Showing results by author "Bernard Taylor" in All Categories

The 13 stories collected here represent the complete short fiction of Bernard Taylor, one of the best-selling horror authors of the 1970s and 80s, author of The Godsend and Mother’s Boys, both adapted for film, and Sweetheart, Sweetheart, hailed by Charles L. Grant as the finest ghost story of all time. In these tales, which often feature an unexpectedly cruel or bizarre twist, Taylor offers a clever mixture of horror and black humor that will delight fans of the genre.

In 1887, Elizabeth Berry found notoriety throughout the nation after the death of her daughter, perceived by many to be the cruellest of murders. There were many who protested her innocence in the affair, but there were also suspicions surrounding another death related to the nurse - that of her mother. Suddenly Elizabeth Berry's dark story began appearing darker still. For the first time we discover the true story behind this infamous case of the first woman to be hanged at Liverpool's Walton Prison.

After the death of their infant son, Hal and Rowan Graham decide to leave the mad bustle of London and move to a quiet country refuge. And the rustic village of Moorstone seems perfect. Too perfect? Lying beneath a hill capped by an enormous stone, Moorstone hides mysterious secrets. Why does such a small town need such a large insane asylum? Why do the village's elderly residents leave everything they own to young newcomers they barely know? And why is everyone so friendly, so handsome, and so preoccupied with Hal and Rowan's health?

Once a celebrated singer, Rosemary Paul is now an embittered woman in her 60s, forgotten by nearly everyone but her assistant, Carrie Markham, who idolizes her and panders to her every need. When Rosemary receives the unexpected news that her record company is dusting off one of her albums for a reissue, the old hunger for fame and success is reignited, and with Carrie's help she begins to plan her big comeback. But as preparations commence, long buried secrets begin to resurface, and Rosemary's quest for fame at any price will lead to murder.

Alan and Kate Marlowe are a typical, loving, middle-class couple, with four small children. But they wish they had just one more, a beautiful baby daughter. So when a strange young woman abandons her infant at their house, they view it as a blessing - a godsend - and adopt little Bonnie as their own. But not long after Bonnie’s arrival, terrible things begin to happen to the Marlowes, starting with the death of their son Matthew. As the tragedies mount, Alan suspects that Bonnie is somehow responsible. Is he losing his grip on sanity?

When Tom Rigby is commissioned to paint a young woman’s portrait at Woolvercombe House, the offer is too lucrative to refuse. But from the moment of his arrival at the secluded country mansion, strange and inexplicable events begin to transpire. Soon, he is drawn into an impenetrable maze of horror, and by the time he discovers the role he is intended to play in a diabolical design, it will already be too late. For, the seeds of evil have been sown, and the time to reap their wicked harvest is nigh!

David Warwick, an Englishman living in New York, has a sudden premonition that his twin brother, Colin, is in danger. He returns to England and learns the shocking truth: both Colin and his young bride Helen have died ghastly deaths - deaths that no one in the village wants to talk about.