Terry Lamsley's first collection, Under the Crust, was set in and around his hometown of Buxton in England's Peak District. Lamsley had initially hoped the stories might appeal to local readers and tourists, but excitement quickly spread beyond Buxton as enthusiasts of supernatural fiction realized that an exciting new talent had emerged.
Conference With the Dead,in his introduction to this volume, Ramsey Campbell wrote: "While Under the Crust was a remarkable debut . . . Conference With the Dead is finer still. . . . This is a major book by one of the major living talents in the field." This 1996 limited edition hardcover of 500 copies, with a dust jacket illustrated by Douglas Walters, made Lamsley's second collection available to readers who had been eagerly awaiting it since his award-winning debut.