The popularity of the psychic detective John
Silence, the protagonist in a series of stories by Al-
gernon BLACKWOOD, resulted in Hodgson trying
his own hand. Carnacki, whose adventures have
been collected as Carnacki, the Ghost Finder
(1913), investigates reports of ghosts, curses, and
other paranormal activities. Although in many
cases Hodgson solves the apparently supernatural
mysteries with a mundane explanation, some in-
volve genuinely fantastic occurrences, such as in
“The Gateway of the Monster,” “The Haunted
Jarvee,” and the best of the series, “The Horse of
the Invisible.”
Hodgson’s first collection of non-Carnacki sto-
ries was Men of the Deep Waters(1914). Several
new titles have appeared more recently, adding un-
collected stories and rearranging others. The best
of these titles are Out of the Storm(1975), The
Haunted Pampero(1991), and The Boats of the Glen
Carig and Other Nautical Adventures(2003). Sev-
eral of Hodgson’s short stories are very important
within the genre. “The Voice in the Night” (1907)
is a sea story in which the crew of a merchant ship
is afflicted by a prolific fungus that distorts their
bodies. It became the basis of an unfortunately
minor Japanese horror film titled Attack of the
Mushroom People (1963). “The Derelict” (1912)
describes what happens when the scum and sea-
weed surrounding an abandoned ship evolve into a
malevolent form of life. This story very probably
inspired Dennis WHEATLEY’s Uncharted Seas(1938,
also published as The Lost Continent). Hodgson
clearly had the potential to be an even more signif-
icant writer than he actually was, but his career
was unfortunately cut short just as he was begin-
ning to develop the technical skills to match his
highly productive and fertile imagination.
Hoffman, Nina Kiriki (1955– )
Throughout the 1980s Nina Kiriki Hoffman was a
steady contributor of fine stories to science fiction,
fantasy, and horror markets, delivering tales
grounded in strong characterization in a manner
reminiscent of Ray BRADBURYand Charles BEAU-
MONT. Her first two collections, Legacy of Fire
(1990) and Courting Disasters and Other Strange
Affinities(1991), mix the genres indiscriminately.
Her first two novels both appeared in 1992. Un-
maskingis a very short novel about a town whose
residents undergo a magical transformation over
the course of a single night, while Child of an An-
cient City,written with Tad WILLIAMS, is an Ara-
bian Nights–style fantasy for younger readers.
The Thread That Ties the Bones(1993) was her
first major novel, the story of a family who use
their magical powers to dominate a small town
from generation to generation but whose authority
is eventually challenged by an outsider. The Silent
Strength of Stones(1995) somewhat similarly exam-
ines the consequences when a young boy becomes
fascinated by a mysterious family, one of whom
turns out to be a werewolf, while others possess un-
usual abilities of their own. A Red Heart of Memo-
ries(1996) introduces Matilda Black, one of two
people with the ability to speak to inanimate ob-
jects. The novel quietly and sympathetically de-
scribes their relationship with each other and their
adjustment to their very unusual talents. They re-
turn in Past the Size of Dreaming(2001), this time
appealing to a hopefully biddable ghost to help
them with their latest set of problems.
A Fistful of Sky(2002) describes a situation in
which it is important to be careful what one wishes
for. The protagonist is initially upset because she
seems to lack the magical gift common to her rela-
tives, then grows even more distressed when she
learns that she has a unique ability to create curses
and that she is compelled to inflict them upon peo-
ple or face the debilitating effects herself. There is
another friendly ghost in her most recent novel, A
Stir of Bones(2003). Hoffman has also written a
number of young adult, light horror stories under
the R. L. Stine name.
Hoffman’s novels do not seem to have cut into
her productivity in short form, and she is a regular
contributor to magazines and anthologies. The vast
majority of her recent stories are fantasy or dark
fantasy, including such outstanding pieces as “Still-
born” (1990), “Incidental Cats” (1996), and
“Changes of the Heart” (2003). Her most recent
collection is Time Travelers, Ghosts, and Other Visi-
tors(2004), but the vast majority of her short fic-
tion has yet to be reprinted. Given her consistent
quality and her avoidance of genre clichés and de-
vices, it seems likely that her audience will grow be-164 Hoffman, Nina Kiriki