Walter Gilman, a student at (fictional) Miskatonic University in (fictional) Arkham, Massachusetts, deliberately rented the tower room in the old house where accused witch Keziah Mason disappeared in 1692. His fields of study include “non-Euclidean calculus and quantum physics.” He also has an interest in folklore, all of which leads him to trace multidimensional space.Continue reading “Review of “The Dreams in the Witch House” by H. P. Lovecraft: Halloween Countdown”
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Review of “Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen” By Alex Diaz-Granados
Full disclosure: The author of this short story is a netbuddy of mine going back to sometime in the early aughts. We “met” on the (alas!) defunct site Epinions some twenty-odd (many of them quite odd) years ago. The Stuff: At a party where Jim is more observer than participant, a young woman approaches himContinue reading “Review of “Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen” By Alex Diaz-Granados”
Review of “Sundown: The Vampire in Retreat” (1989)
Plot:Vampires have been hunting humans for centuries, but times change. Under the leadership of Count Mardulak (David Carridine) a group of vampires has set up shop in a town called Purgatory somewhere in the desert of the American West. They will learn to co-exist with humans, with the help of sunblock, sunglasses, and artificial blood.Continue reading “Review of “Sundown: The Vampire in Retreat” (1989)”
Review of “Thurnley Abbey” by Perceval Landon: Halloween Countdown
For October 29 Plot:The unnamed narrator, traveling across Europe, meets Alastair Colvin aboard a train. They will then board a ship. Alastair makes an unusual request to the narrator when the two know each other only casually: “Will you let me sleep in your cabin on the Osiris?” The narrator hems and haws and triesContinue reading “Review of “Thurnley Abbey” by Perceval Landon: Halloween Countdown”
Review of “The Testament of Magdalen Blair” by Aleister Crowley: Halloween Countdown
For October 28 I feel obligated to add that this story advocates suicide. There is no depiction of it, but the argument for it is, IMHO, overwrought to say the least, and—if it needs to be said—sad. Plot:Magdalen Blair resolves to warn mankind (I’m sure she means to include women, too) to follow her exampleContinue reading “Review of “The Testament of Magdalen Blair” by Aleister Crowley: Halloween Countdown”
Review of “Up Under the Roof” by Manly Wade Wellman: Halloween Countdown
For October 27: Plot:The narrator looks back to being a twelve-year-old boy in a house full of adults who didn’t pay much attention to him. The boy has trouble sleeping in the summer heat. His upstairs room is under a gable, and the sun hits the sloping roof with little insulation. He hears every rustleContinue reading “Review of “Up Under the Roof” by Manly Wade Wellman: Halloween Countdown”
Review of “The Spider” by Hanns Heinz Ewers: Halloween Countdown
For October 25 Plot: Medical student Richard Bracquemont tells the police inspector he has a plan to help solve the mystery of three recent suicides. He’ll move into the room where they occurred, #7 of the Hotel Stevens, Rue Alfred Stevens (Paris 6). Against his better judgment, the inspector accepts. He has a phone installedContinue reading “Review of “The Spider” by Hanns Heinz Ewers: Halloween Countdown”
Review of “The Screaming Skull” by F. Marion Crawford: Halloween Countdown
Plot:Retired Captain Braddock has come to live in his late cousin Luke Pratt’s house. Cousin Luke was a doctor. His wife pre-deceased him. Their son was killed (in the Boer War?) in South Africa. Braddock isn’t nervous—so he keeps telling his unnamed houseguest, who is also an old sailor. He’s heard the skull scream often.Continue reading “Review of “The Screaming Skull” by F. Marion Crawford: Halloween Countdown”
Review of “Schalken the Painter” by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu: Halloween Countdown
For October 22 Plot:The painting by the artist Godfrey Schalken is a family heirloom. A woman in a white dress, part of which forms a veil. She holds a lamp, lighting her features, an effect at which its creator excelled. It shows her “arch smile,” as if she’s pulled off some prank. Behind her, inContinue reading “Review of “Schalken the Painter” by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu: Halloween Countdown”
Review of “The Open Door” by Mrs. Margaret Oliphant: Halloween Countdown
For October 20 Plot: On his return from India in 18—, Colonel Mortimer takes a house called Brentwood for his family. Edinburgh is within reach so his daughters can have the masters and lessons they need, and his boy, Roland, whose education has been neglected, can now receive the proper education for a lad hisContinue reading “Review of “The Open Door” by Mrs. Margaret Oliphant: Halloween Countdown”
Reviews of Old and New Stories. Mostly Old 