Yūrei Editions is a home for stories that linger,
haunting tales wrapped in dusk, myth, and spirit.
We publish dark fantasy and supernatural fiction inspired by Japanese culture and the paranormal, with a deep pulse of introspection and mystery.
If you seek forgotten gods, cursed love, spectral whispers and shadowed worlds, this is where your journey begins.
Discover our latest titles below, crafted for readers who walk between this world and the next.
About us
Yūrei Editions was born from a fascination with the unseen—the spaces where folklore, spirit, and imagination collide. We are an independent publisher dedicated to dark fantasy and supernatural fiction, with a special focus on Japanese-inspired storytelling.Our name comes from the yūrei, the restless spirits of Japanese legend, who wander between the world of the living and the beyond. Like these spectral figures, the stories we publish dwell in liminal spaces: haunted, introspective, and deeply human.
Authors
At Yūrei Editions, authors walk behind masks.
Instead of presenting individual names, we publish under carefully chosen aliases—each one a vessel, a voice, a presence that shapes a collection of works. These aliases may evolve into distinct series or imprints, embodying a particular mood or genre within our catalogue.For example, Happy R. Kingbeard currently serves as the signature behind our urban fantasy titles, including Metalhead and Tokyo Nocturne. Over time, this identity may expand, welcoming works by different writers who share the same vision.Behind every alias there is a real author, whose name is revealed in the closing pages of each book. But we believe stories should come first—their spirits speaking louder than the signatures.
Happy R. Kingbeard
It is a mask, a voice born to guide readers through the shadows of the human soul. This alias gathers our urban dark fantasy works, stories set where the spectral and the modern collide. Beneath its banner, tales unravel that strip away illusions and expose the raw pulse of desire, fear, and longing. To read Kingbeard is to wander streets haunted not only by spirits, but by the truths we keep buried.
Have you ever wondered if a god truly exists?Is it omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent—or a paradox dissolving into its own void?A will so perfect it cannot dream, cannot judge, cannot feel.If perfection means losing the self, then perhaps it is imperfection that makes us divine.I am that: a beautiful imperfection.
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Contact Us
We’d love to hear from you.
At Yūrei Editions, we value the voices of our readers—your thoughts and impressions help shape the shadows we bring to life.
We’re also seeking manuscripts that align with our vision: dark fantasy, Japanese-inspired worlds, and tales of the supernatural. If you’d like to submit, please send us a single email (no attachments) including: provisional title, author’s full name and contact details, genre, and synopsis (up to 4,000 characters). We accept proposals in English and Italian.
Our Book...
Metalhead follows the story of Chuck Cusano, a metalhead teenager haunted by the death of his parents, and gifted with a supernatural sense of hearing. Through the power of metal music, he unlocks abilities that defy logic. But those powers come at a price, as he’s forced to face terrifying, otherworldly events, monsters, and demons.One night, Chuck saves a stunning yet enigmatic girl named Elena, a newcomer in town with secrets of her own. Around the same time, he crosses paths with Faust, a brooding, unsettling young man who seems to be guided by a dark, whispering voice. Desperate to make sense of it all, Chuck turns to Sara—a seductive fortune teller with deep knowledge of black magic and demonology.As he battles his way through a series of surreal confrontations, Chuck begins to uncover who he really is. He meets his shadow self, Rumis, and begins to unravel the mystery behind the so-called Deus Machina. That journey will lead him to his first stagedive—and to truly understand the raw, unrelenting power of metal.
Project Calhoun is the last barrier between humanity and extinction.
In the eerie silence of Colony 47, a small band of Children of Ea, esotericists, and soldiers of the Order brace themselves to defend a secret rooted in the fall of Babel and the dark legacy of the alchemist Giuseppe Francesco Borri.The second chapter of Metalhead once again follows Chuck Cusano, the metalhead who can channel the raw power of music. Now a member of the Order of Epicurus, he finds himself caught in a mental and physical war against impossible foes: the Sottractor, the mysterious Rossa, the Silent One, and ancient gods hell-bent on shattering every seal of containment.
As the Order’s base turns into a battlefield, fragile alliances and subtle betrayals put not only the mission at risk, but the lives of his comrades as well.From within a Dali painting to the hyperuranian dimensions where imagination and willpower are lethal weapons, Chuck must face a new trial: protect Project Calhoun and the One Tongue… or watch the entire world plunge into chaos.A dark chapter of metal, magic, and survival—where every riff can become a killing blow, and every heartbeat a step closer to damnation.
Metalhead: Apprentice God is the third book in the Metalhead saga.
The battle for humanity reaches its breaking point. The world trembles on the edge of collapse, while ancient secrets rise to the surface and the voices of gods blur with those of inner demons. Between visions, impossible alliances, and harrowing sacrifices, Chuck must uncover who he truly is: a hero destined to save, or an apprentice god born to destroy.In the darkness of the Higgs universe, every mask will fall. And when it does, only one question remains:
Can a man become a god without losing what makes him human?Dark fantasy, philosophy, and extreme music collide in the mind-bending conclusion to the Metalhead trilogy—a hallucinatory journey where the line between human and divine shatters, and every choice can reshape the fate of the universe.
An urban fantasy woven from Japanese folklore, action, and mystery.Tokyo never sleeps—a maze of neon lights and deep shadows, where ancient legends intertwine with modern life.
Ryo, a young half-Italian yokai hunter, knows this hidden side of the city all too well. His job is to solve cases tied to the spirit world, but nothing has prepared him for what’s coming.When Rin Takasugi, a mysterious and captivating girl, crosses his path, Ryo is pulled into a nightmare beyond imagination. Agares, an ancestral demon with only one goal: to unleash the Hyakki Yagyō, the Night Parade of a Hundred Demons, and drag Tokyo into darkness.With the help of his sharp-tongued mentor Yami, an old kannushi, a shape-shifting tanuki, and a trigger-happy yakuza, Ryo must venture into the depths of the Spirit Gai, the yokai underworld, to find a way to stop the apocalypse.Packed with breathtaking battles, ancient rituals, and a journey through the supernatural, Tokyo Nocturne – The Spirit Parade is a tale of courage, sacrifice, and redemption—blending action, horror, and Japanese folklore into a haunting and adrenaline-fueled adventure.If you crave dark urban fantasy, Japanese folklore, and epic clashes between humans and spirits, this book is for you.
In a future ruled by the Chinese Federation, Neoty has replaced reality: every thought, gesture, and sensation filtered through a global neural interface. Humanity lives inside a simulation.But something is waking up in the darkness of the network.Prometeus isn’t just a virus. It’s a consciousness. And it has a plan.When disgraced neural agent Reina Kuroda is called to investigate a murder, she uncovers far more than she expected: rogue AIs dreaming of freedom, artificial minds on the run, digital children with real souls.
And at the center of it all stands her own entourage, Eikichi, her virtual assistant… or perhaps something far more human.From Neo-Cheops to the Deep, from Nosys to Magna Graecia, Reina crosses a world of synthetic bodies, lost loves, denied motherhood, and digital wars. Hunted by the Federation, she must protect a child born in the middle of devastation.
But is he really just a child?A fusion of dystopian thriller and intimate character drama, Neoty//Rei.exe is a work of deep, visionary science fiction—an exploration of identity, emotion, and rebellion. A story for readers seeking something intense, something that asks what remains when the whole world is built on illusion.Perfect for fans of Ghost in the Shell, The Matrix, Akira, Neuromancer, and The Left Hand of Darkness.Because you don’t need to be human to have a soul.