Late Victorian Gothic Tales (Oxford World's Classics)

I am slightly miffed that a collection of late Gothic stories included only two female author, considering women's prolixity in this genre. That being said, this is a perfect October read and a pretty informative book on the Gothic as a whole, especially the second-wave which found its summit in the latter half of the 19th century. It's a good mix of Irish, Canadian and Anglo-Indian writers that tackle the terrors of modern society. As always, what I love about the Gothic is that it's such a liminal kind of writing that touches upon issues or race, colonialism, queerness, morality, mythology, sexuality etc. It combines tradition and modernism, tropes and ambiguity, fear and pleasure. It just rocks.Ratings for each story:Vernon Lee [Violet Paget], Dionea - 7/10. Starting off with one of the gals. The narrator of this story is particularly interesting since he is obsessed with the female form and the old Greek gods and he's a doctor, to boot. Gothic narrators are so perverse and cool. Dionea is pretty badass too. The ending made me shiver, but the story as a whole was a bit underwhelming. Points for capitalizing on racial fear (Dionea is a woman of color, of course).Oscar Wilde, Lord Arthur Savile's Crime - 9/10. Not a shocking or gruesome tale, but Wilde's style is effortlessly enjoyable and brilliant. The dark humor makes the whole story, because if this had been written in a tragic key, I doubt it would still be memorable. I also dig that pun in Savile's name (savile - civil, eh, eh?)Henry James, Sir Edmund Orme - 7/10. A creepy and subversive ghost story, especially if you consider what is left out of the text. As a whole, it's perfectly serviceable, nothing impressive, but that subtext - oh, man, that subtext. I did not so much enjoy it as I kept wondering about it for days (again, watch out for perverse narrator).Rudyard Kipling, The Mark of the Beast - 7/10. The real horror in this story is, of course, the racial Other. Not to spoil much, but two white men have to torture an Indian leper. Yeah.B.M. Croker, The Dak Bungalow at Dakor - 6/10. Damn it, this is our only other female author and her story is a dud. Honestly, it might be the weakest of the bunch, solely because it does not go beyond "Indians murder white men, bungalow is haunted". I mean, I suppose you could infer that the murder at the center of the tale is an indirect sin of colonialism, but the writing and framing of the story do not encourage deeper readings. Not very thrilling either. Sorry, Bithia.Arthur Conan Doyle, Lot No. 249 - 7/10. I would have given it more points, but this mummy story is quite anti-climactic. The set-up is ingenious. A brilliant but mad student of Oriental languages finds a mummy and manages somehow to revive it and use it to harm his enemies. However, the ending is too clean-cut and dry and our main protagonist saves the day without any lasting moral or emotional repercussions. Still, a fun read.Arthur Conan Doyle, The Case of Lady Sannox - 8/10. Now this is how you do it. This is a climactic ending I really did not expect. Doyle plays with expectations perfectly. It's short and sweet, but absolutely chilling.Grant Allen, Pallinghurst Barrow - 7/10. A pretty inventive take on the ghost story. Actually, I think it's a ghost-fairy story, which is quite something. And it's legitimately scary. Except, once again, the protagonist has a bit of an easy escape at the end.Jean Lorrain, Magic Lantern - 8/10. A very short story written by a French dandy. Nothing much happens, in fact it's a kind of meta-text on the genre and a detailed description of society's modern monsters. But the language and the humor are delicious. And it is quite creepy.Jean Lorrain, The Spectral Hand - 7/10. A pretty routine ghost story, where the specter is more benevolent than anything else. Nothing much happens except, y'know, the signs of death are everywhere; we just don't pay attention.Arthur Machen, The Great God Pan - 10/10. Holy S***. Everything I heard about this story, the praise and the rich commentary - all warranted. This is a hell of a journey, intensely creepy, downright blood-curdling, but at the same time, enchanting and even melancholy. This is what Dionea was striving to be, in terms of mythological horror. I will say I wanted more out of that ending, but given the format of the story, I suppose it fits perfectly and leaves you wanting more.M.P. Shiel, Vaila - 7/10. Probably the most frustrating tale of the bunch. It's a story of natural and supernatural horror, Shakespearean revenge...and the dangers of building your home by the sea. The language is to die for, I mean this man has somehow swallowed and refined several English and French dictionaries. That being said, this is Gothic at its most unrelenting and unpleasant. It's not a story you'll enjoy, but it is haunting and upsetting all the same. I just need more fun in my Gothic, so I can't give it more points. Tedious, but remarkable, if that makes sense.

The anthology contains a fine sampling of late victorian gothic fiction. One of the best things about books like this one is that they often re-introduce excellent but forgotten writers from the past. This anthology does not disappoint in this regard. I was very pleased to see that it includes Dionea, by Vernon Lee, and The Great God Pan, by Arthur Machen. The gothic fiction of this period was particularly concerned with paganism and these stories reflect that. It is that very paganism that makes them relevant to readers today in our times of new age beliefs and Wicca.In contrast with earlier gothic fiction, I would have to say that the late gothic period was more concerned with intellectual horror. It was finer in this way. For example, in a story from the first wave of gothic fiction, the reader would have found the ghost or supernatural element scary enough in itself. A late victorian gothic tale would add an intellectual dimension to the ghost story in that the writer would attempt to explore what a ghost is and represents. Whereas an earlier gothic tale would have found the actions of a madman abhorrent enough, the story Vaila, by MP Shiel, explores the origins and nature of madness through several generations of an old and accursed family.Expect very finely wrought pieces of horror literature. The anthology is limited to victorian writers from Britain, and I thought this was its failing as it could have included writers like Edith Wharton and Willa Cather, who were themselves authors of very great ghost stories. The late victorian gothic was also strongly influenced by the work of Edgar Allan Poe, and yet he is also missing from this anthology. Nonetheless, this book will be full of treats for real fans of the gothic.

M. P. Shiel’s “Vaila” is the only story in this book that gave me chills, which is what I suppose most readers want from Gothic tales. It is, however, not chills that I look for in Gothic/horror/weird tales, but literary quality, psychological depth, and complex symbolism. The only two stories to score on these were Vernon Lee’s “Dionea” and Arthur Machen’s “The Great God Pan”. “Pan” is in fact perhaps the best weird tale ever written, but it was hardly new to my library. These two stories, though, would clearly merit five stars. Henry James’ “Sir Edmund Orme” and Arthur Conan Doyle’s “Lot No. 249” are also not without literary merit, though a little boring. Oscar Wilde’s “Lord Arthur Sevile’s Crime” is rather amusing, yet I cannot imagine wanting to read it more than once—and it is too light-hearted to make a good Gothic. The rest is one or two star material. The two stories by Jean Lorrain are especially weak, clearly not worth even the little time it takes to read them. The remaining stories, by Rudyard Kipling, B. M. Croker, Arthur Conan Doyle (again) and Grant Allen are far from their authors’ best, and I can hardly imagine why Roger Luckhurst chose them. If it wasn’t for Lee and Machen, I would give this collection two stars, but their inclusion is sufficient to raise it to three, though you might do better to find their stories elsewhere.

I just started reading this book, the writing style really pulled me into the story immediately. I plan not to read it 'til I have all Summer projects finished.

I collect these ghost stories.

Could not put this book down great writers of the past wish more stories were told like this book has

as expected

Enjoyed reading this.

This 2015 reprint edition of late Victorian Gothic tales is a wonderful collection as the editor has chosen not only the big names of the period like Henry James, Oscar Wilde, Rudyard Kipling, Arthur Conan Doyle but also included some lesser known writers.Consider the fact that the book is a light-weight edition ( I have chosen not to use the word anthology as it contains 12 tales only), most of them are easy reading because the tales are at most 40 pages long. As the editor says in the introduction, the selection here has "diversity" and "range".Oscar Wilde's Lord Arthur Savile's Crime easily stands out as the most fluid story and as a late Victorian genius, he effortlessly turns a murder story very humorous and more respectable than it is. There is something very charming in his prose writing.Kipling's short story is widely anthologized piece. His story is quite readable as it involves or demands cultural understanding in the late 19th century when Queen Victoria was also the figurehead of there. The writhing and uncontrollable shivers of the victim is more likely an unknown effect of poor hygiene but in those days, the story surely would give a spooky experience.Among the tales, my pick of 2nd best is Arthur Conan Doyle's Lady Sannox, which is in a way, both comical and tragic because the famous doctor has done something foolish enough to disfigure the woman he loves as well as tarnish his own professional reputation by a sudden fit of greed. Unlike other tales in the collection, the story is less "murderous".The Dak Bungalow of Dakor is typical of the uncanny type: two English ladies travelling in the Indian continent loses their way and are forced to stay in a deserted house in which they have mysterious nightmares. It turns out the nightmares are a reminder of true crime committed there: a young man at the station was murdered 7 years ago. Typical plot but worthwhile to read.Other than the wonder tales, I particularly like the photo used on the cover: an owl in front of a big mirror. Any reader is sure to be impressed with such spookiness.

Perfect

good study to begin your journey into Gothic literature. Mr Luckhurst is an expert on issues related to the literatureHighly recommended

Bought as a gift, they loved it. Very quirky book but perfect for anyone whose a fan of the darker Victorian times

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