Ambrose Bierce can be called the direct literary heir of Edgar Allan Poe (whom he considered “the greatest known American”) and the predecessor of Howard Lovecraft. His biting and uncompromising articles brought him fame as a brilliant publicist and the nickname Bitter Bierce, and “Satan’s Dictionary” was torn apart for quotes and recognized as a classic of twentieth-century satire. Bierce had a special interest in the psychology of horror and metaphysical mysteries, so his stories are filled with mysterious situations with unpredictable and stunning endings, where heroes die not from a shot, not from a knife, not from the teeth of an animal, but from fear itself.