We welcome and encourage tourists of all kinds in Gwelf. The survival guide will tell you what to expect, what equipment to pack, who to trust and hire as a guide, and where to rest for the night in this magical land steeped in history and mystery. Indeed, so charming and wondrous is Gwelf that occasionally tourists decide to stay and become citizens, joining the ranks of the border patrol; settling in a town as a merchant, artist, or voyeur; or simply retiring to the country or farmlands. Tragically, there have been some that have stayed, but not by choice. We, the council, fear that this has cast a negative light on our beauteous realm. Rest assured that should you follow the precautions outlined in our guide, you will be quite safe, as it is the council’s intention to provide this book as a resource so that future mishaps might be avoided . . . Larry MacDougall has done that thing—created a fantasy world that is completely believable, super charming, and more than a little bit dangerous. I love it so much. I want to wander around in it but wouldn't want to get caught alone in it after dark.   -- Mike Mignola

The Yaga siblings—Bellatine, a young woodworker, and Isaac, a wayfaring street performer and con artist—have been estranged since childhood, separated both by resentment and by wide miles of American highway. But when they learn that they are to receive an inheritance, the siblings agree to meet—only to discover that their bequest isn’t land or money, but something far stranger: a sentient house on chicken legs. Thistlefoot, as the house is called, has arrived from the Yagas’ ancestral home outside Kyiv—but not alone. A sinister figure known only as the Longshadow Man has tracked it to American shores, bearing with him violent secrets from the past: fiery memories that have hidden in Isaac and Bellatine’s blood for generations. As the Yaga siblings embark with Thistlefoot on a final cross-country tour of their family’s traveling theater show, the Longshadow Man follows in relentless pursuit, seeding destruction in his wake. Ultimately, time, magic, and legacy must collide—erupting in a powerful conflagration to determine who gets to remember the past and craft a new future. An enchanted adventure illuminated by Jewish myth and adorned with lyrical prose as tantalizing and sweet as briar berries, Thistlefoot is a sweeping epic rich in Eastern European folklore: a powerful and poignant exploration of healing from multi-generational trauma told by a bold new talent.

Yoshiki has resolved to walk alongside the “something” that replaced his friend, Hikaru. But changes begin to appear, not just in the village, but also in the impostor himself! As they sense their current lives moments from crumbling down, the boys continue their investigation into “Hikaru’s” identity. The history of Kubitachi, the truth of “Nounuki-sama,” and the “Indous’ sin”...what will the answers to these mysteries mean for “Hikaru” and Yoshiki?!

Orest Somov, contemporaneo di Puškin, Gogol’ e Lermontov, è uno scrittore ingiustamente dimenticato. Questa raccolta è una guida in un mondo dove realtà e finzione si intrecciano e la paura diventa compagna fedele, insieme a lupi mannari, diavoli, streghe e spiritelli (a volte) maligni. Le storie di Somov si muovono ai margini del reale: nei villaggi oscuri e nelle foreste silenziose, spiriti e presenze fantastiche emergono per turbare l’esistenza degli uomini. Mito, tradizione popolare e romanticismo si fondono per evocare paesaggi arcaici e paure ancestrali, con una forza che ispirò i grandi Gogol’ e Puškin. Leggendo questi racconti, il lettore si immerge nelle nebbie dei miti slavi, nelle credenze popolari e nell’eco lontana di ciò che non si può spiegare ma che si percepisce. Somov non racconta solo l’oltretomba, ma il nostro vivere sospeso tra ciò che vediamo e ciò che immaginiamo. Ecco, per la prima volta disponibili al pubblico italiano: i sogni e gli incubi del primo Ottocento slavo.

Suor Teodora narra la storia di Agilulfo, cavaliere senza corpo, di cui vive solo l'armatura. Mentre Carlo Magno assedia Parigi, Agilulfo, dopo essersi coperto di gloria, decide di partire alla ricerca di Sofronia, fanciulla da lui salvata quindici anni prima. Accompagnato dallo scudiero Gurdulù, attraverso numerose peripezie, inseguito dalla guerriera Bradamante innamorata di lui, Agilulfo riesce a trovare Sofronia, ma credendola macchiata di gravi peccati, decide di scomparire. Si sveste dell'armatura e la consegna a Rambaldo, giovane compagno d'armi. Sarà ora questi a proseguire nella bianca corazza, le gesta del cavaliere senza corpo.

Yoshiki has resolved to walk alongside the “something” that replaced his friend, Hikaru. But changes begin to appear, not just in the village, but also in the impostor himself! As they sense their current lives moments from crumbling down, the boys continue their investigation into “Hikaru’s” identity. The history of Kubitachi, the truth of “Nounuki-sama,” and the “Indous’ sin”...what will the answers to these mysteries mean for “Hikaru” and Yoshiki?!

A diabolical collection of stories featuring achingly human characters whose lives intertwine with ghosts, goblins, and the macabre, by “one of Latin America’s most exciting authors” (Silvia Moreno-Garcia) On the shores of this river, all the birds that fly, drink, perch on branches, and disturb siestas with the demonic squawking of the possessed—all those birds were once women. Welcome to Argentina and the fascinating, frightening, fantastical imagination of Mariana Enriquez. In twelve spellbinding new stories, Enriquez writes about ordinary people, especially women, whose lives turn inside out when they encounter terror, the surreal, and the supernatural. A neighborhood nuisanced by ghosts, a family whose faces melt away, a faded hotel haunted by a girl who dissolved in the water tank on the roof, a riverbank populated by birds that used to be women—these and other tales illuminate the shadows of contemporary life, where the line between good and evil no longer exists. Lyrical and hypnotic, heart-stopping and deeply moving, Enriquez’s stories never fail to enthrall, entertain, and leave us shaken. Translated by the award-winning Megan McDowell, A Sunny Place for Shady People showcases Enriquez’s unique blend of the literary and the horrific, and underscores why Kazuo Ishiguro, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature, calls her “the most exciting discovery I’ve made in fiction for some time.”

Jennifer Thorne skewers all-too-familiar family dynamics in this sly, wickedly funny vacation-Gothic. Beautifully unhinged and deeply satisfying, Diavola is a sharp twist on the classic haunted house story, exploring loneliness, belonging, and the seemingly inescapable bonds of family mythology. Anna has two rules for the annual Pace family destination vacations: Tread lightly and survive. It isn’t easy when she’s the only one in the family who doesn’t quite fit in. Her twin brother, Benny, goes with the flow so much he’s practically dissolved, and her older sister, Nicole, is so used to everyone—including her blandly docile husband and two kids—falling in line that Anna often ends up in trouble for simply asking a question. Mom seizes every opportunity to question her life choices, and Dad, when not reminding everyone who paid for this vacation, just wants some peace and quiet. The gorgeous, remote villa in tiny Monteperso seems like a perfect place to endure so much family togetherness, until things start going off the rails—the strange noises at night, the unsettling warnings from the local villagers, and the dark, violent past of the villa itself. (Warning: May invoke feelings of irritation, dread, and despair that come with large family gatherings.)

While “Hikaru” is not the Hikaru he once knew, Yoshiki must admit that this new entity has become a friend in his own right. But his true identity remains a mystery…even to the impostor himself! When their research into the town’s history brings them to the library, the boys discover an unsettling clue about the mysterious happenings in the region. Though, the question still stands of what “Hikaru” and the Nounuki-sama mentioned in Hikaru’s note might be—and whether they aren’t in fact one and the same...

While “Hikaru” is not the Hikaru he once knew, Yoshiki must admit that this new entity has become a friend in his own right. But his true identity remains a mystery…even to the impostor himself! When their research into the town’s history brings them to the library, the boys discover an unsettling clue about the mysterious happenings in the region. Though, the question still stands of what “Hikaru” and the Nounuki-sama mentioned in Hikaru’s note might be—and whether they aren’t in fact one and the same...

Le cronache dell’acero e del ciliegio formano una tetralogia ambientata nel Giappone del XVII secolo. Seguiamo due eroi, Ichirō, giovane samurai dal favoloso destino, e la misteriosa Hiinahime, una sconosciuta che si nasconde dietro una maschera nō. Nei primi due volumi l’io narrante è Ichirō, negli altri due toccherà all’eroina Hiinahime raccontare la vicenda. Il primo tomo, intitolato La maschera nō, ripercorre la vita di Ichirō dall’infanzia all’adolescenza. Abbandonato, Ichirō viene cresciuto come un figlio da un ignoto samurai che gli insegna la via della spada. Il ragazzo vivrà un’esistenza solitaria tra le montagne, nel cuore di una natura selvaggia e al ritmo delle stagioni, tra momenti di beatitudine e spensieratezza e un apprendistato che richiede costanza e coraggio. Ma in una tragica notte, la vita di Ichirō viene sconvolta dall’attacco di loschi samurai. Il destino lo porterà allora a Edo (l’antica Tokyo), dove inizierà a esibirsi nei teatri kabuki; lì stringerà le prime amicizie e incontrerà Hiinahime, la sconosciuta con la maschera Nō. Il secondo tomo della tetralogia, La spada dei Sanada, sarà pubblicato ad ottobre.

Le cronache dell’acero e del ciliegio formano una tetralogia ambientata nel Giappone del XVII secolo. Seguiamo due eroi, Ichirō, giovane samurai dal favoloso destino, e la misteriosa Hiinahime, una sconosciuta che si nasconde dietro una maschera nō. Nei primi due volumi l’io narrante è Ichirō, negli altri due toccherà all’eroina Hiinahime raccontare la vicenda. Il primo tomo, intitolato La maschera nō, ripercorre la vita di Ichirō dall’infanzia all’adolescenza. Abbandonato, Ichirō viene cresciuto come un figlio da un ignoto samurai che gli insegna la via della spada. Il ragazzo vivrà un’esistenza solitaria tra le montagne, nel cuore di una natura selvaggia e al ritmo delle stagioni, tra momenti di beatitudine e spensieratezza e un apprendistato che richiede costanza e coraggio. Ma in una tragica notte, la vita di Ichirō viene sconvolta dall’attacco di loschi samurai. Il destino lo porterà allora a Edo (l’antica Tokyo), dove inizierà a esibirsi nei teatri kabuki; lì stringerà le prime amicizie e incontrerà Hiinahime, la sconosciuta con la maschera Nō. Il secondo tomo della tetralogia, La spada dei Sanada, sarà pubblicato ad ottobre.

Remarkably Bright Creatures, an exploration of friendship, reckoning, and hope, tracing a widow's unlikely connection with a giant Pacific octopus. After Tova Sullivan's husband died, she began working the night shift at the Sowell Bay Aquarium, mopping floors and tidying up. Keeping busy has always helped her cope, which she's been doing since her eighteen-year-old son, Erik, mysteriously vanished on a boat in Puget Sound over thirty years ago. Tova becomes acquainted with curmudgeonly Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus living at the aquarium. Marcellus knows more than anyone can imagine but wouldn't dream of lifting one of his eight arms for his human captors--until he forms a remarkable friendship with Tova. Ever the detective, Marcellus deduces what happened the night Tova's son disappeared. And now Marcellus must use every trick his old invertebrate body can muster to unearth the truth for her before it's too late. Shelby Van Pelt's debut novel is a gentle reminder that sometimes taking a hard look at the past can help uncover a future that once felt impossible.

L’Alchimista è la storia di una iniziazione. Ne è protagonista Santiago, un giovane pastorello andaluso il quale, alla ricerca di un tesoro sognato, intraprende quel viaggio avventuroso, insieme reale e simbolico, che al di là dello Stretto di Gibilterra e attraverso tutto il deserto nordafricano lo porterà fino all’Egitto delle Piramidi. Il miraggio, qui, non è più solo la mitica Pietra Filosofale dell’Alchimia, ma il raggiungimento di una concordanza totale con il mondo, grazie alla comprensione di quei “segni”, di quei segreti che è possibile captare solo riscoprendo un Linguaggio Universale fatto di coraggio, di fiducia e di saggezza che da tempo gli uomini hanno dimenticato.