BLACK GATE WRITINGS - THE WEEKLY POSTS 2013-2018

1. The Best New Sword & Sorcery of the Last Twelve Months
2. Night Winds by Karl Edward Wagner
3. Three Against the Witch World by Andre Norton
4. September Short Story Roundup
5. Daughter of the Bright Moon by Lynn Abbey
6. God Stalk by P. C. Hodgell
7. The Magic Goes Away by Larry Niven
8. The Great Captains by Henry Treece
9. October Short Story Round-up
10. Deepest, Darkest Eden edited by Cody Goodfellow
11. Battle in the Dawn: The Complete Hok the Mighty by Manly Wade Wellman
12. A Hero in the Service of Organized Crime: A Review of Jhereg by Steven Brust
13. The Whole Northern Thing: Hrolf Kraki’s Saga by Poul Anderson
14. November Short Story Roundup
15. Why I’m Here – Part One
16. Harpy’s Flight by Megan Lindholm (aka Robin Hobb)
17. Monthly Short Story Roundup — December
18. Griots: Sisters of the Spear edited by Milton J. Davis and Charles R. Saunders
19. Gonji: The Deathwind Trilogy by T. C. Rypel
20. Duelists, Animal People, and Machinery Not Meant to be Fiddled With: The Prophecy Machine by Neal Barrett Jr.
21. An Empire Unacquainted with Defeat by Glen Cook
22. Monthly Short Story Roundup – January
23. A Certain Charm Marred by an Air of the Horrible: Count Bohemond by Alfred Duggan
24. For Want of a Dragon… The Dragon Lord by David Drake
25. Year of the Unicorn by Andre Norton
26. Monthly Short Story Roundup – February
27. His Name is Vengeance: Kellory the Warlock by Lin Carter
28. I Invoke the Voidal! Oblivion Hand by Adrian Cole
29. An Age of Random Portents and Incoherent Miracles – Echoes of the Goddess by Darrell Schweitzer
30. March Short Story Roundup
31. In A Land Before Atlantis and Mu: The House of Cthulhu by Brian Lumley
32. A World Mottled With Decay: The Throne of Bones by Brian McNaughton
33. A Perfect Artifact from the Glory Days of 1970s Swords & Sorcery: Keith Taylor’s Bard
34. April Short Story Roundup
35. Jews With Swords: Gentlemen of the Road by Michael Chabon
36. The Shout of a Young Man Who Finds the World a Complicated Place: The Eternal Champion by Michael Moorcock
37. To The Dark Tower He Came: Warlock of the Witch World by Andre Norton
38. The Constant Tower by Carole McDonnell
39. May Short Story Roundup
40. Dark of the Moon by P. C. Hodgell
41. Changa’s Safari: Volume 2 by Milton Davis
42. The Drawing of the Dark by Tim Powers
43. June Short Story Roundup
44. The Start Of A Grand Adventure  Goblin Moon by Teresa Edgerton
45. Gonji: Fortress of Lost Worlds by T. C. Rypel
46. August Short Story Roundup
47. Dueling Rakes, Mysterious Women, and the Goblin Aristocracy: The Queen’s Necklace by Teresa Edgerton
48. Three Men And A Dog: The Elfin Ship by James P. Blaylock
49. A Rogue’s Early Days: Yendi by Steven Brust
50. September Short Story Roundup
51. Red Queen, White Queen by Henry Treece
52. On the Road to Khurdisan: Brak the Barbarian by John Jakes
53. The End of the Story: Sorceress of the Witch World by Andre Norton
54. Epic Fantasy from the Father of Sword & Soul: Abengoni: First Calling by Charles R. Saunders
55. October Short Story Roundup
56. Some Things Need to Be Broken: Seeker’s Mask by P.C. Hodgell
57. Thongor of Lemuria – Part One by Lin Carter
58. November Short Story Roundup
59. Swords & Sorcery Gold from a Master of Horror: Far Away & Never by Ramsey Campbell
60. A Look At The Year Gone By – 2014
61. December Short Story Roundup
62. Swords & Sorcery edited by L. Sprague De Camp
63. What Price Immortality? In Yana, the Touch of Undying by Michael Shea
64. The Long Reach of Night: The Voidal Vol. 2 by Adrian Cole
65. January Short Story Roundup
66. The IX by Andrew P. Weston
67. Legion from the Shadows by Karl Edward Wagner
68. February Short Story Roundup
69. Metal on Metal: Swords of Steel edited by D.M. Ritzlin
70. Return of the Master Cheeser: The Disappearing Dwarf by James P. Blaylock
71. Return to the Witch World: The Crystal Gryphon by Andre Norton
72. March Short Story Roundup
73. The Tears of Ishtar by Michael Ehart
74. Dragonfly: A Tale of the Counter-Earth at the Cosmic Antipodes by Raphael Ordoñez
75. Into the Wastelands: Enchanted Pilgrimage by Clifford D. Simak
76. Dragon’s Rook (The Lost Sword, Book 1) by Keanan Brand
77. May Short Story Roundup
78. Heroika 1: Dragon Eaters edited by Janet Morris
79. Death Angel’s Shadow by Karl Edward Wagner
80. The Dark Island by Henry Treece
81. June Short Story Roundup
82. July Short Story Roundup
83. For Gonji Lovers: A Hungering of Wolves by T.C. Rypel
84. We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson
85. August Short Story Roundup
86. It Is A Busy Omniverse: The Sword of Shadows: The Voidal Vol. 3 by Adrian Cole
87. You Can’t Go Home Again: The Annotated Sword of Shannara: 35th Anniversary Edition by Terry Brooks
88. September Short Story Roundup
89. The Testament of Tall Eagle by John R. Fultz
90. Against Despair: Lord Foul’s Bane by Stephen R. Donaldson
91. Red Moon and Black Mountain by Joy Chant
92. October Short Story Roundup
93. The Fionavar Tapestry Book 1: The Summer Tree by Guy Gavriel Kay
94. The Riddle-Master of Hed by Patricia McKillip
95. November Short Story Roundup
96. Fantastic Reference and Non-fiction Books
97. The Best of Heroic Fantasy Quarterly: Volume 1, 2009-2011 Compiled by the Editors of HFQ
98. Guides to Worlds Fantastic and Strange
99. December Short Story Roundup
100. Despair All The Way Down: The Illearth War by Stephen R. Donaldson
101. The Power That Preserves by Stephen R. Donaldson
102. January Short Story Roundup
103. The Fionavar Tapestry Book 2: The Wandering Fire by Guy Gavriel Kay
104. Changa: Before the Safari by Milton Davis
105. The Lost Level by Brian Keene
106. February Short Story Roundup
107. The IX: Exordium of Tears by Andrew P. Weston
108. The Wake by Paul Kingsnorth
109. March Short Story Roundup
110. Cirsova and Pulp Literature
111. Once More Into the P rimal Land: Tarra Khash: Hrossak! by Brian Lumley
112. More Metal on Metal: Swords of Steel II edited by D.M. Ritzlin
113. April Short Story Roundup
114. Beneath the Shining Jewel by Balogun Ojetade
115. Lyonesse: Suldrun’s Garden by Jack Vance
116. Logical Swords & Sorcery: The Tritonian Ring by L. Sprague de Camp
117. Captain Alatriste by Arturo Pérez-Reverte
118. May Short Story Roundup
119. The Conclusion to a Grand Adventure: Hobgoblin Night by Teresa Edgerton
120. To Ride a Rathorn by P. C. Hodgell
121. Dark Sleeper by Jeffrey E. Barlough
122. Return to Balumnia: The Stone Giant by James P. Blaylock
123. Summer Short Story Roundup: Part One
124. Summer Short Story Roundup: Part Two
125. Cugel in Golarion: Song of the Serpent by Hugh Matthews
126. The Religion by Tim Willocks
127. Return to Enoch: The King of Nightspore’s Crown by Raphael Ordoñez
128. September Short Story Roundup
129. Horror and Swords & Sorcery
130. Into the Mystic: The Mask of the Sorcerer by Darrell Schweitzer
131. One Last Time into the Primal Land: Sorcery in Shad by Brian Lumley
132. Another Term: Bound in Blood by P.C. Hodgell
133. Last Term: Honor’s Paradox by P.C. Hodgell
134. October Short Story Roundup
135. Into the Maelstrom: Berserker: Shadow of the Wolf by Chris Carlsen
136. Why Swords & Sorcery?
137. Last of a Series… For Now: The Sea of Time by P.C. Hodgell
138. The Blue Lamp by Robert Zoltan
139. December Short Story Roundup
140. Eaters of the Dead by Michael Crichton
141. The Killingest Book I Know: The Twelve Children of Paris by Tim Willocks
142. Mad Shadows II: Dorgo the Dowser and The Order of the Serpent by Joe Bonadonna
143. The Pastel City by M. John Harrison
144. A Storm of Wings by M. John Harrison
145. January Short Story Roundup
146. In Viriconium by M. John Harrison
147. The End of the Matter: Viriconium Nights by M. John Harrison
148. February Short Story Roundup
149. Space Viking by H. Beam Piper
150. Mission of Gravity by Hal Clement
151. Three Ghosts in a Black Pumpkin by Erika M. Szabo and Joe Bonadonna
152. The Pride of Chanur by C.J. Cherryh
153. March Short Story Roundup
154. Trader to the Stars by Poul Anderson
155. Spacial Delivery by Gordon R. Dickson
156. April Short Story Roundup
157. Even More Metal on Metal: Swords of Steel Volume III 
158. Stories from a S&S Griot: Nyumbani Tales by Charles R. Saunders
159. “A World Gone to the Dogs”: City by Clifford D. Simak
160. It’s Large: Ringworld by Larry Niven
161. Half Past Human by T.J. Bass
162. May Short Story Roundup
163. Disasterville U.S.A.: The Shockwave Rider by John Brunner
164. The Best of Cordwainer Smith , edited by J. J. Pierce
165. July Short Story Roundup
166. Dune by Frank Herbert
167. Purity of Blood by Arturo Pérez-Reverte
168. A Gathering of Ravens by Scott Oden
169. August Short Story Roundup
170. Lore of the Witch World by Andre Norton
171. Dilvish, the Damned by Roger Zelazny
172. The Hammer and the Blade by Paul S. Kemp
173. September Short Story Roundup
174. The Past Remembered
175. A Tale Most Gruesome and Bonkers: Dark Ventures by T.C. Rypel
176. October Short Story Roundup
177. Thick As Thieves by Ken Lizzi
178. A Tale from the Archonate: A Wizard’s Henchman by Matthew Hughes
179. The Road of Azrael by Robert E. Howard
180. A Homecoming: Son of Mfumu by Milton J. Davis
181. December Short Story Roundup
182. Helen’s Daimones by S.E. Lindberg
183. From the Vaults: The Lands of the Earthquake by Henry Kuttner
184. Grimmer Than Grim: The Children of Húrin by J.R.R. Tolkien
185. The High House by James Stoddard
186. Son of Tall Eagle by John R. Fultz
187. Why I’m Here – Part Two: Some Thoughts on Old Books and Appendix N
188. February Short Story Roundup
189. The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander
190. A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin
191. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L’Engle
192. Mythic Landscape: The Weirdstone of Brisingamen by Alan Garner
193. Tales of the Thieftaker by D.B. Jackson
194. March Short Story Roundup: Part 1
195. Witch World by Andre Norton
196. March Short Story Roundup: Part 2
197. Sorcery and Science: The Broken Lands by Fred Saberhagen
198. Demons and Monsters: The Black Mountains by Fred Saberhagen
199. A Demon Rising: Ardneh’s World by Fred Saberhagen
200. May Short Story Roundup 
201. The Roots of Grimdark: The Black Company by Glen Cook
202. Into the Grimness: Shadows Linger by Glen Cook
203. Announcing the Black Gate Book Club: Downbelow Station by C.J. Cherryh
204. The Final Battle Comes: The White Rose by Glen Cook
205. June Short Story Roundup
206. An End to the End: The Silver Spike by Glen Cook
207. On to Khatovar: Shadow Games by Glen Cook
208. The Book of Lady: Dreams of Steel by Glen Cook
209. July Short Story Roundup
210. A Ball of Confusion: Bleak Seasons by Glen Cook
211. Next Year in Khatovar: She Is the Darkness by Glen Cook Part 1
212. Into the Night: She Is the Darkness by Glen Cook Part 2
213. Fifteen Years Gone: Water Sleeps by Glen Cook, Part 1
214. Water Sleeps by Glen Cook, Part 2
215. Ticking Up and Winding Down: Soldiers Live by Glen Cook, Part 1
216. And in the End: Soldiers Live by Glen Cook, Part 2
217. VIVE LA COMPAGNIE! : In Conclusion, The Black Company Series by Glen Cook
218. In the Beginning: The Thief of Forthe and Other Stories by Clifford Ball, edited by D.M. Ritzlin
219. Autumn Short Story Roundup
220. Under a Blood-Red Sun: The Shadow of the Torturer by Gene Wolfe
221. The Claw of the Conciliator by Gene Wolfe
222. In Which Severian Becomes Human: The Sword of the Lictor by Gene Wolfe
223. Ouroboros: The Citadel of the Autarch by Gene Wolfe
224. I, Severian: The Book of the New Sun by Gene Wolfe
225. That’s All (for now) 
226. Endings and Beginnings: The IX: Prelude to Sorrow by Andrew P. Weston
227. Rescued from the Vaults of Time: The Sapphire Goddess – The Fantasies of Nictzin Dyalhis 

John Bellairs and Edward Gorey

I don't know if I read The House With a Clock in Its Walls or saw the Vincent Price-hosted tv show based on it first. Either way, I read the book when I was twelve or thirteen and thoroughly enjoyed it. Many years later, in my thirties, I think, I reread it along with its sequel and several of Bellairs' other juvenile supernatural adventure books. I also read his adult fantasy novel, The Face in the Frost, but I'll write about that some other time.

Bellairs wrote three series, all similar, all setting a boy against mysteries and supernatural dangers - mostly. The Johnny Dixon and Lewis Barnavelt books all feature spooky shenanigans. The Anthony Monday books start with a straight, mundane mystery but the following three books introduce ghosts and whatnot. I imagine it was a case of Bellairs and his publisher understanding what his audience wanted.

Having just finished the first book in each series, I'm looking forward to reading more. House holds up, but the other two are even better. The Anthony Monday book, The Treasure of Alpheus Winterborn is more sharply written than House and the Johnny Dixon book, The Curse of the Blue Figurine, is even better. The end is a bit rushed, but for a young adult book written for actual young adults, there's some depth to the characters and some very good atmospheric bits. Even when written in the seventies, they were period pieces, looking back to Bellairs' own Catholic childhood in the late forties and early fifties and Curse recreates that quite well. 

Something I only recognized when I read the books in my thirties was that many of the covers and some interior illustrations were done by Edward Gorey. I knew him from his animated credits for PBS's Mystery anthology series, his War of the Worlds illustrations,  and I had heard about his sets for the Broadway production of Dracula starring Frank Langella.

Apparently, Gorey and Bellairs never communicated. Gorey took on the illustrating as work-for-hire, would read the book, and then send his art to the publishers and Bellairs would review for any technical discrepancies. According to one article, the art for House came in late enough, the publisher told Bellairs he'd have to change his text as they were running to close to deadline to get Gorey to redo anything.

In an article by Matt Domino, he recounts how Gorey was more-or-less dismissive of his Bellairs illustrations and had them removed from his archives:

In fact, according to Brown, later in his life, Gorey wanted to disown his cover illustrations for Bellairs. “He called me up one day and said, ‘Let’s get all of the Bellairs work out of the archives.’ He just didn’t think it represented him and what he was trying to do. He saw it as his grunt work.”

Be that as it may, the illustrations, like most of Gorey's work are wonderful and evocative of the weird and spooky.

If you aren't familiar with Gorey's work, I recommend you find any one of his books or collections. His work is finely detailed and black & white, usually set in some sort of Edwardian or post-WWI setting, featuring strange characters and often disturbing rhymes. It's also wickedly funny.

Below are his illustrations for The House With a Clock in Its Walls. Not only are they wonderful, they're also so specific. He clearly had a good reader's instinct for the perfect moments in the story to illuminate.