Oxrun Station Series / Nightmare Season / Charles L. Grant

The frame story of Nightmare Seasons consists of a scholar who receives a manuscript of disturbing stories set in his hometown of Oxrun Station in New England. The stories deal with real citizens and real secrets of the town.

The first part, set in the spring of 1940, is called “You Need Not Fear My Kisses, Love”. This story is about an independent professional woman who must deal with romantic advances from several colleagues. As men begin to die in gruesome ways, she grows fearful that one of her prospective lovers may be more than he appears to be. Something demonic and…hungry. The second story, “Now There Comes a Darker Day”, is set in the summer of 1950. This time the owner of a tavern sees a woman and her ominous daughter making the rounds among the men who frequent the bar. A pretty, smiling little girl haunted by eerie rain and lightning.

The third story is called “The Swift Dragons of the Night” and is set in the autumn of 1960. A postal crew is just finishing work when a gang of motorcyclists turn up at the station. These riders are even more terrifying than the stories about the Hell’s Angels that people whisper about. Their origins are ancient, and they have a hellish kinship with the kindly old postmaster. Finally, the year is 1970, a freezing winter, a ghostly Christmas and the final story entitled “The Colour of Joy”. A teacher is plagued by visions of a “dark man”, but sometimes the one we fear the most is the closest to us. As close as the blood in our own veins.