Note: The story reviewed below deals with violent imagery and sublimated sexual violence as well as not so sublimated racism. 2) “Circumstance” by Harriet Prescott Spofford Plot: Walking home from visiting a sick neighbor, through a “wilderness untrod save by stealthy native of deadly panther tribes,” our heroine sees a winding sheet fluttering in theContinue reading “Review of “Circumstance” by Harriet Prescott Spofford: Halloween Countdown”
Tag Archives: horror
Review of “Berenice” by Edgar Allan Poe: Halloween Countdown
It’s that time of year again. Happy Halloween. 1) “Berenice” by Edgar Allan Poe Plot: Egaeus and his cousin Berenice have grown up together and live in an old family house. They are polar opposites. Egaeus tells the reader that Berenice is “agile, graceful, and overflowing with energy.” While he stays home and reads—or whatever—BereniceContinue reading “Review of “Berenice” by Edgar Allan Poe: Halloween Countdown”
Review of “Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter” (1974)
Plot: A young woman sits in the woods brushing her blond pigtails that looked to me like a wig. She wears a cross and an ankle-length blue dress and white blouse, telling the viewer she’s a late 18th-century peasant. Her friend Ann (Elizabeth Dear) teases her, then departs to find flowers for her hair. WhileContinue reading “Review of “Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter” (1974)”
Review of “Bunny” by Mona Awad
Note: The book reviewed depicts the killing of animals. Plot: This horror novel is an absurdist, nightmarish, magical-realistic take on fine arts higher education. And some other stuff. The reader immediately sympathizes with Samantha, a second-year MFA student at elite—ahem—Warren University somewhere in New England. She remains an outsider in her Workshop program. The fourContinue reading “Review of “Bunny” by Mona Awad”
Review of “Swamp Thing” (1982)
Back to the traditional Saturday pizza and bad movie nights. The dearly beloved has seen this one, but I had not. Swamp Thing is based on a comic book superhero, which accounts, in part, for the lack of helpless and intellectually challenged maidens and for the cabal of paramilitaries run by an evil overlord. Plot:Continue reading “Review of “Swamp Thing” (1982)”
Review of “Flight 7500” (2014)
Our latest Saturday pizza and bad movie offering was something of a departure. Though it’s called “supernatural horror,” this flick at first brought to mind 70s disaster movies like Airport. Plot:Vista Pacific Airlines flight 7500 departs from Los Angeles to Tokyo Haneda. Lyn (Aja Evans) and Jack Hafey (Ben Sharples) are vacationing with their friends,Continue reading “Review of “Flight 7500” (2014)”
Review of “The Skull” (1965)
We’ve kept up our pizza and bad movie nights, but I’ve slacked off on reviewing the various gems. But by special request, I’ll add at least one more. Remember—you asked! 😊 Plot: In an early 19th-century graveyard, cloaked men carrying lanterns and shovels make their way toward a specific grave. At certain points, the treesContinue reading “Review of “The Skull” (1965)”
Review of “The Beast with Five Fingers” by William Fryer Harvey: Halloween Countdown
Plot:The narrator introduces Mr. Adrian Borlsover, who was good with his hands, able to illustrate his own scientific paper, and carve wood. At the time, the narrator was a child, and Mr. Borlsover was elderly. He’d lost his eyesight in midlife but adapted, learning Braille and maintaining his ability to write. Mr. Borlsover had noContinue reading “Review of “The Beast with Five Fingers” by William Fryer Harvey: Halloween Countdown”
Review of “The Undying Thing” by Barry Pain: Halloween Countdown
Plot: Sir Edric murdered his wife, Alice, and sent their son away. He loves his present wife, Eve. For some unexplained reason, he began keeping wolves on his estate. Eve begged him to “destroy” the animals, but he liked them until they attacked Eve without biting her (huh?). He then shot them all himself. NowContinue reading “Review of “The Undying Thing” by Barry Pain: Halloween Countdown”
Review of “The Thing from ‘Outside’” by George Allan England: Halloween Countdown
Plot:A party of Americans traveling in the Canadian wilderness finds themselves deserted by their Indigenous guides after they come across a “circular print on a rock-ledge.” They hear the guides scream, fire shots, and conclude they’re dead and “out of harm’s way.” On the other hand, the present company is “two hundred and fifty wickedContinue reading “Review of “The Thing from ‘Outside’” by George Allan England: Halloween Countdown”
