Hungry ants that want to reconstruct the world in their own image. Occult investigations into private clubs. A philosopher's attachment to his beloved pet. A new definition of battlefield archaeology. What the homunculi do when the wizard's away. A trans-dimensional theatre troupe. Murder by flower-arrangement. The infectious consequences of a fairytale wedding.

A magician conjures Sherlock Holmes. What happens when the mining robots mine, but not for you. The ultimate polycule. What is the groppler and why does it gropple? In this collection is a veritable treasure trove of short fiction from the award-winning Adrian Tchaikovsky, covering all corners of the genre from science-fiction to fantasy to the plain weird. Over thirty tales from across the breadth of his career, from the depths of space through broken futures, from the haunted shadows of the modern day to fantastical magic worlds, including the author's commentary on the selection.