Thursday 18 April 2013

House, Death and JLP specials!

I have been an admirer of John Llewellyn Probert for quite some time. When I had come across his unique brand of macabre-gruesome humour, spine-chilling horror, highly polished narratives, and situations that result in shudder & cackle simultaneously, I had found my jaw dropping. R Chetwynd-Hayes used to combine these elements in his stories, but somehow, I always found them rather dissatisfying. But JLP had achieved very-very satisfactory results with his efforts, and I went after his books in a big way thereafter. His award-winning collections reminiscent of Hammer & Amicus anthology-films were followed by two solid collections of short stories. In-between, he had brought out a collection involving adventures of a pair of occult detectives, or paranormal investigators, as they portray themselves. Mr Henderson and Ms Samantha had proved to be not only extremely capable fighters of evil and all its manifestations, but had provided us with some exquisitely memorable moments & words which had increased the attraction of these stories manifold. Therefore, when Atomic Fez (they bring out extremely interesting and offbeat-yet-enjoyable books in beautiful forms which deserve greater attention) announced that these pair would be returning in JLP's first-ever novel, I didn't even think twice before ordering. Many moons & suns hence, I am here, with my memories of the book quite fresh, despite the pathetic day at office that now seems to come to an end.

"The House That Death Built" is ostensibly about the investigations that our dynamic duo undertake, regarding 'The Most haunted House in Britain'. They receive assistance & hindrance from others, all of whom eventually die rather painfully & unjustly (a norm for "Pan Book of Horror"-styled stuff). The story is not very complex, neither very long. But at the end, neither the horror-inducing elements, nor the explanations stayed with me. The only reason behind me finding the book to be immensely enjoyable was charatcerisation & dialogues. Really great stuff that you need to read to appreciate, but my humble opinion is that: we need more of the brief and action-packed adventures from our duo, than such longish tales involving so many pages. Recommended!

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