A Treasury of Royal Scandals: The Shocking True Stories of History’s Wickedest, Weirdest, Most Wanton Kings, Queens, Tsars, Popes, and Emperors by Michael Farquhar, 2001 My favorite quote: “The rigid, repressed [Queen] Victoria was never a particularly cozy mum, candidly acknowledging early on that she derived ‘no especial pleasure or compensation’ from her large broodContinue reading “A Treasury of Royal Scandals: The Shocking True Stories of History’s Wickedest, Weirdest, Most Wanton Kings, Queens, Tsars, Popes, and Emperors by Michael Farquhar”
Monthly Archives: July 2021
Pearls Before Swine by Margery Allingham
Pearls Before Swine (#12 in the Albert Campion series), Margery Allingham, 1945 (Pearls Before Swine was originally published as Coroner’s Pidgin) My favorite quote: “Nobody, nobody ever killed anyone simply in order to provide an awkward corpse in someone else’s house.” (Sorry, but that’s just hilarious) Notable characters: Albert Campion, the detective who has justContinue reading “Pearls Before Swine by Margery Allingham”
Comes the Blind Fury by John Saul
Comes the Blind Fury, John Saul, 1980 My favorite quote: “All she knew was her anger. Her anger and her hatred … ” Notable characters: Michelle Pendleton, the new girl; Amanda, the blind dead girl Most memorable scene: I’m not gonna lie … Amanda, sailing off the cliff … but I’m biased. I love itContinue reading “Comes the Blind Fury by John Saul”
The Long Walk by Stephen King
The Long Walk, Stephen King (writing as Richard Bachman), 1979 My favorite quote: “They walked through the rainy dark like gaunt ghosts, and Garraty didn’t like to look at them. They were the walking dead.” Notable characters: Ray Garraty, the main Walker; McVries, a Walker who befriends Garraty; Stebbins, a Walker with a secret; theContinue reading “The Long Walk by Stephen King”
Midnight Cowboy by James Leo Herlihy
Midnight Cowboy, James Leo Herlihy, 1965 My favorite quote: “Her voice went soft and sweet: it seemed to be luring some small child into a gas chamber with promises of candy.” Notable characters: Joe Buck, the cowboy; Ratso Rizzo, the con-man Most memorable scene: The bus ride to Miami, of course. Let it never beContinue reading “Midnight Cowboy by James Leo Herlihy”
Behind the Book: The Forgotten, by Tamara Thorne
The Forgotten: Cozy Horror I haven’t revisited my novel, The Forgotten, since the early 2000s, when I first wrote it. Now, I’m listening to it chapter by chapter, as the audio producer turns it in, and it’s quite an eye-opener. While there is, as always, plenty sex and violence — along with ribald problems likeContinue reading “Behind the Book: The Forgotten, by Tamara Thorne”
Behind the Book: The Black Wasp
Monsters, murder, myths, and more … Go behind the scenes with Thorne & Cross and get an inside look at The Black Wasp, book three in Alistair Cross’s Vampires of Crimson Cove series, at Thorne & Cross: Carnival Macabre!
Masking the Monster
Do you prefer in-your-face horror or suggestive horror? Which frightens you most when you’re reading a ghost story or watching a scary movie? In Poltergeist, while we do see a number of masks worn by the real supernatural entity, for most of us, the clown doll that we see in place of the monster itselfContinue reading “Masking the Monster”