Night of the Crabs
by Guy N. Smith (Author), Neale Thomas (Illustrator), Andrew-Mark Thompson (Illustrator), Tara Paulsson (Editor), & 2 more Format: Kindle Edition
Night of the Crabs is Guy N. Smith’s iconic pulp horror hit of the 1970s.
Plot Summary
Professor Cliff Davenport's nephew disappears with his girlfriend while swimming off the Welsh Coast. Davenport discovers that a colony of giant crabs is responsible, and resolves to track down and destroy them. Will he succeed before the monstrous crabs devour entire human populations? Full of action, suspense and gore, this is classic 1970s animal attack horror by bestselling British author Guy N. Smith (1939-2020). Night of the Crabs (published originally by NEL in 1976) is the first in an 8-book series. The others are (in order of first-publication dates): Killer Crabs (1978), Origin of the Crabs (1979), Crabs on the Rampage (1981), Crabs' Moon (1984), Crabs: The Human Sacrifice (1988), Killer Crabs: The Return (2012), Crabs Omnibus (2015 anthology of short stories), The Charnel Caves (2019).
Themes and Style
Nature's Revenge: The novel reflects themes of nature striking back against human encroachment and exploitation.
Survival Horror: Smith effectively creates a sense of urgency and fear, as characters must fight for their lives against an unstoppable force.
Environmental Catastrophe: The book touches on ecological themes, highlighting how environmental disruption can lead to unforeseen and disastrous consequences.
Reception
"Night of the Crabs" was well-received by fans of horror and pulp fiction, praised for its fast-paced, action-packed narrative and its ability to deliver genuine thrills. The success of the novel led to a series of sequels, making the giant crabs a recurring threat in Smith's body of work.
Sequels and Legacy
The popularity of "Night of the Crabs" spawned several sequels, including:
"Killer Crabs" (1978)
"The Origin of the Crabs" (1979)
"Crabs on the Rampage" (1981)
"Crabs' Moon" (1984)
"Crabs: The Human Sacrifice" (1988)
"Killer Crabs: The Return" (2012)
These books expanded on the original story, exploring new settings and escalating the threat posed by the giant crabs. The series has maintained a cult following, appreciated for its blend of horror, adventure, and sheer courageousness.
By 1975 I had achieved my ambition to become a professional author and that year I left my job in banking to go full time. It was a nail-biting move, though, and my main concern was for the future. Would it be sufficient to provide an income which would sustain a wife and three children? Angus, our fourth child, was born in 1976.
I had already submitted the manuscript for “Night of the Crabs” to New English Library but they had not advised me of their publishing plans except that it was due to be released in the summer of 1976.
In July that year we went on holiday to Barmouth where the book was set. So, one balmy evening we were meandering through the town where most of the shops were still open. Gavin, our eldest son, wandered into W.H. Smith’s and suddenly there was a loud shout from him that had heads turning. “Dad, they’ve got hundreds of your books in here!”
So it was. A major in-store display on shelves and a central revolving rack labelled “The No.1 Beach read.”
The shop manager approached me, enquired if I was the author, and then asked if I could possibly do a signing session – there and then! The outcome was that I ended up sitting at a table inside the doorway signing copies for a seemingly endless queue of buyers.
That was just the start. “Night of the Crabs” was on sale just about everywhere, had already been reprinted before publication, and saw 9 subsequent reprints and a number of foreign translation rights sold. Four months later the movie rights were purchased by Amicus.
A year later I fulfilled another of my ambitions, selling our house in Tamworth and moving to Black Hill, a remote area of the Shropshire/Welsh border hills where I already had the shooting rights and had been travelling here for the past 14 years.
Guy N. Smith
Night of the Crabs is Guy N. Smith’s iconic pulp horror hit of the 1970s.
Plot Summary
Professor Cliff Davenport's nephew disappears with his girlfriend while swimming off the Welsh Coast. Davenport discovers that a colony of giant crabs is responsible, and resolves to track down and destroy them. Will he succeed before the monstrous crabs devour entire human populations? Full of action, suspense and gore, this is classic 1970s animal attack horror by bestselling British author Guy N. Smith (1939-2020). Night of the Crabs (published originally by NEL in 1976) is the first in an 8-book series. The others are (in order of first-publication dates): Killer Crabs (1978), Origin of the Crabs (1979), Crabs on the Rampage (1981), Crabs' Moon (1984), Crabs: The Human Sacrifice (1988), Killer Crabs: The Return (2012), Crabs Omnibus (2015 anthology of short stories), The Charnel Caves (2019).
Themes and Style
Nature's Revenge: The novel reflects themes of nature striking back against human encroachment and exploitation.
Survival Horror: Smith effectively creates a sense of urgency and fear, as characters must fight for their lives against an unstoppable force.
Environmental Catastrophe: The book touches on ecological themes, highlighting how environmental disruption can lead to unforeseen and disastrous consequences.
Reception
"Night of the Crabs" was well-received by fans of horror and pulp fiction, praised for its fast-paced, action-packed narrative and its ability to deliver genuine thrills. The success of the novel led to a series of sequels, making the giant crabs a recurring threat in Smith's body of work.
Sequels and Legacy
The popularity of "Night of the Crabs" spawned several sequels, including:
"Killer Crabs" (1978)
"The Origin of the Crabs" (1979)
"Crabs on the Rampage" (1981)
"Crabs' Moon" (1984)
"Crabs: The Human Sacrifice" (1988)
"Killer Crabs: The Return" (2012)
These books expanded on the original story, exploring new settings and escalating the threat posed by the giant crabs. The series has maintained a cult following, appreciated for its blend of horror, adventure, and sheer courageousness.
By 1975 I had achieved my ambition to become a professional author and that year I left my job in banking to go full time. It was a nail-biting move, though, and my main concern was for the future. Would it be sufficient to provide an income which would sustain a wife and three children? Angus, our fourth child, was born in 1976.
I had already submitted the manuscript for “Night of the Crabs” to New English Library but they had not advised me of their publishing plans except that it was due to be released in the summer of 1976.
In July that year we went on holiday to Barmouth where the book was set. So, one balmy evening we were meandering through the town where most of the shops were still open. Gavin, our eldest son, wandered into W.H. Smith’s and suddenly there was a loud shout from him that had heads turning. “Dad, they’ve got hundreds of your books in here!”
So it was. A major in-store display on shelves and a central revolving rack labelled “The No.1 Beach read.”
The shop manager approached me, enquired if I was the author, and then asked if I could possibly do a signing session – there and then! The outcome was that I ended up sitting at a table inside the doorway signing copies for a seemingly endless queue of buyers.
That was just the start. “Night of the Crabs” was on sale just about everywhere, had already been reprinted before publication, and saw 9 subsequent reprints and a number of foreign translation rights sold. Four months later the movie rights were purchased by Amicus.
A year later I fulfilled another of my ambitions, selling our house in Tamworth and moving to Black Hill, a remote area of the Shropshire/Welsh border hills where I already had the shooting rights and had been travelling here for the past 14 years.
Guy N. Smith