David J Rank
October 20, 2026
Cornerstone Press, 208 pp
Collection of short, dark fiction
Paper $24.95
About the Book:
The stories in David J. Rank’s debut collection reveal what things wait in the shadows beyond human vision: creatures best left alone, monsters lurking within ourselves, and dark emotions ready to erupt from tormented souls.
My Review:
In a gated community where you don’t question authority, Rank’s world comes to stunning life. His collect of short, dark-and-scary-night tales speak of things we all fear: a paradise that has never felt so fragile; the witch’s test may or may not lead to the truth; the myth of the Goatman who steals away people on an abandoned road. The title piece, “And Night Shall Come” is a nightmare for that waits for Paulie in a new house that would never be as exciting as Mom thinks. There’s a tree that’s a tree until it’s not; an artist who literally gives her all to her work. Somehow, I always knew chocolate would save the world in the same-name story “Chocolate.”
Many stories feature corrupt religion or morality, such as
the witch hunt in “Witch’s Bluff,”, and a woman with too much power ridding her
community of liberal filth in “CCTROMC” and dystopian societies with brutal
governmental regimes. Rank eerily parallels some components of cultures who
battle knowledge, such as those who resolve the problem of curiosity with
brutality in a “Wing and a Prayer.” Most the stories are just plain fun, such
as describing the good living to be made by being a token of bad luck; one
explanation for why someone would hoard pets; a dying world where librarians
are the heroes in “Alexandria”; stories where children knew how things that go
bump in the night work much better than their adults; a doctor who controls
life and death with a miracle patient. I especially enjoy the turnabout tales
where the joke is on the zombies and the renters who can’t stay out of the
attic.
Be careful what you wish for, and don’t be a Wally who tries to impress his friends with the 13 Names of Hell. And definitely heed the author’s warning to keep the lights on while you read these deliciously haunted tales in And Night Shall Come.
About the Author:
Published author, editor, and recovering journalist, David
J. Rank, spies on things found within the darkest shadows deep in unmapped
forests where he often finds himself. In 2014, he founded and is the director
emeritus of the nonprofit Novel Bookcamp writing education programs, now. His
more than 45 dark fiction stories have appeared in regional publications,
online zines, and nine anthologies. And Night Shall Come: Stories from the
Shadows, first story collection, is being published by Cornerstone Press in
October, 2026.
A former president of the Wisconsin Writers Association, he is a member of the
Horror Writers Association, organized the HWA-Wisconsin Chapter in 2018, and is
a member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association. He lives in
eastern Wisconsin with his wife, near his grown children and grandchildren, in
a quiet neighborhood on the side of a hill with a nice view of the moon, not
far from two old cemeteries.
