The bizarre, deformed faces he sees in its windows make him believe he’s hallucinating, but perhaps there is some deeper meaning. “Missed Connection” (1986) – While riding on a train, a man keeps seeing another one running parallel on the tracks to his own.The nightmare begins when it starts to rain and he’s forced to seek shelter in an old church. “The Hands” (1986) – A bookseller, stranded in a small town by a derailment, decides to seek out a pub to pass the time but everything seems closed.“Eye of Childhood” (1982) – A young girl resents her art teacher’s impatience with her and decides to use a big book with a witch on its cover to get her revenge.The anthologist begins to notice an odd pattern to the book as large amounts of dust infests his house. Damon was reputed to have been a practioner of black magic. He’s excited by one in particular titled Tales From Beyond by a mysterious old gothic writer named Damien Damon. “Out of Copyright” (1980) – An unscrupulous anthologist and book collector convinces a grieving widow to sell him her late husband’s valuable book collection for pennies on the dollar.His limbs resist his attempts to control them. The last thing he remembers is being sucked under water at sea and struggling to breath. “A New Life” (1976) – A man awakens, not knowing where he is or how he got there.Meanwhile, a horde of flies begin to cover the windows.

He begins to decipher odd messages in the cards he’s dealt as he gambles more than intended.

“The Last Hand” (1975) – A struggling writer joins three strangers in a game of cards while traveling aboard a train.

Once the gnomes are placed in her garden, the girlfriend begins to feel followed and watched. While he loves her deeply, he resents her religious beliefs and those of her parents.

“Made in Goatswood” (1973) – A man buys some creepy-looking garden gnomes from the florid town of Goatswood to take to his girlfriend.

This classic tale contains references to many of Campbell’s own Lovecraft-inspired creations including Gla’aki, Eihort, Daoloth and Y’golonac. After he ultimately does, the teacher finds the bookstore contains more than he expected.

Overhearing his desire, a seedy-looking man convinces him he knows a place that has them but seems afraid to take him there. “Cold Print” (1969) – A stern teacher sets out in search of bookstores which might carry the obscure, shunned texts he’s obsessed with obtaining.To peruse all our entries for Ramsey here at Horror Delve, you can find the extensive list here.

You can find previous posts about Ramsey’s short fiction here:, here: and here. These have appeared in a wide variety of collections and anthologies. Today we’re going to look at thirteen more excellent short horror stories by him. Be it novels, novellas, novelettes, or short stories, for me, he never disappoints. The author Horror Delve has featured far more than any other is Ramsey Campbell.

Cold print by ramsey campbell