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The people of this land of white summer nights and pristine lakes are famous for their sisu, a form of enterprising stoicism. They are survivors: if you were stranded on a desert island, your ideal companion would be a Finn. Culture Smart! Finland describes the historical, geographical, and cultural influences that have shaped the Finnish psyche, and guides you through the working and social lives of the Finns today, offering you a deeper, more rewarding experience of this beautiful land.

Often called the Land of the Thunder Dragon, Bhutan was secluded for much of its history, its towering mountains and lush green valleys virtually unvisited, evoking a sense of mystery and wonder. A sovereign country throughout the ages, Bhutan is now establishing its place on the world stage. It is determined to maintain its Buddhist culture and unique way of life as it evolves and adapts to political change and economic challenges. Culture Smart! Bhutan will give you a deeper insight into the country's history, values, customs, and age-old traditions.

Welcome to a very special issue of Weird Tales. This issue celebrates the Bram Stoker Awards, the “Oscars” of the horror trade. They are presented every year by the Horror Writers Association (horror.org), a group founded in 1985 (and incorporated in 1987) by a collective of masters of that genre, including Joe R. Lansdale, Karen Lansdale, Robert McCammon, and Dean Koontz. This issue is packed with short stories, flash fiction, poems, and an essay—all written by past winners of the Bram Stoker Award.

The old gods have fled, and the monsters they had kept at bay for centuries now threaten to drown the city of Valentine, hunting mankind as in ancient times. In the midst of the chaos, a serial killer has begun ritually sacrificing victims, their bodies strewn throughout the city. Lilac Antonis wants to stop the impending destruction of her city by summoning her mother, a blood god—even if she has to slit a few throats to do it. But evading her lover Arcadia and her friends means sneaking, lying, and even spilling the blood of people she loves.

London, April 1891. When the severed torso of a woman washes up on the bank of the river Thames, London believes a serial killer from the past has struck again. Crime photographer and investigator Sarah Bain Barrett is on the scene with her friends Mick O’Reilly and Lord Hugh Staunton. This is their chance to solve a cold case and deliver a monster to justice, with help from Sarah’s husband Detective Sergeant Thomas Barrett; her sister Sally Albert, an intrepid newspaper reporter; and Hugh’s psychologist, Dr. Joshua Lewes, a pioneer in the new science of criminal profiling.

Happily married with two wonderful children, Dom and Stacey are living the dream. He runs a successful design agency; she's finding fame as an author of children’s books. Everything is perfect. But then they meet the mesmerizing Tamara, and their lives are changed forever. Tamara is a woman with a plan. She executes it step by step—patient, systematic, methodical. And as her plan unfolds, Dom and Stacey find their lives slipping out of control, taking them from heaven into the deepest, darkest hell....

Due to an unfortunate series of events, a teenage girl named Carmilla is left in the care of a wealthy widower and his daughter, Laura. Laura, upon meeting the poor girl, comes to realize that she knows her face. Years prior when she was but a child, Laura was haunted by a presence in her room with the likeness of the young girl. Convinced it was just a nightmare, Laura and Carmilla become fast friends. But as Carmilla's stay continues, strange things begin to happen to the townspeople nearby.

Indonesia, stretching across three time zones and situated on one of the world's great maritime trade routes, has a rich and varied culture. Culture Smart! Indonesia describes the many different cultural backgrounds that make up this rainbow nation, helping you to better understand the values that underpin its diverse society. It reveals how modern Indonesians view themselves and go about their daily lives, and gives advice on how to navigate unfamiliar situations.

Respected high school teacher Austin Yates is a devoted family man. But when a cruel online attack leaves his teenage daughter traumatized, Austin’s carefully controlled life begins to unravel. Family means everything to him—and he’ll do whatever it takes to protect them. Even if it means removing the threat. For Kate, Austin is the man who saved her. She’s a good wife and doting mother. But when whispers of scandal and accusations against Austin ripple through their small town, Kate faces an impossible choice.

Celebrant Daphne Jones is in the picturesque mountain town of Shady Bend to perform a funeral for community figure Edwina Drinkwater. But when the casket falls open during the service, revealing it's completely empty, Daphne finds herself at the centre of a baffling mystery. And the missing body is only the start of the day's calamities. When the caterer collapses from apparent poisoning, followed by two more suspicious deaths, Daphne is determined to figure out why so many mourners are following Edwina into the afterlife.

Raised by his drug-addicted mother in the small town of Coraki, Australia, Monroe Morgan is determined to escape a life steeped in misery. With dreams of a better future, he has secured a job at his brother-in-law’s pub in Coffs Harbour and is set to start as soon as he turns eighteen. However, a month before his departure, Monroe’s life takes a drastic turn when his neighbour, Indi, appears at his doorstep, battered and scared for her life. She reveals harrowing details about her upbringing in The Church of Salvation and declares that she is being forced to marry the church’s pastor.

Ruby was murdered on Earth eighteen years ago and reincarnated on Zadok as a Pastel Zeek named Harlow. To be born at the bottom of her race’s caste colour system to a middle-class family of Magentas has made Harlow a source of conflict amongst the ruling Purples, and a source of derision from all three colours. When Harlow is attacked by a fuegor on Zadok, the effects of its slow reacting venom triggers an unforeseen phenomenon, and due to the strong connection she’d had with her twin sister, Jade, from her previous life, her human spirit is unexpectedly drawn back to Earth.

Miss Phoebe Astin of The Economic Undertaker has applied her mortician skills to many faces, but a beautiful young debutante needed little work, or so she thought. When the debutante's spirit appears to her, insisting she was murdered and demanding Phoebe do something about it, Phoebe agrees. She has, after all, helped many of her ghostly clients before they move on to the next world.

Emily and Aaron are dating, and she's finally figured out which direction to take her life. She's studying at university for the first time, and she's moved out of Joanna's house and into a dorm room. But independence is harder than she imagined it would be. Joanna learns that an empty house can be lonely. But a friendly neighbor might be just what the doctor ordered, to help fight off the blues. And a new project will give her the boost she needs to keep moving forward. Then she welcomes an unexpected guest into her life who will shake everything up in the most delightful way.

That summer with Damien was the best of her life. Now, she's back in Sunshine, fifteen years later, and the New Year is fast approaching. After a breakup and a job loss, Beth moves home to stay with her newly divorced mother and take stock of her life. She can't help wondering if Damien will come to the New Year's Eve festival on Sunshine Beach again.

Lucy’s husband has been missing for days while she tries to pretend to those around her, including her distracted teenagers, that everything is normal. In desperation, she uses a phone app to track him—and discovers he’s with another woman. As her life falls apart, Lucy realizes nothing is as it seems. There's another woman in her husband’s life, but it’s someone she has known—and hated—for twenty years. As the story unfolds, including in the national press, her family must pull together before lives are destroyed.

Rosie Cantrell has a past that even her husband knows nothing of. Born Samantha Ashby, she abandoned her old life when her twin sister was murdered and their trust fund was stolen. Journalist Frank Stokes knows Rosie’s story, and, nearly ten years later, he intends to write a book about the sisters. Tracing Rosie, he visits Thursdale, the village where she now lives with Mike and their baby son, Noah. Compelled to reveal her past to Mike, Rosie tells him of the man she dated who later killed her sister—and who was subsequently killed while in prison awaiting trial.

With a massive downpour and flash floods predicted, Quinn Durand leaves work and races for the safety of home. The first drops start to fall as she spots something strange on the familiar bush route. With no reception and nothing but an empty road for miles in either direction, she investigates and discovers it’s a body, dumped by the side of the road. When she approaches to check for signs of life, an arm reaches out and grabs her.

When the body of Jen’s teenage son, Eli, is found at the edge of a lake, her shock and grief are overwhelming—and so is the activity swirling around her as the police investigate. The guilt she feels because she was not at home the night her child was killed weighs heavy on Jen’s heart. But while she hides a secret, Jen yearns to know what happened—are Eli’s friends telling the truth? After she learns that Eli had a girlfriend, something his friends say he’d kept hidden from everyone, it becomes more and more difficult to separate the fiction from the facts.

Megan Ward goes missing, and suspicion falls on the stalker seen outside her house. Detective Jeff Rickman is brought in to investigate—it should be a simple missing person case. But the closer he looks the more mysterious Megan herself becomes. There are no photos, no passport, no family or friends from an earlier life.