Stephen Graham Jones

"The Night Cyclist" by Stephen Graham Jones is a horror novelette about a middle-aged chef whose nightly bicycle ride home is interrupted by an unexpected encounter. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

A Tor.com Original

The Night Cyclist

Geoffrey Froggatt

This short story has me interested in the works of Stephen Graham Jones. This story is about a middle-aged chef whose nightly bicycle ride home is interrupted by an unexpected encounter. One of my favorite storytelling techniques is when an author uses fantastical tropes and characters as a vehicle to explore the themes at the heart of the story, in this case, midlife crises and second chances. I've never experienced so much suspense in a bike ride before. I swear this entire tale could have just been the main character chasing after a creature of the night on a bicycle and I would have loved it. There was a bit more to The Night Cyclist than that, though. Everything about this story felt authentic, from the restaurant industry (the main character is a chef) to what it must feel like to be a cyclist. I would love to see this short story adapted into a short film. I highly recommend this story for fans of short stories and short story collections.

C. J. Daley 

I came across this at 12:30 this morning, the only tagline was, “There must be no compulsion to hide the bodies. Otherwise I’d have never found them,” and I paid the $1.99 for it immediately. Didn’t even know what else it was about. 

Ultimately, this is a spooky, horror-y short story that’s about being afraid to get older, and the act of change. It’s something mostly everyone can relate to. The cyclist plot line, however, was not something I have experience with, so I’m sure there were metaphors and analogies that simply went over my head. 

Enjoyable and quick though, personally a 3.5/5*.

Maggie Gordon

Back to Tor.com shorts after a long break! The Night Cyclist is an eerie pieces about vampires and growing older and bikes. It's an odd combination, but it works! A chef... perhaps the word befriend is a bit strong, becomes acquainted with another bicycle enthusiast who happens to be a bit strange. There's some commentary on how we cling to young and old memories by sabotaging our present. The ending was strange though... not sure what to take from it.

Really cool premise with some intriguing mystery and plenty of horror. Only takes a few minutes to read, but super well done!

Ruth Parker 

A really short (like 30 pages) horror story that follows a chef who rides a bike at night. Ok it’s better than I made it sound! It’s a good little book, but didn’t creep me out like other Stephen Graham Jones books. Worth a read and good for readathons like #winterween!

The Night Cyclist A Tor.com Original

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