Ramsey Campbell is one of the world’s greatest horror writers. He recently celebrated his 60th anniversary serving up wonderful horror and shows no signs of stopping anytime soon. His latest effort, THE INCUBATIONS, has it all --- including gothic horror, historical subtext and, best of all, revenge.

During World War II, Winston Churchill orders the bombing of Alphafen, a German town located in the Alps. Teenager Leo Parker lives in the small British town of Settlesham, which has been ravaged by the Nazis. Following the war, Leo’s teacher organizes a civil pairing of these two ill-fated towns by having his students befriend German schoolchildren via letters. Leo’s pen pal is Hanna Weber.

"THE INCUBATIONS is an outstanding book. The buildup throughout the story is orchestrated in a way that only a true horror master like Ramsey Campbell could design, and the overall experience is just what his readers have come to expect from his work."

At the start of the story, Leo is taking a young female student for a driving lesson in one of his family’s vehicles. They run the business Pass With Parker, which trains people how to drive and prepare for their road tests. On this particular day, Leo is having trouble speaking, and most of the driving commands he dictates come out jumbled. The student, who happens to be dyslexic, takes this personally as she believes he is mocking her disability. She leaves the car in a huff and tells her father, who is more than a little angry.

This odd and worrisome encounter makes Leo schedule an appointment with a psychiatrist to see if something may be going on in his mind that caused this unfortunate mishap. It is at this point that Leo recounts his recent trip to Alphafen to finally meet Hanna in person. The entire experience is surreal. The first indication, which a sleepy Leo fails to recognize, is when he asks on the ride from the airport if they have reached the Alps, to which Hanna replies, “They come to us.” Readers will get a chill down their spine later on when they put together the true meaning of her answer.

Hanna’s parents speak the same broken English that she does and seem to be overjoyed by Leo’s presence. On his first night there, he is taken to a huge beer hall and given a hero’s welcome by everyone, including the Mayor. It is like that everywhere he goes until he runs into a fellow Brit at a restaurant. Jerome Pugh latches on to Leo and seems to be warning him by way of pounding him with information about the role that Hitler played in this part of Germany, particularly the infamous area once known as the Eagle’s Nest.

During his stay, Leo suffers from odd dreams and visions. He feels that he is surrounded by bugs and notices the strange butterflies and moths that constantly fly around him. Upon his departure, Hanna’s family refuses to give Leo a book on the history of the Alps, which is quite odd considering their hospitable nature.

This brings us back to the present day, where Leo sits with his psychiatrist following his bizarre driving experience. It becomes just the first of many out-of-character behaviors of which Leo seems to be the harbinger. He passes on whatever “illness” he has caught to anyone he comes in contact with, including his parents. The outcome of these maladies grows increasingly worse, and Leo’s girlfriend, Ellen, is quite concerned about the drastic change in his behavior.

I will not spoil any of the horrors that Campbell has created for Settlesham. I will just note that whatever Leo has brought back with him is of ancient legend and intends to do harm to the recipient. The actual truth and motivation behind it is far worse than you can imagine, and the resulting paranoia drives this intense novel to its ending.

THE INCUBATIONS is an outstanding book. The buildup throughout the story is orchestrated in a way that only a true horror master like Ramsey Campbell could design, and the overall experience is just what his readers have come to expect from his work.