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nupsilon's review against another edition
3.0
Like a lot of anthologies, this is uneven.
The two obvious standouts are Machen's "The White People", a tale of ancient folklore and witchcraft, and Blackwood's "The Willows", an atmospheric take on the stranded-on-an-island trope.
Poe's story is just okay; it seems he was going for an open ending, but it just feels like half of the story is missing.
Stoker's story is kind of ridiculous, with its vengeful cat and its cartoonish American character (I couldn't even tell what he was saying half the time).
Bierce's stories are good but too short to leave much of an impression.
Lovecraft's "The Colour Out of Space" is good but not scary enough. I expected more.
Henry James is being Henry James, ie overwritten and uneventful. That's a bit unfair; his story is actually scary, in a very subdued way. I just get tired of his prose very quickly.
Walter de la Mare's "Seaton's Aunt" is... fine. I didn't find it scary or suspenseful. It ended the way I expected it to end.
Chambers' "Repairer of Reputations" was interesting, but I think I need to read the rest of the King in Yellow stories before I can make up my mind about it. I usually enjoy stories about madness and this was a good one.
As for Shiel's "The House of Sounds"... What the hell was that? Maybe I was just very tired when I read it, but I couldn't get into it. Something about the way it was written seemed off.
Overall I recommend this anthology, if only for the Machen and Blackwood stories. It's a quick introduction to classic horror.
The two obvious standouts are Machen's "The White People", a tale of ancient folklore and witchcraft, and Blackwood's "The Willows", an atmospheric take on the stranded-on-an-island trope.
Poe's story is just okay; it seems he was going for an open ending, but it just feels like half of the story is missing.
Stoker's story is kind of ridiculous, with its vengeful cat and its cartoonish American character (I couldn't even tell what he was saying half the time).
Bierce's stories are good but too short to leave much of an impression.
Lovecraft's "The Colour Out of Space" is good but not scary enough. I expected more.
Henry James is being Henry James, ie overwritten and uneventful. That's a bit unfair; his story is actually scary, in a very subdued way. I just get tired of his prose very quickly.
Walter de la Mare's "Seaton's Aunt" is... fine. I didn't find it scary or suspenseful. It ended the way I expected it to end.
Chambers' "Repairer of Reputations" was interesting, but I think I need to read the rest of the King in Yellow stories before I can make up my mind about it. I usually enjoy stories about madness and this was a good one.
As for Shiel's "The House of Sounds"... What the hell was that? Maybe I was just very tired when I read it, but I couldn't get into it. Something about the way it was written seemed off.
Overall I recommend this anthology, if only for the Machen and Blackwood stories. It's a quick introduction to classic horror.
cltwright's review
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
aminererror's review against another edition
4.0
I hesitate to give it a 4, but I don’t think I can give half stars and the highlight stories far outweigh the duds so I’ll round up instead of down. A good intro to cosmic horror and stories of the weird.
rominadelap's review
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.0
eclark93's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
gregbrown's review against another edition
3.0
This book is an odd duck: rather than a primer on or survey of weird fiction, this collection seeks to be more a study of the contemporaries and progenitors of Lovecraft's style. So you'd think they'd be assuming that you've read Lovecraft's stuff, but at the very end(?) it includes Lovecraft's "The Colour Out of Space". This might well be for comparison or completeness, but the inclusion almost compulsory, like you CAN'T do any collection of weird fiction without including at least some Lovecraft.
That said, the collection itself is revelatory and even pretty enjoyable for the most part. Viewing the collection through the lens of Lovecraft, it takes on an almost combinatorial feel—mixing and matching, excluding and including the various elements that we think of when we survey Lovecraft's work. Shiel's "The House of Sounds" takes the theme of sensory over-stimulations leading to madness, and outdoes "The Fall of the House of Usher" in turn. Machen's "The White People" does the same sort of unworldly lore and descent into hidden codes and ritual, but in a bit different context than usual. And most refreshingly, the collection shows that many of the key elements of weird fiction are not necessarily tied to a racist world-view as much as they disgustingly are in some of Lovecraft's.
Of course, some of the stories fall flat or are boring reads; the genre isn't really known for tidy writing or plotting in general, and seeing so many of these in one place negates the novelty that usually carries some of the weight. But many of the stuff is better than Lovecraft's efforts, and certainly deserves some of the attention that's almost singularly accorded to his work. Plus the NYRB has a rad Charles Burns cover that's refreshingly loud compared to their usual tone.
That said, the collection itself is revelatory and even pretty enjoyable for the most part. Viewing the collection through the lens of Lovecraft, it takes on an almost combinatorial feel—mixing and matching, excluding and including the various elements that we think of when we survey Lovecraft's work. Shiel's "The House of Sounds" takes the theme of sensory over-stimulations leading to madness, and outdoes "The Fall of the House of Usher" in turn. Machen's "The White People" does the same sort of unworldly lore and descent into hidden codes and ritual, but in a bit different context than usual. And most refreshingly, the collection shows that many of the key elements of weird fiction are not necessarily tied to a racist world-view as much as they disgustingly are in some of Lovecraft's.
Of course, some of the stories fall flat or are boring reads; the genre isn't really known for tidy writing or plotting in general, and seeing so many of these in one place negates the novelty that usually carries some of the weight. But many of the stuff is better than Lovecraft's efforts, and certainly deserves some of the attention that's almost singularly accorded to his work. Plus the NYRB has a rad Charles Burns cover that's refreshingly loud compared to their usual tone.
upward_not_northward's review against another edition
4.0
A nice collection of supernatural horror stories from the early 20th century. My favorite was 'The Willows' by Algernon Blackwood, a writer I wasn't familiar with up until now. Reading 'The Colour Out of Space' reminds me that I need to watch the newish Nic Cage movie of the same name.
Thanks Liz for the recommendation!
Thanks Liz for the recommendation!
dllman05's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.25
Edgar Allan Poe, "MS. Found in a Bottle" - ♥♥♥
Bram Stoker, "The Squaw" - ♥♥♥♥
Ambrose Bierce, "Moxon's Master" - ♥♥♥♥♥
Ambrose Bierce, "The Damned Thing" - ♥♥♥♥♥
Ambrose Bierce, "An Inhabitant of Carcosa" - ♥♥♥♥♥
Bram Stoker, "The Squaw" - ♥♥♥♥
Ambrose Bierce, "Moxon's Master" - ♥♥♥♥♥
Ambrose Bierce, "The Damned Thing" - ♥♥♥♥♥
Ambrose Bierce, "An Inhabitant of Carcosa" - ♥♥♥♥♥
R. W. Chambers, “The Repairer of Reputations” - ♥♥♥
M. P. Shiel, “The House of Sounds” - ♥♥♥
M. P. Shiel, “The House of Sounds” - ♥♥♥
Arthur Matchen, "The White People" - ♥♥♥
Algernon Blackwood, "The Willows" - ♥♥♥♥♥
Henry James, "The Jolly Corner" - ♥♥
Walter de la Mare, "Seaton's Aunt" - ♥♥♥♥
H.P. Lovecraft, "The Colour Out of Space" - ♥♥♥♥♥
H.P. Lovecraft, "The Colour Out of Space" - ♥♥♥♥♥
keerak's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
violetpretty5's review
4.0
A collection of creepy short stories rooted in other worldly elements, the story which most sticks with me is of a domed mansion chained against the sea in which noises magnify and the rooms are mostly burial vaults ("The House of Sounds"). Some stories build intriguingly but afford little payoff (the witchy happenings in "The White People") while others end exactly as one would expect (it's not going to be a good idea to piss off the black cat featured in "The Squaw" and then pose inside an iron maiden-like contraption) but all paint oddly surreal universes full of lush language, quivering trees, and madness. While tempting to lend metaphor or existential dread to some of the stories, they can also just be enjoyed under a blanket in the dark.
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