WEIRD STORIES OF STRANGE WOMEN
by
Christine Hart
Mixed Speculative Short Story Collection (SFF/mild horror)
Publication Date: June 26, 2026
Page count: 182 pages
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SYNOPSIS:
Twelve
stories, separated into seasons of life, are told through the perspectives of
maidens, mothers, and crones. Each one shows us how a fractured reality-or a
fractured mind-can warp even the most mundane of events into a bizarre tale.
From a
twenty-something office worker trapped by a mountaintop cult to an unstable
mother trying to resist the urge to flee to another dimension, one by one,
these women step to the edge of what they know and see the impossible looking
back at them.
This
speculative collection meanders through genres including urban fantasy, science
fiction, magic realism, steampunk, folk horror, and cosmic horror. Perfect for
readers who are, themselves, strange and unusual.
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ENJOY AN EXCERPT:
From "Her Lunar Bloom" (Crones)
The growing moon emerged from behind a cloud. It
bathed the yard in soft white light, illuminating a figure standing where the
purple fern should have been. A moment later, Marie saw that the figure wasn’t
a person but a small tree. It was covered in white flower buds that opened to
the moon and drank in its light.
Marie’s heart pounded as she rummaged in her
living room cabinet for her binoculars. Whether it was coyotes or killer
plants, she wasn’t going back to the edge of the property.
She focused the binoculars on the strange shrub.
The flowers were the same as she’d seen on the purple shrub, and the limbs of
the figure had vines spiralling around each one.
The shrub turned to face Marie. She dropped the
binoculars and gasped.
“It’s me, Marie. You don’t have to be afraid.”
Rachel’s voice seemed to be in Marie’s head, despite it seemingly coming from
the plant.
Marie’s wound itched. She pushed up her sleeve
to scratch it. Horrified, Marie stepped back as though trying to retreat from
her wrist. The marks where the plant had bitten her looked aggressively
infected, deeper, weeping plasma into the fabric of her shirt.
“I just need a bit more, Marie, and then I’ll
heal you. We can be together again.”
Endorphins surged through Marie’s body, followed
by a pang of desire. Marie closed her eyes and felt Rachel’s lips brush her
own. She felt her wife’s hands on her body, warm and tender. Marie panicked and
opened her eyes to find herself alone in her living room. She sat down on the
couch and gave in to the urge to lie back. An overwhelming fatigue forced her
eyes closed.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Christine
Hart is a writer of speculative fiction for youth and adults. She also runs an
online metalsmithing shop, Hart Fabrications.
She
holds a BA in English and Professional Writing, as well as current membership
with the Federation of BC Writers.
Christine’s
backlist includes YA, NA, and MG titles. Her debut novel, Watching July, won a
gold medal from the Moonbeam Children's awards in the mature issues category.
Her
first collection of adult fiction, Weird Stories of Strange Women, is coming in
the summer of 2026.
She
lives in Langley, BC with her husband and two children. Learn more about
Christine and her work at hart-fabrications.com and christine-hart.ca.
REVIEW:
4 stars!
A great collection of spooky short stories featuring
women at various stages of their lives.
Weird Stories of Strange Women by Christine Hart is an
enthralling collection of unusual, spooky tales featuring women at various stages
of adulthood: maiden, mother, crone. These bite-sized stories are perfect for
reading when you don’t have a lot of time to delve into longer works, and are
so well written and self-contained, you’ll still come away satisfied from every
entry. Hart provides four stories of varying lengths and plots for each phase of
women’s adult lives, and each delivers an entertaining reading experience.
While the maiden stories focus on younger protagonists and
the mother tales, of course, feature women in their child-rearing era, the crone
phase may be something of an oddity or unfamiliar to some readers. These
stories tell of women in their middle or later years who have embarked on new
independent lives, focused on themselves, having done their time as caretakers.
I enjoyed all the stories, no matter the life phase they represented, though
elements of some will resonate more with readers going through similar stages
of life. “The Crystal Miners,” the first story in the book, and “Her Lunar
Bloom” really gave me the shivers, though.
I recommend WEIRD STORIES OF STRANGE WOMEN for readers of short
stories with a spooky twist.
GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY!
Christine Hart will be awarding a $25 Amazon/BN gift card to
a randomly drawn winner.
Thank you for featuring and reviewing WEIRD STORIES OF STRANGE WOMEN today.
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