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Horrors in Hiding
Ten terrifying tales by various horror authors including Robert Bloch, Ray Bradbury and Henry Kuttner.
11 • Introduction • Sam Moskowitz and Alden H. Norton
15 • [b]Two Shall Be Born[/b] • (1941) • Seabury Quinn
45 • Tell Your Fortune • (1950) • Robert Bloch
76 • Time to Kill • (1940) • Henry Kuttner
90 • Alannah • (1945) • August Derleth
106 • Luana the Living • (1940) • Ray Bradbury
117 • John Barrington Cowles • (1884) • Arthur Conan Doyle
145 • The Door of Unrest • (1904) • O. Henry
157 • Thurlow's Ghost Story • (1894) • John Kendrick Bangs
175 • The Man with the Brown Beard • (1896) • Nathaniel P. Babcock
11 • Introduction • Sam Moskowitz and Alden H. Norton
15 • [b]Two Shall Be Born[/b] • (1941) • Seabury Quinn
45 • Tell Your Fortune • (1950) • Robert Bloch
76 • Time to Kill • (1940) • Henry Kuttner
90 • Alannah • (1945) • August Derleth
106 • Luana the Living • (1940) • Ray Bradbury
117 • John Barrington Cowles • (1884) • Arthur Conan Doyle
145 • The Door of Unrest • (1904) • O. Henry
157 • Thurlow's Ghost Story • (1894) • John Kendrick Bangs
175 • The Man with the Brown Beard • (1896) • Nathaniel P. Babcock
- GenresHorrorAnthologiesFiction
192 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1973
36 people want to read
About the author
Sam Moskowitz
126 books14 followersSam Moskowitz (June 30, 1920-April 15, 1997) was an early fan and organizer of interest in science fiction and, later, a writer, critic, and historian of the field. As a child, Moskowitz greatly enjoyed reading science fiction pulp magazines. As a teenager, he organized a branch of the Science Fiction League. Meanwhile, Donald A. Wollheim helped organize the Futurians, a rival club with Marxist sympathies. While still in his teens, Moskowitz became chairman of the first World Science Fiction Convention held in New York City in 1939. He barred several Futurians from the convention because they threatened to disrupt it. This event is referred to by historians of fandom as the "Great Exclusion Act."
Moskowitz later worked professionally in the science fiction field. He edited Science-Fiction Plus, a short-lived genre magazine owned by Hugo Gernsback, in 1953. He compiled about two dozen anthologies, and a few single-author collections, most published in the 1960s and early 1970s. Moskowitz also wrote a handful of short stories (three published in 1941, one in 1953, three in 1956). His most enduring work is likely to be his writing on the history of science fiction, in particular two collections of short author biographies, Explorers of the Infinite and Seekers of Tomorrow, as well as the highly regarded Under the Moons of Mars: A History and Anthology of “The Scientific Romance” in the Munsey Magazines, 1912-1920. Moskowitz has been criticized for eccentrically assigning priorities and tracing influences regarding particular themes and ideas based principally on publication dates, as well as for some supposed inaccuracies. His exhaustive cataloguing of early sf magazine stories by important genre authors remains the best resource for nonspecialists.
Moskowitz's most popular work may be The Immortal Storm, a historical review of internecine strife within fandom. Moskowitz wrote it in a bombastic style that made the events he described seem so important that, as fan historian Harry Warner, Jr. quipped, "If read directly after a history of World War II, it does not seem like an anticlimax."
Moskowitz was also renowned as a science fiction book collector, with a tremendous number of important early works and rarities. His book collection was auctioned off after his death.
As "Sam Martin", he was also editor of the trade publications Quick Frozen Foods and Quick Frozen Foods International for many years.
First Fandom, an organization of science fiction fans active before 1940, gives an award in Moskowitz' memory each year at the World Science Fiction Convention.
Moskowitz smoked cigarettes frequently throughout his adult life. A few years before his death, throat cancer required the surgical removal of his larynx. He continued to speak at science fiction conventions, using an electronic voice-box held against his throat. Throughout his later years, although his controversial opinions were often disputed by others, he was indisputably recognized as the leading authority on the history of science fiction.
Moskowitz later worked professionally in the science fiction field. He edited Science-Fiction Plus, a short-lived genre magazine owned by Hugo Gernsback, in 1953. He compiled about two dozen anthologies, and a few single-author collections, most published in the 1960s and early 1970s. Moskowitz also wrote a handful of short stories (three published in 1941, one in 1953, three in 1956). His most enduring work is likely to be his writing on the history of science fiction, in particular two collections of short author biographies, Explorers of the Infinite and Seekers of Tomorrow, as well as the highly regarded Under the Moons of Mars: A History and Anthology of “The Scientific Romance” in the Munsey Magazines, 1912-1920. Moskowitz has been criticized for eccentrically assigning priorities and tracing influences regarding particular themes and ideas based principally on publication dates, as well as for some supposed inaccuracies. His exhaustive cataloguing of early sf magazine stories by important genre authors remains the best resource for nonspecialists.
Moskowitz's most popular work may be The Immortal Storm, a historical review of internecine strife within fandom. Moskowitz wrote it in a bombastic style that made the events he described seem so important that, as fan historian Harry Warner, Jr. quipped, "If read directly after a history of World War II, it does not seem like an anticlimax."
Moskowitz was also renowned as a science fiction book collector, with a tremendous number of important early works and rarities. His book collection was auctioned off after his death.
As "Sam Martin", he was also editor of the trade publications Quick Frozen Foods and Quick Frozen Foods International for many years.
First Fandom, an organization of science fiction fans active before 1940, gives an award in Moskowitz' memory each year at the World Science Fiction Convention.
Moskowitz smoked cigarettes frequently throughout his adult life. A few years before his death, throat cancer required the surgical removal of his larynx. He continued to speak at science fiction conventions, using an electronic voice-box held against his throat. Throughout his later years, although his controversial opinions were often disputed by others, he was indisputably recognized as the leading authority on the history of science fiction.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
February 25, 2020
HORRORS IN HIDING is an engaging little horror anthology in which Sam Koskowitz and Alden H. Norton have done a fine job of assembling little-known stories from well-known pulp-era authors alongside a couple of tales from less well-known writers. There are no real show-stoppers here, but many of the collected stories are well worth a look.
TWO SHALL BE BORN is a non-Jules de Grandin story by Seabury Quinn, although it contains themes familiar to his work: namely, ancient civilisations and a kind of 'statis' state in which people can survive intact and alive for millenia. It's nicely written with a fun, action-packed climax. Robert Bloch's TELL YOUR FORTUNE packs plenty of plot into a short space, mixing together loathsome villains and put-upon losers in a crime story with a supernatural twist. It's as enjoyable as anything else I've read from this author.
TIME TO KILL sees Henry Kuttner exploring the post-apocalype genre, as two men survive in a war-ravaged city. The main plot and subsequent twist are simplistic (and rather obvious) but the backdrop is very well realised. ALANNAH is one of August Derleth's ghost stories written under the pseudonym Stephen Grendon, and it's a quiet, affecting haunted house story with macabre touches and a downbeat climax. LUANA THE LIVING is something different from the prolific Ray Bradbury: a jungle adventure with touches of werewolfism and effective descrpitions.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's JOHN BARRINGTON COWLES is something else entirely, the tale of a femme fatale told via her relationships with three diverse men. Realistic, character-focused and downbeat, it's all the better for keeping vital secrets, well, secret, and never overdoing it. O. Henry's THE DOOR OF UNREST is a fun, modern-day spin on the ancient 'Wandering Jew' storyline with another clever climax amid anecdotal storytelling.
The penultimate story, THRULOW'S GHOST STORY (aka THRULOW'S CHRISTMAS STORY), is by John Kendrick Bangs and an odd, rather unsuccessful beast. A writer struggles with the usual block before he bizarrely meets his own doppelganger on the stairs. It's rather florid and overwritten and not particularly engaging – at least not for me. The final story, THE MAN WITH THE BROWN BEARD by Nathaniel T. Babcock, is much better and one of many stories from the era about soul transferral. The tale is dark and macabre, mired in themes of crime and retribution with careful character work; I found the climax quietly devastating.
TWO SHALL BE BORN is a non-Jules de Grandin story by Seabury Quinn, although it contains themes familiar to his work: namely, ancient civilisations and a kind of 'statis' state in which people can survive intact and alive for millenia. It's nicely written with a fun, action-packed climax. Robert Bloch's TELL YOUR FORTUNE packs plenty of plot into a short space, mixing together loathsome villains and put-upon losers in a crime story with a supernatural twist. It's as enjoyable as anything else I've read from this author.
TIME TO KILL sees Henry Kuttner exploring the post-apocalype genre, as two men survive in a war-ravaged city. The main plot and subsequent twist are simplistic (and rather obvious) but the backdrop is very well realised. ALANNAH is one of August Derleth's ghost stories written under the pseudonym Stephen Grendon, and it's a quiet, affecting haunted house story with macabre touches and a downbeat climax. LUANA THE LIVING is something different from the prolific Ray Bradbury: a jungle adventure with touches of werewolfism and effective descrpitions.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's JOHN BARRINGTON COWLES is something else entirely, the tale of a femme fatale told via her relationships with three diverse men. Realistic, character-focused and downbeat, it's all the better for keeping vital secrets, well, secret, and never overdoing it. O. Henry's THE DOOR OF UNREST is a fun, modern-day spin on the ancient 'Wandering Jew' storyline with another clever climax amid anecdotal storytelling.
The penultimate story, THRULOW'S GHOST STORY (aka THRULOW'S CHRISTMAS STORY), is by John Kendrick Bangs and an odd, rather unsuccessful beast. A writer struggles with the usual block before he bizarrely meets his own doppelganger on the stairs. It's rather florid and overwritten and not particularly engaging – at least not for me. The final story, THE MAN WITH THE BROWN BEARD by Nathaniel T. Babcock, is much better and one of many stories from the era about soul transferral. The tale is dark and macabre, mired in themes of crime and retribution with careful character work; I found the climax quietly devastating.
November 7, 2012
A hidden gem - no pun intended. This small collection boasts some truly remarkable works from the likes of Ray Bradbury and Arthur Conan Doyle to the unknown (to me, at least) Nathaniel T. Babcock. Perhaps not as chilling as I had hoped (thus only four stars) but the quality of the writing is outstanding, particularly for the genre which, one must admit, often suffers from mediocrity - if not outright schlock.
May 21, 2021
I enjoyed the diversity of this collection. I got a kick out of the voice in Bloch’s “Tell Your Fortune,” and, as a writer and a fan of Christmas ghost stories, John Kendrick Bangs’s “Thrulow’s Ghost Story” was a home run for me. Will reread the latter in December.
August 3, 2019
Rating each tale individually...
Two Shall Be Born - 5/5
Tell Your Fortune - 5/5
Time to Kill - 2/5
Alannah - 4/5
Luana the Living - 1/5
John Barrington Cowles - 4/5
The Door of Unrest - 1/5
Thrulow's Ghost Story - 1/5
The Man with the Brown Beard - 3/5
Two Shall Be Born - 5/5
Tell Your Fortune - 5/5
Time to Kill - 2/5
Alannah - 4/5
Luana the Living - 1/5
John Barrington Cowles - 4/5
The Door of Unrest - 1/5
Thrulow's Ghost Story - 1/5
The Man with the Brown Beard - 3/5
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews