No 472 CHEYNE WALK: CARNACKI, THE UNTOLD STORIES

William Hope Hodgson's CARNACKI THE GHOST FINDER was published in 1913, and contained six stories describing the adventures of the plucky occult detective Thomas Carnacki. Each story followed the same formula: Carnacki, having successfully concluded an investigation into the Ab-natural, would meet with four friends at his home near the Thames Embankment and regale them with the hair-raising details before dismissing them good-naturedly into the night.Like the detective stories of Sherlock Holmes, the Carnacki tales contain several references to other, never-described cases. These references — never elaborated upon by Hodgson — intrigued writers A. F. (Chico) Kidd and Rick Kennett, who, in Great Britain and Australia respectively, decided to try to fill in some of the details. They proceeded independently until Rick, attempting to write a Carnacki tale titled 'The Steeple Monster', realised that he needed the asistance of someone versed in bells and bell towers. Chico was invited to collaborate on the tale; and she agreed, adding that she had written a few Carnacki pastiches of her own. . . .Their first four stories were published by the Ghost Story Society in 1992, in a booklet entitled No 472 CHEYNE WALK. Since then both authors have continued to explore the mysterious world of Carnacki, and the result is the present volume, which adds a further eight tales to the four originally published in 1992. These tales take Carnacki as far afield as Australia, and provide details of his early life, and the experiences which set him in pursuit of the other-worldly. There is even an opportunity, in 'Arkright's Tale', for one of Carnacki's regular dinner companions to demonstrate how much he has learned from his friend; and introduce us to a very special guest, who himself knows a thing or two about the supernatural.

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