The titular Greyfriars Reformatory in my recent horror novel is one place you would never want to spend the night!
A lifelong horror fan, I have always been fascinated by haunted landscapes and creepy buildings. My childhood in the Midlands of England prepared me for my career as a horror writer and filmmaker with its abundance of spooky ruins and foggy canal paths.
I have since explored ancient sites all across the U.K. and Europe and my novels are inspired by these field trips into the uncanny, where the contemporary everyday rubs shoulders with the ancient and occult. Places become characters in their own right in my work and I think this list of bookscelebrates that.
I hope you find them as disturbing and thought-provoking as I have!
(And if you’re looking for similar reads, why not browse this book list featuring more titles set in psychiatric hospitals)
Spooky season is upon us and it’s almost time kids… The pumpkin flesh is tender and ready to carve. A scary horrorthon is queued up on the telly. This year’s costume is even more fabulous than last year’s, and the candy pail is already overflowing with treats! How else can we add to the frightful fun before the clock strikes twelve on the creepiest night of the year? In my haunted house, after the dead man’s fingers and gooey eyeballs have been devoured, we always play a spooky game together. So gather around my table of terror brave ones, and feast your eyes on the…
This game will bring out the spooky strategist in you as you pit your wits against the other players in order to grave-rob them of all their cards. If you’ve ever wondered…
An impassable storm forces a group of travellers to disembark from their steam train and take shelter in a remote castle for the night. Their enigmatic host invites them to take part in some after-dinner entertainment. But as they each explore the castle’s rooms and passageways, they discover they have become part of a deadly game. Only one guest may leave in the morning and it is up to each of them to use their wits, and weapons, to survive the night.
For the others, Damnation awaits.
Who will survive the night?
I’ve always wanted to write a Dracula story, especially one with a unique twist, so this book is a nightmare come true for me.
I’m super excited to share this book with you and I hope that it gives you chills and thrills in equal measure.
Drop a rating / review at Amazon / Goodreads and let me know what you think of it.
Spooky Samhain Blessings & Happy Halloween! x Frazer
ABOUT THE GAME
Damnation: The Gothic Game is a brilliant new version of my all-time favourite board game. The original Gothic Game was created by ‘Blood on Satan’s Claw’ screenwriter Robert Wynne Simmons and Nigel Andrews, and became a horror fan favourite when it was released back in the 1990s.
My own experience withThe Gothic Gamebegan when I was working at The London Dungeon (where my Saturday job was scaring the life out of tourists!). The Marketing Manager popped down and said they had this preview copy of this creepy new game. He asked me to take it home and play it, and tell him if I thought it would be a good addition to the gift shop. The concept of the game took competitive play to dastardly new levels with the aim being to kill all the other players on the board. Terry Jones of Monty Python fame said, “This game will make you turn in your grave!” And of course it did! For me, it was love at first bite and I played it every Halloween after that fateful night.
Damnation, the updated version from Kris Rees & his talented team atBlackletter Games, expands beautifully on the original with a cast of cunning characters, tons of new traps, weapons, and artefacts, and also the added attraction of being able to haunt the other players from the graveyard if you get bumped off!
The game was a smash hit success on Kickstarter, fully funded in just 20mins & raising over £77k!
Amazing news to share today, The Stay has won Best Short Horror at Hollywood Blvd Film Festival 2022! This film has had quite the run and is still going strong. I’m really looking forward to making another one soon. 26 awards! Thanks to the festival organisers and to my amazing cast & crew & to all our wonderful supporters. Cheers, Frazer
Thirty(!) years ago today I was beside myself with excitement for a very special The Cure gig. Ahead of the full Wish Tour, the band announced a clutch of warm-up dates at club venues.
All the shows I had seen up to that point had either been in enormous arenas, or outdoor shows. The Kilburn National Ballroom was a relatively tiny venue for The Cure, and that only added to the feeling of anticipation. Seeing your #CultHeroes live is honour enough, but up close and personal? Even better.
The journey to seeing this gig was fraught. I was studying for a Journalism degree at the time and had an in-class assessment the day that tickets went on sale (at only £10 each!). In these pre-internet days phoning up to book tickets, or queuing in person, were the only options. The only person I knew who would want to go wasn’t able to queue up either, so I had to knuckle down and complete my class assessment while the clock ticked down and – you guessed it – the gig sold out.
First world problems, I know! (Hey, I was still very young back then.) And it turns out I passed the in-class assessment so there is that. I was trying to be responsible, even in the face of my borderline insane Cure obsession! And, luckily I was working a part-time job to support myself so I rolled up my baggy black sleeves, put in several extra hours and saved up some cash.
Long story short, the £10 ticket ended up costing me £60 on the night, but I had enough cash left over for a tour shirt and a couple of beers. People danced and sang along. There were promotional balloons! Happy the man, as the old b-side goes.
Yes, I still have the balloon 😀
The gig itself was a loud, joyous, sweaty sprint through the amazing new double album Wish plus several hits and surprises. The crane camera swinging and floating above the crowd added a showbiz touch to proceedings, and from what I recall there was a fair bit of crowd-surfing going on during the faster numbers. (Hey, this was ’92, the golden age of grunge…)
I emerged from the tiny, packed out venue with a massive grin on my face. I would see The Cure a further nine times on the ’92 Wish tour, in those huge arenas again. But, as an intimate introduction to a massive tour, the 3rd May 1992 would be very hard to beat.
The shirt still fits! (pic taken on 6music #tshirtday November 2021)
FrazerLee.com 