The Nobel Prize winner’s latest masterwork, set in a sanitarium on the eve of World War I, probes the horrors that lie beneath our most hallowed ideas.

In September 1913, Mieczysław, a student suffering from tuberculosis, arrives at Wilhelm Opitz’s Guesthouse for Gentlemen, a health resort in what is now western Poland. Every day, its residents gather in the dining room to imbibe the hallucinogenic local liqueur, to obsess over money and status, and to discuss the great issues of the day: Will there be war? Monarchy or democracy? Do devils exist? Are women inherently inferior?

Meanwhile, disturbing things are beginning to happen in the guesthouse and its surroundings. As stories of shocking events in the surrounding highlands reach the men, a sense of dread builds. Someone--or something--seems to be watching them and attempting to infiltrate their world.

Little does Mieczysław realize, as he attempts to unravel both the truths within himself and the mystery of the sinister forces beyond, that they have already chosen their next target.

A century after the publication of The Magic Mountain, Tokarczuk revisits Thomas Mann territory and lays claim to it, blending horror story, comedy, folklore, and feminist parable with brilliant storytelling.

From the author of the breakout novel Thistlefoot: a collection of dark fairytales and fractured folklore exploring how our passions can save us—or go monstrously wrong.

The stories in Fifty Beasts To Break Your Heart are about the abomination that resides within us all. That churning, clawing, ravenous yearning: the hunger to be held, and seen, and known. And the terror, too: to be loved too well, or not enough, or for long enough. To be laid bare before your sweetheart, to their horror. To be recognized as the monstrous thing you are.

Two teenage girls working at a sinister roadside attraction called the Eternal Staircase explore its secrets—and their own doomed summer love. A zombie rooster plays detective in a missing persons case. A woman moves into a new house with her acclaimed artist boyfriend—and finds her body slowly shifting into something specially constructed to accommodate his needs and whims. A pack of middle schoolers turn to the occult to rid themselves of a hated new classmate. And a pair of outcasts, a vampire and a goat woman, find solace in each other, even as the world's lack of understanding might bring about its own end.

In these lush, strange, beautifully written stories, GennaRose Nethercott explores human longing in all its diamond-dark facets to create a collection that will redefine what you see as a beast, and make you beg to have your heart broken.

Hillbilly Tales from the Smoky Mountains includes several short stories based on the folklore of the Appalachian Mountains. Before the time of cell-phones, computers, and television, family members would gather on the front porch and offer up stories through simple oral traditions. These stories provided simple forms of entertainment to their children. With each generation, the stories became more elaborate and creative, transforming into what we now know as Appalachian folklore.

Mountain people have always led a difficult life; however, their unique perspective on dealing with struggles is fascinating. In this book, you will find a section on mountain medicinal treatments and hillbilly proverbs, passed down from mother to daughter. Knowledge of apothecary, or mountain medicine, was crucial for treating family members when the local doctor was away. No decent, self-respecting mountain folk would ever go unprepared without offering advice to help their neighbors. Wise sayings, or hillbilly proverbs, go hand-in-hand with mountain medicine, providing guidance in daily life.

The second part of the book features a special story by one of the original descendants of the Crowe Family, Ms. Verna Humphrey. This short piece of fiction centers around a light romance set right after the Civil War. The setting is Green Cove, where a young girl, Charlotte, struggles to regain her birthright during trying times. When a young lawyer enters the scene, Charlotte's interpretation of birthright takes on a whole new meaning. She must make difficult decisions that will alter the course of her life.