Paperbacks from Hell
2017
- history and criticism
- ghost stories
- horror tales
- horror tales, history and criticism
- book covers
- paperbacks
- horror tales -- history and criticism
- ghost stories -- history and criticism
- book cover art
- design / book
The story
Written in dead letters... and covered in blood! Demonic possession! Haunted condominiums! Murderous babies! Man-eating moths! No plot was too ludicrous, no cover art too appalling, no evil too despicable for the *Paperbacks From Hell*. Where did they come from? Where did they go? Horror author Grady Hendrix risks his soul and sanity (not to mention yours) to relate the true, untold story of the *Paperbacks From Hell*. Shocking story summaries! Incredible cover art! And true tales of writers, artists, and publishers who violated every literary law but one: never be boring. All this awaits, if you dare experience the *Paperbacks From Hell*.
What it’s like
Lurid and gleefully irreverent, with the feel of a thrift-store rack of 1970s and '80s horror paperbacks, each cover a blood-red, neon-tinted shriek of a woman's face or a sinister tangle of insects. The prose is brisk, funny and conversational, the voice of a fan who loves these books enough to roast them and still take them seriously as a cultural artifact. Short, punchy chapters move quickly from one rowdy anecdote to the next, so it reads well in fits and starts: a chapter over coffee, another before bed. Its emotional register is affectionate and mischievous, closer to a campfire confession than a dry academic survey, and its real pleasure lies in the absurd plot summaries and the stories of the writers, artists and publishers who chased sales with little regard for taste. Violence, gore and sexual content are present through the quoted summaries and cover descriptions, often grotesque and over the top, but they are presented as camp rather than as something to dread, and the book itself is never graphic. It suits horror fans, pulp collectors and anyone who wants a cheeky, nostalgic romp through the golden age of trashy paperback terror.
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