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camerontrost's reviews
414 reviews
Terror Australis: The Best of Australian Horror by John Hugoe-Matthews, Geoff O'Callaghan, Leigh Blackmore, Sean Williams, Bill Fewer, Leanne Frahm, Guy Newell Boothby, Philip Cornell, Gavin L. O'Keefe, Ann C. Whitehead, Louise M. Steer, Michael Bryant, Stephen Dedman, Dirk Strasser, Cherry Wilder, Steve Carter, Rick Kennett, Sheila Hatherley, Eddie Van Helden, Kurt Stone, Greg Egan, Kendall Hoffman, Sue Isle, Terry Austin, Paul Lindsey, Sharon A. Hansen, Bill Congreve, Antoinette Rydyr, Terry Dowling, B.J. Stevens, Steven Paulsen, Robert Hood, Neil Walpole, Christopher Sequeira
5.0
Terror Australis, published over twenty years ago, is one of Australia's first horror anthologies and also its most timeless. These tales were written by authors who excel at their craft; the prose is grotesquely gorgeous, evocative, playful in its torment, tantalising and hypnotic. the editing is superb, and the accompanying artwork fits each tale like a tailor-made suit. If you are a fan of horror, you must read this anthology, and if you are an Australian fan of horror, behold your Necronomicon!
The worst of the stories in this anthology are quite good, while the best are simply outstanding. Leanne Frahm's "Catalyst", Louise M. Steer's "Losing Faith", and Leigh Blackmore's "The Hourglass" deserve a special mention.
"Catalyst" explores the unspoken troubles that plague everyday life. It is a disturbing story of suburban suspense, and although the theme is ugly, the writing is beautiful. It won her a Ditmar Award in 1994. What's more, Leanne is a fellow Queenslander - we sure know how to write dark tales in the Sunshine State.
"The Hourglass" is a strange story about time, life, sex, and death. It is Gothic, erotic, exotic, and it is probably my favourite of all the Australian horror stories I have read to date. It also confirms my belief that an editor shouldn't hesitate to include his own work in an anthology. Leigh's story was what made Terror Australis such a great anthology. Indeed, without it, I would have given the book four stars, not five.
"Losing Faith" is a tale of horror that is both historical and eternal. The ending may not come as a surprise, but, even if it doesn't, you will be shocked all the same.
The other contributions that were truly exceptional for me were Kendall Hoffman's "Johnny Twofeller", Dirk Strasser's "Dear Reader", and, although it bewildered me, Bill Fewer's "Denials".
The worst of the stories in this anthology are quite good, while the best are simply outstanding. Leanne Frahm's "Catalyst", Louise M. Steer's "Losing Faith", and Leigh Blackmore's "The Hourglass" deserve a special mention.
"Catalyst" explores the unspoken troubles that plague everyday life. It is a disturbing story of suburban suspense, and although the theme is ugly, the writing is beautiful. It won her a Ditmar Award in 1994. What's more, Leanne is a fellow Queenslander - we sure know how to write dark tales in the Sunshine State.
"The Hourglass" is a strange story about time, life, sex, and death. It is Gothic, erotic, exotic, and it is probably my favourite of all the Australian horror stories I have read to date. It also confirms my belief that an editor shouldn't hesitate to include his own work in an anthology. Leigh's story was what made Terror Australis such a great anthology. Indeed, without it, I would have given the book four stars, not five.
"Losing Faith" is a tale of horror that is both historical and eternal. The ending may not come as a surprise, but, even if it doesn't, you will be shocked all the same.
The other contributions that were truly exceptional for me were Kendall Hoffman's "Johnny Twofeller", Dirk Strasser's "Dear Reader", and, although it bewildered me, Bill Fewer's "Denials".
Touch Wood by D.F. Lewis, Ramsey Campbell, Christopher Evans, Neil Gaiman, Stan Nicholls, Charles de Lint, Yvonne Navarro, Bill Pronzini, Simon Ings, Spider Robinson, Garry Kilworth, Charles L. Grant, Steve Lockley, Karl Edward Wagner, Peter Crowther, T. Winter-Damon, William Relling Jr., Adam Corbin Fusco, Stanley Wiater, Colin Greenland, Stella Hargreaves, Michael Marshall Smith, Bentley Little, Thomas F. Monteleone, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, John Brunner
2.0
It wasn't easy deciding whether to give this anthology two or three stars, but I've gone with just two. Why? Well, it's generally hard to rate an anthology, because you inevitably like some contributions more than others. The main problem is that this book contains twenty-five works over three hundred and seventy-two pages, but only four of them impressed me. That's not to say that I thought all the others were bad. The writing in itself was generally fine, but most lacked originality, effect, or a point of any kind. The four that pulled me in are "The Ten O'Clock Horses" by Paul Lewis and "Funny Weather" by Steve Lockley (these writers both live in Wales and are friends who presumably work on their writing together), "Little Lessons in Gardening" by Karl Edward Gardner (beautifully written, creepy, informative - with regards to botany, and unusual), and "The Wager" by Thomas F. Monteleone, a gripping tale in the tradition of Poe. I would certainly be interested in reading more of these authors' stories.
The Mammoth Book of Great Detective Stories by Herbert van Thal
2.0
This is undeniably a mammoth book, but it was lacking in truly great detective stories; you know what I mean, the kind that focus on a mystery and provide clues which will enable the astute and imaginative reader to have a crack at solving it. With a title like "The Mammoth Book of Great Detective Stories" and a total of twenty-six tales, the mystery fan expects clues, red herrings, and twists and turns galore. In fact, there were only a few captivating tales, so I can't give the anthology more than 2/5 stars overall.
Here are the contributions that I think are worth mentioning:
Margaret Coles' story was the standout murder mystery, including a great setting, clues, and even a map, while Leslie Charteris and Freeman Wills Crofts offered thought-provoking howdunnits, one involving a child's toy and the other a murder on a train. Dulcie Gray and June Thomson provided tales of psychological suspense, exploring the murderous mind, and Dorothy Sayers took us on an action-packed adventure with Lord Peter Wimsey.
Twenty-six
Here are the contributions that I think are worth mentioning:
Margaret Coles' story was the standout murder mystery, including a great setting, clues, and even a map, while Leslie Charteris and Freeman Wills Crofts offered thought-provoking howdunnits, one involving a child's toy and the other a murder on a train. Dulcie Gray and June Thomson provided tales of psychological suspense, exploring the murderous mind, and Dorothy Sayers took us on an action-packed adventure with Lord Peter Wimsey.
Twenty-six
Peripheral Visions: The Collected Ghost Stories by Robert Hood
4.0
Peripheral Visions, Volume One, consists of three themed sections; Haunted Places, Haunted Families, and Haunted Minds. In this tome, Robert Hood offers us an array of ghost stories written between 1988 and 2015. There is an impressive degree of variation on show here, from hauntingly atmospheric works of prose to spooky plot-driven ghost stories to science-fiction of the spiritual kind. Robert Hood's writing is stylish, darkly poetic, and often deeply emotional, and the nature of the ghosts in his stories range from tangible apparitions to pure hallucination.
As I generally do when it comes to ghost stories, I found Robert's subtler tales to be his spookiest and most evocative. The only criticism of this collection would be that some of the twist endings won't come as a surprise to readers who are familiar with the genre.
The highlights for me are Necropolis, a doom-and-gloom tale with a punk edge to it from the 1980s, Nobody's Car, a haunting story about an abandoned automobile, Touched, a timeless haunted house story, Maculate Conception, a strange tale about a stained wall, Monstrous Bright Tomorrows, a work of prose rich in metaphor and symbolism, and Last Remains, a haunting tale about moths and human relationships.
As I generally do when it comes to ghost stories, I found Robert's subtler tales to be his spookiest and most evocative. The only criticism of this collection would be that some of the twist endings won't come as a surprise to readers who are familiar with the genre.
The highlights for me are Necropolis, a doom-and-gloom tale with a punk edge to it from the 1980s, Nobody's Car, a haunting story about an abandoned automobile, Touched, a timeless haunted house story, Maculate Conception, a strange tale about a stained wall, Monstrous Bright Tomorrows, a work of prose rich in metaphor and symbolism, and Last Remains, a haunting tale about moths and human relationships.
Australian Horror Stories by J. Le Gay Brereton, Alan Marshall, Katharine Susannah Prichard, Louis Becke, Dowell O'Reilly, John Baxter, Michael Wilding, J. B. Henderson, Olaf Ruhen, Roland Robinson, Vera Dwyer, Edward George Dyson, Emmett O'Keefe, Marjorie Oughton, Judah Waten, William Dick, Sarah Maitland, Barbara Baynton, Dal Stivens, Henry Lawson, Charles Shaw, Joyce M. Nankivell, Marcus Clarke, Bartlett Adamson, John K. Ewers, Eric Lambert, Bill Wannan, Elinor Mordaunt, John Morrison, J. Gaby, John H. Ramsay, Gavin Casey
3.0
The title, Australian Horror Stories, doesn't really describe this anthology. For the most part, the tales herein are colonial adventures and observations on rural hardship. Many of them demonstrate the eloquence and poesy of the colonial era, and the best evoke the hostility and strangeness of existence in this ancient and mysterious land. We are introduced to native rituals and beliefs, convict anarchists, outlaws and misfits, and even some mundane suburbanites. It's quite a decent anthology, but, if you're specifically looking for Australian horror tales, I'd suggest starting with Terror Australis, Macabre, and In Sunshine Bright and Darkness Deep.