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The Feaster from Afar
A project over ten years in the making! At long last, Stefan Dziemianowicz and John Pelan have assembled the definitive collection of Joseph Payne Brennan's non-Lucius Leffing tales. This remarkable set will run four volumes, each containing a mix of the classic, the familiar, and the obscure. Nearly one hundred stories collected in a beautiful, four-volume set. From his early appearances in Weird Tales through the run of Macabre magazine in the 1950s, to the renaissance of the supernatural tale in the 1970s, Joseph Payne Brennan was admired for his lyrical prose and outré vision. In this first collection we present a mix of some of Brennan's finest supernatural tales ranging from regional ghost stories to tales of cosmic dread that rank with the best of Lovecraft, Wandrei, & Smith.
- GenresHorrorWeird Fiction
Hardcover
First published January 1, 2008
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About the author
Joseph Payne Brennan
138 books36 followersJoseph Payne Brennan was an American writer of fantasy and horror fiction, and also a poet. Brennan's first professional sale came in December 1940 with the publication of the poem, "When Snow Is Hung", which appeared in the Christian Science Monitor Home Forum, and he continued writing poetry up until the time of his death.
He is the father of Noel-Anne Brennan who has published several fantasy novels.
He is the father of Noel-Anne Brennan who has published several fantasy novels.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 24, 2011
Midnight House had done an extremely commendable job by bringing out some of the best works of a long-lost author in this collection, but why did they stop after only one volume? Joseph Payne Brennan, who had given horror a much-needed freshness in his time, was an author who deserves several 'best-of' volumes, and the contents of this book are bound to make this deficit starker. The stories are: -
(*) Introduction by John Pelan
1) Slime: the archetypal horror-from-the-abyss story that has spawned many ineffectual attempts of filmizations by Hollywood.
2) The Corpse of Charlie Rull: a zonbie story with a twist.
3) On The Elevator: revenge-from-beyond-the grave, with a suitably creepy setting.
4) Canavan's Back Yard: something as common as a back yard becomes horribly frightning in this story.
5) The Willow Platform: revisiting one of the Mythos themes.
6) The Seventh Incantation: again revisiting the Mythos theme, where one gets more than what he had bargained for.
7) City of the Seven Winds: reworking of an old mystic tale.
8) Black Thing at Midnight: again revenge-from-beyond-the-grave.
9) Canavan Calling: the terrifying sequel to Canavan's Back Yard.
10) The North Knoll: a favourite theme of Brennan (swamp and adjoining areas harbouring unsavoury things) revisited here.
11) Monton: a combination of swamp and revenge-from-beyond-the grave.
12) The Other Things: there are areas in the forest where one should not go, even with a gun!
13) Long Hollow Swamp: the best possible exploration of horrors that may lurk in a swamp!
14) Vampires From The Void: origin-wise very similar to the synonymous story of Eric Frank Russell, but the havoc that these entities unleash (directly or indirectly) is very-very differnet.
15) Extermination: an apocalyptic story with the bleakest possible ending for humanity.
16) The House on Stillcroft Street: brilliant exploration of the killer-vine theme.
17) The Business About Fred: a haunting ghost story.
18) The Feaster From Afar: another reworking of mythos theme, but very well executed.
19) The Peril that Lurks Among the Ruins: this is one story that would have seamlessly entered into the Father O'Connor canon of David G Rowlands, as a very good ghost/demon story.
20) Forringer's Fortune: grave-robbing, giant rats, and a mythos entity combine to make this a very-very chilling story.
21) Lottman's End: another brilliant story told in Father O'Connor tradition.
22) Zombique: a reworking of "The Monkey's Paw", but perhaps not-that effective.
23) The Keeper of the Dust: a simple story about consequences of robbing a mummy!
Overall, a very good book, with smart beginning, somewhat sluggish middle portion with repititive themes, concluding with fresh chilling stories. Highly recommended, IF you can get hold of this book second-hand, since like all other nice things, it has also gone out of print.
(*) Introduction by John Pelan
1) Slime: the archetypal horror-from-the-abyss story that has spawned many ineffectual attempts of filmizations by Hollywood.
2) The Corpse of Charlie Rull: a zonbie story with a twist.
3) On The Elevator: revenge-from-beyond-the grave, with a suitably creepy setting.
4) Canavan's Back Yard: something as common as a back yard becomes horribly frightning in this story.
5) The Willow Platform: revisiting one of the Mythos themes.
6) The Seventh Incantation: again revisiting the Mythos theme, where one gets more than what he had bargained for.
7) City of the Seven Winds: reworking of an old mystic tale.
8) Black Thing at Midnight: again revenge-from-beyond-the-grave.
9) Canavan Calling: the terrifying sequel to Canavan's Back Yard.
10) The North Knoll: a favourite theme of Brennan (swamp and adjoining areas harbouring unsavoury things) revisited here.
11) Monton: a combination of swamp and revenge-from-beyond-the grave.
12) The Other Things: there are areas in the forest where one should not go, even with a gun!
13) Long Hollow Swamp: the best possible exploration of horrors that may lurk in a swamp!
14) Vampires From The Void: origin-wise very similar to the synonymous story of Eric Frank Russell, but the havoc that these entities unleash (directly or indirectly) is very-very differnet.
15) Extermination: an apocalyptic story with the bleakest possible ending for humanity.
16) The House on Stillcroft Street: brilliant exploration of the killer-vine theme.
17) The Business About Fred: a haunting ghost story.
18) The Feaster From Afar: another reworking of mythos theme, but very well executed.
19) The Peril that Lurks Among the Ruins: this is one story that would have seamlessly entered into the Father O'Connor canon of David G Rowlands, as a very good ghost/demon story.
20) Forringer's Fortune: grave-robbing, giant rats, and a mythos entity combine to make this a very-very chilling story.
21) Lottman's End: another brilliant story told in Father O'Connor tradition.
22) Zombique: a reworking of "The Monkey's Paw", but perhaps not-that effective.
23) The Keeper of the Dust: a simple story about consequences of robbing a mummy!
Overall, a very good book, with smart beginning, somewhat sluggish middle portion with repititive themes, concluding with fresh chilling stories. Highly recommended, IF you can get hold of this book second-hand, since like all other nice things, it has also gone out of print.
May 19, 2022
Like Shapes of Midnight and Nine Horrors and a Dream, The Feaster from Afar is classic Joseph Payne Brennan. Most of them are reprints, but half of them are never read before. His style is always plain and almost to the point. Stories were atmospheric, and rife with cosmic dread. They hold reader’s interest as always. Strongly recommended.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews