Tamika Thompson talks me through the great American curseof the 21st Century on this week’s episode. No, not Tangerine Cthulhu … but the plague of gun deaths that is coring out the country. That’s the focus of her new novel, The Curse of Hester Gardens, which asks whether the deaths gunning for the young men of an inner-city housing project are criminal, or something much weirder! Yeah, that’s right. Listen to a cossetted little English guy try and keep up in an conversation about gun crimes and street life. Enjoy! Other books mentioned: The Rats (1974), by James Herbert The Ghosts of Sleath (1994),by James Herbert Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century (2022), by Kim Fu Mystery Lights (2024), by Lena Valencia “How to Do Diversity When You’re Lazy, Ignorant and/or Malicious” (2018), by Tamika Thompson – Link HERE Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Threads, Bluesky, and Instagram, or email direct to [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ask this episode

“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.