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.