Talking Scared

233 – Tariq Ashkanani & Bloodstained Hands Across the Ocean


Listen Later

This week we go from Edinburgh, Scotland to Nashville, Tennessee, in the company of crime author Tariq Ashkanani.

 

Tariq’s The Midnight King is a tricky, quasi-metafictional murder mystery about cursed manuscripts, familial secrets and the most heinous murders. It’s also a love letter to the kind of occult-tinged American crime epics that both he and I grew up loving.

 

We talk about the challenge of writing about serial killing without exploitation, about the unstable boundary between crime and horror fiction, about the allure of Hannibal Lecter and the pressure of a good twist.

 

But mostly we just pay homage to the messy, bloodsoaked myth of America that inspired us so much over the years.

 

Enjoy!

 

Other books mentioned:

 

  • Welcome to Cooper (2021), by Tariq Ashkanani
  • Red Dragon (1981), by Thomas Harris
  • Galveston (2010), by Nic Pizzolatto
  • The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper (2019), by Hallie Rubenhold
  • The Devil All the Time (2011), by Donald Ray Pollock
  • Uzumaki (2000), by Junji Ito


    Support Talking Scared on Patreon

     

    Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch

     

    Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social  on Instagram/Threads, or email direct to [email protected]


    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    ...more
    View all episodesView all episodes
    Download on the App Store

    Talking ScaredBy Neil McRobert

    • 4.9
    • 4.9
    • 4.9
    • 4.9
    • 4.9

    4.9

    264 ratings


    More shows like Talking Scared

    View all
    Faculty of Horror by Andrea Subissati and Alexandra West

    Faculty of Horror

    1,072 Listeners

    This Is Horror Podcast by Michael David Wilson and Bob Pastorella

    This Is Horror Podcast

    166 Listeners

    Nightmare on Film Street - A Horror Movie Podcast by Kimberley Elizabeth & Jonathan Dehaan

    Nightmare on Film Street - A Horror Movie Podcast

    957 Listeners

    The Losers' Club: A Stephen King Podcast by Bloody FM

    The Losers' Club: A Stephen King Podcast

    1,251 Listeners

    Reading Glasses by Brea Grant and Mallory O'Meara

    Reading Glasses

    1,729 Listeners

    The Evolution of Horror by Mike Muncer

    The Evolution of Horror

    813 Listeners

    Books in the Freezer - A Horror Fiction Podcast by Stephanie Gagnon

    Books in the Freezer - A Horror Fiction Podcast

    291 Listeners

    Halloweenies: A Horror Franchise Podcast by Bloody FM

    Halloweenies: A Horror Franchise Podcast

    968 Listeners

    The Movies That Made Me by SpectreVision Radio

    The Movies That Made Me

    547 Listeners

    Horror Queers by Bloody FM

    Horror Queers

    786 Listeners

    Colors of the Dark by FANGORIA Podcast Network

    Colors of the Dark

    471 Listeners

    She Wore Black by Agatha Andrews

    She Wore Black

    62 Listeners

    The Year of Underrated Stephen King by Kim C.

    The Year of Underrated Stephen King

    55 Listeners

    The Kingcast by FANGORIA Podcast Network

    The Kingcast

    908 Listeners

    Just King Things by Ranged Touch

    Just King Things

    662 Listeners