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3.66 AVERAGE
3.66 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Pas le temps de finir avant le cours
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Jumped ship one-third of the way through "The Room in the Dragon Volant." Oh my God, never-ending, low-stakes intrigue because he caught a whole half of a glimpse of a sexy woman one night. How have men survived? Well, this particular man survives because he has a servant who's so nosy and fast-talking, he could get the innermost secrets of the very stones.
The first three stories are just a catalog of high-strung Victorian male fragilities, and diminishing returns after "Green Tea," which is wonderful in, you know, that evil-monkey-whispers-blasphemies sort of way.
Yes, I bailed before "Carmilla," but I swear I'll read it one gloomy day. Seriously, I own about five copies of it, considering how frequently it pops up in anthologies.
The first three stories are just a catalog of high-strung Victorian male fragilities, and diminishing returns after "Green Tea," which is wonderful in, you know, that evil-monkey-whispers-blasphemies sort of way.
Yes, I bailed before "Carmilla," but I swear I'll read it one gloomy day. Seriously, I own about five copies of it, considering how frequently it pops up in anthologies.
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A fine bunch of creepy stories! I especially like Mr. Justice Harbottle--scary stuff!
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Carmilla alone deserves a 5 star (incredible vampire story that inspired Bram Stoker). However, I felt the rest of the short stories were very repetitive.
I decided to read Sheridan Le Fanu and I do not know what took so long! This Irishman paints some amazing scenes, macabre and tense, and given that these were written some two hundred years ago, they are still able to deliver chills.
"Green Tea" is a profound tale of the outer manifestation of a man's evil, and its theme of sight into a spirit world foreshadows H.P. Lovecraft's "From Beyond. " The story "The Familiar" echoes the first, but delivers a story of retribution. And what is so astonishing about that piece is the protagonist' s inability to pray, and his disbelief in God. A professed athiest!!! In the early 1800s in Ireland. I can't imagine how shocking that would have been for a reading public. And yes, we must take into some consideration the mores and values of when a book was written.
The best story remained "Carmilla." This is an early vampire story, with heavy sexual overtones, and a feeling of dread. It is amazing how well it reads, moving swiftly along to a bloody climax. Loved this book, and I am betting Bram Stoker did too, using many of the vampire conventions used by Fanu in Dracula.
"Green Tea" is a profound tale of the outer manifestation of a man's evil, and its theme of sight into a spirit world foreshadows H.P. Lovecraft's "From Beyond. " The story "The Familiar" echoes the first, but delivers a story of retribution. And what is so astonishing about that piece is the protagonist' s inability to pray, and his disbelief in God. A professed athiest!!! In the early 1800s in Ireland. I can't imagine how shocking that would have been for a reading public. And yes, we must take into some consideration the mores and values of when a book was written.
The best story remained "Carmilla." This is an early vampire story, with heavy sexual overtones, and a feeling of dread. It is amazing how well it reads, moving swiftly along to a bloody climax. Loved this book, and I am betting Bram Stoker did too, using many of the vampire conventions used by Fanu in Dracula.
dark
mysterious
slow-paced