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When You Walk By Night
Take a walk with me to the end of your street, where the lampposts end and the darkness hides dancing, skipping horrors. Waiting for us are a Copy-cat killer who picks the wrong guy to copy. A strange epidemic that is not quite what it seems and has consequences for us all. An ancient Djiin who trades in souls and loves a twist in his deals. A girl plagued by nymphomania who is going through some deep changes. An exclusive, high class brothel with an interesting charging policy. Inter-dimensional horror on a human farm. A collector of cursed books and Objet D’Art, with a very nosey wife. A group of flatmates terrorised by a possessing spirit with murderous intentions and a sweet girl who would do anything for love. Oh! And Vampires. I can see them now. Come on, take my hand they are getting impatient. . .
214 pages, Paperback
First published August 27, 2017
6 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
November 3, 2017
'When You Walk by Night' takes its title from the first in a collection of nine of Bridgeman’s short stories.
‘When You Walk by Night’ is a violent, sex-packed thriller, written in the third person and set in Cardiff. The thoroughly unpleasant Todd is having extramarital sex with the equally unpleasant Ava. Todd’s obsession extends from Ava to the reported activities of a local serial killer. If Todd can murder his wife in such a way that the world will blame the serial killer, he would be free to live happily ever after with Ava.
‘White Out’ is written in the first person. One October night, it appears to snow all over the world. Through the eyes of a man living in Cardiff, we discover the extreme physical and mental changes triggered by this ‘snow’. No person or animal escapes the repulsive transformation.
‘The NUMB’, also written in the first person, is less horror and more supernatural fantasy. A young, male music journalist, Kyle, is thrilled to be invited to spend time with the world’s most popular band, The Numb, in Los Angeles. He is tasked with taking photos and writing a diary, as The Numb record their latest album. During his first evening in Los Angeles, Kyle takes the drug ‘Slip’ and has sex with lead singer, Eeez. A relationship develops and, before long, he is sending impressive stories and photos back to his editor. Daily encounters with the band, and nightly encounters with Eeez, become increasingly surreal – a consequence of taking Slip or are they really happening?
Written in the first person, ‘The Art Room’ delivers sex, gore and lots of suspense. While working in London, Judy meets and falls in love with the dashing and wealthy Chris. They live together in Chris’s enormous, luxury Mayfair apartment for a year and then get married. Apart from a scuttling figure with red eyes and a rictus grin that haunts Judy’s days and nights, and her promise never to enter Chris’s collection room, all is sweetness and light. Except, well, you just know she’s going to enter that room.
Skip ‘Gullz’ if you’re ornithophobic. Giant, venomous, carnivorous birds have been abducting humans from all over the world for decades. Apparently, they’re active in present-day Cardiff too, which is where we meet them. In this third person account, Danny is snatched. Where will they take him and will he ever make it back?
‘Passion Illustrated’ is written in the third person and set in the 1960s (in Cardiff, perhaps). A young, physically attractive, impressionable Ukrainian woman called Masha is drawn to the nude male image of Hussein on the cover of ‘Passion Illustrated’. Hussein comes to life in Masha’s dreams and tells her he has been enslaved by the Demon of Fire. The successful completion of three abhorrent tasks, set by the terrifying Demon, would liberate Hussein. Masha loves him deeply and would do anything for him, but can she carry out the tasks?
‘The Gentleman’s Club’, the shortest tale, is written in the third person. Steve gets invited to join the exclusive and mysterious ‘Taboo Club’ frequented by beautiful and available women. If it sounds too good to be true, there’s probably a catch. Hold on to your hat for another shocking dose of sex and horror.
We’re back in Cardiff for ‘Home Sweet Home’ – a truly chilling paranormal thriller. Written in the first person, through the eyes of Rob who embarks on a flatshare with sitting tenants Mark and Rebecca. Rob and Mark share a psychic ability and unwittingly facilitate the crossing over of an angry and dangerous ghost who terrorises the flatmates. Can they rid themselves of their tormentor? Bridgeman maintains the suspense throughout this, the longest of his stories, and throws in a healthy measure of sex and gore, just so he doesn’t disappoint.
If you’re a big fan of erotica, head straight for ‘Pagan’s Pleasure’. Written in the third person, this story reveals The Dark Man’s nightly intense, amatory visits to Pagan’s dreams and her daily carnal encounters with mere mortals. The Dark Man claims Pagan will soon meet him when she is awake. Will he disappoint?
The whole book is 209 pages long and printed in a fairly large font, so it’s a pretty quick read. In each of the stories, Bridgman engages us quickly and, in his uncluttered style, keeps us relentlessly turning the pages as the plot swiftly reveals itself. We are told only what we need to know. This lack of deviation allows us to concentrate on the imaginative and varied stories presented. The uniqueness of each story, together with a well-paced narrative, keeps us involved from the outset.
Whether Bridgman is writing about paralysis inducing drugs used by a serial killer, witchcraft, or hallucinogens, the material is well-researched.
My favourite story is ‘When You Walk by Night’. My abhorrence of Todd and Ava were as instant as my compassion for Todd’s wife, Mary. Todd’s actions are clear and credible and the twist at the end quite wonderful. My least favourite is ‘The Gentleman’s Club’ as it is too short to develop the protagonist sufficiently to care about him.
I make only one criticism, by way of a note to the publishers: there is considerable evidence of typographical and formatting errors throughout the book.
‘When You Walk by Night’ is a violent, sex-packed thriller, written in the third person and set in Cardiff. The thoroughly unpleasant Todd is having extramarital sex with the equally unpleasant Ava. Todd’s obsession extends from Ava to the reported activities of a local serial killer. If Todd can murder his wife in such a way that the world will blame the serial killer, he would be free to live happily ever after with Ava.
‘White Out’ is written in the first person. One October night, it appears to snow all over the world. Through the eyes of a man living in Cardiff, we discover the extreme physical and mental changes triggered by this ‘snow’. No person or animal escapes the repulsive transformation.
‘The NUMB’, also written in the first person, is less horror and more supernatural fantasy. A young, male music journalist, Kyle, is thrilled to be invited to spend time with the world’s most popular band, The Numb, in Los Angeles. He is tasked with taking photos and writing a diary, as The Numb record their latest album. During his first evening in Los Angeles, Kyle takes the drug ‘Slip’ and has sex with lead singer, Eeez. A relationship develops and, before long, he is sending impressive stories and photos back to his editor. Daily encounters with the band, and nightly encounters with Eeez, become increasingly surreal – a consequence of taking Slip or are they really happening?
Written in the first person, ‘The Art Room’ delivers sex, gore and lots of suspense. While working in London, Judy meets and falls in love with the dashing and wealthy Chris. They live together in Chris’s enormous, luxury Mayfair apartment for a year and then get married. Apart from a scuttling figure with red eyes and a rictus grin that haunts Judy’s days and nights, and her promise never to enter Chris’s collection room, all is sweetness and light. Except, well, you just know she’s going to enter that room.
Skip ‘Gullz’ if you’re ornithophobic. Giant, venomous, carnivorous birds have been abducting humans from all over the world for decades. Apparently, they’re active in present-day Cardiff too, which is where we meet them. In this third person account, Danny is snatched. Where will they take him and will he ever make it back?
‘Passion Illustrated’ is written in the third person and set in the 1960s (in Cardiff, perhaps). A young, physically attractive, impressionable Ukrainian woman called Masha is drawn to the nude male image of Hussein on the cover of ‘Passion Illustrated’. Hussein comes to life in Masha’s dreams and tells her he has been enslaved by the Demon of Fire. The successful completion of three abhorrent tasks, set by the terrifying Demon, would liberate Hussein. Masha loves him deeply and would do anything for him, but can she carry out the tasks?
‘The Gentleman’s Club’, the shortest tale, is written in the third person. Steve gets invited to join the exclusive and mysterious ‘Taboo Club’ frequented by beautiful and available women. If it sounds too good to be true, there’s probably a catch. Hold on to your hat for another shocking dose of sex and horror.
We’re back in Cardiff for ‘Home Sweet Home’ – a truly chilling paranormal thriller. Written in the first person, through the eyes of Rob who embarks on a flatshare with sitting tenants Mark and Rebecca. Rob and Mark share a psychic ability and unwittingly facilitate the crossing over of an angry and dangerous ghost who terrorises the flatmates. Can they rid themselves of their tormentor? Bridgeman maintains the suspense throughout this, the longest of his stories, and throws in a healthy measure of sex and gore, just so he doesn’t disappoint.
If you’re a big fan of erotica, head straight for ‘Pagan’s Pleasure’. Written in the third person, this story reveals The Dark Man’s nightly intense, amatory visits to Pagan’s dreams and her daily carnal encounters with mere mortals. The Dark Man claims Pagan will soon meet him when she is awake. Will he disappoint?
The whole book is 209 pages long and printed in a fairly large font, so it’s a pretty quick read. In each of the stories, Bridgman engages us quickly and, in his uncluttered style, keeps us relentlessly turning the pages as the plot swiftly reveals itself. We are told only what we need to know. This lack of deviation allows us to concentrate on the imaginative and varied stories presented. The uniqueness of each story, together with a well-paced narrative, keeps us involved from the outset.
Whether Bridgman is writing about paralysis inducing drugs used by a serial killer, witchcraft, or hallucinogens, the material is well-researched.
My favourite story is ‘When You Walk by Night’. My abhorrence of Todd and Ava were as instant as my compassion for Todd’s wife, Mary. Todd’s actions are clear and credible and the twist at the end quite wonderful. My least favourite is ‘The Gentleman’s Club’ as it is too short to develop the protagonist sufficiently to care about him.
I make only one criticism, by way of a note to the publishers: there is considerable evidence of typographical and formatting errors throughout the book.
September 19, 2017
Really interesting read, it is finally great to see a horror writer that is willing to use Wales as his location. I look forward to reading more from this author. Please can we get this in an audio format?!
September 14, 2017
I really enjoyed this assemblage of nine haunting tales. WHEN YOU WALK BY NIGHT is loaded with sticky layers of sex and gore, as diverse and dark as the erotica in them is kinky. Yet the eroticism did not distract from the moral messages, which were crafted so cleverly that I found myself eager for more at the end of each twisted and tragic saga. This is really the work of a great writer. The premise of each story is solid. I especially loved White Out, The Numb, Gullz, Pagan’s Pleasure, and The Art Room. Can’t wait to read what this author does next. Highly recommended.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews