Weird Women: Classic Supernatural Fiction by Groundbreaking Female Writers: 1852-1923

Sysnopsis: From two acclaimed experts in the genre, a brand-new volume of supernatural stories showcasing the forgotten female horror writers from 1852-1923.

While the nineteen-year-old Mary Shelley may be hailed as the first modern writer of horror, the success of her immortal Frankenstein undoubtedly inspired dozens of female authors who wrote their own evocative, chilling tales. Weird Women, edited by award-winning anthologists Lisa Morton and Leslie S. Klinger, collects some of the finest tales of terror by authors as legendary as Louisa May Alcott, Frances Hodgson Burnett, and Charlotte Gilman-Perkins, alongside works of writers who were the bestsellers and critical favorites of their time--Marie Corelli, Ellen Glasgow, Charlotte Riddell--and lesser known authors who are deserving of contemporary recognition.

As railroads, industry, cities, and technology flourished in the mid-nineteenth century, so did stories exploring the horrors they unleashed. This anthology includes ghost stories and tales of haunted houses, as well as mad scientists, werewolves, ancient curses, mummies, psychological terrors, demonic dimensions, and even weird westerns. Curated by Klinger and Morton with an aim to presenting work that has languished in the shadows, all of these exceptional supernatural stories are sure to surprise, delight, and frighten today's readers.

read article here @ CrimeReads

Best Horror Books Written By Women

Vulture:

When you think of horror literature, most of the books that spring to mind are written by men. But some of today’s best writers of the macabre are women. Instead of reaching for just another Stephen King or Dean Koontz to haunt your nightstand this year, try one of these 13 spine-chilling books written by female authors.

read list here @ Vulture

To which I would add some classics and new titles:

• Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
• The Woman in Black by Susan Hill
• Ring by Koji Suzuki
• Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
• The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes
• Interview With the Vampire by Anne Rice
• The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
• Broken Monsters by Lauren Beukes
• Affinity by Sara Waters
• The Fifth Child by Doris Lessing
• Fledgling by Octavia Butler
• Roots of Evil by Sarah Raybe
• The Dead Girls of Hysteria Hall by Katie Alender
• Hammer on Bones by Cassandra Khaw
• The Missing by Sarah Langan
• The Red Tree by Caitlin Liernan
• The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon

Review: Saxon's Bane by Geoffrey Gudgion

Fergus Sheppard’s world changes forever the day his car crashes near the remote village of Allingley. Traumatised by his near-death experience, he returns to thank the villagers who rescued him, and stays to work at the local stables as he recovers from his injuries. He will discover a gentler pace of life, fall in love ¬ and be targeted for human sacrifice.

Clare Harvey’s life will never be the same either. The young archaeologist’s dream find ¬ the peat-preserved body of a Saxon warrior ¬ is giving her nightmares. She can tell that the warrior had been ritually murdered, and that the partial skeleton lying nearby is that of a young woman. And their tragic story is unfolding in her head every time she goes to sleep.

Fergus discovers that his crash is uncannily linked to the excavation, and that the smiling and beautiful countryside harbours some very dark secrets. As the pagan festival of Beltane approaches, and Clare’s investigation reveals the full horror of a Dark Age war crime, Fergus and Clare seem destined to share the Saxon couple’s bloody fate.

This is one of those stories when the reality of the main characters collide with something all-together unreal.

At the time Fergus is involved in a car accident outside of a small English village, archaeologist Clare is making a discovery of her lifetime. Fergus' return to the village is some sort of catharsis whilst visions of a past life of the Saxon warrior unearthed from the bog plague the dreams of Clare. As Beltane approaches, are Clare and Fergus doomed to relive the fate of the Dark Age couple?

The story immediately reminded me of "The Wicker Man" and "Children of the Corn". It is rich, evocative and descriptive, gripping and harrowing, as Gudgion weaves a tale shrouded in ancient folklore, superstition, dark fantasy and horror. The village of Allingley itself, with its diverse characters, conceals a deep, long hidden animosity - the menace of impending doom hovers in the air like a pall.

The story slowly builds, you are drawn deeper and deeper, until it reaches its apogee and the true horror is revealed.

Further Reading:

The Search for Anglo-Saxon Paganism by EG Stanley

Imagining the Anglo-Saxon Past by EG Stanley

Anglo-Saxon Paganism by David Wilson

Bog Bodies Uncovered by Miranda Aldhouse-Green

Bodies in the Bog and the Archaeological Imagination by Karin Sanders

Shirley Jackson: the US Queen of Gothic Horror

Shirley Jackson: the US queen of gothic horror claims her literary crown | Books | The Guardian

She has been cited as an inspiration by Stephen King, Donna Tartt, Neil Gaiman and Joanne Harris. Now the American author Shirley Jackson, once memorably described as writing “not with a pen but a broomstick”, is set for a long overdue reappraisal on this side of the Atlantic.

This week sees the release of a new biography, Shirley Jackson: A Rather Haunted Life, swiftly followed by a graphic novel version of her most famous short story, The Lottery, illustrated by her grandson, Miles Hyman, and the publication of Dark Tales, a collection of her most chilling short stories. And the revival does not stop there: next year will see a film of her book We Have Always Lived In The Castle, with rising stars Taissa Farmiga and Alexandra Daddario, alongside Sebastian Stan and Crispin Glover.

In an era when domestic noir reigns at the publishing houses and our thirst for dark tales of women under threat rages unabated, Jackson’s ability to unnerve strikes a chord. “There’s a whole new appreciation today of what it means to be a mother and a writer and how to reconcile those two things,” says Franklin. “We’re also more interested in the lives of women and that in turn has led to a revival of interest in Jackson’s work. I honestly feel as though she’s one of those authors who’s been in the background for a long time, yet has a huge influence on American fiction, and it’s only now that we’re beginning to see how important she is.” 

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