THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE (Book)
There’s an excellent reason THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE is held in such high regard now, over fifty years after its initial publication.
THE GHOST PIRATES
THE GHOST PIRATES contains all of Hodgson’s attributes–a compelling ocean-set narrative, a presentation of supernatural phenomena that was many years (if not decades) ahead of its time, and a most unique descriptive power–in its short and concentrated account of the Mortezestus, a ship besieged by spectral “pirates.”
GASTON LEROUX’S PHANTOM STORIES
In truth, however, only one of the nine Leroux stories collected here is PHANTOM related: “The Real Opera Ghost,” a nonfiction account of the actual crimes that inspired the novel.
THE FOG
That’s appropriate, as THE FOG is far and away the best of the bunch. For that matter, I feel it’s one of Etchison’s best novels, period.
Fastyngange
Another novel for those who think they’ve heard it all, it being the story of a talking hole. Yes, a hole, or rather an oubliette, which not only serves as the story’s chief driving force but also narrates the thing.
FANTASTIC MEMORIES
As the title promises, this short story collection purports to be a compilation of memories, most of them fantastic and/or macabre in nature.
Elsewhere
For the most part ELSEWHERE is a charming, low-key haunted house tale that’s more interesting than scary. It certainly contains its share of quintessentially Blatty-esque wisecracks.
THE MASTER AND MARGARITA–The Miniseries
This Russian miniseries is the most monumental adaptation yet attempted of Mikhail Bulgakov’s MASTER AND MARGARITA
THE COUNTRY OF WOLVES
This gorgeously designed graphic novel fleshes out an ancient Inuit folktale.
CHILDGRAVE
The third novel by the woefully underrated Ken Greenhall, who as usual delivered a strikingly unique and intelligent tale. The subject is one that preoccupied Greenhall’s fiction: love, which is viewed not as a pleasant diversion nor an all-conquering panacea, but as a complex and oft-destructive entity whose effects are far-reaching.