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Noctuary & the Spectral Link
Chiroptera Press presents Noctuary & The Spectral Link by the legendary Thomas Ligotti, a consolidated volume of two horror collections, brought back into print for the first time in over a decade. This edition from Chiroptera Press follows the success of other high-quality, deluxe Ligotti publications, most recently Ligotti's narrative and lyric poetry tour de force, Pictures of Apocalypse.
Noctuary is divided into three sections, following Ligotti’s famous introduction, “In the Night, in the Dark: A Note on the Appreciation of Weird Fiction”: Studies in Shadow, Discourse on Blackness, and Notebook of the Night. Section One, Studies in Shadow, begins with "The Medusa,” which follows the protagonist's lifelong obsession with the deadly gorgon of myth, blurring the lines between fiction, metaphor, and reality. "Conversations in a Dead Language" chronicles three consecutive Halloween nights in the life of a mailman whose unspeakable proclivities lead to a shadowy doom. "The Prodigy of Dreams" follows the elderly Arthur Emerson, whose prayers years before to an obscure god are finally answered. "Mrs. Rinaldi's Angel" concerns a child with extreme nightmares, leading his mother to seek dubious assistance from a wise woman and her supernatural partner. Section two, Discourse on Blackness, begins with "The Tsalal," an epic and apocalyptic novelette, which introduces readers to the skeleton town of Moxton and the enigmatic Andrew Maness, from whom an ancient power grows. "Mad Night of Atonement" presents a disgraced scientist whose latest invention channels the bleak power of the Creator Itself, while "The Strange Design of Master Rignolo" follows a visual artist's ambition to insert himself into his own artwork, leading to absolute madness. Lastly, "The Voice in the Bones" evokes a prisoner within a surreal prison that exists as both fiction and reality. The third section, Notebook of the Night, features twenty remarkable vignettes exploring insidious exploits, esoteric rituals, and hymns to the void.
The Spectral Link, Ligotti’s most recently published short story collection, emerged following his near-death experience on the surgeon's table. The first novelette, "Metaphysica Morum," channels all the rage and despair of Ligotti's nonfiction treatise, The Conspiracy Against the Human Race, in both stark and hilarious form. The combined volume ends with Ligotti’s poignant masterpiece, "The Small People," exploring the uncanny terror of being alive in a world where we can never be certain who and what we are.
Noctuary & The Spectral Link, published by Chiroptera Press, presents these timeless collections in the high-quality format that the press is known for—the perfect edition for Ligotti aficionados and newcomers to his work alike.
Noctuary is divided into three sections, following Ligotti’s famous introduction, “In the Night, in the Dark: A Note on the Appreciation of Weird Fiction”: Studies in Shadow, Discourse on Blackness, and Notebook of the Night. Section One, Studies in Shadow, begins with "The Medusa,” which follows the protagonist's lifelong obsession with the deadly gorgon of myth, blurring the lines between fiction, metaphor, and reality. "Conversations in a Dead Language" chronicles three consecutive Halloween nights in the life of a mailman whose unspeakable proclivities lead to a shadowy doom. "The Prodigy of Dreams" follows the elderly Arthur Emerson, whose prayers years before to an obscure god are finally answered. "Mrs. Rinaldi's Angel" concerns a child with extreme nightmares, leading his mother to seek dubious assistance from a wise woman and her supernatural partner. Section two, Discourse on Blackness, begins with "The Tsalal," an epic and apocalyptic novelette, which introduces readers to the skeleton town of Moxton and the enigmatic Andrew Maness, from whom an ancient power grows. "Mad Night of Atonement" presents a disgraced scientist whose latest invention channels the bleak power of the Creator Itself, while "The Strange Design of Master Rignolo" follows a visual artist's ambition to insert himself into his own artwork, leading to absolute madness. Lastly, "The Voice in the Bones" evokes a prisoner within a surreal prison that exists as both fiction and reality. The third section, Notebook of the Night, features twenty remarkable vignettes exploring insidious exploits, esoteric rituals, and hymns to the void.
The Spectral Link, Ligotti’s most recently published short story collection, emerged following his near-death experience on the surgeon's table. The first novelette, "Metaphysica Morum," channels all the rage and despair of Ligotti's nonfiction treatise, The Conspiracy Against the Human Race, in both stark and hilarious form. The combined volume ends with Ligotti’s poignant masterpiece, "The Small People," exploring the uncanny terror of being alive in a world where we can never be certain who and what we are.
Noctuary & The Spectral Link, published by Chiroptera Press, presents these timeless collections in the high-quality format that the press is known for—the perfect edition for Ligotti aficionados and newcomers to his work alike.
268 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2023
17 people are currently reading
124 people want to read
About the author
Thomas Ligotti
195 books3,025 followersThomas Ligotti is a contemporary American horror author and reclusive literary cult figure. His writings, while unique in style, have been noted as major continuations of several literary genres—most prominently Lovecraftian horror—and have overall been described as works of "philosophical horror", often written as philosophical novels with a "darker" undertone which is similar to gothic fiction. The Washington Post called him "the best kept secret in contemporary horror fiction"; another critic declared "It's a skilled writer indeed who can suggest a horror so shocking that one is grateful it was kept offstage."
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
November 29, 2023
Noctuary strikes me as being Thomas Ligotti's major collection of short fiction, presenting his most significant works in the form, such as "The Medusa" and "The Tsalal". There are some weaker efforts in the section of very short works titled "Notebook of the Night", but the same section also contains some of Ligotti's very best, such as "The Order of Illusion".
This edition from Chiroptera Press also includes a couple of more recent stories from Ligotti's pen that were originally published as The Spectral Link. The first of these stories ("Metaphysica Morum") is nothing special, but "The Small People" evinces what Ligotti does so well: exploring profound ideas regarding the very notion of human existence in the form of weird fiction. This latter is a story that I will need to revisit soon, since it is swirling with the potent magic of dark dreams and collapsing illusions.
As an outro, I can't help but quote from "Mad Night of Atonement", a story from Noctuary that is central to Ligotti's considerable achievement in fiction, and central to his bleak but compelling vision of our prevailing reality:
This edition from Chiroptera Press also includes a couple of more recent stories from Ligotti's pen that were originally published as The Spectral Link. The first of these stories ("Metaphysica Morum") is nothing special, but "The Small People" evinces what Ligotti does so well: exploring profound ideas regarding the very notion of human existence in the form of weird fiction. This latter is a story that I will need to revisit soon, since it is swirling with the potent magic of dark dreams and collapsing illusions.
As an outro, I can't help but quote from "Mad Night of Atonement", a story from Noctuary that is central to Ligotti's considerable achievement in fiction, and central to his bleak but compelling vision of our prevailing reality:
I noticed that there were mechanisms built into the system of reality that nullified all our advancements in this world, rerouting them into a hidden laboratory where these so-called blessings were canceled out altogether, if not converted into formulas for our collapse. I noticed that there were higher forces working against us and working through us at the same time. On the one hand, our vision has always been of creating a world of perpetual vitality, despite our grudging recognition of death's 'necessity.' On the other hand, all we have constructed is an elaborate façade to conceal our immortal traumas, a false front that hides the perennial ordeals of the human race. Oh, the human race. And I began to see that perfection has never been the point, that both the lost paradise of the past and the one sought in the future were merely convenient pretexts for our true destiny of ... disintegration.
December 31, 2023
Was beginning to lose hope I'd ever get the chance to read these, closing the year out with those final chilling words of The Little People hits pretty hard. Noctuary frankly rivals Grimscribe for my favourite selection of tales by Ligotti, simply inspired hallowed prose.
2023 has been a good year, wishing all the best for the next.
2023 has been a good year, wishing all the best for the next.
December 5, 2023
Finally able to read this collection (Noctuary) and read a physical copy of the stories in The Spectral Link. Parts of Noctuary didn't do much for me (the third section of very short pieces in particular was kind of hit and miss), but the book overall was a great read.
August 10, 2024
Absolutely fascinating style of small plots.
August 24, 2024
Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️5/5 stars
Noctuary and The Spectral Link by Thomas Ligotti (Audiobook narrated by Jon Padgett)
Where to begin. This was my first Ligotti. And damn, it will not be my last. This was a fever dream of a reading experience. Comprising of 29 shorts, it’s hard to put into words what this book is about. These are not stories where you have the usual plot beginning, middle and end. There are no heavy character developments, with the protagonists (victims?) often remaining unnamed. These are snippets of dream sequences and nightmares. Don’t go into this thinking of the usual fare of storytelling. You will flow through these stories as if you floating on gently moving river. This book is an event, an experience, an epiphany.
Prose and Themes. Thomas Ligotti’s prose is something else. It’s very beautiful and poignant. I’m not the biggest poetry fan, but these words and phrases flow so eloquently, it’s what I imagine poetry enthusiasts feel when they are blown away by a beautiful verse. I would almost call it poetry in of itself. He makes the macabre and nightmarish subject matter of these stories something you want to be immersed in and never leave. The themes are always dark and existential. What happens to your soul in the moments after your passing. Purgatory worlds and hellscapes that end abruptly or never at all. I often found myself lost or out of my depth, not quite feeling smart enough to grasp the true meanings of stories. But I didn’t care. It did not detract from the wonderful experience I had. It’s something you just have to let happen to you. Is this horror? The subject matter certainly pertains to it. But it is not in the usual sense of horror. It’s definitely weird, which is one of my favourite ‘genres’.
The audiobook is narrated by Jon Padgett. His voice pairs perfectly with Ligotti’s poetic prose. His soft and leathery tones are gentle and guiding, as if a scholar is instructing you on the meaning of life. Or afterlife. Padgett and Ligotti combine to make one of the best damn reading experiences I’ve ever had. Luckily Padgett has narrated Songs of a Dead Dreamer and Grimscribe. He has also just finished recording The Conspiracy Against the Human Race. So I have plenty more to look forward to.
If you have never read Ligotti, I wholeheartedly recommend doing so by audiobook. If anything I’ve described appeals to you, you will not disappointed.
Noctuary and The Spectral Link by Thomas Ligotti (Audiobook narrated by Jon Padgett)
Where to begin. This was my first Ligotti. And damn, it will not be my last. This was a fever dream of a reading experience. Comprising of 29 shorts, it’s hard to put into words what this book is about. These are not stories where you have the usual plot beginning, middle and end. There are no heavy character developments, with the protagonists (victims?) often remaining unnamed. These are snippets of dream sequences and nightmares. Don’t go into this thinking of the usual fare of storytelling. You will flow through these stories as if you floating on gently moving river. This book is an event, an experience, an epiphany.
Prose and Themes. Thomas Ligotti’s prose is something else. It’s very beautiful and poignant. I’m not the biggest poetry fan, but these words and phrases flow so eloquently, it’s what I imagine poetry enthusiasts feel when they are blown away by a beautiful verse. I would almost call it poetry in of itself. He makes the macabre and nightmarish subject matter of these stories something you want to be immersed in and never leave. The themes are always dark and existential. What happens to your soul in the moments after your passing. Purgatory worlds and hellscapes that end abruptly or never at all. I often found myself lost or out of my depth, not quite feeling smart enough to grasp the true meanings of stories. But I didn’t care. It did not detract from the wonderful experience I had. It’s something you just have to let happen to you. Is this horror? The subject matter certainly pertains to it. But it is not in the usual sense of horror. It’s definitely weird, which is one of my favourite ‘genres’.
The audiobook is narrated by Jon Padgett. His voice pairs perfectly with Ligotti’s poetic prose. His soft and leathery tones are gentle and guiding, as if a scholar is instructing you on the meaning of life. Or afterlife. Padgett and Ligotti combine to make one of the best damn reading experiences I’ve ever had. Luckily Padgett has narrated Songs of a Dead Dreamer and Grimscribe. He has also just finished recording The Conspiracy Against the Human Race. So I have plenty more to look forward to.
If you have never read Ligotti, I wholeheartedly recommend doing so by audiobook. If anything I’ve described appeals to you, you will not disappointed.
September 4, 2025
The author: To me, Ligotti is hard to grasp, but not what he's coming from. He seems like one of those legendary prophets you hear about, who've unlocked knowledge beyond what can simply be told. It's experience, and it's gnosis. Not sure if anything else can be said, other than that I've never read an author who manages to penetrate what the rest of us calls reality. Maybe his non-fiction is most candid in this, but it permeates his books, and if you've glimpsed it once it's hard to unsee. But at the same time, at least initially, he seemed reluctant to share this, or maybe his vision was not at that time perfectly clear. I won't write about his philosophy and symbology and the themes because I think they must be experienced, but it might not be for all. This analog is pretentious and probably not true, but it could be likened to a red and a blue pill; red and you read, blue and you simply go on with your life like you never got close to something truly scary. The Necronomicon was never picked up, and your dreams remain fluffy and fleeting.
The text: This is similar to his other publications, a short story collection divided into segments with loose themes. I'm no expert on Ligotti, so maybe someone might tell me it was due to the part being published at different times and compiled later on etc, but to me it's the texts that matter. The way Ligotti writes varies, but it is generally the heavy and purple prose one finds in inspirations such as Lovecraft. It's generally not my cup of tea, but for Ligotti each word tends to have a meaning. In that sense it reminds me of J. Joyce. And many can (and should!) be read again, and the experience can, and will, change. One of my absolute favorites was in this very volume, The Strange Design of Master Rignolo, and if you only should read one novel in this anthology I think it's that one. And Medusa… But there are also stories which you should read out loud, like Mad Night of Atonement. The stories are dark though and, like I mentioned initially, a sneak peak at what might lie beyond what we take for granted.
The characters: We are always distant from his characters. We might know what they think and do and why, but they are always strangers to us. Alien to us. They portrait often portrait thoughts that we never have, or at least pretend we never have. Doubts that we never have, or at least pretend we never have. Impulses that we never have, or at least pretend we never have. And not only those hidden from those other alien beings we see every day, those so far removed from us that they might as well be on another planet or galaxy all together… No, it's what we also hide from ourselves.
The description: The descriptions are however important, but not of the characters. Not what they look like and what they really do and how many kids they have and the argument with their sister in-laws new husband or the argument last Christmas. No, they are concepts. A means to an end. Manufactured to tell a story. To tell us something. And for that they can be made hollow, so they are hollow, and that is fine. Maybe we are hollow too? … Anyways, the landscape, they do paint a picture, and maybe too much sometimes, but they do paint. The image is bleak though, and cruel, and wicked and rotten to the core. But it can be beautiful sometimes. Subjectively speaking.
The scenes: The scenes are all well thought through and often very precise. I like some of the stories more than others, and often it is related to this. The flow of movement from one place or character to the next. Years can fly by in the blink of an eye, some only minutes or hours, but they are there to show us. To let us see, and nothing else. Not to entertain really, only to amaze.
My experience: As you can probably tell I really like this short story collection, even thought I do prefer Teatro Grottesco and Songs of a Dead Dreamer (also Grimscribe). The Notebook of the Night part of the book is less visceral to me, despite it being dense. To me those stories are more like not-yet-fleshed-out full stories or philosophical expressions that could be make into a story, and something that didn't really fit into the book as a whole. It would have been better left out of this one. The Spectral Link had 2 good stories, but cannot compare to Noctuary. My rating of the individual stories are as follows (out of 10): Conversations in a Dead Language - 8; Prodigy of Dreams - 7; Mrs. Rinaldis Angel - 9; The Tsalal - 8; Mad Night of Atonement - 10; The Strange Design of Master Rignolo - 10; Voice in the Bones - 6; Notebook of the Night (21 very short stories, ie c. 1 page) - Not rated; Metaphysica Morum - 8; Small People - 6.
My overall score for Noctuary and The Spectral Link is 9 out of 10.
The text: This is similar to his other publications, a short story collection divided into segments with loose themes. I'm no expert on Ligotti, so maybe someone might tell me it was due to the part being published at different times and compiled later on etc, but to me it's the texts that matter. The way Ligotti writes varies, but it is generally the heavy and purple prose one finds in inspirations such as Lovecraft. It's generally not my cup of tea, but for Ligotti each word tends to have a meaning. In that sense it reminds me of J. Joyce. And many can (and should!) be read again, and the experience can, and will, change. One of my absolute favorites was in this very volume, The Strange Design of Master Rignolo, and if you only should read one novel in this anthology I think it's that one. And Medusa… But there are also stories which you should read out loud, like Mad Night of Atonement. The stories are dark though and, like I mentioned initially, a sneak peak at what might lie beyond what we take for granted.
The characters: We are always distant from his characters. We might know what they think and do and why, but they are always strangers to us. Alien to us. They portrait often portrait thoughts that we never have, or at least pretend we never have. Doubts that we never have, or at least pretend we never have. Impulses that we never have, or at least pretend we never have. And not only those hidden from those other alien beings we see every day, those so far removed from us that they might as well be on another planet or galaxy all together… No, it's what we also hide from ourselves.
The description: The descriptions are however important, but not of the characters. Not what they look like and what they really do and how many kids they have and the argument with their sister in-laws new husband or the argument last Christmas. No, they are concepts. A means to an end. Manufactured to tell a story. To tell us something. And for that they can be made hollow, so they are hollow, and that is fine. Maybe we are hollow too? … Anyways, the landscape, they do paint a picture, and maybe too much sometimes, but they do paint. The image is bleak though, and cruel, and wicked and rotten to the core. But it can be beautiful sometimes. Subjectively speaking.
The scenes: The scenes are all well thought through and often very precise. I like some of the stories more than others, and often it is related to this. The flow of movement from one place or character to the next. Years can fly by in the blink of an eye, some only minutes or hours, but they are there to show us. To let us see, and nothing else. Not to entertain really, only to amaze.
My experience: As you can probably tell I really like this short story collection, even thought I do prefer Teatro Grottesco and Songs of a Dead Dreamer (also Grimscribe). The Notebook of the Night part of the book is less visceral to me, despite it being dense. To me those stories are more like not-yet-fleshed-out full stories or philosophical expressions that could be make into a story, and something that didn't really fit into the book as a whole. It would have been better left out of this one. The Spectral Link had 2 good stories, but cannot compare to Noctuary. My rating of the individual stories are as follows (out of 10): Conversations in a Dead Language - 8; Prodigy of Dreams - 7; Mrs. Rinaldis Angel - 9; The Tsalal - 8; Mad Night of Atonement - 10; The Strange Design of Master Rignolo - 10; Voice in the Bones - 6; Notebook of the Night (21 very short stories, ie c. 1 page) - Not rated; Metaphysica Morum - 8; Small People - 6.
My overall score for Noctuary and The Spectral Link is 9 out of 10.
August 3, 2024
I've come to the conclusion that, as much as I love Ligotti—and I truly do love Ligotti's work—I'll always be chasing, but never finding, that high I experienced with the first encounter with his weird fiction.
The works here are good, and very often great. All the hallmarks are here...the ambiguous narrators, the strange towns and the stranger goings-on in the towns, the plot elements broken up by bizarre soliloquies or monologues or observations, and a pervasive undercurrent of unease, both from the characters in the stories, and myself as the reader.
To read Ligotti is to feel like you kind of know what's going on, but you're aware of a vast amount of malevolent machinery operating just out of sight. And that, should your attention waver for even a moment, you're going to get caught in that machinery and no one will ever know what happened to you, that you simply disappeared into the malevolence.
The works here are good, and very often great. All the hallmarks are here...the ambiguous narrators, the strange towns and the stranger goings-on in the towns, the plot elements broken up by bizarre soliloquies or monologues or observations, and a pervasive undercurrent of unease, both from the characters in the stories, and myself as the reader.
To read Ligotti is to feel like you kind of know what's going on, but you're aware of a vast amount of malevolent machinery operating just out of sight. And that, should your attention waver for even a moment, you're going to get caught in that machinery and no one will ever know what happened to you, that you simply disappeared into the malevolence.
September 29, 2024
I found this collection to be quite disappointing. It lacked the horror elements I was hoping for, and while some stories were better than others, it didn't say much about the collection as a whole. There was a noticeable absence of suspense and mystery, and even the author's vivid imagination failed to capture my interest. Admittedly, I'm not a fan of horror, so my bias against the genre may have influenced my perception from the beginning.
Overall, I didn't like this book and was very disappointed with it.
Pros:
I found the author's writing style appealing. The reader, through the book’s characters, experiences a sense of being immersed in a state of suspension between reality and lucid dreaming with a dreadful realization that the boundary between the two is indiscernible. This sensation evokes brief panic and an eerie feeling of being out of control. Horror? Perhaps. Well done.
Overall, I didn't like this book and was very disappointed with it.
Pros:
I found the author's writing style appealing. The reader, through the book’s characters, experiences a sense of being immersed in a state of suspension between reality and lucid dreaming with a dreadful realization that the boundary between the two is indiscernible. This sensation evokes brief panic and an eerie feeling of being out of control. Horror? Perhaps. Well done.
November 11, 2024
This is an even more standout collection than Grimscribe; Ligotti is really in top form here. But he's also one of the most exhausting authors I've read. These stories revel in death, decay, and doomerism. There is no hope, and very little humor (except in the story The Small People). Ligotti is severely mentally ill. In an interview he said he spent ten years in a severe depressive state where he could not work, let alone function. I had planned to follow this up with Teatro Grottesco, but I think I need a break now.
September 7, 2025
I probably overexposed myself to Ligotti. after finishing the Conspiracy against Human Race, I went to this horror collection.
And while the writing is still great, the atmosphere somber etc etc it is just too much of the same. Life does not make sense, things are awful, everything comes to some gruesome ending: and it is hard to care about it in any way, because the characters have the same lifeless, unsympathethic qualities as heroes of Lovecraft: sometimes they feel worse honestly, just spectators to their own inevitable end. In the end, it just felt so very bland.
And while the writing is still great, the atmosphere somber etc etc it is just too much of the same. Life does not make sense, things are awful, everything comes to some gruesome ending: and it is hard to care about it in any way, because the characters have the same lifeless, unsympathethic qualities as heroes of Lovecraft: sometimes they feel worse honestly, just spectators to their own inevitable end. In the end, it just felt so very bland.
September 17, 2025
I can't tell if it's Ligotti's word choice or the narrator's voice but for the majority of these stories had me zoning out and falling asleep. "Ms. Rinaldi's Angel" and "The Small People" were very enjoyable exceptions to this criticism. The book is not worth the cost even with the good stories IMO. Just buy "The Spectral Link" to read "The Small People" and stop there.
You'd enjoy this book if you like: Highbrow horror
You'd dislike this book if: Mood setting and immersion is important to your horror. If thesauruses are definitively un-scary.
You'd enjoy this book if you like: Highbrow horror
You'd dislike this book if: Mood setting and immersion is important to your horror. If thesauruses are definitively un-scary.
August 15, 2025
2025, the year I finally revisited Aickman again after an aborted earlier attempt and realized I enjoy his work immensely is also the same year I finally realized that Ligotti is not the writer for me.
I remember liking My Work is Not Yet Done when it came out, but none of his other works have resonated with me. I’ve tried, it’s not Ligotti, it’s me, and I suspect that that Ligotti’s underlying pessimism is something I’m no longer searching for in art and taints the work for me.
I remember liking My Work is Not Yet Done when it came out, but none of his other works have resonated with me. I’ve tried, it’s not Ligotti, it’s me, and I suspect that that Ligotti’s underlying pessimism is something I’m no longer searching for in art and taints the work for me.
March 9, 2025
I felt it lacked some of the strange surrealism and absurdism of stories found in 'Teatro Grottesco' and 'Songs of a Dead Dreamer'. This collection felt more in line with 'Conspiracy...'. Definitely grab if you're a Ligotti fan, regardless.
August 31, 2024
A very good mix of shorts and short shorts. Some of these are pretty bleak and a few are lighter than expected from Ligotti. Overall a very nice 4 Star collection
September 3, 2024
I think this publisher needs to hire a proofreader, paying premium price for missing and duplicate chapters is a real turn off. Not that impressed with my first Ligotti book.
September 10, 2024
Horrific, sublime and amazingly haunting
January 24, 2025
Did not finish. The stories just weren’t catching my interest
Read
July 2, 2025Reads like Alex Jones doing HP Lovecraft
March 12, 2025
"Notebook of the Night", third part of Noctuary, is a huge letdown. The rest of the stories are very interesting, albeit somewhat thematically repetitive on the whole.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews