Gates of Imagination

Young Randolph Carter (if we're talking about stories with Carter in the lead role, this is the first in the chronology) glimpsed a marvelous city in his dreams. Enthralled by its beauty, he embarks on a steadfast quest, descending into the realms of dreams and experiencing numerous adventures. "The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath" is Lovecraft's farewell to stories set in dreams and inspired by Lor...

Sleepy Hollow is a strange little place...some say bewitched. Some talk of its haunted valleys and streams, the ghostly woman in white, eerie midnight shrieks and howls, but most of all they talk of the Headless Horseman. A huge, shadowy soldier who rides headless through the night, terrifying unlucky travellers. Schoolteacher Ichabod Crane is fascinated by these stories....Until late one night, w...

Randolph Carter, the alter ego of Lovecraft, is now an adult and has lost the ability to vividly dream. Despite considering the waking world as dull and mundane, he desires to reconcile with it. He tries to enrich it with literature and art, and eventually with physical pleasures. However, nothing brings him satisfaction. Finally, he returns to the regions where he grew up. There, he will find wha...

The times of the Spanish Inquisition. A prisoner awaits the verdict of the cruel judges. His hopes for freedom - much like burning candles - rapidly diminish. He is sentenced to death and confined in a chamber that resembles a tomb. The vision of impending death terrifies him, causing him to lose consciousness several times. The image of the Father of Time painted on the ceiling, along with the de...

The main character of the story, Thurber, a member of the Providence Art Society, narrates about his acquaintance with the eccentric painter, Richard Upton Pickman. He is the only one among his acquaintances who has not abandoned the peculiar artist. One day, Pickman invites him to his studio to show paintings that he dared not present to the rest of the society. Thurber not only becomes familiar...

A certain Hoffman arrives at the town of Daalbergen to inspect the inheritance left by his uncle, the local pastor. There, he encounters the church sexton, who has recently had a very negative influence on his uncle and delves into dark teachings. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/gates-of-imagination--6962309/support .

The atmosphere in King's Abbot is far from idyllic. Gossip, suicide, the death of the titular Roger Ackroyd... Hercule Poirot engages in a game with an exceptionally cunning murderer. The detective's assistant is Dr. Sheppard, the local doctor who knows the secrets of the small community very well. The novel sparked controversy because some of its plot elements were said to contradict the canons o...

In a Paris newspaper, there appears a report of an extraordinary crime committed on the Rue Morgue. Alarmed by the nightly screams, the residents of the district broke into the building, where in a room locked from the inside, they saw furniture destroyed and overturned in disorder, and soon after found the bodies of the brutally murdered women: the owner of the house and her daughter. How did the...

"The Time Machine," first published in 1895, is one of the most important novels in the history of world science fiction literature. The plot focuses on the fate of the scientist, the Time Traveler, who, with the help of a self-constructed device, travels to the distant future, where he encounters two distinct human races - the Eloi and the Morlocks. The author, as in most of his novels, raises th...

A journalist in a rundown New York tenement meets a doctor suffering from a strange disease that makes him able to live only in low temperatures. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/gates-of-imagination--6962309/support .

"The Cask of Amontillado" by Edgar Allan Poe is a story inspired by true events that took place on Castle Island, a former military fort near Boston Harbor in the state of Massachusetts. When Poe was stationed there as a young cadet in the army, he discovered a peculiar tomb. After some investigation, he learned about a man who had been walled up alive. Forbidden by his commanding officer to ever...

The tale of a negligent and lazy village gravedigger who receives a harsh lesson and realizes that diligent fulfillment of duties pays off. The idea for the story was sent to Lovecraft by C. W. Smith, the publisher of the magazine "The Tryout" (in which the text was first published – the last case when Lovecraft's story would appear first in an amateur newspaper). The publisher of "Weird Tales" re...

The narrator, forced to live in a big city, becomes increasingly disheartened and harbors growing hatred for this place. To summon beloved, historical visions of an ancient American town, he wanders the ancient, forgotten alleys at night. One night, he encounters a stranger who will show him peculiarities that exceed his wildest expectations. This story contains many autobiographical elements. The...

The main character of the story is Detective Thomas Malone, of Irish descent, who is tracking down Robert Suydam, a wealthy Dutch citizen suspected of engaging in forbidden practices. "The Horror in Red Hook" was published in the anthology "You'll Need a Night Light" by the British publisher Selwyn & Blount, edited by Christine Campbell Thomson, in 1927. This is the first book in a hardcover f...

Roderick and Madeline are twin siblings. They share a remarkably strong bond - with each other and with the home they live in. At the request of a friend, the narrator travels to the Usher estate. Roderyk's letters suggest that he is suffering from a mysterious ailment and needs support. Upon arrival, it becomes clear that his sister is also falling into unexplained states. Day by day, the unsettl...

The narrator and his uncle delve into the history and secrets of the titular shunned house in Providence, where an astonishing number of people have died over generations. The Shunned House, as the first in Lovecraft's oeuvre, extensively utilizes the topography and family history of the author's native Providence. In the first part of the text, it resembles an extensive chronicle of the family re...

Hercule Poirot catches criminals, even though he himself has been caught by the flu. The insufferably vain detective solves most mysteries without getting up from his armchair. He finds bank bonds, explains the mystery of a stolen diamond, prevents the kidnapping of a prime minister, faces the mafia, meets with an American intelligence agent and... a black cat. "Little grey cells" are an invaluabl...

The blue, veiled eye of an old man is an object that drives the main character to madness. Every time he sees it, aggression and a desire to murder arise within him. He decides to commit a crime. He carefully plans it, and for a week, every night, he peeks into the adjacent room where the old man lives and observes him silently so as not to wake him up - he keeps repeating that he cannot be consid...

Also known as: Imprisoned with the Pharaohs. The main character of the story is Harry Houdini - the supposed author of the work, a magician, and a specialist in extraordinary escapes. During his trip to Egypt, his abilities are horrifyingly put to the test, and he confronts ancient nightmares in the underground chambers beneath the Sphinx. Lovecraft wrote the text on commission for the owner of "W...

On the golf course, the body of a wealthy businessman was found. Hercule Poirot feels responsible because he was called for help, which the deceased did not live to receive. Series:  Hercule Poirot  #2 Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/gates-of-imagination--6962309/support .

The main character lost three basic senses and the ability to use their legs during the war. Subconsciously, they feel a malevolent presence in their home and document their experiences on a typewriter. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/gates-of-imagination--6962309/support .

The tale of a necrophiliac whose preferences are not understood by the owners of successive funeral homes employing him. The original title was 'Beloved Dead.' The story differs significantly from C. M. Eddy's previous two works that Lovecraft had improved. He had to intervene extensively in the narrative, perhaps even writing the entire text anew. This is evident, especially in the language of th...

At night, to stimulate synapses, one can use various means, with coffee leading the way. However, Reverend Jennings favored green tea. You will learn about the effects of its overuse and the fate of the clergyman in this horror short story... Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/gates-of-imagination--6962309/support .

This is a typical horror story featuring classic elements like ghosts, a secluded house in a desolate area, and werewolves. Initially rejected by "Weird Tales," the story was eventually accepted after revisions. Lovecraft emulated Eddy's writing style in parts, making it challenging to distinguish their contributions. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/gates-of-im...

The debut novel by Agatha Christie and at the same time the first one in which the character of her most beloved detective, Hercule Poirot, appears. The atmosphere of an old English estate, family quarrels and scandals, a burnt will, and many false leads. Which of the residents had a motive to poison the owner of Styles Court residence? Was the crime committed out of passion or greed? For the firs...