This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either a product of the authors’ imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

INTRODUCTION is © 2021 Christopher Golden
THE ABDUCTION DOOR is © 2017 Christopher Golden and first appeared in New Fears, edited by Mark Morris
WENDY, DARLING is © 2014 Christopher Golden and first appeared in Out of Tune, edited by Jonathan Maberry
IT’S A WONDERFUL KNIFE is © 2018 Christopher Golden and first appeared in Hark! The Herald Angels Scream, edited by Christopher Golden
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE HEART JUST STOPS is © 2016 by Christopher Golden and first appeared in Scary Out There, edited by Jonathan Maberry
THE REVELERS is © 2017 Christopher Golden and first appeared in Dark Cities, edited by Christopher Golden
A HOLE IN THE WORLD is © 2016 by Christopher Golden & Tim Lebbon and first appeared in SNAFU: Unnatural Selection, edited by Geoff Brown
THE CURIOUS ALLURE OF THE SEA © 2018 by Christopher Golden and first appeared in The Devil and the Deep, edited by Ellen Datlow
THE FACE IS A MASK is © 2020 by Christopher Golden and first appeared in Final Cuts, edited by Ellen Datlow
THE OPEN WINDOW is © 2020 by Christopher Golden and first appeared in Don’t Turn Out the Lights, edited by Jonathan Maberry
THE BAD HOUR is © 2016 by Christopher Golden and first appeared in What the #@&% Is That?: The Saga Anthology of the Monstrous and the Macabre, edited by John Joseph Adams and Douglas Cohen
PIPERS is © 2013 Christopher Golden and first appeared in Four Summoner’s Tales

THE GHOSTS OF WHO YOU WERE

Cover design and setup by Errick Nunnally

ISBN-13: 978-1-949140-28-6 Hardcover

ISBN-10: 978-1-949140-29-3 Quality Paperback

Haverhill House Publishing LLC

643 E Broadway

Haverhill MA 01830-2420

www.haverhillhouse.com

The Ghosts Of

Who You Were

In memory of my mother,

Roberta Ann Pendolari Golden Poulos,

who always said I could.

April 6, 1936 – February 22, 2021

STORIES WITHIN

THE GHOSTS OF WHO I WAS (INTRODUCTION)

THE ABDUCTION DOOR

WENDY, DARLING

IT’S A WONDERFUL KNIFE

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE HEART JUST STOPS

THE REVELERS

A HOLE IN THE WORLD (with Tim Lebbon)

THE CURIOUS ALLURE OF THE SEA

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I’m grateful as always to Connie, forever my best friend, my light and laughter, and to our children, Nicholas, Daniel, and Lily, who are now all grown and each of whom brings me joy every day. Thanks to my literary agent, Howard Morhaim, for his faith and keen eye, and to my manager, the indefatigable Pete Donaldson. I’m grateful to the editors who originally bought these stories, John Joseph Adams, Douglas Cohen, Ellen Datlow, Jonathan Maberry, Mark Morris, and Ed Schlesinger. Thanks, also, to the great John McIlveen at Haverhill House for publishing this book, to Peter Bergting for the gift of his hauntingly beautiful art for the cover, and to Errick Nunnally for his design expertise. Gratitude is due to my family, by blood and by marriage, especially my sister Erin Golden and my brother Jamie Golden. Finally, thanks to all of the friends who are there when I need a sounding board, a kick in the ass, or a good laugh, and who help keep me sane.

THE BAD HOUR is © 2016 by Christopher Golden and first appeared in What the #@&% Is That?: The Saga Anthology of the Monstrous and the Macabre, edited by John Joseph Adams and Douglas Cohen