ECHOES….

As the kitchen slowly fills with acrid smoke, Hannah considers the details of last night’s dream. All her dreams are similar. They begin with the vultures from Disney’s movie The Jungle Book: Buzzie, Flaps, Ziggy, and Dizzy, those adorable guys with their shaggy haircuts and Liverpudlian accents. Hannah suspects she giggles in her sleep as the dream gets underway and the feathered quartet exchange their famous banter: Whatcha wanna do? I dunno. Okay, but whatcha wanna do?

This is when Hitchcock enters belly first, and just like that the mock-Beatles birds have blood red eyes, growl like wolves, sprout dripping talons, and hideous, dagger beaks. Hannah shivers just thinking of them. In the dreams, she searches for and locates herself far below, standing in the middle of a cornfield row. She is shading her eyes, looking skyward toward the row of birds, her body no bigger than a black ant on a picnic table. When the birds screech and launch, spears sailing earthward, Hannah starts sprinting.

The vultures, protected black vultures, are the first creatures we meet in Virginia Watt’s wonderful collection of short stories, ECHOES FROM THE HOCKER HOUSE. Like many of the creatures in Watt’s book, the vultures are not functioning correctly. Their settings have been turned up abnormally high. Why? No one seems to be able to fathom, and instead the focus is on how to adapt, how to live with things that are fundamentally unendurable.

Much like the middle of Penn’s woods, i.e. the state of Pennsylvania, many of Watt’s stories take place in a landscape that is beautiful, but challenging: mountains and trees and rocks and coal. Living to a ripe old age is the exception to the rule, but so is leaving home for easier horizons. These hill country folk love their wooded towns, their unusual neighbors, their God, their country, and their struggles.

echoes from the hocker house by virginia watts
echoes from the hocker house by virginia watts

Have you read the Kirkus review of ECHOES FROM THE HOCKER HOUSE?

ECHOES FROM THE HOCKER HOUSE is a National Book Award nominee, and it is out today in Kindle, with the paperback to release on 11/20/2023. And STILL available at the pre-order price from Devil’s Party Press!

OLD SCRATCH PRESS SUPPORTING MNI SOTA THIS WEEKEND!

Reclaiming Mni Sota Indigenous Writers Grant 24-Hour Fundraiser

Join us for an exciting online event, the Reclaiming Mni Sota Indigenous Writers Grant 24-Hour Live Fundraiser! Starting on Friday, Nov 3, 7pm (Central Daylight Time), this event aims to support and uplift Indigenous writers in Mni Sota (Minnesota).

Throughout the 24 hours, we’ll be hosting a variety of engaging interviews with special guests from the fields of writing, editing, and publishing. You’ll have the opportunity to connect with talented writers, learn about their experiences, and gain insights into their creative processes.

By participating in this fundraiser, you’ll be contributing to the Reclaiming Mni Sota Indigenous Writers Grant, a literary diversity initiative to raise $10,000 for one Indigenous writer from Minnesota. Your support can make a significant difference in fostering Indigenous voices and storytelling.

Mark your calendars and join us for this incredible event. Together, let’s celebrate and honor Indigenous writers, their stories, and their invaluable contributions to our communities.

The silent auction, which includes dozens of special prizes, begins Tuesday, October 10, and ends Saturday, November 4, one hour before the end of the live fundraiser. All silent auction winners will be announced the final hour of the live 24-hour event. All proceeds from the auction directly benefit the Reclaiming Mni Sota Indigenous Writers Grant. To view and bid on items, go here: https://historythroughfiction.betterworld.org/auctions/reclaiming-mni-sota

ARE YOU READY FOR SPINE-TINGLING CHILLS?


🎃 Dive into the Darkest Depths of Horror with “THE PUMPKIN KING AND OTHER TALES OF TERROR”! 📚

Are you ready for heart-pounding suspense, and unforgettable nightmares? Gravelight is thrilled to introduce the first volume in a two-book series that will keep you awake at night: R. David Fulcher’s masterful collection of horror fiction.

👻 Immerse yourself in 20 blood-curdling tales, meticulously updated and revised by the author himself, ensuring you experience the definitive versions of these horrifying stories. From eerie gothic settings to bone-chilling encounters, these tales will haunt your dreams for years to come.

🕯️ What’s Inside:

  • Eulogy to E.A. Poe
  • Marienburg Castle
  • The Pumpkin King
  • Heavenly Strains
  • A Matter of Taste
  • My Days With Mahalia
  • A Night Out With Mr. Bones
  • Merry Are We of the Lake
  • The Night Flyer
  • Pumpkin Seed Spit
  • A Night for Animals
  • The Man Next Door
  • Extra! Extra!
  • The Flight Dummy
  • For the Children
  • The Watcher’s Web
  • Dreaming, The Copper City
  • The Huntress
  • The Faerie Lights
  • The October Man

🌕 This collection features a mesmerizing wrap-around cover and a contemporary design, making it the perfect companion for Halloween gatherings, or for those dark, rainy nights when you crave a bone-chilling story to send shivers down your spine.

📖 Don’t miss out on this opportunity to own a piece of horror history. Grab your copy of “THE PUMPKIN KING AND OTHER TALES OF TERROR” today and let the nightmares begin!

👉 Click the link below to order your copy now! [Link to Purchase]

👉 Share this post with fellow horror enthusiasts and spread the fear! 💀📚

BUY ON AMAZON

Buy from DPP:

The Dunwich Horror and Horror Author Phil Giunta

This anthology of seven eerie, suspenseful tales by the legendary H.P. Lovecraft includes three that involve his famous mythology of the Ancient Ones—especially the monstrous entity, Yog-Sothoth—as well as the grimoire of black magic known as the Necronomicon

“In the Vault” – After finding himself locked in a tomb, a despicable, cantankerous undertaker successfully escapes by stacking six occupied coffins to create a platform, allowing him to reach a small opening above the door. However, just before crawling free, his leg punches through the lid of the top coffin, leaving him with wounds that were not merely inflicted by jagged wood.

“Pickman’s Model”  – An artist of the macabre develops a new and startlingly realistic style when he begins painting demonic figures too grotesque to be displayed in public, but where did he find this latest inspiration?

“The Rats in the Walls” – After restoring the cursed, ruined estate of his ancestors, a young man begins hearing rats scurrying in the walls. An exploration of the cellar reveals an opening to a large chamber, the contents of which divulge the true and terrible history of the property.

“The Music of Erich Zann” – Each night, on the top floor of an apartment building, an elderly violinist plays a haunting, otherworldly melody—and receives a response from somewhere beyond our dimension.

“The Haunter of the Dark” – Robert Blake takes an unhealthy interest in the ruins of a long-abandoned Gothic church whose distant spires are visible from his apartment window. After venturing across town, Blake learns that local residents fear the church and do not speak of it. Undaunted, Blake presses on and finds a way inside. While exploring, he encounters an artifact that conjures frightening visions of the Ancient Ones—one of which is soon unleashed.

“The Dunwich Horror” – In the isolated, backwoods village of Dunwich, Massachusetts, the primitive Whateley family welcomes a grandson named Wilbur, born of Lavinia and an unnamed father who  is believed to be the ancient creature known as Yog-Sototh. Other villagers become fearful of Wilbur’s rapid physical development and inhuman countenance—not to mention the strange growling and rumbling from the surrounding hills that began after his birth. Following Lavinia’s unexplained death, Wilbur and his grandfather begin boarding up the windows of their home as if to imprison something inside. After the deaths of Old Man Whateley, then of Wilbur, the invisible creature bursts from its confinement to wreak havoc on the village. Three professors from nearby Miskatonic University undertake a mission to destroy the creature using the Necronomicon, the grimoire of black magic that initially spawned the beast.“The Thing on the Doorstep” – Edward Derby, an intelligent, but weak-willed young man with an interest in the macabre, marries a homely, eccentric woman named Asenath who is reputed to have a beguiling effect on others. It is claimed by some that once captured by her stare, they found themselves gazing upon their own bodies through Asenath’s eyes. It isn’t long before Derby undergoes a bizarre and dangerous change of demeanor.

Phil Giunta’s novels include the paranormal mysteries Testing the PrisonerBy Your Side, and Like Mother, Like Daughters. His short stories appear in such anthologies as Love on the EdgeBeach Pulp, Space Opera Digest 2022A Plague of Shadows, the Middle of Eternity series, Hard-Boiled and Loaded with Sin, and more. He is a Pushcart Prize-nominated author and member of the Horror Writers Association, the National Federation of Press Women, and the Greater Lehigh Valley Writers Group.

We are always glad to feature stories from Phil in our Devil’s Party Press anthologies. You will love Phil’s writing! Phil is currently working on his fourth paranormal mystery novel while plotting his triumphant escape from the pressures of corporate America where he has been imprisoned for thirty years. Visit Phil’s website at www.philgiunta.com.  

Find him on Facebook: @writerphilgiunta, Instagram: @phil_giunta71, and BlueSky: pgiunta.bsky.social

📚 Ready to Embark on a Reading Adventure? Try Kindle Vella! 📚

Are you a bookworm looking for fresh, exciting stories to dive into? Kindle Vella offers a unique and captivating reading experience that you won’t want to miss. Here are some thrilling titles that will pique your interest:

  1. THE PUMPKIN KING AND OTHER TALES OF TERROR by R. David Fulcher
    • 💀 Genre: Horror
    • 👻 This spine-tingling collection promises to make your hair stand on end. Dive into tales of the supernatural, from summoning the dead to eerie college professors and unforgettable Halloween nights. Get ready for a chilling reading experience!
    • 📖 Read it here: The Pumpkin King and Other Tales of Terror
  2. HIBERNACULUM by Anthony Doyle
    • 🌌 Genre: Sci-Fi
    • ✨ Set in the not-too-distant future, this original sci-fi novel explores a world where human hibernation has become a common practice. Whether it’s for luxury, health, or survival, hibernation has reshaped society. Will you take the plunge into this thought-provoking world?
    • 📖 Read it here: HIBERNACULUM
  3. JUST A HOUSECLEANER by Amy Willard
    • 🏡 Genre: Mystery
    • 🔍 Join Patsy as she navigates the unexpected twists and turns that come with her profession as a house cleaner. When her friend’s passing reveals hidden secrets, Patsy must uncover the truth while grieving her loss. Can she protect her friend’s estate?
    • 📖 Read it here: Just a Housecleaner Mysteries
  4. HARD-BOILED AND LOADED WITH SIN
    • 🔫 Genre: Noir
    • 🕵️‍♂️ Get ready for a gripping journey into the gritty world of crime and suspense. This anthology features tales from an impressive lineup of authors, each offering a unique take on the hard-boiled genre. Dive into stories that are impossible to put down!
    • 📖 Read it here: Noir Collection

Kindle Vella lets you explore these stories one episode at a time, making it perfect for those moments when you want a quick literary escape. With a variety of genres and talented authors, there’s something for everyone on this platform. So, grab your favorite device, start reading, and let your imagination run wild! 📖✨

WHAT STARTS WITH A CRISP CLEAN PROLOGUE…

HIBERNACULUM starts out like most books, neat, clean, crisp white pages, chapters, titles, headers, all nice and normal.

And it ends like this:

It ends on notebook paper, torn from a spiral notebook, and hidden.

The book is fiction, and there is all story there, and you get to know and love the characters very well and much. But Anthony digs in. And so, why would the world come to have places where people could go to hibernate? Why would we need human hibernation? The answers range, and include vanity, conservation, rest, but also poverty, desperation, and ending up on notebook paper. Which humans get which kind of hibernation?

And that’s always the question in life, which humans get which kind of life, right?

The novel starts like a day at the spa, or MOMA, and ends on, well, not even on notebook paper, but I’m not giving it completely away. It sparks thought; it glows, and it swims in my mind, and I come back to it again, and again, and-

This damn book, this HIBERNACULUM.

And it’s here, and HERE, if you want it.

And find the humble Mr. Doyle here.

FINAL EPISODE AUGUST 28TH

Kindle Vella is a format where an author can serialize a novel. JUST A HOUSECLEANER is Amy Willard’s novel about a housecleaner named Patsy who solves a crime.

Anyone in the USA (currently it is only offered stateside) can read Amy’s book on Kindle Vella. And the first three episodes are free.

The final episode posts 8/28, so start reading now!

The paperback version releases next year.

And find out all about Amy here.

FOR THE MAVERICK READERS:

DPP's summer logo

Pre-orders are only for the folks who like to be early adopters.
Are you the one who recommends things to your friends? Then pre-orders may be for you!

With Devil’s Party Press, you can be assured that all books are well-written and will be well-reviewed, but what if you were the one to preview and recommend to your friends?

What if you’re the one with the perfect literary gift every time?

And what if you score a signed copy or a pre-order promo?

Check out our pre-orders!

Short horror stories by David Fulcher, one of the most beloved horror authors of the East Coast!

echoes from the hocker house by virginia watts
Echoes from the Hocker House, short stories from the wilds of coal country by Virginia Watts, a National Book Award nominee!

SUMMER READING….

What do the reviews say about Jeffrey Keeten’s commentary added to the classic Dr. Jekyll?

PICK UP A COPY ON AMAZON or Get a copy from us by clicking below:

Break in the Field by Ellis Elliott
Break in the Field by Ellis Elliott

What do the reviews say about the first collection of poetry to come out of OLD SCRATCH PRESS?

PICK UP A COPY FROM AMAZON or get a copy from us by clicking below (still on summer sale and with the pre-order signed bookmark handmade by Ellis!):

There are three Charlotte Smart mysteries for those of you who like a cosy with a little bit of sassy language and a very smart senior citizen sleuth!!

Stan truly embodies the “late bloomer” value of Devil’s Party Press, as Stan has continued to write books into his 90s!

PICK UP ONE OF THE SERIES ON AMAZON or get them from us by clicking below:

And let’s not forget the summer book I just can’t stop talking about!

PICK UP THE PAPERBACK ON AMAZON, read the KINDLE VELLA, or get directly from us by clicking below (still on summer sale, and with the signed pre-order bonus!):