Michael Shea began writing Momma Durtt in 1986. Momma Durtt has lain unpublished ever since.

Hippocampus Press is proud to present this novel of cosmic eco-horror from the pen of one of the masters of contemporary weird fiction. With vibrant characters, racy language, and a spectacular denouement, Momma Durtt is uniquely suited to our own times.

Order now!

Michael Shea deftly blends the genres of horror, fantasy, and science fiction.

In the title story, an exploration team on a desert planet encounters a terrifying alien monstrosity. In “The Angel of Death,” a serial killer hunting innocent women turns out to be a visitor from another world. In “Uncle Tuggs,” a more traditional horror story infused with a dose of black humor, a series of grisly and bizarre deaths ensues that may be connected to the mysterious disappearance of old Uncle Tuggs, and in “The Horror on the #33” a wino witnesses a horrific murder committed by a strange wasp-headed monster on a city bus.

The classic story “The Autopsy,” which Algis Budrys called “one of the most successful meldings of science fiction with horror that I have ever encountered” and which was filmed for Guillermo Del Toro’s Netflix series Cabinet of Curiosities, tells of an aging pathologist called in to perform an autopsy — but what he discovers during his examination is chilling and unthinkable.

This beautiful new edition features a new introduction by Laird Barron. Available in hardcover or paperback from Valancourt Books and featuring the classic story THE AUTOPSY.

This Centipede Press special edition book is printed in four colors and two colors throughout, bound in black cloth, with printed endpapers, a stunning dustjacket, top-edge stain, and ribbon marker.

A “Sword and Sorcery” thriller as only Michael Shea could write them. This signed edition is limited to 300 copies, so order this collector’s item now from Centipede Press.

Michael Shea has made his own distinctive contributions to the Cthulhu Mythos devised by H. P. Lovecraft. In his Mythos tales, Shea has infused his own unique vision and perspective.

Originally released in 2017, the collection “Demiurge: The Complete Cthulhu Mythos Tales of Michael Shea” contains 13 of Lovecraftian tales that were translated by Manfred Sanders and are now available in German for the first time. Here’s a reading sample with excerpts if you’d like to have a look.

“Fat Face” (Fettbirne) takes us into the seedy underworld of prostitutes and drug dealers in San Francisco, while other tales such as “Dagoniad,” “Copping Squid,” and “Tsathoggua” vividly meld Lovecraftian cosmic horror with the contemporary world of California. Shea was also fascinated with Lovecraft’s novel of Antarctic horror, At the Mountains of Madness, and his stories “Under the Shelf” and “Beneath the Beardmore” take us to that frozen land of death and terror.

The title story, “Demiurge,” is a previously unpublished novella that draws upon Lovecraft’s tales of psychic possession in its chilling portrayal of a nameless monster who may be the harbinger of the overthrow of the entire human race.

Festa Verlag has released a limited edition hardbound version entitled Demiurg (LOVECRAFTS BIBLIOTHEK DES SCHRECKENS – LIMITED BAND 6).

But which one is the best?

Alec Bojalad at Den of Geek has watched all eight of the Cabinet of Curiosities episodes and ranked them from least favorite to most favorite.

Check out the winner and chime in with your own in the comments.

F. Murray Abraham in The Autopsy

Upon being handpicked to direct an episode of Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities, director David Prior was offered a choice between del Toro’s menu of delectably spooky treats. Prior selected “The Autopsy,” based on the iconic Michael Shea short story of the same name.

Learn more about The Autopsy’s behind the scenes.

On October 26, 2022 the Michael Shea short story The Autopsy premieres on Netflix!

Just in time for Halloween, Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities is unleashed, revealing a host of spooky, kooky surprises.

The new horror anthology series was personally curated by Guillermo del Toro, with eight handpicked directors taking on a new frightening tale in each episode.

What you need to know about The Autopsy:

Directed by: David Prior (The Empty Man, AM 1200)

Written by: David S. Goyer (The Sandman, The Dark Knight, Batman Begins), based on a story by Michael Shea

Cast: Academy Award winner F. Murray Abraham (Mythic Quest, Homeland, Amadeus), Glynn Turman (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Fargo, The Wire) and Luke Roberts (Ransom, Black Sails)

Plot: A small-town sheriff (Turman) investigates a gruesome string of missing persons cases with the help of his medical examiner friend (Abraham).

Learn more at Netflix.com.

Watch the Official Teaser video on Youtube:

It is a new 2022 Collection of Michael Shea Stories by Hippocampus Press is a great way to read his classic story “The Autopsy” which has been adapted for TV for Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities. “The Autopsy” is one of several tales that mingles gruesomeness and science fiction. Others include “Polyphemus,” where the members of a spaceship encounter the titanic eye of some unthinkably vast and hostile entity. “The Angel of Death” exhibits the battle of two alien entities as they successively inhabit hapless human beings in their quest for supremacy.

Shea’s sensitivity to the downtrodden is exhibited in such tales as “The Horror on the #33,” “Water of Life,” and “Tollbooth,” populated by homeless people, prostitutes, drug dealers, and other disdained members of society. Shea’s affinity for California is shown in “Fill it with Regular,” “Upscale,” and other tales that bring his native state to life. As a bonus, two unpublished stories are included: “Feeding Spiders,” evoking the work of a writer who adopted California as his home-Ray Bradbury; and “Ghost,” where a vengeful ghost stalks the tough streets of South Boston.

Michael Shea’s The Autopsy featured in Cabinet of Curiosities

Watch The Autopsy by Michael Shea in one of the episodes of Guillermo Del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities on October 26. The show will feature different horror stories and one of them will be Michael Shea’s The Autopsy. See more details from IMDb.

Watch the trailer below.

Oscar-winner Guillermo Del Toro has selected 10 stories by different writers for this omnibus series and Michael Shea’s “The Autopsy” is included in the series. Written by David S. Goyer (The Sandman; Dark City; The Dark Knight; Batman Begins) and directed by David Prior (The Empty Man; AM1200) this episode stars Academy Award Winner F. Murray Abraham (Mythic Quest; Homeland; Amadeus), Glynn Turman (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom; Fargo; The Wire), and Luke Roberts (Ransom; Black Sails). 

Coming to Netflix this Halloween!

Netflix will debut Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities on October 25, 2022, they will be launching a special four-day, double-episode Netflix & Chills Halloween event.

“With Cabinet of Curiosities, we set out to showcase the realities existing outside of our normal world: the anomalies and curiosities,” shared Del Toro. “We hand-picked and curated a group of stories and storytellers to deliver these tales, whether they come from outer space, supernatural lore, or simply within our minds,” said Guillermo del Toro. “Just in time for Halloween, each of these eight tales is a fantastical peek inside the cabinet of delights existing underneath the reality we live in.”

Watch the first look below.