Lonely Vigils is a collection of fantasy, horror

Horror fiction

Horror fiction also Horror fantasy is a philosophy of literature, which is intended to, or has the capacity to frighten its readers, inducing feelings of horror and terror. It creates an eerie atmosphere. Horror can be either supernatural or non-supernatural...

 and mystery

Mystery fiction

Mystery fiction is a loosely-defined term.1.It is often used as a synonym for detective fiction or crime fiction— in other words a novel or short story in which a detective investigates and solves a crime mystery. Sometimes mystery books are nonfiction...

 short stories

Short Stories

Short Stories may refer to:*A plural for Short story*Short Stories , an American pulp magazine published from 1890-1959*Short Stories, a 1954 collection by O. E...

 by author Manly Wade Wellman

Manly Wade Wellman

Manly Wade Wellman was an American writer. He is best known for his fantasy and horror stories set in the Appalachian Mountains and for drawing on the native folklore of that region, but he wrote in a wide variety of genres, including science fiction, fantasy, historical fiction, detective...

. It was released in 1981

1981 in literature

The year 1981 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction given for the first time...

 by Carcosa

Carcosa

Carcosa is a fictional city in the Ambrose Bierce short story "An Inhabitant of Carcosa" . In Bierce's story, the ancient and mysterious city is barely described, and is viewed only in hindsight by a character who once lived there....

 in an edition of 1,548 copies, of which the 566 pre-ordered copies were signed by the author and artist. The stories feature Wellman's supernatural detective

Occult detective

Occult detective stories combine the tropes of the detective story with those of supernatural horror fiction. Unlike the traditional detective the occult detective is employed in cases involving ghosts, curses, and other supernatural elements...

 characters, Judge Keith, Hilary Pursuivant, Professor Nathan Enderby, and John Thunstone

John Thunstone

John Thunstone is a fictional character and the hero of a series of stories by author Manly Wade Wellman. Thunstone is a scholar and playboy who investigates mysterious supernatural events. He has the typical attributes of a heroic character being physically large and strong, intelligent,...

. The story "Vigil" first appeared in the magazine Strange Stories. The remaining stories originally appeared in the magazine Weird Tales

Weird Tales

Weird Tales is an American fantasy and horror fiction pulp magazine first published in March 1923. It ceased its original run in September 1954, after 279 issues, but has since been revived. The magazine was set up in Chicago by J. C. Henneberger, an ex-journalist with a taste for the macabre....

.

Contents

• Foreword
• "The Hairy Ones Shall Dance"
• "The Black Drama"
• "The Dreadful Rabbits"
• "The Half-Haunted"
• "Vigil"
• "The Third Cry to Legba"
• "The Golden Goblins"
• "Hoofs"
• "Letters of Cold Fire"
• "John Thunstone's Inheritance"
• "Sorcery from Thule"
• "The Dead Man's Hand"
• "Throne on the Threshold"
• "The Shonokins"
• "Blood From a Stone"
• "The Dai Sword"
• "Twice Cursed"
• "Shonokin Town"
• "The Leonardo Rondache"
• "The Last Grave of Lill Warran"