King Wolf — Steven Savile

The death of a beloved children's writer, Hoke Berglund, draws Jon Sieber into a world he cannot hope to understand �" a world filled with Hoke's creations, including the vile Mr. Self Affliction who is the cruel master of this place. In a landscape where angels are beautiful women and the by-blows of nightmares people the mythical Forgetting Wood, Jon, heir apparent to all that Hoke created, falls for Kristen, the writer's daughter, but cannot let her secret remain secret.

“If there are secrets, as in the Grimm's fairy tale nightmare of “The Fragrance of You,” there may well be good reasons that such things are hidden. In some cases, the wistful protagonist learns, you need to just take such gifts on faith; it isn't necessary to understand everything around us. Some things we can just be grateful for, and enjoy as long as they last.” SF Site

3 story collection, novella length.