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.
Forty-one-year-old Lisa Ann Zielke, sometimes referred to in records as Lisa Ann Zielke Elick, lived in Surrey, British Columbia, and was a fixture in the city’s sex trade, working primarily in the streets and known to local police through her criminal history. Though details of her past convictions are sparse, investigators noted she was scheduled … More Lisa Ann Zielke
Thirty-two-year-old Leon Adams was a laid-back father with a passion for music and community, described by those who knew him as affable and family-oriented. He lived in a house at 6025 Lady Hammond Road in Halifax, Nova Scotia. On the evening of May 21st, 2005, Leon was at home, winding down what appeared to be … More Leon Anthony Adams
In the heart of Toronto, the Hospital for Sick Children—affectionately known as SickKids—has long been a beacon of hope for families facing pediatric crises. But between June 1980 and March 1981, its cardiac ward became the stage for a chilling enigma: the sudden, suspicious deaths of at least twenty-one infants, with autopsies revealing lethal doses … More Toronto Hospital Baby Deaths
In the early 1990s, the city of Calgary, Alberta, Canada was gripped by fear as a series of brutal murders targeted vulnerable women working in the sex trade. Between January 1990 and February 1993, at least seven—and possibly eight—women were killed under eerily similar circumstances, leading police and the public to suspect a single serial … More The Calgary Prostitute Murders
Thirty-one-year-old Shana Lee Labatte was born and raised in the tight-knit community of Kamloops, British Columbia, and was a devoted single mother to two young children. For much of her life, Labatte led what those close to her described as a “normal” existence, working part-time as a cleaner at a local hotel and nurturing her … More Shana Lee Labatte
In the early spring 1977, Jocelyne Houle, a bright and ambitious twenty-four-year-old nursing student from Chicoutimi, Saguenay, Quebec, Canada, was on the cusp of a promising future. Engaged to be married just months later on September 5th—coinciding with her twenty-fifth birthday—she had traveled to Montreal for a three-week internship at the Montreal Heart Institute in … More Jocelyne Houle
Thirty-six-year-old Bernadine Quewezance was by all accounts an extremely intelligent, outgoing, happy young woman, the devoted mother to five children. Originally hailing from the Yellow Quill First Nation, in 2012 she was living with friends in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. On January 2nd, 2012, a call came in around nine forty-five a.m. to Saskatoon RCMP. A woman … More Bernadine Quewezance
Cynthia Kudjick was born in Nunavik, the Inuit region of northern Quebec, and like many Indigenous women from remote communities, she had migrated to Montreal in search of opportunity. However, the city offered little respite from hardship. Cynthia, a homeless sex worker, navigated the precarious world of street survival in the area around Cabot Square—a … More Cynthia Kudjick
Kristin Paldi Gurholt was born in Norway but immigrated to Canada at the tender age of four, settling in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, with her family. Raised in a warm, supportive household alongside five sisters and three brothers, she blossomed into a bright and creative child. From an early age, Kristin displayed a profound talent for … More Kristin Gurholt
In the early morning hours of July 5th, 1996, a jogger in the Fraserview neighborhood of Vancouver, British Columbia stumbled upon a harrowing scene: a sixty-one-year-old woman lying unconscious and bleeding on the grounds of David Thompson Secondary School. When authorities arrived, the victim was rushed to the hospital. She remained unconscious for six agonizing … More Cathy Berard
Crime Immemorial 