Horror Literature History

When the teenage Alicia McCann has a horrible accident, she is visited by the Whisper Catcher - a dreamlike spirit girl with great powers. But the Whisper Catcher's powers are waning, her strength stolen by an evil shadowy spectre. To help the Whisper Catcher, Alicia must undertake a strange and terrifying journey from her home in San Francisco to the depths of the Australian outback. Dark treachery awaits and Alicia must dig through history to uncover a terrifying secret, unlike any she could imagine...

Brandt is a down-and-out guitarist and vocalist who believes his life has hit rock bottom. He can't make the rent on his apartment, and he drinks so much he can barely make it to the crappy gig that keeps his band afloat, let alone play when he gets there. When he leaves the bar one dark night with a bottle of Jose Cuervo in one hand and his guitar case in the other, he finds he's locked out of his apartment with nowhere to go.

The real monsters are men. London 1888, and Jack the Ripper is terrorizing the people of the city. Evelyn, a young woman disfigured by her dangerous work in a matchstick factory, with nowhere to go, does not know what to make of her new position as a maid to the Elephant Man in London Hospital. Evelyn wanted to be locked away from the world like he is, shut away from the filth and dangers of the streets. But in Joseph Merrick, the Elephant Man, she finds a gentle kindred who does not recoil from her and who understands her pain.

In questo terzo libro della Storia contemporanea, il signor Bergeret si riconcilia finalmente con la vita. Diventato professore titolare, acquisita la dolce compagnia di un cane, continua, fra riflessioni filosofiche e prese di posizioni politiche del tutto scomode riguardanti l’affare Dreyfus, ad accompagnarci nel viaggio di questa Francia in cui governi radicali e conservatori si alternano, e in cui l’antisemitismo viene considerato patriottico.

In questo quarto volume della tetralogia della Storia contemporanea, il signor Bergeret, promosso docente alla Sorbona, si trasferisce a Parigi con la sorella e la figlia Paolina. Con la sorella esplora il proprio passato, incontrato casualmente nella sua vecchia casa d’infanzia, sfitta e rovinata; con la figlia acquista una brillante ascoltatrice dei suoi discorsi filosofici, divenuti, finalmente, ottimisti.

In questo secondo volume della tetralogia della Storia contemporanea, che segue “L’olmo del Mail”, troviamo il signor Bergeret impegnato in discussioni politiche sulla corruzione dei funzionari della Repubblica e su questioni di morale cristiana e non, mentre, nella sua vita domestica (di cui il manichino di vimini è ingrato simbolo), egli acquisisce “l’inestimabile vantaggio di essere tradito”.Cornice musicale: A real slow rag, di Scott Joplin.

This collection contains three short stories: "The Vampire Hunter", "The Undead", and "The Gatekeeper".

Nell Martin is moving again, this time to the Winslow Grand Hotel, built in 1878. As Nell is settling in, strange things begin to happen. Doors lock of their own accord, writing appears on bathroom walls - and most horrifying of all - visions of a dead boy permeate her waking life. Thinking it was her mind playing tricks on her, she soon finds the past and the present colliding as she learns horrific details of a murder that happened at the hotel in 1907 involving a girl named Lea.

There’s a certain kind of silence when you wake in the deep of night, in a strange bed, knowing that someone else is in the room. And seventeen-year-old May has just awoken to...what? A ghost girl. A girl with May’s face, hair, and complexion. A ghostly twin named Cristofana. And this twin wants a favor of May: Come to Old Florence; come to the year 1348. In modern-day Florence for the summer, May is soon seduced into saying yes. And when she encounters a brooding medieval painter, her curiosity about the past explodes into desire.

"History of the Necronomicon" is a short text written by H. P. Lovecraft in 1927, and published in 1938. It describes the origins of the fictional book of the same name: the occult grimoire Necronomicon, a now-famous element of some of his stories. The short text purports to be non-fiction, adding to the appearance of 'pseudo-authenticity' which Lovecraft valued in building his Cthulhu Mythos oeuvre. Accordingly, it supposes the history of the Necronomicon as the inspiration for Robert W. Chambers' The King in Yellow, which concerns a book that overthrows the minds of those who read it.

In questo brevissimo resoconto Daniel Defoe fa luce su un caso misterioso, avvenuto nella parrocchia di St. Benet Fynk agli inizi del Settecento. Per non rovinare la lettura a chiunque si accinga ad immergersi nell’inquietante cronaca, è sufficiente citare gli ingredienti perfetti per questa storia del brivido: un apparente suicidio, l'inspiegabile comparsa di una persona dai contorni indefinibili e la presenza di ben due testimoni.

Originariamente incluso in "The History And Reality Of Apparitions" (1727), "Il fantasma accusatore" riporta un avvenimento bizzarro, della cui veridicità nemmeno Defoe è sicuro. In occasione di un processo per omicidio, l’imputato - che sembrerebbe sul punto di venire assolto per mancanza di prove - assiste d'improvviso ad un’apparizione inquietante, che lo costringerà a confessare il misfatto.

Arthur Machen’s novella explores the disturbing consequences of toying with the line between the earthly world and the spiritual realm. The Great God Pan centers around an ominous woman named Helen, who lives in the woods and invites morbid happenings. The book faced harsh censure upon its publication in 1894 for its explicit content, but today it is considered a hallmark of horror fiction. Stephen King himself called it “one of the best horror stories ever written”, making it essential reading for any dedicated fans of the genre.

An Episode of Cathedral History is one of M. R. James's most quietly chilling tales—a masterwork of subtle horror, antiquarian mystery, and creeping dread. Behind the stone walls of a venerable English cathedral, the past stirs with a presence that should have remained undisturbed. In this haunting narrative, the mundane slips imperceptibly into the macabre. A scholar's inquiry unlocks a forgotten secret; shadows lengthen; and something long sealed away begins to wake.

Marcus was a happy family man until Hitler's reign of tyranny came. He was captured and tortured in a Nazi camp. It was his grandmother's magic that saved him from death by turning him into a vampire. He now struggles with the loss of his wife and keeping his daughter safe not only from Nazis, but from the creatures that live in the realm of the Dark World, including vampires, werewolves, and witches. How will Marcus protect his daughter from the dangers of the Dark World? Listen to the novel and find out.

Private Ike Lowery, a Union Infantryman from Illinois, wakes up in a strange place, short on memories, weak from hunger and blood loss from a head wound, and with a broken leg. He discovers that he is the "guest" of a Confederate widow in whose dooryard his squad was ambushed. Ike worries about his sanity due to his memory loss and the constant commentary in his head from a fallen comrade who finds Ike's situation amusing.

In post Civil War New York City, Detective Pat O'Malley is living inside Poe's Cottage in the Bronx. O'Malley is haunted by Poe one night, and the detective finds a strange note. As a result, O'Malley decides to prove that Edgar Allan Poe did not die in Baltimore from an alcoholic binge but was, instead, murdered. O'Malley quickly becomes embroiled in a "cold case" that thrusts him into the lair of one of the most sinister and ruthless killers in 1865 New York City.

Young Tabby Aykroyd has been brought to the dusty mansion of Seldom House to be nursemaid to a foundling boy. He is a savage little creature, but the Yorkshire moors harbor far worse, as Tabby soon discovers. Why do scores of dead maids and masters haunt Seldom House with a jealous devotion that extends beyond the grave?

Il giovane e ingenuo Thomas Dawson racconta ad un gentiluomo della presunta apparizione del Diavolo a cui avrebbe assistito. In questo brevissimo racconto, col ritmo estremamente incalzante di un dialogo diretto, Daniel Defoe mette in luce - non senza ironia - le contraddizioni alla base di simili resoconti, anticipando di ben due secoli e mezzo la moderna "psicologia dell’insolito".

I figli di un nobiluomo si ritrovano loro malgrado a competere per la stessa ragazza. Tom, il maggiore, ne vorrebbe fare la propria amante; Jack, invece, amandola veramente, vorrebbe poterla sposare. Lo scontro rischia di finire in tragedia, quando i due fratelli decidono di ricorrere ad un duello risolutivo. La mattina in cui hanno deciso di incontrarsi per combattere, tuttavia, entrambi vivono un incontro che ha del paranormale, e che li convincerà a tornare a più miti consigli.