After hearing the author speak at StokerCon this year, I couldn't resist ordering his collection. And although you'll likely have to go to the trouble of ordering it directly from the author's own website, I hope you will...because this collection is one of the best single-author collections of speculative fiction (horror or otherwise) that I've ever read. Many of the stories felt Le Guin-esque, and I adored the fact that plenty of them were long enough to really fall into and live with for a while. My favorite was actually one of the longer stories in the collection--"Dead Lovers on Each Blade, Hung"--but every one of these stories sucked me in, and it's rare for me to be able to say that.

Malik's talent for creating whole worlds in only a few characters and pages is incredible, and the heartbreak involved in some of these monstrous tales is nothing short of breathtaking. I'll read anything he writes from here on out.

Absolutely recommended. ( )