Centipede Press

DELIVER ME FROM EVA is a classic horror novel that was published back in 1946 by Murray & Gee Inc. (pictured at right), and now is being reprinted as a limited edition hardcover by Centipede Press, an unusual specialty publisher from Lakewood, Colorado.

The author, PAUL BAILEY, 1906-1987, was an American osteopath, publisher, editor, and reputed writer of historical novels. Deliver Me From Eva was apparently a different direction for him-- a contemporary novel, styled with romantic mystery, science, and horror. Here is a brief excerpt from the original publishers preface:

"When he'd (the publisher) finished the last gripping line his blood was running as cold as a lizard's belly, and for a week he dared not turn off his lights at night... we swear it's the most gosh-awful, horrific spine-tingler imaginable, but we're not revealing any of its awesome secrets."

That type of introduction may seem old fashioned today, but it evokes, or at least promotes, an anticipation of mystery, suspense, and the preternatural to follow. It colors our mood and ignites the imagination. But even without the added push of an introduction, Deliver Me From Eva holds up quite well on its own merit; it literally held me spellbound from the first paragraph on.

The novels unique plot (and I fear I may be revealing too much here), concerns, complications ensuing from experiments to increase intelligence artificially. This scientific aspect allows for some unpredictable turns and grotesqueries to develop, and Paul Bailey delivers them all in spades. I was enthralled by every aspect of his story; the whirlwind romance, the majestic manor-house setting, the bizarre revelations, the madcap science, but also by the beguiling Eva Craner, possessor of amazing intellectual abilities and astounding musical capabilities, who is strangely obligated to to the weird demands of her arcane family. One of those family members suffers a fateful introspection that quickly becomes the catalyst for the novel's climactic events.

Paul Bailey has crafted an atmospheric horror novel that can also double as a unique and suspenseful science fiction novel. It's a remarkable achievement for a writer with no previous experience in the realm of the fantastic. Pictured at right is the stunning cover painting provided for the Centipede reprint edition, rendered by the famous swiss-german symbolist painter, Carlos Schwabe. Centipede Press has done themselves proud by reprinting this marvelous and nearly forgotten masterpiece of horror.

Another interesting book that Centipede has republished is The Auctioneer by Joan Samson, an acclaimed novel that's been out of print for nearly thirty years. When it first appeared as a mass-market paperback from Avon Books in 1977 it was heavily promoted, even using 10 second television spots, and it eventually sold more than a million copies. I can remember that it was marketed more as suspense than actual horror (it's a crossover actually), and it was published just prior to the 1980s horror paperback explosion when seemingly every book began sporting a black cover with embossed lettering. Avon's un-horror like cover design was much more modest in its approach; a snowy farm scene showing a barn and an old truck, with the title laid diagonally across in bold red letters (pictured at right). Centipede's cover art is vastly different in scope-- they've pasted down an eerie photograph onto the cloth board (shown further below-right), provided by the magic-realist photographer, John Bonath.

The story itself is a gripping account of a New Hampshire township being manipulated by an evil auctioneer, and of its citizens eventual awakening to confront the terrible byproduct of his greed and pathos. Stephen King was one of the novel's early advocates, as was the late literary critic and author Thomas Disch, who listed it in the Twilight Zone magazine as one of his top choices for horror fiction.

Thirty years ago Joan Samson's novel kept me reading long into the night-- utterly transfixed. Today, The Auctioneer could easily be considered a bona fide classic of American literature. I'm actually glad I still own that original paperback edition-- it's a novel worth reading again-- but it's also a novel worth buying again, especially when it's been reprinted in such a fine and sturdy hardcover format.

Centipede concentrates primarily on republishing contemporary classics of horror and crime fiction by such luminaries as Ramsey Campbell, William Hjortsberg, Michael Shea, Thomas Tessier, and John Franklin Bardin. These are relatively affordable editions, handsomely designed, and sturdily built. Centipede's lineup also includes original art books, anthologies, science fiction reprints, and unique story collections by some of the best authors in supernatural literature; Edgar Allan Poe, William Hope Hodgson, H. P. Lovecraft, Frank Belknap Long and Algernon Blackwood. All of their editions are beautifully made, but some select titles have been priced exceedingly high, as much as $400 dollars and more. I wonder if Centipede can be successful at cultivating a reliable customer base for these expensive specialty items, especially in todays economic hard times. Granted, their quiddity is enhanced by their very nature; only about 500 copies (or less) are printed per individual title, and they are heavily illustrated, numbered, and usually slipcased, and in such a state these books become very much like owning a fine piece of art from a prestigious gallery.

I did purchase one of Centipede Press's original titles published in April, 2008, titled, A LOVECRAFT RETROSPECTIVE: Artist's Inspired By H. P. Lovecraft (cover art by Michael Whelan, pictured below). This is a huge 400 page art book, truly massive in scope and design, measuring a full 12.6 x 16.1 inches in dimension, and weighing almost as much as one of my dumbbell weights-- near 15 pounds with the slipcase. The book features over forty artists with familiar names like, Lee Brown Coye, H. R. Giger, Virgil Finlay, Hans Bok, Ian Miller, Michael Whelan, John Coulthart, Rowena Morrill and Gahan Wilson. All of the artists are represented by full-color page layouts. The pictures, drawings and images range from 1930s pulp illustrations to modern digital paintings and every medium in between; ink, oil, acrylic, collage, photomontage and sculpture. All are vivid, some are truly horrific, and most really jump out at you in this ultra large format. The book even has some fold-out pages, one of which can be viewed at nearly four feet wide. In place of an index is a large thumbnail gallery identifying each illustration with its artist, the date of production, context, and the medium used. The foreword is by director Stuart Gordon, with an introduction by Harlan Ellison, and an afterword by Thomas Ligotti. Lovecraft scholar and fan Robert M. Price also provides an illuminating essay on the Necronomicon, one of Lovecraft's most famous conceits.

Centipede Press has produced a remarkable and impressive oversized tome, like nothing I've ever seen before, or for that matter, like nothing anyone else has ever seen before in the fields of the fantastic. It sets a new standard for author based homages and quite possibly for art books in general (even withstanding Taschen's many monumental efforts). My copy is one of only 1000 slipcased editions, which thankfully seems to be very well constructed using high quality materials, but the book is ridiculously unwieldy and almost impossible to shelve properly. My suggestion is to just leave it on the coffee table permanently.

Initially, this slipcased edition was listed at $395.00 (discounted on amazon at $271.11), but now the publisher (as of January 2009) has varying states for sale on their website; $150 without a slipcase, $250 with slipcase, and a tray-cased edition with extra prints for $300. Not bad pricing considering what these varied editions went for originally, but whatever one has to pay for this book, in my estimation, it's worth every single penny-- a solid investment. I can see this landmark book fetching high prices in a few more years, if not a few more months. However, no true lover of fantastic art would ever part with this book once they've purchased it. I'll be keeping my copy for the long term.

[Note* As of January 2010, Centipede Press has only limited stock on the Lovecraft Retrospective in its various states. Please visit their website, www.centipedepress.com, for more precise details and to see the rest of their lineup.]