Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

Author: Sandy Ferber

The Great White Space: Black mountain side

The Great White Space by Basil Copper

For those of you who have read everything written by the great H. P. Lovecraft but are still hankering for another solid dose of cosmic horror and tentacled monstrosities, hoo boy, have I got a doozy for you! Although written four decades after the so-called “Sage of Providence” dominated the field of weird fiction in the 1930s, this book – Basil Copper’s The Great White Space – is such a convincing pastiche that all fans of the genre should be left happily grinning nevertheless.

Bury Him Darkly: Malice from the chalice

Bury Him Darkly by John Blackburn

Although it’s been almost 18 years since I last read English author John Blackburn’s first novel, A Scent of New-Mown Hay (1958), I still vividly recall several segments of the book, mainly due to the forcefulness of the writing therein. And really, with its plot conflating a female ex-Nazi scientist, deserted Russian villages, and a fungoid mutation that is slowly spreading across Europe, the book is inherently hard to forget.

Pippin’s Journal: A real pip!

Pippin’s Journal by Rohan O’Grady

“A spellbinding Gothic page-tuner,” the folks at Valancourt Books tell us on the back cover of their new edition of Rohan O’Grady’s novel entitled Pippin’s Journal, and happily, this blurb tells it just the way it is. The book was one that I had never even heard of up until a few months ago, and yet it has suddenly and surprisingly become one of my favorite reads of this year. Simply stated, I just loved this one!

The Scarlet Boy: Don’t spare me the details!

The Scarlet Boy by Arthur Calder-Marshall

In the mood for an offbeat haunted-house novel to keep you company during this fall season … or during any season; a beautifully written tale of supernatural horror that you have most likely never heard of before? Well, then, I have a doozy of a suggestion for you … namely The Scarlet Boy, by the British author Arthur Calder-Marshall! The book has been unfortunately neglected for over six decades now, and a quick look at its sporadic publishing history will help explain why it might be an unknown quantity for you and the general reading public today,

Doctors Wear Scarlet: Hated the movie, loved the book

Doctors Wear Scarlet by Simon Raven

The British film Bloodsuckers, from 1970, was easily one of the worst cinematic experiences I’ve sat through in recent memory; a confused and confusing mess of a movie, made even more disappointing for me by dint of the fact that the two lead actors whose participation induced me to watch the film in the first place – namely, Peter Cushing and Patrick Macnee – don’t even appear on screen together once! And yet, I thought, the central premise of the film,

Horror Double Feature: PROM NIGHT & FRIDAY THE 13th

In today’s 23rd and final Shocktober Double Feature, we will deal with an ax-wielding nutjob, Leslie Nielsen, horny camp counselors, and a relentless series of homicides! It’s Prom Night and Friday the 13th!

PROM NIGHT (1980)

Take a dash of Brian de Palma’s Carrie, blend in a hint of John Carpenter’s Halloween, sprinkle in a healthy pinch of Saturday Night Fever and you may end up with a concoction very much like 1980’s Prom Night,

October 31st, 2024. Sandy Ferber | Film / TV, Horror | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |

Horror Double Feature: The Manitou & The Descent!

In today’s Shocktober Double Feature, we will be mesmerized by a hideous neck fetus (yes, you read that right), a levitating old biddy, a spelunking trip gone horribly wrong, and albino bat creatures! It’s The Manitou and The Descent!

THE MANITOU (1978)

My psychotronic-film guru, Rob, didn’t have to do more than give me a one-sentence summary of its storyline in order to convince me to see 1978’s The Manitou. After all, what horror fan wouldn’t be sold by a plot in which pretty Susan Strasberg develops a large tumor on her neck,

October 30th, 2024. Sandy Ferber | Film / TV, Horror | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |

Horror Double Feature: The Changeling & The Haunting of Morella!

In today’s Shocktober Double Feature, we will be chilled by a seriously haunted house, a creepy séance, an evil old witch, and David McCallum! It’s The Changeling and The Haunting of Morella!

THE CHANGELING (1980)

I came to discover this movie after reading of it in the wonderful reference book DVD Delirium, which begins its review of The Changeling by saying “Now this is how you do a scary ghost story.” As it turns out, I couldn’t agree more.

October 29th, 2024. Sandy Ferber | Film / TV, Horror | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |

Horror Double Feature: Mantis in Lace & Breeders!

In today’s Shocktober Double Feature, we will be faced with an LSD freakout, a meat-cleaver murder, bare-nekkid ladies, and extraterrestrial insectoids! It’s Mantis in Lace and Breeders!

MANTIS IN LACE (1968)

Mantis in Lace is, in four fairly equal quarters, a soft-core skin flick, a psychedelic drug movie, a slasher horror film AND a police procedural. In it, we meet Lila (Susan Stewart), a young and gorgeous topless dancer who takes LSD one night with a guy she’s picked up. After hallucinating pretty severely for a while,

October 28th, 2024. Sandy Ferber | Film / TV, Horror | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Horror Double Feature: The Baby & The Abandoned!

In today’s Shocktober Double Feature, we will be gobsmacked by a grown man who lives in a baby crib, the always-wonderful Marianna Hill, zombies, and a haunted farmhouse! It’s The Baby and The Abandoned!

THE BABY (1973)

Although many of us have been guilty of “not acting our age” on occasion, few can be said to be so consistently immature as the character David Manzy plays in the 1973 horror film The Baby. Manzy’s Baby is a 21-year-old man who lives in a crib,

October 25th, 2024. Sandy Ferber | Film / TV, Horror | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

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