A mysterious man appears in town ... a man only children can see. A young boy’s heart does not beat ... just like everyone else’s in the world. A group of teenagers find an old woman in a cavern ... and a tunnel that leads to another dimension. Two boys on the run from an abusive father stumble across an empty farmhouse ... a farmhouse haunted by more than just memories. As Robert Swartwood proves in his first full-length collection, illusions are all around us. Some are real. Some are terrifying. REAL ILLUSIONS is 80,000 words and contains ten stories (including the novellas THE MAN ON THE BENCH, THROUGH THE GUTS OF A BEGGAR, and THE SILVER RING), as well as a special author introduction and story notes.