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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: Weird fiction
H.G. Wells’ The World Set Free (1914)
Mention the name “H.G. Wells” to anyone, and they’ll almost certainly be able to name a few of his books. Most of us know The Time Machine (1895), The Island of Doctor Moreau (1896), The Invisible Man (1897), and The … Continue reading
Posted in Science fiction
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Rosa Praed’s Fugitive Anne (1902)
Since nearly the beginning of my blog, I’ve been a fan of Valancourt Books, which publishes a lot of wonderful and neglected works from the 19th and early 20th centuries. I’ve blogged about a lot of them, some of which … Continue reading
Posted in Adventure fiction
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Thomas Berger’s Neighbors
The fiction that I read and discuss on this blog falls under the broad but relatively unknown category of “weird fiction”, which can include fantasy, sci-fi and horror as well as plenty of stories that are genuinely unclassifiable. Most of … Continue reading
Posted in Weird fiction
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What did Robert E. Howard think of women?
In reading classic weird fiction of the 1930s an earlier, one must always keep in mind that the authors were a product of their time. Racism and sexism are sadly common in reading older stories, and the depiction of negative … Continue reading
Posted in Robert E. Howard
14 Comments
Margaret Cavendish’s The Blazing World (1666)
It is somewhat fascinating to note that certain genres of fiction have their beginnings much earlier than generally appreciated. Two years ago, I blogged about Edward Bulwer-Lytton’s unusual 1871 novel, The Coming Race, a utopian novel that counts as one … Continue reading
Posted in Science fiction
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Richard Marsh’s A Second Coming
I’ve discussed the works of Richard Marsh (1857-1915) quite often on this blog; he was a British-born author of horror and thrillers, and was stunningly successful at it in his time. His most famous novel was his breakout supernatural story … Continue reading
Posted in Religion, Weird fiction
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Henry Kuttner’s The Well of the Worlds
Have I mentioned how much I love Henry Kuttner’s writing? I’ve reviewed quite a few of his books here — Elak of Atlantis, Thunder Jim Wade, The Time Axis, Destination Infinity — and have greatly enjoyed all of them. Kuttner … Continue reading
Posted in Science fiction
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My favorite weird fiction of the past 3 years
Happy (belated) blogiversary to me! August 14th was the 3rd year anniversary of this blog, a milestone that I missed yet again in the hubbub of daily life. Nevertheless, an anniversary is a good time for reflection, and one thing … Continue reading
Posted in Horror, Weird fiction, [Etc]
12 Comments
Manly Wade Wellman’s Who Fears the Devil?
For those who are new to Skulls in the Stars, my other major topic — other than science — is “weird fiction”, often but not exclusively of the late 1800s/early 1900s. “Weird fiction” is a term that broadly describes any … Continue reading
Posted in Weird fiction
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Marie Corelli’s Vendetta
Marie Corelli (1855-1924) is another of those curious set of authors whose work was stunningly successful during their lifetime but is virtually unknown today. This neglect is often independent of the quality of the writing: Richard Marsh, another Victorian/Edwardian era … Continue reading
Posted in Mystery/thriller
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