The Specialty of the House by Stanley Ellin

You might have noticed things have been sporadic here for a while. The truth is, this website is an outlet Continue reading →

But Our Hero Was Not Dead by Manly Wade Wellman

There have been stories written about almost every period of Sherlock Holmes’ life, and his retirement is no exception. As Continue reading →

Got a Letter from Jimmy by Shirley Jackson

As a reader I have my biases (who doesn’t), and one of them is that I am often left frustrated Continue reading →

The Long Sheet by William Sansom

By this point you might have noticed that I’m fond of high concept stories, of big glittering ideas that would Continue reading →

Man from the South by Roald Dahl

The protagonist is relaxing at a hotel pool, where a bunch of American naval cadets on shore leave are splashing Continue reading →

Jackie Won’t Be Home by Dane Gregory

It was the eighth time she had called that day. I didn’t even have to ask who it was; I’d Continue reading →

The Standard of Living by Dorothy Parker

This is about, as they call it, “the ancient sport of what-would-you-do-if-you-had-a-million dollars?” (I personally like to play the variant Continue reading →

The Macbeth Murder Mystery by James Thurber

The high concept: an avid reader of murder mysteries reads Macbeth, and tries to figure out who really killed King Continue reading →