cover image The Star of Gnosia

The Star of Gnosia

Damian Murphy. Snuggly, $16.95 trade paper (242p) ISBN 978-1-943813-72-8

Cryptic rituals and the quest for hidden knowledge tie together five short stories of the occult in Murphy’s eloquent collection. The four reprints and one new story create an alternate reality in which deprivation and studying the arcane are a gateway to veiled worlds, and readers journey through the lucid dreams of acolytes to the ominous and esoteric. In “The Imperishable Sacraments,” an asocial young woman, obsessed with obscure texts, finds a book left on her altar and is compelled to perform a rite found within, one that plunges her into sleeplessness and ultimately leads to a dark bargain. This story stands out for its depiction of the creeping loss of normalcy. In each tale, Murphy (Daughters of Apostasy) sets the stage with vivid (sometimes excessive) worldbuilding detail, and the plot unravels through clever storytelling that keeps readers unsuspecting until the final twist and revelation. Unlocking the meaning buried in these works will greatly appeal to readers of James Joyce and fans of literary puzzles. (Sept.)