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The Gorgon Flower
A young woman is haunted by the disappearance of her grandmother, a brilliant mathematician whose research uncovered the basis for parallel universes. A botanist travels across the seas in search of an elusive, deadly flower that was also his late father' s obsession. A talented painter produces his best work – unsettling masterpieces with strange, fantastical elements – years after he was last seen in person.In this gothic-inspired collection of stories, John Richards pushes the limits of what short fiction can be. With settings that range from rural France to medieval Italy to nineteenth-century Borneo, The Gorgon Flower is an impressively crafted, engrossing debut by a bold new writer.
304 pages, Paperback
Published July 3, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 21, 2024
The Gorgon Flower is the debut work of fiction by the Australian author John Richards. His stories are delightfully unconventional in their approach, taking their cue from late nineteenth and early twentieth tales but with a contemporary twist.
The opening tale, "A Fall from Grace," for instance, tells the story of Jean-Michel Houvrée, a seventeenth-century French artist who somehow produced his most famous works after his death.
Set in the 1860s, the title story, set in the 1860s, details an explorer's obsession with finding a specimen of a mysterious plant that seemingly possesses telekinetic powers. First discovered by the explorer's father, "The Gorgon Flower" is strongly reminiscent of Algernon Blackwood's supernatural horror "The Willows" (1907), although Richards subtly shifts the subjective goals by the protagonist's habitual use of laudanum, his fascination with the philosophy of Immanuel Kant, and his transparent anticipation of the Oedipal drama described by Freud.
I hope that Richards gets some recognition for his innovative and fascinating work, as these stories are too good to be ignored by the literary community.
The opening tale, "A Fall from Grace," for instance, tells the story of Jean-Michel Houvrée, a seventeenth-century French artist who somehow produced his most famous works after his death.
Set in the 1860s, the title story, set in the 1860s, details an explorer's obsession with finding a specimen of a mysterious plant that seemingly possesses telekinetic powers. First discovered by the explorer's father, "The Gorgon Flower" is strongly reminiscent of Algernon Blackwood's supernatural horror "The Willows" (1907), although Richards subtly shifts the subjective goals by the protagonist's habitual use of laudanum, his fascination with the philosophy of Immanuel Kant, and his transparent anticipation of the Oedipal drama described by Freud.
I hope that Richards gets some recognition for his innovative and fascinating work, as these stories are too good to be ignored by the literary community.
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May 19, 2024DNF @50%
Man eating plants, shadow men watchers, life interveners and chrysalis corpses.
This felt way more dystopian/sci fi than gothic. The stories were ok but none of the “twists” wowed me. Quite male centric too.
Man eating plants, shadow men watchers, life interveners and chrysalis corpses.
This felt way more dystopian/sci fi than gothic. The stories were ok but none of the “twists” wowed me. Quite male centric too.
May 6, 2025
This dude writes exactly the kinds of short stories I want to read.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews