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Continue reading →: Elefthero, beneath the Tymfi massif, the northern Pindos
I was blown off my perch this morning. Overnight the wind had got up, as of course, the van was facing the wrong way, the side door into the teeth of the gale. A quick swivel through ninety degrees, and the morning routine could take place. The pass has a…
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Continue reading →: Vasilitsa Pass (1750 metres)Monday morning matters: take out the trash, recycle the beer bottles and cans, replenish the water supply, sweep the dog hair away. But then more pleasurably, I drove back up from the gorge through the narrow streets of Spileo which at the weekend had been busy with visitors at its…
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Continue reading →: When Evil Lurks
or, Cuando acecha la maldad In a remote village, two brothers find an infected man, but infected by what, a virus, or something demonic. They decide to get rid of the man but merely succeed in spreading the chaos. It’s a possession movie at its heart, but with plenty of…
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Continue reading →: The Friends of Eddie Coyle
1973 starring Robert Mitchum I’ll start by saying that if this is of interest, I’d urge to read the book first, by George V Higgins, it is excellent. Elmore Leonard calls it the best crime novel ever written.. But the film is well worth the effort also, with a wonderful…
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Continue reading →: It Waits in the WoodsI’ve borrowed the title from a short book (by Josh Malerman) I read this morning before heading out. It’s from a series of six released for this time of year. It promised a lot, but didn’t really deliver. Nonetheless, it was entertaining enough. It concerned a student, who after a…
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Continue reading →: It Waits in the Woods by Josh Malerman
Fairly standard stuff, but entertaining nonetheless.I spend a lot of time wandering alone in various European forests, and very much hope to encounter an ‘impish demon’ at some stage. Like a lot of wildlife, it’s probably my dog that keeps it away.. I’m interested by this Creature Feature Series. I’ve…
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Continue reading →: Villages of West MacedoniaPentalofos on a Friday evening is a noisy place, which wasn’t a surprise, I knew it would be. First it was the chainsaws, all afternoon. It’s the time of the year for chainsaws. I note that I don’t often see women operating chainsaws. Something about men and power tools; as…
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Continue reading →: Blood by Hanns Heinz Ewers
(Translated from the German by Sinclair Dombrow) There are four short stories in this collection, and they are all tremendous.The titular, Blood, or MamaloiThe White MaidenTomato Sauceand The Spider. In Mamaloi, Ewers relates the details of a scandalous occurrence involving voodoo by a corrupt, depraved and aging German missionary in…
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Continue reading →: Invitation to Violence by Lionel White
Three men execute a carefully devised plan. They drive to an upmarket suburban Long Island neighbourhood and break into a jewellery store. Before they can get away however, two police cars roll up and a gun battle ensues. Two of the cops and two of the crooks get killed, but…
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Continue reading →: Pentalofos and Western MacedoniaI couldn’t have chosen a better time to walk up to the top of Kastoria Hill than 9 am this morning. The overnight mist lying on the lake was just lifting, and provided some fine sights. After a stock up at the supermarket in town we headed south west, into…



