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Market of Loss: A Collection
Not yet published
Expected 1 Jun 26There are many things for sale at the market of loss.
Your mother's heart.
A smile that makes you ache.
A chance to feel alive for the first time, or the last.
But remember, before you buy, everything at the market is really only one thing—a mirror.
Matt Tighe's Market of Loss: A Collection ranges from the red plains of Mars to the darkest night of a pledged soldier, showing us that connection is universal because we all know what it means to lose.
“This collection is a trap. Tighe has characters you get right inside and ideas that refuse to be put down with the book. They linger in your head and in your heart.” – Samantha Murray, multi-award winning author.
“Why would you write this sort of stuff?” – A supposed friend of the author (but not Samantha).
Your mother's heart.
A smile that makes you ache.
A chance to feel alive for the first time, or the last.
But remember, before you buy, everything at the market is really only one thing—a mirror.
Matt Tighe's Market of Loss: A Collection ranges from the red plains of Mars to the darkest night of a pledged soldier, showing us that connection is universal because we all know what it means to lose.
“This collection is a trap. Tighe has characters you get right inside and ideas that refuse to be put down with the book. They linger in your head and in your heart.” – Samantha Murray, multi-award winning author.
“Why would you write this sort of stuff?” – A supposed friend of the author (but not Samantha).
248 pages, ebook
Expected publication June 1, 2026
About the author
Matt Tighe
8 books8 followersMatt Tighe is a speculative fiction writer of horror, sci-fi and fantasy, probably in that order. He is an Australian Shadows and Aurealis Award winner, the recipient of the New England Writer's Centre Varuna Fellowship, and a multi-award nominated writer. He lives on a small farm in New South Wales with his amazing children, his patient spouse, and too many animals. He is also a professor of environmental science who works on pollution and environmental conservation.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
Review of advance copy received from Author
“You have legs. Now I have legs. You have a body. This house is my body. What do you think of my new deck? Do you like it?”
—“Heart of the Gestalt” by Matt Tighe in MARKET OF LOSS
Last year I read and loved Matt Tighe’s horror short fiction collection DROWNING IN THE DARK AND OTHER STORIES, so was thrilled to get my mitts on an e-ARC of Tighe’s new fantasy and sci-fi short fiction collection MARKET OF LOSS. Running through all these varied, striking, fantastical stories is a thread of sometimes-human connection and complex familial love. Particular favourites included “As Brittle as Granite,” in which a family will literally crumble from expressing emotion, in contrast to their limestone neighbours—and “Samantha's Encounter with the Giant Hare in the Valley of Unbreakable Vows, and What Came of It,” which deftly interweaves fantasy with the everyday life of a contemporary office worker, including the unforgettably-described Giant Hare (this uncanny creature now lives in my brain somewhere alongside the Deer God from Princess Mononoke.)
*re MARKET OF LOSS, I received a free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. Re DROWNING IN THE DARK, disclaimer: I was a judge for the Australian Shadows Awards and the Aurealis Awards last year. This review is my personal opinion and does not reflect the opinion of any judging panel, coordinators, or the AHWA or the Aurealis Awards.
—“Heart of the Gestalt” by Matt Tighe in MARKET OF LOSS
Last year I read and loved Matt Tighe’s horror short fiction collection DROWNING IN THE DARK AND OTHER STORIES, so was thrilled to get my mitts on an e-ARC of Tighe’s new fantasy and sci-fi short fiction collection MARKET OF LOSS. Running through all these varied, striking, fantastical stories is a thread of sometimes-human connection and complex familial love. Particular favourites included “As Brittle as Granite,” in which a family will literally crumble from expressing emotion, in contrast to their limestone neighbours—and “Samantha's Encounter with the Giant Hare in the Valley of Unbreakable Vows, and What Came of It,” which deftly interweaves fantasy with the everyday life of a contemporary office worker, including the unforgettably-described Giant Hare (this uncanny creature now lives in my brain somewhere alongside the Deer God from Princess Mononoke.)
*re MARKET OF LOSS, I received a free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. Re DROWNING IN THE DARK, disclaimer: I was a judge for the Australian Shadows Awards and the Aurealis Awards last year. This review is my personal opinion and does not reflect the opinion of any judging panel, coordinators, or the AHWA or the Aurealis Awards.
Review of advance copy received from Author
I received an advance copy of this book in return for an honest review.
Advance copy or not, I would have bought the book anyway. Absolutely loved it. Even though I'm a dedicated horror reader when it comes to fiction, I enjoyed the variety this collection offered. There were the signature Tighe stories deep with meaning and raw emotion that make you cry (well me anyway), plus a variety of others that make you laugh as well. My favourites are the title story, Market of Loss, Better World, Skins and The Skin Trader. Oh, and I adore Brittle as Granite. I enjoyed the collection as a whole; it was light, dark and all the shades in between, showing how versatile a writer Tighe really is.
Advance copy or not, I would have bought the book anyway. Absolutely loved it. Even though I'm a dedicated horror reader when it comes to fiction, I enjoyed the variety this collection offered. There were the signature Tighe stories deep with meaning and raw emotion that make you cry (well me anyway), plus a variety of others that make you laugh as well. My favourites are the title story, Market of Loss, Better World, Skins and The Skin Trader. Oh, and I adore Brittle as Granite. I enjoyed the collection as a whole; it was light, dark and all the shades in between, showing how versatile a writer Tighe really is.
Review of advance copy received from Author
Whenever you read a Matt Tighe story, you know you’re in for something special. He has this unique ability to create thought-provoking stories that can reshape how you see yourself and the world. Featuring original and previously published short stories and poems, this collection showcases some of his best work. Highly recommended reading.
May 6, 2026
Review coming soon! A beautiful, visceral speculative fiction collection
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews