Holes for Faces collects many of Campbell’s tales from the first decade of this century. An attempt to avoid a haunted house leads into worse danger. The announcements at a railway station deal with stranger things than trains, and is that another railway station in the distance or a different kind of destination? A childhood game becomes a source of terror, and so does a radio quiz show.
Even Christmas decorations may not be trusted, and beware of that Advent calendar! A hotel provides amenities you mightn’t welcome, and a visit to a tourist attraction attracts an uninvited follower. A train journey may never end, unless it already has, and a visit to a hospital brings back more than memories. A myth about a horror film has unwanted consequences. There are angels you mightn’t want to see too clearly, if that’s what they are. And you’ll have to decide if it’s better to stay in the dark or see what’s waiting there. You’ll find uncanny dread in these pages, and disquiet and terror, but also poignancy and comedy of paranoia. One theme runs through all the youth and age.