Folio Society's Galingore-Bound Japanese Ghost Stories Is the Perfect Halloween Companion

The classic horror collection Japanese Ghost Stories gets a new luxury edition with a Galingore binding from The Folio Society, and we have an exclusive preview of some of its eerie illustrations.

The latest edition from The Folio Society is one that should appeal to fans of classic horror stories. Lafcadio Hearn's short story collection Japanese Ghost Stories gets a new deluxe hardcover edition featuring illustrations by The Unwritten's Yoko Shimizu.

With Japanese Ghost Stories soon to go up for pre-order, IGN can exclusively show you some of Shimizu's beautiful images. Check them out in the slideshow gallery below:

Folio Community Japanese Ghost Stories Image Gallery

Japanese Ghost Stories has a translation by Royal Tyler and a new introduction by Japanese novelist Yoko Ogawa. Here is the official description of the book:

JAPANESE GHOST STORIES contains twenty transporting and sometimes terrifying stories, including "The Tale of Aoyagi," in which a young samurai falls in love with a mysterious woman only to discover that she is not what she seems. "Oshidori", a tragic story in which a mandarin duck mourns the loss of his lover, who was shot and killed by a hunter. and "Rokuro-Kubi," an action story in which a monk fights five-headed birds.

In Japanese ghost stories, the dead take revenge on the living, paintings come to life, spectral brides possess mortal men, and a priest devours human flesh. These stories use phantoms and giants from traditional Japanese folklore—including the headless Rokuro-kobi, the monstrous goblin Jikininki, and the faceless Mojina—who stalk the backwaters. These stories are very popular in Japan and are highly sought after by popular culture buffs and horror enthusiasts alike.

Folio Society editor Mandy Kirby said in a statement: "Lofcadio Hearn's 19th-century ghost stories are famous throughout Japan and are part of the country's paranormal culture. I love the way we've taken something traditional and given it a modern twist." "At first glance, you might think that Yoko Shimizu's illustrations are from the Hokusai era, but look closely and you'll see that they have a modern edge, and the cover is decidedly 21st century. One of Japan's contemporary novelists, Yoko Ogawa, has provided an introduction in which she talks about how the demonic and the Japanese matter. These stories are truly terrifying—she's right—they are absolute paranormal gems. The best read for the ghost season.

Orders for Japanese ghost stories will open on the Folio Society website on October 13.

In other Folio Society news, the company is also publishing a stunning new edition of Anthony Bourdain's classic memoir Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly.

Jesse is an ethical staff writer at IGN. Let him lend you a machete by following @jschedeen on BlueSky.