When we think of vampires, instantly the image arises: fangs
sunk deep into the throat of the victim. But bloodsucking is
merely one form of vampirism. For this brilliantly original
anthology, Ellen Datlow has commissioned stories from many
of the most powerfully dark voices in contemporary horror,
who conjure tales of vampirism that will chill readers to
the marrow.
In addition to the traditional fanged vampires, Datlow
presents stories about the leeching of emotion, the draining
of the soul, and other dark deeds of predation and
exploitation, infestation, and evisceration…tales of life
essence, literal or metaphorical, stolen.
Seventeen stories, by such award-winning authors as
Elizabeth Bear, Richard Bowes, Kathe Koja, Margo Lanagan,
Carol Emshwiller, and Lisa Tuttle will petrify readers. With
dark tales by Laird Barron, Barry Malzberg and Bill
Pronzini, Kaaron Warren, and other powerful voices, this
anthology will redefine the terror of vampires and vampirism.