Back in September of 2026, the ‘Hollow Eyes’ limited edition chapbook was sold as an exclusive chapbook available for the attendees at the 2026 annual GNS Fan Convention. Only 50 of the chapbooks were printed, each individually numbered on the inside cover and signed by Guy’s daughter – Tara Paulsson.
The chapbook contained the short story ‘Hollow Eyes’ along with a 2-page foreword by Alan Ryan who edited the original anthology that the short tale ‘Hollow Eyes’ first appeared in. Indeed, the story was originally published in Alan Ryan’s ‘Halloween Horrors’ (1986) anthology but was later reprinted in the ‘Black Tears: Issue 5’ (1994) zine, then the ‘Horror Shorts: 2nd Collection’ (2001) anthology, and finally it appeared in ‘Graveyard Rendezvous: Issue 36’ (2010) GNS zine.
DLS Synopsis:
Lester quite openly disapproved of the relationship between his daughter – Julie – and the local homeless youth Ronald Hutchinson (known locally as ‘Hutch’). However, Lester’s absolute disdain for Hutch peaks when he catches the pair engaging in rampant sex. With Hitch now wanting to get Julie away from her father, he decides to take her off to a Halloween carnival that was being held that night.
However, Lester has other plans for Hutch. Fuming with anger, he goes in search of the grubby youth, with his .38 pistol in hand. But with so many throngs of masked partygoers gathered in the carnival park, Lester’s sanity gradually begins to crack. The Halloween mayhem was becoming overwhelming. Madness and demons were everywhere. However, on that fateful Halloween night, there was also something else, something truly terrifying, waiting to reveal itself to Lester...
DLS Review:
This is certainly a chilling little tale, laced with menace and an unnerving madness that’s constantly edging towards the surface of our anger-driven central character. Honestly, the short is absolutely bursting with tension from the moment Julie and Hutch’s unwelcome relationship is first revealed to us. Lester’s first person-perspective of this is delivered with hurt and anger, all told from behind Lester’s eyes, allowing us to feel complete sympathy for the dilemma he’s in.
Then we start observing the man’s breaking sanity. A maelstrom of Halloween images bombarding the senses, flooding into Lester’s already fragile mind. It’s a cacophony of horror served up in pure pulpish fashion, which Smith delivers with the skill of a veteran to the genre. The conclusion to the short tale is admittedly somewhat predictable, but it still delivers a powerful punch. This one is top quality Halloween horror pulp!
The chapbook runs for a total of 22 pages.
© DLS Reviews
