We have mentioned that haunted house novels typically use one of a few standard strategies to get the story going. It is also true that such novels usually end in one of a couple standard ways. One conclusion may be characterized as utter defeat: the residents of the house end up fleeing for their lives, none the wiser of the nature of the haunting. The Amityville Horror, The Shining, and The Haunting of Hill House all have this sort of ending. The other conclusion is revelation: the secret of the haunting is uncovered, possibly dispelling it in the process. Hell House and Poltergeist are examples of this form. Other stories may combine both types of ending. Without saying too much, it should be said that the house in Devil in the Darkness does have a terrible secret hidden within it that will be uncovered; it is a satisfying revelation that clearly draws upon Roy’s own investigations and theories about hauntings.

So what we have in Archie Roy’s Devil in the Darkness is a truly unique novel: a haunted house tale written by a man who was simultaneously a professional physical scientist, a professional author, and a professional paranormal investigator. His skills at all three endeavors shine through in the darkness of the story, which is well-crafted, creepy, and in the end genuinely satisfying.

So what did Archie Roy himself believe about the paranormal, in particular life after death? Like any good scientist, he refused to fully commit to a belief one way or another without compelling evidence. At one point, though, he gave a slight hint of his view, and his cleverness, saying, ‘if I die and I find out I have not survived, I will be very surprised.’

Greg Gbur

September 2016

Greg Gbur is a professor of physics and optical science at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He writes the long-running blog ‘Skulls in the Stars’, which discusses classic horror fiction, physics, and the history of science, as well as the curious intersections between the three topics. His science writing has been featured in ‘The Best Science Writing Online 2012,’ published by Scientific American, and his horror writing has appeared in a number of volumes of the literary horror magazine Dead Reckonings. He has previously introduced several John Blackburn novels for Valancourt Books.

Epigraphs

Where are the dead – those who have loved

us and whom we have loved; and those to whom

we have done some irreparable injury? Are

they gone from us for ever, or do they return?

Lord Halifax’s Ghost Book

‘I was not, and was content. I lived and did a

little work. I am not and believe not.’

Epitaph on the tombstone of William Kingdon Clifford

Author's Note

Author’s Note