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IN THE GRAND TRADITION of Clark Ashton Smith; of H. P. Lovecraft’s Fungi from Yuggoth, of Edgar Allan Poe and George Sterling and other masters of Weird Poetry...JOHN SHIRLEY—the Bram Stoker Award-winning writer; the noted novelist, author of Demons and Cellars and Lovecraft Alive and City Come A-Walkin’ and Stormland and the A Song Called Youth trilogy and Black Butterflies; the songwriter; the lyricist for the Blue Öyster Cult... and frequent contributor to the weird poetry journal Spectral Realms—presents his first book of poems.His themes range widely: from irony-infused cautionary tales to the dangers of romance in a vein of nightmare; to the diabolic glimpsed from the corners of the eye; to the lyricism of streetcorners; to the magic energy of inescapable regret; to cosmic horror, secret sovereigns, and apocalypse... leavened by subtle glimpses of hope.This volume is lavishly illustrated by noted weird artist Dan Sauer, whose surreal photomontage work illuminates the savage beauty and dark epiphanies of Shirley’s verse.“John Shirley’s poetry is smooth and powerful. If it doesn't give you bad dreams, you're not paying attention." —TIM POWERS, winner of the World Fantasy Award and author of Last Call and On Stranger Tides“Byronic gangster John Shirley’s singular work is distinguished by swans and knives of prose; divine menace... The many addicted to Shirley’s stunning work savor it as ground zero of the real deal; grace and sodium pentothal that autopsy and awaken; his voice shifting from satirical heresy, to heartache" —RICHARD CHRISTIAN MATHESON, Author of Dystopia and Zoopraxis“John Shirley’s poetry weaves haunting tales with the mesmerizing rhythm of music. Each piece will crawl into your bones, reinforced by the wonderfully startling illustrations of Dan Sauer. There are many ways to burn; I’ll take the fiery light of Shirley’s cosmic visions, with a side of sweet madness.” —LINDA D. ADDISON, award-winning author, HWA Lifetime Achievement Award recipient and SFPA Grand Master“The Voice of the Burning House is a beautiful piece of gothic dark art on every level. The poems of cyberpunk legend John Shirley are so lyrical that they cannot be read without hearing raw guitars, pounding drums and smelling a crowded basement full of mohawks and dog collars. These poems protest and explore the universe. Wrapped up with stunning art, this book is a powerful experience, one you will be glad to have on the shelf.” —DAVID AGRANOFF, Author of Punk Rock Ghost Story and co-host of the Dickheads podcast.“It is no longer a secret: John Shirley is as talented a versifier as he is a fiction writer. The Voice of the Burning House is a vibrant, chilling, thought-provoking collection that features Shirley’s characteristic literary traits: grim, brooding horror, pensive melancholy, an awareness of the fragility and absurdity of contemporary life. But most of all, these poems—in both formal meter and free verse—evoke the terror of cosmic voids, horrors out of history and myth, and the weirdness lurking in the house next door. A volume that will repay many rereadings.” —S. T. JOSHI, Editor of Spectral Realms“If true evil is a rose that sings, John Shirley’s poems are orchids that sting. Even those unfamiliar with Shirley’s legacy of songs, both from his own many different bands and the lyrics he wrote for Blue Öyster Cult, will find plenty of music in these lines, which lend them accessibility and the frisson of fear he effortlessly conjures.” —SHAUN LAWTON, Editor of the Freezine of Fantasy and Science Fiction

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