Skein and Bone, by V.H. Leslie
by Paul St. John Mackintosh
Exquisitely disturbing tales
V.H. Leslie is an artist and printmaker, as well as a very fine writer, and a member of England’s Omega Printmakers in Portsmouth. The fourteen dark and weird stories in this first collection are as finely crafted as you’d expect from her background, and as mysteriously suggestive as any cryptic design. Her work has been compared to Shirley Jackson or M.R. James, but is completely modern in its fantastic, surreal flavor.
Cabinet of Wonders: Bayou Werewolves, Alien Frogs & Dorian Gray
Let the familiar tickle your fancy. Deals with the devil, alien beings, Facebook, Twitter and even Dorian Gray make an appearance in this Cabinet. Reimagine and reinvigorate these classic tropes with a contemporary twist. Mind your feet — there’s some…things…it’d be best not to step on. The Fiddler of Bayou Teche, by Delia Sherman […]
Wylding Hall, by Elizabeth Hand
A Folk Rock Frightener in England Elizabeth Hand, a prize-winning New York-born author who lives in Maine, has produced one of the best English mystery tales for many a day. “It began as a riff on Daphne DuMaurier’s Rebecca,” she has said elsewhere, and the riff developed into a mesmerizing original composition with, as it […]
Cabinet of Wonders: Menagerie of Weird Creatures
Open the door into a menagerie for this week’s Cabinet. Strange beings and strange people populate the shelves, each a curio for us to consider. There are questions about ethics, character and love wrapped up in bizarre, two-headed and three-footed packages. Don’t forget: there’s always more than meets the eye. A Review of “The […]
Up the Fire Road (part two)
“Was I on some kind of strange drug? Was I in the woods at all? Was I at my mom’s house, and having some kind of a psychotic episode?”
Cabinet of Wonders: Cons, Scabs and Swarms
Wide open skies, sprawling Western states and the tippy-top of the atmosphere. Here, we can spend time wondering who we are — this week, we’re taking field trips. Run across plains, climb mountains, soar skyward, abandon work and embark on a Kerouacian exploration of self and society. Let the Weird introduce you to the wonderful. […]
Cabinet of Wonders: Letters from the Dead
Disappearing Dads, Time Traveling Doctors, and Letters from the Dead It seems a little abnormal to find a Lauren and a Loren writing fabulous fiction this week (with reviews written by a Lauren). What is normal, anyway? Is it polos and boat shoes? Is it the desire to fix mistakes? Is it the humble town […]
Cabinet of Wonders: Feral Mail, Hungry Curtains & Fork Phobia
I’m moving. Packing up all of my possessions, all of me, and claiming a new spot as my home. It only makes sense that I’m seeing signs of change all over the place — including this week’s Cabinet picks. See how relocating shakes up more than just coordinates and let these authors readjust what you […]
Cabinet of Wonders, 5.1.15
Sorrow, sadness and the end of humanity as we know it. Not every story has a happy ending, and we’ve pulled three this week for some cathartic healing. Revel in the misery—let it all out! And, when all seems lost, find the glimmer of hope in the dark. A Review of The Ministry of […]
Cabinet of Wonders, 4.18.15
April is showering talent down upon us. With the dreary weather comes a flood of memories, emotion and even a circus tent. In this cabinet collection you’ll find heart-wrenching lost love, chest-tightening found love and deep-breath-before-the-plunge decisions about the future. Let these stories wash over you with innovative ideas and carefully-crafted emotional content. […]