Unpleasant Tales

“Every generation throws up a few genuine Masters of the Weird. There simply is no hyperbole in the statement that Brendan Connell is a member of this elite group right now, perhaps the most accomplished of them all. His work is very strange but always proceeds with rigorous logic and his use of language is original, concise and often startling, employing the alchemy of a ferocious intelligence to create dreamscapes that have the solidity and cruelty of stone and iron. The blend of profound melancholy, decadent atmosphere and abstruse erudition work beautifully and the magic of his prose gets under the skin of your soul and remains there forever.” — Rhys Hughes, author of A New Universal History of Infamy

A new collection of the vicious and lethally sharp stories of Brendan Connell. These are supremely refined and elegant, creepily intelligent and, of course, exquisitely unpleasant stories that pack a tremendous punch, both individually and collectively. The collection kicks off with The Maker of Fine Instruments, originally published in the World Fantasy Award winningStrange Tales anthology from Tartarus Press.

Contents:

• The Maker of Fine Instruments
• The Black Tiger
• The Putrimaniac
• A Dish of Spouse
• The Girl of Wax
• The Tongue
• The Skin Collector
• The Nasty Truth About Dentists
• The Nanny Goat
• Mesh of Veins
• The Flatterer
• The Last Mermaid
• The Cruelties of Him
• Wiggles
• The Woman of Paper
• The Last of the Burroways
• Flit
• Kullullu  
• Sirens
• The Unicorn
• Virgin Hearts
• We Sleep on a Thousand Waves Beneath the Stars