What do you think?
Rate this book
Nightmares
CONTENTSIntroduction · Charles L. Grant ·Suffer the Little Children · Stephen King · Peekaboo · Bill Pronzini ·*Daughter of the Golden West [“A Feast for Cathy”] · Dennis Etchison ·The Duppy Tree · Steven E. McDonald · *Naples · Avram Davidson · Seat Partner [Saint-Germain] · Chelsea Quinn Yarbro ·Camps · Jack M. Dann · The Anchoress · Beverly Evans · Transfer · Barry N. Malzberg · Unknown Drives · Richard Christian Matheson The Night of the Piasa · George W. Proctor & J. C. Green ·The Runaway Lovers · Ray Russell ·Fisherman’s Log · Peter D. Pautz ·I Can’t Help Saying Goodbye · Ann Mackenzie ·Midnight Hobo · Ramsey Campbell ·Snakes and Snails · Jack C. Haldeman, II ·Mass Without Voices · Arthur L. Samuels ·He Kilt It with a Stick · William F. Nolan ·The Ghouls · R. Chetwynd-Hayes
Paperback
First published January 1, 1979
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
March 22, 2026
Introduction (Nightmares) by Charles L. Grant
Grant expands on the anatomy of fear, defining horror as the unsettling intrusion of the extraordinary into mundane life. #Dread
"Suffer the Little Children" (1972) by Stephen King An aging teacher realizes her pupils are being replaced by monstrous, ancient entities hiding behind innocent, youthful faces. #Transformation
“Peekaboo” by Bill Pronzini
A man becomes increasingly paranoid that something invisible is watching him, leading to a frantic, claustrophobic struggle for sanity. #Paranoia
⭐“Daughter of the Golden West” by Dennis Etchison
A traveler stops at a roadside diner, encountering a strange girl and a desolate atmosphere of lingering, faded dreams. #Isolation
“The Duppy Tree” by Steven E. McDonald Investigating a legend in Jamaica, a man discovers the terrifying reality of spirits bound to a cursed, ancient tree. #Supernatural
"Naples" (1978) by Avram Davidson
In the labyrinthine streets of Naples, a traveler encounters the city’s dark, living history and its lingering, ghostly inhabitants. #Atmospheric
“Seat Partner” by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro
A woman’s bus ride turns sinister as her traveling companion reveals a hunger that transcends mere social interaction. #Predatory
“Camps” by Jack Dann
While hospitalized, a man experiences vivid, agonizing hallucinations of living through the horrors of a Nazi concentration camp. #Trauma
“The Anchoress” by Beverly Evans: A woman seeking spiritual purity through isolation finds herself tormented by the very carnal desires she sought to escape. #Madness
“Transfer” by Barry N. Malzberg
A psychiatrist treating a strange patient realizes the man’s delusions are actually a method of transferring psychic burdens. #Psychological
“Unknown Drives” by Richard Christian Matheson
A fast-paced, visceral look at a man’s descent into violence as he is consumed by primal, inexplicable urges. #Obsession
“The Night of the Piasa” by Green & Proctor
Modern researchers encounter a legendary Native American monster, finding that ancient myths possess a deadly, physical reality. #Monsters
“The Runaway Lovers” by Ray Russell
Escaping their lives, a couple finds themselves trapped in a surreal, unending cycle of flight and pursuit. #Nightmarish
“Fisherman's Log” by Peter D. Pautz
A solitary fisherman’s diary entries reveal a growing, cosmic horror emerging from the depths of the icy water. #Isolation
⭐“I Can't Help Saying Goodbye” by Ann Mackenzie
A young girl possesses a terrifying gift: she knows exactly when the people she loves are going to die. #Fate
⭐“Midnight Hobo” by Ramsey Campbell
A man walking home at night is pursued by a shapeless, urban specter that thrives in the city’s shadows. #Urban
“Snakes and Snails” by Jack C. Haldeman II
A scientist’s experimentation with biological growth leads to a gruesome, unintended evolution that spirals out of his control. #Science
⭐ “Mass Without Voices” by Arthur L. Samuels
In a silent, desolate world, a survivor wanders through a religious ceremony performed by the eerie, walking dead. #PostApocalyptic
⭐ “He Kilt It with a Stick” by William F. Nolan An old man’s cruel past catches up to him when the cats he once tormented return for vengeance. #Retribution
“The Ghouls” by R. Chetwynd-Hayes
A man stumbles upon a community of ghouls and discovers the gruesome, domestic reality of their morbid, subterranean lifestyle. #MacabreHumor
Grant expands on the anatomy of fear, defining horror as the unsettling intrusion of the extraordinary into mundane life. #Dread
"Suffer the Little Children" (1972) by Stephen King An aging teacher realizes her pupils are being replaced by monstrous, ancient entities hiding behind innocent, youthful faces. #Transformation
“Peekaboo” by Bill Pronzini
A man becomes increasingly paranoid that something invisible is watching him, leading to a frantic, claustrophobic struggle for sanity. #Paranoia
⭐“Daughter of the Golden West” by Dennis Etchison
A traveler stops at a roadside diner, encountering a strange girl and a desolate atmosphere of lingering, faded dreams. #Isolation
“The Duppy Tree” by Steven E. McDonald Investigating a legend in Jamaica, a man discovers the terrifying reality of spirits bound to a cursed, ancient tree. #Supernatural
"Naples" (1978) by Avram Davidson
In the labyrinthine streets of Naples, a traveler encounters the city’s dark, living history and its lingering, ghostly inhabitants. #Atmospheric
“Seat Partner” by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro
A woman’s bus ride turns sinister as her traveling companion reveals a hunger that transcends mere social interaction. #Predatory
“Camps” by Jack Dann
While hospitalized, a man experiences vivid, agonizing hallucinations of living through the horrors of a Nazi concentration camp. #Trauma
“The Anchoress” by Beverly Evans: A woman seeking spiritual purity through isolation finds herself tormented by the very carnal desires she sought to escape. #Madness
“Transfer” by Barry N. Malzberg
A psychiatrist treating a strange patient realizes the man’s delusions are actually a method of transferring psychic burdens. #Psychological
“Unknown Drives” by Richard Christian Matheson
A fast-paced, visceral look at a man’s descent into violence as he is consumed by primal, inexplicable urges. #Obsession
“The Night of the Piasa” by Green & Proctor
Modern researchers encounter a legendary Native American monster, finding that ancient myths possess a deadly, physical reality. #Monsters
“The Runaway Lovers” by Ray Russell
Escaping their lives, a couple finds themselves trapped in a surreal, unending cycle of flight and pursuit. #Nightmarish
“Fisherman's Log” by Peter D. Pautz
A solitary fisherman’s diary entries reveal a growing, cosmic horror emerging from the depths of the icy water. #Isolation
⭐“I Can't Help Saying Goodbye” by Ann Mackenzie
A young girl possesses a terrifying gift: she knows exactly when the people she loves are going to die. #Fate
⭐“Midnight Hobo” by Ramsey Campbell
A man walking home at night is pursued by a shapeless, urban specter that thrives in the city’s shadows. #Urban
“Snakes and Snails” by Jack C. Haldeman II
A scientist’s experimentation with biological growth leads to a gruesome, unintended evolution that spirals out of his control. #Science
⭐ “Mass Without Voices” by Arthur L. Samuels
In a silent, desolate world, a survivor wanders through a religious ceremony performed by the eerie, walking dead. #PostApocalyptic
⭐ “He Kilt It with a Stick” by William F. Nolan An old man’s cruel past catches up to him when the cats he once tormented return for vengeance. #Retribution
“The Ghouls” by R. Chetwynd-Hayes
A man stumbles upon a community of ghouls and discovers the gruesome, domestic reality of their morbid, subterranean lifestyle. #MacabreHumor
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 2, 2022
A big old anthology of late '70s-era short horror stories from editor Charles L. Grant, and aside from the King and Chetwynd-Hayes efforts these were all unfamiliar to me (which is always a great thing). They tend towards dark thrillers on the most part and most are worth at least a cursory look.
PEEKABOO, by Bill Pronzini, is a simple set-piece about a guy searching his house at night and all about the suspense, which comes in bucketloads. Dennis Etchison's DAUGHTERS OF THE GOLDEN WEST feels like a grindhouse movie in a story, notable for some ghastly moments and interesting setup. Steve McDonald's THE GUPPY TREE is notable for its Caribbean setting although a little heavy on the vernacular.
Avram Davidson's NAPLES is appallingly obtuse – no idea what that was about at all – while Chelsea Quinn Yarbro's SEAT PARTNER is a jokey vampire effort, although I'd have preferred it serious. CAMPS is by Jack Dann and a rather unpleasant recollection of WW2 concentration camps, while Beverly Evans' THE ANCHORESS is a creepy thing about a farmer's wife with a strange collection.
TRANSFER sees Barry Malzberg delivering a somewhat obscure and unsatisfying lycanthropic effort, while Richard Christian Matheson's UNKNOWN DRIVES is a top little thriller – imagine DUEL condensed into something sweet and suspenseful. Geo Proctor's NIGHT OF THE PIASA is almost exactly like the film/novel WOLFEN except considerably shorter and I'm not sure whether he or Strieber came first.
Ray Russell's RUNAWAY LOVERS is pretty trashy, a medieval torture effort let down by reams of cod Shakespearian dialogue, but Peter Pautz's FISHERMAN'S LOG is better, a tale of a childhood fishing trip ending disastrously. Ann Mackenzie's I CAN'T HELP SAYING GOODBYE sticks with the kids to strong effect with an original voice, while MIDNIGHT HOBO is one of Ramsey Campbell's strongest efforts, another extraordinarily creepy ghost story with a background of urban decay.
Jack Haldeman's SNAKES AND SNAILS is a traditional vampire story with a good setting in the swamplands of southern Georgia, while Arthur Samuels' MASS WITHOUT VOICES is a gruesome short-short about a violinist's revenge. Meanwhile, William F. Nolan's HE KILT IT WITH A STICK is a gruelling one about a man who hates cats – animal lovers, look away – and his comeuppance.
PEEKABOO, by Bill Pronzini, is a simple set-piece about a guy searching his house at night and all about the suspense, which comes in bucketloads. Dennis Etchison's DAUGHTERS OF THE GOLDEN WEST feels like a grindhouse movie in a story, notable for some ghastly moments and interesting setup. Steve McDonald's THE GUPPY TREE is notable for its Caribbean setting although a little heavy on the vernacular.
Avram Davidson's NAPLES is appallingly obtuse – no idea what that was about at all – while Chelsea Quinn Yarbro's SEAT PARTNER is a jokey vampire effort, although I'd have preferred it serious. CAMPS is by Jack Dann and a rather unpleasant recollection of WW2 concentration camps, while Beverly Evans' THE ANCHORESS is a creepy thing about a farmer's wife with a strange collection.
TRANSFER sees Barry Malzberg delivering a somewhat obscure and unsatisfying lycanthropic effort, while Richard Christian Matheson's UNKNOWN DRIVES is a top little thriller – imagine DUEL condensed into something sweet and suspenseful. Geo Proctor's NIGHT OF THE PIASA is almost exactly like the film/novel WOLFEN except considerably shorter and I'm not sure whether he or Strieber came first.
Ray Russell's RUNAWAY LOVERS is pretty trashy, a medieval torture effort let down by reams of cod Shakespearian dialogue, but Peter Pautz's FISHERMAN'S LOG is better, a tale of a childhood fishing trip ending disastrously. Ann Mackenzie's I CAN'T HELP SAYING GOODBYE sticks with the kids to strong effect with an original voice, while MIDNIGHT HOBO is one of Ramsey Campbell's strongest efforts, another extraordinarily creepy ghost story with a background of urban decay.
Jack Haldeman's SNAKES AND SNAILS is a traditional vampire story with a good setting in the swamplands of southern Georgia, while Arthur Samuels' MASS WITHOUT VOICES is a gruesome short-short about a violinist's revenge. Meanwhile, William F. Nolan's HE KILT IT WITH A STICK is a gruelling one about a man who hates cats – animal lovers, look away – and his comeuppance.
January 27, 2025
This was purchased at a vintage paperback show held once a year in Glendale, California, and I love going to this show. You never know what you might find. Some of the vendors will have deals, like buy 10 books for $25 and that's how I picked up this -- I needed a tenth book.
It's a horror anthology so I figured I couldn't go wrong. Well, it's not terrible, but...
This book was tough to finish and took me more than five months to do so, only dipping in and out it between novels. I read all the stories but one (just couldn't get into it) and finished the last "Camps" last night just to knock it off.
I came very close to putting this as DNF, but I'd already read more than half so I pushed through. And the remainder of stories weren't bad, they just weren't good.
The only story I really enjoyed felt like it belonged in a fantasy anthology more than this one. It was set in medieval times and had the rather boring title of "Runaway Lovers".
And while some stories were just boring, a few started well or were well written, but just fell flat by the end. That's where about half of this anthology lies - well written enough, but bland.
I should probably purge this from my collection, but it has kind of a neat psychedelic cover so it'll sit around for now. But I would NOT recommend it.
It's a horror anthology so I figured I couldn't go wrong. Well, it's not terrible, but...
This book was tough to finish and took me more than five months to do so, only dipping in and out it between novels. I read all the stories but one (just couldn't get into it) and finished the last "Camps" last night just to knock it off.
I came very close to putting this as DNF, but I'd already read more than half so I pushed through. And the remainder of stories weren't bad, they just weren't good.
The only story I really enjoyed felt like it belonged in a fantasy anthology more than this one. It was set in medieval times and had the rather boring title of "Runaway Lovers".
And while some stories were just boring, a few started well or were well written, but just fell flat by the end. That's where about half of this anthology lies - well written enough, but bland.
I should probably purge this from my collection, but it has kind of a neat psychedelic cover so it'll sit around for now. But I would NOT recommend it.
March 11, 2016
I love old collections like this. Not only is it highly entertaining to read blurbs about world-renown authors such as Stephen King from a time when they had only a book or two published, but it's also nice to see that so many stories from almost forty years ago are still so pertinent and poignant today. With the exception of a story or two I loved the entire collection, which is why I jumped straight into its companion volume, Shadows. Expect a review of that one coming soon.
August 4, 2008
A great anthology collection edited by Grant of various horror authors. There are some masterpieces here.
July 3, 2012
Some great stories. Some not so great. And some that gave me the heebie jeebies. I'd recommend this.
Read
December 24, 2018Some hotshot kid named McDonald hobnobbing with his betters in this collection. I wonder whatever happened to him?
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews