Masques IV: All-New Works of Horror and the Supernatural
The veteran horror editor and novelist ( Shadows of Death ) here assembles two poems and 24 short stories, 23 written specifically for this volume. The exception is Steve Allen's 1956 classic "The Secret," in which a man chronicles his out-of-body experience during his first death. (He is not so lucky the second time around.) The dead--human and animal--wreak havoc on the living throughout the collection. "The Pack" by Chet Williamson allows a group of dogs to narrate the tale of their return to life to feed on the humans who killed them. In Graham Masterson's "The Heart of Helen Day," a salesman stranded in a hotel room discovers that an apparently live radio show is broadcasting a 50-year-old murder. Humor adds to the horror of such offerings as "Animal Husbandry," Bruce Boston's tale of a woman eager to have children who wreaks revenge when her husband has a vasectomy and tells her to get a pet instead. These polished stories elicit shivers and give pause for reflection. Among the contributors are F. Paul Wilson, Kristin Kathryn Rusch, Ed Gorman and James Kisner.Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.