This book celebrates gothic horror. These eleven tales of terror span the distance from Victorian times to the present day, from Egyptian tombs to modern streets, from creaking ships to stately mansions, and from good intentions to damnation. Mysterious locales, mystical artifacts, eerie omens, and macabre machinations converge to delight and horrify even the most complacent among us in these atmospheric accounts of guilt, revenge and obsession. Be it mad science performed on human bodies or madness infecting the soul, Anton Von Stefan examines what lies beneath the veneer of familiarity to see what hides from us in the shadows. Be prepared -- your hair will bristle and your jaw will drop. Covering your eyes wont make the words on the page go away, it will just burn the images deeper into your mind.
Each Christmas Eve on the poor side of town, a mysterious stranger appears to share his tale of nefarious Kenneth, on the prowl to fill his stomach and wallet at the expense of others. Making his way through a winter storm, Kenneth finds his opportunities stymied by visions of his past, key moments in his life that represent the trials and misfortunes which led him to where he is now. Poised between his past and future, Kenneth must decide whether to continue on a path that leads him nowhere good or reconnect with the hope that surrounded the child he once was. Told in the spirit of the Dickensian tradition of Christmas ghost stories, A Very Strange Christmas! bridges the gap between the traditions of the season and their core moral underpinnings.
This book celebrates gothic horror. These eleven tales of terror span the distance from Victorian times to the present day, from Egyptian tombs to modern streets, from creaking ships to stately mansions, and from good intentions to damnation. Mysterious locales, mystical artifacts, eerie omens, and macabre machinations converge to delight and horrify even the most complacent among us in these atmospheric accounts of guilt, revenge and obsession. Be it mad science performed on human bodies or madness infecting the soul, Anton Von Stefan examines what lies beneath the veneer of familiarity to see what hides from us in the shadows. Be prepared -- your hair will bristle and your jaw will drop. Covering your eyes wont make the words on the page go away, it will just burn the images deeper into your mind.
Each Christmas Eve on the poor side of town, a mysterious stranger appears to share his tale of nefarious Kenneth, on the prowl to fill his stomach and wallet at the expense of others. Making his way through a winter storm, Kenneth finds his opportunities stymied by visions of his past, key moments in his life that represent the trials and misfortunes which led him to where he is now. Poised between his past and future, Kenneth must decide whether to continue on a path that leads him nowhere good or reconnect with the hope that surrounded the child he once was. Told in the spirit of the Dickensian tradition of Christmas ghost stories, A Very Strange Christmas! bridges the gap between the traditions of the season and their core moral underpinnings.