Ghosts, vampires and the afterlife merge with the forces of nature and symbolic archetypes in these twelve highly original short stories that run the gamut from darkness and death to innocence and hope. While rooted in this world, they reach into the beyond with the mystical insight of parable and myth that touches something deep within the unconscious. The eminent composer, Alan Hovhaness, writes: "I greatly admire Richard Howard as a very fine and original writer. I cannot praise highly enough Tower Song. This I think is one of the great stories of all time and certainly should be published throughout the world. The Messenger has a quiet mysterious power and great depth. I know the difficulty to arrive at the spiritual and mental harmony which allows such poetry to flower in naturalness and spontaneous singing quality. The Temple of Lior held my attention from beginning to end. It is compelling and its symbols are of profound wisdom. Moon Prophecy is wonderful. The forces of terror and beauty are controlled. This story with its message haunts me. Mass consciousness dangers are warnings from ancient times into modern times." And the celebrated English artist, Coral Guest, writes: "Strange Tales is a portal into another reality. Each of these stories offers us an entry point into something 'other' and mirrors a particular awareness that we all possess in the depth of our psyche. Richard Howard is a unique talent who has the power to invoke this particular frequency. He is a spiritual writer, one of rare integrity, and each story is a testimony to his own insight. A book of rare truth and all-encompassing mystery." This volume also contains an autobiographical essay in which the author recounts a lifetime of strange experiences that very early on aroused his curiosity about the paranormal. Beautifully written and most fascinating. Colin Wilson