Bøker utgitt av Hippocampus Press

In this anthology of weird fiction, twenty-two authors share their harrowing visions of worlds shaped by the Yellow Sign, in stories and poems inspired by Robert W. Chambers's foundational works of weird horror. From the personal to the historic, from the macabre to the fantastic, the stories and poems gathered here illuminate new, unexpected realities shaped by the King in Yellow, under the sway of the Yellow Sign, or in the grip of madnesses inspired by their power.

H. P. Lovecraft (1890-1937), the pioneering writer of weird fiction, has himself become an icon in popular culture. Stories, novels, and other works featuring the gaunt, lantern-jawed gentleman from Providence, Rhode Island, have proliferated. These works have been triggered by the incredible amount of knowledge we have on the writer-his family, his friends, his idiosyncrasies and eccentricities-as found in his thousands of surviving letters. This anthology takes the figure of Lovecraft and enmeshes him in a series of bizarre and supernatural adventures. Darrell Schweitzer focuses on Lovecraft's childhood, when he was plagued with dreams of "night-gaunts" and was left bereft by the early death of his father.John Shirley depicts Lovecraft as a gawky teenager evolving his notions of "cosmicism," while Scott Wiley emphasises Lovecraft's devotion to cats. Stephen Woodworth and Donald R. Burleson ring changes on the Lovecraftian theme of personality exchange. Lovecraft famously collaborated with Harry Houdini on a story. Donald Tyson and Jonathan Thomas write very different stories on the association of these two figures.Mark Samuels focuses on Lovecraft's creation of imaginary tomes of forbidden lore, while the stories by Richard Gavin, David Hambling, Jason V Brock, and S. T. Joshi supply broader ruminations on the origins of Lovecraft's revolutionary motifs. While eschewing Lovecraft himself as a character, the tales by W. H. Pugmire and Simon Strantzas exhibit figures who reveal strikingly Lovecraftian elements while probing the psyche of the man from Providence.H. P. Lovecraft's work has captured the imaginations of millions-and now he himself has become no less fascinating. In every sense of the word he was, as Vincent Starrett said of him, "his own most fantastic creation."

"Fully-realized characters and evocative prose distinguish [Clint] Smith's outstanding second collection."-Publishers Weekly Starred ReviewIn 2014, Hippocampus Press published Clint Smith's first short story collection, Ghouljaw and Other Stories. That scintillating volume, which simultaneously drew upon the rich heritage of classic weird fiction and infused a new vibrancy into old motifs by a vibrant prose style, deft character portrayal, and innovative scenarios, was an instant hit. Now, Smith has assembled his second story collection, and it features all the virtues of his first book while adding new touches that will broaden his readership. The Skeleton Melodies features such stories as "Lisa's Pieces," a grisly tale of cruelty and murder; "Fiending Apophenia," in which a schoolteacher reflects poignantly on his past derelictions; "The Fall of Tomlinson Hall," wherein Smith draws upon his own expertise in the culinary arts to fashion a story of cannibalistic terror; and "The Rive," a highly timely post-apocalyptic account of the horrors that inequities in health care can foster. Other stories treat of domestic strife leading to supernatural or psychological horror, such as "Animalhouse" or "The Undertow, and They That Dwell Therein." The volume culminates in the richly textured novella "Haunt Me Still," one of the most subtle and powerful ghost stories in recent years. Clint Smith is establishing an enviable reputation as a leading voice in contemporary weird fiction. This volume will only augment his high standing in the field.