Monday, May 19, 2008

The Shell Collector


The ocean is perhaps my favorite horror milieu. If a story has some sort of monster from the sea or a haunted ship, I’m there. So Christopher Golden’s novella The Shell Collector is right up my alley.

Richie Feehan is a house-painter and part-time lobsterman in Gloucester, Massachusetts. One day, during a particularly dry spell for fisherman, he hauls up a lobster pot with something strange hanging on to it. Something that opens its eyes and looks at him. In terror, Richie cuts the pot loose. Soon after, he learns that something is stealing bodies from graves and devouring them, leaving strange sea-shells behind, and some old-timers tell him of the legendary Shell Collector, who comes from the sea at certain times to eat the dead. Richie’s efforts to stop the Shell Collector puts his life and those of his family and friends at risk.

The Shell Collector is part of Cemetery Dance’s Novella Series, and features outstanding artwork by Glenn Chadbourne. I’d highly recommend it, and would love to see it extended or a sequel written for it.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

This sounds pretty cool. I love that cover art too.

KentAllard said...

Something about weird creatures from the sea do it for me, somehow.