spells and shells

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In Navajo lore, skinwalkers are humans capable of wielding dark magic to assume animal form. Many such beings appear in Water Folk, revealing their true forms and intentions over time.

Across the river from present-day St. Louis, ancient Cahokia was the largest urban settlement of the Mississippian culture. Within its mound complex is the solution to a puzzle.

Originating in the lore of Chilean mining towns, the Carbuncle is a mysterious creature with a magical shell that, in the world of the Folklore Cycle, supplies powerful protection.

Many native American cultures featured Red Horn, “He Who Wears Faces on His Ears.” Depictions vary, but a long-nosed mask is common — and key to the plot of Water Folk.

Stories of the Devil Ram —giant creatures with elongated arms and deadly horns — began to circulate across the American West during the early 1800s.

Greatest among the fearsome Anaye, or “Alien Gods,” of Navajo lore was Yeitso, a towering colossus of muscle, flint, and mocking laughter. But is the giant truly nothing but a myth?