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DNF'd this one. Extremely weak writing from authors I normally enjoy (Ambrose Bierce being the only exception). These works are less held together by cosmic horror (upon which the vast majority fail to deliver) and more by racism. I found myself incredibly bored and disappointed, and the editor of this collection clearly lacks good taste.
Some of the stories here are misses, but it ends on what might be my favorite Lovecraft tale.
Loses a star for giving so many pages to Henry James' The Jolly Corner, an interesting but interminably long story with only the most tenuous connection to the themes of the collection. One suspects it was included more to assuage the editor's literary pretensions than anything else, and it eats up space that could have given us a second Blackwood or Lovecraft story at the very least. But the rest of the collection is fantastic, The White People by Arthur Machen being the stand out.
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death
Moderate: Murder
Minor: Sexual assault
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death
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.
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
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.
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
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