From Joyce Carol Oates, literary icon and author of BLONDE, now a major motion picture, six terrifying tales to chill the blood. A young boy plays with dolls instead of action figures. But as he grows older, his passion takes on a darker edge... A white man shoots dead a black youth creating a media frenzy. But could it have been self-defense as he claims? A nervous woman tries to escape her husband. He says he loves her, but she's convinced he wants to kill her... These quietly lethal stories from a unique imagination reveal the horrors that dwell within us all. Reviews for Joyce Carol Oates: 'A writer of extraordinary strengths.' Guardian 'Oates chillingly depicts the darkness lurking within the everyday.' Sunday Express 'Both haunting and sublime.' Literary Review 'Splendidly chilling.' Financial Times 'Visceral, psychologically involving, and socially astute.' Booklist