stephenbacon
Crab On The Rampage
www.stephenbacon.co.uk
Posts: 78
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Post by stephenbacon on Mar 30, 2009 22:51:48 GMT
In the early 1980s I borrowed a book from my local library. It was an anthology of horror stories and one tale in particular had a profound effect upon me. If memory serves, it was a British anthology. I have searched for several years to find out the title of this story without success, so I'll post a brief synopsis in the hope that someone recognises it -
An elderly woman kills a man (possibly her husband) and buries him in her garden. A certain amount of time passes and she thinks she has gotten away with the murder. But then she notices that his 'fingers' have begun to grow out of the grass in her garden.
There may be many errors in the plot I have described. Decades of time and my teenaged memory may have warped it totally out of shape, but I hope someone can shed some light onto its title.
Thank you.
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Post by carolinec on Mar 30, 2009 23:09:28 GMT
D'you know, that rings a bell with me too Steve. But I haven't a clue what story it might be. It's not from a Pan or Fontana Horror is it - one of the early ones?
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Post by Craig Herbertson on Mar 31, 2009 10:10:09 GMT
Is it possibly Meshes of Doom by Neville Kilvington - Third Pan Book of Horror. Man buries wife though
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Post by dem on Mar 31, 2009 11:43:33 GMT
R. C. Cook's Green Fingers in Fontana Horror 3?: Old widow Bowen prides herself on being able to make “anything grow” in her garden. this seems to be true. Even tropical plants entirely unsuited to the climate flourish as do a piece of firewood, a tuft of her hair, a fingernail …
When a rabbit she buried grows back from a skeleton and runs off she begins to worry. she decides to chop down the tree but it resents any attempt at keeping it in check and she only succeeds in slicing off her finger with an axe. She plants the severed digit, too - and a replica widow Bowen shoots up from the soil. Comes the day with the fully-grown double uproots itself …
Shortly afterwards in the coppice, the body of an old woman is found chopped into pieces …
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Post by Johnlprobert on Mar 31, 2009 17:21:17 GMT
There are quite a few Chetwynd-Hayes stories like this. There's certianly one in 'The Cradle Demon' with a cabbage patch of human heads. I also think he wrote something called 'A Time to Sow, A Time to Reap' but I'm guessing now. What I really need to do is peruse my RCH collection again, so that's this evening taken care of....
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Post by carolinec on Mar 31, 2009 19:21:22 GMT
R. C. Cook's Green Fingers in Fontana Horror 3?: Old widow Bowen prides herself on being able to make “anything grow” in her garden. this seems to be true. Even tropical plants entirely unsuited to the climate flourish as do a piece of firewood, a tuft of her hair, a fingernail … When a rabbit she buried grows back from a skeleton and runs off she begins to worry. she decides to chop down the tree but it resents any attempt at keeping it in check and she only succeeds in slicing off her finger with an axe. She plants the severed digit, too - and a replica widow Bowen shoots up from the soil. Comes the day with the fully-grown double uproots itself … Shortly afterwards in the coppice, the body of an old woman is found chopped into pieces … I think this is the one I was thinking of. ;D But it was Steve's question (and I've hijacked it as usual :  so I'll butt out ...  |
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so I'll butt out ... 