Talking Scared

Send us a textYou will know Justin Cronin as the author of the landmark The Passage. That trilogy set the world of horror and science fiction (and all points in between) alight in the early 2000s and he’s back after eight long years, with The Ferryman. This time he’s swapping vampire plagues for something wholly more subtle … but no less terrifying. I can’t tell you what ‘cos that would ruin it for everyone, but it may shake the very building blocks of your reality.Justin and I discuss all manner of existential worries, from the nature of reality to the malign impact of ‘wellbeing’ lifestyles. We talk about Kazuo Ishiguro, Planet of the Apes and myriad other influences that flow into the wonder, horror and awe of The Ferryman. Don’t worry, we cover The Passage too… And he also explains how telling any story is just like telling a joke really, really well.Enjoy! The Ferryman was published on May 2nd by Ballantine Books and OrionOther books mentioned in this episode include: The Earth Abides (1948), by George Stewart Lonesome Dove (1985), by Larry McMurtry Never Let Me Go (2005), by Kazuo Ishiguro The Remains of the Day (1989), by Kazuo Ishiguro Netherland (2008), by Joseph O’Neill Planet of the Apes (1963), by Pierre Boulle Shotgun Lovesongs (2013), by Nickolas Butler Support Talking Scared on PatreonCome talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod, on Instagram, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Support the show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Send us a textWhat if the world ended, not with a bang, but a slow squelch? That’s sort-of the premise of The Marigold, the brand-new novel from Andrew F. Sullivan. In this book a slow apocalypse is corroding Toronto. Above ground, urban development is driving ecological disaster, whilst in the basements and dark places a new fungal menace is squirming from the shadow. You may never look at your own athlete’s foot the same way.Andrew and I talk about many things, mushrooms and mycology, the weird ‘third life’ of fungus and the cosmic horror to be found in the soil and loam. We also look at how grimy 80s exploitation movies influenced his book, and I discover an awful lot about raccoons.A great conversation about a unique book. Enjoy!The Marigold was published on April 18th by ECW PressOther books mentioned in this episode include: Annihilation (2014), by Jeff VanderMeer What Moves the Dead (2022), by T. Kingfisher The Deluge (2023), by Stephen Markley Follow Me To Ground (2018), by Sue Rainsford Night Terror: Troubled Sleep and the Stories We Tell About It (2023), by Alice Vernon Support Talking Scared on PatreonCome talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod, on Instagram, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Support the show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Send us a textThis week we’re dissecting spectres and excavating the haunted house in Ai Jiang’s word-of-mouth smash, Linghun.Ai’s novella is a blast. A read-in-one-sitting tale of grief and greed and ghosts and what the word HOME really means. We go deep, talking about different cultural iterations of the supernatural, the impact of location on writing style…and the horrors of the Edinburgh vaults. Enjoy!Linghun was published on April 4th by Dark Matter INKSupport Talking Scared on PatreonCome talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod, on Instagram, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Support the show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Send us a textBack to the Island this week! With Rachel Eve Moulton and The Insatiable Volt Sisters.Rachel sophomore novel is the weirdest island story since Lost, or Brexit. It features a strange family with a stranger secret, curses, killer quarry ponds and the wearing of other people’s skin. And yet you probably still want to visit Fowler Island (I did). We talk about working with surrealism, about writing volatile sisters and gendered monsters, and about the wonderful horror-lure of island life. It’s worth noting, we also spend time discussing famous suicide hotspots – this seems like something you should know in advance. Enjoy!The Insatiable Volt Sisters was published on April 4th by FSG Other books mentioned in this episode include: Tinfoil Butterfly (2019), by Rachel Eve Moulton Hurricane Girl (2022), by Marcy Dermansky Diary (2003), by Chuck Palahniuk The House of Dies Drear (1968), by Virginia Hamilton “The Raft”, in Skeleton Crew (1985), by Stephen King Support Talking Scared on PatreonCome talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod, on Instagram, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Support the show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Send us a textFairy tales are the first horror stories, right? Kids being eaten by witches, narcissistic imps who steal your babies. That’s the good stuff. Kelly Link knows a thing or two about the darkness inside fairy tales, and how to (re)tell them for maximum effect. She is a superstar of the short story, a Pultizer nominee and someone who just plain knows a lot of interesting stuff. Her new collection, White Cat, Black Dog takes some of your favourite stories and twists them into new shapes. Some you’ll recognise, most you won’t (unless you have a degree in folklore or just run to Wikipedia to look smart). We talk about how and why she reinvents stories, why she wishes every story was a ghost story, and how she controls the extreme weirdness in her fiction. Oh, and she also indulges me as I ask her lots of questions about my favourite story in years. One she wrote. You’ll be sick of me saying the title by the end.Enjoy!White Cat, Black Dog was published on March 28th Other books mentioned in this episode include: The Women Could Fly (2022), by Megan Giddings Get In Trouble: Stories (2015), by Kelly Link When Things Get Dark: Stories Inspired by Shirley Jackson (2021), ed. by Ellen Datlow Our Share of Night (2022), by Mariana Enriquez  Support Talking Scared on PatreonCome talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod, on Instagram, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Support the show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Send us a textTerrible times and awful words await us this week. Thankfully, on this show that’s a good thing!Our guest is Max Booth III, the wizard behind Ghoulish Books and the author of bathroom-set apocalypse, We Need to Do Something. He’s here to talk about his new collection of uber-dark stories, Abnormal Statistics.These tales are pitch black, treacle-thick pieces of clotted nastiness. Bad things happen to lots of people, most frequently children (but never dogs). Many a mind is tortured and many a tooth is sucked (!!) Max and I talk about how these stories reflect his own disjointed childhood. We talk about awful true crimes and why he’s addicted to information that is bad for him. We also try to pin down precisely what it is about human teeth that seem so universally unnerving… plus some references to my favourite creepypasta stories.This is the best bad time you’ll have this week.Enjoy!Abnormal Statistics was published by Apocalypse Party on March 23rd Other books mentioned in this episode include: The Haunting of Camp Winter Falcon (2022), by Jonathan Raab This Appearing House (2022), by Ally Malinenko “The Whimper of Whipped Dogs” (1973), by Harlan Ellison Support Talking Scared on PatreonCome talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod, on Instagram, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Support the show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Send us a textWagons West this week, with a guest I’ve been trying to get on the show since the early days. It’s Victor Lavalle.I had always wanted to speak to him about The Ballad of Black Tom in the dream that we could join together to call Lovecraft names. As it turns out, that will have to wait, cos he’s brought out a brand-new novel … and it’s a Weird Western. Cue squealing!! It’s one of my favourite sub-genres.We talk about homesteading and wilderness, about bad neighbours and New York City, about family and fidelity to truth and the need for happy endings … and there’s an awful lot of chat about monsters. This is one of the best episodes of the year so far. You’ll learn, you’ll laugh, you’ll almost certainly cry. Why aren’t you crying? What’s wrong with you? Are you heartless??Enjoy!Lone Women was published by on March 28thth by One WorldOther books mentioned in this episode include: The Ballad of Black Tom (2016), by Victor Lavalle The Changeling (2017), by Victor Lavalle The Devil in Silver (2012), by Victor Lavalle Montana Women Homesteaders: A Field of One’s Own (2009), by Dr Sarah Carter The Autobiography of My Mother (1996), by Jamaica Kincaid Support Talking Scared on PatreonCome talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod, on Instagram, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Support the show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Send us a textThere is no cool and collected way to introduce this week’s episode. Our guest is Margaret Atwood.Yes, that Margaret Atwood. The author of The Handmaid’s Tale. One of the few writer’s who genuinely deserves to be called an icon (though she may be tired of the term).  She published her first novel in 1969 and now as she enters her seventh decade of writing, her stories are no less challenging or surprising. Her new collection, Old Babes in the Wood is a feast of darkness and light. It swerves from myth to sci-fi, to body horror, all bookended by stories about love and loss and grief. And she came on this little show to talk about it.We unveil the inspirations behind some of the stories. We talk about disease and dystopia through history, the dangers of Canadian wilderness, men who turn into bears, the relationship of horror and slapstick, and her own haunted house.It was a privilege. Enjoy!Old Babes in the Wood was published by on March 7th by Vintage and DoubledayOther books mentioned in this episode include: Bunny (2019), by Mona Awad Carmilla (1872), by Sheridan Le Fanu  The Handmaids Tale (1984), by Margaret Atwood Oryx and Crake (2003), by Margaret Atwood Alias Grace (1996), by Margaret Atwood Lady Oracle (1976), by Margaret Atwood Black Water: The Book of Fantastic Literature (1983), ed. Alberto Manguel Dark Arrows: Chronicles of Revenge (1985), ed. Alberto Manguel On Writing (2000), by Stephen King The Death of Grass (1956), by John Christopher Support Talking Scared on PatreonCome talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod, on Instagram, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Support the show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Send us a textVampires, finally! After years of recording a horror podcast, I’ve finally recorded a conversation about the first thing you all probably think of if I said “horror monster.” Actually, at this very moment, maybe you’d name a Floridian politician but you get my drift…I’m delighted to be joined by Jacqueline Holland, to talk about her new novel of bloodsucking and cursed immortality, The God of Endings. As with so many books featured on this show, it’s an offbeat look at an old trope, with a vampire that has no problem with garlic and who is not at all horny! She’s also a pre-school teacher in the 80s. That’s REALLY hardcore!Jacqueline and I talk about horror imposter-syndrome, the history of New England vampires, monstrous mothers, the terror of living forever, and how she has always been…in her own words… a dark weirdo.Enjoy!The God of Endings was published by on February 7th by Flatiron BooksOther books mentioned in this episode include: What I Didn’t See, and Other Stories (2002), by Karen Joy Fowler We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves (2013), by Karen Joy Fowler Food for the Dead: On the Trail of New England’s Vampires (2001), by Michael Bell Something Wicked This Way Comes (1962), by Ray Bradbury The Martian Chronicles (1950), by Ray Bradbury The Shining (1977), by Stephen King Just Like Mother (2022), by Anne Heltzel – Episode 92 The Upstairs House (2021), by Julia Fine – Episode 27  Support Talking Scared on PatreonCome talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod, on Instagram, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Support the show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Send us a textThis week I take a road trip with Matt Ruff, into the more monstrous corners of the universe. Sure, some of them are alien planets… but some are here on earth, with the racists! Matt is best known as the author of 2016’s Lovecraft Country. He never planned to write a sequel, yet here it is. The Destroyer of Worlds picks up several years later, when Atticus, Letetia, Montrose and Hipolyta et al are still battling malign forces both human and otherworldly.I went into it nervously, thinking surely a white author can’t pull of a story about Black characters in Jim Crow America without really sh***ing the bed. I was wrong! Matt and I debate the responsibility and potential pitfalls of the project, and what his books get right that other ventriloquised stories get wrong. But we also talk about monsters and comic horror and the terror and joy of a wide-open universe. And of course, Lovecraft. Though, not kindly. Enjoy!The Destroyer of Worlds was published by on February 21st by HarperCollins Support Talking Scared on PatreonCome talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod, on Instagram, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Support the show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices