Get lost in the Royal Gardens, where 21 daredevils pay homage to the King of Dread

Twenty-one Czech and Slovak authors gathered to pay tribute to the undisputed king of literary horror with their stories. Go to an abandoned town where it is not advisable to stay after dark; visit a hotel with a dark past; think back to your childhood years when you believed that something was lurking in the bowels of the closet; hear the confession of a man who is tormented by remorse about his ex-wife – a killer of newborns; witness the meeting of a mysterious stranger and two girls who face a difficult decision; meet a devoted Stephen King fan who has lost the ability to tell the difference between reality and fantasy, and hitch a ride with a deranged pizza delivery boy on his last delivery. – This is just a small list of what awaits you inside the anthology. However, unlike the main protagonists, you don’t have to face the most terrifying nightmares face to face, but experience everything from the safety of your homes…

••• We ran to the car, but suddenly froze. On a chair, in the shade under the wide roof and the remains of the canopy, sat a little girl in a yellow dress. Big dark eyes stared at us and we couldn’t move.

While King himself regularly starts tours around the corners of Derry or Castle Rock, these authors choose their own places, no less disturbing. Even their heroes are like King’s characters – each has their own dark corner where their inner monsters sprout. Something emerges from the pages of the anthology In the Royal Gardens that has the power to both frighten and entertain. What can happen when Czech and Slovak literary fantasy and the legacy of Stephen King are combined? The authors, led by the occasional short story writer and editor of the collection from northwestern Bohemia, Aleš Richter, promise that you will also appreciate the lighted night lamp and get your heart rate up. “In addition to the nineteen short stories, the reader is treated to an intermezzo about a fictitious meeting between a Czech journalist and a master of horror in Prague,” explains Richter.

••• She stood on the threshold for a moment, trying to control her shaky legs. She scanned the forest with her gaze. Today is far away, she tried to calm down. It hardly moves. She ran her eyes over the tiny red dots splashed across the deep green foliage of the blueberries.

Exceptional talents from the Czech Republic and Slovakia not only celebrate King’s work, but also the richness and diversity of the Czech-Slovak imagination. They become a mixture of secret herbs in the recipe of King’s specialties. They completely conquer his ability to let the reader into the depths of the human psyche, reveal dark fears and at the same time keep us in suspense from the first page to the last. The stories in this anthology are as diverse as the genres in which the king of horror writes. You will find classic motifs that make you look over your shoulder in the dark, as well as mysticism, uncertainty and excitement that will touch you deep inside.

••• Mom was all wet. She was holding a plastic canister. She threw it away and gave Max an absent look. An emptiness and darkness appeared in her face, which was soon consumed by the flame from the match…

The book In the Royal Gardens is also a testimony to the creative power of authors from our region. “The comic prologue and epilogue by Murin Wolf is a real cherry on the cake of this anthology, which is also equipped with a cover and endpapers by the great illustrator and graphic artist Jiří Dvorský,” adds Richter. The degree is also an opportunity to face the unknown and discover your own limits. Whether you’re a fan of Stephen King, a lover of literature, or just like to be carried away by stories that have a goal kick, In the Royal Gardens is the book for you. Do not miss the chance to be part of this extraordinary literary event and join the journey into the letters of true literature.

Ales Richter & Co.

In the Royal Gardens

Authors: Miroslav Pech, Ludmila Svozilová, Jiří Sivok, Murin Wolf, Petr Boček, Madla Pospíšilová Karasová, Karin Novotná, Michal Březina, Tomáš Marton, Mark E. Pocha, Kristina Haidingerová, Roman Bílek, Svatopluk Doseděl, Dominik Fiala, Vlaďka Sacká, Lucie Tringelová Kaňová, Karel Doležal, Jiří Dvorský, Radoslav Kozák, Ivana Gašparíková, Vladimír Pospíchal • Number of pages: 376 • Publisher: Fobos, 2024.