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A review by _michelle_
Chilling Ghost Short Stories by
2.0
With a title like Chilling Ghost Short Stories, you'd think the collected stories would be spooky, right? If you said, "Yes," you would be wrong. The editor actually says in the preface that this collection is more of a study in the varied manner of ghosts, and the supernatural at large. But most people don't read that until the book is in their possession (at least I didn't), unlike the title! Can you say "misleading?"
Look, most of these stories are good, strictly speaking. Maybe not stellar, exactly, but not awful, either. They simply do not scare, and if that's what you read ghost stories for (like me), then you will be disappointed (like me). The Man Who Went Too Far, and perhaps two or three others, were both new to me and were intriguing; the other worthwhile stories are already classics and are widely available elsewhere (The Monkey's Paw and The Canterville Ghost, for example).
If you scare easily or hate gore, but have a fondness for the fantastical, disregard the title and give this one a go. Everyone else, give it a pass, unless you like collecting pretty books for your personal library (because, hey, no denying the book design does look pretty cool in physical form).
Look, most of these stories are good, strictly speaking. Maybe not stellar, exactly, but not awful, either. They simply do not scare, and if that's what you read ghost stories for (like me), then you will be disappointed (like me). The Man Who Went Too Far, and perhaps two or three others, were both new to me and were intriguing; the other worthwhile stories are already classics and are widely available elsewhere (The Monkey's Paw and The Canterville Ghost, for example).
If you scare easily or hate gore, but have a fondness for the fantastical, disregard the title and give this one a go. Everyone else, give it a pass, unless you like collecting pretty books for your personal library (because, hey, no denying the book design does look pretty cool in physical form).