Fast Asleep: Recent Episodes
Gena Marie
294 - Is poor, young Mrs. Hart being blackmailed? Tuck in as this hypnotic author takes us through the transformation of her idyllic life.
292 - Tuck in to see how cruel girls can be. “A game developed: 'Let's be nice to Myra! What do you wash your hair in, Myra? . . . she washes it in cod - liver oil, can't you smell it?' "
291 - "Judge Hilliker had once told him . . . 'Guns? . . . Knives? Blunt instruments? . . . there is just one perfect weapon -- an automobile.'" Tuck in for a most gratifying tale from the master craftsman of the mystery thriller.
290 - Miss Marple knows: "There is a great deal of wickedness in village life." Tuck in for another captivating Marple mystery!
289 - "All I did was to pull him out by the seat of his trousers . . . (and) he called me a hero! . . . I departed in a blaze of glory." Tuck in for the fun of this lighthearted tale from the stepson of Robert Louis Stevenson.
288 - "Perhaps he was drowned, or picked up by some passing ship; no one could say, for he never came back. No one who left the island returned." Tuck in for this mesmerizing romantic thriller from the author of Rebecca and The Birds.
287 - "The war was over. The Germans occupied France. The whole country was pulsating like a conquered wrestler beneath the knee of his victorious opponent." But WHAT led to this duel? Tuck in and experience it.
286 - The Queen of Crime and Mystery has graced one of her best upon us. Tuck in and find out "whodunnit."
285 - Spoken to a bewildered little boy, "You wouldn't ever be safe in your own house. I know ways to get into houses when people are asleep." Tuck in for the resolve to his dilemma.
284 - ". . . on my 48th birthday, lying in bed that night beside my wife, with my children sleeping through all the other quiet moonlit rooms of my house, I thought: I will arise and go now and kill Ralph Underhill." Tuck in for Bradbury's mind-boggling story. (Warning: you will be disappointed if you're looking for sci-fi.)
283 - “He had been sent to the bank with Denny & Carson's deposit. There was nearly a thousand (dollars) which he had . . . quietly transferred to his pocket." Tuck in for the very dramatic conclusion.
282 - "His teachers . . . fell upon him without mercy, his English teacher leading the pack. Older boys than Paul had broken down . . . but his set smile did not once desert him." Tuck in for the blood-fest from the fearless, Pulitzer prize-winning author.
281 - "How do we know what the family is keeping secret? Or if she was kidnapped by a homicidal maniac, why should he send a ransom note?" Tuck in for the conclusion from this cherished author.
280 - Her family is begging her to come home, but . . .what if she can't? Tuck in for another gem from the most requested author. (Conclusion next week!)
279 - "When she brought her glance back to the door . . . it had been opened and someone, obscured by the darkness, was looking at her intently." Tuck in for this very British, very ghostly, winter tale.
278 - "A warm, creeping movement over his flesh betrayed the unwelcome and highly resented presence of . . ."
Tuck in for the --anything but -- ticklish tale from the World War I hero.
277 - Have you, too, suffered for love? Take heart and tuck into not one, but TWO tender love stories from the "young upstart" author.
276 - ". . . she was wishing heart and soul she was a man. And all of a sudden she was!" Tuck in for this mind-bending story.
275 - For his employer, Mr. Crabtree was the definition of a cat's-paw: a person used for the purposes of another; a tool. Tuck in for another perfectly-honed story from the skillful Mr. Ellin.
274 - "Then it happened. I stopped short . . . I had the whole brilliant magnificent plan worked out." Tuck in for Vengeance Is Mine, Inc., a powerhouse of a story.
273 - "It seemed to him as if the silence, the cold, the solitude, the winter death of these mountains were taking possession of him . . ." Tuck in for what is said to be the inspiration for Stephen King's The Shining.
272 - The sweet little boy in this week's story will grow up to write an infamously terrifying non-fiction novel that will change his life forever, but not before he will write its polar opposite. Tuck in for his gentle holiday tale, a loving tribute to the woman who raised him.
271 - A mother's love on Christmas . . .
"To-night you have come back to me, just as you always did after you ran away . . . I never asked you where you had been then, nor will I now." Tuck in for Pulitzer Prize-winning Willa Cather's poignant story.
270 - It's a Wonderful Life . . . Frank Capra's magical movie is based on this heartening short story. Enjoy the story-behind-the-story as you tuck in for this talented author's gem.
269 - " 'But the law requires you to tell what you're going to use it for.' Miss Emily just stared at him . . . until he looked away and went and got the arsenic." Tuck in and along with the British rock group, The Zombies, you may fall victim to Emily, too.
268 - "Every Thanksgiving Day for nine years the Old Gentleman had come there to find Stuffy Pete on his seat. . . But now he looked up at the Old Gentleman's face with tears of suffering in his eyes." Tuck in for this poignant tale (and one other) from the author renowned for unexpected endings.
267 - "Met the divinest man. Danced with him six times, a divine dancer . . . and he is terribly, divinely good-looking," gushed the heiress. Tuck in for the disturbing, anonymous caller's opinion.
266 - "The good man was choking with indignation and fear. '. . . how can they tell such lies as that to slander an honest man?'"
Tuck in for this heart-rending story and discover his fate.
265 - From the master of ghost stories: ". . . I saw that there was some one else in the room besides myself. A man's figure stood between me and the windows . . ." Tuck in for a very unusual tale.
264 - "In that large and busy class, the “raw material” of the anatomists kept perpetually running out . . . and it was part of his duty to supply, receive, and divide the various subjects." Tuck in for our best version of this shocking tale.
263 - Is ten years too long to wait . . . for a tour of your favorite restaurant's kitchen? Our author didn't wait long to be published. Tuck in for his first, most acclaimed, and more than a little twisted short story.
262 - Our first story of the season: "Inexpressibly terrified, I struggled to my feet . . . and may heaven in mercy spare me from another sight like that." Tuck in for the (famously missing) author's favorite genre, horror.
260 - A beautiful, "battered" little creature, not in the least like the . . . average beggar, approaches wealthy Rosemary. Rosemary's reaction? "Hungry people are easily led." Tuck in for New Zealand's own and find out what happens next.
259 - This controversial author shied away from nothing, including the unrest of the 1960s. Tuck in for her intriguing "bus ride" of a tale.
258 - Tuck in for the creator of "magical realism" . . .
"At night, we heard the steady murmur of her body, heavy, moving between two darknesses. Most times, we would stay awake in our beds, hearing her stealthy walk, using our ears to follow her through the whole house."
257 - She thought he was dead.
Instead he had just . . . left her . . . for another woman. Tuck in for the poignant tale from Maine's beloved author.
256 - "He took her arm and ran her into a blind unlighted alley . . . " Tuck in for the the adventure and its startling ending.Content warning: emotional distress
255 - "A Spanish Galleon . . . hopelessly aground and it's treasure buried." Tuck in for adventure, suspense, and a big helping of greed from the famed author of "The Time Machine."
254 - "Whut would yo' ma say if she knew you was out here in these spooky ol' woods lookin' for some ol' convict?" Truman Capote could do anything at any age. Tuck in for two soft-centered Southern tales from his early stories.
253 - It's 1972 and "cheating" on your spouse is not only common, it's expected. Tuck in for the conclusion of "Peace and Love," Joyce Carol Oates-style.
252 - No, this one is not by Chekhov, but like that version there is sex outside of marriage -- 1972 style along with the social movement that excused it. Content warning: suicide is brought up in this story. If you or someone you know is struggling, please call the U.S Crisis Hotline: 988 (24/7).
251 - Our author's childhood was anything but easy, yet he was very accomplished. Delve into his past, then tuck in for his poignant, most autobiographical story.
251 - A flood . . . and a mother's choice . . . From the author of another engrossing tale, "The Yellow Wallpaper," tuck in for the details of Mrs. Gilman's inspiration for both of these stories.
249 - Daughter Mabel was unconcerned about her future; she clearly had unexpected plans in mind. Tuck in and decide which assessment rings true: D.H. Lawrence truly was “the greatest imaginative novelist” or “a tasteless p____grapher.”
248 - A little apartment fire . . . a dismembered leg . . . and suddenly New York City has lost its appeal for Margaret. The beloved author again gives us a glimpse into her own life in this disintegrating tale.
247 - ". . . a chill ran down my spine, but what frightened me more than . . . the eerie cry was . . . mother." Why save Algernon Blackwood for October? Tuck in now for this deliciously disturbing tale.
246 - She left him . . . for a wealthy man . . . and now she's invited him to her lavish wedding in Paris. Tuck in for the champagne-fueled mayhem and find out if the elaborate ceremony actually takes place.
245 - Known for his self-revealing works (and his four marriages), our author makes use of his expertise in this scintillating story.
244 - From the "lost" stories:
". . . the house waited, mysterious and hushed, . . . the realisation of her dream, it was the embodiment of peace . . ."
243 - "She noticed with a kind of horror that he was staring intently at . . . the corner of her left eye where she could feel the muscle twitching." Why does that eye twitch? Tuck in and find out.
242 - "The explosion! The house shook with the dull sound. There were other explosions in other yards on other streets." Tuck in for this startling "children's game."
241 - Our author adored storytelling in the moonlight. Here's the first of a trilogy. You decide if there is more.
240 - After seeing the beauty of 40 springs on campus, this glorious May day was spoiled for the professor by this: "Haven't you noticed . . . how he's losing his grip?" Tuck in for this gentle tale from the Mother-of-American-Drama."
239 - One of Greene's most dramatic thrillers: Mr. Baines was a beloved gentleman; he'd "butlered" for the family for many years. It was MRS. Baines one should worry about.
238 - "I've stopped kissing women; it's dangerous." Or has he? Critics called Ms. Chopin's works shocking and immoral. Tuck in and decide for yourself.
237 - ". . . I think I will bring a bouquet of roses to my grave." It's been 40 years since the young boy has tragically passed. Tuck in for this and one other curiously unique story from Columbia's Nobel Prize-winner.
236 - It was a big, glorious doll house and should have been enjoyed by EVERY little girl -- but Kezia would see to that. This and one other heartwarming story come straight to you from New Zealand.
235 - Again Nobel and Pulitzer Prize-winner William Faulkner awaits you. Are these his own thoughts about women, or is he merely showing us how ugly those gossiping, small town men could get in this particular place and time?
234 - A typical mid-century housewife in a very atypical situation . . . Hold on tight as Ms. Jackson pulls us through her doped up quest to remedy a toothache.
233 - From Dubliners, Joyce's short story collection: Could both tales be about the same woman? In the first, she's young and planning a new life, and in the next tale, she's years older and (perhaps) close to a sudden end.
The first sentence of this week's story: "Yesterday afternoon the six-o'clock bus ran over Miss Bobbit." Mr. Capote gets right to it, doesn't he?
231 - Its true that not every marriage lasts . . . but it's what happens next in this conclusion that makes this tantalizing tale so interesting.
230 - How could this have happened? The perfect marriage broken apart by this? Enjoy the plot twists from Canada's Nobel Prize-winning author.
229 - From perhaps a surprising source, here's a captivating story of love, innocent love.
228 - Said to be the greatest story ever written, here's a romantic tale for your special evening.
227 - A stranger comes to your door asking to revisit his childhood home -- now YOUR home. Would you let him in? Tuck in and see what happens.
226 - From the "Lost Stories" collection: Unearthed in 2014, this startling find is said to be darker and more sinister than du Maurier's later works. You decide.
225 - The conclusion: Poor Asbury has come home to the farm to die . . . but will Mother "allow" it?
224 - From "the best book ever to have won the National Book Award" to you: a tale filled with outlandish, morally-flawed southern characters.
223 - From the author: "This story has haunted me for over 20 years . . . be warned of its effect . . ."
222 - Welcoming the New Year, Australian-style: "They lingered awhile - arms round each other's waists... the two sweethearts of twenty years ago and tonight watched the retreat of the storm."
221 - 'Tis the season for forgiveness. Will Sherlock Holmes find forgiveness in this adventure? (And what IS a carbuncle anyway?)
220 - "Materialism is bad for the soul," they say. "All you really need is the love of your family." Now try explaining that to your young children on Christmas morning.
219 - Charles Dickens's Scrooge is not the only character to encounter ghosts at Christmas time. The prolific Algernon Blackwood brings us this:
". . . he heard someone come up the stairs behind him . . . a stealthy footstep--the tread of somebody who did not wish to be seen."
218 - "The crops were in, and barn, buttery, and bin were overflowing with the harvest . . . Thanksgiving was at hand, and all must be in order for that time-honored day."
217- A heart-warming seasonal story . . . followed by a different perspective from the Smithsonian Institute
215 - Mrs. Miller: "Your mother must be insane to let a child like you wander around at all hours of the night . . ." Miriam: "What difference does that make? Let me in. It's cold out here and . . ."
213 - From the acclaimed author of mystery and horror, two twisted tales about tots . . .
From The Witch: "The little boy gasped and the mother turned around, her smile fading."
From Charles: "Today Charles hit the teacher."
212 - Originally intended to be a ghost story, Roald Dahl read through this piece and felt he had not "brought it off." He changed the ending (so glad he did) and rendered this gruesome, non-supernatural twist.
211 - The conclusion: "After you spiked it through with that nail, it naturally forgot about other people and concentrated its attention on you (and) it CAN get in! We've forgotten. There's the fireplace in my bedroom!"
210 - You were promised: "He had just got to the top when the lights went out . . . and he heard the scuttling along the floor. . . About ten yards in front of him, crawling along . . . was . . ."
209 - Escort: (noun) a person, vehicle, or group accompanying another for protection.
Ms. du Maurier provides you with the safety of an escort as you sail your way through her unnerving wartime tale.
208 - Honored repeatedly for her courageous writing, author Eudora Welty was never afraid to jump into the fray for the right cause. In this episode, though, the cause could only be pure (silly!) entertainment.
207 - The conclusion for our wunderkind: "Nothing mattered much except playing music as it must be played, bringing out the thing that must be in her . . . Once -- it was there -- for sure." And now?
206 - Wunderkind: a person who achieves great success at a young age. “That was what (her teacher) had called her when, at twelve, she first came to him.” And yet, it would take "more than cleverness" to make this man happy.
205 - They'd had a fight, he hadn't come home, and ". . . visions of him lying in a gutter or under a table, somehow horribly mangled, haunted her . . ." Find out what happened in another tale from the master humorist.
From another Pulitzer Prize winner: "And at once he was seized with a conviction that his real reason for entering the drugstore was not to get a hot chocolate--not at all! He was going to steal something."
203 - "What can you do if . . . turning the corner of your own street, you are overcome, suddenly, by a feeling of bliss(?)" But will the day end that way?
202 - The house was supposed to be empty, but "I heard a noise. . . Whatever it was, was coming slowly down the corridor, scratching at the doors as it went."
201 - From the Victorian's best supernaturalist, "I turned to the next passenger and saw - oh God, how can I describe it! - I saw that he was . . ."
198 - Another TWO for ONE episode and this time they are from Shirley Jackson. You're welcome!
Today you get TWO from ONE of the best, Ray Bradbury. Tuck in with that vivid imagination combined with that soothing, poetic style.
196 - Prison inmates: "Nobody here can run to catch Tico. He run the fastest." The response? "Shotguns run faster."
195 - From the most beloved author of this podcast, tuck in for a "dark, sexy" tale of "the wrong word at the wrong time."
194 - From an unpleasant man: a passion for art paints us a thoroughly-entertaining and prickly tale.
193 - The police asked . . . "if there was anyone who had a grudge against him. 'No one that I know of,' Walter said. Hmm . . .
192 - You will find yourself in those stacks of books. What will you do when you discover that incredibly famous woman in disguise?
190 - From one of your favorite authors, isolation and the dark side of young girls . . .
189 - Greenwich Village is the setting for this, one of nearly 600 stories from William Sydney Porter or our friend, O. Henry.
188 - Tuck in and let the gentleness of Maine’s coastal region carry you to the home of its most precious winged inhabitants.
187 - Not one, but two tales from the celebrated leader of black literature, Langston Hughes. His character Luella Bates Washington Jones, with a very effective half-Nelson, is a woman you won’t want to miss.
186 - With our hearts and minds focused on our Ukrainian brothers and sisters, we present a classic tale of family torn apart by war.
184 - Borrowing from a Scottish ballad, Jackson presents us with a woman’s frantic hunt for her betrothed.
183 - A moment from Munro’s real life? “This is the first time I ever remember taking deep breaths, consciously, for purposes of self-control. I really wanted to murder him.”
182 - The conclusion: “Garry’s blood struggled to escape the tube . . . as a dissolving imitation of Garry struggled to dodge the snake-tongue weapon . . .”
180 - Part 2: “What in the hell do you think I am?” . . . “A monster . . . Now shut up and listen.”
179 - Originally entitled “Who Goes There?”, here’s the classic story that led to two iconic films. Don’t miss the creak of the floorboards!
178 - For your new year: “And overhead . . . lonely and cold and livid, blazed the star of the coming doom.”
176 - “I could run on and on and never look back, never need to see his face again. Only I can’t.”
175 - “. . . the element of fire spoke to some deep mainspring of his father’s being . . . as the one weapon for the preservation of integrity. . .”
174 - What’s happening to Connie? “But if you don’t come out we’re going to wait till your people come home and then . . .”
173 - Arnold Friend wanted Connie to go for a ride: “I know your name and ALL about you, LOTS of things.”
171 - Hard working Pat Humbert has his whole life ahead of him, but will he know what to do with it?
169 - Recently orphaned Stephen “would do well . . . to shut his bedroom window at night”. . . and to “turn the key of the door” when he went to bed “and then no one can’t hurt you.” Hmm.
168 - From Stoker’s own collection of short stories: “There are often dangers from snow and wolves and night.”
167 - Imagination and a savage sense of humor, what more could you want from an author?
166 - It is the season (finally) for a creepy tale. This one is melodramatic, very grim, and yes, ends with a twist.
165 - No, New Zealand’s favorite author did not write a sci-fi, but you’ll want to check this out!
162 - A quiet little dinner with friends, wine, and a little wager . . . what could possibly go wrong?
161- A first awkward dance in a dress that made “my breasts jut out surprisingly with mature authority . . .”
154 - What made “John (sit) there open mouthed, feeling the nerves of his body twitter like so many sparrows perched upon his spinal column?”
150 - “It’s going to be great day,” but there was something uncommonly strange about it.
149 - “I suppose the phone wires were . . . cut.” This tale: horror, crime, or something else? You decide.
146 - “Fancy cream puffs so soon after breakfast(?) . . . two minutes later (they) were licking their fingers with that absorbed inward look that only comes from whipped cream.”
144 - “The full realisation that I was alone... with this nameless creature, almost within arm’s reach of him, overcame me . . .”
143- “I crept out of bed (and heard) the unmistakable sound of someone retreating stealthily . . . on his hands and knees.”
142 - “I noticed several people at the readers’ table staring at me and watching every movement I made “
141 - America’s favorite humorist brings us the most unpleasant word ever uttered on Fast Asleep.
134 - Early morning twin talk: “You are having a bad dream.” . . . I dreamed that I was dead.”
133 - “The door that goes into ... a beauty beyond dreaming. And I have rejected it.” Will he finally find his way back?
131 - Two brothers have carefully collected over two hundred oral tales for your enjoyment. Tuck in for this favorite.
130 - The very witty James Thurber is back with the most raucous of daydreams and more!
128 - So very different from the 2008 film, you’ll love this in its original (1922) form.
124 - Miss Chandler. . . and Linda Stewart’s parents would have gone unsuspectingly ahead . . . never aware of the possible evil lurking nearby . . .”
121 - Feminism was not well received in 1899. It took decades for Ms. Chopin to be lauded as an essential author and a true pioneer. These two stories will not disappoint.
120 - “She was one of those pretty ... girls who are sometimes, as if by mistake of destiny, born in a family of clerks.”
112 - The Irish writer observes how first love can make life seem far more beautiful than it really is.
111 - If you lived ALL of your life like it was the END of your life, what kind of person would you be?
106 - Disputed land, Nature’s own violence . . . Will the interlopers allow a reconciliation?
103 - Your hotel guest’s first question: “I suppose their have been a good many men killed in this room.” How do you keep your five star rating?
102 - Spoiler alert: Despite a frightening turn of events, be assured, no animals are harmed in this story.
100 - These New Year tales gently take us through sorrow, but thankfully, leave us with hope and beauty.
97 - The beloved “Anne of Green Gables” author also wrote this warm holiday tale. Tuck in and enjoy . . .
94 - Written a few years after “The a Wizard of Oz,” this story is loved by all ages and is considered “one of his most beautiful.”
90 - A small child’s fantasy melds with gruesome reality in this Civil War tale. (graphic moments)
89 - “. . . sometimes the terrible pain in my head came back and I could not think clearly.”
85 - The secret life of Walter Mitty? Nope. This time it’s Erwin Martin and it’s delightful!
80 - Sail the seas with the last of our spooky tales of the season penned by the author known for his fantastic mind and his famous aunt.
79 - “My teeth were chattering and I was shaking all over when the bell . . . began to ring.”
78 - “She didn’t think they were real at first, and laughed at me . . . And then she saw them . . .”
77 - “He felt them . . . scattering, flying swiftly and silently as shadows to incredible hiding places. . .”
76 - “. . . after my death all are welcome to read what, to the best of my knowledge, is a true story.”
71 - H.P. Lovecraft considered this to be the finest supernatural tale in English literature.
61 - The UK’s own, a most prolific ghost story writer, takes us on a tour of a unique residence.
59 - Not a coastal California setting, this thrilling original takes place in Cornwall, England.
57 - A classic story, but not ONE of these characters appeared in the Hitchcock movie. Enjoy this original.
43 - The shocking ending of this episode explains why Miss Oates is known as an “unruly genius.” Prepare yourself.
38 - Another Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Jean Stafford’s tale will not be what you expect.
34 - Father and son amble into a shop that provides wonder and amazement for the youngster and sinister suspicions for the father.
33 - Learn what “skulks” behind that “impertinent, interminable” wallpaper in the confounding conclusion.
25 - Georgia-born Ms. McCullers presents us with a character attempting to “dominate the pulse of time.”
24 - Young Katherine Mansfield was known for her delicious short stories. Tuck in and enjoy this one.
22 - Meet Dexter Green in one of Fitzgerald’s finest short stories. Part one awaits you.
16 - Newlyweds and fierce gun play are entwined in Stephen Crane’s short story masterpiece.
15 - Can the love of humanity be combined with politics? Tuck in for the last half to see.
14 - A popular geological formation commands our attention in Hawthorne’s prophetic short story.
10 - The last “chapter” of the Red Pony, Steinbeck’s strangely sweet short story Junius Maltby is not found in all editions. It is yours here in two parts.
1 - With its rustic setting, John Steinbeck’s The Red Pony is a gentle gem. Its soothing images of a long ago California valley contrast with rural family heartaches.