Showing results by author "Robert W. Chambers" in All Categories

In a future America that feels eerily controlled, prosperous, and quietly altered, Hildred Castaigne walks the streets of New York with a secret he believes will reshape the world. Recovered from a past injury and newly filled with ambition, Hildred becomes obsessed with a forbidden book—The King in Yellow—a work whispered to corrupt the mind of any who read beyond its opening act. From that moment on, reality begins to shift.

There is a book that is shrouded in mystery. Some even say it's a myth. Within its pages is a play - one that brings madness and despair to all who read it. It is the play of the King in Yellow, and it will haunt you for the rest of your days. The King in Yellow is a collection of stories interwoven loosely by the elements of the play, including the central figure himself.

HorrorBabble's complete, dramatic telling of Robert W. Chambers' classic collection, The King in Yellow. The book comprises 10 individual tales, several of which are thematically linked by a controversial play with which the novel shares its title.

Robert W. Chambers (1865-1933) spent his formative years studying art in Paris during the late 1880s and early 1890s. Upon returning to America, he quickly gained fame for his romantic novels, but he ultimately became best known for “The King In Yellow,” a haunting collection of short stories that delve into the eerie and otherworldly. In this episode, we explore the latter tales of the collection, which shift gears to present straightforward love stories, richly infused with Chambers experiences as an artist in France. Join us as Peter Why brings these captivating narratives to life.

There are books that haunt. The King in Yellow is one of them. First published in 1895, this cycle of four interlinked stories—The Repairer of Reputations, The Mask, In the Court of the Dragon, and The Yellow Sign—offers a view into a world just a shade off from our own. Beneath the surface of elegant prose and civil order lies something broken, something touched by madness, art, power—and something unspeakably strange. A book within the book, a play that should never be listened to, threads through each tale, leaving behind not answers, but echoes.

An excellent collection of creepy ghost stories from some of the most notable names of early horror fiction, including: “The Willows” by Algernon Blackwood, “The Shadows On The Wall” by Mary E. Wilkins Freeman, “The Messenger” by Robert W.Chambers, “Lazarus” by Leonid Andreyev, “The Beast With Five Fingers” by W.F. Harvey, “The Mass Of Shadows” by Anatole France, “What Was It” by Fitz-James O’brien, “The Middle Toe Of The Right Foot” by Ambrose Bierce, “The Shell Of Sense” by Olivia Howard Dunbar, and more!

The King in Yellow is a book of 10 classic short stories about the supernatural. The first four mention "The King in Yellow", a forbidden play which induces despair or madness in those exposed to it. The tales have a macabre undertone, focusing on characters that are inhabitants of the demi-monde.

America is fat and prosperous. We’ve warred with the world and come out on top. We’ve gotten rid of the riff-raff. A new era is arising, change is in the air, and to top it all off, the first Government Lethal Chamber is now open and ready for its first occupant. The future looks bright in 1895.

“Have you seen the Yellow Sign?” mumbles a cadaverous hearse driver with a soft, squishy head. He’s been skulking about Scott’s painting studio, where he and Tessie have been developing a tangled relationship between artist and model. But as this ever-present watchman resembling a coffin worm begins to distract Scott, his portrait of Tessie takes on a deathlike pallor. How can they forever rid themselves of this hearse stalker? And what precisely does he mean by a “Yellow Sign”?

This collection by Robert W. Chambers was first published in 1895 and features stories loosely tied together with one theme, the supernatural. Many of the stories in The King in Yellow were not received well by the critics of the time due to their supernatural undertones. Some of the stories mention a play by the same name that had been outlawed in some regions of the world. It was thought that the play could induce madness in those who viewed it. Two of the stories in this book take place in a fictional world of the future 1920s and are macabre in tone.

Immerse yourself in a captivating collection of tales centered around a remarkable machine that unites people from all walks of life, proving that love knows no bounds. (Summary by Eva Staes)

This short story from The King in Yellow, by Robert W. Chambers, skilfully narrated by Mark Turetsky, concerns an artist, Severn, who lives alone in the Latin Quarter of Paris who befriends a stray cat. Not an ordinary cat, but a pampered cat with a mysterious and lovely owner.

During World War I, an American secret service agent, Evelyn Erith, opens and deciphers a coded letter. It says the Germans believe that Kay MacKay, an American concentration camp escapee, knows The Great Secret. And that MacKay must be eliminated. Erith finds McKay, saves him from German agents and convinces him to join U.S. Intelligence. Together they venture undercover into the Swiss Alps to discover and expose The Great Secret. The future of Europe depends on it!

Todos los relatos del Rey de amarillo están conectados por un símbolo, por una maldad difícil de comprender: En la corte del dragón - vas a sentir un escalofrío cuando una voz de ninguna parte empiece a susurrar a tu alma La demoiselle d'Ys - Si Jeane te invita a ir a su castillo, quizás te lo deberías pensar... a lo mejor no te conviene El símbolo amarillo - ¿pueden los espíritus de un cementerio influenciar el arte de un pintor? La máscara - ¿cómo se podría conseguir una escultura absolutamente perfecta?

Released one year after the publication of The King in Yellow - a milestone of supernaturalfiction - Robert W. Chambers’ title story of this short-story collection isconsidered one of his finest weird tales. It is followed by a series ofromantic art nouveau stories. Chambers’ love of natural scenery, symbolicanimal figures, and ghostly imagery are on full display as he weaves hischaracters through these otherworldly tales.

Considered by many to be the father of supernatural fiction, Robert W. Chambers' work continues to influence writers today. Originally published in 1897, The Mystery of Choice brings together seven chilling tales, most of them set in Brittany. Distinguished by its atmospheric use of natural scenery, this important collection presents an author at the peak of his craft.

Ruhannah “Rue” Carew has always been captivated by her father’s tales of a mysterious wooden box filled with intriguing treasures, including a bronze figure of a god and the diary of a long-lost friend. When she encounters the charismatic but deceitful Eddie Brandes, he disguises his true intentions to win her affection and her familys approval, all while concealing his own marriage to the actress Ilse Dumont. The shocking truth about Eddie shatters Rues world, leaving her at a crossroads. With the support of her loyal friend Jim Neeland, Rue embarks on a journey across the Atlantic to ...

What is the terrible secret at the heart of The King in Yellow? The forbidden play’s second act is said to drive all those who read it mad. And the sinister text casts its shadow of dread over Robert W. Chambers’s collection of weird, supernatural stories of the same name. Threaded with elements of fantasy, science fiction, the supernatural, and gothic horror, this cult classic continues to inspire the imagination of artists - from H. P. Lovecraft to the writers of HBO’s True Detective - and delight connoisseurs of the macabre.

In a gripping tale of survival, Tressa Norne, an American living in China, finds herself thrust into a nightmarish reality. After narrowly escaping death during a local revolution, she is captured and forced into servitude by Erlik, a sinister demon-god, and his cult. Despite her harrowing journey to escape back to America, Tressa soon discovers that her troubles are far from over; she is now hunted by the Secret Service and her former captors. (Ann Boulais)

The Messenger is a chilling gothic tale by Robert W. Chambers, where reason and folklore collide in the shadow of history. As a rational American observer investigates a mysterious burial site, he uncovers the story of a long-executed traitor known as the Black Priest—a man branded in death, cursed in blood, and sworn to return if his remains are ever disturbed. What follows is a slow descent into unease: a skull that will not stay buried, a death’s-head moth appearing at windows and hearths, masked figures glimpsed in stormlight, and blood trails that defy explanation.