Sad news today: Locus magazine has reported that
Peter Straub has died at age 79 after a long illness. A giant of modern horror since the late Seventies, with major bestselling works like
Ghost Story,
Floating Dragon,
Koko, and, with
Stephen King,
The Talisman, to his credit, Straub was a writer of uncommon power and literary skill. In novels, short stories, and novellas alike, he was able to explore depths of emotional terror and physical violence in a way that made them immediate, visceral, sublime. Characters in Straub's works arrive full-blooded, while plot and themes reverberate with the echoes of past horror classics; his prose crackles with vitality as almost effortlessly he depicts a contemporary world suffused with our past and collective guilt, often garbed in the supernatural but just about as often unadorned with genre trappings.
While not as prolific as King, Straub was writing award-winning fiction well into the 21st century. I myself have read only a portion of his catalog, but what I have read, I have enjoyed almost more than any other horror writer. We have a lost a true master of horror, and if by any chance you have not read him, I urge you to avail yourself of his books at once!
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7 comments:
On the release date of "Fairy Tale" very ironic....
They were almost Best Friends
They worked together on two Fantasy novels...
And Straub had his iconic book simply titled: Ghost Story
I instantly thought of TMHF upon hearing of his passing. This website didn't 'introduce' me to him, but it prompted me to read "Ghost Story," and "Floating Dragon." (I used to post under '3Fs').
And hey, I've still got "Shadowlands" and "Koko" lying around!
RIP.
Very sorry to hear this. Read his collaboration with King "The Talisman" when I was a teenager and really enjoyed it. I kept meaning to read Staub's other solo works but for some reason, his subject matter didn't grab me. But his style of writing was clear, smooth, and almost hypnotically intense. I always wanted to get back to it. Finally, I read his solo novels "The Hellfire Club" "Shadowland" and "Ghost Story." The latter really sticks in my mind. I keep meaning to get to "Koko" and "Floating Dragon."
@CAMehrlein:
Hi there, Ive read all those same novels you mentioned, Ghost Story being the stand-out classic, but my second favorite was ,Floating Dragon. If you read another one it should be that one! It has some unusually surreal scenes of horror in it.
My favorite Straub novels are "Shadowland" (more fantasy than horror, but very powerful) and "Koko" (definitely horror, but not supernatural).
There was also a second collaboration with Stephen King, "Black House" (a sequel to "The Talisman").
I just started getting into his work this year! I'm so sad to hear that he passed!
Late to the post, but just wanted to say that I put off Straub for a LONG time until I started reading your reviews of his work here at TMHF. His style and tone went over my head as a younger dude, but it's resonating with me in interesting ways as I creep into middle age.
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