"One of the most accomplished and eloquent British horror writers is Simon Bestwick, and here is a feast of his work." --Ramsey Campbell Funny, frightening and moving, the stories in Simon Bestwick's new collection explore how our childhoods mark us, our regrets haunt us, and how our innocence is sometimes lost--and sometimes taken away. A young policewoman is drawn into a dreadful bargain. Murdered girls walk the streets of Manchester beside their still-living friends. Tormented children call on an urban legend for help, and the events of a long-ago summer and first love return with lethal consequences for four childhood friends. All this and more besides, in these seventeen short stories and novelettes from the author of The Faceless and The Feast of All Souls.