That Old, Misty Country (1) (Hope It's Fiction)

Throughout the world is found myriad out-of-the-way places, unsettling vistas that travelers pass through quickly, if unable to avoid entirely. Sometimes, the fears dredged up by such places are unfounded, a mere symptom of an unfamiliar road. Of course, there are actual places to be feared too. Masked by vagaries and altered names, a careful listener may find some clue - subtle to the uninitiated, bold elsewise - that a macabre tale comes from such a place, one stranger and to be feared beyond all others. Shiver at the revelation and hope someone similarly knowledgeable has merely latched onto the rumors, deciding by their own twisted purview to attach a lie to something so horribly true.

In short, Hope It's Fiction.

That Old, Misty Country is a collection of twelve stories centered in the titular region, each drenched in horrific implications. This first book in the Hope It's Fiction series focuses on the three cities therein - Passerport, Esterton, and Brickwood - as well as the dense, impassable woods that surround the area. There are terrible things lurking under the sky-blotting canopy, hidden in the fog that rises each night. And what of Mr. Brightmore, the philanthropist? Begin to uncover the strange mysteries that permeate throughout the night as thickly as the mist itself.

Learn why you should be off the roads before night falls in stories like "Breakdown" and "Oh, How I Hate The Trees." Even some distance from the tree line may prove unsafe, as in "Settle, Ye Wanderer," "Rat-Catcher," and "The Anderson Plight." Not even the towns are altogether free from risk, as shown by "An Awkward Conversation," "Mimiko," and "The Thirsty Man." Know that others are investigating the strange occurrences - "A Ribbon of Text," "That Old, Misty Country," and "Bits and Pieces" - but how successful their efforts, or how comforting the existence of those forces are, are open to interpretation.

Do not be overly entranced by these tales of unsettling and thought-provoking horror, even with their subtle suggestions toward even grander terrors. All you need to do is Hope It's Fiction.