These collected love stories, often commenting wryly on modern life, are set in Europe and beyond. John Saul's stories have appeared frequently in anthologies including New Writing and the books of Serpent's Tail. Call It Tender hopes to see his innovative fiction reach a wider audience at last.

Pinecrest, a rambling lakeside house, has lain empty since its last owner went missing some years ago. But for the Brewster family it will be this year's holiday home, and for the kids, Eric and Marci, it's a perfect place to spend a lazy summer exploring. Which is how Eric and his friends discover a curious collection of discarded objects in a hidden room: bladeless hacksaws, shadeless lamps, tables with missing legs and a headless axe handle - a pile of junk. But someone once took the trouble to list each worthless relic in a cryptic ledger, provoking a mystery that is now whispering to...