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The author of Skulls in the Stars is a professor of physics, specializing in optical science, at UNC Charlotte. The blog covers topics in physics and optics, the history of science, classic pulp fantasy and horror fiction, and the surprising intersections between these areas. -
Category Archives: Horror
Dead Reckonings #23 is available!
Interested in reading literary critiques of the latest horror fiction, and analyses of the same? Well, you’re in luck, because issue #23 of the Hippocampus Press literary magazine Dead Reckonings is now available! As in a number of earlier volumes, … Continue reading
Posted in Horror, Personal
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The Cadaver of Gideon Wyck, by Alexander Laing
Got a few physics blog posts in the pipeline, but in the meantime I’m still catching up on a lot of book blogging! I’ve had The Cadaver of Gideon Wyck (1934) in my library for some time, as I picked … Continue reading
Posted in Horror, Mystery/thriller, Science fiction
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Larry Blamire’s More Tales of the Callamo Mountains
Larry Blamire is a very good writer. That is the first thought that came to mind when I sat down to blog about his recently published collection, More Tales of the Callamo Mountains (2017). As the name suggests, this collection … Continue reading
Posted in Adventure fiction, Horror
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Never Bet the Devil and Other Warnings, by Orrin Grey
The first time I encountered Orrin Grey’s work, it wasn’t even his fiction! He wrote the introduction to the Valancourt edition of J.B. Priestley’s 1927 novel Benighted, and I was struck then with his knowledge and insight into classic horror. … Continue reading
Posted in Horror, Weird fiction
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The Endless Fall, by Jeffrey Thomas
Though I’ve been in a bit of a reading funk the past few months due to life, work and stress, I managed to find one thing that helped me break out of it: long airline flights. Between recent trips to … Continue reading
Posted in Horror
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The Valancourt Book of Horror Stories, Volume 2
Just in time to enjoy for Halloween, Valancourt Books has recently released their second volume of horror stories, in The Valancourt Book of Horror Stories, Volume 2! The volume contains 14 stories of terror and the supernatural in VBHSv2, encompassing … Continue reading
Posted in Horror
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Halloween Treats 2017
It is getting really challenging not to repeat myself with these annual samples of classic horror stories for Halloween, as I’ve been doing this for ten years! You can read the old editions here: 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 and my 2010 post on the … Continue reading
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The Devil in a Domino, by Chas L’Epine
Thanks to having lots to do at work, a lot of chaos in my life, and a lot of worry about the world in general, I haven’t been able to concentrate well on reading fiction lately. What I need at … Continue reading
Posted in Horror
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Swift to Chase, by Laird Barron
(Taking a short break from entanglement and Rome posts to catch up on some fiction blogging!) Laird Barron is, in my humble opinion, one of the most talented authors of horror fiction working today, and will be regarded historically as … Continue reading
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Agents of Dreamland, by Caitlin R. Kiernan
Taking a brief break from posts on quantum entanglement — will be back with more on that subject soon! Meanwhile… Caitlin R. Kiernan is a brilliant writer. This is an indisputable fact. Several years ago, I blogged about her beautiful, … Continue reading
Posted in Horror
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