The Devil's Dreamer

The Devil's Dreamer by Alice Brennan
published by: Magnum Books
Copyright 1971

Can You
Die In A Dream?

This was impossible - this room, this place. Where
was she, and how had she come to be here?
Carsa caught her breath on a sob of relief, for it
was morning, and daylight was filtering through
the drawn shades.

Then she saw that the light, which was very bright
and had a strange bluish cast, came from only
one spot. It seemed to come for a woman who
stood in a large circle. Long hair, pale and silky,
flowed over her sholders and blue eyes burned
bright with golden light. There was something
horrifyingly familiar about the face, and Carsa
struggled with a memory that was just out of reach.
Then the woman spoke.

"This is a dream. Everything that happens to you,
everyone you meet, is part of the dream. When
you awaken, it will be an awakening to death..."

Seeing that the last book I cover was also a Devil book I really should have tried and put together a "Devil" week, but it is too late for that. This cover has its problems but I must say that it really like the quality of illustration of our woman. It is really quite nice. The Devil child? Not so much.

Sadly we have no illustration credit here but as I have begun this blog, even these uncredited artists are starting to become familiar to me. Who know, eventually I may become confident enough to start making guesses as to their identities.

The Spectral Mist

The Spectral Mist by Dan Ross writing under Clarissa Ross
published by Magnum Books
Copyright 1972

ASK NO QUESTIONS ...

The huge old house on the California
coast seemed to be constantly
shrouded in fog, which added to the
gloom that permeated the atmosphere
and affected the senses of the people
who lived there. The master of the
house was the famed poet, Ford Hunt -
who had not been seen by anyone
but his nephew and his manservant
since the death of his wife, five years
ago. The old man kept to his attic
apartment, communicating with
no one below ... but did he really live
there? What was he hiding from ...
if indeed he was still alive? Enid Blair
could not help asking herself that
and many other questions when she
came to Cliffcrest after a whirlwind
courtship and marriage. Now she was
Geoffrey's bride, and should have
been happy in the household of such
famous a man - but Geoffrey seemed
married to the service of her
mysterious uncle ... and to a secret
so shocking that it was to
threaten Enid's sanity ... and life!

Okay, so the way I see it, Enid Blair just married a guy without a job. Oh yeah, he can say that he is some sort of personal secretary to his uncle, who may or may not exist, but from experience I can tell you that is most certainly code for "family mooch". Ford Hunt maybe a famous poet, but lets me honest, even the most well paid poet would have a hard time supporting himself, his manservant, his family and the families of his siblings and still pay the mortgage on his fog shrouded home.

Yes this cover is pretty damaged but I had to jump on picking up a Women Running From Houses book with a photo cover. This is the first time I personally have ever seen that done. Add to this fact that it is a Dan Ross and that it also features a young Grayson Hall lookalike (or is it just the open mouth stare), how could anyone say no.

The Darkest Room

The Darkest Room by Grace Corren
published by Magnum Books
Copyright 1969

Touch of The Dead

Toby had been Anne Gunther's first and
only love - but Toby was three years dead,
killed in a tragic car crash (as opposed to a comic one?)
for which Anne still felt responsible. But was Toby
dead? Or was he still with her, unwilling to
let her know peace as long as she still
lived the life of which he had been
deprived? (sounds kind of like a jerk)
Anne tried to escape to Edith
Allen's country house, but no matter where
she went, how far she traveled, she could
not escape from herself. She saw Toby in
every stranger, in every darkened room,
until she thought that she must be losing
her mind. The old house that was to have
been a refuge soon became a prison -
and then fantasy turned to reality as some-
one in the Allen house tried to kill her! (okay, so was
she even invited) Was that someone motivated by living
hatred for this girl who was a stranger in
their midst - or was it the ghost of Toby,
who could not rest until Anne joined
him in eternity?

We finally have a woman smart enough to run from a house wearing a sensible matching pant and top active wear set and she doesn't think to wear shoes, or a bra for that matter! Did she leave these items in the darkest room and was unable to find them? Is Toby really such a jerk as to resent her being alive? And, if so, what was Toby's appeal to begin with? I think Anne must just go for the bad boys.

A Fear In Borzano

A Fear in Borzano by Willa Jay
published by Magnum Books
Copyright 1966

THE TOWER OF TERROR

From the moment she arrived in
Borzano, Sally Grant Knew that
something was wrong. (it's a
wonder she stayed then) The
servants were strangely aloof,
the workmen were sullen, the
natives unfriendly. Everywhere
there was resentment against
the small party of Americans who
were transporting the Mazzini
castle to America - and who might
find the gold that was rumored
to be hidden in the castle walls.

but the greatest danger was not
from the people of Borzano -
it was from the something unseen,
something evil, that lurked within
the castle itself. Sally was the
first to sense it - it stalked her
like a soul-hungry demon. And
the time came when her only
protection was a scream!
in the night! (and how exactly would that help?)

Who would have thought that anyone would have a problem with Americans taking one of their country's landmarks and shipping it back home. Those damn foreigners with their "but that is part of my country's history", and their "that is part our heritage". If it really belongs to them, then why did God give Americans enough money to buy it? You don't have an answer to that do you?

This cover is awesome. I would swear I've seen that fountain outside of Collinwood. And exactly how long does a wine need to age in order to taste like terror and death?

Two Faces of Fear

Two Faces of Fear by Julie Wellsley
published by Magnum Books
Copyright 1971

Blood in the night ...

Seacliff House was ancient, a crumbling ruin
threatened to fall into the sea. The locals avoided it,
claiming that at best it was a house of evil and
at worst - they shuddered, and quickly changed the
subject. But Mary James could not change her
mind so readily. She had accepted the job as nurse to
Gerald Winchley in a desperate attempt to
escape from London and she could not let the fears
of superstitious natives drive her back to the city.
Then the first murder was committed, and the
blood ran free in the night. Was it a harbinger of
things to come - or was it intended as a special
warning to Mary? For the murderer - or murderers -
would not be content to stop now ... and Mary
seemed marked to be their next victim!

London must really suck for someone to prefer possible death to being there. I've never been to London but obviously I should avoid it in the future. AAA should start handing this one out as a travel brochure. Sure it wouldn't be good for their tourist industry but maybe London will think twice before being worse then being murdered.

This cover totally reminds me of a Nancy Drew cover. It could be the the upturned eyes, the clean cut look of Mary James or the face that looks to be piecing together clues but it's probably just Nancy Drew's rampant hatred of London.

The Tuscany Madonna

The Tuscany Madonna by Miriam Canfield
published by Magnum Books
Copyright 1965

a strange proposal

Strangely impelled by her
father, lovely, spirited
Denise de Bonneville accepts
the wealthy stranger
Brian Cowle's unorthodox
proposal of a 'Marriage
Blanc' - a union in name
only - to save the family's
ancestral chateau Les
Cedres, which houses the
priceless painting of
the Madonna by Raphael.
By authority of the family
will, the rare painting
can not be removed from
the estate.

Reluctantly, Denise returns
to the sullen and isolated
chateau which she feared
in her childhood. Now as
a bride - surrounded by
strangers and without the
protection of her beloved
parents - Denise senses
that Les Cedres is more
ominous and filled with
unexplicable (this is not my typo) danger.

When her withdrawn
husband locks himself
and the painting in his
private chambers, Denise
knows she must fight the
enigmatic forces which
engulf her ... She knows
she must unbolt to door
to survive.

Okay, this one just sounds good. It maybe because it has a little bit of "Night of Dark Shadows" going on with it.

The cover art has an odd finish to is but I like it. It also looks to be signed "Avalon".

Death Lives in the Mansion

Death Lives in the Mansion by Douglas Locke
published by Magnum Books
Copyright 1967

THE DEAD AGAINST
THE LIVING!

Someone - or something - wanted
Lyman Harpur to die ... die in agony!
Helen Peters watched her patient
in his trance and knew that his soul
was suffering the torment of the
damned ... and the medical doctors
could do nothing to save him!
Their science belonged to the
wrong world. Yet Helen knew that
Lyman Harpur was being murdered
before her very eyes ... and the
would-be killer was his wife!

But which wife?

Was it beautiful Phoebe, current
mistress of the mansion in the
French quarter of New Orleans -
beautiful and vindictive Phoebe?
Or was it Celest, the first Mrs.
Harpur - Celest, who was dead!

I think you answered your own question.

What a fabulous cover. Like something for Night Gallery, but in a good way. No signature and or info inside. I'd love to see the original.

Out of the Fog

Out of the Fog by Dan Ross writing as Clarissa Ross
published by Magnum Books
Copyright 1979

THE SHROUDED PAST

The three neighboring houses on
Maine's seacoast seemed lost in the
fog, cut off from the rest of the world.
The houses belonged to Vera Waters,
her aunt - and now there was a strange
new family, who came shrouded in
mystery as deep as the fog. Who were
the Harpers? Just two men and a
woman who, as they claimed, liked the
area? If so, why did Aunt Samantha's
astrological readings, usually happy
and frequently correct, warn Vera
of impending danger?

The threat to Vera's sanity and life
become brutally clear the day a private
investigator arrived in town. One of
the Harpers, and Detective Egan, was
mad, haunted by an ancient murder -
and driven to kill again! Vera, equally
compelled, found herself the unwilling
bait in a trap more terrifying than
her worst imaginings!

I know exactly what Vera is going through. I know that more than once I had to wonder at the true motivation of my own neighbors. It is hard to believe that so many people would actually want to move into a housing development on a edge of Galloway Ohio. Really? You liked the area? I doubt it.

Also, what is that outfit. It's like she is a flasher. Well I guess the white gloves make her a "fancy" flasher, but still.

No signature on this one but this just one more reason I totally want to visit Maine. That has got to be the most exciting State in the Union.

Nightmare at Riverview

Nightmare at Riverview by Angela Gray

published by Magnum Books
Copyright 1973

Nightmare House

The plantation house was a three-story, white
frame structure wiht a large portico to the north,
a wide versanda at ground level. The porch was
pillared with thin, fluted columns and the green
blinds offered a pleasing contract to the white
of the walls. It was a house built for happiness,
and for many years the people who lived there had
been happy. But now a gray cloud seemed to
hang over the property, coloring the emotions of
Janet Bowen. Her father was dead, brutally
murdered - and the man convicted of the crime on
Janet's testimony had sword vengeance against
her - even though he was locked behind prison
walls, waiting his appointment with the hangman.
And now it seemed as though someone - or
something - was carrying out his threats as Janet,
besieged, could not fight off the terrors that had
taken control of her life!

Again, no artist information inside or out.

Dark Over Acadia

Dark Over Acadia by Anne Talmage

published by Magnum Books
Copyright 1971

House of

False Love...

Diana Latham came more than a thousand miles to
Davereau House...to find her friend Lucy Devereau
struck down by a terrible accident, imprisioned in her bed
by paralysis that denied her movement, or even speech.
But was it an accident? Or was it a horrible plot? Lucy's
family seemed to accept the first, and when Diana
questioned other possibilities, they refused to listen. But
the Devereau family carried a dark curse, one that they
could not keep hidden; someone...or something...
seemed determined to strike them down. Soon Diana was
drawn into the maelstrom of building terror... and it
seemed as though her only escape would be through death!

I was SO excited when I ran across this book at a used bookstore this weekend. For me this is absolutely a first. The most bizarre things about this book is not that our cover damsel is in a wheelchair, but that she totally looks likes a dude. (click on the image to get a better look) Very Jack Lemon in Some Like It Hot but he made a more attractive women. The art is signed by Charles Lilly. I am still trying to find out if it is actually the Charles Lilly.