EPISODE · Jan 14, 2025 · 1H 19M
223 – Kate van der Borgh & A Different Class of Magic
from Talking Scared · host Neil McRobert
It’s a collegial week on Talking Scared. ‘Cos I’m talking dark, occult academia with someone very local to me. Kate van der Borgh’s debut, And He Shall Appear is basically a sinister version of my own life. It’s about a young working class lad, like me, who goes to a prestigious university, like me… but there ours paths diverge, as he meets a fellow student who perhaps has diabolical powers. It’s a twisted, obscure, psychological study of unreliable memory, inescapable guilt, and the haunting of not-knowing oneself. Kate and I talk about all of that, as well as the class divide, northern accents, the terror of infinity, favourite ghosts stories, and memories of underrage drinking in the same bars. The book is great. I’m delighted to help celebrate it. Enjoy. The Sense of an Ending (2011), by Julian Barnes The Little Stranger (2009), by Sarah Waters The Pallbearer’s Club (2022), by Paul Tremblay We Were Villains (2017), by M. L. Rio The Secret History (1992), by Donna Tartt “All Souls,” in The Ghost Stories of Edith Wharton (1973), by Edith Wharton Support Talking Scared on Patreon Come talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod, on Instagram, or email direct to [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
What this episode covers
It’s a collegial week on Talking Scared. ‘Cos I’m talking dark, occult academia with someone very local to me. Kate van der Borgh’s debut, And He Shall Appear is basically a sinister version of my own life. It’s about a young working class lad, like me, who goes to a prestigious university, like me… but there ours paths diverge, as he meets a fellow student who perhaps has diabolical powers. It’s a twisted, obscure, psychological study of unreliable memory, inescapable guilt, and the haunting of not-knowing oneself. Kate and I talk about all of that, as well as the class divide, northern accents, the terror of infinity, favourite ghosts stories, and memories of underrage drinking in the same bars. The book is great. I’m delighted to help celebrate it. Enjoy. The Sense of an Ending (2011), by Julian Barnes The Little Stranger (2009), by Sarah Waters The Pallbearer’s Club (2022), by Paul Tremblay We Were Villains (2017), by M. L. Rio The Secret History (1992), by Donna Tartt “All Souls,” in The Ghost Stories of Edith Wharton (1973), by Edith Wharton Support Talking Scared on Patreon Come talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod, on Instagram, or email direct to [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
NOW PLAYING
223 – Kate van der Borgh & A Different Class of Magic
No transcript for this episode yet
Similar Episodes
Jun 9, 2026 ·50m
Jun 1, 2026 ·31m
May 25, 2026 ·39m
May 17, 2026 ·37m
May 8, 2026 ·39m
Apr 28, 2026 ·25m