Weird Fiction

A rural town finds itself under the authoritarian sway of a tree that punishes children. A pair of old friends navigate their fraught history as strange happenings escalate in a Mexican restaurant. A pair of narcissistic friends wreak havoc on an activist community. An aloof young man finds himself living through his lover’s memories. And a day of LARPing takes a cosmic turn.

From cult author Ken Shakin, a collection of perverse fiction about love and hate between all species of animal. These are bedtime stories for the grownup beast, full of beings from another world, our own, one where the creatures talk and the civilized devour their neighbors. Four shorts, and a novella that explores misanthropy and misogyny in the same breath: How To Tame A Wild Animal, a murder mystery about wine, women, and castration.

If this isn’t our reality, has a new nightmare been set in motion? How do we crawl out from this rabbit hole? Awakening in a whimsical world of dancing animals and mushroom castles, Michael and the Demonheart sisters are far from amused. With no clue how they arrived, terror ensues every mind. All the while, none have realized they’re being watched from the cotton candy clouds. Eager to return home, the archangel comes across a befuddling lead: the carnival’s in town. Though it appears docile, he and his friends come to realize there’s far more hiding behind the striped tents than ...

The year is 1984 and a 16 year old Jake Corba is just a misunderstood kid in need of a good home. It seems the world has given up on him already, but he finds new hope in a unique group home in Oak Bridge, CA. Jake finds a new life in the small town, but unfortunately his old problems won't seem to go away. No matter where he goes, he cannot escape the dark secret that has cursed his life since the day he was born. While Jake finds enemies, he also finds friends, but their help may not be enough to prevent the darkness that is destined to come. He is about to face the most intense challenge...

Jason Palmer is broke, tired, desperate. When an old friend recommends him for a paid sleep study, he makes a choice that could change everything about his life. Soon, he has a paycheck, and a head full of questions. Why would a laboratory be operating out of an unmarked building in the middle of a small Kansas town? How do they already know so much about his life? What is The Gold Mine?

The rise of the Master of Elements shall mark the return of the Wizard King. Weirden’s where . . . . . . chocolates are free, . . . people have windows instead of tummies, . . . and humans are called Ordinaires . . . because it’s a magical realm in the sky! An ordinary high-school boy, Ariston Baker, takes a risky plunge into an archaic picture book to save his friend, Kylan. Ariston soon realizes he has teleported into a magical sky realm called Weirden. Time is of the essence, for he must cross the tricky magical mazes, fetch his friend, and pass the exit gate before sunset, or he ...

The Meowy Republic stands proud in its traditions and its military might. Unlike the savages to the west and the barbarous centaurs to the east, every meowy has a say in how they are governed. But who shall lead them? Meowllary Clawton? The liberal lion who strives to help the less fortunate? Or Meowgaret Scratcher. A staunch conservative who yearns to expand the nation’s borders for the sake of security. The Republic needs wise leadership in troubling times. How should it deal with the pair of giant fairy-like creatures who look like hairless apes? These humans, as they call themselves, ...

Families that kill together, stay together. The Lawman and his weary companions have survived the Rites and are headed west for Victory Island. Not far behind, Lothair Eichberg has sworn to take revenge for the murders of his own kind. Along the way they encounter another infamous figure from the past recently revived and intent on taking over the world. The frozen dead are still rising, starving for human flesh. Ancient family ties will bring them all together again for one final, bloody reunion.

Emma Mcgraw is slowly making friends at her new school. but when Cynthia calls her weird, Emma is shocked. They are supposed to be best friends! in response, Emma decides that Cynthia’s new name should be bossy pants, and she tells everyone in the class.

Jake Wind is trying to stay under the radar. Whose radar? Anyone who might be too interested in the fact that he has shape-shifting abilities he can’t control. Or that his parents found him as a ball of goo when he was a baby. Keeping his powers in check is crucial, though, if he wants to live a normal life and go to middle school instead of being homeschooled (and if he wants to avoid being kidnapped and experimented on, of course).

VISIT THE AWESOME TEMPLE OF TOBRIOSUS SOLVE THE GREAT MYSTERY OF THE VANISHED TOBRII RACE For sleuth Barclay Heath, it was a mystery too great to resist. But as night falls on the deserted alien world, his fellow passengers begin to vanish one by one . . . Heath must unravel an age-old mystery before time runs out, before he, too, suffers the same fate as the Tobrii . . . The Barclay Heath Mysteries are set in a whimsical alternate-1920s, where humanity has ventured out into the stars but Twenties values and attitudes prevail. Barclay Heath is a gentleman detective enjoying semi-retirement ...

Woody wants to get un-weird - and fast! And he'll find help in the most unlikely of places. Woody is forever worried about being different. He thinks himself weird and a bit of a wuss, and two bullies, Della and Casey, make sure he doesn't forget that. It doesn't help that his mum is slightly bonkers. She dresses up as a sheep for a living - mostly for her job as a children's entertainer. And not to mention the fact that she forces Woody to wear old granny jumpers that she finds down the local charity shop.

A sorcerer on a cliff cuts into his own hand, summoning members of the ancient cult that destroyed his family. A maid hunts her former employer with a sword, attempting to win a revenge that could save us all. A doomed man rides a train to his dead father's home to unravel a terrible secret....

You can’t have a good tale of monster hunting without monsters. And sometimes the monsters don’t need to be hunted. Sometimes it’s fun sitting back at minimum safe distance and watching the mayhem.

The weirdest back-to-school story in the history of the world! Plus bonus content!

Twelve wacky tales from the brilliant and twisted mind of H.D. Ingles. A blend of intriguing mysteries, spicy thrillers, zany parodies, alluring dramas, and feel-good parables, with a touch of the supernatural and a hint of the downright surreal. From the sad and terrifying to the hilarious and uplifting, from a miserly old man whose dark past catches up with him, to a young woman trying to make her way in the business world any way she can, this collection will take you on a journey across the human condition. Who doesn't want a little adventure from time to time? Meet Kenny Sparks, a ...

Leann sells Volvos and recently had her Uncle Ron move in with her. She's having an affair with her boss, Ed, who claims to have an agoraphobic girlfriend, Kelly. Leann decides Ed is a loser and ends the affair. She feels bad about it and decides to tell Kelly everything. But when she gets to Ed's house she finds Kelly behind a barred window claiming she's being held against her will. Kelly ends up coming home with Leann, who doesn't know what to do with the stray girl. Everything Leann thought she knew about Ed, about Kelly, seems to be wrong. Kelly claims Ed is a sadistic murderer who ...

J.R. Hamantaschen, a name synonymous with groundbreaking underground horror, returns with his latest collection. Channeling the essence of horror legends like H.P. Lovecraft, Thomas Ligotti, Clive Barker, T.E.D. Klein, and Dennis Etchison, this collection cements his status as a master storyteller in the realm of dark fiction, blending nihilism, the grotesque, and the philosophical in a way that only he can.

The weird, wild west - an American frontier populated by gunslingers, rattlesnakes, outlaws, zombies, aliens, time travelers, and steampunk! Twenty-three of science fiction and fantasy's hottest and most popular authors create all-new tales, written exclusively for this anthology. Aliens and monsters, magic and science are introduced to the old west, with explosive results.

Welcome to a very special issue of Weird Tales. This issue celebrates the Bram Stoker Awards, the “Oscars” of the horror trade. They are presented every year by the Horror Writers Association (horror.org), a group founded in 1985 (and incorporated in 1987) by a collective of masters of that genre, including Joe R. Lansdale, Karen Lansdale, Robert McCammon, and Dean Koontz. This issue is packed with short stories, flash fiction, poems, and an essay—all written by past winners of the Bram Stoker Award.