What are you reading? — Page 63

Kelso, Chris - Possession: Dreams Of Suffering And Sanity

Part of the Midnight Monograph series, this wades into Andrzej Żuławski’s layered Horror film.
Possession equates with being possessed, being possessive. The film is a marital breakdown writ large, and according to Mr Kelso, may also be symbolic of the sundering and later reunification of Germany.
The movie can be a harrowing experience, as the main couple, Anna and Mark, are caught in a violent, scream filled separation.
The book goes into Berlin of 1981, recollections from a few participants. Also a great deal of theories and guesses about writer / director Żuławski.
To be blunt, I found the second half of the book more enjoyable than the first.
The writer spends an inordinate amount of time inserting his own experiences into the text. He suffered a relationship breakdown, as well, which he shares with readers over and over and over.
He parallels his adolescent fallout with the Possession characters, as if his misery was unique.
I daresay most of us suffer youthful calamities; few of us escape dewy relationships unscathed.
Kelso’s whining about his poor-me period with X is a distraction for about 20% of the book.
The movie is not for the faint-hearted. The book may be better for collectors of the series.

Collins, Max - Quarry’s Vote

Professional hitman Quarry is retired, comfortably off, living in seclusion.
He encounters a girl half his age and eventually marries, a turn I found contrived.
Turning down a lucrative contract leads to those nearest him being killed.
Another annoying coincidence, I suppose necessary to kick the revenge plot in gear.
Once underway, Quarry locates his adversaries, observes, ingratiates himself to innocent helpers.
Even though he is middle-aged and overweight, ladies stare and flirt.
Maybe that will subside when he hits 80. Or he’ll be chased by gals in wheelchairs and walkers.
Formula all the way, but if you appreciate this efficient killer, you should enjoy this.

Various (Editor: Schiff, Stuart David) - Whispers

Juicy sampling from one of the most acclaimed Horror fanzines from the 70’s and 80’s.
Opening with Karl Edward Wagner, closing with Ramsey Campbell.
In between: Fritz Leiber, Robert Bloch, Hugh Cave, Brian Lumley, Robert Aickman, many others.

Illustrators include Tim Kirk, Lee Brown Coye, Stephen Fabian.
These predate the Splatterpunk run, and are similar to classic Arkham House.

“The Closer Of The Way” makes a great in-joke from the genre’s top prankster.

The taped interview provides all the clues one needs in “Dark Winner”, a bitter competition that extended beyond the grave.

“Ladies In Waiting” manages to be suspenseful, sensual, and horrifying. Never relax on dusty sheets.

Whether the gentleman’s club or explorer’s club, the setting abides. Leather chairs, fireplace, a tumbler of single malt, cigars. And a yarn. “Antiquities” combines Egypt, cats, the exotic female, rural misdeeds.

“The Goat” features the malicious, know-all neighbor. Who knows what occurs behind doors, what was buried in your past, the slips unseen by everyone else. Sneering blackmail or exposure.

Issues of the old, stapled-together Whispers can hard to acquire. The HC compilations are generally affordable and will quench your thirst for old school horrors.

Ayckbourn, Alan - The Divide

A lethal STD pandemic is annihilating humankind. Women carry, exposed men perish. Within a few generations, adios folks.
Solution: divide the genders. Men in the North, women in the South. Wait for the disease to die out.
Generations play out; now young male Eilhu and female Giella discover hormones and libido.
Epistolary novel, set in the near future, predominantly in the female South, is NOT a dystopian saga.
Society works fairly well, although there are glimpses of discontent. Attitudes are divided between Orthodox, Moderates and Progressives.
Being epistolary, the narrative is carried by diaries, letters and memorandums.
Because so much of this is told by young Soween, I am putting this into Young Adult reading, despite some of the spicy activities.
Main characters are teenagers, yet they seem like teens from the 1940’s or much earlier.
I had trouble buying them.
There are four seasons. Winter, Spring, Summer, Autumn. Each season has 30 days.
After 200 pages, the adults predominate and the energy boosts.
By using different fonts, each character their own handwriting. That was a creative touch.
Fans of the playwright might be tempted, but this not a comedy of manners. It is an old-fashioned, VERY old-fashioned love story.

Ashe, Rosalind - Moths

Oxford don Harry Harris comes across Dower House, a bit worse for the years.
Nevertheless, this is a spacious beauty, faded, neglected, needing care and expense.
Developers, hoteliers, loud sorts, all are primed at the auction.
Fortunately, the couple Harry backs, Nemo and Peter, carry the day, and get the house.
Along with a wayward spirit, Sarah Moore, Regency actress, dead over 150 years.
The story is an under-the-skin thriller, with three compelling characters.
Nemo (Latin for no one), Sarah (murderous, lascivious) and Dower House itself.
Throughout, Harry observes and narrates, meddles, grows obsessive. Harry is a dishrag.
An over-aged worshiper, his increasing presence takes me away from the other three, the three I would prefer to be with.
Despite a few detours, the pace gathers momentum until a heady conclusion.
While I enjoyed this, I longed for more Nemo, much more.

Murphy, Damian - The Acephalic Imperial

Wayward spirit, Séverine, accepts a role in an unorthodox household.
Not a maid, not a servant, but as an observer, a watcher.
With instructions from her employer, Vital, to steal stray items occasionally.
Tasks are simple enough, and a change from the usual lethargy inducing jobs.
Séverine is a hired voyeur, aware that she herself, her activities are also observed.
The novella is increasingly steeped in a dream fugue.
The house, which is sumptuously furnished, along with her moonlit hours, influence her.
An alternate history emerges, perhaps a more aware doppelganger.
Murphy’s prose can be knotty at times, but never overbearing, and the wordplay is something to savor.

Probert, Kate - The Descent

Asthmatics, those plagued by claustrophobia, nyctophobia, or being a main course.
Neil Marshall’s 2005 shocker is one to avoid.
This book is a fine companion for those who want to know more about the participants, locations, facts.
Facts becomes a dodgy area, since writer Probert received a parcel from “Tasha”, supposedly member of the original cave party on which the film is based.
Before officials obliterated all traces and concealed mountain openings.
This is highly readable and the author is enthusiastic.

I grew up in Appalachia and caved for over a decade. I saw the film during its run, knew it was not filmed in Appalachia, but that was OK. Sent DVDs to old companions.
One of our tricks for finding “new to us” caves was to look for warm mist rising from openings. Spring or fall, early morning, were best times, when the air was cool but the cave system was warmer.
Good luck. Tell others where you might be. Although we never did.

Catling, Brian - A Mystery Of Remnant And Other Absences

His previous book, Munky, I never understood. The characters, the narrative, the “mystery”.
The one provides an incisive prologue by Victor Rees. What to look for in Catling’s writing, how to grasp his intent better. Much is made of Catling’s theme of the hollowness of it all.

There are a handful of stories in this, along with fragments and prose poems. Poetry, whether rhyming or prose, no longer stirs me. Add music and I might enjoy it.

“Heart Of The Forest” opens with the impoverished artist, once brimming with talent. Greatest was predicted. Until he chased the muse deeper and deeper. A subtle story, and a second read will help.

An elaborate extension of a Poe classic, “Further Facts In The Case Of M. Valdemar”, leads us past the last breath, suggesting the blinders of medical experts. The experiment taken too far.

The longest, and most satisfying story far and away, is “A Pendon Parva Ghost”. This opens with a mummified heart, which someone consumes. The tale told by the erudite man, a self-styled guru of sorts, ever trawling for new disciples. In this outing, a drives a handful to a remote village, then into an obscure museum. Where, on display, is a labor of love. A marvelous contrast of surface and substance.

Concluding is an afterword by Iain Sinclair, again dissecting and interpreting our author.
At the back are story notes = extremely helpful.
I did not enjoy this book.

Coldiron, Katharine - Plan 9 From Outer Space

Excellent, in-depth analysis of a bad film, ridiculed, scorned, yet regarded fondly.
Scene by scene, Coldiron breaks down poor scenes, incompetent dialogue, amateurish mistakes.
Ed Wood desperately wanted to make films, but he simply did not have the chops.
Time and again, the author points out where Wood could easily have salvaged a scene. But no.
For all that, she enjoys watching this film, and others from this director.
She has no use for Hollywood formula, tentpoles, white bread, similar to my own tastes.
One point struck me, Plan 9 has NEVER been shown in Wood’s intended aspect ratio, which would have cropped boom mics, tops of sets, other errors.
An enjoyable read for those who have a taste for “bad cinema”, and delight in being surprised.

Unsworth, Sophia J - Silent House: And Other Strange Stories

This ought to tempt many who enjoy “strange” stories. Yes, too many books wave that shingle. “Hey, I’m strange, I’m packed with strangeness” when they are just Horror tales, supernatural yarns, ghost stories.
Unsworth seems to have found a crossing into the borderlands.

The title story flows into the cinema, Silent cinema. A house devoted to a bygone artiste, disliked by the authorities. There was a death, a murder. Later, footage from his final work goes missing. Nevertheless, the museum acts as a lodestone for tarrying memories.

“The Caller” is more about the recipient of mysterious phone calls. After all, he had purchased a vintage telephone. Pre-plastic, Bakelite. He ought to have expected the device to have a few quirks. That it may even pick up on other resonances.

One can stare at the past, inhabit old memories, resist change. “The Grey Man”, an reclusive observer, is himself seen by the homeowner. He doesn’t appear danger, a bit sad, really. Gazing, sometimes even walking up the front lawn, then too hesitant to knock. There is a longing.

“The Tall Tailoress” shares a building, an alliance, with the architect. She is the more successful, designing gowns and dresses for an elite clientele. Including royalty. He is less fortunate, as none of his elaborate designs find form. So, he takes the random side jobs. Once underway, this becomes an unsettling tale of betrayal and death.

“Woodbine” was an older country home, settling into ruin. The appraiser’s task was straightforward enough. Catalogue and value the inventory. Daunting, yet the remuneration was handsome. Plus, he could stay there rent-free for five months. Small stipulation, should he depart, for any reason, prior to the five months, he would have to pay rent for the time spent there. What could possibly force him to leave?

This is an auspicious debut, and fans of troubling stories would be well served in searching this out.