The Twentieth-Anniversary Edition of the World's Premier Annual Showcase of Horror
and Dark Fantasy Fiction. The year's best—and darkest—tales of terror, showcasing the most
outstanding new short stories and novellas by both contemporary masters of the macabre and exciting
newcomers, including Iain R. MacLeod, Sarah Pinborough, Mark Samuels, Albert E. Cowdrey, Peter Crowther,
Paul Finch, Gary McMahon, Reggie Oliver, Simon Strantzas, Tim Lebbon and Steve Rasnic Tem. As ever,
this acclaimed anthology also offers the most comprehensive annual overview of horror around the world
in all its incarnations, a comprehensive necrology of famous names, and a list of indispensable
contact addresses for the dedicated horror fan and writer alike. The Mammoth Book of Best New
Horror remains the world's leading annual anthology dedicated solely to presenting the best in contemporary horror fiction.
| INTRODUCTION: HORROR IN 2008 |
The Editor |
| FRONT-PAGE McGUFFIN AND THE GREATEST STORY NEVER TOLD |
Peter Crowther |
| IT RUNS BENEATH THE SURFACE |
Simon Strantzas |
| THESE THINGS WE HAVE ALWAYS KNOWN |
Lynda E Rucker |
| FEMININE ENDINGS |
Neil Gaiman |
| THROUGH THE CRACKS |
Gary McMahon |
| FALLING OFF THE WORLD |
Tim Lebbon |
| THE OLD TRADITIONS ARE BEST |
Paul Finch |
| THE LONG WAY |
Ramsey Campbell |
| THE PILE |
Michael Bishop |
| UNDER FOG |
Tanith Lee |
| ARKANGEL |
Christopher Fowler |
| THE CAMPING WAINWRIGHTS |
Ian R MacLeod |
| A DONKEY AT THE MYSTERIES |
Reggie Oliver |
| THE ORAM COUNTY WHOOSIT |
Steve Duffy |
| THE NEW YORK TIMES AT SPECIAL BARGAIN RATES |
Stephen King |
| OUR MAN IN THE SUDAN |
Sarah Pinborough |
| "DESTINATION NIHIL" BY EDMUND BERTRAND |
Mark Samuels |
| THE OVERSEER |
Albert E Cowdrey |
| THE BEGINNINGS OF SORROW |
Pinckney Benedict |
| THE PLACE OF WAITING |
Brian Lumley |
| 2:00 PM: THE REAL ESTATE AGENT ARRIVES |
Steve Rasnic Tem |
| NECROLOGY: 2008 |
Stephen Jones and Kim Newman |
| USEFUL ADDRESSES |
|
Reviews
"The stories in The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror: Volume Twenty are proof that horror is still a healthy
and viable genre yielding up its share of gems every year. Readers should also be aware that a little more than
a fifth of the book is taken up with Jones's detailed prefatory overview of the year in horror in all media,
and the ever-valuable 'Necrology' Jones compiles with Kim Newman listing the deaths of writers, film directors,
and other personalities associated with the horror field. These were always indispensable reading for anyone
who wanted to know the state of the art of horror, but especially now, with the demise
of The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror and that series's abundant overview essays, it makes the best
snapshot we have for horror in any given year."
—Stefan Dziemianowicz
LOCUS Issue 591, April 2010
"The twentieth anniversary edition of Best New Horror keeps up the high standards. Besides
showcasing some outstanding stories, Steve Jones provides a lengthy and detailed summary of the
world of horror in 2008, covering everything from novels and stories to films, television and
computer games—it is truly remarkable in its breadth and coverage."
—MACHENALIA: THE NEWSLETTER OF THE FRIENDS OF ARTHUR MACHEN, Spring 2010
"Horror anthologist Stephen Jones produces another winner in his long list of Mammoth books. There's
a good reason that Jones has won so many awards—he's great at choosing horror literature. His books are a
great resource to those of us in a continual search for quality fiction in this genre . . . The horror
community is lucky to have Jones, who consistently gifts us with
quality . . . I've found that I've never been disappointed with Jones' collections. Pick up
any one, and you're in for one heck of a spooky ride."
—Jill McDole
IMPACT: THE GLOBAL ACTION ENTERTAINMENT MAGAZINE, January 2010
"'Best of' anthologies are guaranteed to annoy a lot of people because of their inclusions
and exclusions. But BNH is unignorable—if this one is anything to go by—it does
offer the best overview of the field you can get. Here is not only a snapshot of the state horror
writing is in—quite a healthy state, I reckon—but also a huge amount of information
about the vast and nebulous genre. 'Horror in 2008' and the Necrology make fascinating reading,
not just for the 'Oh, is he dead, then?' factor, but because they bring home to you the sprawing weirdness of it all."
—David Longhorn
SUPERNATURAL TALES #16, Winter 2009
"I can honestly say that there is not a single one of this books 541 pages that I didn't
enjoy. Many of the stories are excellent, some outstanding but none are less than
good. If you know anyone that doesn't like horror give them a copy of this book. There
is so much variety, so much quality on display here that I cannot believe for one minute
that there will not be something in here that every reader, no matter how biased, would enjoy."
—HIGHLANDER'S BOOK REVIEWS
"The annual Best New Horror anthology edited by Stephen Jones celebrates its twentieth
anniversary with flying colours providing one of its more compelling and satisfying selections
in years. With a few exceptions, the large majority of the twenty pieces of dark fiction included
in the latest volume of this long lasting, successful series are either outstanding or simply excellent."
—Mario Guslandi
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