The Voice in the Night (Cryptofiction Classics - Weird Tales of Strange Creatures)


Book Description

This early work by William J. Wintle was originally published in 1921 and we are now republishing it as part of our Cryptofiction Classics series. 'The Voice in the Night' is a short story about a mysterious presence that materialises after dark. Wintle started writing in his thirties, and during the early part of the 20th century produced two much-circulated essays: “Life in Our New Century” (1901) and “Can You Explain It? True Stories of the Ghost World” (1903). Later, he turned to fiction, producing a number of well-remembered stories, including “The Red Rosary”, “When the Twilight Fell”, “The House on the Cliff”, “The Ghost at the Blue Dragon”, “The Spectre Spiders”, “The Footsteps on the Stairs”, “The Chamber of Doom”, “When Time Stood Still”, and “The Black Cat”. These and others were collected in a 1921 collection entitled Ghost Gleams. Wintle died in 1934, aged 73. The Cryptofiction Classics series contains a collection of wonderful stories from some of the greatest authors in the genre, including Ambrose Bierce, Arthur Conan Doyle, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Jack London. From its roots in cryptozoology, this genre features bizarre, fantastical, and often terrifying tales of mythical and legendary creatures. Whether it be giant spiders, werewolves, lake monsters, or dinosaurs, the Cryptofiction Classics series offers a fantastic introduction to the world of weird creatures in fiction.




The Red Hand (Cryptofiction Classics - Weird Tales of Strange Creatures)


Book Description

This early work by Arthur Machen was originally published in 1895 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introductory biography as part of our Cryptofiction Classics series. 'The Red Hand' is a short story of a murder committed with an ancient stone axe and a strange clue in the form of an image of a red hand. Arthur Machen was born in Caerleon, Monmouthshire, Wales in 1863. At the age of eleven, he boarded at Hereford Cathedral School, where he received a comprehensive classical education. His first major success came in 1894, with the novella 'The Great God Pan'. Although widely denounced by the press as degenerate and horrific because of its decadent style and sexual content, it has since garnered a reputation as a classic of horror; indeed, author Stephen King has called it “maybe the best [horror story] in the English language.” His legacy remains formidable; his work has influenced countless other artists, and is seen as setting the stage for – amongst other things – the Cthulhu horrors of H. P. Lovecraft. The Cryptofiction Classics series contains a collection of wonderful stories from some of the greatest authors in the genre, including Ambrose Bierce, Arthur Conan Doyle, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Jack London. From its roots in cryptozoology, this genre features bizarre, fantastical, and often terrifying tales of mythical and legendary creatures. Whether it be giant spiders, werewolves, lake monsters, or dinosaurs, the Cryptofiction Classics series offers a fantastic introduction to the world of weird creatures in fiction.




The Camp of the Dog (Cryptofiction Classics - Weird Tales of Strange Creatures)


Book Description

This early work by Algernon Blackwood was originally published in 1908 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introductory biography as part of our Cryptofiction Classics series. 'The Camp of the Dog' is a short story of a group's visit to the outback that is disturbed by the presence of a werewolf. Algernon Henry Blackwood was born in Shooter's Hill, South East England, in 1869. In his youth he trained as a doctor at Wellington College in Berkshire, and went on to pursue a number of careers, in areas as varied as milk farming, modelling, journalism and violin teaching. In his thirties, Blackwood returned to England from New York, where he had spent a number of years, and began to write stories of the supernatural. Blackwood was extremely prolific, producing over the course of his life some ten original collections of short stories, fourteen novels, several children's books, and a number of plays. The Cryptofiction Classics series contains a collection of wonderful stories from some of the greatest authors in the genre, including Ambrose Bierce, Arthur Conan Doyle, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Jack London. From its roots in cryptozoology, this genre features bizarre, fantastical, and often terrifying tales of mythical and legendary creatures. Whether it be giant spiders, were-wolves, lake monsters, or dinosaurs, the Cryptofiction Classics series offers a fantastic introduction to the world of weird creatures in fiction.




The Sign of the Spider (Cryptofiction Classics - Weird Tales of Strange Creatures)


Book Description

This early work by Bertram Mitford was originally published in 1896 and we are now republishing it as part of our Cryptofiction Classics series. 'The Sign of the Spider' is a novel about a man who leaves his wife to go and earn his fortune in South Africa but runs into trouble with a native tribe. The Cryptofiction Classics series contains a collection of wonderful stories from some of the greatest authors in the genre, including Ambrose Bierce, Arthur Conan Doyle, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Jack London. From its roots in cryptozoology, this genre features bizarre, fantastical, and often terrifying tales of mythical and legendary creatures. Whether it be giant spiders, werewolves, lake monsters, or dinosaurs, the Cryptofiction Classics series offers a fantastic introduction to the world of weird creatures in fiction.




The Ancient Horror (Cryptofiction Classics - Weird Tales of Strange Creatures)


Book Description

This early work by Hal Grant was originally published in 1928 and we are now republishing it as part of our Cryptofiction Classics series. 'The Ancient Horror' is a short story in which a man relays his tale of coming face to face with a monster. The Cryptofiction Classics series contains a collection of wonderful stories from some of the greatest authors in the genre, including Ambrose Bierce, Arthur Conan Doyle, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Jack London. From its roots in cryptozoology, this genre features bizarre, fantastical, and often terrifying tales of mythical and legendary creatures. Whether it be giant spiders, werewolves, lake monsters, or dinosaurs, the Cryptofiction Classics series offers a fantastic introduction to the world of weird creatures in fiction.




The Brazilian Cat (Cryptofiction Classics - Weird Tales of Strange Creatures)


Book Description

This early work by Arthur Conan Doyle was originally published in 1898 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introductory biography as part of our Cryptofiction Classics series. 'The Brazilian Cat' is a short story about an enormous and captivating black cat. Arthur Conan Doyle was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1859. It was between 1876 and 1881, while studying medicine at the University of Edinburgh, that he began writing short stories, and his first piece was published in 'Chambers's Edinburgh Journal' before he was 20. In 1887, Conan Doyle's first significant work, iA Study in Scarlet', appeared in 'Beeton's Christmas Annual'. It featured the first appearance of detective Sherlock Holmes, the protagonist who was to eventually make Conan Doyle's reputation. The Cryptofiction Classics series contains a collection of wonderful stories from some of the greatest authors in the genre, including Ambrose Bierce, Arthur Conan Doyle, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Jack London. From its roots in cryptozoology, this genre features bizarre, fantastical, and often terrifying tales of mythical and legendary creatures. Whether it be giant spiders, werewolves, lake monsters, or dinosaurs, the Cryptofiction Classics series offers a fantastic introduction to the world of weird creatures in fiction.




The Empire of the Ants (Cryptofiction Classics - Weird Tales of Strange Creatures)


Book Description

This early work by H. G. Wells was originally published in 1905 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introductory biography as part of our Cryptofiction Classics series. 'The Empire of the Ants' is a short story of a Brazilian Captain who has been sent to help a town's inhabitants fight a plague of intelligent ants. Herbert George Wells was born in Bromley, England in 1866. He apprenticed as a draper before becoming a pupil-teacher at Midhurst Grammar School in West Sussex. Some years later, Wells won a scholarship to the School of Science in London, where he developed a strong interest in biology and evolution, founding and editing the Science Schools Journal. However, he left before graduating to return to teaching, and began to focus increasingly on writing. It was in 1895 that Wells seriously established himself as a writer, with the publication of the now iconic novel, The Time Machine. Wells followed The Time Machine with the equally well-received War of the Worlds (1898), which proved highly popular in the USA. The Cryptofiction Classics series contains a collection of wonderful stories from some of the greatest authors in the genre, including Ambrose Bierce, Arthur Conan Doyle, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Jack London. From its roots in cryptozoology, this genre features bizarre, fantastical, and often terrifying tales of mythical and legendary creatures. Whether it be giant spiders, werewolves, lake monsters, or dinosaurs, the Cryptofiction Classics series offers a fantastic introduction to the world of weird creatures in fiction.




The Man-Wolf (Cryptofiction Classics - Weird Tales of Strange Creatures)


Book Description

This early work by Emile Erckmann and Alexandre Chatrian was originally published in 1876 and we are now republishing it with brand new introductory biographies as part of our Cryptofiction Classics series. 'The Man-Wolf' is a short story about a werewolf set in France. The Cryptofiction Classics series contains a collection of wonderful stories from some of the greatest authors in the genre, including Ambrose Bierce, Arthur Conan Doyle, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Jack London. From its roots in cryptozoology, this genre features bizarre, fantastical, and often terrifying tales of mythical and legendary creatures. Whether it be giant spiders, werewolves, lake monsters, or dinosaurs, the Cryptofiction Classics series offers a fantastic introduction to the world of weird creatures in fiction.




Cryptofiction - Volume I. A Collection of Fantastical Short Stories of Sea Monsters, Were-Wolves, and Other Mysterious Creatures (Cryptofiction Classics - Weird Tales of Strange Creatures)


Book Description

These early works by various authors were originally published between the late 16th century and early 20th century and we are now republishing them with a brand new introduction as part of our Cryptofiction Classics series. 'Cryptofiction - Volume I.' contains a collection of short stories that include 'The Mark of the Beast' by Rudyard Kipling, 'The Eyes of the Panther' by Ambrose Bierce, 'In the Avu Observatory' by H. G. Wells, and many other classic tales of strange creatures. The genre of cryptofiction has grown up in the shadow of its older brothers, science fiction and fantasy, and specialises in the concept of mysterious creatures such as sea monsters, wolf-men, and lost pre-historic creatures. Cryptofiction takes its name from another, non-literary practice: cryptozoology. This is generally regarded as a pseudoscience by mainstream scientists, relying as it does upon anecdotal, often unverifiable evidence. However, it still boasts many enthusiasts, and continues to exert considerable artistic allure. Cryptofiction is here to stay, and the stories in this collection map the development of a genre which is as strange as it is fascinating. The Cryptofiction Classics series contains a collection of wonderful stories from some of the greatest authors in the genre, including Ambrose Bierce, Arthur Conan Doyle, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Jack London. From its roots in cryptozoology, this genre features bizarre, fantastical, and often terrifying tales of mythical and legendary creatures. Whether it be giant spiders, werewolves, lake monsters, or dinosaurs, the Cryptofiction Classics series offers a fantastic introduction to the world of weird creatures in fiction.




The Strange Adventures of a Private Secretary in New York (Cryptofiction Classics - Weird Tales of Strange Creatures)


Book Description

This gothic story delves into the peculiar worlds of a butler, a reporter, and a possibly lycanthropic would-be chemist, where reality blurs with the extraordinary. Hiding in the bustling streets of New York are elusive cryptids, hidden societies, and bizarre creatures. This short story explores the city's secrets, where strange creatures and mysterious wonders lurk around every corner. First published in 1906, Algernon Blackwood's fantastically terrifying work has enchanted and intrigued readers for over a century in a masterful example of classic gothic horror.