Seven Strange Stories by Rebecca Lloyd (Tartarus Press) is the author’s excellent fourth collection of eerie dark stories and novellas. Two are reprints. The original “Where’s the Harm” is reprinted herein.
The Carp-Faced Boy and Other Tales by Thersa Matsuura (Independent Legions Publishing) is a strong second collection, with ten horror stories, several of them inhabited by creatures from Japanese folklore. All but two of the stories are new. With an introduction by Gene O’Neill.
The Night Shop: Tales for the Lonely Hours by Terry Dowling (Cemetery Dance) is the Australian, multi-award-winning author’s fourth horror collection (his non-horror fiction has also been collected) and it’s a terrific sampling, with eighteen disturbing stories, three of them new. Dowling’s at the top of his game.
The Fiddle is the Devil’s Instrument and Other Forbidden Knowledge by Brett J. Talley (JournalStone) collects thirteen Lovecraftian tales, five new.
The Prozess Manifestations by Mark Samuels (Zagava) is the author’s sixth collection. It’s a slim volume of six, somewhat related stories, some horror, at least one Kafkaesque.
Strange is the Night by S. P. Miskowski (Trepidatio Publishing) is better known for her award-nominated novellas, but her short stories have been published in a variety of magazines and anthologies in the past few years. This is the first time they’ve been collected, with thirteen stories, three of them new.
The Dreamer in Fire and Other Stories by Sam Gafford (Hippocampus Press) is another debut. It contains seventeen stories (six new) heavily influenced by H. P. Lovecraft.
Perfect Little Stitches and Other Stories by Deborah Sheldon (IFWG Publishing) has twenty-one dark fantasy and horror stories, ten of them new.
Inferno: Tales of Hell and Horror by Angeline Hawkes (Elder Signs Press) is a series of linked stories about twenty-five sinners, their sins, and their punishments. Introduction by Robert Weinberg.
Infernal Parade by Clive Barker (Subterranean Press) is a beautifully produced little hardcover of six interrelated stories comprising a novella originally published in 2004. The jacket art and interior illustrations are all by Bob Eggleton. A gorgeous collectible for Barker fans and readers.
Goblin by Josh Malerman (Earthling) is the press’s annual Halloween offering. The six novellas make up a novel, set in the town of Goblin.
Exploring Dark Short Fiction #1: A Primer to Steve Rasnic Tem edited by Eric J. Guignard (Dark Moon Books) celebrates the four-decade-long career of an underappreciated master of horror and the weird. This introduction to Tem’s work includes six stories, one especially creepy new one, an interview, bibliography, and commentary throughout by Michael Arnzen. With illustrations throughout by Michelle Prebich.
Disexistence by Paul Kane (Cycatrix Press) has twenty-one stories, five of them new. With an introduction by Nancy Holder and story notes by the author.
Hasty for the Dark by Adam LG Nevill (Ritual Limited) is a self-published collection of ten stories (two new). Included are excellent story notes. Two of the stories were reprinted in previous volumes of my Best Horror of the Year series.
Fire. Plus by Elizabeth Hand (PM Press) is number eighteen in the publisher’s “Outspoken Authors” series. The mini-collection features three stories (one new), one autobiographical piece from 2004, several nonfiction essays and reviews, and a new interview of Hand by Terry Bisson. Hand is one of several contemporary writers who slides effortlessly between genres, most recently writing a dark, occasionally supernatural-tinged crime series. The new story “Fire” is short, intense, mainstream, yet dark. Singularity by Melanie Tem (Centipede Press) collects sixty of the late, award-winning writer Melanie Tem’s most important short fiction, highlighting her diversity and mastery of her art. With illustrations by Jessica Fortner and an afterword by Caitlín Kiernan. Strange Weather by Joe Hill (William Morrow) features four impressive novellas, three new. “Snapshot” was originally published in two issues of Cemetery Dance; “Aloft” is a fantasy about a grieving young man who when jumping out of a plane to skydive, magically lands on a sentient cloud that would like him to stay to keep it company; “Loaded” is a terrifyingly believable story of easy access to guns, revenge, and psychosis; “Rain” is about a mysterious and deadly rain that begins its fall in Colorado.
The Unorthodox Dr. Draper and Other Stories by William Browning Spencer (Subterranean Press) collects ten years’ worth of Spencer’s most recent stories, which includes nine stories and one poem. His work is surreal, funny, horrific, and very well written. Tales of Falling and Flying by Ben Loory (Penguin Books) is this quirky writer’s second collection of forty very brief tales and vignettes. Strange, sometimes unsettling, sometimes funny, but always entertaining. Wind Through the Fence: And Other Stories by Jonathan Maberry (JournalStone) collects twelve stories by the bestselling author of the Joe Ledger series of thrillers. The selection demonstrates Maberry’s versatility in the fields of sf, dark fantasy, crime, and horror. One story is new. Written in Darkness by Mark Samuels (Chômu Press) adds four reprints to an earlier collection with the same title originally published by Egaeus Press in 2014. You Should Come With Me Now: Stories of Ghosts by M. John Harrison (Comma Press) is the author’s first collection of short fiction in fifteen years and contains forty-two stories and flash fiction pieces of surrealism, fantasy, and a wee bit of horror. A few appear for the first time. The Wish Mechanics by Daniel Braum (Independent Legions Publishing) includes twelve stories of science fiction, dark fantasy, and horror. Five are published for the first time. Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado (Greywolf Press) is the celebrated author’s debut collection, and has made quite a splash in the literary world, having been nominated for the National Book Award. Although usually more weird than dark, several of her stories over the years have been horror, including “The Husband Stitch,” reprinted in this collection. You Will Grow Into Them by Malcolm Devlin (Unsung Stories) is a strong debut collection of ten stories by a new writer of dark fantasy, weird fiction, and horror. Four of the stories are published for the first time. Speaking to Skull Kings by Emily B. Cataneo (Trepidatio Publishing) is another debut by a new writer. The collection contains twelve stories of fantasy and dark fantasy, two of them new. Behind You by Ralph Robert Moore (self-published) is the author’s fourth collection. Among the eighteen mixed-genre stories are four new ones. Most of the stories are mainstream, a few are dark. Next are two mainstream collections that skirt the dark but don’t actually delve very deeply into it: The Doll’s Alphabet by Camilla Grudova (Coffee House Press) is the author’s first collection of thirteen very short stories. Most are surreal and bizarre, with hints of fairy tales and an edge of darkness. The Dark Dark by Samantha Hunt (Farrar, Straus, Giroux) is also a debut, this with ten stories, mostly new. Weird doings, some dark. The Dream Operator by Mike O’Driscoll (Undertow Publications) is the author’s second collection of stories. In it are eleven science fiction, dark fantasy, and horror stories. Three are published for the first time. Holidays From Hell by Reggie Oliver (Tartarus Press) features fourteen stories, one new in this seventh collection. With a gracious introduction by Robert Shearman. The Echo of the Sea & Other Strange War Stories by Paul StJohn Mackintosh (Egaeus Press Keynote Edition III) is a lovely little hardcover book containing four WWII stories (one reprint) that deal with Nazi attempts to harness supernatural forces to their cause. None is horror. Anthony Shriek by Jessica Amanda Salmonson (Centipede Press) is a gorgeous new edition of this 1992 novel, originally published in the Dell Abyss line. It’s illustrated by David Ho and has an introduction by Eileen Gunn. In addition to the novel, the volume features a number of reprinted stories and poems published between 1975 and 1997, plus two new prose pieces and seven new poems. Haunted Worlds by Jeffrey Thomas (Hippocampus Press) is another varied and imaginative collection of reprints and five new stories by the creator of the world of Punktown. Thomas often mixes sf and horror and weird fiction to good effect. With an introduction by Ian Rogers and story notes by the author. Thomas had a second collection out from Lovecraft eZine Press: The Endless Fall and Other Weird Fiction. This one collects fourteen stories, one new. Naked Revenants and Other Fables of Old and New England by Jonathan Thomas (Hippocampus Press) is the fifth collection of weird and often dark tales by the author. This volume has twenty-one stories and poems, nine new. The Lay of Old Hex: Spectral Ballads and Weird Jack Tales by Adam Bolivar (Hippocampus Press) is a collection of thirty-three reprinted and new tales, ballads, and vignettes about a man with a silver key that takes him on many a weird journey. Not much horror. With an introduction by K. A. Opperman. Telling the Map by Christopher Rowe (Small Bee Press) is the author’s debut collection and contains ten stories, all but one reprints. Although most of his work is science fiction or weird fantasy, there’s the occasional strain of darkness running through it (three of the stories were originally published by me). Call for Submissions by Selena Chambers (Pelekinesis) features fifteen stories reprinted from a variety of anthologies and small press magazines. One was nominated for a 2016 World Fantasy Award. Dis Mem Ber and Other Stories of Mystery and Suspense by Joyce Carol Oates (The Mysterious Press) presents seven dark suspense stories originally published in magazines and anthologies, including one from my avian horror anthology, Black Feathers. William Meikle had two collections out in 2017: Carnacki: The Edinburgh Townhouse & Other Stories (Lovecraft EZine Press) is an entertaining collection of ten new tales about William Hope Hodgson’s creation Carnacki, the ghost-finder, and his friends, often plagued by the supernatural. In The Ghost Club: Newly Found Tales of Victorian Terror (Crystal Lake Publishing) we have another entertaining collection of fourteen inventive new stories written in the styles of Bram Stoker, Jules Verne, Madam Blavatsky, Rudyard Kipling, and ten other illustrious writers of the period. The Big-Headed People and Other Stories by D. F. Lewis (Eibonvale Chapbook Line #2) consists of an expanded version of the title story plus four shorter stories. Old Hoggen and Other Adventures by Bram Stoker (The Swan River Press) is a lovely little hardcover book that collects nine stories by the author of Dracula, with a preface by Brian J. Showers and an introduction by John Edgar Browning and Brian J. Showers. My House Gathers Desires by Adam McOmber (BOA Editions) is an excellent literary mix of horror and fantasy of fifteen stories, all previously published in various small literary magazines. Black Pantheons: Collected Tales of Gnostic Dread by Curtis M. Lawson (Wyrd Horror) is a debut of mostly dark fantasy with eleven stories, all but three new. A Flutter of Wings by Mervyn Wall (The Swan River Press) has eleven pieces of fiction from throughout Wall’s writing career and includes both satire and darker material. Tales from Harborsmouth by E. J. Stevens (Sacred Oaks Press) contains four stories and novellas about a supernatural detective. Dear Sweet Filthy World by Caitlín R. Kiernan (Subterranean Press) is the author’s fourteenth collection of short stories and vignettes. All twenty-eight were originally published in her subscription-only Sirenia Digest. One was reprinted in an earlier volume of the Best Horror of the Year series. Up the Rainbow: The Complete Short Fiction of Susan Casper edited by Gardner Dozois (Fantastic Books) is a lovely memorial to the late author of speculative fiction and horror and includes twenty-four stories written solo and in collaboration (one original). The volume also features seven of Casper’s fascinating trip reports and an afterword by Andy Duncan. Writing Madness by Patrick McGrath (Centipede Press) is a big deluxe hardcover collection of this expert in the macabre’s short stories, introductions, essays, and reviews. Blood and Water, McGrath’s first collection (and the work that first piqued my own interest in his short stories), is reprinted in its entirety, as is McGrath’s most recent, three-story collection, Ghost Town. Joyce Carol Oates introduces the book. Danel Olson edited it and wrote the afterword. Jacket and interior illustrations are by Harry Brockway.