An Army dog is tormented by wartime nightmares of fire and death, but the real danger is existential, a pack of dogs from Afghanistan out for his blood. When the Three Dog Detective Agency comes to his aid, they, too, are targeted for destruction.

Ralph E. Vaughan is well known for his Sherlock Holmes and HP Lovecraft fiction, and was the first author to combine the literary worlds of Holmes and Lovecraft. That seminal story was The Adventure of the Ancient Gods, and has been translated into multiple languages. His pastiches have been collected in Sherlock Holmes: The Coils of Time & Other Stories and Sherlock Holmes: Cthulhu Mythos Adventures. His DCI Arthur Ravyn Mysteries, set in legend-haunted Hammershire County (England), have proved very popular with readers, as have his Folkestone & Hand Interplanetary Steampunk Adventures. His avid interest in ancient history led him to write Enigmas of Elder Egypt, a collection of essays examining the lesser known aspects of Egypt. On a lighter note, he is the creator of the Paws & Claws Mystery Adventures, stories of canine detectives who solve mysteries, protect the weak, and occasionally save the world. He is the author of some 300 published short stories, covering the period 1970-2010, about a tenth of which have been collected in Beneath Strange Stars.