Multiple Scariness

First of all.... confession time. When I state here that I have "only" 69 books to read I actually meant 69 books that are here in my house at the moment. I have to admit that I have some more in storage at my mum's that I have not read. To be honest, I have no idea any more how many I have there, tucked away securely in boxes, unread, alone in the dark... poor things. The thing is also that I am not even sure I remember which ones I have and have not read. I am thinking I might be able to tell from the spines. As I used to be a spine cracker (now happily living my life as a non spine cracker) I am kind of working on the assumption that any book stowed away at my mum's that does not have a cracked spine is one that I have not read. Not sure what that ups the count to.... not sure I want to know. I am going to work with the ones I have here now and that's the 69 unread ones adorning my shelves at this moment (denial is a wonderful thing). It's a good thing that I have my music to get me through reading all these treasures... The Band was helping me out a lot in reading this one.



## SPOILER ALERT ##


Victorian Ghost Stories - Various authors
For this one I managed to get back to my favourite genre: Ghost Stories!!
Every now and again just read something that "scares" you... or in my case read a lot of stuff that "scares" you.
This collection of stories was a good one. Written between 1838 and 1900 there is a good variety in themes, there are animal and human spooks and even vampires get a look in. Some stories are by the same author, one of German origin, and even that famous author Anonymous gets a look in.

Hugues the Wer-Wolf - Sutherland Menzies
Strange tale that at first seems to be about a family that is shunned by the community and then turns out to be about the son who manages to survive hardship and yet finds love. found the way it was written a bit stilted and haltingly at times and I struggled with it in the beginning. The story seems to meander one way and then another and the change from one storyline to the next is not smooth or sometimes even logical. But I guess in the end every character gets what they deserve.

The Dream - J. Sheridan Le Fanu
I had read some of his ghost stories before and was happy to see him included in this collection.
This one is about a dying man who wishes to makes amends for the life he has lived after he gets a taste of what could be in store for him when he passes on. He has a good go at changing his life around and seems to be on the path to righteousness, however, this being a ghost story there is no escaping his destiny. Lovely gloomy and dark atmosphere, story told by someone who helps out they guy and observes from a distance and is as confounded as everyone else when the end comes along with a bit of a thud.

A chapter in the history of a Tyrone family - J. Sheridan Le Fanu
this one takes the shape of a story being told to the author. A lady tells her tale. It starts out with a story about her family and the tragic loss of a beloved sister. Strangeness happens (involving ghostly carriages) and then, all of a sudden the story veers off on a completely different direction, the sister is forgotten and the real story starts. How the lady marries the magnificent Lord Glenfallen and finds herself taken off to a big old house, a castle even (well, it wouldn't be a nice two up two down in Bloomsbury would it, not back in 1839) where she has to contend not only with a morose husband but a mad Dutch woman as well. It all gets gorgeously weird with the Dutch woman going on trial for attempting to kill our lady narrator, accusations of bigamy and madness. In the end madness is what ends it all.
Excellent story once you get over the slight change of emphasis on the first part of the story to the second more extensive part. It's almost as if Le Fanu started to write the story and then thought of an even more wonderful adventure his character could have but forgot to leave out the first part when he took the manuscript to the printers'. Still, a great entertaining story and the weirdness is worth it.

The Dead Sexton - J. Sheridan Le Fanu
A third treat from Le Fanu! There's a dead body in the second paragraph and for a minute you are not sure why Le Fanu would start the story that way but then it turns out to be not as much about the dead guy as it is about a guest who wanders by the Inn where the corpse is laid out. As an experienced reader of ghost stories you know that nobody just "wanders by" in stories like this so your suspicions are aroused buy the stranger who seems to be just a little too interested in the corpse (and rightly so!).
Good build up to the end and a lovely flurry of distracting guests to keep you from guessing what is actually going to happen in the end.

The Italian's Story - Mrs Crowe
An Italian Count trying to make his fortune in the world comes across a family whose past is linked with his... coincidence.... I think not. One young man is cheated out of a small fortune and his Italian ghost helps pay back the debt. I found myself almost screaming "come one don't you get it by now, I got it about 5 pages ago" at the end of the story so... a little predictable but okay.

Round the Fire - Mrs Crowe
Three for the price of one!
First a quick story about travellers being set upon by a ghost and then one even shorter one about a ghost without eyes. Then on to he main course: a man, a castle, a dark windy night, rooms where no other person will stay, a resident ghost... you fill in the blanks.

The Mysterious Stranger - Translated from the German
Nice story about a family travelling to a remote castle to inspect their territories. There is the girl scorning a young man's attentions and an eerie encounter with some wolves and a mysterious stranger. As he gets invited into their home you are almost screaming at them "No - don't do it, it will come to nothing" but do they listen??? You know the guy is up to no good but the rest of them seem blissfully ignorant of this fact. In the end a beat up but clever knight with a trick or two up his sleeve comes to the rescue and all is well.
Great build up of plot, nice characterisation of the main players and great reading flow and pace.

The Ghost Detective - Mark Lemon
A main character who when asked if he believes in ghost answers: Yes -No.. always a good start. The story follows the adventures of James Loxley who gets accused of embezzlement. We know he is one of the good guys but who is the bad guy. Well its' not who you think! Note to self: never trust servants that worry too much about my well being.

The Shadow of a Shade - Tom Hood
The story of how a man develops a shadow on his shadow.
What can I say without giving it away.. not a lot. Strangely enough there is a love and a trip to the icy colds involved in this one. Envy is the bad guy.

The Dead Man of Varley Grange - Anonymous
Why going to a haunted house with a few friends and mocking a ghost is never a good idea.
A nice guy gets ghosted and has to pay the price... shame, he seemed like such a nice, decent guy.
Nicely done, flows well and has the right amount of ghost in it. Anonymous should write more of these.

The Ghost in the Bank of England - Anonymous
Another good one from Anonymous.
This time the story starts off innocently enough with a doctor trying to make his way in the world. He manages to do this by taking care of some weird guy afraid of dying. Part of you thinks that this is the main story but no it's just the beginning! His reward is a bank note (cheque) which he duly cashes in for cash and the Bank of England. If it were not for the fact that on the way down he is accompanied by a man telling him a story of someone who used to work there you would think all would be well. Alas for our friend all is not well - he gets accused of fraud and looks about to be deported. However, he manages to prove his case and is able to get his life back on track.

The Picture on the Wall - Katharine Tynan
Man loves woman, woman is not wanting to commit for some reason. Woman invites man to her ancestral home to meet her family. Man gets cold reception from family. Man stays in room with painting with piercing eyes. Man is haunted at night by ghost, man survives, woman sends him packing. Not great - seems to end when it should just be getting started. Also no idea why we get the background of the whole romance as it seems to push any trace of ghost story right to the background. The whole thing feels a little contrived and more a collection of loose plot elements than a nicely told story meandering from A to B. Only the last few pages mention anything remotely ghostly and the dismissal of our male suitor is just ludicrously silly and seems just a little aside in an attempt to round up the story. Feels like there should have been a second part to it, something is missing?!

The Story of Medhans Lea - E. and H. Heron
Short and sweet - friends meet for a spot of billiards in an old house under refurbishment. Weird stuff happens (smells, crying, rustling bushes and ghostly, dark appearances) but it is all explained nicely in the end. None of them bothered to look up the history of the house before they went there but afterwards one of them seems to have developed a keen interest in it. Too late now mate.

The Tomb of Sarah - F.G. Loring
If ever there was a reason to say "I told you so" in a ghost story this one delivers.
So, here we are, restoring a church and relocating a tomb which clearly says on it, and I quote:... "for the sake of the dead and the welfare of the living, let this sepulchre remain untouched and its occupant undisturbed till the coming of Christ"... So what shall we do with this tomb then? Yep, you got it... move it 10 feet... ::sigh:: Well you asked for it!
Well written story, some goriness, some howling.... oh, and a few really stupid men. I am almost inclined to say: "Unfortunately they all make it to the end of the book alive and well."... not that they deserve it for being so stupid! What were they thinking?!


Title: Victorian Ghost Stories
Author: various
Senate
335 pages
ISBN 1-85958-133-1


Books bought: 0
Books to be read: 68

The Book Count might change as I am going to a book Fair in London on Sunday. I will try to be good, but I am not making any promises. Not sure what I am going to read next.... have to wait and see.