Ellis Clearwater: There's an honesty in the turning of the earth, in the turning of the seasons, and I've always preferred its quiet, steadfast company over that of other people. Left alone with an inherited cottage and my beloved pup Rotho to look after, my days are largely given to tending the garden, save for periodic errands in town.

My town's annual "sacrifice" to the "monster in the woods" is the stuff of children's rhymes and fairytales, little more than a bit of playacting and red paint. At least, it was until I saw an impossibly tall, naked, antlered creature deep in the woods. And now, even though good sense-and Rotho-caution me against my own curiosity, I can't help but tempt fate with baskets of vegetables, bread, and a growing connection to the monster - Styx.

Before I realize what's been planted between us, something new has taken root. Something raspberry sweet and chocolate dark, ready to be harvested by searching hands and seeking mouths.