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A Touch Of Silence & Other Tales
Ten paths of shadows and secrets.
Ten journeys into possibility.
A desperate quest amongst the spires of Wevven, where ancient gods watch over a dying world…
A distant future where alien biotech and living cities cover the globe …
The abandoned hallways of a derelict asylum where more than dust and shadows linger…
A glimpse into the black depths of the human soul where a twisted loss manifests in terrible ways…
These and more await you in the unknown darkness in this collection of ten short stories.
Ten journeys into possibility.
A desperate quest amongst the spires of Wevven, where ancient gods watch over a dying world…
A distant future where alien biotech and living cities cover the globe …
The abandoned hallways of a derelict asylum where more than dust and shadows linger…
A glimpse into the black depths of the human soul where a twisted loss manifests in terrible ways…
These and more await you in the unknown darkness in this collection of ten short stories.
218 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 13, 2017
5 people are currently reading
20 people want to read
About the author
Simon Bleaken
47 books13 followersSimon Bleaken lives in Wiltshire, England.
His work has appeared in magazines, ezines and podcasts including Lovecraft’s Disciples; Tales of the Talisman; Dark Dossier; Strange Sorcery; Lovecraftiana; The Horror Zine; Schlock Webzine; Night Land; Weird Fiction Quarterly, Eternal Haunted Summer and on The NoSleep Podcast, Creepy Podcast and HorrorBabble Originals.
He has also appeared in the anthologies: Eldritch Horrors: Dark Tales (2008); Space Horrors: Full-throttle Space Tales #4 (2010); Best Gay Romance (2015); Eldritch Embraces: Putting the Love Back in Lovecraft (2016); Kepler’s Cowboys (2017); Twilight Madhouse Vol. 2 (2017); The Shadow Over Doggerland (2022); The Horror Zine Magazine Summer 2022 (2022); HellBound Books’ Anthology of Science Fiction Vol.1 (2023); From Beyond The Threshold (2023) Eldritch Investigations (2023) House of Haunts (2023) The Horror Zine’s Book of Monster Stories (2024) Witchcraft and Black Magic in the United States (2024) When Shadows Creep (2024) The Whisperer in Valhalla (2024) Hospital of Haunts (2024) and Solaris: Stories and Reflections Inspired by Andrei Tarkowsky's movie (2025).
His first collection of short stories: A Touch of Silence & Other Tales was released in 2017, followed by The Basement of Dreams & Other Tales in 2019, Within the Flames & Other Stories in 2021 and The Empire of the Moon and Stars & Other Stories in 2025.
Outside of writing, his interests include Egyptology and ancient history.
He is a member of the Horror Writers Association, the Pagan Federation, OBOD (the Order of Bards, Ovates, and Druids), the Druid Network, the Egypt Society of Bristol, and the H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society.
His work has appeared in magazines, ezines and podcasts including Lovecraft’s Disciples; Tales of the Talisman; Dark Dossier; Strange Sorcery; Lovecraftiana; The Horror Zine; Schlock Webzine; Night Land; Weird Fiction Quarterly, Eternal Haunted Summer and on The NoSleep Podcast, Creepy Podcast and HorrorBabble Originals.
He has also appeared in the anthologies: Eldritch Horrors: Dark Tales (2008); Space Horrors: Full-throttle Space Tales #4 (2010); Best Gay Romance (2015); Eldritch Embraces: Putting the Love Back in Lovecraft (2016); Kepler’s Cowboys (2017); Twilight Madhouse Vol. 2 (2017); The Shadow Over Doggerland (2022); The Horror Zine Magazine Summer 2022 (2022); HellBound Books’ Anthology of Science Fiction Vol.1 (2023); From Beyond The Threshold (2023) Eldritch Investigations (2023) House of Haunts (2023) The Horror Zine’s Book of Monster Stories (2024) Witchcraft and Black Magic in the United States (2024) When Shadows Creep (2024) The Whisperer in Valhalla (2024) Hospital of Haunts (2024) and Solaris: Stories and Reflections Inspired by Andrei Tarkowsky's movie (2025).
His first collection of short stories: A Touch of Silence & Other Tales was released in 2017, followed by The Basement of Dreams & Other Tales in 2019, Within the Flames & Other Stories in 2021 and The Empire of the Moon and Stars & Other Stories in 2025.
Outside of writing, his interests include Egyptology and ancient history.
He is a member of the Horror Writers Association, the Pagan Federation, OBOD (the Order of Bards, Ovates, and Druids), the Druid Network, the Egypt Society of Bristol, and the H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
April 14, 2018
This is a collection of dark short stories with a futuristic, sci-fi, Dystopian and sometimes Paranormal feel to them.
The first story wasn't my cup of tea. I found it a bit overzealous in the descriptions. I kept reading and thoroughly enjoyed all the rest.
I fully understand why A Touch of Silence was used in the collection's title as it turned out to be my favourite with Draystone's Secret coming in a close second.
I look forward to reading more by this author 4.5/5 stars!
The first story wasn't my cup of tea. I found it a bit overzealous in the descriptions. I kept reading and thoroughly enjoyed all the rest.
I fully understand why A Touch of Silence was used in the collection's title as it turned out to be my favourite with Draystone's Secret coming in a close second.
I look forward to reading more by this author 4.5/5 stars!
November 20, 2022
“A Touch of Silence & Other Tales” by Simon Bleaken covers considerable thematic ground, elements of fantasy, science fiction, pulp, & horror (both subtle & extreme) woven together deftly to immersive effect. The author excels at making you care about his characters — then does strange & terrible things to them. Cosmic irony plays a significant role, & several tales potently probe the realm of folk horror. In this vein, “The Tree By The Well” & “Sidhe Brook” especially scintillate with a perfect commingling of dread, reverence, & terror. A highly recommended read.
October 16, 2018
A Touch of Silence starts with a story of a doomed world, “a desolation born of melancholy”. Nine other tales along the dark journey take you from a sanatorium and strange old houses on Earth to distant worlds and an automated orbital relay station in the galaxy.
Simon Bleaken skillfully weaves stories with other life-forms, alien biotech, organic sensors, a venerated rock with prophetic properties, cursed trees, etc.
The cast of characters includes absent-minded, thoughtless protagonists who remain untouched while their loved ones paid the ultimate price, gay lovers, ghosts, Faes, giant beetles, house spiders, corpses preserved in formaldehyde sitting around a dining table looking like demented mannequins and more.
Violence, blood, gore. These sinister tales of horror and dark stories describe vivid images of torture, blazing corpses, blood offerings, gelatinous horror, torn carcasses.
Woven in the well-written stories are topics of natural selection, planet’s complex ecosystem, interstellar travel, human dominance over nature, and exploitation of the Earth. Is it time for humans to pay the price?
Simon Bleaken skillfully weaves stories with other life-forms, alien biotech, organic sensors, a venerated rock with prophetic properties, cursed trees, etc.
The cast of characters includes absent-minded, thoughtless protagonists who remain untouched while their loved ones paid the ultimate price, gay lovers, ghosts, Faes, giant beetles, house spiders, corpses preserved in formaldehyde sitting around a dining table looking like demented mannequins and more.
Violence, blood, gore. These sinister tales of horror and dark stories describe vivid images of torture, blazing corpses, blood offerings, gelatinous horror, torn carcasses.
Woven in the well-written stories are topics of natural selection, planet’s complex ecosystem, interstellar travel, human dominance over nature, and exploitation of the Earth. Is it time for humans to pay the price?
January 2, 2020
Creepy, scary, and wondrous!
I really enjoyed this book! Some stories were sci-fi, some Lovecraftian horror, and some modern fantasy. The writing style is smooth and descriptive, and I loved ‘seeing’ the different worlds depicted. Surprisingly, I enjoyed the fact that not all stories had happy endings. Some tales had me scrolling eagerly to find out what happened next, while others totally shocked me...in a good way! Very creative stuff, great for fans of creepy horror, scary sci fi...and faerie tales! More, please!
I really enjoyed this book! Some stories were sci-fi, some Lovecraftian horror, and some modern fantasy. The writing style is smooth and descriptive, and I loved ‘seeing’ the different worlds depicted. Surprisingly, I enjoyed the fact that not all stories had happy endings. Some tales had me scrolling eagerly to find out what happened next, while others totally shocked me...in a good way! Very creative stuff, great for fans of creepy horror, scary sci fi...and faerie tales! More, please!
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews