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Forgotten Lore
An Assembly of Monsters
Monstrous Is a Matter of Perspective...
Classic tales throughout time pit humanity against creatures of the night, beyond mortal understanding. But what-or who-makes a monster? Folklore has its tales to tell, but might there be a different view? We present fifteen tales inspired by the masters of the macabre, Bram Stoker and Mary Shelley, paying tribute to their vision of Gothic horror.
In conjunction with the Tell-Tale Steampunk Festival, we bring you stories
James Chambers * David Lee Summers * Aaron Rosenberg * Keith R.A. DeCandido * Hildy Silverman * Doc Coleman * Jessica Lucci * Dana Fraedrich * Ef Deal * Teel James Glenn * Christine Norris * Danielle Ackley-McPhail * Rachel A. Brune * Michelle D. Sonnier * John L. French
With an introduction by bestselling author, Dacre Stoker, great grandnephew of Bram Stoker
Classic tales throughout time pit humanity against creatures of the night, beyond mortal understanding. But what-or who-makes a monster? Folklore has its tales to tell, but might there be a different view? We present fifteen tales inspired by the masters of the macabre, Bram Stoker and Mary Shelley, paying tribute to their vision of Gothic horror.
In conjunction with the Tell-Tale Steampunk Festival, we bring you stories
James Chambers * David Lee Summers * Aaron Rosenberg * Keith R.A. DeCandido * Hildy Silverman * Doc Coleman * Jessica Lucci * Dana Fraedrich * Ef Deal * Teel James Glenn * Christine Norris * Danielle Ackley-McPhail * Rachel A. Brune * Michelle D. Sonnier * John L. French
With an introduction by bestselling author, Dacre Stoker, great grandnephew of Bram Stoker
365 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 1, 2025
2 people want to read
About the author
Danielle Ackley-McPhail
116 books206 followersAward-winning author, editor, and publisher Danielle Ackley-McPhail has worked both sides of the publishing industry for longer than she cares to admit. In 2014 she joined forces with husband Mike McPhail and friend Greg Schauer to form her own publishing house, eSpec Books (www.especbooks.com).
Her published works include eight novels, Yesterday's Dreams, Tomorrow's Memories, Today’s Promise, The Halfling’s Court, The Redcaps’ Queen, Daire’s Devils, The Play of Light, and Baba Ali and the Clockwork Djinn, written with Day Al-Mohamed. She is also the author of the solo collections Eternal Wanderings, A Legacy of Stars, Consigned to the Sea, Flash in the Can, Transcendence, Between Darkness and Light, The Fox’s Fire, The Kindly One, and the non-fiction writers’ guides The Literary Handyman, More Tips from the Handyman, and LH: Build-A-Book Workshop. She is the senior editor of the Bad-Ass Faeries anthology series, Gaslight & Grimm, Side of Good/Side of Evil, After Punk, and Footprints in the Stars. Her short stories are included in numerous other anthologies and collections.
In addition to her literary acclaim, she crafts and sells original costume horns under the moniker The Hornie Lady Custom Costume Horns, and homemade flavor-infused candied ginger under the brand of Ginger KICK! at literary conventions, on commission, and wholesale.
Danielle lives in New Jersey with her husband and fellow writer, Mike McPhail and four extremely spoiled cats.
Her published works include eight novels, Yesterday's Dreams, Tomorrow's Memories, Today’s Promise, The Halfling’s Court, The Redcaps’ Queen, Daire’s Devils, The Play of Light, and Baba Ali and the Clockwork Djinn, written with Day Al-Mohamed. She is also the author of the solo collections Eternal Wanderings, A Legacy of Stars, Consigned to the Sea, Flash in the Can, Transcendence, Between Darkness and Light, The Fox’s Fire, The Kindly One, and the non-fiction writers’ guides The Literary Handyman, More Tips from the Handyman, and LH: Build-A-Book Workshop. She is the senior editor of the Bad-Ass Faeries anthology series, Gaslight & Grimm, Side of Good/Side of Evil, After Punk, and Footprints in the Stars. Her short stories are included in numerous other anthologies and collections.
In addition to her literary acclaim, she crafts and sells original costume horns under the moniker The Hornie Lady Custom Costume Horns, and homemade flavor-infused candied ginger under the brand of Ginger KICK! at literary conventions, on commission, and wholesale.
Danielle lives in New Jersey with her husband and fellow writer, Mike McPhail and four extremely spoiled cats.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
August 21, 2025
A solid anthology that pays a robust homage to its gothic roots while still putting an entertaining steampunk twist on the genre. While Dracula and Frankenstein are the prevalent influences, the book has a few stories that find inspiration from other Gothic sources, and also from international mythos.
All the stories are enjoyable, well-written and a wonderful blend of gothic and steampunk, with a nice mixture of sci-fi and fantasy aesthetics. Some stories, as with all anthologies, resonated with me as a reader more than others; my top three are: Notre Dame de Linceul, The Lambton Wyrm, and The Man Who Was Not Me. I will say though, the stories have a very Gothic style, which is something I like, but that might not be for everyone.
Overall, I highly recommend the book.
All the stories are enjoyable, well-written and a wonderful blend of gothic and steampunk, with a nice mixture of sci-fi and fantasy aesthetics. Some stories, as with all anthologies, resonated with me as a reader more than others; my top three are: Notre Dame de Linceul, The Lambton Wyrm, and The Man Who Was Not Me. I will say though, the stories have a very Gothic style, which is something I like, but that might not be for everyone.
Overall, I highly recommend the book.
Displaying 1 of 1 review