DieFledermaus starts reading again in 2022

Hi, I’m Stephanie. I was active in Club Read on and off from 2012 to 2017 or so but then had an extended slump due to work (I am currently working as an academic editor reading scientific papers all day), health issues and everything in general from late 2016 through 2020. That period wasn’t all bad–I spent a lot of time with friends and family, did some traveling, and now have a 3.5-year-old nephew (and I’ll have a little niece in January).

In previous years, Club Read strongly impacted my reading, adding to the wishlist, bookpile, and books read, and I’m sure that will happen again this year. I usually read literary fiction, classics, translated works and experimental literature. This year, I have a few projects that are ongoing (described below), and I plan to participate in various group/theme reads around LT.

I also love opera, and I’ll try to review the ones I watch, although I haven’t been to a live performance for a long time.

Reading plan

This year, I have several reading projects and I plan to participate in some from Club Read and other places:

1.) Gothic literature/ghost stories: I’ve always had an interest in the older Gothic period (Otranto to Melmoth, or late 18th century to 1820s or so) and have even had Gothic binges in the past (last one in late 2014).

There are a couple areas of interest for this project: works for the older period (possibly Jane Austen’s horrid novels or Minerva press works, but not going to be too restrictive, available - The Castle of Wolfenbach, Horrid Mysteries, The Orphan of the Rhine, and The Necromancer; Ethelwina, The New Monk, Swedish Mysteries) and Victorian/Edwardian ghost/supernatural stories by women (currently have stories by Edith Wharton, Edna Underwood, May Sinclair, Emma Frances Dawson, Eleanor Scott, Vernon Lee, Amelia B. Edwards, ME Braddon, HD Everett, Louisa Baldwin/Lettice Galbraith, LT Meade, Katharine Tynan, Rosa Mulholland, BM Croker, Clotilde Graves, Dorothy Macardle).

If possible, I’d like to read some classics for this genre that I haven’t gotten around to –Nightmare Abbey by Thomas Love Peacock (have a couple other Gothic parodies–The New Monk, Love and Horror, The Heroine and The Hero or the Adventures of a Night), Uncle Silas by Sheridan Le Fanu, and Against Nature by JK Huysmans (I’m including decadent works as well). Some of this project is possible due to various small presses–Valancourt Books, Swan River Press, Snuggly Books, Tartarus Press, Wakefield Press, Ash Tree Press (ebooks only).

2.) Early/mid-20th century crime novels by women - This was inspired by a few things - Dorothy B. Hughes 'backlist becoming available, a couple publishers (Feminist Press’s Femme Fatales series, Penzler Publishers/Mysterious Press), and recommendations by Sarah Weinman (picking up books she included in anthologies, probably her short story anthology). On the pile - Bunny Lake is Missing, By Cecile - Tereska Torres, multiple books by Hughes and Charlotte Armstrong. Possible reads: the horizontal man - helen eustis, elisabeth sanxay holding, margaret millar, dolores hitchens, the lodger - marie belloc, celia fremlin - hours before dawn, dorothy salisbury davis, leigh brackett - no good from a corpse, holly roth, helen nielsen, sin soracco, mildred b davis, anita boutell. Also should get around to Dorothy Sayers, Margery Allingham, others? British library crime series - library

3.) Books by authors in my library (1 or 2) - Sometimes I’ll love a book by an author and plan to read more of their works but then never get around to it. I’m hoping to be more deliberate about seeking out more works by authors in my library with only 1 or 2 books. Started last year: Zoran Zivkovic- i read Time Gifts and Hidden Camera (I have Step Through the Mists but it is in the boxes or ?) so ordered The Library, Seven Touches of Music and The Last Book; have read the former two.

4.) Works by Lithuanian authors?

5.) Victorian literature - I’m planning to participate in the Club Read year long project. Will probably be using books from 1.) for this one. Will also participate in the group read of David Copperfield.

6.) Hope to read soon - books from Rebeccanyc’s list -

I have read these books from Rebecca's list

Agus, Milena. From the Land of the Moon
Aira, César. How I Became a Nun
Anonymous. Beowulf : a new verse translation
Basara, Svetislav. The Cyclist Conspiracy
Bulgakov, Mikhail. Heart of a Dog
Calvino, Italo. Cosmicomics
Camus, Albert. The Stranger
Čapek, Karel. Tales from Two Pockets
Carter, Angela. Nights at the Circus
Castellanos Moya, Horacio. Senselessness
Denon, Vivant. No Tomorrow
Déry, Tibor. Niki: The Story of a Dog
Duras, Marguerite. The Lover
Emecheta, Buchi. The Joys of Motherhood
Flaubert, Gustave. Madame Bovary
Gogol, Nikolai. Dead Souls
Gogol, Nikolai. Taras Bulba
Goncharov, Ivan Alexandrovich. Oblomov
Gotthelf, Jeremias. The Black Spider
Gruša, Jiří. The Questionnaire, or Prayer for a Town & a Friend
Grushin, Olga. The Dream Life of Sukhanov
Hardy, Thomas. Far from the Madding Crowd
Hrabal, Bohumil. I Served the King of England
Kiš, Danilo. The Encyclopedia of the Dead
Konwicki, Tadeusz. The Polish Complex
Kpomassie, Tété-Michel. An African in Greenland
Krzhizhanovsky, Sigizmund. Memories of the Future
Lakhous, Amara. Clash of Civilizations Over an Elevator in Piazza Vittorio
Lampedusa, Giuseppe Di. The Leopard
Malcolm, Janet. In the Freud Archives
Marai, Sandor. Embers
Marías, Javier. Tomorrow in the Battle Think on Me
Pears, Iain. An Instance of the Fingerpost
Perutz, Leo. Leonardo's Judas
Perutz, Leo. The Master of the Day of Judgment
Prus, Bolesław. The Doll
Queirós, Eça de. The City and the Mountains
Ross, Alex. The Rest Is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century
Saramago, José. Death with Interruptions
Schulz, Bruno. The Street of Crocodiles and Other Stories
Sciascia, Leonardo. The Moro Affair; and The Mystery of Majorana
Selimović, Meša. Death and the Dervish
Skloot, Rebecca. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
Škvorecký, Josef. The Engineer of Human Souls
Solzhenitsyn, Alexander. One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich
Stone, Robert. Damascus Gate
Szerb, Antal. The Third Tower
Taylor, Elizabeth. A Game of Hide and Seek
Teffi. Subtly Worded and Other Stories
Thackeray, William Makepeace. Vanity Fair: A Novel without a Hero
Tokarczuk, Olga. House of Day, House of Night
Undset, Sigrid. Marta Oulie: A Novel of Betrayal
von Rezzori, Gregor. Memoirs of an Anti-Semite
Watson, Winifred. Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day
Wharton, Edith. The Age of Innocence
Wharton, Edith. The House of Mirth
Wharton, Edith. The New York Stories of Edith Wharton
Zweig, Stefan. Confusion: The Private Papers of Privy Councillor R. von D.
Zweig, Stefan. Fear
Zweig, Stefan. Selected Stories

and have several on the pile:

Bely, Andrey. Petersburg
Buzzati, Dino. The Tartar Steppe
Cabrera Infante, G.. Three Trapped Tigers
de Loyola Brandão, Ignácio. Zero
del Paso, Fernando. Palinuro of Mexico
Ferrante, Elena. My Brilliant Friend
Galeano, Eduardo. Memory of Fire: Genesis
Gombrowicz, Witold. Ferdydurke
Gospodinov, Georgi. The Physics of Sorrow
Hašek, Jaroslav. The Good Soldier Švejk: and his fortunes in the world war
Kiš, Danilo. The Attic
Kiš, Danilo. The Lute and the Scars
(Leskov - I have a different collection of stories, not sure if they are all the same; this is the NYRB version Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk : selected stories of Nikolai Leskov)
Lind, Jakov. Soul of Wood
Ouředník, Patrik. Europeana: A Brief History of the Twentieth Century
Pavić, Milorad. Dictionary of the Khazars (F): a lexicon novel in 100,000 words
Radiguet, Raymond. The Devil in the Flesh
Roa Bastos, Augusto Antonio. I, the Supreme
Shalamov, Varlam. Kolyma Tales
Szewc, Piotr. Annihilation
Vaculík, Ludvík. The Guinea Pigs
Voĭnovich, Vladimir. The Life & Extraordinary Adventures of Private Ivan Chonkin
Warner, Sylvia Townsend. Summer Will Show
Williams, John. Stoner

some that are readily available are The Physics of Sorrow by Georgi Gospodinov, My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante, Ferdyduke by Witold Gombrowicz, the possible Leskov stories, Europeana by Patrik Ourednik, Kolyma Tales by Varlam Shalamov, and Summer Will Show by Silvia Townsend Warner. Possible purchases - The Slave Girl - Ivo Andric, Hordubal - Capek, Selected Writings - Dario,

7.) Asia challenge - January - Turkey - possible choices Madonna in a Fur Coat, something by Elif Shafak

8.) Reading Globally - Around the Indian Ocean - possibly Tropic of Violence by Nathacha Appanah (also for 3)

Books read

January

1.) The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith
2.) Dear Dead Women - Edna Underwood
3.) The Physics of Sorrow - Georgi Gospodinov
4.) Randalls Round - Eleanor Scott
5.) Not to be Taken at Bedtime and Other Strange Stories - Rosa Mulholland
6.) Studies of Death - Eric Stenbock
7.) Nervous Conditions - Tsitsi Dangarembga
8.) The Ghost Stories of Edith Wharton
9.) Eyes of Terror and Other Dark Adventures - LT Meade
10.) A Useless Man: Selected Stories - Sait Faik Abasiyanik

February

11.) Number Ninety and Other Stories - BM Croker
12.) Bunny Lake is Missing - Evelyn Piper
13.) The Hero or Adventures of a Night - Bellin de la Liborliere
14.) People Love Dead Jews - Dara Horn

March

15.) Free Day - Ines Cagnati
16.) The Red Lamp - Mary Roberts Rinehart

April

17.) David Copperfield - Charles Dickens
18.) The Shadow on the Blind and Other Stories - Louisa Baldwin, Lettice Galbraith
19.) Seasons of Purgatory - Shahriar Mandanipour
20.) The Law and the Lady - Wilkie Collins
21.) The Death Spancel and Other Stories - Katharine Tynan
22.) The Lake of the Dead - Andre Bjerke
23.) The Outcast Spirit and Other Storie - Emilia Francis Strong Dilke
24.) A Gossip's Story - Jane West

May

25.) The Double Star and Other Occult Fantasies - Jane de la Vaudere
26.) French Decadent Tales - ed. Stephen Romer
27.) The Ghost-Seer by Friedrich Schiller
28.) Europeana by Patrik Ourednik
29.) The Cold Embrace and Other Ghost Stories by Mary Elizabeth Braddon
30.) Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado

More books read

List of theme reads

1.) Gothic literature/ghost stories
1.) Dear Dead Women - Edna Underwood
2.) Randalls Round - Eleanor Scott
3.) Not to be taken at Bedtime and Other Strange Stories - Rosa Mulholland
4.) Studies of Death - Eric Stenbock

2.) Early/mid-20th century crime novels by women
1.) The Talented Mr. Ripley - Patricia Highsmith

3.) Books by author with 1 or 2 works in my library
1.) The Talented Mr. Ripley - Patricia Highsmith
2.) The Physics of Sorrow - Georgi Gospodinov

5.) Victorian literature
1.) Not to be taken at Bedtime and Other Strange Stories - Rosa Mulholland
2.) Studies of Death - Eric Stenbock

6.) Hope to read soon - Rebecca's TBR list
1.) The Physics of Sorrow - Georgi Gospodinov

More lists

Other stuff?

Happy New Year, Stephanie! Looking forward to following your reading in 2022.

Some very interesting reading plans here! I will be following along, and most likely my TBR and WL will suffer immensely. I'm so glad you decided to join us again.

>8 AlisonY:, 9 - Thanks Alison and Deborah! Good to see you both here.

>2 DieFledermaus: whoa. Lots of stuff here.

Nice to you here. Glad you are in a good place and glad you have a thread to follow.

I technically finished this one on 12/31/21 but will post the review here.

Bending to Earth: Strange Stories by Irish Women, Eds. Maria Giakaniki and Brian J. Showers



This is a very good anthology of supernatural stories by Irish women. They were mostly written from the mid-1800s to the early 20th century and have a range of styles and supernatural elements. The introduction was also helpful and could actually be read before reading the stories (many intros have spoilers to the point where in general I avoid them until I finish the book).

“The Dark Lady” by Anna Maria Hall, published in 1847, is a great example of a Gothic tale–it crammed piles of Gothic tropes into one story and had a few interesting differences. There’s the continental setting, the narrator rhapsodizing about nature, the young virtuous lovers kept apart by her tyrannical guardian, a castle and ruined chapel, storms reflecting the dramatic events, and of course a ghost. Here, the ghost is actually real and seems like a benevolent guardian instead of an evil presence.

“The Child’s Dream” has a sunny fairy-tale-like atmosphere despite the sadness. This one is by Lady Wilde, a poet and folklorist who hosted a well-known literary salon, although she is probably mostly remembered today for being the mother of Oscar Wilde.

“The Unquiet Dead” is different from all the other stories–it’s an excerpt from Lady Gregory’s work collecting first-person accounts of encounters with the uncanny. There are many short descriptions of ghostly meetings, and the piece has an authentic, if sometimes monotonous, feel. Most of the encounters are someone coming back from the dead or with unfinished business, but there are a couple creepily memorable ones.

Much like “The Dark Lady” is a classic Gothic story, “The Woman with the Hood”, by L.T. Meade, is a classic Victorian ghost story. There’s a haunted manor, a sickly girl and a skeptical outsider, the narrator, Dr. Bruce, who has just arrived in the country. Although the haunting is perhaps nothing new and the ending is expected, the story develops in a suspenseful and has a nicely creepy feel. There’s enough left unexplained to leave the reader wondering after finishing this one.

“The Wee Gray Woman” by Ethna Carbery and “The First Wife” by Katharine Tynan are both short and sad stories where the ghost is not malevolent but a reminder of the past. These ones also have nicely detailed settings–the lonely, rural countryside in the former and an isolated island in the latter.

I enjoyed most of the stories and would be interested in reading more by the authors, but there were two that didn’t work for me. There were obvious issues noted even in the introduction for “The Blanket Fiend” by Beatrice Grimshaw - racism and sexism. This one is more of an adventure story, as the narrator seeks out a river monster and encounters superstitious, violent natives. These issues are probably representative of the period covered by the book, but I also thought that the story lacked suspense and there was too much of the narrator’s irritating thoughts. In “Transmigration”, by Dora Sigerson Shorter, a dissolute man finds himself in the body of his generous and kindly neighbor. He wished for a clean slate but continues with his immoral ways after the switch. This one felt too abrupt and unbelievable, not due to the body switching but to the actions of the characters.

Rosa Mulholland’s “Not to be Taken at Bedtime” is also one with a heavy emphasis on the Irish elements. The story is structured as something of a folktale, describing Coll Dhu, a dour and isolated man living alone in the mountains, who has become something of a boogeyman to the locals. He has a grudge against the newly arrived lord of the manor, Colonel Blake, but soon becomes obsessed with the man’s daughter.

“The Red Woollen Necktie” (B.M. Croker) is a short shocker about a girl who has a violent prophetic dream.

“The De Grabrooke Monument” is by Charlotte Riddell (Mrs. J.H. Riddell, as she is sometimes known), the only author I had heard about before I saw this collection. It’s a solid story about a haunted cathedral and family secrets, which are revealed when the narrator, a young girl, finds herself trapped overnight in said cathedral. The story is also notable because this is the first reprinting since it was originally published in 1879.

The last one is “A Vanished Hand” by Clotilde Graves, about a man who has made his long-ago dead love a key part of his personality but finds that the memory doesn’t always live up to reality.

Recommended for anyone interested in this topic.

>11 dchaikin: - Hi, Dan--thanks for stopping by. I have a good number of projects (most of them from LT), but I'm definitely not as organized as you!

>12 DieFledermaus: I'm intrigued the anthology goes so far back, and has a story by Oscar Wilde's mother. Sounds like a fun collection.

(>13 DieFledermaus: that is probably a good thing)

Hello Stephanie, I'm glad you've returned to share what you're reading!

>2 DieFledermaus: Are you familiar with the British Library Crime Classics? They may not all be the right period and not that many are written by women, but the covers are lovely!

I really like your reading plan for this year and will be following it with interest. It's so good to see you back here!

>2 DieFledermaus: An interesting set of reading projects - I’ll be particularly interested on following your reading in the first two. On the early/mid C20 crime novels by women, are you aware of the Shedunnit podcast? It focuses on that whole area and has introduced me to some interesting writers and ideas.

Stephanie, you've caught me with your first review. Last year I participated in a group discussion of Irish literature that included some works by Lady Gregory and Katharine Tynan. Women writers from that period are interesting to me, so I'll look for this anthology.

Happy New Year, Stephanie. I'll be following your thread.

>12 DieFledermaus: I have not heard of any of those female authors, I suppose that most of them would fit into our Victorian reading thread/project.

>12 DieFledermaus: I generally don't care for the supernatural, but this one sounds intriguing. A few years ago I read The Ghost Stories of Edith Wharton, not expecting to like it, and I loved it.

Welcome back, Stephanie!

>14 dchaikin: - Your comment made me realize that it is a little strange that the anthology stops before the mid-20th century. The publisher (Swan River Press) does have a focus on the older period, but they have also stuff by contemporary authors. In most horror/ghost story anthologies that I've seen, there are a few stories from the older Victorian/Edwardian period, with most by mid-20th century or contemporary authors (unless there is a very specific focus like Victorian Christmas ghost stories or something).

>15 ELiz_M: - I haven't encountered that series--thanks for the link! The British Library has a supernatural series, and I'm considering a few books from that one, but I was unfamiliar with this line. I saw a couple women writers after a quick perusal. The covers are very nice! I can picture a display with them in a bookstore. I'll have to take a closer look.

>16 SassyLassy: - Thanks, I'm glad to be back and interacting with everyone again!

>17 wandering_star: - I haven't heard of that one, but it is definitely relevant and they have transcripts. I'll check it out--thanks! (I know a few people who are really into podcasts, but I'm not very knowledgeable about them and am only familiar with a couple opera-related ones and some of the murder ones. Can't listen to them or audiobooks because I tune things out and would miss large chunks of content.)

>18 Linda92007: - That sounds really interesting, Linda! I remember enjoying your posts on the different courses that you took--will you be doing that again this year?

>19 Trifolia: - Thanks, Monica--glad to see you here!

>20 baswood: - I hadn't either (except for Charlotte Riddell) before I found this book. The publisher also has short stories by some of these women, and I have those as well--I'll probably post about them in the Victorian tavern after I finish the books. I agree, they would fit into that thread--the only reason I didn't post there is that I technically finished this book last year.

>21 arubabookwoman: - I'm actually reading that one right now (the Wordsworth edition), and I agree with your comments on the book page--her writing is so wonderful that I imagine I'll enjoy all the stories even if the twists are expected or the supernatural element falls flat. Also, were you confused by "The Lady's Maid's Bell"? I read that one twice and then went looking on the internet for what other people thought.

For your comment on Rebecca's list - the library has A Useless Man: Selected Stories by Sait Faik Abasiyanik. I'll try to read it this month--adding a link as a reminder.

>22 kidzdoc: - Thanks, Darryl!

This one is a mid-20th c. crime novel by a woman and also fits "books by authors in my library with 1/2 books" - the other one I read was Strangers on a Train

The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith



A tense and twisty thriller about a seemingly ordinary psychopath. Patricia Highsmith immediately lets the reader know that Tom Ripley, a insignificant man barely making ends meet and sponging off his “friends”, is up to no good. He’s paranoid about being followed, and his paranoia is somewhat justified as he is running a minor scam. He doesn’t even make any money–the thrill of successfully pulling off a con seems to be motivation enough. He lucks into an even better opportunity, as wealthy businessman Mr. Greenleaf sends him on an all-expenses paid trip to Europe to convince his son, Dickie, to come back to America. Because of the well-known movie, the way the plot unspools is probably known–Tom becomes obsessed with Dickie and his easy life in Italy, but when his new happiness is threatened, he goes to extreme lengths to protect it.

I never fully sympathized with Tom–honestly not because he’s a sociopathic murderer but because he’s so petty and judgmental. Still, he was fun to read about, as he continually gets into risky situations but manages to avoid detection. Also, weirdly enough, if you put aside the murdering and crimes, Tom seems like he could be the protagonist of a contemporary novel–the awkward underdog who might have a happier ending or continually be subjected to ordinary misery. He’s uncomfortable around the wealthy and confident but can sometimes put on a good show, which tires him out. He is frequently shown as the awestruck tourist–always wanting to go on trips, excited over books and art, and worrying about whether something is too “touristy”. His sadness and hurt over covert rejection can be sympathetic, although he tends to react in boundary-breaking and highly emotional ways (in addition to the murdering). There is also the fact that his character is coded as gay–it’s directly mentioned, and although Tom denies it, the issue is a major wedge between Dickie and his friends. There are enough clues to conclude that Dickie is also gay, which could partially explain his rejection of Tom. However, although this could suggest that Tom is an example of the “evil gay/bisexual” stereotype, he has plenty of reasons for his actions: class is an ever-present issue, he had an unhappy childhood growing up with his unpleasant aunt and he seems to be misanthropic in general. The ending was great, as HIghsmith has a number of tropes and set-ups that usually go one way but end up in a different place here. A definite page turner–I’ll be looking for further Ripley books.

>24 DieFledermaus: Someone else read this quite recently in CR (can't remember who), and it's been on my wish list ever since, so great to see another really positive review of it.

Nice review of The Talented Mr Ripley, Stephanie. I'll plan to read it in the near future.

>24 DieFledermaus: I've read all the Ripley books, through the last one Ripley Under Ground. In fact I first discovered Ripley when I checked out Ripley Under Ground from the library and read it, not realizing it was the last of a series. Then I went back and read them in order, and the last one made so much more sense. (Not that it was bad reading it as a stand alone). Highsmith's other books are also worthy reads--quirky crime!

>25 AlisonY: That was me—I read it last fall. I agree, Ripley is kind of a mope even as he successfully scams everyone, and I think that's what makes the book so interesting. You never (or at least I never) entirely hated him or sympathized with him, or even admired him. He was kind of whiney. And at the same time, fascinating in spite of that.

>23 DieFledermaus: and >14 dchaikin:
Possibly copyright related - sounds like all the stories might be in the public domain already…

>25 AlisonY:, >26 kidzdoc: - Alison and Darryl - I would be interested in hearing what you both think about the book. It's a fast read and reasonably short if you need a contrast to something long or depressing.

>27 arubabookwoman: - Oh, that's funny, Deborah! I think I first heard about Patricia Highsmith when the Minghella movie came out so I didn't even realize it was a series until several years later. I ordered the second book and previously read Strangers on a Train--is there something else you would recommend?

>28 lisapeet: - I agree--Tom isn't what you'd expect a sociopathic killer to be--so awkward and petty. He did remind me a bit of some of the sociopaths described in a book on the subject that I read--they just sponged off other people and weren't particular ambitious, in contrast to the hardened criminals and immoral CEO-types that were otherwise described.

>29 AnnieMod: - That makes sense. I thought they might want to showcase some of their current authors, but it's a lot easier to use stories where there's no question about the rights. I didn't even think about that at first since the book covered the period I'm interested in.

Adding a link for an opera - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7G-GHIQBNU&t=21s

This filmed production of Purcell's The Fairy Queen from Glyndebourne will be available until Friday. I haven't seen this one yet so can't comment on it, but it's not a straight adaptation of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream--Purcell composed music for a number of masques set between the scenes.

>23 DieFledermaus: Stephanie, what I posted on before were not actually courses, rather author talks I attended at the NYS Writers Institute held at University at Albany. I haven't attended any in recent years, but if I did I would post on them. The courses I am taking are actually formatted as group discussions, which would be harder to report on, but I will review the books that we read.

>32 Linda92007: - Thanks for the clarification, Linda--I can see how it would be harder to report on group discussions.

LibraryThing and Club Read substantially added to the stacks and wishlist in the past -- seems to be doing that again. I have several books on the way -

David Copperfield - ordered for the Club Read group read

I'll be receiving Seasons of Purgatory, short stories by Shahriar Mandanipour, from Early Reviewers.

I'm checking out a new-to-me small weird/horror press, Hippocampus Press. I ordered 3 books-

Lost Ghosts: The Complete Weird Stories of Mary E. Wilkins Freeman
The Grey Chamber: Stories and Essays by Marjorie Bowen
Dead Houses & Other Works by Edith Miniter

I also have the following books coming:

Ripley Under Ground - Patricia Highsmith - #2 in the Ripley series
Zofloya - Charlotte Dacre - classic Gothic novel
French Decadent Tales - Ed. Stephen Romer - this was from Rebecca's list
Mexican Gothic - Silvia Moreno-Garcia - this one had a ton of positive reviews, on LT and in CR
Her Body and Other Parties - Carmen Maria Machado - ditto
A Beleaguered City and Other Tales of the Seen and Unseen - Margaret Oliphant - Gothic/Victorian stories

There have been a lot of nice book piles and displays around CR, but I probably won't do that--my piles are messy and dangerous looking.

This one was for the project on Gothic/supernatural literature

Dear Dead Women by Edna W. Underwood

This book was such a pleasant surprise. I bought it without knowing much about the author or her work–it was a publisher I was interested in, and this collection of stories fit one of my current projects-supernatural stories by women from the late 19th/early 20th century. In fact, this was Edna W. Underwood’s only collection of stories, although she wrote novels, plays and poetry and later focused on translations. She was a highly accomplished woman–although she had a spotty and nontraditional education, she undertook a course of self-instruction and eventually, with the help of a tutor, mastered 10 languages along with Latin. Originally from Maine, she attended college in Kansas and Michigan and taught for several years but was fired after she refused to stop reading “scandalous” yellow-bound foreign literature. She married and moved to New York and began publishing her works, which generally received favorable reviews. A planned trilogy of historical novels was never completed, and at some point, she decided to focus solely on translations.

I was expecting something with maybe windswept prairies and dark isolated houses with ghosts. But although there was at least one ghost, these stories are all set in Europe and various places farther afield and in different time periods. Underwood has baroquely gorgeous, decadent prose, although she can rein it in, as in “The King”. And the stories would probably be better classified as decadent than supernatural –the supernatural elements are often nonexistent or only a small part of the stories. Underwood creates striking, sumptuous images and frequently juxtaposes the sublimely beautiful with the horrific.

Underwood’s short story collection was published in 1911 and was originally called “A Book of Dear Dead Women”; this collection includes all the stories and one other with a similar feel, “An Orchid of Asia”. The title is certainly appropriate–several of the stories feature a man obsessed with a dead woman and others are tales about long-dead women. The title is particular relevant for the first story, “The Painter of Dead Women”. The narrator, an Englishwoman on her honeymoon with her Italian husband in Naples, notes the disappearance of the Contessa Fabriani, the latest in a long line of young, beautiful upper-class women who have gone missing. You can probably guess what happens next. This story has vivid prose and is surprisingly modern–probably because serial killers with decadent aesthetics and A Philosophy are de rigueur in current media. The supernatural element is present but understated here. A darkly lovely gem.

“The Mirror of La Granja” is another one where a man’s obsession is unhealthy, creepy and leads to despair. This one takes place in late 19th c. Spain (and further back). The narrator, a talented violinist, inherits his uncle’s estate and becomes fixated on the hall of mirrors. One of his ancestors was a mirror maker and believed they had mystical powers. The narrator soon sees a ghostly figure in one of the mirrors and begins an obsessive quest to try to draw the figure out.

“Liszt’s Concerto Pathetique” describes a vision of the narrator upon hearing the title piece about a nun caught between a heaven and hell. This one also features two common motifs in the stories–music and nuns. It might be a little aimless with a dream-like logic but has some nice imagery.

“Sister Seraphine” is a short, tidy tale that lacks the despair and horror of the other stories but has a suitably Gothic concept–a nun is tempted by the outside world. Here, however, she’s not attracted to a man or woman, longing for forbidden pleasures or tempted by demons–she’s temped by herself.

“The Sacred Relics of Saint Euthymius” is a terrific conte cruel–beautifully written with lavish historical details, some unexpected and nasty twists and a backstory for seemingly supernatural events. Elsbeth, born to a wealthy and noble family, is sent to a convent due to a vow her mother made. She’s lonely and unhappy, with only her lute for comfort, but is intrigued when she hears lute music coming from an unknown source.

“The Opal Isles” is another baroquely lovely and cruel piece about a man who first has a harrowing experience after being shipwrecked in the South Seas but then finds himself on an island paradise. He mentions Wagner’s opera Lohengrin at one point, and in some ways, his story parallel’s Elsa’s–he is in a hopeless and dangerous situation, but is rescued by a mysterious and ethereal savior. He makes a vow to be faithful but doubts, causing his own ruin; later, he wanders around searching for love and redemption, much like in The Flying Dutchman.

“The House of Gauze” follows the last days of Mozart. He exists in a dreamworld parallel to his poor life in the real world, which he hopes is the dream. However, in his dream, he is cruel and controlling, avidly pursuing Melodia, the embodiment of music. This one is similar to “Liszt’s Concerto Pathetique” with the somewhat random dream logic, although nicely written.

“The King” is different from the other stories. It’s a sad, hopeless tale about an unwanted, unloved girl raised in an abusive household. Rahel, living in the Hamburg ghetto, is abused by her grandfather, bullied and taunted by the other children due to her background (her runaway mother married a non-Jewish artist) and generally neglected. She finds some pleasure in art, which is forbidden by her family, and finds another obsession when she is sent outside the ghetto to beg.

“An Orchid of Asia” was the only story not published in Underwood’s original collection. Perhaps the dead woman is missing in this one because it’s about a man’s obsession and tortuous affair with an orchid instead. Apparently, Underwood made a study of orchids for this piece and her leisurely descriptions of all kinds of orchids are interesting to read. Jacques d’Entrecolles plans on relocating to an island south of India for his health, and he decides to take up orchid raising. He spends years collecting orchids from around the world–including one that gives off a fragrance that has a strange effect on people–and even then, there are some ominous signs about his relationship with the flowers.

Highly recommended for those interested in supernatural/decadent literature.

>34 DieFledermaus: it’s nice to have you back posting. This is a terrific review of an author I don’t believe I have ever heard of. (Maybe a bit random, but your description of her life makes me wonder what she might have thought of Willa Cather.)

Enjoyed your review of Dear Dead Women. Quick search on Project Gutenberg turned up one of her translations Crimea Sonnets by Adam Mickiewicz. I think I am about to disappear down a rabbit hole.

>35 dchaikin: - Thanks, Dan--yeah, I hadn't heard of her before I found the book on the publisher's website. The introduction mentions that everything we know about her is from one source, a monograph by Carol Wood Craine. It seems like her works were forgotten well before her death in 1961. Not sure about Cather, but before I read the stories, I was probably picturing them as something like Cather + ghosts since Underwood was from Maine and grew up in Kansas.

>36 baswood: - I would be interested in hearing what you think of the translations! Your comment also led me down a bit of a rabbit hole--

There's a scan of the book with other works by Underwood.

https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Author:Edna_Worthley_Underwood

(Short Stories from the Balkans looks interesting.) It seems that the initial book had another story that wasn't included in the collection I read called "One of Napoleon's Loves". This was mentioned in the intro, but I'm assuming they didn't include it because it's a historical story. Unfortunately, in the scan above, that particular story is missing a couple pages, but I found another available edition on Google Books

https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/Nw5CAQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0

I might try to read the story--if I do, I'll report back on it here.

I also need to write reviews for The Physics of Sorrow by Georgi Gospodinov and Randalls Round by Eleanor Scott.

And my copy of David Copperfield came! Will start it this week.

I enjoyed your take on Dear Dead Women--I'll be forced to add it to the towering, teetering TBR.

>38 sallypursell: - Thanks, Sally--I have an ebook of the Tartarus Press version, which is reasonably priced, but the free version is linked above (although with a different story).

This one was for Rebecca's TBR list and also fits "authors in my library with 1/2 books"

The Physics of Sorrow by Georgi Gospodinov



An enjoyable metafictional novel about many things, including the narrator’s grandfather, his own childhood in late Communist-era Bulgaria, and minotaurs. The minotaur and the labyrinth are related to various events and themes of the book, although there are ramblings about many random subjects. Early on in the novel, the narrator (who is named Georgi Gospodinov, along with his grandfather) describes two magic realist elements, which are threaded through the rest of the narrative: as a child, he had the ability to enter someone else’s memories and find all their secrets; when he did this with his grandfather, he learned about an incident when his grandfather saw a minotaur at a fair. The narrator learns other secrets from his family, most notably the time when his grandfather was briefly abandoned at a mill.

From here, the narrator further describes his grandfather’s experiences in the war and his own lonely childhood, but there are all sorts of tangents and random musings and even a whole chapter in defense of the minotaur. The minotaur, he notes, is an abandoned child, which he relates to the mill incident and his own childhood stuck in a basement apartment. The narrator loses his ability to enter memories as he grows older and undertakes various projects in response to this loss–obsessing over time capsules and paying strangers for their stories. He also muses on his friend, the eccentric and ambitious Gaustine, who may be a time traveler.

The early sections, even with all the weirdness, were terrific. His descriptions of growing up in Communist-era Bulgaria are interesting, vivid, funny and sometimes sad. Later on, the narrator describes some of his middle-aged ennui and moving numbly around Europe, which was less interesting. I was also hoping for more stories about his grandfather and his family, and the Gaustine plot sort of petered out. Still, overall, the book was smoothly written, thoughtful and entertaining. Although revisionist takes on fairy tales and myths are common now, I don’t think I’ve read one with a defense of the minotaur, so those parts were fun. The book is structured into chapters about one (often random) topic with many short sections. Although it seems like the book should be easy to pick up and put down, I found I was most engaged when I read large chunks at a time. There are also many metafictional/experimental bits--pictures, lists, writing in invisible ink, etc. I liked all this weirdness, but some might find it irritating. Definitely recommended, although maybe for people who like metafiction.

>40 DieFledermaus: So nice that this came from the rebeccanyc tribute thread. Can’t tell if I would enjoy this, but it was really fascinating to read about. The Minotaur definitely needs his defenders.

>40 DieFledermaus: Just clarifying: the category is authors with only one or two books on your shelves?

I liked your review. All I could think of while reading it though was The Centaur, although the two books have little in common other than a mythological half-human. Thank you for reading a Rebecca book.

>40 DieFledermaus: Nice review :) I like his style and I like this one quite a lot - although I was a bit worried how some of it will work in translation :)

>40 DieFledermaus: Interesting

>40 DieFledermaus: A fascinating review. Not a book that I would be likely to pick up, but I'm intrigued by how the structure, as you have described it, hangs together sufficiently to form an actual novel and not just a collection of topics. I may fall into the "not a fan of metafiction" category.

>41 dchaikin: - I had this one on the shelf for a few years and was planning to read it soon, but I bumped it up after Monica posted Rebecca's list. I quickly checked out the books with the "Minotaur" tag on LT--it looks like there are some fleshed out stories that focus on Theseus and Ariadne, sometimes with further development of the minotaur. There's also a book called The Minotaur Takes a Cigarette Break.

>42 labfs39: - For my project, I was thinking of authors where I read one or two of their books, really enjoyed them and planned to read more of their stuff, but for whatever reason (usually because of shiny new books or I just couldn't find more of their books when randomly browsing bookstores) I didn't and now it's 8 or 10 years later and I still haven't read any more of their books. Gospodinov isn't exactly the best example--I read And Other Stories and Natural Novel in 2009 and then bought this one shortly after it was available in English in 2015; I just hadn't read it what with the reading slump. I'm not going to be too restrictive for this project--it's mainly "read more books by authors that I know I like and maybe haven't specifically focused on getting more of their books".

I actually read a centaur book with a real centaur, The Centaur in the Garden by Moacyr Scliar. (I also read a book called Minotaur by Benjamin Tammuz but it had no actual minotaurs.)

>43 AnnieMod: - Yes, I like Gospodinov as well--will read whatever is next available in English. It looks like Time Shelter will be published soon--have you read that one yet? The translation read very smoothly--there were no points where I though, this is awkward, not sure if it's the author or translator, which sometimes happens. And I imagine they just added the sex scene from The Godfather as is instead of translating it.

>44 baswood: - Definitely a weird one!

>45 Linda92007: - Linda, I was actually surprised at how linear the narrative was with all the randomness. The book moves from the narrator's grandfather to his childhood and then to his experiences as an adult--coming back to visit his hometown, being an author, having a daughter, traveling. I do like weird metafictional novels so I would have been fine with something even more fragmented.

>46 DieFledermaus: Not yet - skipped ordering books last 18 months or so (because of all airport closures and postal delays and so on) and it did not make it into my first order this year as it was out of stock temporary in the bookstore I buy from. :) So possibly later this year or next one unless someone brings it in before that.

I was not that worried about the translation itself but about some of the cultural references - sometimes those get a bit... weird in translations. :) He does not have as many as some of our other authors but still... :)

>46 DieFledermaus: The Minotaur Takes a Cigarette Break 🙂 Reviews are on the mild side, but the itself title gets stars.

Also, I like this plan: “read more books by authors that I know I like and maybe haven't specifically focused on getting more of their books".

>46 DieFledermaus: >48 dchaikin: "read more books by authors that I know I like and maybe haven't specifically focused on getting more of their books"

I missed that one earlier. I've decided that I am not keeping my favorite series and authors for a rainy day anymore also... I tend to do that a lot - I know I will like them so I don't read them...

>46 DieFledermaus: I have read The Minotaur Takes A Cigarette Break! I thought it was very good. I went back and dug out the review I wrote at the time, here it is:

The Minotaur, being immortal, is still around today, working as a fry-cook in a popular diner in the southern United States, living in a trailer park, making ends meet. All he really wants - all he has really wanted for the past few hundred years - is a quiet life, but despite his painstaking care to keep his head down (literally and figuratively), every so often he forgets himself and something happens which means he has to move on. Right now, he has friendly and forgiving colleagues, a good relationship with the trailer park owner - but when you are a man with the head of a bull, you encounter a lot of beastly behaviour from humans; and when you are a soul as lonely as the Minotaur, the promise of friendship and love can be very beguiling, even though human reactions are also very confusing.

>46 DieFledermaus: >50 wandering_star: Re minotaurs. I have both The Centaur in the Garden and The Minotaur Takes a Cigarette Break on my shelf unread. I'm thinking I may have purchased the latter after reading your review, but still haven't gotten to it.
I have read Minotaur by Benjamin Tammuz, and based on my recollection of its subject matter (an Israeli spy becomes obsessed with a young girl, over many years), I'm trying to think of how the title relates--as you say, no actual minotaurs.

>46 DieFledermaus: >50 wandering_star: I also have The Minotaur Takes a Cigarette Break on my shelf—it's a favorite of a friend who used to send copies to everyone she knew—and I also picked up the sequel, The Minotaur Takes His Own Sweet Time, which I have likewise not read yet. Maybe this will be my year of the minotaur.

>47 AnnieMod: - Hope you're able to get it sooner rather than later. I'd definitely be interested in a review. I do think there were a lot of Western references in The Physics of Sorrow (along with the obvious Greek/Roman ones)--Jimmy Carter as the boogeyman of not only the children but adults was pretty funny. I don't recall being put off or confused about the other references--sometimes the author (or the translator?) would explain things or I could figure it out from context.

>48 dchaikin: - I agree, the title is certainly eye-catching. Although >50 wandering_star:, >51 arubabookwoman:, >52 lisapeet: make it sound like maybe it's worth reading also. My project list is pretty full, but a Greek myth-based one would be fun. Apparently in The Minotaur Takes His Own Sweet Time, the minotaur is now working as a Civil War re-enactor. Could be fun (and the library has both minotaur books).

>51 arubabookwoman: - Deborah, I had to check my review of Minotaur to think about that. No obvious Greek myth connections. Maybe it has something to do with the labyrinthine structure of the book, where every section revealed new information that made you re-evaluate the story? Or that one character is a symbolic minotaur, waiting in a sort of twisted narrative?

>50 wandering_star: nice! >53 DieFledermaus: I agree, these posts interest!

>54 dchaikin: - Yeah, it sounds like some of the negative reviews thought the book was too low-key, but ordinary low-key minotaur angst sounds interesting!

This one was a creepy Gothic read

Randalls Round by Eleanor Scott



I enjoyed all the stories in this book despite some issues. There’s a clear influence of M.R. James, but I didn’t mind this as I also like his stories (the intro mentioned hints of Benson, de la Mare, and Machen, although I haven’t read their work). The stories follow a certain pattern: instead of James’ fussy antiquarian scholars, Scott tends to feature curious, skeptical gentlemen who find themselves in haunted houses, isolated coastal areas or small rural villages. The main character learns of possible ghosts or folk rituals and is warned by the servants, villagers or helpful clergyman to (NOT DO THE THING). But they don’t believe in all those old superstitions, so they (DO THE THING) and are often pursued or haunted by the nameless but sometimes named evils. I often found myself doing the book equivalent of yelling “Don’t go into the basement!” during a scary movie (DON’T DO THE THING!). Despite this, the stories went by very quickly, Scott’s style, which did seem a bit Jamesian, was enjoyable, and the slow-building suspense and creepy atmosphere were nicely done. Scott definitely prefers to hint at the violence and creepy rituals and will cut away at some key climactic moments, but I didn’t mind that. She also has some abrupt endings–not that things aren’t resolved, one way or another, but there’s not much lingering after the end has been revealed. I became used to these endings and actually appreciated them–it provided a nice little jolt at the end of each story.

The title story, “The Twelve Apostles”, “Celui-La”, and “At Simmel Acres Farm” all fit the pattern described above, but only the last one seemed a little repetitive. “Randalls Round” is a nicely creepy bit of folk horror, as the protagonist learns about an old dance and ritual in the village, researches it, and decides to dig up the nearby barrow, which he is, of course, warned about by the villagers. “The Twelve Apostles” is also a solid haunted house story in the Victorian mode: the main character there is a blustery American who is irritated by the superstitions of the servants after he buys an old English manor house. He learns about the backstory of the house, which is believed to be haunted by a demonology-obsessed chaplain who died in an unsettling way. Some of this story features his attempts to solve a mystery with the vicar, an antiquarian scholar (much like a James character, of course). In this one and “Randalls Round”, old documents (and a reference to The Golden Bough) provide a sort of verisimilitude during the research. “Celui-La” has a lot of memorably creepy details, much like the story to which it owes an obvious debt, James’ "'Oh, Whistle, and I'll Come to You, My Lad'". A man staying at a small French seaside town sees a mysterious figure and finds a strange box and document. He is warned against pursuing the matter further, but, well. “The Room” actually has the characters warning each other NOT TO DO THE THING. A group of friends agrees that they will all sleep in the supposedly haunted room of the manor they’re staying at. However, as one and another comes down in the morning terrified and cowed, there is debate and determination over whether everyone else should sleep in the room. In “The Cure”, the narrator is the character who is warning his friend, Erik Storm, not to do foolish things. But Erik has already done foolish things and is in the ill and haunted stage. The narrator is sure that a stay at his farm will fix his friend, but Erik has other plans. This one, and some others, benefit from what is left unsaid–the reader can try to fill in the blanks on their own. “The Tree” finds a shadow falling over a formerly happy, artistic couple when they move into a house with a large tree nearby. “At Simmel Acres Farm” did feel a bit like some of the other stories but not as distinct–the narrator and a friend vacation at a farm but should have listened to the warnings against going into the ruined, abandoned garden. “‘Will Ye No’ Come Back Again?’” is a short, sad haunted house story. “The Old Lady” has a nicely suspenseful development and is rather different from the other stories. The narrator is a confident, extroverted college girl who makes a bet to befriend the extremely dull and monosyllabic Adela Young. After much work, she manages to do that and has a logical reason for Adela’s behavior. But she finds something else when she goes home with Adela for the holidays.

Two other stories are included: they could be by Eleanor Scott, although there were some differences. They had the same pattern described above but tended to be more horrific, with bodies scattered around. In “Unburied Bane”, a couple stays at a creepy farmhouse owned by a malevolent old woman to inspire the husband, a playwright. The wife becomes increasingly unsettled in the house, especially by the skull which supposedly can’t be removed due to a curse. In “The Menhir”, a new curate is determined to abolish all the local customs related to the title stone statue, which is of course the wrong thing to do. In these ones, I was more annoyed at the husband and the curate, who had many opportunities to not do stupid things but kept doing stupid things. They were also at the end of the book, which probably contributed to that. Still, all the stories are good, creepy reads. Recommended.

I have finished and have to review the following:

Not to be taken at Bedtime and Other Strange Stories - Rosa Mulholland
Studies of Death - Eric Stenbock
Nervous Conditions - Tsitsi Dangarembga
The Ghost Stories of Edith Wharton

(also need to read more than the first couple chapters of David Copperfield}

I'm not sure how active I'll be for the next week or so--we'll be babysitting my nephew while my sister is in the hospital (nothing bad, scheduled to give birth--so exciting!). Posting may be sporadic.

>57 DieFledermaus: Congratulations! Nephew time and a new baby on the way. How old is your nephew? My youngest niece is almost two, and I watch her during the week. So much fun, and one of the biggest reasons returning to my hometown has been such a blessing.

My niece was born Thursday morning! Today was pretty busy--we met her and were watching over my nephew. I'm still at my sister's place, will probably go back home tomorrow or Monday. I haven't had much time to read, but everyone went to sleep early today (although my sister and BIL are up every 2 hours and are in the zombie phase) so I managed to finish a book. I'll have to write up and post reviews next week and also catch up on everyone's threads.

>58 labfs39: - Thanks, Lisa! My nephew is 3, will turn 4 in a couple months. He's definitely in the adorable kid phase where he has his own likes and dislikes and can have conversations now.

>59 DieFledermaus: Congratulations!

>2 DieFledermaus: Ohhhh! memories....I did a bit of Gothic binge some years ago. I also enjoyed Charles Crow's History of the Gothic: American Gothic (University of Wales Press - Gothic Literary Studies, 2009). Guess it depends on where you are going with your interest.
https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/distributed/H/bo8388052.html

>59 DieFledermaus: Congratulations to the family!

>60 rhian_of_oz:, >61 avaland: - Thanks! We're all very excited, but apparently, she is one of those babies that has to be held all the time or she'll cry. My sister did get 2 hours of sleep last night, which is better than the 20 min the night before!

>61 avaland: - Thanks for the recommendation--that whole series looks interesting! They had a partial view on Google Books, and it did seem like a reasonably accessible history. I was hoping to find a good history of Gothic literature--I've been using Monster, She Wrote, which has been great for adding to the list of authors and books but is a little light on history.

Welcome back to Club Read! I'm glad things are going well for you now, and I'm excited to follow your thread.

I've dipped my toes into gothic a bit lately, so I'm especially interested in your reading in that area, and I've already added two books to my TBR from your thread: Bending to Earth: Strange Stories by Irish Women and Randalls Round

Are you a member of the gothic group here on Librarything?

>63 Julie_in_the_Library: - Thanks, good to see you here! Do you have any upcoming Gothic reads? I'm currently working my way through some collections by the women featured in Bending to Earth--I finished Not to Be Taken at Bedtime by Rosa Mulholland and Eyes of Terror by LT Meade. I'll probably read Number Ninety and Other Ghost Stories by BM Croker next. I'm not a member of the gothic group, so I'll have to check it out--although sometimes I find it hard to keep up with everything in Club Read!

This one was read more recently than some others that I have to review, but it needs to go back to the library. This one was for the Asia challenge (Turkey) and was from Rebecca's list.

A Useless Man: Selected Stories by Sait Faik Abasiyanik



Sait Faik Abasiyanik is a well-known and beloved author in Turkey, but this collection could be difficult reading at times. I am sure a lot of that was due to the fact that I’m not very familiar with the culture of the time (early-mid 20th c. Turkey), but the stories have also been described as random and occasionally surreal. The first story in this collection started off promising enough–a nicely described portrait of a man living a simple but contented life who finds himself at loose ends after his mother dies. However, several of the stories after that seemed very random and occasionally confusing. The prose was also tense and choppy. The collection is organized in chronological order, and at first, I didn’t like the writing style. Later on, however, the writing was much smoother. I started to enjoy the stories more with “Who Cares?” and “On Spoon Island”, which had more development and an arc compared to the earlier ones. Still, I was sometimes confused about what had happened. This wasn’t due to the writing being especially confusing–it was more of me wondering “Why are people behaving this way? Is this…normal?” and wondering about the background of some things that were described but not explained.

Some of the more enjoyable stories, like the first one, are detailed character portraits. The title story is about an isolated man who follows the same routine every day. Other stories had a quixotic or humorous but not comic feel. “Who Cares?” is about a woman who is attempting to deal with her dead husband’s body, which is stuck in their isolated house. “I Just Don’t Know Why I Keep Doing These Things” finds the narrator accused of stealing the prayer beads of a coffee house patron. He didn’t steal them but keeps taunting the man anyway. The author spent his life in the family home on an island, and many of the stories are about fishermen, fish and islands. Two of the best are “Sinagrit Baba”, which is told from the fish’s point of view, and “Death of the Dulger”, about a dying fish. There are also a number of stories capturing a slowly vanishing lifestyle, what with encroaching modernism and Western influences. One of my favorite stories was “The Last Birds”, a lovely and lyrical tale about the declining bird population on the island. This collection wasn’t difficult to read but I never felt the urge to pick it up, as with some collections.

>65 DieFledermaus: I'm sorry it wasn't a more enjoyable read. At least it did double duty on your lists?

>66 labfs39: - Yeah, I have to admit that having it from the library (there's a due date!) and having it fulfill a couple projects really helped with the motivation to read. I wouldn't warn people away from this book because they might have a better understanding of the cultural background, and my issues with the prose cleared up after the first few stories. Random and surreal usually isn't a big problem, but I wasn't sure how confused I was supposed to be.

>64 DieFledermaus: I don't have anything gothic at the moment, but I added two of the ones you've reviewed so far this year to my tbr, so I'll be getting there eventually. Right now I've got a bag of library books that are all nonfiction except the next two in the Rivers of London series.

>68 Julie_in_the_Library: - Hope you'll be able to get to some gothic reads soon. But library due dates are good motivators.

This one is for the ghost/gothic stories and is also by a Victorian author

Not to be Taken at Bed-Time and Other Strange Stories by Rosa Mulholland



Solid ghost stories with a range of moods by Rosa Mulholland, an Irish author who was well-known in her day. She wrote many books, stories and poems, produced her first works in her teens and was encouraged by Charles Dickens, who published several of her works in All the Year Round.

Her best-known story is the title one, which has an Irish setting, as in many of her stories. This disturbing work is set in the Connemara mountains and describes the legend of gloomy, isolated Coll Dhu (Black Coll) who frightens the locals and has a grudge against the newly arrived Colonel Blake. Coll Dhu develops an obsession with Blake’s daughter, Evleen, and enlists the witch Pexie na Pishrogie to help him with a rather gruesome charm.

“The Ghost at the Rath” is a good haunted house story; the narrator stays at the Rath, his newly inherited estate, with a friend and sees various scenes from the past at night. He has to investigate the visions and right past wrongs.

“The Haunted Organist of Hurly Burly” has a terrific title, and the build-up to the supernatural events is good, but I was constantly annoyed by the description of Lisa, a young Italian woman who is manipulated by a long-dead man, who was constantly referred to as “little”, “dark” and “wild”. Some of these characteristics lead to the predictable ending, where people act annoyingly stupid.

In “The Mystery of Ora”, the narrator is on a walking tour of the Irish coast and is warned to avoid the reclusive and strange astronomer Collum and his daughter, but when he stumbles on the daughter, Ora, in obvious distress, he tries to learn their secrets. This one had a nicely tense development. I thought I knew where the story was going, but the ending turned out to be completely different. However, the ending and the supernatural events seemed somewhat random.

“A Strange Love Story” is indeed just that, a strange, twisty, sad and involving story. The author spends some time describing the relationship of Max and Hilda, artists who are deeply in love and move from Innsbruck to Rome. Although Hilda is as talented as Max (maybe more talented?), their relationship does not follow the usual pattern. Max encourages Hilda, but she is extremely self-sacrificing, which eventually leads to her death. Max becomes obsessed with the idea that Hilda will come back to him.

“The Ghost at Wildwood Chase” and “The Lady Tantivy” have very different moods from the previous stories: the former is, if possible, a sweet ghost story and the latter is a cheerful ghost story. The narrator of the former is an ill artist who seems resigned to his death and goes down to Wildwood Chase for a client. He has an enjoyable affair in his head with a woman in a portrait but then starts seeing her–is it his illness or a ghost? In the last story, the narrator sees the lady in question come up to the estate she’s watching in too-old clothes and with too much knowledge of past events. This ghost cheerfully sets out to visit her old home and fix some past errors.

>69 DieFledermaus: Hope you'll be able to get to some gothic reads soon. But library due dates are good motivators.
Less so now that my library has gone no-fine on books, but I do try to get them back in a reasonable(ish) amount of time! :)

>70 DieFledermaus: Another book bullet. Adding to my TBR.

>70 DieFledermaus: I never associated Irish writers with ghost stories, although it makes perfect sense. What fun! Apparently neither this one nor its author are well known now, at least judging by the small number of LT libraries with this book or others by Mulholland. How did you learn of her? I'm looking forward to your review of Edith Wharton's collection.

>71 Julie_in_the_Library: - Good to hear that they dropped the fines! I mostly check out library ebooks, so they automatically disappear on the due date. Hope you enjoy the Mulholland if you get around to it!

>72 Linda92007: - I know what you mean--I don't automatically think of ghost stories when I think of Irish literature. Although I think I forget that Bram Stoker and Sheridan Le Fanu were Irish. The Mulholland book, Bending to Earth and other short story collections by LT Meade, Katharine Tynan, Clotilde Graves, BM Croker and Dorothy Macardle were all from Swan River Press. I learned about this publisher when I was doing research on gothic literature (and Victorian ghost stories by women as a side project).

Another gothic read/Victorian author

Studies of Death by Eric Stenbock



Given his life, one would expect Eric Stenbock’s stories to be morbid and gloomy, but they are simply written, short and tend to have a fairy tale-like quality. Often, a sunny, happy atmosphere is disrupted by despair, disfigurement and death, although a couple have surprisingly sweet ends. These strange little gems were written by Stanislaus Eric (Eric Stanislaus) Stenbock, Count of Bogesund, of a Swedish and Russian aristocratic family on his father’s side; his mother was a Manchester cotton heiress, and he was born in England. Stenbock seemed like the epitome of the decadent writer–an aristocratic aesthete who was addicted to opium and alcohol, had relationships with various decadent artists and engaged in a number of eccentric behaviors, most notoriously taking around a life-size doll that he called his son. He published a few books of poetry and one book of short stories. His homosexuality is reflected in his stories, where some characters are obviously gay and others are possibly gay.

“Hylas” is one of the obviously gay stories. The narrator, artist Gabriel Glynde, takes young Lionel under his wing after using him as a model for his portrait of David. A love triangle leads to the bitter end. Although this one is short and simple, Glynde’s love for Lionel is pretty blatant and the paintings that are described mirror the changing relations among the characters. “Narcissus” continues the contemplation of male beauty, as the narrator of this one is, like the title character, in love with himself, which unfortunately leads to a dramatic reversal. “The Death of a Vocation” is probably the only one without the stabs of violence present in all the other stories. Given Stenbock’s homosexuality, the story could be seen as a depiction of a seemingly normal heterosexual marriage that is, in fact, something quite different. “Viol D’Amor” at first depicts a happy, loving, artistic Italian family, but a series of bizarre decisions lead to the unhappy end. “The Egg of the Albatross” has a fairy-tale feel, describing the strange but contented life of the orphaned girl Marina, who was found by her adopted parents and lives in a lighthouse. Marina is very much a child of nature and collects eggs to support herself, as she is accepted by the birds of the island as one of their own. Unfortunately, the encroaching tourism on the island is a threat to her simple life. “The True Story of a Vampire” is similar to the classic vampire story “Carmilla” but with men, although this one lacks the breathless intensity of Sheridan Le Fanu’s work. “The Worm of Luck” also has various reversals, as a Romani boy who flees his home finds success for a while but can’t escape his past.

Strange but oddly compelling stories.

Enjoying your gothic reviews

>75 baswood: - Thanks! More on the way (more ghost stories, a couple weird old obscure French gothic novels).

This one was for the Gothic project - and in general would like to read more Wharton this year

The Ghost Stories of Edith Wharton - Edith Wharton



Excellent stories by Edith Wharton–most of them are ghost stories or feature other supernatural events but a few are more realistic, although they tend to have an uncanny or hallucinatory atmosphere. Wharton’s dense prose is a highlight and made all the stories enjoyable – there weren’t really any bad ones, although “The Triumph of Night” seemed longer than necessary and “The Fulness of Life” was a somewhat strange way of addressing her unsatisfactory relationship with her husband.

Wharton tends to hint at things rather than outright showing them, especially in the first story, “The Lady’s Maid’s Bell”. This one is a classic haunted house story, as a new maid in an isolated country house sees her deceased predecessor and tries to decipher her messages. I have to admit that this one had me confused–I read it a couple times and then took to the Internet to see what everyone else thought of it. This story, along with “Kerfol” and “The Duchess at Prayer”, deals with adultery, and Wharton is highly sympathetic to possibly wayward wives. She shows the isolation and unhappiness of the wives, who have to endure their husbands leaving them for long periods of time (likely cheating themselves), and some relationships that cross over into abuse. Adultery on the male side is also a theme in “Bewitched” and “Pomegranate Seed”, although the supernatural events make these rather strange stories. Some of the other stories deal with the sad lot of various women–”Miss Mary Pask” is a lonely unmarried woman who is treated as an afterthought by her sister (this one managed to surprise me), “The Looking Glass” features an aging woman who becomes desperate as she loses her beauty, and “All Souls” is about an active, no-nonsense widow who has an eerie experience in her isolated house when she finds herself all alone. "Mr Jones" is another haunted house story, with the new owner of the house investigating the past and finding another horrible marriage. Even happy marriages are no protection: “Afterward” has a happily married woman moving to her dream house with her husband; she never pays attention to his business concerns, and eventually, some of his actions come to haunt them. Highly recommended.

More ghost stories for the Gothic read

Number Ninety and Other Ghost Stories - BM Croker



These ghost stories by B.M. Croker are mainly distinguished by their setting–the classic Victorian ghost story is transplanted to India and other places based on the author’s time abroad as the wife of a military officer. In general, the stories were reasonably entertaining and suspenseful, but some were too short to make an impact and, although the introduction noted the author’s unusually sympathetic view of Indians for the time, there were still some cringeworthy descriptions of the Indian characters (and black slaves in the stories set in America).

“‘Number Ninety’” is a standard haunted house story set in London. It was interesting to have this one as the first story because it set up a comparison to the various haunted house stories set in India, as well as providing a pattern for the other stories. The narrator or the main character learns of a supposedly haunted house but is skeptical and laughs at or dismisses those who try to warn them. They stay at the house, and things seem fine for a while, but eventually the haunting starts. The endings vary–sometimes the characters right past wrongs or are just scared and humbled, but other stories end in tragedy. Of all the haunted house stories, my favorites were “The Red Bungalow” and “‘To Let’”, which were longer and more detailed than some of the others. The later stories were set in other places–America, Australia, France. The supernatural elements also tended to be different–ghosts revealing their burial location, cases of spirit possession and a prophetic dream. Of the shorter stories, “The First Comer” was nicely creepy, having an unexpected and unexplained supernatural event when the narrator goes to get her sick sister a cup of tea in the middle of the night. Enjoyable enough, but unlike some collections I’ve read recently, I didn’t feel motivated to seek out more of the author’s work.

I guess this is a Gothic opera - I'm watching a production of Benjamin Britten's The Turn of the Screw from La Monnaie (obviously based on the Henry James story)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74fr05_nCAw&t=2787s

Haven't finished watching it, but it does have a somewhat weird production

>77 DieFledermaus: I like Wharton and this one sounds like a must read. It's now on my wishlist. Thanks for the enticing review!

>77 DieFledermaus: I've been dipping in and out of the NYRB reissue, just called Ghosts—and from your description it sounds like the order of the stories has been shuffled a bit. But yeah, they're fun. I love a good classic chilling tale.

>77 DieFledermaus: >78 DieFledermaus: enjoyed both of these posts, but as I’m reading Wharton I’m much more intrigued by what you have to say there. Seems she uses ghost stories to pursue her main themes elsewhere.

>77 DieFledermaus: I read "Pomegranate Seed" in a book of ghost stories earlier this year. I found the ending abrupt and unsatisfactory, and wanted a better explanation (any explanation, really) of what had been happening in the story. I enjoyed Wharton's prose, though.

>77 DieFledermaus: I have been looking at the NYRB reissue of these but have now realised I have one of those Project Gutenberg copies on my Kindle, which I guess will have many of the same stories. I have skimmed your comments but will come back after reading the stories.

>80 Linda92007: - Glad to hear that--I think this one would be good for fans of both Wharton and ghost stories.

>81 lisapeet: - Yes, it looks like the NYRB version has almost all the same stories as my copy (Wordsworth supernatural series, which is actually pretty good). I have a couple other collections of ghost stories that I'm reading on and off--they're good for reading between other books.

>82 dchaikin: - Yes, that was what I thought--the writing was good and since she focused on relationships (notably bad marriages and adultery in this collection) and how the characters are affected, I enjoyed most of the stories even when the supernatural element was only a small part of the story or was predictable.

>83 Julie_in_the_Library: - I liked that one, but the first time I read it (in The New York Stories of Edith Wharton), I was surprised and confused because the rest of the stories in the book were all realistic (and at first "Pomegranate Seed" has a realistic, if unhappy, explanation for the events). When I read it this time around, I was already in a "ghost story" mindset so was looking at it from that point of view. The story did end on a climax, with a lot left unresolved, but I thought it was clear where it was going--since the ending wasn't a happy one, I was pretty sure there would never be one and that things would continue to be unresolved. Wharton was pretty deliberate about leaving the contents of the letters unknown--so a reader could fill them in on their own--and for the ghost, it seemed like there were standard ghost reasons--strong emotions, unresolved business, maybe anger/jealousy about being replaced. I think the title was a symbol of a tie to the dead, and the myth also suggested what might have happened at the end (although obviously not an exact parallel). I will say that in the book I read, there was another story, "Afterward", that, while being very different in terms of the plot, had some similarities so I was thinking of that when I got to the end.

>84 wandering_star: - I'd be interested in your comments when you read them!

Also, if anyone reads "The Lady's Maid's Bell" and wants to discuss it, in a what happened? what did that mean? kind of way, I'd be up for that.

>77 DieFledermaus: I always enjoy Wharton. I’m adding this to my wishlist. Your review makes it sound like one I should read.

I've not been a fan of supernatural, ghost stories, or horror, but several years ago I read Wharton's Ghost Stories as part of a Litsy postal book club read of 20th Century Classics(chosen by someone else), and I loved it. I don't remember all the stories now, but found them mostly intriguing, and widely varying in topic (at least from my preconception of what a ghost story was). If it's the one I think it is, I, also, was puzzled by "The Lady's Maid's Bell."
And if you're on Litsy, and interested in reading more Wharton, Dan is leading a "Wharton Buddy Read" there, where we're reading her works in chronological order. Right now we're reading The Fruit of the Tree, an early one I'd not heard of before.

>86 NanaCC: - Hope you enjoy them if you get around to reading the book!

>87 arubabookwoman: - I was never much of a horror/ghost story reader, but I've found I enjoy them with this project (and probably a previous Gothic kick, where I read all of MR James' stories and Gaskell's Gothic Tales). At least the Victorian type, with the focus more on suspense, creepy atmospheres and maybe some social issues. I've heard people in the group mention Litsy--how is it different from LibraryThing? Not sure if I'll join that site, but I've enjoyed following the Wharton discussion and reviews on both of your threads. (Hoping to read Madame de Treymes soon but I'm a bit bogged down in David Copperfield and some other things for other projects.)

My reading has been a bit slow lately--a lot of time spent on David Copperfield (still a bit behind schedule, but I can read a good chunk when I have the time) and for the next couple of weeks, I'll be helping my sister with my niece (feedings every 2-3 hours, lots of crying).

I also have a backlog of books to review -

Nervous Conditions - Tsitsi Dangarembga
Eyes of Terror and Other Dark Adventures - LT Meade
Bunny Lake is Missing - Evelyn Piper
The Hero or Adventures of a Night - Bellin de la Liborliere
People Love Dead Jews - Dara Horn

I have a bunch of threads to read--will try to catch up this week.

Curious about your thoughts on Nervous Conditions.

Litsy is best through your smart phone. It’s like Instagram for readers (except that I’ve never been on Instagram, so maybe not). Posts are character limited and so short, quick, usually with pictures. If you follow a lot of people, it becomes a really nice random book experience, and the energy is very positive. And, for whatever reason, group reads are pleasure through Litsy. If you check it out, you can find me as Graywacke.

>89 DieFledermaus: Babies are a good excuse for not reading. It's nice that you are able to help your sister. Those early days are so exhausting.

>90 dchaikin: - Thanks for the explanation! I might check it out, although this group and LT in general usually keep me pretty busy. It does sound like a fun way to do a group read.

>91 labfs39: - Yeah, my sister and her kids will be here again next week so that will probably be busy. Although we did talk about reading a book together, probably one that is easy to read and goes fast. I'm sure she'll be glad when my niece doesn't have to eat every 2-3 hours!

I finished watching the Monnaie Turn of the Screw--will write up an opera review soon (maybe not the best production if you've never seen the opera before).

Right now, I'm watching this one -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ich562nSvv0&t=6354s

a production of Tosca from Teatro Real. The production is dark and modernish (there's a random nude woman if that bothers people). The three leads are all good, which honestly can't always be said of this one, despite its popularity.

I also finished watching this one

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aExkp2jreY0

When the Fern Blooms composed by Yevhen Stankovych, from the Lviv National Opera. I hadn't heard of this one before watching it--it was written in the 70s but was suppressed by the Soviet authorities. It's a hybrid Ukrainian folk opera/dance piece. Not much of a plot, but enjoyable music, dancing and scenery.

This one is a midcentury thriller by a woman

Bunny Lake is Missing by Evelyn Piper



An extremely addictive thriller about a woman desperately searching for her daughter when everyone around her believes that she is crazy and her daughter is a figment of her imagination. Blanche Lake, a single mother, has just moved to New York with her daughter Bunny and her mother. One day, she sees her mother off to their former hometown, drops her daughter off at her new nursery school and returns to pick her up after work. Bunny does not come down, and the teachers have no recollection of her being in class. Blanche searches her apartment and the school and then involves the police. As she frantically searches the neighborhood, she gradually realizes that the police are doing nothing and don’t believe her daughter is real.

The frantic plot kept me reading–it seems like it should be easy for Blanche to prove the existence of Bunny, but her failures keep stacking up. Everything is going against her, but it is clear that there is something else going on–at first seen in a parallel plot about another mother looking for her child. There are, of course, a lot of coincidences and convenient events, but the book effectively conveys Blanche’s panic, terror and anger. At times, there’s a nightmarish, hallucinatory quality to the book. The events, in several ways, could be seen as one long gaslighting nightmare and a more extreme version of Blanche’s already precarious life. As a single mother, Blanche is already looked on with suspicion in mid-20th century America. The circumstances of Bunny’s birth add to that, and all sorts of little details–some of which hamper the search for Bunny–also show her difficult situation. Attempting to get in the nursery school, Blanche is insulted by a woman calling her a bad mother. No one at work can confirm that she has a child because her company won’t hire mothers–Blanche has had to pretend that she’s single and childfree to get a job. Blanche is a young, attractive woman–which isn’t exactly stated but is obvious in the way the male characters treat her. She notes, ominously, the looks that the cops give her–she’s used to men staring at her, but their new gaze (they think she’s delusional) is strange and unfamiliar. The two main male characters, a psychiatrist associated with the school and a friendly acquaintance of Blanche, are completely inadequate in providing support, although they weakly attempt to help and have important roles for the plot. The psychiatrist develops an unbelievable and unhealthy infatuation with Blanche, mainly because she reminds him of a disturbing past memory. Of course, Blanche switches between rage and despair–understandably, but Dr. Newhouse also wildly swings between helpful, soothing doctor (who is pretty much always paternalistic and condescending) and angry, petulant scorned lover. Wilson, Blanche’s acquaintance, is randomly cruel at times (he has explanations but not good ones) and frequently places Blanches in seemingly sexually compromising situations, even if they’re not sexual. Despite some of the flaws of the book, it was highly addictive and I read it in one sitting. The introduction in my copy was very helpful and scholarly.

>93 DieFledermaus: I really enjoyed Tosca when I saw the Met's production a few years back through Met at the movies.

Speaking of Edith Wharton's ghost stories (as we were once upon a time), did you see this in the LA Review of Books?

The Ghosts of Patriarchy

>95 Julie_in_the_Library: - It's one of my favorite operas, but casting can be difficult. Was that the one with the new production (the very traditional McVicar one)? (I think there were a couple filmed versions with the Bondy one that everyone hated.)

>96 lisapeet: - Thanks for the link--that was a really interesting review. They brought up a lot of things that I liked about the stories.

This one was a early 20th c. mystery by a woman with a hint of the Gothic

The Red Lamp - Mary Roberts Rinehart



A fairly enjoyable mystery with hints of the supernatural. It was a bit slow to start–mostly because of the fussy, clueless narrator–but picked up pretty soon and was then an addictive read. The narrator, English professor William Porter, has inherited a seaside estate from his uncle, who died in somewhat strange circumstances. Early on, the narrative establishes that there are definitely going to be supernatural happenings, as Porter’s wife Jane is shown to have various psychic visions. Porter, Jane and their niece Edith plan to spend the summer at Twin Hollows, but Jane refuses to stay in the manor house–they stay in the smaller Lodge while Warren Halliday, Porter’s colleague and Edith’s love interest, takes up residence in the boathouse on the estate. The author establishes the history of the house, the circumstances surrounding Uncle Horace’s death and the beliefs of the townspeople, who see the red light in the window of the house as an ominous sign. Eventually, strange occurrences, followed by murders, shake up the town, and Edith and Halliday, along with a reluctant Porter, start to play detective.

As a narrator, Porter can sometimes be irritatingly stuffy, but his cluelessness helps keep the reader guessing. He is suspected of some of the crimes but is annoyingly foolish–for example, he keeps taking random midnight walks after he knows the police are suspicious but then starts panicking when something happens in the night. The book has some similarities to the other Rinehart that I read (The Wall)--the plot twists and murders keep piling up, suspicion falls on one and then another character, although one of the main characters, who is initially suspected, is clearly not guilty, somewhat bumbling and colorless detectives chase red herrings and of course the end has a final twist. This one didn’t have as many of the “Had I but known…” statements that are apparently Rinehart’s calling card and they tended to be cleared up quickly. The supernatural elements are interesting if not particularly scary, and somehow, the Gothic feel is minimal–probably due to the setting of a small American seaside town. Rinehart’s prose reads smoothly and doesn’t feel very dated–I kept thinking it had a midcentury setting instead of taking place in a few months in 1922. Maybe not the most memorable book but a solid read.

Free Day by Ines Cagnati



A spare and brutal account of the life of a young girl from a family of Italian immigrants barely making a living on a stony farm in southern France. The concentrated story follows 14-year-old Galla as she rides her bicycle 20 miles from her high school to the family’s isolated house. There are a few “events”, but most of the book is Galla’s thoughts on her family and school life. The author expertly captures the bitter cold of the day and the claustrophobic poverty of Galla’s childhood. Cagnati’s life was similar to Galla’s, and the narrative feels depressingly realistic. Even the introduction and the interview with Cagnati at the end seem to hint that the author always felt like an outsider, even though this book won the Prix Roger Nimier in 1973. Galla narrates in a straightforward voice, describing her abusive father, her sad and beaten-down mother, the sisters she hates and those she loves and her status as an outcast at the school–she’s a poor scholarship student who is disruptive and contemptuous of the teachers who look down on her. She casually describes stealing from stores and her classmates and all sorts of violence–the kind that is standard on the farm, her father’s actions, and a horrific accident. She also, at various times, wishes death and destruction on different family members, the townspeople, and some classmates and teachers. Occasionally, there are some happy memories, but they are few and far between. Galla is expertly characterized, and the bike–which she needs to get back and forth–almost comes to be a character too. Although the actual plot is straightforward–Galla goes to visit her family on her day off and then goes back–there is a mystery that lurks in the background of her musings. Overall, an involving if not always pleasant read.

I have less than 100 pages in David Copperfield and should finish before the end of the month. Very much enjoying it, and when I have the time, I can read huge chunks, but babysitting is still taking up a lot of time.

I am also reading something like 5 short story collections.

My sister and I are reading a book together - The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware. Except she has finished it and I'm on chapter 5 so I need to read more of that one.

>99 DieFledermaus: an involving if not always pleasant read

That was just about my feeling too. I really did find myself getting bound up with Galla.

I've definitely been neglecting my thread, but after a slump in February and March, I've been reading more in April. Hoping the co-babysitting will be over after next week. I finally finished David Copperfield (although in early April), but I think I've been having the opposite problem with the group reads for this quarter--I finished The Law and the Lady and am about 1/4 of the way through North and South.

>101 SassyLassy: - Yes, even though the book doesn't have a lot of tension plotwise, I always wanted to find out what was going to happen to Galla.

Seasons of Purgatory by Shahriar Mandanipour

This one was for Early Reviewers



I had read another book by Mandanipour before this, a metafictional novel, which was fairly enjoyable although I don’t think it completely worked for me. That one had a light touch, despite dealing with government repression. The stories in this collection all had an atmosphere of claustrophobic despair. The unhappiness didn’t generally bother me, but after the first couple, the stories became increasingly surreal. Some were confusing–a second reading was required–but there were a few that were disjointed and flat, and I didn’t care enough about the characters or plot to do a second read.

The first story, “Shadows of the Cave”, was the only one with some of the lightness of his novel, Censoring an Iranian Love Story. This one is a character study about a man who becomes obsessed with a zoo. “Mummy and Honey” has a fable-like quality and was probably the most straightforward and complete story. The claustrophobic atmosphere is literal here, as the story describes a family stuck at their isolated estate. “Shatter the Stone Tooth” was an effective tale about a conscript stationed at a small village who becomes increasingly obsessive and unhinged, but it was the start of a series of increasingly surreal stories. “Seasons of Purgatory” is about a soldier attempting to desert who is stuck between the two sides, but this one required a second read, although I did like it much more after the second read. “If She Has No Coffin” and “King of the Graveyard” were both too surreal for me. The former is about a young girl dealing with war and death and the latter is about an elderly couple looking for their son’s grave. These, and other stories, refer to the Iran-Iraq war–I think someone with a better grip on the subject might have gotten more from the stories, but in general, I didn’t find the historical elements too intrusive. These two were my least favorite stories, but the collection ended strongly, if, as usual, unhappily. “The Color of Midday Fire” features a character from “Seasons of Purgatory”, Captain Meena, as he tries to recover from his time at the front. Unfortunately, there is more tragedy in his life. “Seven Captains” has a long-ago unhappy affair as its central point, and the reader must decipher what happened and the relationships among the characters, including the narrator. “If You Didn’t Kill the Cuckoo Bird” was another story that I ended up reading twice–it is somewhat deliberately confusing, but a second reading is rewarding. This one also had a literally claustrophobic setting, as it is about the relationship between the narrator and his cellmate. Although the stories were generally depressing and some were too surreal, I’d recommend this one for anyone interested in Iranian literature.

The Shadow on the Blind and Other Stories by Louisa Baldwin and Lettice Galbraith

More Victorian ghost stories



This book includes stories by two Victorian women, Louisa Baldwin and Lettice Galbraith. Louisa Baldwin was well-known in her day, a member of a prominent family who was the mother of Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin. In contrast, Lettuce Galbraith is only known through her publications–she put out several story collections, but nothing else is known of her.

I preferred Galbraith’s stories to Baldwin’s. Some of Baldwin’s stories had a lot of random meandering, there wasn’t a good suspenseful build-up, and a few stories had a solid development but then ended with a thud. The title story was one of these–there’s a leisurely build-up to the haunted house antics, but then it ends with a whimper. “The Weird of the Walfords” was probably the most complete story and is about a man who tries to avoid his family curse but end up bringing it about. “The Uncanny Bairn” features a boy who sees the future and the problems his gift causes. “Many Waters Cannot Quench Love” and “How He Left the Hotel” are both decent stories but a bit short and not too memorable. “The Real and the Counterfeit” has a standard premise–a man who doesn’t believe in ghosts decides to scare his more ambivalent friends–but it seemed to spend too much time on their antics. “My Next Door Neighbour” spends a lot of time describing hospital life and plods along. “The Empty Picture Frame” has another standard premise–a ghost comes to visit. I don't think this one did too much with the plot. “Sir Nigel Otterburne’s Case” has a nicely creepy development but then it just ended abruptly. “The Ticking of the Clock” is a very different story about a boy who learns about mortality through his beloved grandfather and is overall pretty sad.

Galbraith’s stories, except for one, were all solid suspenseful pieces. They all seemed to take place in different worlds, which was interesting, and the last two were good takes on the standard haunted house story. I had problems with “The Trainer’s Ghost”, mainly because I was unfamiliar with the jargon of 19th c. horse racing. This one also introduced many characters talking obliquely about things and switched viewpoints several times. I had to read it twice to fully understand what was going on. “The Case of Lady Lukestan” was the best story in the whole collection, a brooding, disturbing tale where a legal case about the legitimacy of a marriage hangs on the existence of a ghost. “The Ghost in the Chair” follows a man with a failing business who makes a deal with the Devil. “In the Seance Room” looks at the world of spiritualism and occultism, which was very popular in the Victorian era. “The Missing Model” takes place in the art world. “A Ghost’s Revenge” and “The Blue Room” are standard ghost stories; the former is about the usual cursed manor house but is nicely suspenseful, and the latter is about a haunted room. This one is memorable because it has an interesting character, a skeptical and intellectually curious woman who, along with a similar-minded man (with no romantic connection), investigates the room. Also, the very end has a twist that explains a lot and actually puts the events in a very disturbing light.

>102 DieFledermaus: Nice to have you back and with two interesting reviews. Although I don't often read short stories, I might try Seasons of Purgatory.

>103 DieFledermaus: I love this cover! Two very interesting reviews.

>105 labfs39: - Good to be back and reading again. Hoping that the personal stuff will settle down now. I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts on the collection if you read it. I got bogged down on a couple of the surreal stories and I think I was expecting something a little different given his novel (maybe something less depressing), but it was definitely a worthwhile read.

>106 wandering_star: - Thanks! And the cover is very distinctive.

Another collection of Irish ghost stories

The Death Spancel and Others by Katharine Tynan



This is a collection of ghost stories by Katharine Tynan, who was very well known in her day and wrote something like a hundred novels. Although these are ghost stories, they are not particularly creepy or even suspenseful; many are sad and wistful, and several have tidy, happy ends. The creepiest parts–grave robbing and ravenous rats–aren’t even supernatural. I really enjoyed them as a contrast to other ghost stories. Some of the best ones are from Tynan’s collection An Isle in the Water–the selections here did make me want to seek it out. Several stories that have similar themes and devices and even titles. For example, there are a couple stories about the death spancel, which is a disturbing love charm. There is also more than one story about grave robbing. Despite these similarities, the stories didn’t feel repetitive; instead, it seemed more like the author doing different takes on the same topic. This collection includes some poems. I didn't like them that much, but they were definitely relevant to the stories they followed.

A Gossip's Story by Jane West



Probably the only reason someone would read this book today is that it is believed to be one of the inspirations for Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility. However, it was an enjoyable read, with some of the same pleasures as Austen’s novels, and interestingly, although the author intended the book to be a didactic piece to counter the supposedly malign influences of other novels, she seems to undercut her message with her choice of narrator and the actions of various characters. As in Sense and Sensibility, A Gossip’s Story follows two very different sisters–the older, who is rational and restrained, and the younger, named Marianne, who is romantic and impulsive–as they navigate society, love and marriage while their family suffers a financial crisis.

The introduction in this edition (from Valancourt Books) is very helpful, as are the notes, and describes the similarities between the novels aside from the general premise. Marianne rejects an early suitor because he is not sufficiently romantic but is then swept off her feet by a man who is more in tune with her sensibilities when he rescues her after she is injured in an accident. The elder sister meets a man early on who she comes to admire and care for, but she believes he is linked to another woman and so endeavors to forget him. After suffering a financial reversal, the family has to move from a large manor house to a small cottage. One of the suitors is soundly rejected and excoriated by the family after they find out that he seduced, impregnated and abandoned a woman. However, there are of course differences in the books. West has a framing conceit that she used for a previous novel–the narrator is a small-town spinster named Prudentia Homespun who describes the Dudley family moving into the neighborhood. Also, there is a long poem called “A Legendary Tale” inserted in the middle of the book–one of the characters recites it, and it is supposedly an example of something Marianne would like, in a quasi-medieval style. I was worried about that part, but it went by reasonably fast and had some links to the story; the happy ending is brought about by reason and platonic friendship winning out over romantic passions. Marianne and Louisa, the elder sister, are very different, but there is a reason: Louisa was raised by their father, while Marianne was raised by their grandmother after the mother died and was never denied anything. Marianne was left her grandmother’s fortune, but Louisa is negatively affected when their father suffers a financial setback.

Marianne does come off as extremely foolish, even though the author notes she is kind and generous. She seems to have every advantage possible but her ruined-by-novels mindset and inability to control her emotions lead her to unhappy circumstances. However, some of her choices seem entirely rational given the time period, and in one instance, she is perhaps too moralistic. Louisa, in contrast, is cheerful and calm when faced with adversity. Marianne’s behavior is criticized by the narrator, and her sister and father frequently give advice. Although the narrator’s wisdom is supposed to be edifying, the author undercuts her reliability by showing her to be a judgmental, small-town gossip, who comes off even worse in the present. The opening of the book describes her circle of friends, who all sound like narrow-minded snobs. They almost seem like caricatures of nosy busybody spinsters, except the men who are associated with their set are also shown as foolish, greedy and self-aggrandizing. In addition, Mr. Dudley is repeatedly proclaimed to be a model father and man by Louisa, the narrator and others, but his actions are extremely questionable. First, he just gives Marianne to his mother-in-law; while that might not have seemed quite as strange in that time period (see Fanny Price), it’s not for financial reasons, as he was sufficiently wealthy at the time and gave Louisa a good life. Also, he and Louisa went to Barbados, where he had an estate–meaning he was far away from Marianne and also raising questions about how he made his money. In contrast to the situation in Sense and Sensibility, the financial difficulties of the family are his fault. Mr. Dudley approves two suitors who are revealed to be bad news, and although he claims to be above money matters, it does seem like he pushes his daughters to wed despite their hesitations because of his financial position. Despite some other issues with the novel–rushed relationships and too-convenient plot turns–the book was generally enjoyable and would probably be of interest to anyone interested in Austen or other books from that period.

>109 DieFledermaus: Really interesting - How did you come upon this book?

>109 DieFledermaus: Fascinating review. I didn't realize S&S mirrored another book so closely. Huh.

>110 SassyLassy: - I am mildly obsessed with the publisher, Valancourt Books, and found this edition when I was browsing their site. They usually put out older Gothic stuff and more contemporary horror, so this one stuck out.

>111 labfs39: - There are a number of differences besides the ones I mentioned in my review, and at a certain point, the plot diverges sharply from Austen's novel but I did find the similarities striking. The intro notes that Austen was aware of West's work based on a comment in one of her letters.

>112 DieFledermaus: Thanks for this - I can already see books I "need"!

You might find more of the same at Broadview Press under 'English Studies'. They always have excellent notes and appendices to go with their books too.

>113 SassyLassy: - Yeah, browsing that site can be dangerous! Thanks for the tip about Broadview Press--I had heard of them and have their Love in Excess (?) (and they have the only decent version of Ouida's Moths it seems) but I found a number of obscure and interesting looking books from 18th c/19th c women writers in that series.

I’m catching up and noticed your trend of having the only review for a book on LT. Fascinating about A Gossip’s Story - the inspiration for S&S and also the book of itself. And, going back to March, I really enjoyed your review of Free Day.

>115 dchaikin: - Yeah, a lot of the books I've been reading lately have been pretty obscure or unpopular. (The main exceptions have been the Victorian group reads.) It was fun to read A Gossip's Story and look for some similarities--I wonder if I would have found more if I read it just after S&S. This next one has another review, but sometimes if there are no reviews, I feel pressure when writing it because it'll be the only one!

Not sure if this one would qualify as Gothic or decadent, but one for the Victorian list at least

The Outcast Spirit and Other Stories by Lady Emilia Francis Strong Dilke



The stories in this collection are very much their own thing–I would probably describe them as “allegorical medieval fantasies” or maybe “what short stories by William Blake might look like”. The publisher also has a good description - “There is nothing else quite like the short stories of Lady Dilke in the annals of English literature, and even readers who have little sympathy with their stylistic affectations, allegorical pretensions and harrowing conclusions are likely to admit that they have a peculiar fascination. Those who find some resonance in their psychological ambience might easily think them touched with genius”. I can definitely see these stories being the exact right thing for some readers. The author, born Emily Francis Strong and later known as Emilia, Lady Dilke, was a highly accomplished woman in the Victorian era, writing well-regarded books on French history and art, contributing criticism and philosophical articles to various periodicals, campaigning tirelessly for women’s rights and acting as president of the women’s trade union. However, she is unfortunately best known for the gossip surrounding her two marriages: at 21, she married the 48-year-old Mark Pattinson, the Rector of Lincoln College, Oxford and a scholar (who studied and published a biography of Isaac Casaubon, a 16th century French classical scholar); her marriage was believed to the the model for Dorothea Brooke’s in Middlemarch, by her friend George Eliot. Her second husband, Charles Dilke, became embroiled in a scandalous divorce case (where he was falsely accused by a woman to protect her actual lover; she had been encouraged by her mother, who actually had a relationship with Dilke). The introduction notes these incidents, but there are a number of explanations and inspirations given for Lady Dilke’s stories–her scholarly interest in Renaissance history and French art, her “hallucinations” (which had started at a young age and which she seemed to systematically use for her works), older works like Le Morte d’Arthur and “Idylls of the King” and possibly works by contemporaries such as William Morris, M.P. Shiel, R. Murray Gilchrist and Vernon Lee.

The actual stories have a deliberately archaic style. There’s occasionally a concrete setting, like France, but sometimes it’s just a vaguely medieval Europe. The characters are never named–they’re referred to as “the woman”, “the mother”, “the king” etc. A common plot found in several of the stories is a character seeking some sort of insubstantial concept: Love, Death or Learning. The character often has to go on a journey and sometimes fails to find the object of their desire but other times acquires it after much hardship. A few stories have what seems like a medieval Christianity or supernatural elements. The stories are very much open to interpretation and occasionally mirror elements in the author’s life. The intro noted her disillusionment with institutions of higher learning (many doors were closed to her as a woman, even with her position as Pattinson’s wife), which may be reflected in “A Vision of Learning”. “The Physician’s Wife” is about a highly regarded doctor who marries a much younger woman and is a controlling husband; their relationship is threatened by the arrival of a younger man. There are unsatisfied wives and mothers, girls who persist in the face of insurmountable odds and women who are trapped in one way or another. But regardless of the hidden meanings or relationship to Lady Dilke’s biography, I found them enjoyable, compelling and certainly odd and would recommend them for anyone interested in stories off the beaten path.

This one is a book from Rebecca's list

Europeana by Patrik Ourednik



On the surface, this strange book appears to be a history of the 20th century. The events of the 20th century (mainly in Europe, occasionally in America or other countries) are related in a dry, straightforward manner. The author doesn’t even use any names. When describing who did or said something, it’s “the Communists”, “doctors” or “young people”. Although major events are described–with a focus on WWI and II–the actions of random people, not necessarily famous or influential ones, are also related. There are also long lists, a focus on random subjects and a certain flattening of beliefs or events, which often leads to very strange descriptions. Clearly, the author was going for a quirky look at the strange, contradictory and sometimes horrifying history of the 20th century, but, although it was published in 2001, the book has even more relevance in our age of fake news.

The dry, straightforward tone leads the reader to wonder about the authority and focus of the author–of course, only certain things can be included, and there are some historical events that are too big to ignore, but the author is in fact choosing, while seeming to present an objective description. The random descriptions of individuals also made me wonder–I wasn’t aware of most of these incidents, which were likely chosen by the author as something strange or something that stuck in the memory, but without a name (which wasn’t included), they were difficult to fact check; it would certainly be easy to make up something and slide it in with actual history. The author often relates the beliefs of various groups. Sometimes these border on ridiculous (describing depictions of sex in movies over the years or Freudian theories) but others are obviously harmful–a list of the Nazis’ talking points, for example. Still, everything is related in the same dry factual manner, with not much commentary, which could seem to validate some of these beliefs (see: people declaring that both sides of an issue must always be presented or deciding that random person X on Facebook is equivalent to the consensus of doctors).

I found that the best way to read this book was straight through–it goes quickly, in a somewhat hypnotic way, and isn’t difficult to read despite the experimental structure. Reading large chunks of the book allows you to identify the author’s repeated quirks (sticking turtles into various lists) or juxtapositions (lists of antisemitic laws in pre-WWII Germany followed by lists of Jim Crow laws in America).

Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado



The stories in this collection sometimes defy description and often include sci-fi, horror and magic realist concepts, along with various experimental structures. Even with all these trappings, the writing makes them well worth reading; the author has a straightforward voice with viscerally grotesque descriptions. Most of the romantic/sexual relationships described are between women, and a focus on ordinary life and daily routines anchors the stories even with various fantastic conceits, which often illuminate the issues of women with their partners, the world and their own bodies.

“The Husband Stitch” is a fantastic opener, describing a woman’s happy marriage and family with reference to well-known horror stories.

“Inventory” was another good one–it’s a list of the narrator’s relationships as a pandemic grips America.

“Mothers”, about a woman dealing with being a mother and remembering an abusive relationship, was the weakest story for me–still well written but not as focused.

I loved “Especially Heinous” but can see that it would be a divisive story–it seems to be a description of the episodes of the TV show Law and Order: SVU (I have seen multiple seasons of the show, but this one would probably be less interesting if you’ve never watched it) but eventually starts telling its own story, a Gothic, labyrinthine one filled with ghosts, doppelgangers and possibly sentient cities.

“Real Women Have Bodies” and “Eight Bites” are involving stories, even if the supernatural events in them are a bit on the nose.

“The Resident” and “Difficult at Parties” are more grounded–the first is about a writer attending an artists’ retreat and the second is about a woman dealing with the aftermath of a traumatic experience–but they have an uncanny feel, like something is about the leap out of the shadows at any moment.

Enjoyed your morning reviews

>117 DieFledermaus: just catching this review of The Outcast Spirit. Very interesting about the author. Great review.

>118 DieFledermaus: Europeana sounds really terrific in your review. I hadn’t heard of this, so seems like a nice find thanks to rebeccanyc.

>119 DieFledermaus:

"Most of the romantic/sexual relationships described are between women"

You know, I've been feeling rather frustrated about the absence of lesbian love amid all the love stories I've been reading lately. I did go out of my way to find a couple on Kobo but the one I ended up buying was not great. And all the erotica I've been reading seem to have a common fascination for the penis, whether in heterosexual or homosexual love, which would make it a bit awkward if no man is involved of course :-P

>118 DieFledermaus: I can't decide if I would like this one or not...

>120 dchaikin: - Thanks--definitely a couple odd books!

>121 FlorenceArt: - An LGBTQ theme read would be a good one--I have The Well of Loneliness somewhere, need to read more Sarah Waters and have Dykes to Watch Out For, which I was going to read for the graphic novel theme read, but a lot of the books I've been looking at are about gay men (mostly 1st half of the 20th c and before). Hope you can find some good lesbian romances/erotica!

>122 labfs39: - I can see how it would be a polarizing book. Rebecca wrote reviews for two of his other books--she liked both of them, although it sounded like they are also odd, but in different ways.

I'm in Germany for a vacation for the next week or so--not sure how much reading I'll be able to do, although I have less than 100 pages to go for North and South (did some reading on the plane). I didn't get much reading done earlier this month--was finishing up some training for work and packing. I picked up some books at Saint George's English Bookshop

The Lottery and Other Stories by Shirley Jackson
The Class by Hermann Ungar
Boys and Murderers by Ungar
The King in Yellow by Robert Chambers
Blockade Diary by Lidiya Ginzburg

Enjoy! Where in Germany are you?

>125 labfs39: - Thanks! I'm in Berlin right now but will be going to Leipzig in a couple days. Also picked up another book at Dussmann--The Seventh Cross by Anna Seghers. I haven't had much time to read--mostly running around, museumgoing and operagoing.

>126 DieFledermaus: If you see Elektra, wave hello at the production for me!

>127 ELiz_M: - I did see Elektra! I love that production so it was wonderful to see it in person. Also, I was really excited to see Waltraud Meier as Klytaemnestra since I've never seen her in person before. Chrysothemis was a singer I'd never heard of before--Vida Miknevičiūtė--and I liked her a lot. Rene Pape was luxury casting as Orest and unsurprisingly sang beautifully. Unfortunately, I think Ricarda Merbeth as Elektra didn't compare to the other singers I'd seen in this production (filmed)--Evelyn Herlitzius and Nina Stemme.

>128 DieFledermaus: Nina Stemme is phenomenal in that role.

>124 DieFledermaus: My sister lives quite near St George's English bookshop so I have popped in a couple of times - it is a nice shop, isn’t it. I also love Dussmann but mainly confine myself to the stationery section!

>129 ELiz_M: - Agreed--Nina Stemme has been fantastic the couple times I've seen her live!

>130 wandering_star: - Yes, that was a really nice bookstore, with an interesting selection. Definitely good for browsing! It was the first time I'd been to Prenzlauer Berg but I'll have to go back next time I'm in Berlin.

It's been forever since I've updated my thread! June was actually pretty bad for reading--I didn't finish any books, although I did do some reading. Planning for my trip to Germany/going on my trip to Germany took up a lot of time--the trip was very fun, I didn't get sick and I saw all the operas I planned to see, but the actual travel part was stressful. My flight home was changed last minute (3 flights instead of two) and the first two were delayed, causing me to miss the last one. I was rebooked and made it home, but I ended up traveling for about 24 hours and instead of arriving in Seattle at noon, I came in at 9:15 pm.

I had a major work problem when I came home (software malfunctioning) and then I went on a family trip to the Oregon coast, which was also fun but tiring--traveling with 3 dogs and two kids is a lot of work. My parents joked that they needed a vacation from the vacation.

In book news, I finished North and South! Finally! I'm currently reading Lady Anna and Hester arrived today for the Victorian theme read. I also finished The Crimson Blind and Other Stories by HD Everett and Peter Schlemiel by Adelbert von Chamisso for my Gothic read.

We visited Powell's on the last day of the trip and spent two hours, although I could have easily browsed for two more. Also, at one point, I was that person in the bookstore holding the screaming baby.

The final book haul -

The Corner that Held Them by Sylvia Townsend Warner
Dance on the Volcano by Marie Vieux-Chauvet
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
The Woman of the Wolf by Renee Vivien

I also picked up

I am stone : the gothic weird tales of R. Murray Gilchrist and Medusa's daughters : magic and monstrosity from women writers of the fin-de-siécle ed. Theodora Goss at a bookstore in Lincoln City.

Hoping the reading will pick up. My work issue is fixed, and I have some potential weekend trips, but no more big trips planned until the fall.

>131 DieFledermaus: It's nice to have you back, Stephanie. I'm sorry your return flight was such an ordeal. My daughter went to Seattle at the end of June for a wedding, then went down to California to see friends. I'm very glad that she didn't have those kinds of delays while travelling alone.

Some nice book finds!

>132 labfs39: - Thanks, Lisa! The trip home was pretty stressful, but it sounds like it's even worse now. I didn't have to wait 4 or 5 hours in the security line, and they rebooked my flight to Seattle right away. I'm glad your daughter had a smooth trip--while I've heard about some issues in the US, it sounds like things are really bad in some countries in Europe.

>133 DieFledermaus: Yes, someone I know just flew from Seattle to London, and the plane had trouble landing and getting the luggage doors open due to excessive heat (104+). Scary.

I envy you your visit to Powell's, even if your nephew had a meltdown. I miss big bookstores like that. Portland is a fun city.

>131 DieFledermaus: how fun! Well, minus the exhausting parts.

The airlines really seem like they're a mess lately—I'm sure there are a heap of factors at work. Glad you're home safe and sound, anyway, and that the rest of the trip was fun.

>134 labfs39: - Wow, that does sound scary! Seattle is having a heat wave but it's nothing compared to what they had in some places in Europe (or the heat dome we had last year--that was bad).

Yeah, Powell's is lots of fun to browse--I know you can just order whatever online but I love serendipitously finding good deals and new books.

>135 dchaikin: - Yup, both trips were fun, but I needed some naps after getting home!

>136 lisapeet: - Thanks! Yeah, I read some articles listing various reasons for the backup in European flights. Sounds like it's a bit better in the US.

In more travel news, I'm on a weekend trip to San Francisco for the West Edge Opera festival. I'd like to stop at one of the bookstores here, but I'll be pretty busy with museumgoing and operagoing. I saw Dukas' Ariane et Barbe-bleue today--beautiful music, good singers, an interesting production. Orchestra could have been a little tighter at times, but it was wonderful to hear it live--I've only seen one filmed production. I do wish this one was performed more. Also book-related--I'm seeing an operatic version of Neil Gaiman's Coraline tomorrow.

The Crimson Blind and Other Stories by HD Everett

More Victorian ghost stories



This collection of supernatural stories is by Henrietta Dorothy Everett or H.D. Everett, aka Theo Douglas, who was well-known in her day but mostly forgotten now. She was one of the last writers of Victorian ghost stories, and this collection reflects that–World War I is often mentioned in the stories. Sometimes the reference is incidental–a character is described as going off the war–but a couple stories directly involve the war. In “Over the Wires”, a soldier searches for his fiancee, who has gone missing in the tumult of the war. “A Perplexing Case” deals with two men injured in the war.

Everett’s stories are very readable and well-constructed. For example, in the longest story in the collection, “The Next Heir”, she effectively balances various supernatural concepts, which hasn’t always worked in some other ghost stories that I’ve read. She tends to avoid the tragic or shocking endings that are common in ghost stories–not that every ending is happy, but many violent ends that could happen given the situations don’t occur. Although the book was pleasant and went fast, I don’t know how memorable most of the stories will be except for the first one–”The Death Mask”. Although this story is short and you can tell where it’s going after a bit, it was memorably creepy. I also liked “The Crimson Blind”, which had a different take on a concept I’d seen before–various disturbing events are observed on the blind of a house. “The Water Witch” was a melancholy story about a lonely wife who is affected by the hauntings in her new house. One notable thing about that one was the rather unsympathetic, judgmental narrator, the sister-in-law of the wife–I wasn’t sure if she would have been as unsympathetic at the time the story was written.

Interesting collection to read, and great review.