Afraid of clowns? Those gruesome, bloody smiles, the corpse-white flesh, bulbous noses and feet... (Not to mention those treacherous daisies ) Worse yet, the mimes whose silence mocks while their lips form circles of feigned surprise, and whose actions imply worlds beyond our senses. Face your fears head-on with this collection of twenty-two short tales, taking on clowns in their myriad forms. Some clowns match wits with Death, with invading aliens, and with God's Law, while others write their own laws. Meet clowns who suffer for our sins, and clowns who turn that suffering upon their...

Cassandra Khaw returns with A Song for Quiet, a new standalone Persons Non Grata novella from the world of Hammers on Bone, finalist for the British Fantasy Award and the Locus Award, and which Kameron Hurley called "a long leap into the gory, the weird, and the fantastic."

Deacon James is a rambling bluesman straight from Georgia, a black man with troubles that he can't escape, and music that won't let him go. On a train to Arkham, he meets trouble -- visions of nightmares, gaping mouths and grasping tendrils, and a madman who calls himself John Persons....

Fantastic Stories prides itself on being open to underrepresented voices. Science fiction and fantasy should encompass the totality of the human experience, in all of its diversity and complexity. Fantastic Stories is determined to explore a more inclusive, realistic vision of the future.

People of color have been publishing some of the highest quality science fiction and fantasy since the genre's earliest days. Yet, there still persists a perception that science fiction and fantasy is somehow a white field. We'd like to help shatter that illusion and showcase some...