Eibonvale Press - A Thread of Truth by Nina Allan

A Thread of Truth

by Nina Allan

244 pages

A young man determined to cure his fear of spiders, discovers both the magic of nature and something much stranger in the Suffolk countryside.

A forgotten suitcase containing a macabre secret.

A touch of the strange on the Moscow Metro.

A mystery living behind the crumbling façade of a derelict hotel.

A crack appears in concrete . . .

In this book, the first collection from London writer Nina Allan, the full range of her styles is evident. Often using only the tiniest hints of the unusual or otherworldly to colour her narratives, these stories are rooted squarely in both the meticulously observed modern world and the traditions of British Macabre and Slipstream writing. They are subtle and elegantly crafted, leading us to question our own identities and take a second look at places we thought we knew.

From the quiet and melancholy mystery of Terminus to the fractured modern reality of The Vicar with Seven Rigs to the fragile and almost classical beauty and eeriness of the title novella, A Thread of Truth – many of these stories have never been seen in print before and I am delighted to present them to you here.

David Rix

Contents

Amethyst
Ryman's Suitcase
Bird Songs at Eventide
Queen South
The Vicar with Seven Rigs
Heroes
Terminus
A Thread of Truth
Afterword

‘The stories are a perfect showcase for her rich and imaginative style. Here, Nina Allan writes about worlds we can all relate to, and then adds her own special signature – an uneasy, very personalised feel that touches oh so very lightly on the supernatural. A Thread of Truth is a gem. Beautifully written and faultlessly characterised, subtly dark and threatening. The author includes and M. R James- style ghost story within a story to devastating effect. A thoughtful and engrossing read that impresses with its attention to detail, the perfection of its prose and the power to draw the reader into eerie worlds that linger in the mind like half-seen ghosts.’

Trevor Denyer – Midnight Street

I first read Nina Allan's work through the pages of Albedo One and, much though I wanted to be desperately jealous, I really liked her style. So I was excited to get this collection of her stories. Ms Allan presents seven short stories, the longer work of the title and a wonderfully insightful collection of notes that relate the stories to her life and to her friends, giving both depth to her work and a glimpse of the creative wheels that kick her into gear.

Throughout this collection Ms Allan's strength lies in her use of place. From the shabby run-down streets of the seaside town in Amethyst, to the quiet unsettling town in Ryman's Suitcase to the wonderful setting for Heroes in the shadow of the Raisin Street cottages and the A339 ring road, she uses the medium of place to settle the reader into the slightly skewed world of her characters….Ms Allan sets a wonderful landscape.

Andrew McKenna – Albedo One

[Nina Allan may] become one of the most accomplished of the modern exponents of the strange story, a worthy successor -but how different! -to Robert Aickman. Reading her is already a great pleasure.

Reggie Oliver, Wormwood magazine (No.16, Spring 2011) from Tartarus Press

Nina Allan has been shortlisted for the Asham Award, the BSFA Award and the British Fantasy Society Short Story Prize. She has had stories published in Interzone, The Third Alternative and the World Fantasy Award-winning anthology Strange Tales from Tartarus. She lives and works in London.

A Thread of Truth is available in the following formats:

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