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The Dark Descent: The Colour of Evil
Horror fiction has existed since man's earliest days of telling tales around a fire. It deals with our most powerful emotions: fear, love, and hope. Horror is not merely stories of supernatural creatures and evil gods, not just an allegorical representation of the eternal struggle between good and evil—horror has many faces.
In recent years, horror has produced a number of best-selling novels, but throughout its history the short story has always been horror's most vital form. In short fiction the boundaries of genre have been established, broken, and reestablished; the field has become differentiated and complex.
Now published in three volumes, The Dark Descent is a comprehensive presentation of the evolution of the horror story, filled with significant and powerful works by the masters of the genre. The anthology contains stories by the bestsellers of today, as well as little-known gems from writers almost forgotten—and from authors not usually considered horror writers.
The three volumes of The Dark Descent present the entire spectrum of horror fiction, from the psychological investigations of Edgar Allan Poe, William Faulker, Flannery O'Connor and Thomas M Disch, through the colourful supernatural allegories of J Sheridan Le Fanu, Nathaniel Hawthorne and Harlan Ellison, to the disturbing and dreadful stories of Oliver Onions, Edith Wharton and Gene Wolfe, stories that leave the reader in doubt of the very nature of reality.
Contents:
Introduction The Colour of Evil, by David G. Hartwell.
The Reach (1981), by Stephen King.
Evening Primrose (1940), by John Collier.
The Ash-Tree (1904), by M.R. James.
The New Mother (1882), by Lucy Clifford.
There's a Long, Long Trail A-Winding (1976), by Russell Kirk.
The Call of Cthulhu (1928), by H.P. Lovecraft.
The Summer People (1950), by Shirley Jackson.
The Whimper of Whipped Dogs (1973), by Harlan Ellison.
Young Goodman Brown (1835), by Nathaniel Hawthorne.
Mr. Justice Harbottle (1872), by J. Sheridan Le Fanu.
The Crowd (1943), by Ray Bradbury.
The Autopsy (1980), by Michael Shea.
John Charrington's Wedding (1891), by E. Nesbit.
Sticks (1974), by Karl Edward Wagner.
Larger Than Oneself (1966), by Robert Aickman.
Belsen Express (1975), by Fritz Leiber.
Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper (1943), by Robert Bloch.
If Damon Comes (1978), by Charles L. Grant.
Vandy, Vandy (1953) by Manly Wade Wellman.
In recent years, horror has produced a number of best-selling novels, but throughout its history the short story has always been horror's most vital form. In short fiction the boundaries of genre have been established, broken, and reestablished; the field has become differentiated and complex.
Now published in three volumes, The Dark Descent is a comprehensive presentation of the evolution of the horror story, filled with significant and powerful works by the masters of the genre. The anthology contains stories by the bestsellers of today, as well as little-known gems from writers almost forgotten—and from authors not usually considered horror writers.
The three volumes of The Dark Descent present the entire spectrum of horror fiction, from the psychological investigations of Edgar Allan Poe, William Faulker, Flannery O'Connor and Thomas M Disch, through the colourful supernatural allegories of J Sheridan Le Fanu, Nathaniel Hawthorne and Harlan Ellison, to the disturbing and dreadful stories of Oliver Onions, Edith Wharton and Gene Wolfe, stories that leave the reader in doubt of the very nature of reality.
Contents:
Introduction The Colour of Evil, by David G. Hartwell.
The Reach (1981), by Stephen King.
Evening Primrose (1940), by John Collier.
The Ash-Tree (1904), by M.R. James.
The New Mother (1882), by Lucy Clifford.
There's a Long, Long Trail A-Winding (1976), by Russell Kirk.
The Call of Cthulhu (1928), by H.P. Lovecraft.
The Summer People (1950), by Shirley Jackson.
The Whimper of Whipped Dogs (1973), by Harlan Ellison.
Young Goodman Brown (1835), by Nathaniel Hawthorne.
Mr. Justice Harbottle (1872), by J. Sheridan Le Fanu.
The Crowd (1943), by Ray Bradbury.
The Autopsy (1980), by Michael Shea.
John Charrington's Wedding (1891), by E. Nesbit.
Sticks (1974), by Karl Edward Wagner.
Larger Than Oneself (1966), by Robert Aickman.
Belsen Express (1975), by Fritz Leiber.
Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper (1943), by Robert Bloch.
If Damon Comes (1978), by Charles L. Grant.
Vandy, Vandy (1953) by Manly Wade Wellman.
304 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1987
16 people are currently reading
393 people want to read
About the author
David G. Hartwell
111 books86 followersDavid Geddes Hartwell was an American editor of science fiction and fantasy. He worked for Signet (1971-1973), Berkley Putnam (1973-1978), Pocket (where he founded the Timescape imprint, 1978-1983, and created the Pocket Books Star Trek publishing line), and Tor (where he spearheaded Tor's Canadian publishing initiative, and was also influential in bringing many Australian writers to the US market, 1984-date), and has published numerous anthologies. He chaired the board of directors of the World Fantasy Convention and, with Gordon Van Gelder, was the administrator of the Philip K. Dick Award. He held a Ph.D. in comparative medieval literature.
He lived in Pleasantville, New York with his wife Kathryn Cramer and their two children.
He lived in Pleasantville, New York with his wife Kathryn Cramer and their two children.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
October 1, 2017
A decent collection of mostly (apart from Le Fanu) twentieth-century dark fiction. My favorites by far were "Sticks" by Karl Edward Wagner, about a fisherman who stumbles upon an ancient ritual site festooned with unsettling stick figures; and "The Whimper of Whipped Dogs," which suggests a modern god of urban violence and the madness of the crowded, and which many years ago was my introduction to the work of Harlan Ellison.
May 26, 2009
A collection of some of the best horror stories of all time. Hartwell set himself up for a fall, taking a scholarly approach to the genre and selecting what are, for him, the cream of the crop, but I think he does well. There are a lot of unusual stories here, quite a few of them unknown, and it's far from the bland, anthologised-to-death collection I was dreading.
Things inevitably kick off with Stephen King. THE REACH is an atypical piece of writing, a subtle ghost story more about realism than ghosts. I found it moving and effective. The subtlety continues with John Collier's EVENING PRIMROSE, a strange account of a shopping mall inhabited by ghostly figures. This is a dream-like love story and reminded me a lot of the film GHOST.
We move into more traditional ghost story territory after this. THE ASH-TREE is one of many brilliant works by M. R. James, in which the author expertly wrings maximum chills from the concept. THE NEW MOTHER by Lucy Clifford is an old-fashioned Victorian morality tale that has a unique fairytale quality about it. Russell Kirk's THERE'S A LONG, LONG TRAIL A-WINDING is quite brilliant: simply one of the best modern horror stories I've read in a long time. An old fashioned ghost story it might be, but it deservedly won the World Fantasy Awards in 1977 and on reading it you can see why.
Lovecraft's here, well represented by THE CALL OF CTHULHU, one of his signature works of monstrous terror. THE SUMMER PEOPLE by Shirley Jackson takes the opposite, subtle approach to horror and achieves classic status with it. Harlan Ellison's THE WHIMPER OF WHIPPED DOGS is uniquely original and makes for dark and uncomfortable reading, detailing how a new god feeds off the pain and fear of people living on council estates.
The older stories are a mixed bag. Nathaniel Hawthorne has a bit of a reputation as a pompous windbag, but YOUNG GOODMAN BROWN is a fine work about black magic in the woods. Le Fanu's MR JUSTICE HARBOTTLE I found to be one of his least interesting and most predictable works. Nesbit's JOHN CHARRINGTON'S WEDDING is probably the most dated in the book, but still worth a look.
Back to the 20th century. Ray Bradbury and Michael Shea wow with their stories THE CROWD and THE AUTOPSY respectively; the latter is particularly gross and horrible yet very well written. Robert Aickman always goes for the obtuse and obscure in his writing; sometimes I like him, but his story here, LARGER THAN ONESELF, I found muddled and pretentious. Fritz Leiber's BELSON EXPRESS is a lot better, darkly realistic and utterly horrific, and a change of pace for the author best known for his work in the fantasy genre.
Robert Bloch puts in a solid pulp effort with YOURS TRULY, JACK THE RIPPER, one worth reading for enjoyment alone. Charles L. Grant is another obscure writer but IF DAMON COMES I found to be one of his better efforts. Not so Manly Wade Wellman's VANDY, VANDY which is the only story by that author I haven't enjoyed. Still, also collected here is one of my favourite short stories of all time: STICKS by Karl Edward Wagner. This is a masterful enterprise in Lovecraftian disquiet and a clear influence on THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT.
I'd say that this collection is a must for those new to the genre or fans trying to fill in the gaps.
Things inevitably kick off with Stephen King. THE REACH is an atypical piece of writing, a subtle ghost story more about realism than ghosts. I found it moving and effective. The subtlety continues with John Collier's EVENING PRIMROSE, a strange account of a shopping mall inhabited by ghostly figures. This is a dream-like love story and reminded me a lot of the film GHOST.
We move into more traditional ghost story territory after this. THE ASH-TREE is one of many brilliant works by M. R. James, in which the author expertly wrings maximum chills from the concept. THE NEW MOTHER by Lucy Clifford is an old-fashioned Victorian morality tale that has a unique fairytale quality about it. Russell Kirk's THERE'S A LONG, LONG TRAIL A-WINDING is quite brilliant: simply one of the best modern horror stories I've read in a long time. An old fashioned ghost story it might be, but it deservedly won the World Fantasy Awards in 1977 and on reading it you can see why.
Lovecraft's here, well represented by THE CALL OF CTHULHU, one of his signature works of monstrous terror. THE SUMMER PEOPLE by Shirley Jackson takes the opposite, subtle approach to horror and achieves classic status with it. Harlan Ellison's THE WHIMPER OF WHIPPED DOGS is uniquely original and makes for dark and uncomfortable reading, detailing how a new god feeds off the pain and fear of people living on council estates.
The older stories are a mixed bag. Nathaniel Hawthorne has a bit of a reputation as a pompous windbag, but YOUNG GOODMAN BROWN is a fine work about black magic in the woods. Le Fanu's MR JUSTICE HARBOTTLE I found to be one of his least interesting and most predictable works. Nesbit's JOHN CHARRINGTON'S WEDDING is probably the most dated in the book, but still worth a look.
Back to the 20th century. Ray Bradbury and Michael Shea wow with their stories THE CROWD and THE AUTOPSY respectively; the latter is particularly gross and horrible yet very well written. Robert Aickman always goes for the obtuse and obscure in his writing; sometimes I like him, but his story here, LARGER THAN ONESELF, I found muddled and pretentious. Fritz Leiber's BELSON EXPRESS is a lot better, darkly realistic and utterly horrific, and a change of pace for the author best known for his work in the fantasy genre.
Robert Bloch puts in a solid pulp effort with YOURS TRULY, JACK THE RIPPER, one worth reading for enjoyment alone. Charles L. Grant is another obscure writer but IF DAMON COMES I found to be one of his better efforts. Not so Manly Wade Wellman's VANDY, VANDY which is the only story by that author I haven't enjoyed. Still, also collected here is one of my favourite short stories of all time: STICKS by Karl Edward Wagner. This is a masterful enterprise in Lovecraftian disquiet and a clear influence on THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT.
I'd say that this collection is a must for those new to the genre or fans trying to fill in the gaps.
May 27, 2012
One hell of a great collection.
October 4, 2012
Bar none, the best horror anthology I've read--and I've read plenty. Hartwell's selection of tales is sublime, pulling together classics and hidden gems.
August 2, 2017
These stories were not really set in the era I enjoy. I skipped a few, had read one previously and found the remainder to be nothing memorable. Old old horror is really not my cup of tea. The language wasn't always easy to read. I much prefer my horror to be written in the 70s and later.
June 12, 2017
Jaclyn's craving for horror and messed up stuff continues.
The Reach, by Stephen King:
Hardly a horror story at all. Instead, this is a melancholy ghost story about an old woman who has never left the island she was born on.
Evening Primrose, by John Collier:
Satirical, almost humorous horror about a poet who decides to withdraw from the world and live secretly in a department store. Unfortunately, he's not the first to think of doing so.
The Ash Tree, by M.R. James:
Some great atmospheric detail in this story about the consequences of a witch's execution in the late 17th century.
The New Mother, by Lucy Clifford:
One of those weird Victorian morality tales for kids. Think of the Scissor Man who comes to chop off the thumbs of kids who suck theirs. Doesn't even attempt any logical consistency, but has some creepy moments.
There's a Long, Long Trail A-Winding, by Russell Kirk:
Like the King story, this isn't really horror. It's more of a dark fantasy, with some time travel elements and a wide streak of Christianity.
The Call of Cthulhu, by H.P. Lovecraft:
The well spring from which the deluge of current cosmic horror fiction flows. Holds up pretty well, despite Lovecraft's weird usages, like referring to a man as "a nautical-looking negro," as if that's a thing. I'll again plug Tor.com's Lovecraft reread, because it's the best.
http://www.tor.com/2014/10/21/the-mos...
The Summer People, by Shirley Jackson:
Not as iconic as "The Lottery," and not as overtly horror, but still a great little piece of domestic creepiness.
The Whimper of Whipped Dogs, by Harlan Ellison:
A chilling exploration of the horrors of anonymous city life, even if the even that inspired it (the Kitty Genovese murder, and the narrative that dozens of people watched and did nothing) has been mostly debunked.
Young Goodman Brown, by Nathaniel Hawthorne:
If you're walking through the woods with the actual devil, maybe don't be such a goody two shoes about other people doing the same?
Kate Beaton says it better than I ever could:
http://www.harkavagrant.com/index.php...
Mr. Justice Harbottle, by J. Sheridan Le Fanu:
Overly long, and the conceit of being stories told by someone familiar with the events falls apart on close scrutiny. Still, has some very creepy moments.
The Crowd, by Ray Bradbury:
Oh look! A Bradbury story I hadn't read before. A nice little bit of effective urban horror.
The Autopsy, by Michael Shea:
Possibly the best true horror in the collection. Weird and gruesome and unexpected.
John Charrington's Wedding, by E. Nesbit:
Didn't really work for me, and the ending felt a little obvious.
Sticks, by Karl Edward Wagner:
Not bad. Gave me Blair Witch vibes.
Larger than Oneself, by Robert Aickman:
Excellent characterization, but the story suffers from its opacity.
Belsen Express, by Fritz Leiber:
Effective and disturbing. The main character doesn't seem to really deserve his fate, and I can't decide if that helps or hurts the story.
Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper, by Robert Bloch:
Obvious, obvious, obvious.
If Damon Comes, by Charles L Grant:
Not bad. Presents a believable picture of domestic strife. Also, kids can be really creepy.
Vandy, Vandy, by Manly Wade Wellman:
I can't quite get the hang of Wellman, even though his Appalachia horror should be right up my alley. Feels a little too much like romanticizing poverty to me, I guess.
Stray thoughts and observations:
This collection seems miss named to me. Many of these stories don't really deal with evil in any particular way. The King story that opens the collection especially seems misplaced.
19 stories, and only 3 are by women. I know this is an older collection, but come the fuck on. At least they included Shirley Jackson. Ellen Datlow has almost certainly put together something better than this, and I'll find it if I can.
The Reach, by Stephen King:
Hardly a horror story at all. Instead, this is a melancholy ghost story about an old woman who has never left the island she was born on.
Evening Primrose, by John Collier:
Satirical, almost humorous horror about a poet who decides to withdraw from the world and live secretly in a department store. Unfortunately, he's not the first to think of doing so.
The Ash Tree, by M.R. James:
Some great atmospheric detail in this story about the consequences of a witch's execution in the late 17th century.
The New Mother, by Lucy Clifford:
One of those weird Victorian morality tales for kids. Think of the Scissor Man who comes to chop off the thumbs of kids who suck theirs. Doesn't even attempt any logical consistency, but has some creepy moments.
There's a Long, Long Trail A-Winding, by Russell Kirk:
Like the King story, this isn't really horror. It's more of a dark fantasy, with some time travel elements and a wide streak of Christianity.
The Call of Cthulhu, by H.P. Lovecraft:
The well spring from which the deluge of current cosmic horror fiction flows. Holds up pretty well, despite Lovecraft's weird usages, like referring to a man as "a nautical-looking negro," as if that's a thing. I'll again plug Tor.com's Lovecraft reread, because it's the best.
http://www.tor.com/2014/10/21/the-mos...
The Summer People, by Shirley Jackson:
Not as iconic as "The Lottery," and not as overtly horror, but still a great little piece of domestic creepiness.
The Whimper of Whipped Dogs, by Harlan Ellison:
A chilling exploration of the horrors of anonymous city life, even if the even that inspired it (the Kitty Genovese murder, and the narrative that dozens of people watched and did nothing) has been mostly debunked.
Young Goodman Brown, by Nathaniel Hawthorne:
If you're walking through the woods with the actual devil, maybe don't be such a goody two shoes about other people doing the same?
Kate Beaton says it better than I ever could:
http://www.harkavagrant.com/index.php...
Mr. Justice Harbottle, by J. Sheridan Le Fanu:
Overly long, and the conceit of being stories told by someone familiar with the events falls apart on close scrutiny. Still, has some very creepy moments.
The Crowd, by Ray Bradbury:
Oh look! A Bradbury story I hadn't read before. A nice little bit of effective urban horror.
The Autopsy, by Michael Shea:
Possibly the best true horror in the collection. Weird and gruesome and unexpected.
John Charrington's Wedding, by E. Nesbit:
Didn't really work for me, and the ending felt a little obvious.
Sticks, by Karl Edward Wagner:
Not bad. Gave me Blair Witch vibes.
Larger than Oneself, by Robert Aickman:
Excellent characterization, but the story suffers from its opacity.
Belsen Express, by Fritz Leiber:
Effective and disturbing. The main character doesn't seem to really deserve his fate, and I can't decide if that helps or hurts the story.
Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper, by Robert Bloch:
Obvious, obvious, obvious.
If Damon Comes, by Charles L Grant:
Not bad. Presents a believable picture of domestic strife. Also, kids can be really creepy.
Vandy, Vandy, by Manly Wade Wellman:
I can't quite get the hang of Wellman, even though his Appalachia horror should be right up my alley. Feels a little too much like romanticizing poverty to me, I guess.
Stray thoughts and observations:
This collection seems miss named to me. Many of these stories don't really deal with evil in any particular way. The King story that opens the collection especially seems misplaced.
19 stories, and only 3 are by women. I know this is an older collection, but come the fuck on. At least they included Shirley Jackson. Ellen Datlow has almost certainly put together something better than this, and I'll find it if I can.
May 24, 2017
It's always so hard to rate a book of short stories, especially one like this where some are so good and some are so...well, not. It took me about a week to work my way through it, and while I enjoyed the majority of them, there were definitely a few where I just skipped to the end to see how things turned out because I was Bored (ahem, Sticks). There were also a few where I still don't really understand what happened (The Summer People).
By and large, though, I really enjoyed this set of short stories! It was nice to come back to a few old favourites, and see some new-to-me stories by authors I've enjoyed before.
If you like horror in general and the big names in particular, this is a book worth checking out--I definitely think the good stories outweighed the bad. I would have liked to see more names I hadn't seen before; for me, the best part of picking up an anthology like this is the chance to find some new authors I might not have read otherwise. But I see how the editor was weaving through big-name authors, influential authors, and I really enjoyed his analysis of same, so I'm not letting that personal quirk affect my rating.
By and large, though, I really enjoyed this set of short stories! It was nice to come back to a few old favourites, and see some new-to-me stories by authors I've enjoyed before.
If you like horror in general and the big names in particular, this is a book worth checking out--I definitely think the good stories outweighed the bad. I would have liked to see more names I hadn't seen before; for me, the best part of picking up an anthology like this is the chance to find some new authors I might not have read otherwise. But I see how the editor was weaving through big-name authors, influential authors, and I really enjoyed his analysis of same, so I'm not letting that personal quirk affect my rating.
November 22, 2018
I enjoyed this more than the anthology of Science Fiction and Fantasy stories that I just read.
There was still a little bit too much of the supernatural for me. I guess I prefer the more
down to earth, realistic horror.
My favorites were The Summer People by Shirley Jackson, Evening Primrose by John Collier,
and The New Mother by Lucy Clifford. Shirley Jackson is the master of creating horror out of
the mundane. Evening Primrose created an eerie world in the big department stores after
closing. The New Mother definitely dips into the supernatural, but the gradual and
inevitable march of the children toward the dire ending was captivating. It was surprising
that this story was written by a woman in the Victorian 1880's.
There were other stories that were certainly imaginative and horrifying. Some quite
disgusting as well.
There was still a little bit too much of the supernatural for me. I guess I prefer the more
down to earth, realistic horror.
My favorites were The Summer People by Shirley Jackson, Evening Primrose by John Collier,
and The New Mother by Lucy Clifford. Shirley Jackson is the master of creating horror out of
the mundane. Evening Primrose created an eerie world in the big department stores after
closing. The New Mother definitely dips into the supernatural, but the gradual and
inevitable march of the children toward the dire ending was captivating. It was surprising
that this story was written by a woman in the Victorian 1880's.
There were other stories that were certainly imaginative and horrifying. Some quite
disgusting as well.
January 8, 2024
Only read "Sticks" by Karl Edward Wagner.
Found a list on reddit of people's favorite short stories in horror and a few listed this one. It was a good read, start was super spooky and the location is about an hour away from me. I stopped reading it late at night because it was creeping me out and finished it when the sun was up.
The middle to end were a lot less frightening, and I had to re-read some parts because the wording messed me up, so I was taken out of the story. Creepy stick formations in the Adirondack woods is a great premise, though. Would recommend, but don't expect anything life-altering.
Found a list on reddit of people's favorite short stories in horror and a few listed this one. It was a good read, start was super spooky and the location is about an hour away from me. I stopped reading it late at night because it was creeping me out and finished it when the sun was up.
The middle to end were a lot less frightening, and I had to re-read some parts because the wording messed me up, so I was taken out of the story. Creepy stick formations in the Adirondack woods is a great premise, though. Would recommend, but don't expect anything life-altering.
October 25, 2018
A great anthology for October! Especially if you’re like me, in a reading slump where you can’t get through any long-format books.
As always, Ray Bradbury and Stephen King’s short stories were my favourites, along with Karl Edward Wagner’s Sticks and Manly Wade Wellman’s Vady, Vady.
There were a couple I skipped mid-way (Young Goodman Brown and The Autopsy) due to them being slow burners, and I found their writing styles felt disjointed from the flow of the others. All in all, very good read.
As always, Ray Bradbury and Stephen King’s short stories were my favourites, along with Karl Edward Wagner’s Sticks and Manly Wade Wellman’s Vady, Vady.
There were a couple I skipped mid-way (Young Goodman Brown and The Autopsy) due to them being slow burners, and I found their writing styles felt disjointed from the flow of the others. All in all, very good read.
August 10, 2017
I don't usually read horror so when I picked this up (for some reason I still don't understand) I was expecting to be scared. I wasn't scared. Of all the stories that I read, only two were interesting but even those were disappointing. One was predictable and the ending was HORRIBLE while the other wasn't HORROR. 'THE COLOUR OF EVIL' sounds like it will be scary and ABOUT evilness but in reality it wasn't. I'm not finishing these stories.
March 11, 2019
impossible to go wrong with this anthology... a who's who of incredibly talented writers, spanning a century or so of horror and terror... not a bad one in the bunch, and each author has their own way of unsettling the reader... might be harder to find now, and many of these authors have their entry collected elsewhere, but it is worth a grab if you can find it... serious quality front to back...
April 14, 2025
Largely superb collection of stories, including a few classics from Kirk, Jackson, Ellison, Shea, and Wellman, and generally decent tales from almost everyone else—only marred by a couple of entries included to make up Hartwell's supposed 'history of horror', but otherwise negligible.
June 24, 2021
Шикарна збірка! Одна з найкращих збірок оповідань, яку я читала. Відкрила для себе безліч нових цікавих авторів/авторок.
January 28, 2024
Це дуже цікава та захоплива збірка. Мені вона дуже сподобалась.
May 18, 2024
Most of these classic stories are very good. Unlike other compilations, the stories that aren't top tier are still very much worth reading. Recommended. 88/100
July 24, 2011
I confess, I approached this collection with a skeptical eye. In my mind, the horror genre is composed of slashers and gore and torture porn--disgusting descriptions that repulse the discriminating reader while scintillating the low-brow Philistine who wants nothing more than to leer eagerly at ever more graphic tales of death and dismemberment. It seems I may have been mistaken. Certainly, every genre has its slums--after all, libraries are full of terrible science fiction, lurid overwrought romances, trite fantasy, and stultifying mysteries. However, it turns out that horror, at its best, is not all that far removed from more "respectable" genres. Indeed, many of the stories in this volume could easily be classified as science fiction or fantasy--and many science fiction stories are sufficiently spine-tingling to warrant inclusion in a horror anthology.
The editor argues that horror is a genre best expressed in short stories. I am no expert, and I've read few if any full length horror novels, but I will agree that these short stories are, by and large, quite good. As with any anthology, there are weaker entries--to my mind, "Mr. Justice Harbottle," "John Charrington's Wedding," and "Larger Than Oneself" were rather underwhelming--but the majority are quite solid, and several are excellent (most notably "The New Mother," "There's a Long, Long Trail A-Winding," "The Call of Cthulhu," "The Summer People," and "The Autopsy").
This was also my first foray into the world of Lovecraft, and I was not disappointed. I look forward to many Lovecraftian reading adventures in the future.
Though I still lack the stomach, or the enjoyment of raw terror, to be a true horror fan, I confess I am eager to read the rest of the collection. And I may be a little slower to turn my nose up at "lesser" genres in the future.
The editor argues that horror is a genre best expressed in short stories. I am no expert, and I've read few if any full length horror novels, but I will agree that these short stories are, by and large, quite good. As with any anthology, there are weaker entries--to my mind, "Mr. Justice Harbottle," "John Charrington's Wedding," and "Larger Than Oneself" were rather underwhelming--but the majority are quite solid, and several are excellent (most notably "The New Mother," "There's a Long, Long Trail A-Winding," "The Call of Cthulhu," "The Summer People," and "The Autopsy").
This was also my first foray into the world of Lovecraft, and I was not disappointed. I look forward to many Lovecraftian reading adventures in the future.
Though I still lack the stomach, or the enjoyment of raw terror, to be a true horror fan, I confess I am eager to read the rest of the collection. And I may be a little slower to turn my nose up at "lesser" genres in the future.
Read
August 12, 2016An old anthology, but it has some stories / writers that I've been meaning to read for a while and are out of print or a bit difficult to find elsewhere (namely John Collier, Lucy Clifford and Karl Edward Wagner). All three of their inclusions were worth the read, particularly Wagner's "Sticks"--I was looking at a poll of people's favorite horror stories of all time recently and I see why this one gets mentioned so often. It reminds me of the darker stuff in Neil Gaiman's Sandman, and I love the way it compresses time without letting the story drag at all. I had nightmares about this after reading, in which the narrator's illustrations came to life like horrific Hogwarts-style portraits.
The first half of the book has a lot of stories I'd already read, but the arrangement brought out some interesting juxtapositions, particularly the transition from the dreary, all-too-earnest hysteria of Lovecraft to the understated, creeping anxiety of Shirley Jackson. Jackson's story here, "The Summer People," is one of my favorites, and is deliciously brief and effective.
There is a good variety of styles, and not just strict-definition horror either. Stephen King's "The Reach" is an excellent example, drawing on ghost story tropes to tell a beautiful end-of-life tale thoroughly grounded in reality and a strong sense of place.
There's a lot of writers represented here whose work I love, mainly Shirley Jackson, Ray Bradbury and M.R. James, and while this isn't necessarily the best introduction to their work, this is worth picking up for the aforementioned Collier and Wagner stories, which are a bit hard to find anywhere else.
The first half of the book has a lot of stories I'd already read, but the arrangement brought out some interesting juxtapositions, particularly the transition from the dreary, all-too-earnest hysteria of Lovecraft to the understated, creeping anxiety of Shirley Jackson. Jackson's story here, "The Summer People," is one of my favorites, and is deliciously brief and effective.
There is a good variety of styles, and not just strict-definition horror either. Stephen King's "The Reach" is an excellent example, drawing on ghost story tropes to tell a beautiful end-of-life tale thoroughly grounded in reality and a strong sense of place.
There's a lot of writers represented here whose work I love, mainly Shirley Jackson, Ray Bradbury and M.R. James, and while this isn't necessarily the best introduction to their work, this is worth picking up for the aforementioned Collier and Wagner stories, which are a bit hard to find anywhere else.
Want to read
June 30, 2012What an amazing anthology. Literally a textbook demonstrating the evolution of horror fiction; it is a great introduction to the genera and many authors whom you might not otherwise hear of. Stephen King is in evidence here, Clive Barker and Shirley Jackson (LOVE Shirley Jackson) but so are too many others not so well known. These were the architects of the genera, pulp authors of mostly short fiction. The editor's introspection (and the thesis for the collection) is an interesting meditation on the crucial significance of the (now diminishing) short story form to the development of horror fiction over the last hundred fifty ish years.
6/28/2012, ready Vandy, Vandy but Manly Wade Wellman (seriously, that's his name) and can't wait to read more by the man. What a splendid tale. It features a hero drawn from and among Appalachian folk stories and songs so the anthropology of it alone is wonderful. A friend rightly critiqued that the resolution of this tale was sudden, maybe over simplified, but that that's in keeping with the folktale origins. I agree. Ditto the public domain The Golgotha Dancers which I read this morning. Brilliant conceit vapid resolution. Still totally worth it for the idea of the thing.
6/28/2012, ready Vandy, Vandy but Manly Wade Wellman (seriously, that's his name) and can't wait to read more by the man. What a splendid tale. It features a hero drawn from and among Appalachian folk stories and songs so the anthropology of it alone is wonderful. A friend rightly critiqued that the resolution of this tale was sudden, maybe over simplified, but that that's in keeping with the folktale origins. I agree. Ditto the public domain The Golgotha Dancers which I read this morning. Brilliant conceit vapid resolution. Still totally worth it for the idea of the thing.
June 15, 2013
Excellent mix of old and newer horror stories.
June 15, 2007
A collection of short horror stories from such aurthors as H.P. Lovecraft and Stephen King.
Read
August 22, 2008The Color of Evil (Dark Descent) by David G. Hartwell (1991)
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