From a New York Times–bestselling and Bram Stoker Award–winning author: Three novels with monsters ranging from alien to werewolf to vengeful moms. Whether writing Southern Gothic horror or reinventing the monster genre, World Fantasy and Bram Stoker Award–winning author Robert R. McCammon proves himself a master of a wide spectrum of modern horror and dark fantasy. In these three novels, McCammon presents a terrifying predator from another world, a werewolf war hero, and two crazy moms you do not want to mess with. Stinger: In this New York Times bestseller, when Stinger, a monstrous alien bounty hunter, crash-lands in the West Texas hellhole of Inferno in search of a young fugitive, the relentless creature encloses the town in an impenetrable and inescapable dome to isolate and kill its prey. Now, the few remaining survivors must band together to save the fugitive—who’s taken the human form of a small girl—and themselves from annihilation. “The ultimate horror novel.” —The Philadelphia Inquirer “One of the best suspense novels of recent years.” —Science Fiction Chronicle The Wolf’s Hour: Michael Gallatin—master spy, Nazi hunter . . . and werewolf. As the Allies’ secret weapon, the lycanthrope parachutes into occupied France to subvert a Nazi plan to thwart the D-Day invasion, code-named Iron Fist. With the Normandy landings only hours away, it’s a race against time. The Nazis may have Iron Fist, but Gallatin comes with claws, in this New York Times bestseller. “Powerful . . . fuses WWII espionage thriller and dark fantasy. Richly detailed, intricately plotted, fast-paced historical suspense is enhanced by McCammon’s unique take on the werewolf myth.” —Publishers Weekly Mine: Suffering from psychotic delusions of motherhood, former sixties radical and FBI fugitive Mary Terrell sneaks into the maternity ward of an Atlanta hospital and snatches a newborn baby. Burning with primal maternal fury, the baby’s mother, Laura Clayborne, is going after Mary herself on a twisted and violent cross-country pursuit. In this Bram Stoker Award winner, to track a madwoman, Laura will have to think like one . . . “Feverishly exciting . . . a page-whipping thriller.” —Kirkus Reviews “An expertly constructed novel of suspense and horror.” —Publishers Weekly

An official guide to Buffy the Vampire Slayer describes the mythology and influences behind the monsters, ghouls, and characters through interviews with the creators and details of the episodes.

If your novel is a circus, plot structure is what holds the tent up. Keep your tent taut with The Monster Novel Structure Workbook, an illustrated system for structuring your novel’s plot. Includes: * 21 Story Beats - Forget theories that only provide 3, 4, or 7 beats. Monster Novel Structure takes a granular approach so you’re never lost. * 9 Examples - Learn from popular books, movies, and even Shakespeare! See structure in action—and how to “break” it successfully. * 8+ Downloads - Bundled with your purchase are downloads including charts, worksheets, and even a Scrivener template. Ideal for visual learners, The Monster Novel Structure Workbook turns abstract theory into easy-to-digest illustrations. Plotters, pantsers, and anyone revising a novel will appreciate this practical guide to narrative structure for modern audiences. Buy your bundle now.

The simplicity of children's picture books--stories told with illustrations and a few well chosen words or none at all--makes them powerful tools for teaching morals and personal integrity. Children follow the story and see the characters' behaviors on the page and interpret them in the context of their own lives. But unlike many picture books, most children's lives don't feature monsters. This collection of new essays explores the societally sanctioned behaviors imparted to children through the use of monsters and supernatural characters. Topics include monsters as instructors, the normalization of strangers or the "other," fostering gender norms, and therapeutic monsters, among others.

Monsters have been spotted everywhere, not just hiding under a child’s bed, lurking in the closet, or springing forth from folkloric tales. For many people, monsters are nothing more than myth, folklore, and legend combined. For others—and particularly those who have encountered monstrous forms surfacing and emerging from shadowy caves, from the dark waters of ancient lakes, and from the vast jungles and forests of our worlds—monsters are all too terrifyingly real. Werewolves, Bigfoot, the Loch Ness Monster, the Chupacabra, Mothman, the Abominable Snowman, and sea serpents may represent the most famous monsters, but they are not alone. In fact, quite the opposite: monsters can be found all across the planet. Exploring the history, folklore, pop culture, and the world of the supernatural, The Monster Book: Creatures, Beasts, and Fiends of Nature is a comprehensive resource of the monster menagerie that exists on planet earth. This fascinating look at monsters has 120 photographs, drawings, and illustrations to bring the nearly 200 entries to life, including The Mongolian Death Worm; The Beast of Bray Road; The Owlman of England; The Yeren of China; Mokele Mbembe; Living Pterosaurs; The Flatwoods Monster; The Labynkyr Devil; Alien Big Cats; Lizard Man; Lake Worth Monster; The Beast of Gevaudan; Megalania, the Monstrous Monitor; South American Sasquatch; Nessie’s lesser known cousin; The Jersey Devil; Sea Serpents; Orang Pendek; and Phantom Black Dogs. Stories of these creatures are told around flickering campfires on chilly nights in the woods, before tucking excited kids into bed, on prime-time television documentaries, and on late-night radio talk shows. Tales of terrifying creatures that the world of science assures us don’t exist. But try telling that to the witnesses. This richly researched reference overflows with fascinating information to make readers think about—and reconsider—their next visit to the woods. This fascinating read also includes a helpful bibliography and an extensive index, adding to its usefulness.

An enlightening collection of inter-disciplinary research on the multifarious incarnations of the monster, 'Monstrous Manifestations' invites the reader to venture into the deepest anxieties of the human psyche.

This book creates a taxonomy for the major bestselling fictional genres: romance (e.g., authors Heyer, Cartland, Woodiwiss and Roberts), religious and inspirational (Corelli and Douglas), mystery and detective (Conan Doyle, Christie and Mankell), and science fiction, horror and fantasy (Wells, Tolkien, Orwell, Niven, King and Rowling). Chapters look at a genre from its roots to its most recent works. The structural patterns in the plot, characters and setting of these genres are then explained. The book also provides a critique of currently popular hyper-formulaic, hack, unliterary writings that have multiplied in recent decades. Special topics such as the publishing oligopoly and the resulting homogeneity among bestselling works and the steady movement from literary to unliterary fiction are also examined.