Best New Horror 3 — Stephen Jones

This horror anthology series has been accumulating critical kudos for showcasing the best writing in the field. Much of the third outing is devoted to the genre's mainstay, psychological horror; in other words, horror that pays more attention to dying souls than it does to living corpses. Many of the major authors in the field are represented in the book's 29 pieces, including K. W. Jeter, Ramsey Campbell, Robert R. McCammon, Dennis Etchison, and Thomas Tessier. Noticeably absent is Clive Barker. Not all of the space, however, is given over to brand name writers. One of the best stories in the book is Grant Morrison's The Braille Encyclopedia, a nasty little yarn about a new concept in information storage and retrieval. The only clunker is Busted in Buttown, a silly, one-liner-oriented piece that would have been more at home in an old 1950s horror comic. This volume continues the welcome tradition of providing an overview of developments within the genre in terms of both print and media-related offerings. The less useful necrology of famous and obscure people associated with the field is also retained. A solid choice for public libraries.