Showing results by publisher "Spoken Realms" in Horror

A student needs to find a quiet place to study for his exams. He wants to be totally alone. He goes to the train station and picks a destination he has never heard of. He finds the ideal house. It hasn't been lived in for years. There is legend that surrounds this abode, and explains why it is unlived in. He of course ignores this, and since the rats don't bother him he takes up residence. Unfortunately by the time he realizes his mistake, it is too late to escape.

It was a dark and starless night when a schooner becalmed in the Northern Pacific is a approached by a rowboat whose occupant although nonthreatening refuses to be seen. We find out who this hideous appearing creature is, and how he and his fiancée came to be marooned on an island inhabited by a strange fungus.

Given "The Suitable Surroundings", can a person be scared to death? The answer is yes, according to Ambrose Bierce: Skepticism must occasionally apologize to truth. Once again Ambrose Bierce weaves a tale that, even under present-day conditions, is indeed frightening.

Unspeakable rituals are performed by an occult group residing in the Red Hook region of New York City in this haunting short story by H P Lovecraft, and told by Mike Vendetti.

Forbidden love in name baronial estate. An evil man dies with an evil smile upon his face believing his evil secret is going with him to the grave. And there it remains until the lovers creep into the crypt shortly after the stroke of midnight. An erie tale certain to creep you out and keep you in suspense.

A gentleman enjoying the morning over the River Seine waves to a steamer, and the nightmare begins. He believes he may be going insane, but then he begins to feel there is an entity that he cannot see invading his mind and his home. The entity is perhaps an invader from another world. Guy de Maupassant's tale of classic horror will enthrall you.

The eyes of a panther, or the mind of a terrified woman. Which is more powerful? Ambrose Bierce leaves you wondering and thinking in this powerful short story.

The Devil and Tom Walker is a classic short story by Washington Irving. When you make a deal with the devil you have to shake his hand. At the time Tom made his deal, it seemed like a good idea, but as Tom aged and death approached, he became very pious and even carried two Bibles with him. But a deal is a deal as Tom would discover.

This short story became possibly H.P. Lovecraft's favorite. Lots of things and possibilities going on here. A meteorite has crashed near a small farm west of Arkham, Massachusetts and strange things begin to happen. The life force seems to be being drained from living organisms near the well. The story is being told by a surveyor who is surveying the area prior to a damn being built that will flood the area with a lake. The potential problem is, the "thing" lives in the water of the well.

Doctor Henry Jekyll, on a quest to liberate our inner demons from the constraints of our conscience, unleashes ancient and primal forces buried deep within us all. Once released, can that nature ever be contained? In true Gothic tradition, join Henry in his race against time as investigating detectives and others uncover evidence that slowly leads them back toward the doctor himself.

With the unforgettable opening words “Marley was dead, to begin with...” Charles Dickens kindled not just the modern celebration of the Yuletide but also rekindled the tradition of gathering ‘round the fire on Christmas Eve to tell ghost stories. Here are a few of my favorites - some light, some somber, some extra scary, beginning with a solo adaptation of A Christmas Carol.

DEA agent Aliyana Montijo must stop a drug lord’s killing orders and find a government mole. With a contract on her head, she trusts no one. While heading back to Florida with evidence, lightning strikes her plane. As it careens into the ocean, she thinks she sees a pirate ship. What she finds is a dashing and most unlikely ally. Four centuries ago, Wolfaert Dircksen Van Ness captained a vessel for the Dutch West Indies Company. Then an unearthly storm in the Bermuda Triangle blew him into a parallel dimension.

Do you want to know how a corpse feels, moldering in the grave? Listen to this audiobook of weird, bizarre menace. "When the Banshee Calls," a short horror story by Wayne Rogers published in the May-June 1938 issue of Terror Tales, narrated by award-winning narrator Mike Vendetti, will creep you into the crypt.

The Book of Torment by Harrison Storm, a short horror story was first published in the May 1940 issue of Terror Tales, a pulp magazine. Gilbert Boden, the narrator, a professor and writer falls asleep, waking up to a very strange phenomenon. Apparently during the night unbeknownst to him he has created a short story featuring him as a member of the Spanish Inquisition, torturing a woman with a name very similar to a former lover who was found dead that morning.

"Prey for the Daughter of Hell" is a captivating short story by Conrad Kimball that combines elements of horror and romance. The story revolves around a 12-year-old girl who becomes the victim of a curse imposed by an Asian mystic. The mystic hypnotizes her, making her believe that her love life will mirror that of a female praying mantis, where she mates with males and then consumes them.

Test Tube Frankenstein, a short horror story by Wayne Robbins appeared in the May 1940 issue of Terror Tales. It is interesting to draw connections between this pulp story and Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Both stories involve a mad genius creating a creature that deceives and kills those around them. However, in this short story, the creature takes on the form and demeanor of its creator, Chester Vermis, which differentiates it from Frankenstein.

"The Night Eternity Ended" a short horror story by Donald Dale, published in the May 1940 issue of Terror Tales, featuring Juan Perez who has been paying the penalty for daring to look upon the Blue Lady of the Sierras during those hours when the cold stone was transformed into warm human flesh. Juan was a handsome ladies' man 400 years ago until he worked his charms upon the Blue Lady of the Sierras.

From the May-June, 1938 issue of Terror Tales, Queens of Beauty and Horror a chilling story by George Edson. A group of 48 beauty queens celebrate the pageant they have just completed. The beauty queens and their escorts suspect little of the sinister motive behind the pageant. The audience consists of leering, lecherous old men who have nefarious plans for the beauties later in the evening.

Excitement and sorcery mixed with blades of steel. The mysterious stranger who appears out of nowhere to avenge injustice and defend the defenseless. Robert Howard, in this early story of his, gives us Solomon Kane; the man who walks like a leopard, wears all black and is relentless in pursuing evil doers. But he is pitted against voodoo and the superbly skillful opponent - Le Loupe - The Wolfe. Has Solomon Kane met his doom?

Charles Boswell's short story "Monsters of Monarchy", Terror Tales, May 1940 features Roman emperor Caligula (12 BCE-24 CE), one of the most notorious Roman emperors. Known for his incestuous relationship with his sisters, and for his cruelty and madness, which culminated in Caligula naming his horse Roman consul and declaring himself a god. Caligula's brief reign and life turn into a complex and fascinating story of a boy-emperor thoroughly unprepared for the throne, who, in the early years of the Roman Empire, tried to make Rome an absolute monarchy but failed.