J.T. McDaniel Official Website

This book is a collection, so obviously I didn't write the whole thing. I did contribute two short stories, "Blackout," and "Survivor," both of which appear on this web site. A logical person might ask why they should pay money for a book when they can read the stories for nothing. That is, of course, faulty logic. Books are easier to read than computer screens. You don't have to worry about power failures. You can read a book under the bedcovers by flashlight. It's awkward to do that with a computer, and sometimes the monitor gets too hot and sets the blankets on fire. Books are much safer. Even better, the book weighs only 8.3 ounces, which is a lot lighter than any laptop. If you're a man, it should fit in a jacket pocket; if you're a woman, it fits in a purse. If you're a Scot, you should be able to get it into your sporran.

The stories in this book cover quite a bit of territory. Linda L. Rucker contributes a particular spooky tale called "The Quilt," along with a lighter tale about a mystical "Snow Globe." Hauntings and supernatural goings on come in various forms. Joshua Scribner does a nice job with "Corryanna," about mysterious events at a hospital. Brian W. Keen relates what happens to a young boy at "The House on Levingston Street." Walter G. Willaert, who wrote one of my personal favorite novels, The Mecca Connection, contributes "The Creature in the Cellar."

Editor Jacob Thomson, who is a fine writer and also the highly perceptive chap who makes the decision about whether my own books see print, contributed three stories. "Mort's Maid" tells about a beautiful, mute, and seemingly ageless servant with a distinctly mystical past. "A Patient Man" is a nice little revenge tale. And "The Predator" includes an appearance by one of the characters from his novel The Alukam, and a definite surprise for someone.

Rounding out the book are Edgar Allan Poe's "Some Words With a Mummy," Robert Louis Stevenson's spooky "The Body Snatcher," and Washington Irving's classic "The Devil and Tom Walker."

Format 8.5 x 5.5" trade paperback, 172 pages, $13.95
ISBN: 1-932606-08-4
Riverdale Books