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Post by dem bones on Sept 10, 2016 10:04:16 GMT
The Goth: I was unsure if there was any supernatural element to this tale or not. Also, I was unclear what actually was our hero's fate after he bravely dived into the water to rescue the stricken steamer's passengers. If I'm reading it correctly the ending is left open. The final line suggests that he has become the latest victim of the curse. As with The Armless Man, and, arguably, The Kiss, the story ends on a note of heroic self sacrifice. You can tell there was a war on. The Last Ascent: I have no idea who or what the misty figure in the photograph is supposed to represent. The author doesn't really give any background to the pilot's obsession of drawing the girl and my best guess was that it was a representation of a nature spirit of air who either was in love with our pilot or was angry with him for trespassing into her domain so much--he was trying to break altitude records. I wasn't very taken with The Last Ascent while reading it, but it's haunted me this past few days. My take on it is that the air ace has willed his fantasy woman to life, in which case the ending is actually very upbeat.
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Post by ripper on Sept 10, 2016 16:35:25 GMT
The Final Ascent lagged considerably when compared to The Living Stone, I thought. It reminded me a little of The Horror of the Heights, with both protagonists meeting their deaths while trying to reach high altitudes. Still, it was okay as a short tale that didn't outstay its welcome.
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Post by dem bones on Sept 11, 2016 7:13:39 GMT
The Final Ascent lagged considerably when compared to The Living Stone, I thought. It reminded me a little of The Horror of the Heights, with both protagonists meeting their deaths while trying to reach high altitudes. Still, it was okay as a short tale that didn't outstay its welcome. Another E. R. Punshon short, The Way Out (All-Story Weekly[/i], July 5 1919), is a non-supernatural, Tales of the Unexpected affair. Stephen Mallory is the surprise beneficiary of his jewel-trading uncle's will - surprise, because his uncle despised him. The estate, which is all in the form of exceedingly valuable pearls, amounts to something in the region of £200, 000. Stephen would be set up for life - if only he could get his hands on them, which he never will on account of a devilish catch. The old boy's enmity transcends the grave. "My uncle hated me like poison, and what he was after when he drew up that will was to drive me clean crazy." Gavin O'Keefe [ed's] Bobby Owen, Black Magic, Bloodshed & Burglary: Selected Short Stories of E. R. Punchon (Ramble House, 2015) includes ten of the author's supernatural/ 'horror' titles.
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Post by ripper on Sept 11, 2016 9:06:09 GMT
It is encouraging to see that authors such as Punchon are not forgotten and new collections of their work continue to be published.
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Post by Michael Connolly on Oct 3, 2016 13:41:09 GMT
A new edition of Dracula's Brood is being published by Harper on 6 October. It costs £8.99. Dracula's Brethren, edited by Richard Dalby and Brian J. Frost is being published on 4 May 2017. It also costs £8.99. This sounds like a sequel.
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Post by Michael Connolly on Nov 11, 2016 12:56:47 GMT
Here is the original illustration from an 1899 issue of Pall Mall Magazine used for the cover of the first edition of Dracula's Brood. It is for a poem "In the Haunted Ruins" written by one Marvin Dana.
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Post by ripper on Nov 11, 2016 13:12:21 GMT
Here is the original illustration from an 1899 issue of Pall Mall Magazine used for the cover of the first edition of Dracula's Brood. It is for a poem "In the Haunted Ruins" written by one Marvin Dana. View AttachmentView AttachmentI presume that the contents of the 2016 version is the same as the original.
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Post by Michael Connolly on Nov 11, 2016 13:32:16 GMT
Here is the original illustration from an 1899 issue of Pall Mall Magazine used for the cover of the first edition of Dracula's Brood. It is for a poem "In the Haunted Ruins" written by one Marvin Dana. I presume that the contents of the 2016 version is the same as the original. It looks like the contents are the same. I still don't know the contents of the follow-up anthology Dracula's Brethren. There can't be many vampire stories left unreprinted.
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Post by ripper on Nov 12, 2016 10:40:39 GMT
I presume that the contents of the 2016 version is the same as the original. It looks like the contents are the same. I still don't know the contents of the follow-up anthology Dracula's Brethren. View AttachmentThere can't be many vampire stories left unreprinted. Thanks, Michael. Also, this is the first I have heard of Dalby's new anthology. All I could find was that it contains 19 tales published between 1820 and 1910, and Arthur Conan Doyle and Louisa May Alcott are among the contributors. Not published until 4 May 2017 but I expect more details will be released before then. Dalby is an editor of whom I have a high regard and I am excited and curious to see what the stories will be.
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Post by Michael Connolly on Dec 30, 2016 14:30:53 GMT
A new edition of Dracula's Brood is being published by Harper on 6 October. It costs £8.99. Dracula's Brethren, edited by Richard Dalby and Brian J. Frost is being published on 4 May 2017. It also costs £8.99. This sounds like a sequel. I have seen a copy of the new edition of Dracula's Brood. Apart from the frontispiece, it lacks the illustrations of the first edition.
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Post by ripper on Jan 6, 2017 9:26:13 GMT
A new edition of Dracula's Brood is being published by Harper on 6 October. It costs £8.99. View Attachment Dracula's Brethren, edited by Richard Dalby and Brian J. Frost is being published on 4 May 2017. It also costs £8.99. This sounds like a sequel. I have seen a copy of the new edition of Dracula's Brood. Apart from the frontispiece, it lacks the illustrations of the first edition. I doubt if I will be in the market for the new edition of Dracula's Brood, but the follow-up anthology definitely has my interest.
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