Jamie Guillaume is the man your mother warned you about, and South Africa’s wickedest man is about to raise more than hell. Haunted by the sinister Burning One and hunted by a pack of religious extremists, Jamie’s neck-deep in trouble.Who does a black magician turn to when it seems like his carefully constructed world’s about to disintegrate?

Benedetto de Lyse can pick nearly any lock in the delta city of Ardent. As a common thief and lowly henchman of one of the city's shadow princes, his options to move up in the world are limited. Which makes his fascination with the charming Alessandra all the more tragic. She's a daughter of one of the merchant princes, and there's no way he'll ever be able to unlock her heart. Hell, she doesn't even know that he exists.Yet when a rival organisation threatens to kidnap the princess...

A boy pursues a machine across a desert; a Grabouw butcher discovers a secret ingredient to make the best sausage in town; and a seamstress seeks fabric of an unconventional nature to stitch together the garment of her dreams.The South African Horrorfest Bloody Parchment anthology, edited by Nerine Dorman, returns with a dozen chilling stories featuring finalists from the 2016 short story competition: Brett Rex Bruton, Janine Milne, Stephen Embleton, William Burger, Shaun van Rensb...

Forced into hiding after his first encounter with the immortal magicians of the dreaded House Montu, Ash and his young family haven't had long to enjoy their refuge. Now his enemies have caught up to him, and Ash must choose between keeping a deadly secret or charging headfirst into danger to rescue his loved ones. With the tenuous peace between the rival Houses of Inkarna in the balance, Ash is the only one who can stop House Montu from a power grab that could forever alter human history....

Anathi is paying for crimes that were never his. For what his parents did, he's sent down into the Pits, where the Shadow Clan's condemned fight the cast in the dark – and many die there.The sentence intended to break him instead forges a hero a disgraced clan didn't know it needed – and the timing could not be worse. Humanity is losing its grip on the peninsula, and the relentless enemy that creeps and crawls through the dark is patient.He can hold the line against the dar...

What is true evil? How do you fight it?Since she was little, Lada wanted to be part of the Order of Fennarin, one of the warrior-monks who are the last bastion in a war against the demons and insurgents that threaten her island home. Yet to achieve her dream, Lada turned blood traitor, her decision leading to the death and exile of her family.Her betrayal comes to haunt her now, ten years later, when her elders demand that she oversees her brother Ailas's trial. Lada feared ...

In the far future on the outer reaches of the great human space diaspora Hannali and her husband Mika, third generation Diasporan, toil daily under alien skies on their farm. On a break into town Hannali is spotted by Summer, a childhood friend, on a scaffold waiting to be hanged. What ensues is a touching tale of choices made, different paths taken, bonds formed and broken, what makes us who we are, and how we travel through life.Nerine Dorman is a South African author and editor ...

The first time Lizzie dies is a learning experience. Then again, anyone new to an ancient Egyptian reincarnation cult would have no idea what to expect once they've made it past the Hall of Judgment.Now that she's been sent back to find out why her husband from her past life is missing, the last thing Lizzie expects is to wake up in the wrong body, stuck with the mess its previous tenant left behind. In fact, she's in agreement that whoever ran Ashton Kennedy over with a big shiny ...

Greater dangers than mere alligators lurk in the swamps near the town of Bad Moon; a tough-as-nails bartender finds herself wondering whether she'll make it past midnight on New Year's Eve; and a vampire and hunter share a last dance with a gun named Felina. Guns & Romances collects eleven tales of lust, love and violence that cross genres and plunge you into a world of gunfights and action, where the shadows have teeth and love can mean forever – if you survive.

All Jamie wants is to get his life back on track. After all, no self-respecting occultist needs entanglement with a pack of fanatical Christo-militants. Nor does he want blood on his hands – innocent or not. But the nightmare is far from over. Now a fresh brand of hell is stalking the shadows in dreams, and young women are dying in violent ritual killings.Can Jamie master his uneasy symbiosis with the sinister Burning One, get to the bottom of a rash of cult activity and stay one s...

Bloody Parchment: The Root Cellar and Other Stories brings a fresh crop of horror and dark literature from the most recent South African HorrorFest Bloody Parchment short story competition. From dreary subterranean chambers and angelic visitations to the many-legged horrors of alien invaders and a meeting with the Devil himself, this collection of tales offers readers the opportunity to acquaint themselves with the likes of Toby Bennett (winner), and runners-up Anna Reith and Chris Limb. F...

A digital magazine featuring the very best in Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror.The latest fiction from established writers alongside the best new stories from emerging talents and debut authors.On-point articles and regular columns, exploring genre fiction in all its forms. Interviews with leading authors and artists.Insightful and informative book reviews by a carefully selected cadre of reviewers, assessing current titles and imminent releases from publishers ...