Murderers I Have Known

by Marina Warner

Like her award-winning novels, Marina Warner's stories conjure up mysteries and wonders in a physical world, treading a delicate, magical line between the natural and the supernatural, between openness and fear.





In 'Natural Limits', a bereaved woman, contemplating the massacre of 11,000 virgins, comes to terms with the unimaginable. The title story and 'Canary' search for signs of evil or innocence written on the body. The 'Insomniac Princess' finds that unheard melodies are indeed sweeter; whereas other stories give voice to the traditionally voiceless - the artist's model and the film double.





Here are fabulous images of saints and sinners, bats and nightingales, pink flesh and putrefaction in an electrifying new collection.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Marina Sarah Warner is a British novelist, short story writer, historian and mythographer. She is known for her many non-fiction books relating to feminism and myth.

She is a professor in the Department of Literature, Film and Theatre at the University of Essex, and gave the Reith Lectures on the BBC in 1994 on the theme of 'Managing Monsters: Six Myths of Our Time.'

Reviews

[Ape · Rating 2 out of 5]

2008 bookcrossing journal:

It is a collection of short stories set in contemporary times, some in London, some in continental Europe and some in the States. The stories seem to be well-written, although perhaps sometimes a bit overwritten. As with all collections, some you like, some you don´t, but overall if I had to describe this, I found it a bit dull and forgettable. The two stories I liked the most were actually the last two - one taking the main title of the book, and the other was called Never Go Hungry, which was about an odd father and daughter with some strange gift.

But nothing really stand out for me here, anyway, so this hasn´t tempted me to try anymore of this writer´s work.

[Fiona · Rating 2 out of 5]

Impressively varied collection (though with the expected preoccupation with myth, folklore and metaphor), with some nice details, but none of the stories had enough point to be really satisfying. At the end I discovered that many were inspired by paintings and other works of art (and done as part of projects), which might explain why the point didn't seem to be present in the story itself.

This is the first of her fiction I've read, after enjoying a lot of her non-fiction very much. I'll stick with the non-fiction from now on.

[tish · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know that Warner is a great short story writer, but I really like the way she writes about art and myth. I'm looking forward to reading one of her novels.

[Jules Fry]

Just not doing anything for me on the first attempt.... back on the shelf