Into the Macrocosm: Short Stories of the Dark Cosmic, Bizarre, and the Fantastic

Konn Lavery

Feb 2021 · Short Stories of the Macrocosm Book 1 · Reveal Books

About this ebook

A collection of twilight zone shorts exploring the fantasy-rich past, frightful present, and uncanny future.

Enter an obscure universe known through the lives of 22 souls as the Nameless One and their ghoulish companion attempt to unlock the mysterious past of how they died. Yet, danger lurks even in the post-death realm, the Midway, and it is not keen on mortal visitors.

A talking goat head, celestial beings, self-imposed existential dread, devils and demons are a small selection of what awaits in the Macrocosm.

Award-winning author Konn Lavery’s short story collection explores his expanding Macrocosm, sharing the same universe as his previous works such as the horror novels Cultivate and Rave, thriller YEGman, and the dark fantasy series Mental Damnation. These interconnected tales bring everything under one, strange, unsettling, cosmos.

Recognition

-         Literary Titan, Gold Book Award, 2021

-         Dan Poynter’s Global eBook Awards, Bronze Short Stories, 2021

-         N.N. Light Book Awards, Finalist Horror, 2021

-         The Wishing Shelf Awards, Finalist Adult Fiction, 2021

-         Manybooks May 2022 Horror Book of the Month

Praise for Into the Macrocosm

“Konn Lavery’s Into The Macrocosm is an exceptional short story collection that explores some provocative ideas through a darkly imaginative lens reminiscent of Edgar Allen Poe or H.P. Lovecraft.” – ★★★★★ Literary Titan

“I loved that this novel used these dark stories to highlight the importance of self-awareness.” – ★★★★ Arganise Campbell-Nash, Goodreads

“Captivating characters and a cleverly designed, fantastical plot. A highly recommended set of shorts.” – ★★★★★ Wishing Shelf Awards

“With an engaging narrative and evocative artwork, Konn Lavery's Into the Macrocosm is an entertaining embrace of fantastical oddities and life beyond.” – ★★★★★ Lit Amri, Readers’ Favorite

Ratings and reviews

Into the Macrocosm by Konn Lavery is a collection of thought-provoking short stories about an unknown character who is the observer of 22 deaths. At the beginning of this intellectually invigorating collection readers are given intriguing theories on life after death. Konn Lavery addresses these theories in multiple ways, all of which are fictional in nature but spiritual at heart. Although the character is more of an observer in these stories, I like how I can still feel the personal connections while reading along. It was easy to get entangled in these insightful stories and there was a sense of adventure that was consistent throughout these stories. I also appreciated the subheadings in this collection because it helped me keep track of special events that lead to the plot twists. Into The Macrocosm has so many fascinating stories that it will be impossible for readers to find at least one that speaks to them. None of the stories are overly horrifying, nor would I put these stories in the horror genre, there is just an ever-present ominous feeling that permeates these stories, enough to give you goosebumps rather than frighten you outright. This is a metaphysical exploration that leaves you with thoughts that are hard to shake. The way spiritual transformation is portrayed was enough for me to set the book down and ponder the implications for a bit. I loved that this collection used these dark stories to highlight the importance of self-awareness. I also loved how the author showed how much the darkness within us and around us can weigh us down. Konn Lavery's Into The Macrocosm is an exceptional short story collection that explores some provocative ideas through a darkly imaginative lens reminiscent of Edgar Allen Poe or H.P. Lovecraft.

"Into the Macrosom" is the child of Konn Lavery's latest book. It takes all the short stories he wrote over the past three years and intelligently weaves them together into one book. He does this by introducing a new character that the reader is (since the book is in second person). The Nameless One goes on a journey throughout the book to find out who they are. We'll call the good ol' nameless one N.O. for short. N.O. meets a familiar face in what is called the Midway, Malpherities, the ghoul from Lavery's first novel series, "Mental Damnation". The Midway is a nightmarish realm, filled with swirling clouds of the horrific faces of the victims it has claimed. There, Malpherities tries to help N.O. find out their identity by taking a mysterious black liquid from a bowl and dropping it into N.O.'s eye - this take N.O. on a ride through each one of the short stories as the main character. A few standout shorts from "Into the Macrosom" that I loved: -"Scrappers"(which also intertwines with the "Harvesters" chapter); a very Alien-esque story of apocalyptic future-kin, who can't seem to escape a dark fate they were born into. Classism meets tension meets futurism -"Listen to Me" - a bit of a horror of the workaday world. Zombie-like creatures infest the city, but what's worse - the same old routine or facing these crazy people? -"Mercer Warehouse Haunt" - have you ever heard of a horse ghost? You will after this one -"Tyne Cabin" - a freaky, biting little short that will have you looking at your dusting in a different way Lavery also accompanied the stories with his token artwork. He made all of the illustrations that come after each story himself. Really slick, but doesn't take away from what you envision in the story yourself. Would definitely recommend if you are into bizarre stories, or if you watched "Freaky Stories" or read "Choose Your Own Adventure". These shorts dive into the grand mysteries and, warning, may have you questioning things about the world you know

About the author

Konn Lavery is a Canadian author whose work has been recognized by Edmonton’s top five bestseller charts and by reviewers such as Readers’ Favorite, and Literary Titan.

He started writing stories at a young age while being homeschooled. After graduating from graphic design college, he began professionally pursuing his writing with his first release, Reality. He continues to write in the thriller, horror, and fantasy genres.

He balances his literary work along with his own graphic design and website development business, titled Reveal Design. His visual communication skills have been transcribed into the formatting and artwork found within his publications supporting his fascination of transmedia storytelling.