In Peter Crowther's The Longest Single Note you will meet...
a young man who can construct invisible passageways — and blockages — in thin air... simply by playing music;
a dust-bowl werewolf traveling the shantytowns of the Great Depression;
a mysterious doorway that arrives in a man's apartment and demands a very special kind of food;
a contemporary poet who finally gets to meet the muse of his hero... only to find the man doesn't cast a reflection;
a shape-shifting cannibalistic serial killer in a dead-of-night police station;
a rock icon who decides to turn back the clocks and retrace his steps in an effort to find lasting fame;
a young girl whose dog brings home what might just be a very personal part of the Devil's anatomy... and the Devil wants it back;
a small boy who discovers the answer to his and his father's dilemma in the legend of King Arthur and his mystical sword, Excalibur;
a faery policeman playing mind games in a sleepy barroom;
a would-be-actor who decides cat-napping may be the answer to his dreams;
a Viet Nam veteran on a killing spree... and an airport that's looking forward to welcoming him home;
two survivors of an apocalyptic plague wandering the near-deserted highways searching for salvation;
a man with the most exaggerated sense of smell... and a small town with an old wrong;
a student who unlocks a doorway to another world... but gets his arm stuck;
and a night-time visitor who brings a black valise of illness and pain...
Twenty-two stories, three poems and an extract from a novel in progress: just some of the worlds and characters from the mind of Peter Crowther, who insists that loss is the biggest monster of them all... and hope the only weapon it fears.
Though perhaps best known as an editor of anthologies of horror and dark fantasy (Destination Unknown, etc.), Crowther proves in this generous debut story collection to be a master of those genres. From the hypnotic stream-of-consciousness of "Incident on Bleecker Street" to the casual violence of "The Visitor," his writing in the 26 entries here--including poetry and an excerpt from a novel-in-progress--exhibits a stunning range. The power of music supplies the resonant theme of both "Head Acres" and the title story; in the former, music leads to death, while in the latter, music transcends it. "Home Comforts" turns the familiar slayer-vs.-vampire plot on its head, while the evocative and touching "Too Short a Death" shows that vampires can be as human as anyone else. "Gallagher's Arm" is a light Lovecraftian pastiche and an effective query into Machiavelli's claim that "the end justifies the means." There's sly humor as well as horror in "Eater" and "Shatsi," and the volume closes with a series of informative Story Notes. Reports of the demise of the darker genres abound, but vigorous, genuinely fearsome work such as Crowther's demonstrates that the genre is decidedly undead. (July)
Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
