A tree full of enormous spiders, a living thing with no face, a picture that comes alive, and a boy with no heart. These are some of the frightening things in these stories by M. R. James, one of the greatest horror writers of all time.

The modern horror story grew and developed across the nineteenth century, embracing categories as diverse as ghost stories, the supernatural and psychological horror, medical and scientific horror, colonial horror, and tales of the uncanny and precognition. This anthology brings together twenty-nine of the greatest horror stories of the period, from 1816 to 1912, from the British, Irish, American, and European traditions. It ranges widely across the sub-genres to encompass authors whose terror-inducing powers remain unsurpassed. The book includes stories by some of the best writers of the century -- Hoffmann, Poe, Balzac, Dickens, Hawthorne, Melville, and Zola -- as well as established genre classics from M. R. James, Arthur Machen, Bram Stoker, Algernon Blackwood, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, and others. It includes rare and little-known pieces by writers such as William Maginn, Francis Marion Crawford, W. F. Harvey, and William Hope Hodgson, and shows the important role played by periodicals in popularizing the horror story. Wherever possible, stories are reprinted in their first published form, with background information about their authors and helpful, contextualizing annotation. Darryl Jones's lively introduction discusses horror's literary evolution and its articulation of cultural preoccupations and anxieties. These are stories guaranteed to freeze the blood, revolt the senses, and keep you awake at night: prepare to be terrified!

This beautiful Macmillan Collector's Library edition features an afterword by author and playwright David Stuart Davies.The art of telling a ghost story is a refined one, and Montague Rhodes James was a master of the genre. He draws the reader into a narrative that at first seems innocuous, but which becomes darker and darker by gentle turns until he transfixes you with his prose, creating the most unforgettable, alarming and frightening images. Complete Ghost Stories by M. R. James contains all his timeless masterpieces from the four collections of his eerie tales: Ghost Stories of an Antiquary (1904), More Ghost Stories of an Antiquary (1911), A Thin Ghost and Others (1919), and A Warning to the Curious and Other Ghost Stories (1925). . . . . . . .

This beautiful Macmillan Collector's Library edition features an afterword by author and playwright David Stuart Davies.The art of telling a ghost story is a refined one, and Montague Rhodes James was a master of the genre. He draws the reader into a narrative that at first seems innocuous, but which becomes darker and darker by gentle turns until he transfixes you with his prose, creating the most unforgettable, alarming and frightening images. Complete Ghost Stories by M. R. James contains all his timeless masterpieces from the four collections of his eerie tales: Ghost Stories of an Antiquary (1904), More Ghost Stories of an Antiquary (1911), A Thin Ghost and Others (1919), and A Warning to the Curious and Other Ghost Stories (1925). . . . . . . .

A collection of rare ghosts and horror stories by the brothers of one of the finest writers of the genre, E. F. Benson. The Benson brothers – Arthur Christopher, Edward Frederic and Robert Hugh – were one of the most extraordinary and prolific literary families, between them writing more than 150 books. Arthur alone left four million words of diary, although his most lasting legacy is the words to Elgar’s Land of Hope and Glory, while Fred is acknowledged as one of the finest writers of Edwardian supernatural fiction: the name E. F. Benson is mentioned in the same breath as other greats such as M. R. James and H. R. Wakefield. In fact, all three brothers wrote ghost stories, although the work of Arthur and Hugh in this field has long been overshadowed by their brother’s success. Now the best supernatural tales of A. C. and R. H. Benson have been gathered into one volume by anthologist Hugh Lamb, whose introduction examines the lives and writings of these two complex and fascinating men. Originally published between 1903 and 1927, the stories include A. C. Benson’s masterful ‘Basil Netherby’ and ‘The Uttermost Farthing’, and an intriguing article by R. H. Benson about real-life haunted houses.

This title is edited by M.R. James. In 1888 Henry James wrote 'There was the customary novel by Mr Le Fanu for the bedside; the ideal reading in a country house for the hours after midnight'. "Madam Crowl's Ghost and Other Stories" are tales selected from Le Fanu's stories which mostly appeared in "The Dublin University" Magazine and other periodicals, and their haunting, sinister qualities still have an enormous appeal for the modern reader. The great M.R. James, who collected and introduces the stories in this book, considered that Le Fanu 'stands absolutely in the first rank as a writer of ghost stories.' .

This title is edited by M.R. James. In 1888 Henry James wrote 'There was the customary novel by Mr Le Fanu for the bedside; the ideal reading in a country house for the hours after midnight'. "Madam Crowl's Ghost and Other Stories" are tales selected from Le Fanu's stories which mostly appeared in "The Dublin University" Magazine and other periodicals, and their haunting, sinister qualities still have an enormous appeal for the modern reader. The great M.R. James, who collected and introduces the stories in this book, considered that Le Fanu 'stands absolutely in the first rank as a writer of ghost stories.' .

In 1888 Henry James wrote 'There was the customary novel by Mr Le Fanu for the bedside; the ideal reading in a country house for the hours after midnight'. Madam Crowl's Ghost & Other Stories are tales selected from Le Fanu's stories which mostly appeared in The Dublin University Magazine and other periodicals, and their haunting, sinister qualities still have an enormous appeal for the modern reader. The great M.R. James, who collected and introduces the stories in this book, considered that Le Fanu 'stands absolutely in the first rank as a writer of ghost stories.'

Five short stories to scare and enthral. Includes The Whistle, The Message of Death, and The Maze.

The art of telling a ghost story is a refined one, and Montague Rhodes James was a master of the genre. Designed to appeal to the booklover, the Macmillan Collector's Library is a series of beautiful gift editions of much loved classic titles. Macmillan Collector's Library are books to love and treasure. This beautiful Macmillan Collector's Library edition features an afterword by author and playwright David Stuart Davies. He draws the reader into a narrative that at first seems innocuous, but which becomes darker and darker by gentle turns until he transfixes you with his prose, creating the most unforgettable, alarming and frightening images. Complete Ghost Stories by M. R. James contains all his timeless masterpieces from the four collections of his eerie tales: Ghost Stories of an Antiquary (1904), More Ghost Stories of an Antiquary (1911), A Thin Ghost and Others (1919), and A Warning to the Curious and Other Ghost Stories (1925).

Howard Lovecraft was an American writer who achieved posthumous fame through his influential works of horror fiction. Despite the fact that he was virtually unknown before he died, today he is known as the most influential author in his genre. "The Dunwich Horror and Other Stories" is a collection of wonderful short stories such as "The Rats in the Walls," "The Strange High House in the Mist" and others. These stories, full of mystery and fantastic creatures, have captured the minds of readers all over the world.

Howard Lovecraft was an American writer who achieved posthumous fame through his influential works of horror fiction. Despite the fact that he was virtually unknown before he died, today he is known as the most influential author in his genre. "The Dreams in the Witch-House and Other Stories" is a collection of wonderful short stories such as "The Horror at Red Hook," "In the Vault," "The Dreams in the Witch-House" and others. These stories, full of mystery and fantastic creatures, have captured the minds of readers all over the world.

Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu (1814-1873) was one of the great masters of Victorian of mystery and horror fiction, and can be regarded as the father of the modern ghost story. In a Glass Darkly (1872), one of his most celebrated volumes, purports to be the casebook of Dr Hesselius, a pioneer psychologist. These five tales represent some of Le Fanu's most accomplished work, which rises above the staid conventions of the age. Although drawing on Gothic conventions - the book features both ghosts and vampires - Le Fanu redefined the parameters of supernatural fiction. He had little interest in the crude depiction of other worldly phenomena in order to provide the reader with a pleasurable frisson of fear. Le Fanu concern rather lay in the examination of the results of supernatural experience on the psyche of his protagonist, in this he paved the way for the work of Henry James and M. R. James. This volume is an indispensable cornerstone of modern horror and remains one of the finest collections of unsettling fiction in the language.

Howard Lovecraft (1890 - 1937) was an American writer who achieved posthumous fame through his influential works of horror fiction. Despite the fact that he was virtually unknown before he died, today he is known as the most influential author in his genre. "The Dunwich Horror and Other Stories" is a collection of wonderful short stories such as "The Rats in the Walls," "The Strange High House in the Mist" and others. These stories, full of mystery and fantastic creatures, have captured the minds of readers all over the world.

In his late thirties, Edward Parnell found himself trapped in the recurring nightmare of a family tragedy. For comfort, he turned to his bookshelves, back to the ghost stories that obsessed him as a boy, and to the writers through the ages who have attempted to confront what comes after death. In Ghostland, Parnell goes in search of the 'sequestered places' of the British Isles, our lonely moors, our moss-covered cemeteries, our stark shores and our folkloric woodlands. He explores how these landscapes conjured and shaped a kaleidoscopic spectrum of literature and cinema, from the ghost stories and weird fiction of M. R. James, Arthur Machen and Algernon Blackwood to the children's fantasy novels of Alan Garner and Susan Cooper; from W. G. Sebald's The Rings of Saturn and Graham Swift's Waterland to the archetypal 'folk horror' film The Wicker Man… Ghostland is Parnell's moving exploration of what has haunted our writers and artists - and what is haunting him. It is a unique and elegiac meditation on grief, memory and longing, and of the redemptive power of stories and nature.

Howard Lovecraft (1890 - 1937) was an American writer who achieved posthumous fame through his infl uential works of horror fi ction. Despite the fact that he was virtually unknown before he died, today he is known as the most influential author in his genre. "The Dreams in the Witch House and Other Stories" is a collection of wonderful short stories such as "The Horror at Red Hook," "In the Vault," "The Dreams in the Witch House" and others. These stories, full of mystery and fantastic creatures, have captured the minds of readers all over the world.