Here’s a treat for fans of classic occult horror in the vein of Dennis Wheatley (author of the iconic/legendary novel The Devil Rides Out):
Teeming Brain columnist Stuart Young has edited a volume of five stories in this vein for Hersham Horror Books. Here’s the publisher’s description:
Hersham Horror Books presents five original stories from the minds of Peter Mark May, Thana Niveau, John Llewellyn Probert, David Williamson, and Stuart Young. The fourth anthology in our PentAnth range brings you five more satanic and demonic tales that hearken back to an age when Dennis Wheatley was the king of horror.
Here are the contents:
- Introduction by Stuart Young: “Devilish Inspirations”
- “The Abhorrent Man” by Peter Mark May
- “Little Devils” by Thana Niveau
- “The Devil in the Details” by John Llewellyn Probert
- “The Scryer” by David Williamson
- “Guardian Devil” by Stuart Young
Here is some praise:
“Featuring five stories based around the sadly neglected sub genre of Black Magic and Demonology from some of the best writers working today, Demons and Devilry captures the very essence of what makes for a great horror read. . . . A brilliant anthology, one which manages to perfectly balance stories of a lighter tone with more dark and heavy tones. If you are looking for some demonic fun, then this book is the ideal book for you.” — Ginger Nuts of Horror
“If Demons and Devilry sounds like your particular chalice of virgin’s blood, then you’ll find plenty to satisfy here. Despite the old-school theme, these tales aren’t dated or stale, they’re contemporary homages to the cause of all things arcane and infernal. And with such a stark appearance and title, it’s also a fun book to brandish in public. Dig out the black candles and enjoy.” — Matthew Fryer
“I’m a sucker for stories about demons and devils; they just draw me in and captivate me for some reason. . . . Every story in Demons & devilry is written well and flows at a nice pace. The authors go to great lengths to convey a lot of story in such a small space, and they each do a first-rate job. And as with Hersham’s previous titles, the quality of writing is superb. Each tale is carefully crafted and each writing voice unique. . . . An excellent collection of stories.” — Shattered Ravings
Also of interest: a blog post that Stu published about his experience of editing the anthology, bearing the ominous title “Why I Hate Editing (aka I’ve Edit Up to Here).”
The book is available from Amazon and Amazon UK.