999: New Stories of Horror and Suspense

One of the best short story anthologies I've come across so far. Yes I am a fan of the horror genre but that doesn't even come into play here. These are well crafted, original stories that can amuse (Chet Williamson's Excerpts from the Records of the New Zodiac and the Diaries of Henry Watson Fairfax), disturb (Edward Lee's ICU), enthrall (Joe R. Landsdale's Mad Dog Summer) and fascinate (Neil Gaiman's Keepsakes and Treasures: A Love Story). And that's just to name a few, there isn't a disappointing story in here.

Most of the stories were good, but the one that really stands out in my mind was the final story, a short novel called "Elsewhere," by William Peter Blatty, author of The Exorcist. I did figure out what was going on about halfway through, but that didn't stop it from being really creepy and the closest to truly scary of any of the stories.

"Elsewhere" was about Joan Freeboard, a Realtor who wanted to sell an unoccupied mansion on an island in the Hudson River. Unfortunately, the mansion was rumored to be haunted, so she convinced a writer, a psychic, and a ghosthunter to spend the night with her in the mansion to prove it wasn't haunted. All the characters were finely drawn and interesting, and the haunted mansion lived up to its name show more quite impressively. show less

EXCELLENT collection. There were a few 'meh' stories and a few poorly written stories but overall this is one of the most excellent collections of short horror and suspense that I've come across.

I tried to say something about each story, but I lost the thread towards the end (studying for the bar exam, what can you do?)

The last story by William Peter Blatty is quite good. I also thoroughly enjoyed 'The Theater' so much that I picked up a novel by that author.

Definitely worth keeping around.

I had a really tough time getting through this book. I thought it might have been just the fact that I was only reading it at work that might have been slowing me down, but even when I read at home, i realized that all of the stories seemed very similar. Only one or two of them really had me creeped out, the rest just had me thinking "Okay, what's so scary about that?"
Maybe it's due to the fact that I don't read much horror or suspense, but I wanted to at least try and branch out a little. Now I've reaffirmed that it's not really my type of reading material and I'm ok with that.

A lot of contemporary literary heavyweights contributed to this anthology, but like any short-story collection there are both highs and lows. Ultimately, there's definitely more hits than misses, and most of the big names - King, Gaiman, Oates, Blatty - all make fine contributions. There's a few works that are a little too fantasy without enough shock, but otherwise there are a couple real scares in here.

Copy of my Launchpad review from 2001:
This anthology aims to demonstrate that horror and suspense are legitimate forms of literature. As an avid supporter of this concept I am not really qualified to judge this objectively, so I will leave the artistic debate to others.
As to the short stories (an occasional novella) contained within, I would suggest everyone open the book at random; the tale you find will certainly make you feel the touch of the unknown.
Alternatively, if someone recommended an author to you, then (if they are active) they are probably in here. Some of the greatest names in modern chillers show their mastery of the snapshot: brief, sharp, and permanent.

a lot of really good stories in here. joyce carol oates' 'the ruins of contracoeur' is amazing. terrifying. everything.