The premise is diabolical in its elegance: two strangers meet, exchange idle talk, and one proposes a pact so grotesque it seems almost a joke. “You do my murder, I’ll do yours.” A child’s logic, but a murderer’s ingenuity. This was Patricia Highsmith’s debut novel in 1950, and like the serpent in Genesis, she slithered … Continue reading Strangers on a Train
Tag: horror
The Demons at the Trailhead
“If you talk to any serious hiker they’re like yes, demons are real, make sure you don’t walk along a stream for too long, sometimes a witch trails me for miles, avoid wearing bright colours, and pray before entering the forest. The ancient is still very much alive along the edges.” I stumbled upon that … Continue reading The Demons at the Trailhead
Varney the Vampire; or, How to Milk a Penny Dreadful for 220 Chapters
The vampire, that pallid, nocturnal pest, has taken on many shapes over the centuries. Byron made him a sulky aristocrat. Stoker made him a real estate enthusiast with a fondness for bats. Hollywood turned him into either a suave lounge lizard or a disco-dancing count for children’s television. But before all that, we had Varney … Continue reading Varney the Vampire; or, How to Milk a Penny Dreadful for 220 Chapters
Margorie McCall: Lived Once, Buried Twice
Photo courtesy of Morbidology (2024) There are many epitaphs in the world that make one pause. Keats had his “Here lies one whose name was writ in water,” and Shakespeare, ever the property lawyer, threatened to curse anyone who moved his bones. But Margorie McCall of Lurgan, County Armagh, went one better - or worse, … Continue reading Margorie McCall: Lived Once, Buried Twice
I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream
I remember the first time I read Harlan Ellison’s I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream. It wasn’t just a story; it was an assault. A literary thunderclap. Most science fiction of the Cold War era promised us rockets, aliens, perhaps a better tomorrow wrapped in chrome optimism. Ellison, instead, offered us a world … Continue reading I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream
Wording 