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Post by mrhappy on Mar 13, 2017 17:34:33 GMT
Many thanks, Elric, for posting that link (and to Ro for further clarification). I will be sure to have a look at Mr. Ward's tale. I have read very little of the current crop of occult horror writers simply because it is hard to find the time and, in some cases, gain access to their work without ordering books from the UK that, again, may involve really large shipping fees. I did find a volume of Mark Valentine's tales here in the Library (my employer) and I have to confess I was disappointed. The stories were erudite, artful, and from what I read, largely lacking in point. It's probably simply a difference in temperament. I did really like this one tale by Reggie Oliver which I read in a beautiful volume entitled Soliloquy for Pan. I've been meaning to recommend that the Library purchase some of his collections which would avoid my paying really high shipping fees. They usually buy what I request. I found this article in the archive which is right up my street and I have printed it out to read. Excitement! www.pardoes.info/roanddarroll/ArchiveDark.htmlcheers, H. If you are wanting to sample more of Reggie Oliver's work without going all in on an expensive release then let me recommend his 2015 retrospective A Sea of Blood. This title pulls stories from his first 6 or 7 collections and used paperback copies can be found on Amazon for less than $20 including shipping. A new copy on Amazon starts just over $20. Mr Happy
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Post by mrhappy on Mar 10, 2017 18:31:05 GMT
Speaking of this newsletter, I just mailed out $13 to you today.
Mr. Happy
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Post by mrhappy on Feb 2, 2017 14:37:26 GMT
And I was about to ask if it was too late to mention Kelley Jones, his interview, and his version of "The Ash Tree" (independent from Alisdair Wood's version) in the News Section. I've just had a major panic trimming the news section down to fit into the space allowed, and then in backing up I accidentally covered the new file with the old, so had to do it all again. So basically what I'm saying is ask me again when I'm feeling less suicidal or maybe homicidal! Is the price for a single issue still 11USD and is the address on the website still correct? If so, I am going to send you a little cash for a copy of this issue. I can't be missing out on a new C.E. Ward story! Mr Happy
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Post by mrhappy on Jan 14, 2017 16:41:08 GMT
I would definitely like to see a TOC for this title as I am curious if if it contains any previously unpublished material. Phantasm has released a couple of nice titles and I wish they were more readily available here in the States. JB I would think probably not - given that the book is only 97 pages long, and there are six previously-published stories, I shouldn't think there would be room for any aside from these. You are probably correct. Still, having all six stories gathered together with (hopefully) one of Dalby's always excellent introductions is something to b3 excited about. Mr. Happy
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Post by mrhappy on Jan 13, 2017 16:29:17 GMT
Has anyone noted yet that a collection of A.E. Ellis's tales, comprising all those which were published in various anthologies in the 1970s, has recently been published by Phantasm Press? The Haunted Haven and Other Ghost Stories is edited by Richard Dalby and is a small book (97pp) at a small price (£7.50). A number of Ellis's tales are in the M.R. James tradition, and I'd say this is an essential for any Jamesian library (though I haven't actually seen a copy myself yet, so I can't say whether any tales not on the list above are included). The book isn't listed on the Phantasm Press site so far, but it is out, and can be bought from Phantasm via Amazon. And here's the cover: View AttachmentI would definitely like to see a TOC for this title as I am curious if if it contains any previously unpublished material. Phantasm has released a couple of nice titles and I wish they were more readily available here in the States. Mr Happy
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Post by mrhappy on Jan 10, 2017 0:09:56 GMT
[attachment id="707" tthThis umbnail="1"] This wonderful set of books went for the low, low price of $850 this past weekend during an auction held in Freemont, New York. The auction was also streamed on eBay which is where I noticed it. Bidding got quite lively on this one as the auction house had this lot going in the $100-$250 range. If only I had a spare $900 to throw around. Someone has to reprint these one day, right? Mr. Happy
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Post by mrhappy on Dec 7, 2016 23:30:25 GMT
Congrats to both. I like the cover artwork for the forthcoming Terror Tales Of Cornwall, too. Splash will never seem the same. Neil Williams I didn't see this mentioned elsewhere but it appears that this series has been picked up by Telos Publishing and Terror Tales of Cornwall is slated for an early 2017 release. I'm thrilled this series has found a new home! Mr. Happy
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Post by mrhappy on Dec 7, 2016 3:47:37 GMT
Also, the comment about some stories being buried under dialect is spot on.
Mr Happy
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Post by mrhappy on Dec 7, 2016 3:24:10 GMT
As mentioned, it's also available in the Dalby & Pardoe edited Ghosts And Scholars where the editors note in their introduction: "He also contributed many fine occult stories to The Grand and other magazines in the 1920's, later collected in The Archer In The Arras (Grant & Murray, 1932). Some of them are submerged beneath an overdose of Scottish dialect, but of the others The Horn Of Vapula is one of his best stories, and the most Jamesian." The Archer In The Arras has a very striking (chiaroscuro?) cover. Has anyone read it? View AttachmentI have read it and it is well worth seeking out. Unfortunately, copies are very expensive and only three of the twenty-two stories have been anthologized. All except three or four of the stories are supernatural. E.F. Bleiler was not overly impressed - his typically matter-of-fact summation was that some of the folkloristic snippets were interesting but some of the stories should not have been published. While I usually admire Bleiler's opinion, I think he was a little harsh in regard to this collection. Spence had a knack for writing deliciously creepy passages. Take this from the story 'The Hudart' where our protagonist, while walking past an open door, glimpses a child dancing by lamplight: "The shadow, yes, it was a funny shadow too! Lord, what was it? The breath in my throat seemed to become solid as I looked at it. It was not the child's, but the silhouette of something monstorous, something that danced and leapt in time with her, something that waved huge wings and flourished a fanlike tail, a shape beaked and with hooded head. I shook myself slightly and stared. I might not call her. I was frozen on that step. Still she danced and capered, and the shadow capered with her." Spence is very underanthologized with only five stories (three of which appear here) appearing in various Peter Haining or Richard Dalby anthologies. A new edition of Archers in the Arras with a few extra stories would be a welcome edition. Mr. Happy
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Post by mrhappy on Nov 25, 2016 4:05:43 GMT
If anyone has a copy of this fanzine that they would be willing to part with, please message me. Actually, if anyone just owns a copy of this please message me. There is a four page story in this issue that I have been trying to locate for years. Figured it was worth a shot. Thank you advance, Mr. Happy Don't have a copy but take it that it's the Philip C. Heath story, The Last Frame, you're after? That guy should have had his own collection by now (unless he already has, and I missed it). That's the one. I always enjoyed Heath's stories (he wrote almost 30 of them that I am aware of) and this is the only one that has eluded me. Nothing has appeared under the Heath name in 25 years. From what I understand he left the field to practice selling real estate and never returned. Dead Man's Fingers is the story that everyone remembers but he had some other memorable tales appear over the years. A collection would be most welcome. Mr. Happy
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Post by mrhappy on Nov 22, 2016 0:49:28 GMT
If anyone has a copy of this fanzine that they would be willing to part with, please message me. Actually, if anyone just owns a copy of this please message me. There is a four page story in this issue that I have been trying to locate for years. Figured it was worth a shot.
Thank you advance,
Mr. Happy
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Post by mrhappy on Nov 22, 2016 0:39:20 GMT
Just checking to see how the Hanns Heinz Ewers Volume III is coming along. The first two volumes were fantastic and I am eagerly awaiting the third.
Mr. Happy
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Post by mrhappy on Oct 18, 2016 0:03:48 GMT
Very, very excited about this!
Mr. Happy
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Post by mrhappy on Sept 12, 2016 17:16:49 GMT
My review copy arrived yesterday, so I'm looking forward to delving into the contents. But slowly, as I want to savour them. And, with the latest G&S Newsletter having arrived today, I'll be able to round out the sequels and prequels with the two stories in that edition... though i do already know the contents of one of those fairly well. So far the best story in Book of Shadows 3 is the first, "Twenty Years Afterwards" by C.E. Ward. It is both a prequel and a sequel to "Lost Hearts" which adds much to the original story. As contributors to the G&S Newsletter get their copy first it almost tempts me to write something for it again. However, as my letters and article were excruciating to write (and to read?), I don't think I can do it again. Another author that could use a little wider recognition, C.E. Ward is starting to become my favorite modern supernatural short story author. His three collections from Sarob Press are outstanding and he just seems to keep getting better and better. He freely admits his debt to M.R. James but Ward has his own voice, particularly in his last two collections. Unfortunately, his books sell out quickly and then sky rocket (if you can find them) on the second hand market. But they are worth every penny. Mr. Happy
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Post by mrhappy on Sept 10, 2016 16:05:09 GMT
Robert Morgan has just emailed to tell me the book is sold out already. Phew! I think that must be a record (bodes well for my next project with Sarob, of which more anon). Copies will still be available from a number of dealers, of course. I really, really, really hope that we might get a 2nd printing or -gasp- a trade paperback edition of this set. Judging by the stories I have read, these deserve a wider audience. Mr. Happy
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