PS Publishing

Prisms are instruments, mirrors, metaphors, gateways humankind must pass through in order to achieve, to overcome, to realize, to become. Contained herein are nineteen transformative tales from some of speculative fiction's most brilliant minds. So open your eyes and let the light pass through . . .

In this latest edition of THE WORLD'S LONGEST-RUNNING ANNUAL SHOWCASE OF HORROR AND DARK FANTASY you will find cutting-edge stories by such authors as Helen Marshall, Conrad Williams, Ramsey Campbell, Angela Slatter, Reggie Oliver and Than Niveau, amongst many others, along with the usual Introduction: Horror in 2017 and Necrology of those who have left us.

Don't tell anyone, but there have been strange goings-on in this neck of the wood of late. Furtive messages have been buzzing between the publishing behemoth that is PS Towers and my base of operations here at NewCon Central. To what purpose? you may ask (and let's face it, I'm going to tell you even if you don't ask).

Well, very soon, PS Publishing will be releasing the first ever (and who knows, perhaps the only ever) anthology in print of stories that have featured in the digital pages of ParSec. Twenty-five stories drawn from the first seven issues of the magazine will appear within the covers of ParSec in Print (how on Earth did we come up with the title?). Choosing those stories has been a challenge in itself. I could easily have selected twice that number and the composition of the book has chopped and changed until I applied the fixing agent (ie until I delivered the MS to the publisher).

From The Waste Land - stories inspired by T.S. Eliot's "The Waste Land" Plaintive ghosts, deep space, medieval castles, rising seas, parched deserts, abandoned villages…Inspired by its powerful themes-still highly resonant in an era looking for hope-nineteen original tales mark the centenary of Eliot's poem. From the Waste Land brings together decorated writers and new voices in fantasy; ghost tales, horror, dystopia and science fiction. With a blend of the grotesque and the sublime, the poignant and the horrifying, the sad and the stoic, you'll find stories that conjure wastelands from the 1500s to many centuries hence. You'll also find the hope for humanity and the belief in our joint future that these writers seek for us all.

This revised and updated second edition of Best New Horror showcases some of the very best short stories and novellas published in 1990, the year when the horror boom finally went bust. In this vilifying volume you will rediscover terrifying tales by, amongst many others, Poppy Z. Brite, Jonathan Carroll, Harlan Ellison, Elizabeth Hand, Michael Marshall Smith, Peter Straub, F. Paul Wilson, Gahan Wilson and Gene Wolfe, along with an overview of the year in horror by the editors and a nightmare necrology of those who kicked off this mortal coil during that period.

So get ready to spread your wings and take a bite out of this latest anthology of agony. And don't forget to tell your fellow fiends about our new series of Best New Horror reprints. Just let them know who sent you . . .

The Old Hag

Heh, Heh, Kiddies! They say that you can always tell a GOOD BOOK by its COVER! Well, after you BONE UP on the front of this first BEST OF volume of THE WORLD S LONGEST-RUNNING ANNUAL SHOWCASE OF HORROR AND DARK FANTASY by legendary artist NORMAN SAUNDERS, you ll be left SPELLBOUND by some of the most SIZZLING fiction ever published in this AWARD-WINNING series. Between these covers are DEVILISHLY GOOD STORIES by RAMSEY CAMPBELL, HARLAN ELLISON, CHRISTOPHER FOWLER, NEIL GAIMAN, CAITLIN R. KIERNAN, TERRY LAMSLEY, BRIAN LUMLEY, PAUL J. McAULEY, MICHAEL MARSHALL SMITH and PETER STRAUB.

So, what are you WAITING for? Open up this HELLISH TOME and START READING! Because a cover NEVER lies, and neither does . . .

Aliza Satine is a scrapper, finding artefacts and curios from earlier ages of Velin where she can, intent on uncovering more about its history. What the Reliquistors tell the people of Velin's past only goes so far, and Aliza is nothing if not curious. One day she is given a gift, a small glass bottle. A type of curio she thought long-extinct, if it had ever really existed at all. Knowing the danger if she's found to have such an object in her possession, Aliza resolves to find out more about it before she has to give it up ? and discovers so much more than she ever thought possible.