Bram Stoker Award. International Horror Guild Award. British Fantasy Award. by William Crawford. World Fantasy Award finalist. John Finney is thirteen years old, alone and in trouble. Someone has been kidnapping boys in Galesburg for two years now. And now Finny is in danger: he's locked in a psychopath's basement, in a place stained with the blood of half a dozen murdered children. With him in the underground cell is an ancient telephone, long switched off... But it still rings at night, and the voices of the serial killer's previous victims can be heard on the receiver... "The Black Telephone" is one of fifteen stories in Joe Hill's first collection of short stories, originally published under the title Twentieth Century Ghosts is an inventive and chilling collection that has earned this award-winning, critically acclaimed, and best-selling author "a major player in twenty-first century literary fiction." "Hill's best stories take you down well-trodden horror show paths and into the dark. the alleys of the genre into more dangerous territory - into the basements of suburban cottages, baseball fields and schoolyards." - Washington Post "Accept Hill as a grateful storyteller who whispers - in his own words - his wonderful stories into your ear, and in return asks for just a little attention." – V. Genevsky, Masters of Horror Award winner “Alternately sad, scary, strange, and sometimes even sweet, these stories will haunt you long after you’ve read them.” – Parade “Joe Hill is great at sneaking around. This alone puts him on par with such classics of the Twilight Zone literature as Howard Phillips Lovecraft, Ray Bradbury, and Stephen King.” – Christopher Golden “An inventive collection of stories... skillful and courageous.” – New York Times Book Review “Fully developed characters with complex emotional lives enhance the 14 stories in Joe Hill's extraordinary collection. There are no false notes or disappointing attempts in this volume.” - Publishers Weekly "The stories range from creepy to sweet, with an impressive range of tactics to attack your psyche." - Boston Globe "This is Joe Hill's first collection of short stories, showcasing his consummate mastery of a variety of styles... Funny, moving, terrifying, they run the gamut of horror." – USA Today “A wonderful, serious collection of short stories.” – Village Voice “One of the best horror collections of the year. Joe Hill is a relative newcomer who consistently creates creepy, deeply disturbing stories." - Locus "Each story is unique, and the collection proves that Joe Hill's talent extends beyond horror into the mainstream." - Denver News "A new take on the fantasy and horror genres... Highly recommended." – The Sun Herald