Book Review: Pride and Prejudice

Book Review: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen The Bennet family is somewhat well off at their small estate of Longbourn–for now. But since the estate can only be inherited in the male line, and the family has five daughters with no sons, if Mr. Bennet kicks the bucket, the rest of the family will… Continue reading Book Review: Pride and Prejudice

Comic Book Review: Swamp Thing Giant #3

Comic Book Review: Swamp Thing Giant #3 by various creators Scientist Alec Holland and his wife Linda were working on a plant-based bio-restorative formula in the Louisiana swamps when criminals set a bomb to sabotage the research and he was burned to death. A combination of the formula and other forces working within the swamp… Continue reading Comic Book Review: Swamp Thing Giant #3

Book Review: The Further Adventures of Solar Pons

Book Review: The Further Adventures of Solar Pons by Basil Copper Wisconsin teenager August Derleth was a huge Sherlock Holmes fan. When he learned that there would apparently be no further Holmes stories forthcoming from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, he wrote a letter to the great man asking if he could write the stories from… Continue reading Book Review: The Further Adventures of Solar Pons

Book Review: The Butchering Art

Book Review: The Butchering Art by Lindsey Fitzharris It was not that long ago that surgeons and surgery were to be feared. Without anesthetics, the pain and shock of having your body cut into would often kill the patient. And if they survived that, the chances were good that infection would set in. A combination… Continue reading Book Review: The Butchering Art

Movie Review: Meeting at Midnight

Frances and Charlie Chan discover a skeleton in the basement.

Movie Review: Meeting at Midnight (1944) directed by Phil Rosen World War Two still rages, but Charlie Chan (Sidney Toler) has been given permission to take a vacation from his government work to visit his family in Honolulu. He won’t need his driver Birmingham Brown (Mantan Moreland) for a while, so that worthy has used a… Continue reading Movie Review: Meeting at Midnight

Magazine Review: Strange Fantasy Spring 1970

The stories illustrated on the cover are, from left, "The Shrine of Temptation", "Sword of Flowers" and "Planet of Change".

Magazine Review: Strange Fantasy Spring 1970 “Strange Fantasy” was a short-lived reprint digest-sized magazine from Ultimate Publishing. This issue’s stories were originally published between 1959 and 1964, which somewhat belies the cover text. “The Shrine of Temptation” by Judith Merril starts us off with an anthropologist’s tale of a mysterious shrine on an isolated island.… Continue reading Magazine Review: Strange Fantasy Spring 1970

Movie Review: Gaslight (1940)

Has Bella finally snapped?

Movie Review: Gaslight (1940) directed by Thorold Dickinson It has been twenty years since the shocking crime at 12 Pimlico Square. Alice Barlow was murdered by an intruder, the house ripped apart in a search, and the famous Barlow rubies disappeared. All this time, the house has lain empty. But now someone has been found that… Continue reading Movie Review: Gaslight (1940)

Magazine Review: Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine June 1953

Magazine Review: Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine June 1953 edited by Ellery Queen Since this has floated to the top of my TBR pile, let’s look at another vintage issue of this classic mystery magazine. The cover depicting an aerialist falling to presumed death after being stuck with a dart has nothing to do with any… Continue reading Magazine Review: Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine June 1953

Movie Review: Terror By Night

Watson and Holmes discuss the case with their client sitting opposite them.

Movie Review: Terror by Night (1946) directed by Roy William Neill The Star of Rhodesia, a large diamond, has long been associated with blood and death, bringing woe to its owners and those around them ever since it was dug up. The current owner is Lady Margaret Carstairs (Mary Forbes), a formidable dowager. Her son Roland… Continue reading Movie Review: Terror By Night

Book Review: The War of the Worlds

Book Review: The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells Early in the Twentieth Century, odd flashes of light are seen on the surface of the planet Mars. This phenomenon is highly interesting to scientists, but seems irrelevant to most people going about their lives on Earth. That is, until what is initially mistaken for… Continue reading Book Review: The War of the Worlds