Haunted Legends

Datlow (Lovecraft Unbound) and Mamatas (Spicy Slipstream Stories) collect 20 original stories based on ghost legends from around the world. A few famous figures appear (such as the mysterious hitchhiker in Kaaron Warren's "That Girl" and Gary A. Braunbeck's "Return to Mariabronn"), and lesser-known regional tales inspire two top-notch stories: Jeffery Ford's intriguing "Down Atsion Road," set in southern New Jersey, and Laird Barron's incredibly creepy "The Redfield Girls," about a haunted lake in Washington State. International entries include Ekaterina Sedia's disturbing "Tin Cans," about girls murdered by Stalin aide Lavrenty Beria, and Catherynne M. Valente's "15 Panels Depicting the Sadness of the Baku and the Jotai," a whimsical and dreamy foray into Japanese myth. Another standout is the riveting "The Folding Man" by Joe Lansdale, featuring a mysterious, murderous pack of nuns. Only a few weak choices feel more like rehashings than retellings. (Sept.)