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Post by Calenture on Apr 14, 2008 11:47:06 GMT
All Heads Turn When the Hunt Goes By John FarrisFirst published 1977; this Macdonald & Jane's/Raven edition 1978 From the author of The Fury (which, like Stephen King's Carrie was filmed by Brian De Palma) comes a strange story of sex, violence and mutilation stretching over generations and ranging in setting over America's deep south, England, and the old gold coast of Africa. The opening pages get the story off to a great start with a society wedding ceremony where the silent vibrations of a muffled bell shake the church to pieces while the groom goes berserk with a saber and stabs his bride through the throat, then proceeds to divest various others of body-parts. This sets us up for an equally grotesque occurrence at an asylum in wartime England. The author calls up an old legend of a long-lived white woman who allegedly ruled a tribe of savages on the African coast before returning us to the American deep south, where the surviving family members are still trying to pull themselves together after the disasterous wedding. An excursion into the swamps reveals a stranded, rotting paddle steamer and evidence of voodoo rites, and it becomes apparent that the legend of the Lamia has been resurrected for another outing. Of this book and Tristan Travis's Lamia, I wouldn't like to say which is the better book. Travis's book is possibly more sensational but none the worse for that (look I wrote this ages back, and obviously I didn't think stabbing brides in the throat with sabres at weddings was all that sensational then. ) Anyway, I wasn't done... All Heads Turn... is curiously finely written for a modern horror novel, which makes the dives into visceral horror all the more shocking when they come (I didn't really rate much horror in those days, OK?). Its pace is more measured, more controlled, and we're spared the sprawling epilogues which much modern horror suffers from. Farris is a fine writer. Definitely one worth reading. Steve has written about Farris's The Captors and When Michael Calls here: Nel Horror: How many?But in a probably useless effort to help sort out this board, I'll stick it here: Steve wrote: And at slightly greater length here... Steve wrote: To me, too! ;D Oops! I didn't put in Vicky's post which prompted me to start the Farris thread! I didn't see it in the search results! Vicky was writing about Farris's Story Time With The Bluefield Strangler in Best New HorrorVictoria wrote:
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rob4
Devils Coach Horse
Posts: 104
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Post by rob4 on Jul 17, 2013 21:03:31 GMT
I've just completed The Captors on my kindle. My first ever Farris book and I was well entertained. It's not really horror - more a suspense thriller, although it does have one Grand Guignol scene (described above) that is out there with the best of them. It starts off as a kidnap drama and just when you think that it's going to be a variation on the Stockholm Syndrome plot it veers in to the home invasion genre which was very popular (at least in movies) in the 60s and 70s. The characters are well drawn within the limitations of the page count and the set pieces few but memorable. There are two twists - a mid novel one I didn't see coming and one towards the end that I did. The politics on display and the descriptions of drug culture come across as a bit dated but easily overlooked if you treat it as a period piece. I'll definitely dip into Farris again though based on this.
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rob4
Devils Coach Horse
Posts: 104
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Post by rob4 on Oct 5, 2014 11:55:41 GMT
Just finished All Heads Turn When the Hunt Goes By - an absolute classic, can't recommend it highly enough. Agree with the review in post 1 except that Farris does do a lengthy prologue - he cleverly disguises it by putting it in Chapter 2!
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Post by franklinmarsh on Oct 24, 2018 10:28:24 GMT
Steve has written about Farris's The Captors and When Michael Calls here: Nel Horror: How many?But in a probably useless effort to help sort out this board, I'll stick it here: Steve wrote: Picked up When Michael Calls recently. NEL 1970 abridged(?!?!!?) from Mr Farris' original 1967 US printing. (Must check how long the US version is compared to NEL's obligatory 124 pages). Started off as a spooky ghost telephone call mystery, and has now turned satisfyingly pulpy with a nasty murder by bees (yes, bees). Will be back with more.
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Post by franklinmarsh on Oct 24, 2018 12:08:27 GMT
Hah! Rog did start a thread about this vaultofevil.proboards.com/thread/971/john-farris-when-michael-calls which the search failed to pick up, hence my appearance here. Some quick searching has also revealed that other editions of the book contain up to 184, 249 or even 256 pages. Although at least one edition boasts an introduction by Stephen King. Would Kingy bang on for 100 pages? The NEL 1970 edition does have tiddley print too.
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Post by helrunar on Oct 24, 2018 15:01:34 GMT
There was a US TV movie adaptation of When Michael Calls, sometime in the early 70s. It ran in the ABC Movie of the Week series, which was sort of our answer to Armchair Theatre. It's one of the ones I remember watching at the time of the original broadcast, but have not revisited since. My very, VERY vague memory is that it starts out making you think something spooky is going on, but then turns out to be some kind of gaslighting thing (in the ORIGINAL sense of "gaslight"--which, I gather, is now obsolescent). Definitely don't recall any bees... my amnesia of the past now is vast and illimitable.
cheers, H.
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Post by Jojo Lapin X on Oct 24, 2018 15:57:16 GMT
What is the new meaning of "gaslighting"?
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Post by helrunar on Oct 24, 2018 16:40:10 GMT
"Gaslighting" seems to have become used in a much more generic sense now. According to a Wikipedia entry: "Signs of gaslighting include:
Withholding information from victim;
Countering information to fit the abuser's perspective;
Discounting information;
Verbal abuse, usually in the form of jokes;
Blocking and diverting the victim's attention from outside sources;
Trivializing the victim's worth; and,
Undermining victim by gradually weakening them and their thought process"
It is derived from the old play (original title Angel Street) but the definition has become more oriented towards power dynamics and rhetoric.
This is the best I can do. I guess you avoid social media--it's being used in some rather baffling ways (to me) on there.
Best wishes,
H.
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Post by Jojo Lapin X on Oct 24, 2018 17:49:40 GMT
"Gaslighting" seems to have become used in a much more generic sense now. According to a Wikipedia entry: "Signs of gaslighting include: Withholding information from victim; Countering information to fit the abuser's perspective; Discounting information; Verbal abuse, usually in the form of jokes; Blocking and diverting the victim's attention from outside sources; Trivializing the victim's worth; and, Undermining victim by gradually weakening them and their thought process" It is derived from the old play (original title Angel Street) but the definition has become more oriented towards power dynamics and rhetoric. This is the best I can do. I guess you avoid social media--it's being used in some rather baffling ways (to me) on there. Best wishes, H. You are gaslighting me!
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Post by helrunar on Oct 24, 2018 18:43:01 GMT
My Dear Jojo Lapin X,
For one who lives as a recluse, you have a remarkably astute and rapid grasp of contemporary idiom. Congratulations!
cheers, H.
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Post by Jojo Lapin X on Oct 24, 2018 20:12:18 GMT
My Dear Jojo Lapin X, For one who lives as a recluse, you have a remarkably astute and rapid grasp of contemporary idiom. Congratulations! cheers, H. I do not even own a computer! I post here by licking a power outlet with my tongue.
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Post by franklinmarsh on Oct 25, 2018 11:24:33 GMT
Thanks for the film (and gaslighting) info, H. Ben Gazzarra, eh? It's on YouTube, but I find it almost impossible to watch stuff on the 'puter. Anyways, we're still in spooky country, and there's been another nasty murder (SPOILER of the local law enforcement officer, blasted with his own shotgun into a river, where he ends up going over a waterfall and interrupting the local fireworks display). Who or whatever Michael is, he's a right bastid. I'm enjoying this mixture of spine-chilling followed by ultra-violence.
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Post by franklinmarsh on Nov 2, 2018 13:40:17 GMT
Phew! Finished in a rush. Perhaps because I was aware of the abridged nature of the work , it did feel as though some scenes were missing. The reveal was a bit disappointing, but there's more to it than at first glance. A satisfying ending of the main story, and an hilarious happy-ever-after coda.
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