Showing results by publisher "Spoken Realms" in Horror

Pleasure Cruise to Hell by Donald Graham appeared in the pulp magazine Terror Tales May-June 1938. A second honeymoon turns into a trip into terror and perversion when the yacht a couple is traveling on becomes stranded outside the home of unfathomable evil: Madman's Island.

"Graveyard Rats" by Robert E. Howard as published in "Thrilling Mystery" a pulp magazine in 1936 has mystery, murder, and terror, along with being highly creepy. Robert E. Howard was one of the premier mystery writers of the period. This audiobook narrated by award-winning narrator Mike Vendetti will not disappoint.

"Prey for the Daughter of Hell" is a captivating short story by Conrad Kimball that combines elements of horror and romance. The story revolves around a 12-year-old girl who becomes the victim of a curse imposed by an Asian mystic. The mystic hypnotizes her, making her believe that her love life will mirror that of a female praying mantis, where she mates with males and then consumes them.

"The Night Eternity Ended" a short horror story by Donald Dale, published in the May 1940 issue of Terror Tales, featuring Juan Perez who has been paying the penalty for daring to look upon the Blue Lady of the Sierras during those hours when the cold stone was transformed into warm human flesh. Juan was a handsome ladies' man 400 years ago until he worked his charms upon the Blue Lady of the Sierras.

From the May-June, 1938 issue of Terror Tales, Queens of Beauty and Horror a chilling story by George Edson. A group of 48 beauty queens celebrate the pageant they have just completed. The beauty queens and their escorts suspect little of the sinister motive behind the pageant. The audience consists of leering, lecherous old men who have nefarious plans for the beauties later in the evening.

The Book of Torment by Harrison Storm, a short horror story was first published in the May 1940 issue of Terror Tales, a pulp magazine. Gilbert Boden, the narrator, a professor and writer falls asleep, waking up to a very strange phenomenon. Apparently during the night unbeknownst to him he has created a short story featuring him as a member of the Spanish Inquisition, torturing a woman with a name very similar to a former lover who was found dead that morning.

Do you want to know how a corpse feels, moldering in the grave? Listen to this audiobook of weird, bizarre menace. "When the Banshee Calls," a short horror story by Wayne Rogers published in the May-June 1938 issue of Terror Tales, narrated by award-winning narrator Mike Vendetti, will creep you into the crypt.

Test Tube Frankenstein, a short horror story by Wayne Robbins appeared in the May 1940 issue of Terror Tales. It is interesting to draw connections between this pulp story and Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Both stories involve a mad genius creating a creature that deceives and kills those around them. However, in this short story, the creature takes on the form and demeanor of its creator, Chester Vermis, which differentiates it from Frankenstein.

Playboy Wesley Harrison finds himself embroiled in a "Juke Joint" romance with Leona, the daughter of hillman Jubel Tandy, resulting in a very short-lived marriage. Leona is killed in a car wreck four weeks after their marriage. Leona's words, "Nothin's ever goin' to part us darlin' never. Your mine as long as we live an' after that we'll sleep together up there on the ridge." Comes back to haunt Harrison when Jubal advises him, "We mate only once here in the hills, Harrison! She is gone from you for little while, but you belong to her for all eternity and I will know if you fail her"

Charles Boswell's short story "Monsters of Monarchy", Terror Tales, May 1940 features Roman emperor Caligula (12 BCE-24 CE), one of the most notorious Roman emperors. Known for his incestuous relationship with his sisters, and for his cruelty and madness, which culminated in Caligula naming his horse Roman consul and declaring himself a god. Caligula's brief reign and life turn into a complex and fascinating story of a boy-emperor thoroughly unprepared for the throne, who, in the early years of the Roman Empire, tried to make Rome an absolute monarchy but failed.

"Mistress of the Dark Pool" by Russell Gray is a captivating short story with elements of horror, sex, and suspense. First published in 1940 in the magazine Terror Tales. The story follows a young couple seeking solitude in the mountains, only to encounter a peculiar dog with human-like eyes. As the plot unfolds, they discover a local woman rumored to be a witch, and their encounter with her takes a dark turn.

This gripping tale takes place in the late 19th century and follows the protagonist, Mr. Hapley, a famous entomologist who becomes embroiled in an ongoing feud with Professor Pawkins a rival in his field. Hapley has a devasting retort to Professor Pawkins's most recent attack on him, but before he can deliver the ruinous blow, Pawkins dies leaving Haply ready for battle with no opponent. The physical Pawkins may be gone, but a mysterious moth that no one but Hapley can see or feel the presence of appears.

The unpopular and reclusive Adam Farrel died as he had lived—alone. An acquaintance, Falred, decides to stay with the corpse overnight in a silent wake. Can the dead reach out beyond the grave to touch the living? Or is it just Falred's imagination?

Dig Me No Grave was first published in Weird Tales in February 1937. It was also published as John Grimlan's Debt. This is one of eight stories by Howard featuring Professor John Kirowan, an Irish aristocrat and seeker of arcane knowledge, and his associate John Conrad. This story relates to their investigation of the death of a mysterious and sinister hermit, John Grimlan.

Mr Rayburn, a widower, and his young daughter, Lucy, first meet Mrs Zant in Kensington Gardens. She is oblivious to their presence and appears to be in some sort of trance. When they next meet she astounds Rayburn with her explanation: she is convinced that a vision of her recently deceased husband had come to her with a warning...

After breaking off his engagement with Agnes Lockwood, Lord Montbarry marries the eccentric Countess Narona before embarking on a whirlwind honeymoon tour of Europe culminating in Venice. There they reside in the decaying Palace Hotel with the Countess' brother, Baron Rivar, and their courier, Ferrari. Lord Montbarry later dies of bronchitis and upon hearing of this from Henry Westwick, Montbarry's brother, Agnes agrees to meet with Henry at the newly renovated Palace Hotel to investigate the insurance claim that was purchased prior to his death.

Imagine a smartphone app that would expose the evil thoughts of people around you. In this story from 1919, a scientist stumbles across a membrane that does just that to his color photography. The images can't hurt one physically, but oh, what they do to the mind.

John William Polidori was an English physician and an associate of Byron and Shelley. On a tour with the two poets and Mary Godwin (later Shelley), Polidori participated in a competition to write a short ghost story. Polidori's contribution was The Vampyre, which is considered to be the first modern work of vampire fiction. The central figures in the plot are the mysterious and sinister Lord Ruthven, and a naïve and wealthy young man named Aubrey. Polidori's tale proved very influential.

A governess employed at a remote estate finds herself in charge of two young children. As the story unfolds, it would appear that nothing is as it should be. The governess doubts her own sanity when the children see things, and it seems that the estate is haunted. Is the governess in danger from the ghosts or is she in danger from the children?

The Giant Wistaria, which was originally published in 1891, is a short story by American writer Charlotte Perkins Gilman. Let's join this well-to-do young couple and their friends as they look forward to a lovely summer in the haunted house they rent.