November 2021

Enter: Crighton.

And as carved pumpkins rot in their gardens, as discarded sweetie wrappers gather dust upon their shameful mounds, as the spookiness of Halloween season comes to an end to the chagrin of horror lovers across the world, one man remains…

He is weird, he is creepy, he is probably kinda unhinged, and he sure as hell has a story to tell.

His name is Crighton Maupassant Smythe.

Yes, Halloween saw the release of my new novella, THE LAST TESTAMENT OF CRIGHTON SMYTHE, which is already being soaked up by those whose itch for the macabre was seriously scratched earlier in the year with my debut novel, For Rye. Early reviews are suggesting this short little tale has once again disturbed and delighted, but it’s not them Crighton cares about…it’s YOU.

And he can’t wait to meet you.

Throughout release week I was lucky enough to be interviewed in two brilliant publications, as well as on Lydia Peever’s superb podcast, Typical Books. Dip into them below for my attempts to unpack the deranged mind of Mr Smythe:

As well as these awesome opportunities, I was fortunate enough to have For Rye featured by Catarina the Bookworm on her YouTube channel. Catarina’s a psychology student, and so is extremely qualified to speak about the main drive of this novel: a human mind, traumatised, brutalised, and on the brink of psychological destruction. Hit the image below to hear what she has to say about the horrific trials and tribulations of Renata Wakefield!

And finally I’d like to give a massive shout-out to the master of horror that is Hunter Shea for featuring The Last Testament of Crighton Smythe in his Twisted World newsletter. This guy’s a bit of a hero of mine, and a legend in horror literature circles, so this is truly an honour. I implore you to check out his work, and sign up to his fantastic newsletter by hitting the image below:

Before I leave you for this month I thought I’d share with you a few of my favourite pictures that have been shared so far by some of the pre-release reviewers who’ve been checking out the strange tale of Crighton Smythe. Don’t forget to follow me on Instagram so you can see these featured posts first-hand, and read what the reviewers have to say about Mr Smythe!

And that’s about it for this month, folks. If you decide to take the plunge into the life of Crighton Smythe, do hit me up on social media. I love when readers get in touch to share their thoughts on my stories, and horror chat is something I’m always up for!

Once again, thanks for your ongoing support, fellow horror freak. Enjoy your time getting to know Crighton Smythe, but don’t turn your back on the guy for too long. Who knows what he’s capable of…

Much love,

-GG