I heard a door swing and lifted my eyes and hand from the page. I watched Mrs. Tapscott stride across the room to the bottle green door. As she went through, I noticed Mrs. Rabasandratana had joined me. She glared at me for several minutes. As much as I tried to avoid looking directly at her, I couldn’t - for fear of losing track of her. The mental stimulus had already come thick and fast, and I felt close to a meltdown before a…
Mr. Column stood beneath a suspended plant pot, positioned atop the window outside, seemingly impervious to the heavy rain that cascaded around him. Neither his scraggly shoulder-length hair nor his coat were blowing with the wind. By this point, the rain was so heavy that large pools of water had formed in dips in the shingle where cars had driven through. I could see rainwater dropping onto his shoulders as it spilled from the pot, but there appeared to be no impact splash. He…
Rosie showed no interest in the story, and despite thirty minutes of persistence, her agitation was palpable. Mrs. Tapscott kept asking what was wrong, and each time, Rosie glanced at the bearded man, almost as if seeking permission to speak. She’d adjust her sitting position and temporarily stop scanning the room. This pattern repeated itself. I noticed Mrs. Tapscott shooting disapproving looks at the man, who remained absorbed in Rosie. The encounter was unsettling - as if all three were waiting on some unspoken…
We were somewhere in rural Surrey. A thick morning mist made visibility poor, and there were several stops to allow deer crossing the road a safe path into the adjacent meadows. Mr. Column, the school caretaker, was driving, with Mrs. Tapscott in the front passenger seat. My father had warned of the potential for travel sickness, giving a detailed description at the school gate of the time I projectile vomited onto the back of his head as we drove toward our static caravan in…
The Prefect of the Vatican Apostolic Archives, Monsignor Aurelio Vescari, adjusted his spectacles as he examined the padded envelope that had arrived without insignia or return address. The handwriting was English - neat, deliberate. Inside were a folded letter, a stack of photocopied police documents, and a compact disc in a cracked plastic case. Across its surface, written in black marker, were the words: “Summonitores Libro – testimony.” He sat at his desk beneath the frescoed ceiling of the Archivum Secretum, the morning light…
The Trouble With Tongues is a cautionary tale about the hidden risks behind the practice of speaking in tongues. When a pastor delivers ‘heavenly language’ to his flock, a visiting linguist notices something far more earthly — and far more dangerous. What follows is a supernatural event where simple prayer stirs a force that hears more than any human can; that exposes the thin line between spiritual fervour and self deception. This comic blends horror and theology to teach us why words have consequences. As…
This ultra-limited hardback book — only 65 copies in existence — captures the very best of Knack Publishing’s stories from this year, signed by all contributing authors and illustrator Grubby Fingers. Alongside the acclaimed tales of horror, fantasy, and science fiction, this book features four exclusive, never-before-seen stories that will never be published elsewhere. Crafted for readers who crave the rare and the uncanny, this edition preserves worlds that exist only within these fifty copies, making it an essential treasure for devoted genre fans.