The Essential World of Darkness

The Essential World of Darkness is an omnibus collection of five Classic World of Darkness novels, one for each of the five core World of Darkness game lines (Vampire: The Masquerade, Werewolf: The Apocalypse, Mage: The Ascension, Wraith: The Oblivion and Changeling: The Dreaming). The Vampire novel in this volume, Vampire Diary: The Embrace, is actually a reprint of a novel that was previously published as a standalone book in a nontraditional format.

Summary
From the White Wolf catalog:
 * One world.
 * Five visions.
 * Enter White Wolf Game Studio's World of Darkness through the eyes of six master storytellers.


 * Vampire Diary: The Embrace
 * Mark Rein•Hagen (Vampire: The Masquerade)
 * Robert Weinberg (Blood War)
 * In the shadows of Los Angeles, a young artist fights for love and life among black lights and wild music. Then he catches the attention of an ancient vampire...


 * Shaman Moon
 * Owl Goingback (Crota - winner of the 1997 Bram Stoker Award)
 * In the wilds of the Great Smoky Mountains, a young orphan werewolf must prove her right to power as a Guardian of the Fang, defender of Gaia against the foul spirits of the Wyrm. But a blood-red moon is rising...


 * Lightning Under Glass
 * Scott Ciencin (The Lurker Files: Incarnate)
 * Three mages - one mercenary, one rogue, and one very wild talent - race against fate, corruption and each other in a contest for control of reality. But no matter how fast they go, their old enemies are always one step ahead...


 * Except You Go Through Shadow
 * David Niall Wilson (To Sift Through Bitter Ashes)
 * A loyal suicide cultist finds himself dead - a wraith - not in the Paradise he was promised, and sets out to find the Prophet who led him there. But the Prophet is looking for him, too...


 * Playing With Fire
 * Esther M. Freisner (The Psalms of Herod)
 * In San Francisco's Chinatown, a Fae youth wrestles with his Chinese and Changeling heritage and learns to wield strange powers. Everything's aces - until a friend falls into the clutches of the Unseelie Court...

Contents

 * Vampire Diary: The Embrace by Mark Rein•Hagen and Robert Weinberg, illustrated by Daniel Thron and Chris Elliott (referred to as "Vampire Diary: The Embraced" on its title page)
 * Shaman Moon by Owl Goingback
 * Lightning Under Glass by Scott Ciencin
 * Except You Go Through Shadow by David Niall Wilson
 * Playing With Fire by Esther M. Freisner