Phantoms: Haunting Tales from Masters of the Genre

An old bottle full of secrets could be a young woman’s undoing. A spirit threatens a photographer through social media. The voices of victims torment the assistant of a prominent politician. A mother’s last gift to her unappreciated daughter carries a terrible price. The screams of a terrified woman can only be heard by the person in the neighboring hotel room.

Ghost stories are some of the oldest fantasy stories in literature, and you’d think by now that every possible spin, twist, and variation would’ve been exhausted. And then comes along a collection like Phantoms to prove you wrong. The stories in this collection are endlessly inventive, bringing new life to a classic trope. Whether it’s polishing up old ideas like cursed items with a fresh can of paint or doing something entirely new, like Paul Trembley’s pseudo-Choose-Your-Own-Adventure story, Phantoms is full of delightfully macabre surprises.

And no matter your cup of ghostly tea, this collection has you covered. Twilight Zone-esque twists? You got it. Turn of the Screw-style suspense? Present. A proper comeuppance from beyond the grave? You’re all set.

Phantoms has something for every horror or fantasy fan who likes their scares spectral, no matter if they’ve read one ghost story or a thousand.