Publisher's Synopsis
An imagined disease spreads across a city. A fading horror movie star crafts his replacement. Two thieves wait for rescue at the end of the world. Human monsters are put to their final tests. Time stands still in fairy circles, loops in on itself for a runaway child, and can be rewritten in the pages of a book. Fifteen unforgettable stories to be read in the dark from dark urban fantasy author Michael Montoure. " ... Montoure's spare, striking prose outlines characters in deliciously twisted predicaments .... " -- Seattle Weekly Stories include: COLD SEASON - His mother had always been a hypochondriac, but now a city has fallen ill with her ONE LAST SUNSET - She wanted a vampire to promise her immortality, but it's nothing like it seems REMAKE - A horror movie idol confronts the man who will play his most famous role REST AREAS - A deadline, a suitcase full of cash, a stolen car -- and something in the trunk DADDY'S GIRLS - Children will come when the time is right, and not before LIFE STORY - When the pages of your life are laid out before you, what changes can you make? ONLY MONSTERS - A young boy, an old woman, and tales of the most frightening monster of all LULLABY FOR TWO VOICES - Her perfect child, or his dark twin -- one will be reclaimed ORPHEUS - The worst part of Hell is not knowing you're there WATCH THE COIN - A secret pact, a successful heist, and a fairy circle LOST BOY - A young boy runs away to a fairytale woods, only to find he's not alone PUPPETS - The man who bought the doll from him will ruin his career, if he can't find it before it kills again THE THIRTEENTH BOY - All the papers say the man behind the serial murders is a monster, but the monsters think otherwise COUNTERCLOCKWISE - An imaginary time machine, a tragic childhood secret; a man who can see into "dead time" sees a chance to make things right