Look Out For… These Last Embers by Simon Strantzas
The inaugural launch of the Undertow Publications chapbook series, These Last Embers takes place in the dark recesses of the human soul, where nothing is more certain than the knowledge that you can never go home again. This sixteen-page story is limited to 200 copies with a wraparound cover by the acclaimed Drazen Kozjan. Each chapbook is signed by the author and the cover artist, and will be shipped world-wide at launch in February, 2015.
Why We’re Excited About This Book: It’s hard to think of a better match of author and publisher as Simon Strantzas and Undertow Publications. Both have shown a commitment to intelligent, literate short fiction, and both have quietly built up a reputation for quality, Strantzas by a series of well received collections and Undertow by the Shadows & Tall Trees magazine. Now Strantzas has written the first in a new series of chapbooks from the press; These Last Embers has already garnered praise from Peter Straub, Nathan Ballingrud and Adam Nevill.
There’s few clues about the story itself, other than what the reader can infer from the title and the magnificent cover art by Drazen Kozjan. But given the calibre of all concerned, and the strictly limited edition nature of this release, that shouldn’t stop you considering These Last Embers a must buy.
This Book Will Appeal To: all fans of literate and ambiguous weird fiction.
These Last Embers is available for pre-order from Undertow Publications now.
“Many of the writers originally featured in Peeping Tom went on to become big names in the horror field.”
And now the time has come, take my hand, if you dare, and I’ll take Tom’s, and together we’ll let him lead us down a dark alley and into the shadows…
A secret that must never be passed on. A tube journey into madness. A demonic terror concealed in the green hell of the wartime jungle. A deadly sea mist. Monsters, hallucination, loss and vengeance. These are a few of Tom’s favourite things.
Why We’re Excited About This Book: Peeping Tom was one of the UK’s leading horror magazines at the end of the last century, producing 34 issues and winning 2 British Fantasy Society awards. Now Exaggerated Press has released The Dark Heart Of Peeping Tom, an anthology collecting together some of the very best fiction originally published within its pages.
Whilst the name Peeping Tom might not be familiar to a lot of horror readers nowadays, the names of the contributors to this anthology should be – many of the writers originally featured in the magazine went on to become big names in the field. This anthology features work (including some early and hard to get pieces) from such writers as Joel Lane, Tim Lebbon, Nicholas Royle, Madeline Mitchell, Conrad Williams, Graham Joyce, Keith Brooke, and Ramsey Campbell. Edited by Terry Grimwood, The Dark Heart Of Peeping Tom provides a welcome opportunity for these stories to be read and enjoyed all over again.
This Book Will Appeal To: readers who remember Peeping Tom or those who want to appreciate these stories for the first time.
The Dark Heart of Peeping Tom is out now from The Exaggerated Press.
JAMES EVERINGTON