Magazine of Horror #23

This Magazine of Horror issue contains multiple stories blending psychological horror and speculative fiction. "The Abyss" examines the subconscious through dialogue between a banker and an unnamed interlocutor discussing whether accessing hidden psychological depths would benefit humanity. "Blake's Story," the longest entry, follows journalist G.G. Kelly's investigation of a dangerous religious movement in Harlem centered around "Lily," a large Black woman with telepathic powers who kills a man before her fervent female followers, claiming status as a new god while advocating women's dominance. A 19th-century reprint depicts a supernatural haunting tied to a woman's portrait. Additional fragments include "The Thirteenth Floor" involving mysterious vanishings and lunar phenomenon, speculation about moon-induced gravitation effects, and references to a "Flying Child" circus act connected to a surrealist film by Jean Cocteau. The issue also contains news items dated during World War II discussing wartime perspectives.