Spores is a collection of seventeen short stories. Whilst they cover a variety of themes there is more than a hint of the supernatural about some of them. They owe a little to the influence of MR James, master of the ghost story and also the weird tales of Fritz Leiber. The rise of the reality television programme and the dire consequences of getting involved form the basis of two stories. Humour black or otherwise does have a part to play elsewhere. Although the locations when mentioned are various, the North of England gets a good showing. William Hartley is a freelance writer and researcher, the author of more than seventy articles and several books.