Music in the Bone — Marion Pitman’s first collection of stories, stories poised to send you over the edge…
He had been looking for sunlight, and there wasn’t any. He was much too young to remember before the dust got between the earth and the sun…
Beneath the turbid ocean, the kraken slept with one eye open.
…the skin drawn tight on the skull. She smiled, and beckoned to me with a skeletal hand…
Sami had a theory: “Speed beyond a certain point isn’t natural. It upsets the waves of reality.”
But when I know – ah, then what shall I know?
(Marion Pitman’s) stories are about people who discover that the floorboards of reality are much thinner than they had supposed, and in some cases have been removed altogether. – John Dallman
Contents:
- Music in the Bone
- The Seal Songs
- Amenities
- Sunlight in Spelling
- Disposal of the Body
- Out of Season
- Washing of the Water
- Saxophony
- Looking Glass
- Christmas Present
- Overnight Bus
- Indecent Behaviour
- Forward and Back, Changing Places
- District to Upminster
- The Cupboard of Winds
- Contamination
- Eyes of God
- Dead Men’s Company
- Meeting at the Silver Dollar
Music in the Bone is available from Amazon, The Book Depository and other online dealers. Also available for your Kindle.
Overall, Music in the Bone and Other Stories is a little hard to quantify, given the mix of styles, subjects and tones. It’s definitely worth a look for lovers of British folklore and folk music, although hardcore horror aficionados should look elsewhere. — Iconomicon
Pitman has created an array of characters that you will love and detest in equal measures. Music in the Bone is a fabulous collection, easy to pick up on your lunch break and read a few stories, or as I did all in one sitting. It appeals to most audiences as the stories cross genres from horror into fantasy. They are simple stories that somehow cover every theme, you will finish this book with a head that is overflowing and a heart too big for your chest. — The Horror Blog
Music in the Bone and Other Stories is a great collection of stories. I thoroughly enjoyed […] every story in this collection. There’s a good mix of stories here. Some are downright chilly and unnerving (i.e. “Music in the Bone”, “Looking Glass” and “Overnight Bus”). Other tales were quite amusing but no less enjoyable (i.e. “Indecent Behaviour” and “The Cupboard of Winds”) … The collection concludes with the author giving a little summary about where the inspiration for each story came from. I’m the kind of reader who loves this insight so this was a little treat after reading so many good stories. — Book Lovers’ Boudoir
Anthologies from Alchemy Press specialise in bringing myth to a contemporary setting and generally involve adult characters living adult lives. Music in the Bone is no exception to this. It’s quite a varied collection of Marion Pitman’s work from a number of different sources and spans a long career of writing. Within this collection we have twenty pieces; some very short, almost motifs and some poetry, but all clearly expressed… Music in the Bone is a lovely collection of diversions and adds a new tome to the Alchemy Press shelf of intelligent, adult, urban fantasy. There are messages to find here; characters to like, love and hate; places to remember and ideas to stir the mind. — SF Book website
The Alchemy Press 