talitha claims she’s just doing it for the money. Of all the crackpot theories over the years, no one has discovered what happened the night Talitha, her estranged, former best friend Brett, and Grace, escaped their homes twenty years ago. Will she finally get the answers she’s been looking for all these years, or is this just another dead end? Award-winning author Gwendolyn Kiste has created an “eerie and evocative” (Kirkus Reviews) suburban ghost story about a small town that trapped three young women who must confront the past if they’re going to have a future.

Something’s happening to the girls on Denton Street. It’s the summer of 1980 in Cleveland, Ohio, and Phoebe Shaw and her best friend Jacqueline have just graduated high school, only to confront an ugly, uncertain future. Across the city, abandoned factories populate the skyline; meanwhile at the shore, one strong spark, and the Cuyahoga River might catch fire. But none of that compares to what’s happening in their own west side neighborhood. The girls Phoebe and Jacqueline have grown up with are changing. It starts with footprints of dark water on the sidewalk. Then, one by one, the girls’ bodies wither away, their fingernails turning to broken glass, and their bones exposed like corroded metal beneath their flesh. As rumors spread about the grotesque transformations, soon everyone from nosy tourists to clinic doctors and government men start arriving on Denton Street, eager to catch sight of “the Rust Maidens” in metamorphosis. But even with all the onlookers, nobody can explain what’s happening or why—except perhaps the Rust Maidens themselves. Whispering in secret, they know more than they’re telling, and Phoebe realizes her former friends are quietly preparing for something that will tear their neighborhood apart. Alternating between past and present, Phoebe struggles to unravel the mystery of the Rust Maidens—and her own unwitting role in the transformations—before she loses everything she’s held dear: her home, her best friend, and even perhaps her own body.

Following the great success of our Gothic Fantasy deluxe edition short story compilations, Supernatural Horror, Murder Mayhem, Lost Souls and many others, this latest title takes housebound trapped spirits and creepy gothic mansions as its chilling subject. Contains a potent mix of classic and brand new writing, with authors from the US, Canada, and the UK. Oh, what is that sound within the walls? The creaking floorboards, the children hiding in the mirror, the spirits that rake across the flesh of the mind – all find a home in this anthology of spine-tingling tales. New, contemporary and notable writers featured are: Rebecca Buchanan, Ramsey Campbell, H.B. Diaz, Tom English, John Everson, Marina Favila, Shannon Fay, Adele Gardner, Gwendolyn Kiste, Bill Kte'pi, John M. McIlveen, Kurt Newton, M. Regan, Zandra Renwick, Zach Shephard, Morgan Sylvia, and Mikal Trimm. Classic authors include E.F. Benson, Sheridan Le Fanu, Elizabeth Gaskell, W.W. Jacobs, M.R. James, Edith Wharton and more.

A murdered movie star reaches out to an unlikely fan. An orchard is bewitched with poison apples and would-be princesses. A pair of outcasts fail a questionnaire that measures who in their neighborhood will vanish next. Two sisters keep a grotesque secret hidden in a Victorian bathtub. A dearly departed best friend carries a grudge from beyond the grave. In her debut collection, Gwendolyn Kiste delves into the gathering darkness where beauty embraces the monstrous, and where even the most tranquil worlds are not to be trusted. From fairy tale kingdoms and desolate carnivals, to wedding ceremonies and summer camps that aren’t as joyful as they seem, these fourteen tales of horror and dark fantasy explore death, rebirth, and illusion all through the eyes of those on the outside—the forgotten, the forsaken, the Other, none of whom will stay in the dark any longer.

DUSK DEFENDS THE LIGHT FROM THE DARK. SOMETIMES… Life is nothing if not constant change. And these changes force us to make terrifying choices that will lead us into either the light or the dark. Dusk is this tipping point, where things go well, or where they go very, very bad. Suspended in Dusk II continues the legacy of editor Simon Dewar's anthology series. Volume II includes the disturbing work of seventeen extremely diverse voices from the horror and speculative fiction genres. -- Teenage boys navigate the Dark Web where diabolical games of life and death await… -- A woman stalked by shadows gets answers she doesn't want to hear… -- Ghost hunters commune with malevolent spirits seeking vengeance on the living... -- A family confronts a Maori legend that's less myth and far more terrifying truth… -- A young man explores a love that continues to gnaw long after it's gone… -- A group of adults encounter childhood fears that will not die… -- And so much more. Suspended in Dusk II is introduced by Angela Slatter and includes fiction from Ramsey Campbell, Stephen Graham Jones, Bracken MacLeod, Damien Angelica Walters, Alan Baxter, Paul Tremblay, Sarah Read, Christopher Golden, Nerine Dorman, Dan Rabarts, Gwendolyn Kiste, Benjamin Knox, Annie Neugebauer, J.C. Michael, Letitia Trent, Paul Michael Anderson and Karen Runge. Confront your change. But you must first survive dusk. Praise for Suspended in Dusk II: "Simon Dewar's second installment of the series really delivers. This collection has thrown together a multitude of quality writing that begs to be read. There is darkness in the margins of each page, smudges of black ink threatening to swallow the reader when they aren't expecting," – Brian Bogart, Kendall Reviews "Suspended in Dusk II grabs you by the throat from the very first story and does not let go. I honestly can't overstate how good this anthology was. There are some very heavy topics in the stories but…not a single one is played merely for shock value or cheap emotion." – Gracie Kat, Sci-Fi & Scary "I appreciated the large amount of diversity in this book; from the foreword it became clear that individuals of all shapes of life were given the chance to contribute, and I feel that's largely absent in anthologies these days." – Red Lace Reviews Proudly presented by Grey Matter Press, the home of multiple Bram Stoker Award-nominated volumes of horror. Grey Matter Press: Where Dark Thoughts Thrive

A powerful fifth book in the horror anthology series which Booklist called "Highly recommended for longstanding horror fans and those readers who may not think horror is for them. There is something for everyone in this one." Elemental Forces is the fifth volume in the non-themed horror series of original stories, showcasing the very best short fiction that the genre has to offer, and edited by Mark Morris. This new anthology contains 20 original horror stories, 16 of which have been commissioned from some of the top names in horror, and 4 selected from the 100s of stories sent to Flame Tree during a short open submissions window. A delicious feast of the familiar and the new, the established and the emerging. Previous titles in the series, all still in print, are: After Sundown, Beyond the Veil, Close to Midnight and Darkness Beckons. Contents List: THE PEELER by Poppy Z. Brite A HOUSE OF WOE AND MYSTERY by Andy Davidson THE WRONG ELEMENT by Aaron Dries JACK-A-LENT by Paul Finch NOBODY WANTS TO WORK HERE ANYMORE by Christina Henry THE CALL OF THE DEEP by Laurel Hightower EIGHT DAYS WEST OF PLETHORA by Verity Holloway THEY EAT THE REST by Jim Horlock THE ONLY FACE YOU EVER KNEW by Gwendolyn Kiste MISTER REAPER by Annie Knox I MISS YOU TOO MUCH by Sarah Langan UNMARKED by Tim Lebbon THE DOPPELGÄNGER BALLET by Will Maclean THE SCARECROW FESTIVAL by Tim Major THE PLAGUE by Luigi Musolino THE DAUGHTERS OF CANAAN by Kurt Newton THE ENTITY by Nicholas Royle RED MEAT FLAG by David J. Schow THE NOTE by Paul Tremblay A REVIEW OF ‘SLIME TUTORIAL: THE MUSICAL’ by P.C. Verrone FLAME TREE PRESS is the imprint of long-standing Independent Flame Tree Publishing, dedicated to full-length original fiction in the horror and suspense, science fiction & fantasy, and crime / mystery / thriller categories. The list brings together fantastic new authors and the more established; the award winners, and exciting, original voices. Learn more about Flame Tree Press at www.flametreepress.com and connect on social media @FlameTreePress.

Mary, Mary... Always hitchhiking the same lonely highway, she calls herself Rhee, but everyone else knows her as Resurrection Mary. With her sisters, they are the Marys, embodiments of urban legend and what goes bump in the night, every child's nightmare. Rhee must unravel who the Marys are before the darkness claims them.

Cleveland, Ohio, Sommer 1980: Phoebe bereitet sich auf eine trostlose Zukunft vor. Die High School ist zu Ende und mit ihr auch die Illusion eines schönen Lebens. Doch plötzlich verändert sich etwas. Ehemalige Mitschülerinnen durchleben eine erschreckende Metamorphose: Ihre Fußabdrücke hinterlassen Pfützen aus schwarzem Wasser. Ihr Fleisch wird spröde, die Körper wandeln sich zu Glas und offenbaren metallische Knochen, die schnell verrosten. Das unheimliche Phänomen breitet sich aus und die deformierten Mädchen werden zur traurigen Sensation. Auch Phoebe ist dabei ihren Körper zu verlieren - in Vergangenheit wie auch Gegenwart ... Packende Coming-of-Age-Geschichte, die in den USA für Furore sorgte und mit dem Bram-Stoker-Award ausgezeichnet wurde. Der große amerikanische Traum beginnt zu rosten. ladiesofhorrorfiction.com: »Eine Geschichte, schön und erschreckend zugleich.« hellnotes.com: »Ein bitteres Stück American Gothic.« hellnotes.com: »Radioaktive Erzählkunst ... Plutonisch. ... Gwendolyn Kistes Roman ist ein phantasmagorisches Stück über den Niedergang des modernen Amerika.« Gwendolyn Kiste wuchs in Ohio auf. Als sie noch ein Kind war, lasen ihr die Eltern Werke von Ray Bradbury und verschiedenen Dichtern vor, was sie nachhaltig beeinflusste und zu ihrem poetischen Horror inspirierte. Gwendolyn verfasste Kurzgeschichten und Novellen und ihr Debüt-Roman THE RUST MAIDENS gewann den wichtigen Bram-Stoker-Award und verschiedene andere Literaturpreise. Heute lebt sie auf einer Farm bei Pittsburgh zusammen mit ihrem Mann.