Tales from the Dark Tower »

Vampires who dwell deep within forbidden crypts, lost souls who wander mist-shrouded cemeteries, and gargoyles of living stone... This collection of 13 sinister stories, penned by various writers and lavishly illustrated by gothic fantasy artist Joseph Vargo, link together to create an entire saga, spanning centuries of mythic lore.

Ohioana Library Association

These tales are the perfect companion on a stormy October night, when lightning is flashing through the window and the wind is raking tree branches against the house.

Though certainly within the gothic tradition, this set of thirteen stories about vampires, ghosts, wiches and ancient curses does not aim for the shocking horror of Salem's Lot or Interview with a Vampire; instead their power derives from their close adherence to the formula of the fairy tale < a 'once upon a time' hook that leads into a moralistic examination of the dark side of human nature through archetypal characters and a liberal close of symbolism. The tales follow the fate of Sir Brom of Falkirk, Knight of the Scarlet Cross, who is drawn inexplicably to the mysterious tower and suffers, as they say, a fate worse than death. As readers follow the particular turns of that fate, they begin to learn the tower's dark secrets.

Thanks to Vargo's elegantly gloomy illustrations, the setting of these stories becomes a dominant force, which is as it should be. The lushness of the tales the details of the period, the use of symbolism, and Vargo's eerie illustrations all combine to create the kind of bedtime stories that one welcomes on a dark and stormy night.