The Dark Beasts, and Eight Other Stories from the Hounds of Tindalos

by Frank Belknap Long

Contents

The Dark Beasts (1934)
A Stitch in Time (1940)
Death-Waters (1924)
Step Into My Garden (1942)
The Flame Midget (1936)
It Will Come to You (1942)
The Ocean Leech (1925)
Census Taker (1942)
The Refugees (1942)

Genres: Horror, Fiction

141 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1964

About the author

Aka Lyda Belknap Long.

Frank Belknap Long Jr. was a prolific American writer of horror fiction, fantasy, science fiction, poetry, gothic romance, comic books, and non-fiction. Though his writing career spanned seven decades, he is best known for his horror and science fiction short stories, including early contributions to the Cthulhu Mythos. During his life, Long received the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement (at the 1978 World Fantasy Convention), the Bram Stoker Award for Lifetime Achievement (in 1987, from the Horror Writers Association), and the First Fandom Hall of Fame Award (1977).

Reviews

[Eloy Cryptkeeper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Las bestias oscuras /The Dark Beasts (relato)

"Estaba horriblemente asustado. En su cerebro sensible e inculto, el humor brutal de su padrastro tenía cierto vínculo con la sensación que le producía el bosque y las tranquilas y oscuras aguas del río cuando el sol no los alumbraba. Hubiera querido echar a correr cuando su padrastro lo amenazó , no por temor al daño físico, sino… bueno, sino porque le asustaba algo que quedaba oculto detrás de su cruel e inhumana cara"

"Una vez, hace muchos años, cuando yo tenía ocho, vi al abuelo hablando con algo que parecía uno de ellos. Sólo que la habitación se hallaba a oscuras y no pude verlo muy bien. Estaba en el ángulo cerca de la chimenea, y abuelo le hablaba. No era tan alto como el abuelo y estaba inclinado como si tuviera una giba en la espalda.
No volví a ver a ninguno más, pero antes de que abuelo muriera él me lo contó: Ellos sólo quieren descansar —me dijo—, pero sólo lo consiguen cuando alguien muere. Vienen de muy lejos, y sólo quieren descansar en nuevas tumbas"


Una historia que parece guardar relación con los Perros/Sabuesos de Tindalos. Diferentes universos paralelos. Inclusive hace una sutil mención sobre "los ángulos". Es evidente que transita por el horror cósmico, pero a su vez tiene mucha reminiscencia de historias de Folclore Africano, pactos/maldiciones y Vudú.
En definitiva una interesante, y no menos rara historia.

[Edward · Rating 5 out of 5]

Belknap is very fun, another collection of shorts that will randomly pop in my head for years I am sure!

[Jeff · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great collection of horror, science fiction, and fantasy tales from one of the masters of the field. Some of these stories would have been great Twilight Zone episodes.

[Rich Rosell · Rating 3 out of 5]

This collection of horror/sci-fi/just plain odd short stories was originally published in the early 1940s. It's a mixed bag of tone - some are outright spooky while others have a nutty vein of humor - and the tales are short enough that most are over before you really have a chance to get bored.

Interesting set from 'The Hounds of Tindalos' author - which is still on my "find a copy for a reasonable price" list.

[Richard · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF. Not my thing. Assumed it was horror. Ended up being lame science fiction. Just couldn't finish. Another for the discard pile.

[Audra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maybe the seeds are better than the garden they grow, but it’s full of imperfectly queer delights.

[M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ocasional racism brings down what should be a five star compendium of actually weird fiction to four.