Folkloric: Tales of Folklore & Horror
Folkloric, Tales of Folklore & Horror is a collection of 16 terrifying tales, drenched in ritual, superstition, and myth. Featuring stories from authors all around the world, this anthology delves into the dark traditions of ages past, and the uncanny sources that inspired them.
Walk with us in the Cave of Quicavi, beside the twisted imbunche! Add your voice to our invocation, as we raise the Woman of the Forest! Join us, in the shadow of Urraca Mesa, as we explore the secrets of Skull Mountain! From Chilote folklore to tales of bewitchery, Folkloric, Tales of Folklore & Horror is packed with stories of the macabre, the sinister, and the downright horrifying!
Featuring tales from C. L. Werner, Felix Blackwell, Eneasz Brodski, Errick Nunnally, R. T. Wenzel, Miranda Dahlin, Xan van Rooyen, Rowland Bercy Jr., Trey Henry, Thomas Canfield, Madison Kilian, Justin Fillmore, Scotty Milder, Mark Oxbrow, J. L. Royce, Max Hallam, as well as illustrations from Stephen Spinas.
HEAVEN’S BOUNTY
God shows his love to the First Men, showering them in abundance and rewarding their devotion, faith, and their trust in Him. And in return, mankind toils in the fields, watches over God’s creations, and… when the season has been bountiful, offers up sacrifices in His name. But what happens when the Creator doesn’t deem your sacrifice worthy?
In Heaven’s Bounty, Eneasz Brodski delves deep into one of mankind’s most profound tales, moulding and shaping it while maintaining the tragic nature in its retelling. The lines between faith, myth, and horror become blurred as you look up at God… and something else stares back.
TWIGLET
Blodeuwedd’s name does not please her husband, so he calls her Twyla instead. Many things do not please her husband, and she is careful not to be the subject of his ire. But this is not living, and it is not in her nature to be merely a man’s wife… to exist to please another—even if he was the reason she was created in the first place.
When a stranger appears on their estate, filled with the promise of laughter, freedom, and something more, Blodeuwedd’s path is changed. But will his magical words hold true, or is Blodeuwedd’s fate truly out of her own hands?
In Twiglet, R.T. Wenzel combines elegant prose with Welsh folklore, creating a stunning retelling of a dark tale, with themes as relevant today as they were when they were first penned!
CHERIMOYA PROMISES
A disfigured boy wakes up alone in a cave. His bones have been bent, broken, and reformed, leaving him a wicked-looking thing, feared by the town’s folk—the perfect guardian of the cave. But the world is changing. His masters have been caught and taken to trial for the crime of witchcraft… leaving him alone to face a world that doesn’t want him.
Miranda Dahlin’s Cherimoya Promises follows the terrifying imbunche as he steps out from his cave into a harsh world made only harsher by his presence. A tale of Chilote folklore, with enough grisly notes to make your stomach churn!
THE BALLAD OF CHARLES KENNEDY
Something sinister is happening in New Mexico—and it’s not just the killings. The townsfolk are on edge, people have gone missing, and talk of reprisals and ungodliness abound in the shadow of Urraca Mesa. Something in the mountain is stirring, and only ol’ Charlie seems to know what it is. After all, he’s seen it.
Scotty Milder’s The Ballad of Charles Kennedy blends the true tale of one of the Old West’s most brutal killers with the folklore of Urraca Mesa. But who’s to say the stories surrounding the skull mountain aren’t just as true? The mountain is calling… Will you answer?
THE PIG FARM
June has gone missing, but there’s no way she’s left the town. Nobody has in years, they… can’t. Which means she must have gone down into the caves, to confront the creature that lurks within… that’s keeping them from leaving. Witch. Some say she’s been there forever, as ancient as the cavern she occupies. Monster. Others say it’s not true, a story for children! They can leave whenever they want. They just… don’t.
In The Pig Farm, Madison Kilian weaves together a story of black magic and ancient superstitions, creating a spellbinding tale of family and just how far the bonds of blood can take you before the shadows that lurk on the edge become too much…
THE ROSE TOWER
The gods deserve to be celebrated, to be honoured. And mankind has found countless ways to do just that over millennia. We celebrate their names through virtue and faith, depravity and violence. We create great works in tribute and marvel at their creations. But sometimes, we reach out into the empty space above our heads and find that we have gone too far. That we have blurred the lines between this world and theirs, and that we would be better off not having them crossing over… but by then, it’s already too late.
In The Rose Tower, Max Hallam delves into the world of cultists and lavish excess, and a piece of art that is not entirely of this realm. When you open the door to another world, be careful not to let something else step in…
THE DIRT PATH
Losing a loved one is difficult; gaining closure is harder. Harder still when there isn’t a body to bury. Reid has questions—any boy would—but the answers are less than forthcoming. His father is… distant, and his mother has taken to burying her head in her Bible. Every family has secrets. Are the Dixons really any different? Some secrets, however, are darker and more terrible still, older even than the family might understand. Only one thing is clear: “The path must be kept,” and Reid has little choice but to find out why.
In The Dirt Path, Trey Henry thrusts the reader into the pitiless Texan heat, harnessing themes of family, tradition, and something more ancient than blood to produce a coming-of-age story that will delight and horrify you.
TWELVE
Some men learn to read ancient languages, others to read people, but Rathman has a very peculiar talent. He can read stone. It speaks to him, sharing its precious secrets, its memories of the past and present, making Rathman a valuable asset in any missing persons case.
So when a young Romanian girl goes missing and rumours begin to surface that she’d been seen at a local church, Rathman is brought in to investigate. The thing is… this isn’t any old church. And the gargoyles that occupy its rafters aren’t any old gargoyles. As Rathman will discover, some stone just doesn’t want to be read.
In Twelve, Thomas Canfield combines a fascinating detective noir with an ancient legend, creating a brooding atmosphere as he takes you on a terrific journey to explore the secrets locked away in stone.
WHERE WOLF’S EARS ARE, WOLF’S TEETH ARE NEAR
Robin Aitken is compiling her doctorate when she comes across fragments from a journal that hint of a murder, a sacrifice, and a ritual to ancient gods that have no place on the Scottish Isle of Iona—and even less place in the heart of a young monk in the 9th century. A young monk who became a murderer…
Mark Oxbrow’s Where Wolf’s Ears Are, Wolf’s Teeth Are Near is a journey through time, an exploration of medieval murder, the occult, and of blasphemous old monks that sees Scottish folklore clash with religion and the pagan gods!
THE WIND IS YOUR FRIEND
The North Woods windmills are breaking down, and Ida’s not sure why. Strange weather patterns and torn-up infrastructure are about the only clues she has. And it’s on Tribal land, which means she’ll have to co-operate with someone from the Administration… As if her day could get any worse.
But it can. Much, much worse.
In The Wind Is Your Friend, J. L. Royce writes a macabre blend of modern fiction and folk horror, piecing together an ancient myth that will make your toes curl!
KRAMPUSNACHT
In the Alpine town of Kaiserstein, Hilda awaits the arrival of her grandson Klaus from Germany. But the boy who steps off the train is a chilling spectre of the child she once knew—a product of Nazi indoctrination, cold and unrecognisable. As Hilda grapples with Klaus’s transformation, the intrusion of a costumed reveller takes a terrifying turn.
In C. L. Werner's Krampusnacht, Hilda Schultz, caught in the grip of Nazi Germany's encroaching darkness, receives a visit on Krampusnacht, the one night when the demon Krampus roams the earth. Set against the backdrop of Nazi propaganda and a world spiralling into chaos, Krampusnacht is a haunting tale of folklore, the supernatural, and the horrors of a society consumed by tyranny.
BLOOD BAYOU
In the murky depths of the Louisiana bayou, a drunken escapade leads to a secluded cabin, where a chance encounter turns deadly. What follows is a brutal reckoning with a primal force, bringing to life the legends of the bayou.
In Roland Bercy Jr.’s Blood Bayou, Cajun folklore is unleashed in a relentless reckoning that promises to both captivate and terrify!
SHADOWS IN THE BLOOD
In the heart of an ancient birch forest, a witch deals in glimpses of the future. But now, those who return from Prättäkitti’s door do so with haunted stares and an unwavering certainty: doom is at hand, the end of the world.
Then Airut, a lifelong sceptic and debunker of magical claims, encounters an inexplicable force hindering their efforts to liberate the village from the witch’s harrowing nightmares.
Inspired by the legend of Prättäkitti, the 17th Century witch of Manninen in Ypäjä, Xan van Rooyen’s Shadows in the Blood intricately weaves together threads of myth and historical fact, crafting a blood-soaked narrative woven with modern sensibilities.
FIRE ABOVE, BELOW, FORWARD, AND BEHIND
Set against the backdrop of the Civil War, Fire Above, Below, Forward, and Behind follows Robert Smalls and a small band of runaways as they make a break for freedom aboard the commandeered Planter.
But something stirs in the water, and the evil that Robert Smalls and his companions’ hope to escape won’t be so easily undone.
In a tale that blurs the boundaries of history and the supernatural, Errick Nunnally’s story captivates with its poignant portrayal of humanity’s relentless pursuit of freedom in the face of overwhelming odds, very real evil, and forces beyond our mortal understanding.
PUPILLE DE LA NATION
Saint Agatha’s Home for Girls is no place for children, and Esmé knows it. But try as she might, she can never quite manage to escape. And now, with Sister Isa watching over her shoulder and metal shoes on her feet, it’ll only get harder.
In Pupille de la Nation, Fillmore crafts a tale of oppressive institutions and cryptic figures, of clandestine whispers and our yearning to be free—no matter the cost.
SALVATION
Salvation by Felix Blackwell recounts the harrowing voyage of the HMHS Salvation and the fate of its commander, Alfred Sewall. Tasked with delivering relief to a besieged city at the height of war, the ship finds itself caught in storms and rolling fog, while its crew are plagued by visions, threatened by madness.
When Alfred confronts a castaway found aboard the ship, the crew hurtles toward the abyss, culminating in a haunting finale where truth and madness become as one.
