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Post by ohthehorror on Dec 24, 2015 17:01:43 GMT
Looking at that list I've 6 stories to binge/catch-up on. I'll blame it on Christmas. A hearty thanks to Dem, Chrissie and everyone who was kind enough to entertain me with their wonderful stories. I really enjoyed this. Thanks everyone, and a very Merry Christmas to you all.
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Post by ripper on Dec 24, 2015 17:08:42 GMT
Many thanks to the authors for allowing their stories to be included, to Chrissie for her wonderfully atmospheric artwork and to Dem for putting it all together into another great VoE calendar.
Merry Christmas to all on the board and I hope everyone has a happy and peaceful time.
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Post by Mike Brough on Dec 24, 2015 20:55:49 GMT
Thanks to everyone involved in this year's calendar. I can't imagine a better present - and it's all free.
Merry Christmas to everyone.
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Post by dem bones on Dec 25, 2015 7:06:53 GMT
Happy Christmas and many thanks to all the contributors, past and present, living, dead, living dead, or otherwise, and to all those who commented on the super stories and illustrations (keep 'em coming). Each VAC feels like the last one and don't even want to think about repeating the exercise next year, but you never know! Chrissie sends her love and thanks to all those of you said such kind things about her artwork. She wanted to provide illustrations for all the modern stories, but in true pulp spirit this is all pulled together on the fly and sometimes there weren't enough hours in the night.
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Post by mattofthespurs on Dec 25, 2015 7:49:04 GMT
Merry Christmas to all boarders! Thanks to Dem for a great present in the calender. Don't even think about not doing one next year! Thanks to Chrissie for all the great artwork that has adorned each story. Magnificent as always. Have a great day people. I'm off to open some pressies
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Post by dem bones on Feb 29, 2016 17:29:11 GMT
A Vault Advent Calendar is not just for Christmas. Over past couple of days Miss Scarlett Pearson @vivascarlett1 has been delivering her verdict via twitter. Scarlett has very kindly granted permission to reproduce her findings thus far. ***** Just downloaded a whole lot of freebies from the Vault of Evil Advent Calendars. They all sound great; thanks boys and girls So far enjoyed C. Birkin's Marjories On Starlight; some talented person should write a sequel where Cynthia gets her come-uppance! Also enjoyed D. Riley's Lurkers; not really my thing but very good. A Ghost Haunted Our Photos, A Christmas Yet to Come (P. Finch) great! Just finished "Fish" (A. Taborska) which was, of course, "delish"! D. A. Riley's Soft Little Fingers was nicely creepy. Enjoyed C. Black's The Overcrowded Train;in the middle of "The Were-Dwarf" (J. Mains) excellent! The real world must intrude for awhile now. "Were-Dwarf" by J. Mains is amazing! Red Christmas (R. Caine) and "Keeping It In the Family" (J.L.Probert) both fun! @vivascarlett1 'R. Caine' was the late, very great Michel Parry. The wicked Lord P. is thankfully, still working his mischief. #VaultLegendsR.C=M.P, I didn't know. I've enjoyed many stories by Lord P., in various anthologies and his book "Wicked Delights". Found G. Power's The Road to Hell elsewhere, another good one. C. Herbertson's Two Weeks short but packs a punch! Any Old Iron (C. Herbertson) gave me shivers; May All Your Christmases..(T. Niveau) shouldn't scare a Canadian but it did @craigherbertson Thanks for "Two Weeks" and "Any Old Iron", I enjoyed them! Decided to ransack all the VofE Advent Calendars last night... Just read F. Marsh's The Late Bus; I wish this portmanteau story (I just had to find a reason to use that adjective!) was 10x as long... The Last Bus, by M. Parry, equally good. Thanks to Gloomy Sundae, whoever you are, for transcribing this and other great stories! The Fetch (D. Sutton) was pretty good. The Poor Nun of Burtisford was ok, but not as good as I'd hoped for. Behind the Blinds by Flavia Richardson was memorable. I guess in those days, a happy ending was expected. Now it's the reverse.... I'll continue to comment as and when I can...64 stories left! *****
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Post by dem bones on Mar 1, 2016 7:19:24 GMT
More from Scarlett ****** Just finished Down In the Dying Rooms by Paul Finch. The long build-up was worth it! The Morris Men (F. Marsh) was great; I love it when folklore is mixed with horror. More fun with C. Black's "A Bit Tasty". The Comeback Kid (J. L. Probert) was entertaining, as was C. Herbertson's "A Game of Billiards" and L. A. Lewis' The Author's Tale. Hangman's Cottage (P. Morris) was indeed a morbid masterpiece. Head Soup (J. Mains) did it's job of putting me off my next meal Quid Pro Quo (M. Danby) more fun than scary.However as my son has 5 budgies that I of course look after, maybe I should be scared Read "Tourist Trap" elsewhere, great stuff! Cannibal Kings of Horror(M. Samuels) excellent,though I almost lost eyesight from small print Read "With Deepest Sympathy" (?) elsewhere (a Black book?) good stuff. Trendelenberg Concerto up to J. L. Probert's high standards! Drip (V. Herbertson) was charmingly gruesome; They Pissed On My Sofa (D. A. Riley) nicely finished. A Delicate Undertaking (F. March) & Suckingpub (R. Stains) were a lot of fun. Also enjoyed The Strangled Garden (S. Bacon). No more Advent stories for a few days; just received these in the mail: Nightmares 1 (ed. M. Danby), The Height of the Scream (R. Campbell) ....as well as The Bedside Book of Horror (ed. H. Van Thal) and The Taste of Fear (ed. H. Lamb). A smorgasbord of horror awaits...
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Mar 1, 2016 7:40:45 GMT
Good lord! She's a reading machine!
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Post by Swampirella on Mar 3, 2016 2:08:07 GMT
Some call me other things, so thanks for the compliment!
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Post by dem bones on Mar 3, 2016 12:30:28 GMT
Thanks for registering, Scarlett, and I hope you enjoy your time with us. Can copy the recent VAC related posts across if you wish, but it's better coming direct from you. Love the avitar, btw.
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Post by dem bones on Mar 4, 2016 18:40:13 GMT
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Post by dem bones on Mar 15, 2016 10:02:49 GMT
More thoughts from Scarlett..... Just downloaded about 12 "Then" stories from VofE Advent calendars. Comments forthcoming on any I like, as the world waits breathlessly Loved F. Cowles "Headless Leper" again; "The Relic" (S. J. Bounds) was also very good. Really enjoyed A. Perrin's "The Bead Necklace". Also from VofE's Advent calendars "A Square of Canvas" (A. M. Rud) was ok; enjoyed "The Road" (V.E. Gadd) more than expected. "The Interrupted Honeymoon" (G. Benwood) gave me the creeps. About to read my last story "Ghost Story "(H.R. Wakefield) which should be good
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Post by helrunar on Jun 1, 2016 2:34:27 GMT
As a Luddite in recovery, it's much easier for me to read things in physically printed form. I had a long train journey this evening visiting a friend's family and then coming home, and I chose two stories from earlier Advent calendars to help make the trip bearable.
I was fascinated by just how unabashedly pulpy "Behind the blinds" by "Flavia Richardson" (Christine Campbell Thomson) was. I gather she was an admirer of Weird Tales but I had not realized that the circulation of the latter extended to the UK in the 1920s. I thought the story made for a great yarn with its vividly etched imagery (which made me think of the literary equivalent of a 1950s EC horror comic) and its campy dialogue. The old "assistant" in particular had some great lines.
"Quieta non movere" by Reggie Oliver only sharpened my interest in this gifted artist. I only learnt of his existence a few months ago thanks to his tale, "The Maze at Huntsmere," published in the Egaeus Press volume Soliloquy for Pan, edited by Mark Beech. The latter tale had a contemporary setting and included a deftly crafted parody, of sorts, of the popular series Downton Abbey. "Quieta non movere" was firmly set in high Victorian M. R. James territory and had a beautifully accomplished atmosphere, with a sharply acute use of a few key visual shocks. I want MORE of Mr. Oliver's work. We are a greedy lot!
I look forward to further explorations in these collections!
H.
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Post by dem bones on Jun 1, 2016 7:34:17 GMT
Glad you enjoyed 'em! Physical books for me, too, but find it easy to make an exception in case of the various calendars. Flavia's pulpiest, nastiest story is the (in)famous Behind The Yellow Door, relatively easy to find as H. Van Thal included it in The 1st Pan Book of Horror Stories, essentially a best of Not At Night selection with extras. Reggie Oliver is among several of our contributors whose work has graced Charlie Black's magnificent Black Book Of Horror Stories series, perhaps the nearest thing we have to a contemporary PBOH. Seems that way to me, anyhow.
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