Jenny Ashford is a horror, true crime, and paranormal writer, graphic designer, and podcaster. Her most recent books are a three-volume true crime compilation collectively known as The Faceless Villain: A Collection of the Eeriest Unsolved Murders of the Twentieth Century. Volume One was published in 2017, Volume Two in 2018, and Volume Three in 2019. Her other books include four paranormal nonfiction books: The Unseen Hand: A New Exploration of Poltergeist Phenomena, The Mammoth Mountain Poltergeist (with Tom Ross), House of Fire and Whispers: Investigating the Seattle Demon House, and The Rochdale Poltergeist (both with Steve Mera); as well as three horror novels, Red Menace, Bellwether, and The Five Poisons; two short story collections, Hopeful Monsters and The Associated Villainies; and a graphic novel, The Tenebrist. A second edition of The Associated Villainies was published in 2019, featuring four new stories, an enhanced print layout, and an audio book version. A second edition of The Five Poisons was published in 2020. Her short stories have appeared in several anthologies, including The Nightmare Collective, History Is Dead, 2012AD, ChimeraWorld #3, and ChimeraWorld #4. Her horror blog, Goddess of Hellfire, contains writing news, short stories and articles, and her reviews and opinions on horror films and books. She also co-hosts a podcast with Tom Ross called 13 O'Clock, on which they discuss true crime, unexplained mysteries, paranormal weirdness, horror movies and books, food, and other fun, creepy topics. They recently collaborated on a 13 O'Clock cookbook. Jenny's graphic design work can be seen on everything from books and business cards to posters and packaging. She runs an online store called Gravecake selling products with her designs, and also has a board-and-card game concern called Giallo Games, which produces games based around the beloved Italian horror/crime genre, among many other themes.
As the autumn of 1982 began to descend, an alarming series of tragedies would begin to unfold in the suburban communities in and around Chicago, Illinois. The aftermath of the incident—which would leave seven people dead and an entire nation terrified and paranoid—would lead to sweeping changes in U.S. law, as well as a significant … More The Chicago Tylenol Murders
Sixteen-year-old Jeanette DePalma, a student at Jonathan Dayton High School in Springfield Township, New Jersey, left her home on August 7th, 1972 after telling her mother that she was going to take a train to visit a friend. When Jeanette failed to return home by that evening, her worried mother reported her missing. Jeanette would … More Jeanette DePalma
Mid-summer of 1954 would be marked by the brutal murder of a pregnant woman and an ensuing trial that rivaled the media circus surrounding the arrest of Lizzie Borden in the previous century, and the crimes of the Manson Family at the end of the following decade. It was the evening of July 3rd, the … More Marilyn Reese-Sheppard
Dr. Mary Stults Sherman was an exceedingly accomplished individual by any definition. Originally from Illinois, she had obtained her medical degree from the University of Chicago in 1941, and subsequently served as assistant professor of orthopedic surgery at the university-affiliated Billings Hospital. In 1952, she moved to New Orleans to take up a position as … More Three Possibly CIA-Related Murders
At approximately eight a.m. on the morning of August 28th, 1981, a phone call came in to the offices of the Ripon police in North Yorkshire. “Near Scawton Moor House, you will find a decomposed body among the willow herbs,” said the voice on the line. The officer who had taken the call, PC John … More The Nude in the Nettles
Elizabeth Figg, a twenty-one-year-old prostitute from Cheshire who also went by the name of Ann Phillips, was found dead on a towpath on the banks of the River Thames in London by patrol officers early on the morning of June 17th, 1959. Elizabeth had been strangled to death. Her clothes were torn open to reveal … More Jack the Stripper: The Hammersmith Nude Murders
In autumn of 2000, within the shady world of Middle Eastern black market antiquities dealers, the details of an utterly bizarre case would begin to come to light. While authorities initially believed they were faced with a violation of the Antiquities Act at best and an outright forgery at worst, it would soon become apparent … More The Persian Princess
Caroline Mary Luard was in many ways the quintessential society woman of the late Victorian era. She had been born into a wealthy family, and in 1875 married Charles Edward Luard, a professional soldier who had retired in 1887 with the rank of Major-General in the Royal Engineers. The couple was spending their later years … More Caroline Mary Luard: The Seal Chart Murder
In the spring of 1999, in London, England, a crime occurred that took the nation by storm: the seemingly random assassination of a beloved British celebrity in broad daylight. Media coverage of the murder in the weeks and months afterward rivalled the frenzy following the death of Princess Diana in August of 1997. Thirty-seven-year-old Jill … More Jill Dando
It was a little past two p.m. on the afternoon of November 23rd, 1977, the day before Thanksgiving, and six-year-old Beth Lynn Barr was on her way home from school near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. What she couldn’t have known was that earlier that morning, a man had tried to pick up a woman waiting for a … More Beth Lynn Barr
