Joe Lansdale returns with his characteristic dark take on the horrors that lurk beneath the surface of mundane life in this collection of short stories and novellas. Originally available only in limited-edition hardcover, these tales run the gamut from devilish fantasy to twisted courtroom drama to vampire-robot western. Each story has an introduction in which the author relates the background of and inspiration for the story, whether it was drawn from history, literature, or pure imagination. The title story, about a serial killer in Texas in the 1930s, won the 1999 Bram Stoker Horror Award for long fiction.

Stories included in this collection:
Mad Dog Summer
The Mule Rustlers
O’Reta: Snapshot Memories
Rainy Weather
Screwup
The Steam Man of the Prairie and the Dark Rider Get Down
Veil's Visit
Way Down There