Tag Archives: book-review

Dear Edgar 25 ~ Why the Little Frenchman Wears his Hand in a Sling

Posted on March 25, 2025 by Mark Hayes

One of the most lauded and successful novels of the early 1990’s was Trainspotting by Scottish writer Irvine Walsh. It is undoubtedly one of the best books I have never successfully read. The same can be said for Anthony Burgess … Continue reading →

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The Bookshop Dichotomy

Posted on March 25, 2025 by Mark Hayes

I love a bookshop. Be that bookshop a large Waterstones or some other major chain, or a small independent book store, a dusty little second hand books shop, or a huge second hand book shop in a disused railway station. … Continue reading →

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Cocktails in the Cosmos

Posted on March 3, 2025 by Mark Hayes

I am to blame, at least in a small way, for something delightful. This has been known to happen before… Occasionally I think people just need someone to blame and I am convenient as I have an occasionally loud personality, … Continue reading →

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The Esoteric Cricket Ball…

Posted on February 10, 2025 by Mark Hayes

Well its finally here, 3 years after the original short story, The esoteric Cricket Ball is pitching down the leg side… The novel started out as half page of dialogue between two unknown participants written about ten years ago. It … Continue reading →

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The personalities of books

Posted on January 3, 2025 by Mark Hayes

I am passing the time working through an old WIP that stilted at 15k, but which I keep coming back to. Its a couple of years since I worked on it, and I have got to a section in which … Continue reading →

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A semblance of Truth

Posted on December 9, 2024 by Mark Hayes

I am a bit of a fan boy when it comes to the work of Nimue and the esoteric creation Hopeless Maine (and Nimue’s writing in general). So when I was given the chance to read a early copy of Semblance of Truth I jumped at the chance. Continue reading →

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Necromantic Pontifications

Posted on November 30, 2024 by Mark Hayes

All of this is of course unpalatable to any gentleman of moral fortitude. But moral fortitude is not a prerequisite among your average magus, unlike a degree of nihilism which almost certainly is. More than one magus, once they feel the bite of age upon them and see the first grey hairs among there ravenlike locks, will be tempted to use a little necromancy to ‘rejuvenate’ themselves.

‘What, when it comes down to it, is the point of having acolytes other than so they can lend aid to your designed. Lend you their power. Lend you a year or two of their life perhaps… Well, would they really miss it?’ Continue reading →

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Fascinating Folklore, Taurus and the book pile

Posted on November 22, 2024 by Mark Hayes

fascinating insight as that may be to the beside cabinet of a bibliophile, on to some reviews, starting, as a delightful Flemish research witch has me on a folklore kick at the moment with with Fascinating Folklore… A book that answers a question much on the lips of the zeitgeist these days. Did anything good ever come out of Twitter..? Continue reading →

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Lucifer Mandrake ~ Not a cover reveal…

Posted on November 14, 2024 by Mark Hayes

*my entire contribution to the Finch Ministries were the words ‘octopus catapult’ , I am ridiculously proud of this fact… Continue reading →

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Dear Edgar #22 The Fall of the House of Usher

Posted on October 27, 2024 by Mark Hayes

The themes of three earlier stories in particular are each echoed in this story, those being Morella, Berenice and Ligeia. Which is not to say that Edgar was obsessed with putting female characters into soporific states that seem death like, decaying, and wasting away, but it is a theme that comes up time and time again in the early tales. What is odd is that these themes were so prevalent before the wasting disease that would take his wife from him not many years later was diagnosed. Equally the male characters in all these stories react to these tragedies with obsession and madness that echoes how the death of Victoria was to plunge him into a deep alcohol fuelled depression and began his own downward spiral to an early grave.

Occasionally life imitates art in dreadful ways. Continue reading →

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