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Mulligan's Map: a chilling short story
By the best selling author of Max and The House of the Wicked - a chilling (long) short story to make the hairs curl
'It had taken four blows of the axe to kill him, which, according to Mulligan, was three more than ever he’d had to use.'
It is 1821. Martin Foley is serving a prison sentence in the notoriously brutal penal colony on Sarah Island in Marquarie Harbour, Van Diemen's Land. Like many inmates he longs for escape, but escape is all but impossible. The land itself is a prison; hundreds of miles of inhospitable jungle and terrain where many foolish prisoners have died trying to cross it.
But Mulligan, a brutish murderer, has secured a map that he guarantees will guide them to freedom. The only thing is it's tattooed to his chest. Together with another man called Langham, Martin Foley kills their guard and they head out into the bush, following Mulligan's map.
But their bid for freedom turns into a hellish nightmare.
Set in the harsh Tasmanian outback, 'Mulligan's Map' is a macabre tale that will haunt you long after you turn the last page. Containing D. M. Mitchell's trademark larger-than-life characters and ironic twist in the tale, prepare to be chilled....
'It had taken four blows of the axe to kill him, which, according to Mulligan, was three more than ever he’d had to use.'
It is 1821. Martin Foley is serving a prison sentence in the notoriously brutal penal colony on Sarah Island in Marquarie Harbour, Van Diemen's Land. Like many inmates he longs for escape, but escape is all but impossible. The land itself is a prison; hundreds of miles of inhospitable jungle and terrain where many foolish prisoners have died trying to cross it.
But Mulligan, a brutish murderer, has secured a map that he guarantees will guide them to freedom. The only thing is it's tattooed to his chest. Together with another man called Langham, Martin Foley kills their guard and they head out into the bush, following Mulligan's map.
But their bid for freedom turns into a hellish nightmare.
Set in the harsh Tasmanian outback, 'Mulligan's Map' is a macabre tale that will haunt you long after you turn the last page. Containing D. M. Mitchell's trademark larger-than-life characters and ironic twist in the tale, prepare to be chilled....
50 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 3, 2011
2 people are currently reading
24 people want to read
About the author
D.M. Mitchell
23 books51 followersD. M. Mitchell has been compared to Ruth Rendell, Martina Cole, Stephen King, Dean Koontz, Linwood Barclay, Dickens and even the Bronte sisters! This wide array of writing styles is appropriate - though Mitchell is known for his psychological thrillers, he is determined that each of them will be different, so they might be set in different eras, may be straightforward thrillers or have a supernatural or horror twist, and he avoids like the plague the standard and unimaginative serial killer format! You'll find he uses different styles of writing to suit different types of books - it also keeps him from getting bored...
D. M. Mitchell was born into a small mining community in Yorkshire, England. His career advisor said he had two options - go down the mines or become a policeman. Being scared of the dark and never having much meat on his bones, he declined both and in his early years bounced like a pinball from job to job - warehouses, cinema projectionist, market trader, salesman - you get the picture. He sort of made a success of himself and now lives in a money-pit of a cottage in a tiny village in the cream tea heart of the South West of England.
His first remembered attempt at pushing the boundaries of creative writing was during a school lesson at the age of nine. Titled simply 'Rain' his proud masterpiece began with 'It started to rain' then there followed eight pages of nothing but the words 'pitter-patter', concluding with 'and then it stopped'. It was handed over and duly reviewed by his brick wall of a teacher, whose eyebrows flickered up and down ominously, his cheeks flushing bright red, before declaring it total rubbish. He tore it up into ribbons, showered him with his first, and no doubt only tickertape ceremony, and gave him a meaty slap around the head (they could do that sort of thing in 1967). He made him write 'I will not write stupid things for eight pages' for eight pages. Thus he learnt a number of valuable early lessons - the meaning of irony, writing is very subjective, everyone's a critic, and no-one likes a smart-arse.
He persevered, his first novel appearing in 1986 and disappearing into the attic the same year. It's still up there. Many manuscripts later he used to save the piles of rejection slips to paper his bare walls. So the adage is, keep at it, in these times of economic depression you'll soon have the house fully redecorated. Nowadays, writing is the one thing he feels totally comfortable with, except perhaps for a cup of Horlicks on a cold winter's night when the rain goes pitter-patter against the window panes (there it is again...).
Characterisation is an important and noticeable aspect of all Mitchell's novels. It allows him to be whoever he wants to be when he gets fed up of being himself, which is quite often. So too is a sense of mystery and the exploration of the darker side to humanity. There are always strong elements of a complex puzzle to be solved in a D M Mitchell novel, many disparate parts ultimately coming together, tragedy and comedy sitting side by side. As in life, nothing is as it first seems. He takes a keen interest in history, a thread which runs through his writing, whether it's the 1960s or 1970s, as in 'Max' and 'Pressure Cooker', or the Victorian 1880s, as in 'The House of the Wicked'.
His favourite novelists include Barry Unsworth, Thomas Hardy, John Steinbeck and Graham Swift. Top two favourite historical books: Culloden, by John Prebble and The Face of Battle by John Keegan. He also collects first edition novels and takes a keen interest in anything old, tatty and in need of love and restoration. His wife says he needs to get out more.
He has three grown children and also enjoys photography, painting and walking the Blackdown Hills with his wife and an overly excitable Border Terrier - or is that an overly-excitable wife and a Border Terrier... One of the two.
He'd like to thank his growing legion of fans for allowing him to practice being
D. M. Mitchell was born into a small mining community in Yorkshire, England. His career advisor said he had two options - go down the mines or become a policeman. Being scared of the dark and never having much meat on his bones, he declined both and in his early years bounced like a pinball from job to job - warehouses, cinema projectionist, market trader, salesman - you get the picture. He sort of made a success of himself and now lives in a money-pit of a cottage in a tiny village in the cream tea heart of the South West of England.
His first remembered attempt at pushing the boundaries of creative writing was during a school lesson at the age of nine. Titled simply 'Rain' his proud masterpiece began with 'It started to rain' then there followed eight pages of nothing but the words 'pitter-patter', concluding with 'and then it stopped'. It was handed over and duly reviewed by his brick wall of a teacher, whose eyebrows flickered up and down ominously, his cheeks flushing bright red, before declaring it total rubbish. He tore it up into ribbons, showered him with his first, and no doubt only tickertape ceremony, and gave him a meaty slap around the head (they could do that sort of thing in 1967). He made him write 'I will not write stupid things for eight pages' for eight pages. Thus he learnt a number of valuable early lessons - the meaning of irony, writing is very subjective, everyone's a critic, and no-one likes a smart-arse.
He persevered, his first novel appearing in 1986 and disappearing into the attic the same year. It's still up there. Many manuscripts later he used to save the piles of rejection slips to paper his bare walls. So the adage is, keep at it, in these times of economic depression you'll soon have the house fully redecorated. Nowadays, writing is the one thing he feels totally comfortable with, except perhaps for a cup of Horlicks on a cold winter's night when the rain goes pitter-patter against the window panes (there it is again...).
Characterisation is an important and noticeable aspect of all Mitchell's novels. It allows him to be whoever he wants to be when he gets fed up of being himself, which is quite often. So too is a sense of mystery and the exploration of the darker side to humanity. There are always strong elements of a complex puzzle to be solved in a D M Mitchell novel, many disparate parts ultimately coming together, tragedy and comedy sitting side by side. As in life, nothing is as it first seems. He takes a keen interest in history, a thread which runs through his writing, whether it's the 1960s or 1970s, as in 'Max' and 'Pressure Cooker', or the Victorian 1880s, as in 'The House of the Wicked'.
His favourite novelists include Barry Unsworth, Thomas Hardy, John Steinbeck and Graham Swift. Top two favourite historical books: Culloden, by John Prebble and The Face of Battle by John Keegan. He also collects first edition novels and takes a keen interest in anything old, tatty and in need of love and restoration. His wife says he needs to get out more.
He has three grown children and also enjoys photography, painting and walking the Blackdown Hills with his wife and an overly excitable Border Terrier - or is that an overly-excitable wife and a Border Terrier... One of the two.
He'd like to thank his growing legion of fans for allowing him to practice being
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
January 30, 2019
Anonymous Protagonist
Maybe I'm being overly critical here but I felt absolutely no connection to the main character(s) in this book. We don't learn anything about the main protagonist apart from the crime he committed which explained why he was in jail.. apart from that I can't recall any details about the protagonist. Other than that the story flowed well and it was an entertaining story. I wouldn't really call it chilling but certainly shows the human need to survive and the will to fight at all costs.
The only other complaint I have is that I found the old-style English frustrating at times. I'm not even clear what year this is meant to be based in.
Maybe I'm being overly critical here but I felt absolutely no connection to the main character(s) in this book. We don't learn anything about the main protagonist apart from the crime he committed which explained why he was in jail.. apart from that I can't recall any details about the protagonist. Other than that the story flowed well and it was an entertaining story. I wouldn't really call it chilling but certainly shows the human need to survive and the will to fight at all costs.
The only other complaint I have is that I found the old-style English frustrating at times. I'm not even clear what year this is meant to be based in.
May 21, 2019
1821 and several convicts escape from Sarah Island, their escape following the map held by Mulligan. I dodn't care for any of the characters but it was an interesting story.
April 16, 2012
You'll need to be wearing comfortable shoes while reading this, or you're liable to develop "sympathetic" blisters! (You'll have to read it to know what I'm talking about.) This was indeed a "chilling short story", well worth reading. It's easy to slip into character while reading this one, even though the character does a BUNCH of stuff you'd probably never consider doing. (Again, you'll have to read it to know what I'm talking about.) When it comes right down towards the end, I think most people just couldn't "cut it" (you'll have to read it, blah, blah, blah). It was a well developed story, and was consistent from start to finish. I recommend reading it. It's interesting and really not very long. It will make you realize, though, that some days it just doesn't pay to get out of bed.
June 26, 2013
A wonderful short story - chilling indeed! Daniel Mitchell weaves great short story that is gripping, and chilling.
Three convicts, Mulligan, Foley and Langham escape from a penal colony on an island in Australia after brutally murdering a guard named Davis. Once Foley had saved Davis from sinking in a quicksand. Nevertheless, Foley does crack open Davis's skull with an ax. Mulligan has tattooed a map to facilitate their escape on his chest.
The narrative brings alive the desperation of each of the individuals and their bid to survive in a hostile terrain. The climax is stunning. An excellent and well-narrated short story!
I must now read Mitchell's full-length novel - The House of the Wicked!
Three convicts, Mulligan, Foley and Langham escape from a penal colony on an island in Australia after brutally murdering a guard named Davis. Once Foley had saved Davis from sinking in a quicksand. Nevertheless, Foley does crack open Davis's skull with an ax. Mulligan has tattooed a map to facilitate their escape on his chest.
The narrative brings alive the desperation of each of the individuals and their bid to survive in a hostile terrain. The climax is stunning. An excellent and well-narrated short story!
I must now read Mitchell's full-length novel - The House of the Wicked!
April 6, 2012
Good short story. This flowed really well and I enjoyed the storyline for it being a short story. Also, it flowed well which is missing alot of times in short stories. I must say that I didn't think it was as creepy though as the author described in the Amazon description..thus the 3 stars. However, this is an author I would check out more of.
March 12, 2014
Nice little read, lovely twist.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews