David A. Riley's Blog, page 109

The Sorcerers - The Original Screenplay by John Burke

The Sorcerers, directed by Michael Reeves and starring Boris Karloff and Ian Ogilvy, has long been a favourite British horror movie of mine. Filmed in 1967 at the height of "flower power", this was set contrastingly in a dank, depressing suburb of London, capturing a mood of pessimism and boredom that may be out of kilter with the more fashionably seen mood of the time but was probably truer for most people then.

Now PS Publishing are bringing out The Sorcerers - The Original Screenplay by John Burke - edited by Johnny Mains.

Introduction - Jean Burke
Introductory Essay - Dr Matthew Sweet
The Sorcerers Discord - Johnny Mains
Sorcerers Treatment - John Burke
Sorcerers Screenplay - John Burke
The Sorcerers Happening - Ben Halligan
Original DVD linear notes - Kim Newman
Michael Reeves Biography - Tony Earnshaw

Filmed on a tight, almost negligible budget, The Sorcerers was the second film directed by Reeves, who only made one more, Witchfinder General, before his early death.

Credits for the film have always been "Script by Michael Reeves and Tom Baker" based on an "idea by John Burke". Johnny Mains, who became close friends with John Burke in his final years, discovered, though, that these fail to reflect reality. Inside a plain cardboard box, John Burke showed him his early treatment for the film, plus the screenplay, headed:
"The Sorcerers"Screenplay byJohn BurkeMichael Reeves&Tom Baker
When he read this, Johnny's astonished response was to exclaim: "And when the film came out your name was dropped from the screenplay credits and you were relegated to 'from an idea by'. John, do you realise how important this all is?"

Sadly, a few months later, John Burke died, but Johnny was sent the cardboard box by his son. He decided there and then to do something to set the record straight. There followed the mammoth task of tracking down people who would, importantly, give him permission to reprint copyrighted material pertaining to the film, and to bring together an assortment of articles by experts on the subject, including Dr Matthew Sweet, Ben Halligan, Kim Newman and Tony Earnshaw.

Having already been given the opportunity to see Dr Sweet's Introductory Essay and Johnny's The Sorcerers Discord I can say that this is going to be one barnstormer of a book, one that anyone interested in 1960s British cinema, particularly the horror genre, will want to read.

Grey Matter Press Accept Scrap

Grey Matter Press have accepted my 12,000 word story, Scrap, for inclusion in their forthcoming anthology, tentatively due the 25th June, Dark Visions - volume 1. As well as the fact that there is a very nice fee to go with it, I am pleased also because I believe this is one of the best short stories I have written, even if it does have one of my shortest titles.

This year is proving one of the best so far for my writing with my novel, The Return, due out in July, and my short story collection, The Lurkers in the Abyss, launched at the World Fantasy Convention in October/November.

The Daylight Gate by Jeanette Winterson

Hellnotes have just posted my review of Jeanette Winterson's The Daylight Gate :

"In 1612 seven women and two men were executed at Gallows Hill, Lancaster Castle, as witches. It is an event made famous by the lawyer, Thomas Potts’ account of the trial in The Wonderfull Discoverie of Witches in the Countie of Lancaster and, later, by Harrison Ainsworth’s Gothic masterpiece The Lancashire Witches. The events were later related in Robert Neill’s 1951 historical romance, Mist over Pendle.
Living within site of the infamous hill, I know I should like this book more than I do. The author’s debut novel, Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit, won the Whitbread Prize for First Novel, while its dramatization on television won a BAFTA for Best Drama. Other books by Jeanette Winterson have won prizes too. She is a prominent name in literature. She was also brought up in my home town of Accrington, which is not far from the focal point of where the Lancashire Witches, whose story The Daylight Gate is about. More ."

The Return

It looks like my Lovecraftian horror novel, The Return, will probably be published in July. At least that's the date currently set for it. Still a few things to be done before that happens, including proof reading the text, but things are looking good.

Stalkers by Paul Finch

This is my review on Hellnotes of Stalkers by Paul Finch:

"Stalkers
By Paul Finch
Avon Books (HarperCollins)
ISBN: 978-0-00-749229-9
Paperback: 452 pages, £6.99
2013

Paul Finch’s name will be familiar to horror enthusiasts for his numerous short stories in The Black Books of Horror, or in his collections, Walkers in the Dark (Ash-Tree Press), Stains (Gray Friar Press), Groaning Shadows (Gray Friar Press), Enemies at the Door (Gray Friar Press) and his historical horror novels, Medi-Evil, volumes 1, 2 and 3.
This is his first mass market paperback, a crime thriller with more than a touch of horror. Indeed, some of the things that happen in Stalkers would not be out of place in any anthology of horror stories. This is real horror, though, the kind that not only can happen but, nightmarishly, does. More "

The Tainted Earth by George Berguno

I reviewed this book on the BFS site:

"THE TAINTED EARTH by George Berguno , Egaeus Press, ISBN: 978-0-957160620, 2012

This is the first time I have read any stories by George Berguno, although he has had two earlier collections, The Sons of Ishmael and The Exorcist’s Travelogue. Like Egaeus Press’s other books, it is beautifully printed and of superb quality.
There are eight short stories in this volume, plus a novella. The first is the title story and is written as a Nordic saga, though with modern sensibilities, particularly with regard to motivations and character and some subtle humour. More "

The River Through The Trees by David Peak

I reviewed this book on the BFS site:

"THE RIVER THROUGH THE TREES By David Peak, Blood Bound Books, March 2013; £6.40/£0.77 Kindle


Although this is not a long book it packs a heavy punch. Set in a small town in the American backwoods, which has been in steady decline for years, most of the characters are losers whose lives have been blighted by poverty, drug and alcohol abuse, and by ghosts from a past that has polluted everything around them. More "

The Whispering Horror by Eddy C. Bertin

This is my review of Eddy C. Bertin's collection of stories due from Shadow Publishing this May. The review is available on Hellnotes' website:

"The Belgian writer Eddy C. Bertin’s stories have been appearing in anthologies since the late sixties, but this is his first English language collection. The title story, The Whispering Horror, originally appeared in The Ninth Pan Book of Horror Stories 1968. In Europe, though, under a number of pseudonyms, he has had over sixty pulp novels and serials, westerns, thrillers, and murder mysteries published. He has written mysteries and historical romances, and horror stories for children. More "

The Whispering Horror by Eddy C. Bertin

This collection is now up for a discounted pre-order on Shadow Publishing's website. The book is due out in May and will be well worth getting by anyone with a love for great horror stories.

The River Through The Trees by David Peak

The River Through The Trees By David PeakBlood Bound Books     ISBN: 978-0984978243Kindle edition: ASIN: B00C163E8QMarch 2013; £6.40/£0.77 Kindle
Although this is not a long book it packs a heavy punch. Set in a small town in the American backwoods, which has been in steady decline for years, most of the characters are losers whose lives have been blighted by poverty, drug and alcohol abuse, and by ghosts from a past that has polluted everything around them.
The main character, Dan Robertson, runs the local undertakers. Bullied since school, his half sister Grace is the bane of his life. Known as the local bike, high on whatever drugs she can get, she is a force for chaos for everyone with whom she comes into contact. Dan feels guilty that her mental problems are his fault, caused when they were young children and were attacked by a local bogeyman, Bicycle Bill. Although Dan managed to escape, Grace didn’t. Mentally damaged by whatever happened while she was in his clutches, Dan has tried to distance himself from her ever since, obsessively stressing whenever she is mentioned that she is only his “half” sister.
Starting with a suicide that Dan is certain was murder, every detail of the town’s inhabitants is grimly described. It is the middle of winter, thick with snow and icily cold, a vivid metaphor for the state of the community. As one death leads to another, the police investigation encompasses drug peddling backwoods cultists, dysfunctional families with secrets within secrets, and a morbid supernatural menace.
Vividly depicted, the flaws and weaknesses of the various characters are remorselessly exposed. It is perhaps one of the darkest, most nihilistic novels I have ever read, a slow motion car crash whose development is a fascinating trek into the grim depths of a community blighted by something that is outside anyone’s control, a supernatural presence which uses the weaknesses of everyone it touches to spread its influence. A thoroughly enjoyable read.