The Old Asylum and Other Stories

Antabanez, an avid explorer of abandoned locales in New Jersey, brings his explorations to life in this collection of nine short stories. Each story is illustrated by the author’s artwork, which captures the essence of the places he explores. Informed by this backdrop, each vignette has its own flavor, veering among the romantic, the humorous, and the macabre. “Blakdrac” chronicles the weirdness in the everyday as a photographer pursues a mysterious graffiti artist. “Seduction Instructions” features the attempts of a young man, pulled in by the lure of the titular asylum, to show his girlfriend a uniquely good time, with hilarious and morbid results. In “Blizzard Beast,” which is Lovecraftian in its scope, a family’s attempts to care for a stray cat go utterly awry. Antabanez writes with a wry and witty voice that dips into tones of compelling intensity. Taking cues from the abandoned buildings that inspire him, Antabanez, reveling in the fear of the unknown, has created an impressive collection that defies the conventions of horror. (June)