My Work Is Not Yet Done, By Thomas Ligotti

This is a collection of three horror stories. The title story, which is substantially longer than the other two, recounts the revenge of Frank Dominio on his former bosses after he is unfairly sacked; a revenge both facillitated and made more Gothic by the dark powers he somehow acquires. The revenges are not necessarily bloody: one hapless victim, for example, is trapped in a world of endless doors so that whenever he opens one, there's another behind it.

The two shorter stories also have fear and hatred in the workplace as the theme. "I Have a Special Plan for this World" is about a sinister company whose supervisors keep getting murdered. "The Nightmare Network" concerns a company that supplies dreams.

Ligotti certainly has a distinctive vision, and is strong on atmosphere. Parts of this are as creepy as Edgar Allan Poe. Unfortunately, the prose is also as ponderous as Edgar Allan Poe. Ligotti simply will not use one word where he can use lots of them. For example, one story features a character known as Bow Tie Man. Because he wears one? No, "due to his penchant for sporting this eponymous item of apparel on a daily basis".