Still going strong after twenty-one years—the world’s premier annual showcase of Horror and Dark Fantasy fiction. The very best, and darkest, tales of terror, showcasing the most outstanding new short stories and novellas by both contemporary masters of horror and exciting newcomers, including the completion of a ‘lost’ M.R. JAMES story by REGGIE OLIVER and the first-ever collaboration between STEPHEN KING and his son JOE HILL. Other contributors include RICHARD CHRISTIAN MATHESON, BARBARA RODEN, ROBERT SHEARMAN, SIMON KURT UNSWORTH and STEPHEN VOLK. As ever, the latest volume in this long-standing and deservedly award-winning anthology series also offers an exhaustive overview of the year in horror, a comprehensive necrology of famous names, and a directory of indispensable contact details for dedicated horror fans and writers.
INTRODUCTION: HORROR IN 2009 The Editor
THE WOODS Michael Kelly
THROTTLE Joe Hill and Stephen King
OUT AND BACK Barbara Roden
RESPECTS Ramsey Campbell
COLD TO THE TOUCH Simon Strantzas
THE GAME OF BEAR M.R. James and Reggie Oliver
SHEM-EL-NESSIM AN INSPIRATION IN PERFUME Chris Bell
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU WAKE UP IN THE NIGHT Michael Marshall Smith
THE REUNION Nicholas Royle
MAMI WATA Simon Kurt Unsworth
VENTURI Richard Christian Matheson
PARTY TALK John Gaskin
TWO STEPS ALONG THE ROAD Terry Dowling
THE AXHOLME TOLL Mark Valentine
GRANNY’S GRINNING Robert Shearman
IN THE GARDEN Rosalie Parker
AFTER THE APE Stephen Volk
THE NONESUCH Brian Lumley
PRINCESS OF THE NIGHT Michael Kelly
NECROLOGY: 2009 Stephen Jones and Kim Newman
USEFUL ADDRESSES