She Stalks at Sundown

Time now for a lurid, Lou Cameron, cat-girl classic, clawing its way at you from the January 1954 issue of Web of Mystery #22. Full of juicy good-girl art, and jungle jitters galore, I'm actually kind of surprised that I've never posted this one here at THOIA before. And meanwhile, I'm equally as baffled as to why it didn't make it into Cameron's Unsleeping Dead hardcover collection, via The Chilling Archives. We also have another beautiful "blonde in peril" cover design by mad man Jim McLaughlin, --plus, tacked on at the very end to round things out nicely, a shivery "Tale of Unexplained Mystery" by Sy Grudko concerning a macabre magic mirror...

Vampire Bride

Time to really nail this month long theme right where it counts-- with a blood lusting vampire bride on the loose tale, from the May 1952 issue of Web of Mystery #9. Happy Valentine's Day everyone, hope it's filled with plenty of X's and O's! And chocolaty coffins and creme-filled crypts too!















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Also, the special Vampira issue of PLAYGHOUL is now available. Limited to 666 copies, and presenting a chronological collection of Maila Nurmi magazine appearances (as herself and as Vampira) from 1950 to 1964, plus comics and more. If you're like me, you've probably already seen about 95% of the content, (and for the hefty price tag, some of the scans are aggravatingly low quality), but for Vampira collectors it's certainly a worthy addition to your horror book shelf. CLICK HERE for more info and to order your batty old self a creepy copy today.

Black Fury

Black cats are as important to Halloween as witches and jack-o-lanterns, so let's fire up a hellish tale of ferocious felines, and ancient, hissing evil from the July 1953 issue of Web of Mystery #19. By the way, how many of your own 9 lives do you cool cats have left remaining?

The Oozing Horror

If you're like me, you probably also use the words "bark-encircled hideout" multiple times daily, so here's a spooky science freak-out that we can all eerily identify (and merge) with, from March 1954 issue of Web of Mystery #23. Ace artwork by the ever reliable, Charles Nicholas.















And speaking of mummy covers...

The Haunts of Devil's Lake

Kicking off 2018 with a jolting Jim McLaughlin tale of terror, from the April 1952 issue of Web of Mystery #8, concerning a beautiful indian princess and her tribe of living dead-- that live under a lake! Really nice art, and the story is fast paced and fun, but is it really as wild as it sounds? See for yourself, as we load up the fishin' gear 'n fear and head deep into the Canadian wilderness for 6.66 pages of underwater weirdness! (Cover art by Lou Cameron)

Curse of the Horrible Hangman

Some horror chums and I were talking about the good 'ol Ace WoM horror series in a Facebook group earlier today, and I thought I'd pull out some issues to share, as well as deliver a swingin' cover story from the Dec '52 issue of Web of Mystery #16, featuring art by Charles Nicholas. And please don't judge me by the condition of this cover, it's as water damaged and brittle as ancient hangman's bones as you can get-- I seriously will take whatever I can find on these old 50's books!

The Carpenter's Cursed Creature

The final freak-out story from the August 1952 issue of Web of Mystery #12, (and yep, another FULL ISSUE presentation here at THOIA, check the last 3 posts, as well as The Silver Bell of Doom already in the archive from way back 2008!) And OMG-- did I save the bat shittin' best yarn for last?! Let's take a vote on this crazy ass collection of Ace classics, shall we?