The Penguin Complete Ghost Stories of M.R. James

by M.R. James

M. R. James wrote his ghost stories to entertain friends on Christmas Eve, and they went on to both transform and modernize a genre. James harnesses the power of suggestion to move from a recognizable world to one that is indefinably strange, and then unforgettably terrifying. Sheets, pictures, carvings, a doll's house, a lonely beach, a branch tapping on a window—ordinary things take on more than a tinge of dread in the hands of the original master of suspense. James's prescription for his ghost stories was to "let the ominous thing put out its head, unobtrusively at first, and then more insistently, until it holds the stage."

Genres: Horror, Short Stories, Fiction, Classics, Ghost Stories, Gothic, Ghosts

362 pages, Library Binding

First published January 1, 1936

About the author

Montague Rhodes James, who used the publication name M.R. James, was a noted English mediaeval scholar & provost of King's College, Cambridge (1905–18) & of Eton College (1918–36). He's best remembered for his ghost stories which are widely regarded as among the finest in English literature. One of James' most important achievements was to redefine the ghost story for the new century by dispensing with many of the formal Gothic trappings of his predecessors, replacing them with more realistic contemporary settings.

Librarian note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

M.R.^James

Reviews

[Bionic Jean · Rating 5 out of 5]

Please note, this is a review of this particular edition of "Complete Ghost Stories" by M.R. James. For reviews of the text, please see my shelves. **

For those who love "real books" and cannot bear the thought of ereaders, or those who prefer to have a few "nice editions" of classics, this series may be just perfect. The books themselves are beautiful little clothbound hardbacks, crafted to traditional standards. The sections are sewn into the spine rather than glued, and each page is gilt-edged. There is a silken ribbon bookmark attached at the top.

The format is pocket-sized; small and chunky. For those who are familiar with the "Everyman" editions, this is rather like an upmarket version of that; one which can be slipped into your pocket. All the classics in the series are unabridged and complete. In fact this one contains three stories by M.R. James, which my other "complete" hardback book of his 4 collections of short stories did not have! There is also an "Afterword" by David Stuart Davies, which is far preferable to an "Introduction" which might have told too much about the stories one is about to read.

The size of the print is slightly compromised, but not much. It is a very clear font, so is similar to reading a good paperback. The paper used is very fine; thin enough to not make the book overly cumbersome, but not so thin that the reverse side shows through.

The book is lovely to hold. The dustjacket has a smooth silky finish, and the design conjures up an earlier age. The title and author are printed clearly in a modern font, with a reproduction of an old illustration underneath. This is set within an overall Regency stripe pattern, uniform for the book series. The title is clear, in a highlighted box to match the front panel, and set in the centre of the spine. They are beautiful little books, and I can see why the publishers have entitled them "Collectors Library". It has been very difficult to let this one go in favour of my kindle version!

The five stars is for this particular edition of the book, although some of M.R. James's stories do merit 5 stars themselves.

**If you would like to read my reviews either of collections of stories by M.R. James, or of particular individual stories, please see my shelves for these.

[Forrest · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m no “completist” when it comes to reading. I like to dabble, dip my toes here and there, and move on to something new. So, it’s saying something that after reading Ghost Stories of an Antiquary, I still picked up the Penguin Complete Ghost Stories of M.R. James while at an Oxfam in Oxford on vacation in 2019. Mister James obviously made an impression on me the first time around.

Since the first several stories are collected in Antiquary, I shall forbear repeating myself. On to the rest.

"A School Story" is not bad, not great. James puts his own twist at the end - after any other writer might have considered the story done - that brings it up a notch. Three stars.

"The Rose Garden," while a weak ghost story, is a strong piece of of psychogeography, or perhaps a very strong example of the liminal spaces in-between. Four stars.

I took the story "The Tractate Middoth" and used it as the backbone for a Casting the Runes RPG adventure I ran on Halloween day. Such a clever story. The last line of this mystery made me laugh out loud, which I don't normally do when reading. But it's so. darned. good! James’ understated humor is commendable, and what do they say about humor and horror being complimentary? So very true. Five smiling stars.

"The Residence at Whitmnister" is an interesting tale of young men, now dead, dabbling where they ought not, then paying the price for eternity, and the effect on those left living in the wake of their uncovering of things that should have remained concealed from mortal eyes. The last bit is a "time bomb waiting to go off" ending, which I quite like. Four stars.

Maybe it's just my modern sensibilities or maybe I've read enough M.R. James that my expectations for his stories are unreasonably high, but I found "The Diary of Mister Poynter" to be fairly dull. This is mostly because there is not a compelling connection between the haunter and the haunted. It seems almost haphazard. Still a good story, good enough for three stars. But not among James' best.

"An Episode of Cathedral History" has its frisson, but it's a fairly stock story of what happens when you go about disturbing very old things. Just. Don't. Three stars.

Among James' "weirder" stories, "The Story of a Disappearance and an Appearance" features one of my favorite horror tropes: a Punch and Judy show. The dream sequence in the story is particularly horrific, even by Jamesian standards, and weird in the extreme. The rest of the story is a bit predictable, but unique. Four stars and "that's the way we do it"!

Just as "The Two Doctors" starts to get interesting, the story ends. A bit too much preamble here. A decent enough story, but definitely a lower-tier story for James. Three stars.

Here, James actually apologizes to the reader that "The Haunted Dolls' House" might be construed as nothing but a variation on "The Mezzotint". With all due respect: apology rejected! I found this story every bit as compelling, if not as interesting. Five stars for another story that Rod Serling surely read before he set out to create The Twilight Zone.

Somehow, I will morph, mold, and beat "The Uncommon Prayer-Book" into my next horror RPG scenario. Something about ghosts and old books that just go hand in hand. Anyway, a good story, much to my tastes, that could have easily been a novella, rather than a short story. Hmm. That gives me an idea . . . Four stars.

"A Neighbour's Landmark" is a nice piece of pastoral folk horror that could be made into a compelling movie. I picture it as a really artsy piece, probably filmed in the Cotswolds. It would be a short movie, but the revelations about the screams heard on the hill, the historical context, etc. could provide for some good drama. Five stars.

Machen must have read James. "A View from a Hill" seems like a parallel story to Machen's "Hill of Dreams". I find it hard to believe that the similarities are coincidental. The story is possibly one of the earliest "weird tales" I've read. A ghost story, yes, but running thick with weirdness. I thoroughly enjoyed this piece and will likely return to it again and again. Five stars viewed from a hill on a clear night!

"A Warning to the Curious" is aptly titled. Some things, tempting as they are, are better left buried. Sacrilege carries consequence, and nothing can save those whose curiosity tumbles one into blasphemous transgressions. The dead care not for your motives, only your actions, and forgiveness is not on their agenda. Four stars.

It's difficult to pinpoint what I like so much about "An Evening's Entertainment". Even the framing story of the grandmother telling her grandchildren a ghost story is pleasurable, in a strange way. The strange companions and their hidden lives, the lord of flies, spooked horses, a frightened community . . . it all works together so well! Five stars to what should be a rather ordinary ghost story. Emblematic.

"There Was a Man Dwelt by a Churchyard" feels like a story that James wrote as a writing exercise, just something to keep in practice. You'd call it "phoning it in" if your favorite band performed at this level at a live concert. Still good, but only three stars worth of good.

"Rats" has little to do with its title, except by implication. This is a good thing, as the story is stronger than anything rodents might have generated. It's a genuinely scary story mainly because it is so forthright. The scariest moments happen in bright daylight, and the mystery is fully revealed by the owners of the inn. I thought this openness added a dimension that many ghost stories are missing. Demystifying the mystery, in this case, proved the most horrifying thing of all. Five bright stars

James seems to echo A.A. Milne's whimsical animal tales in "After Dark in the Playing Fields," but with a more sinister shadow. Most readers will ask "but is it a ghost story?" To which the answer is "yes," if you'll recall that the fair folk and ghosts were often conflated in that era (c.f. Machen's "The White People" for similar blurring of those lines). A darkly humorous tale by James. Five stars.

"Wailing Well" is a predictable story of a rebellious individual going exactly where he ought not and suffering the consequences. Predictable, but creepy, nonetheless. Another ghost story in the bright heat of day. Oh, and there are a troop of boy scouts. Well, minus one member. Three stars.

“Stories I have tried to write” is not a story at all. It’s a cataloging of ideas that James had that he just couldn’t quite make work. At least two of them are complete stories, but he couldn’t quite get the details to work to his satisfaction. An interesting window into his creative process and some of the things we was trying to do (and usually succeeded at doing) in his writing. Frankly, it’s quite encouraging to me, as a writer, to know that he walked down dead ends, as well, and probably wasted a deal of time on them. I feel your pain, Montague.

[Ana Cristina Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Escribiendo, como estoy haciendo ahora, de noche, con el viento invernal azotando las ventanas y el mar embistiendo y estrellándose a un centenar de yardas, me resulta difícil referir los sentimientos y palabras que podrían darle a mi lector la idea de una tarde de junio, así como del maravilloso paisaje inglés del que estaba hablando el hacendado.

Estos preciosos cuentos de fantasmas, escritos a principios del siglo XX, nos trasladan a una Inglaterra mayormente rural, idílica, con grandes mansiones y pequeños pueblos, donde los protagonistas son hacendados, clerigos o estudiosos aficionados a los documentos antiguos, a las ruinas y, en general, a los vestigios del pasado. Todo ello bien conocido por el autor, un erudito del Eton College que escribía estos relatos como diversión y que logró llenarlos de humor y costumbrismo, de manera que se apartan de los relatos góticos decimonónicos, que eran más oscuros y tremendistas.

Me han encantado las descripciones y la ambientación, con un desarrollo pausado que por momentos me recuerda a Lovecraft:

Naturalmente, he ido hoy hasta allí para ver si encontraba algún indicio al ir o al volver; pero cuando venía de regreso me tropecé con que había una espesa niebla, por lo que no era cuestión de ponerme a deambular por un campo que desconozco, especialmente en una tarde como la de hoy, en que los arbustos parecían personas y los mugidos distantes de unas vacas podían haber sido las trompetas del Juicio Final.

En general me han gustado mucho los comienzos de las historias y los toques costumbristas, aunque luego el desarrollo en muchos casos se hace un poco lento y el final se desinfla. Pero en conjunto es un autor que merece la pena conocer.

- Porque nosotros los ingleses - dijo - tenemos desde siempre un talento especial para acumular rarezas en los lugares más inesperados, ¿no le parece?

[Robert Dunbar · Rating 5 out of 5]

An unexpected gift from a friend: a beautifully written book that's been beautifully published. It's a profound pleasure just to hold it in your hands. Take that, Kindle!

[Elessar · Rating 5 out of 5]

5/5

Corazones perdidos: Cuentos completos de fantasmas es una de las mejores antologías de Valdemar que he leído. La lectura de los 31 relatos de fenómenos sobrenaturales que M. R. James escribió ha sido un viaje que no quería que se acabase. Tanto es así que, en más de una ocasión, volvía a leer alguna de las historias. Me fascina que la escritura solo supusiese para él un mero pasatiempo con el que poder despejarse de su labor académica. Esta peculiaridad, no obstante, hace que su obra se reduzca a apenas 500 páginas.

Aunque la totalidad del libro es excelsa, la parte más brillante es la primera mitad. En ella se recogen historias como «La habitación número 13», «El fresno», «Corazones perdidos», «¡Silba y acudiré!» o «El tratado Middoth», que son, sin duda, lo mejor de la recopilación. Se ha acusado a James de repetir estructuras, de usar personajes parecidos, ubicar las historias en escenarios similares, etc.; pero, pese a que sí puede apreciarse una cierta semejanza entre ellas, no son, ni de lejos, iguales. Me parece esta una crítica insulsa, el resultado de no haber leído con atención los cuentos. Es normal que un preboste que fue toda su vida soltero y que se dedicaba al estudio de las catedrales eligiese este tipo de protagonistas y ambientaciones. Pero no se limita a ello: también aparecen bibliotecas, cementerios, trenes, hoteles... como lugares donde desarrollar los acontecimientos; así como niños, abuelas, médicos para protagonizarlos.

El fantasma de M. R. James es, en ocasiones, malévolo, mientras que, en otras, sin embargo, es benévolo. Suele ser algún tipo de objeto que conecta el presente con el pasado lo que motiva su aparición. Son seres peludos, feos, vengativos, condenados, cuya presencia e intervención en la trama varía en cada relato. La forma de narrar en ellos está condicionada por su finalidad, la de ser leída en voz alta, lo que hace que estén presentes apelaciones al lector por parte del narrador, algo que me ha parecido muy interesante. Esta peculiaridad, empero, no aparece en todos los cuentos, aunque sí en la mayoría.

En definitiva, este libro es una más que recomendada opción para pasar un buen rato y sentir fascinación por una capacidad creativa sin parangón. Estas historias se quedarán grabadas en mi memoria por mucho tiempo, estoy seguro; y, cuando empiece a olvidarlas, o simplemente por querer admirarlas de nuevo, volveré a ellas para disfrutarlas y elogiarlas otra vez.

[Steve Payne · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75

M.R. James is renowned for being one of the masters of the early 20th century ghost story.

I have been reading through this book of 30+ stories, off and on, for about five years. The length of time it has taken me to get through this small canon of work hints at an issue I have. There is very little variation here. The stories are incredibly repetitive in character, setting, and structure. His characters are usually of the same ilk – bookish and scholarly; the settings are usually small English villages, abbeys or rectories, and universities etc; and the structure very often begins with the finding of something (ie. a manuscript, or will, or piece of cloth – usually found in an old book, or an ancient whistle, or binoculars), which often leads to a climax in which we get a perfectly fine and atmospheric materialisation.

I’ve started with and emphasised the negative - which is a bit naughty of me. I suspect I’ve done it because I think there’s something slightly overrated in James (so much repetition in so little a canon). Please note the underlined word before crying blasphemy. I just wonder whether his name would be so bright here in the UK if the BBC hadn’t have made it an institution to film one of his works every Christmas. There are many equally great, and better writers (in my humble opinion) who have been allowed to languish, and whose best works could make for great television plays and films – Sheridan LeFanu (of whom James was a great admirer) and Hugh Walpole for instance (his novel ‘Maradick, At Forty’ could potentially make for a very fine atmospheric piece). And then there’s the writer who sometimes gets mentioned in the same breath as James (for those who have heard of him that is!) – Robert Aickman. An infinitely greater stylist with much more variety of setting, and far more adept in character creation.

[Look out! General Rant has just stepped into my review and is pointing a finger].

Incidentally, why is it that film and TV companies are so lazily fixated on the same old writers and re-filming the same old novels and stories over and over? A giant kick up the backside to all of them! There are plenty of Dickens, Austen and Bronte films out there that have financially underperformed – so the author’s names alone are no guarantee of success (done to death perhaps!); so why not a little skill and imagination aimed at the many other great writers of the period, and their lesser known works. So much to choose from, but so little creative imagination it seems from those who hold the financial and decision making powers.

[OK, General Rant has now left the room. I salute you sir.]

Let’s get to the positive. And it’s a big positive. I found a dozen of the stories here quite wonderful, terrifically atmospheric, and taken individually, are fully deserving of their high reputations.

Of those dozen, my favourites would be:-

‘Casting The Runes.’ The story on which the film ‘Night Of The Demon’ (or ‘Curse Of The Demon’ in the US) was based. This is a wonderfully atmospheric thrill-ride of a story that involves ancient texts and a demonologist.

‘Oh, Whistle, And I’ll Come To You, My Lad.’ It was Jonathan Miller’s adaptation of this fine story that began the BBCs M.R. James obsession. I’s typically Jamesian in its remoteness and set-up. A man discovers an old whistle on the coast, which when blown, brings forth the presence of someone, or something. Good atmosphere and quirkiness of character.

‘Number 13’ is another atmospheric tale, in which a room at a hotel is sometimes there, and sometimes not.

The others that I would recommend are: An Episode Of Cathedral History, A School Story, A View From A Hill, Canon Alberic’s Scrapbook, Count Magnus, Lost Hearts, The Mezzotint, The Tractate Middoth, and The Treasure Of Abbot Thomas.

I would suggest this is better read over a reasonable period of time, saved for stormy windswept nights, and savoured beside the fireplace with a glass of Baileys. It’s splendid – if repetitive stuff, but take your time getting through it (about ten years!), and you’ll soon forget the negative buffoonery I promulgated earlier…

[Javier · Rating 5 out of 5]

Algo que siempre acojona es volver a visitar aquellos autores que a uno le tocaron la fibra en su día, poniéndolos en un altar del que, a veces, el paso del tiempo puede hacerles caer estrepitosamente. M.R. James publicó cuatro libros de relatos de fantasmas, y lo que más se agradece es la forma de tomárselo: yendo al grano, dejando atrás el tostón de lo victoriano (solía confrontarle con Henry James, "el James malo", al que detestaba) ubicando la acción en lo cotidiano, tirando incluso de humor en plena tragedia. Sus historias fueron concebidas para leer en voz alta en Navidad, en campamentos de scouts, en reuniones de colegas. Y cuando le preguntaron si volvería a escribir más cuentos de fantasmas, cortésmente pero sin dudarlo, contestó que no lo creía probable. Un figura. Hace muchos años leí las tres antologías que Valdemar publicó en su colección de bolsillo, quedándome jodido cuando supe que la cuarta no iba a ver la luz en El Club Diógenes. Así que ahorré, me acabé comprando este volumen, y estrenando el 2021 me han entrado ganas locas de revivir las glorias del pasado.

***

Escribí estas líneas al inicio de la lectura, añadiendo que en unos días —que para el lector de esta reseña serían solo un salto de línea— expondría mis conclusiones sobre qué tal me había ido con el bueno de James. Sin embargo, no pude evitar ir dejando comentarios según iba devorando páginas, por lo que me limito ahora a resumir dichas impresiones.

Lo primero y principal, es que el británico no solo no ha perdido su lugar en aquel altar de mis recuerdos. Al contrario, su figura destaca, gigantesca, en el olimpo de mis escritores favoritos de siempre. En líneas generales, volver a él ha sido una experiencia increíble, y los cuentos de aquella colección que no llegó a mis manos han resultado igualmente fantásticos, no entendiendo por qué no se ha editado nunca de manera independiente.

Como digo, las cuatro antologías que publicara James me parecen imprescindibles. Historias de fantasmas de un anticuario es quizá donde encontramos al James más canónico. Los cuentos que más me gustaron, y que la relectura confirmó, fueron "¡Silba y acudiré!", "El conde Magnus" y "La habitación número 13". Por ellos, además, siento especial cariño.

Más historias de fantasmas de un anticuario tiene alguna historia un poco por debajo, curiosamente las que no recordaba (y ahora entiendo por qué mi memoria decidió omitirlas), si bien es cierto que esta colección incluye asimismo dos de mis relatos favoritos de James: "El tratado Middoth" y "El maleficio de las runas". Colosales ambos, en especial el segundo.

En cuanto a Un fantasma inconsistente y otros creo que asoma la vena más sangrienta y macabra del escritor. Mi historia predilecta es "Un episodio de la historia de una catedral" (quizá lo mejor de James), si bien es cierto que todas las demás dejaron, cuando era chaval, imágenes perturbadoras que siguen ahí tras volver a ellas.

Para terminar, la antología inédita A Warning to the Curious and Other Ghost Stories incluye al final un par de narraciones de factura y ambientación más casual. A excepción de estos, mis relatos favoritos son... bueno, todos. Aunque si tengo que destacar alguno, sería el terrorífico "Los mojones de una propiedad vecina".

Mucho habría que decir sobre M.R. James. En las reseñas de las colecciones que leí en su día apuntaba un montón de datos, curiosidades históricas, etc. Reproducirlos de nuevo sería canso. Baste decir que muchos de los cuentos tienen nexos en cuanto a los lugares o ciertos personajes, y que hay guiños por doquier que el lector docto disfrutará, al mismo tiempo que no suponen ninguna molestia para los más legos en historia de Inglaterra. Considero estos cuentos y el universo tan característico en el que se desarrollan (objetos antiguos, templos medio escondidos en poblaciones rurales, libros malditos...) un pilar fundamental en mi gusto por el terror, y son culpables de que empezara a escribir historias así cuando era adolescente. Le debo mucho a James, a su visión moderna y desenfadada de narrar, y estoy seguro que seguiré volviendo a su obra a lo largo de mis días como quien vuelve al hogar tras un largo viaje.

[Julio Bernad · Rating 4 out of 5]

El relato El grabado se trata con más detalle en el programa de Gabinete de Curiosidades, 15 Cuentos de terror para pasar Halloween: https://go.ivoox.com/rf/118059422

El relato El grabado se trata con más detalle, también, en el programa ¡Silba y Acudiremos, nuestros 20 fantasmas favoritos: https://go.ivoox.com/rf/161655915

M.R. James fue el gran renovador del cuento de fantasmas victoriano. Para Rafael Llopis, nunca ha existido un mejor escritor de cuentos de fantasmas, y eso es, en parte, por su particular filosofía terrorífica. Para el, un cuento de fantasmas tiene que ambientarse en la actualidad, o al menos sus consecuencias deben acontecer en ella; ha de ocurrir, también en un ambiente familiar, nada de mansiones solariegas ni castillos abandonados: catedrales, colegios, hoteles, bibliotecas, donde hace su vida el pueblo. El fantasma tiene que ser un ente hostil, peligroso y, en muchas ocasiones, vengativo; si la aparición no presenta un riesgo para los personajes no va a dar miedo al lector. Y por último, el fantasma tiene que ser, más que una aparición, un ente físico y tangible, que pueda interactuar con los personajes y añada un mayor riesgo. Así, el fantasma de M.R. James suele ser alargado, peludo, con muchos dientes, o pequeño, más peludo aún y con muchas patas, o ser, por el contrario, un montón de sábanas que remedan una cara.

Con estos pocos ingredientes, salpimentados con la erudición propia de su profesión, el anticuario y escritor M.R. James logró hacer que el fantasma victoriano diera verdadero pánico. En esta colección se recogen todos los cuentos que escribió en vida. No son muchos, pero sí los suficientes como para hacer inabarcable tratarlos todos con la suficiente prolijidad. El conjunto es bastante homogéneo en cuanto a calidad, solo los últimos relatos diría que son peores sin llegar nunca a ser malos. Esta colección incluye un último escrito en el que James nos confiesa cuales son las historias que pudo haber escrito pero, ya fuera por falta de pericia o porque el argumento no daba para un relato, se quedaron en el tintero. Hubieran sido cuentos bastante buenos, en mi opinión.

Clásicos absolutos que hacen obligada esta lectura para el amante del terror: el grabado, probablemente de los pocos cuentos que me han llegado a poner los pelos de punta; el maleficio de las runas, que tuvo una adaptación al cine de la mano de Jacques Tournier -en la que aparece el satán más pocho de la historia del cine-; ¡silba y acudiré!, que nos enseña que no hay que tocar reliquias de los templarios; La habitación nº 13, una incomodísima historia de hoteles encantados; Corazones perdidos, muy melancólica; El tratado Middoth, por su retorcido sentido del humor; el conde Magnus, que actualiza el mito del vampiro y ya anuncia el horror cósmico lovecraftiano; y una historia escolar, porque quién no ha tenido experiencias paranormales en su instituto.

Todos estos relatos que he mencionado son cinco estrellas, pero es que el resto de cuentos no bajan de cuatro. Rafael Llopis tenía razón al decir que M.R. James es el mejor escritor de fantasmas. Solo puedo añadir que, a inicias de este nuevo siglo, nadie ha logrado superarlo aún.

[Julie Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

The current description for this book at Goodreads is confused with Edgar Allan Poe so I will provide the publisher's description for this fabulous little book:

"In another infinitesimal flash he had taken it in. Pale, dusky skin, covering nothing but bones and tendons of appalling strength; coarse black hairs, longer than ever grew on a human hand; nails rising from the ends of the fingers and curving sharply down and forward, grey horny and wrinkled. He flew out of his chair with deadly inconceivable terror at his heart."

The art of telling a ghost story is a refined one and Montague Rhodes James was a master of it. With gentle cunning, he draws the reader into a narrative that at first seems innocuous but which by gentle turns becomes darker and darker until he transfixes you with his prose, creating the most unforgettable, alarming and frightening images. This volume 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), A Warning to the Curious and Other Ghost Stories (1925).

I'm reading the stories slowly in conjunction with the discussions being had at A Podcast to the Curious. I am enjoying the stories very much indeed and gradually falling in love with M.R. James himself ... who seems to be the very picture of nerdly lore who would be much appreciated today.

FINISHED
I finished this some time ago but forgot to mark it done. I enjoyed these stories very much. They are gentler, for the most part, than today's ghost stories but some are absolutely horrifying.

[Sharon Barrow Wilfong · Rating 5 out of 5]

No one can write a ghost story like M.R. James. He knows his ancient history, especially during the Medieval Period. He incorporates folk lore and fairy tales from all the U.K., Scotland, Wales, Ireland and England.

His writing doesn't state. It conveys what is transpiring through hints and suggestions. He allows the reader to make use of their imagination, which is all the more horrifying than the author spoon feeding you.

I never get tired of reading his suspenseful and creepy stories.

[Jim Dooley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I often smile at reviewers who lament at not having half-stars available for providing a rating ... and yet I find myself in exactly that situation now. I didn’t consider this a 4-star book, yet it was better than a 3-star one. **sigh**

COMPLETE GHOST STORIES, bringing together the entire ghostly works of M.R. James (the only type of fictional stories he said he wrote), might be accurately classified as Cozy Ghost Stories. Like Cozy Mysteries that focus on solving the mystery rather than belaboring gruesome facts or unsettling psychological information, the Ghost Stories found here are meant to elicit gentle disquiet. So, there are instances of walking down a quiet county lane in the evening and hearing footsteps following, only to turn and see that no one is there ... or perhaps catching a glimpse of a scampering “something” disappearing into the bushes.

In short, these stories are meant to cause the Reader a slight chill without causing outright fear. The graphic excesses of Stephen King won’t be found here, and neither will the madness-inducing nightmare creatures of H.P. Lovecraft with descriptions couched in archaic language. Many of James’ tales could be ones told around the campfire late at night, and are probably best enjoyed before bed in a comfortable armchair with a light and a glass of sherry close at hand.

Many of James’ “things that go bump in the night” are only dimly revealed. Large spider-like creatures appear early on, followed by pale and hairy humanoids, and then dead spectral beings wrapped in winding sheets. Sometimes they claim victims, but the gruesome details are left to the imagination of the Reader.

My main issue with reading them straight through in one collection is that a certain “sameness” becomes apparent ... themes and types of scenes repeated multiple times. Even though the settings were different, I often had a sense of having read the story before. Also, I do like a “jolt” now and then from my horror stories (such as I have enjoyed from Richard Matheson), and I never experienced that in any of these.

Originally, my excitement was in having the opportunity to read “Casting the Runes,” the story that was the basis for a delightfully creepy tale of the supernatural that was made into the movie, NIGHT OF THE DEMON or CURSE OF THE DEMON in the U.S. The more subtle approach that James uses did disappoint me. (By the way, I do recommend the longer British release of NIGHT as opposed to the shorter American CURSE.)

That is not to say that I didn’t find stories that I very much enjoyed. My favorites were:

* “Number 13”

* “Martin’s Chase”

* “The Haunted Doll’s House”

* “A View From A Hill”

* “A Warning To The Curious”

* “Rats”

M.R. James is said to have especially enjoyed doing a reading of his latest story for a small gathering of friends at Christmas. Did that start the tradition in Great Britain of a ghost story for Christmas, or did that harken back to Charles Dickens and Ebenezer Scrooge? I, however, being filled with the child-like sense of wonder that comes with every Halloween decided to read them now. And while my spine didn’t tingle on many occasions, I did enjoy evening glasses of sherry.

[Vicente Ribes · Rating 5 out of 5]

M.R. James es un indispensable del terror gótico y esta antología vale su peso en oro. Tener en un unico volumen todos los cuentos de terror de M.R. James es una gozada que me ha acompañado muchas noches este año. Son relatos de terror clásico con una construcción muy cuidada y cuyo final suele deparar sorpresas escalofriantes. Los escenarios de los cuentos son aquellos que tan bien conocía su autor: bibliotecas, museos, archivos, iglesias. En ese ambiente adormilado y penumbroso parece no ocurrir nada. Pero la lectura de un viejo manuscrito, un diario, una inscripción o un jeroglífico puede despertar cosas insospechadas. Escondido entre las sombras de viejas piedras o en las páginas de olvidados legajos anida lo oculto, que se materializa en forma de grotescos fantasmas.

Hay un montón de relatos estupendos pero destaco:

El álbum del canónigo Alberico(****): que narra la aparición de un demonio en un pueblecito de los pirineos.

Panorama desde una colina(*****): Un particular par de anteojos permiten ver épocas anteriores más crueles que las actuales.

Una velada junto al fuego(*****): Nos muestra a una anciana narrando a sus nietos como una pareja de hombres mantenían un culto pagano y como morirían a causa de sus acciones.

La casa de muñecas embrujada(*****): De forma similar a lo ofrecido en el relato de «el grabado» nos muestra como una ganga ofrece el recuerdo de una cruel historia.

El tratado Middoth(****): Una disputa por una herencia, un libro «maldito». El prototipo de otros libros de este estilo.

El señor Humphreys y su herencia: Los antiguos laberintos de los jardines tienen algo de siniestro y en este cuento, se nos muestran algunos de los habitantes de tan singulares lugares.

La residencia de Whitmister(****): La muerte de dos niños hace doscientos años volverá para sacudir a los recientes propietarios de la residencia.

Historia de una desaparición y de una aparición(***): La desaparición de su tío, hace que el protagonista tenga que dejar a su familia los días cercanos a Navidad. Pronto será participe de un cruel espectáculo de marionetas.

Ratas(****): Cuando en una habitación de un hotel, te dicen que una habitación es mejor no abrirla, lo hacen por tu bien.

Muy recomendable para todo aquel que disfrute del sabor añejo del relato clásico de fantasmas.

[Airiz · Rating 3 out of 5]

After graduating from Stine’s “Goosebumps” books in high school, I quenched my thirst for more horror lit by a steady dose of readings from Poe, Lovecraft, King, and of course, James. Montague Rhodes James is perhaps one of my favorite horror writers back then, even if I’ve only read one anthology of his writings.

Complete Ghost Stories is a good tome of macabre literature. I must confess that most of the stories didn’t scare me at all but they kept me entertained and amused, fueling me to read up to the last page. One chink in this volume’s armor—or any single-genre’d short story compendiums—is that it’s easy to see the basic equation the author follows in building his stories. James’ equation lies stark naked on the pages of this book and is present in all his stories, like identical skeletons jutting out of the fleshes of plots. The thing with James is that he has a remarkable way of storytelling that will make the formulaic tales seem brand new to the eyes. This is one of the books you might want to read to kids around a fire or something. For me it’s akin to the “Lola Basyang” stories, only these ones are clad in a darker atmosphere. One thing I liked most about this book is that there’s occasional peppering of dark humor as well, like in the story “A Neighbour’s Landmark.”

My favorite would be “The Mezzotint”, “Number 13”, and “Oh Whistle and I’ll Come to you my Lad”.

[Javier Prado · Rating 5 out of 5]

«Metió, pues, la mano en el hueco familiar de debajo de la almohada. Pero sus dedos no llegaron al fondo. Lo que tocó, según cuenta, fue una boca dentuda rodeada de pelos; una boca no humana, asegura. No creo que valga la pena elucubrar sobre sus aspavientos y gritos; el hecho es que, antes de darse cuenta siquiera, se encontró en el cuarto de invitados con el cerrojo echado y la oreja pegada a la puerta. Y allí pasó el resto de esa noche desdichada, esperando oír arañar la puerta de un momento a otro.» -"El maleficio de las runas"

Montague Rhodes James nació en Goodnestone en 1862 y murió en Eton en 1936. En sus 73 años de vida, además de ocupar altos cargos administrativos en el Eton College y el King's College, desarrolló un enorme interés por los estudios medievalistas y literarios (llegando a ser una referencia en dichos campos), así como gran afición al peculiar mundo de las antigüedades.
Ah, y también escribió 30 cuentos de fantasmas.
James no pensaba en publicarlos cuando los creaba; eran más bien un entretenimiento en el que volcaba sus vastos conocimientos en cosas extrañas (libros antiguos, edificios medievales, objetos malditos, etcétera) para luego leérselos a sus amigos del entorno académico, una vez al año, como tradición navideña.

Aunque llamar "historias de fantasmas" a lo que escribia el bueno de James quizá sea quedarse corto. En la tradición victoriana ya se había asentado el género de la "ghost story" con unos esquemas recurrentes que los autores llevaban años aplicando con mayor o menor pericia. En la ghost story arquetípica, las almas de los muertos retornan clamando venganza o buscando purgar sus penas (y aterrorizando a los vivos en el proceso). Gustaban estos fantasmas ingleses de habitar caserones y edificios ruinosos y presentarse bajo aspecto pálido y etéreo durante sus garbeos espectrales. Los fantasmas de M. R. James son, bueno, distintos.

Cierto es que en sus relatos hay muertos que vuelven en el sentido más clásico (como los de "Corazones perdidos" o "El cercado de Martin"). Bajo un aspecto putrefacto, demacrado y desagradable que dista mucho de la imagen del fantasma victoriano que todos tenemos en mente, eso sí.

Pero luego están esas otras cosas.

Y las llamo "cosas" porque nunca llegan a clasificarse como espectros, almas en pena ni nada parecido. Son otro tipo de entidades, más antiguas y, desde luego, muy lejos de haber pertenecido alguna vez a la raza humana. Apenas se dejan entrever, pues habitan en las sombras y en esos espacios que las personas solo captamos con el rabillo del ojo. Y, de ser detectados por los personajes de James, apenas son retazos, casi sensaciones. Algo parecido a un trapo que se arrastra. Una sábana de extraña forma. Un rostro pálido en una ventana lejana. Una cosa peluda que te roza. Una boca pequeña que te muerde de noche, como si fuera una pelusa con dientes. Una figura en el horizonte que corre sin avanzar.
Nadie sabe qué son exactamente y el autor nunca incide demasiado en su naturaleza. Pero acostumbran a presentarse ante quienes se internan en viejas iglesias o profanan tesoros antiguos. Algo así como "guardianes del tesoro" o viejos maleficios que hostigan a los desdichados protagonistas... y que sin duda Lovecraft utilizó de inspiración en su obra (como él mismo menciona en su ensayo "El horror sobrenatural en la literatura").

Los inimitables seres oscuros de James son un acierto, desde luego, pero no solo por su mera presencia. Generan tanta fascinación e impacto por el contexto en el que aparecen. Y es que el autor, como ya hemos dicho, medievalista consagrado y gran conocedor del mundo antiguo, ambienta todos sus relatos en el mundo académico de una u otra forma. Sus protagonistas siempre se mueven entre claustros universitarios y viejas ruinas, entre bibliotecas y catedrales del siglo XIV. Siempre son grandes conocedores de todo lo que estudian, ya sean edificios, pinturas antiguas o documentos extraños. De este modo, la pasión de James por todas estas cosas da lugar a constantes descripciones de lo armonioso en la disposición de los elementos de una iglesia, o a lo curioso de la técnica empleada para realizar una serie de vidrieras de un monasterio. Y es precisamente en estas atmósferas eruditas donde la aparición de lo sobrenatural es aún más chocante. La fascinación por lo antiguo se torna en horror cuando el estudioso de turno descubre que de las ruinas que ha estado investigando ha traído algo más que el polvo del camino; que el viejo grabado que ha comprado oculta ciertos secretos; o que algo vivo se agita en el interior del sepulcro de esa peculiar iglesia que tanto ha llamado su atención.

A todo esto hay que sumar la habilidad narrativa de James. Aunque es cierto que algunos relatos pueden hacerse repetitivos y otros son prácitcamemente calcos de cuentos anteriores (el mismo autor lo admite en una nota al final de "La casa de muñecas embrujada"), el juego de narradores es, en general, magistral. Diarios encontrados se mezclan con viejos documentos, narraciones orales a la luz de la lumbre, testimonios pasados de boca en boca... hay mucho de leyenda urbana en los cuentos de James, con esa clase de testimonio que le ocurrió al amigo de un amigo pero que también podría ocurrirte a ti. A la cabeza me vienen "El cercado de Martin" (en el que el narrador lee las actas de un juicio del siglo XVIII), el devastador final de "El conde Magnus" (relato que me ha dado MIEDO de verdad) o los diversos cambios de testimonios de "El episodio de la historia de una catedral".

En resumen: hay que leer a James si uno no quiere perderse las mejores historias de fantasmas que ha dado la literatura inglesa; unos relatos que siglo y medio después siguen resultando originales y que aún pueden provocar ciertos escalofríos. Algunos no convienen ser leídos antes de dormir, os lo aseguro.

Y, cómo no, aquí va mi top personal. Salvo un par, todos los contenidos en este volumen de Valdemar me han parecido magistrales, pero si tuviera que quedarme con algunos serían:

1. EL MALEFICIO DE LAS RUNAS
2. EL CONDE MAGNUS
3. EL GRABADO
4. LA HABITACIÓN N°13
5. ¡SILBA Y ACUDIRÉ!
6. EL ÁLBUM DEL CANÓNICO ALBERICO
7. EL CERCADO DE MARTIN
8. PANORAMA DESDE LA COLINA
9. CORAZONES PERDIDOS
10. EL TESORO DEL ABAD THOMAS
11. EL EPISODIO DE LA HISTORIA DE UNA CATEDRAL

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are going to read only one author of the classic English ghost story, make it M.R. James - and buy this book, because it will give you all of his great stories in one place, ready whenever you're in the mood for a good Victorian/Edwardian chill. I read this book every October (perfect time of year for it), and I'm always amazed by James' gifts as a writer in this genre - he is really, really good, and a pleasure to read almost as much for his grace with the English language as he is for his scary-yet-gentlemanly imagination. Very good stuff.

[Merl Fluin · Rating 5 out of 5]

42 SHORT STORIES IN 42 DAYS*

DAY 42: The Stalls Of Barchester Cathedral
Perhaps my favourite of all James's stories, this is a masterclass in pacing and atmosphere – and always as scary as hell, no matter how many times I reread it.

*The rules:
– Read one short story a day, every day for six weeks
– Read no more than one story by the same author within any 14-day period
– Deliberately include authors I wouldn't usually read
– Review each story in one sentence or less

[Emma Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed these collections of ghost stories. These aren’t full of jump scares or about hideous monsters (though there are some descriptions of creatures) but it’s full of atmosphere.

[Will Macmillan Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Classic spooky stories

a wonderful collection of stories of the supernatural by a great story teller _ a must read for anyone with a love of the supernatural

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

This MacMillan edition is from one of our great ghost story writers Montague Rhodes James. It should be read at bedtime during the winter months, and at a rate of one story per night for maximum enjoyment.

[Kyriakos Sorokkou]

Διαβάστε την κριτική μου στα ελληνικά στις βιβλιοαλχημείες.

Is it possible for a linen to become scary? And yet MR James manages to do it.

There is a lot in common between Montague Rhodes James and John Ronald Reuel Tolkien.
Both were university professors: Tolkien was a professor of Anglo-Saxon (Old English) philology at Oxford University and James was a professor of medieval literature at the University of Cambridge.
A large percentage of Both Tolkien's and James's work was academic writings alongside the fiction they created.
One last common thing they share is their middle names which start with R.

And here ends the common things:
Tolkien is known for the mythical world of Middle-Earth, a world that we enjoyed by reading "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of the Rings"
James is best known for the horror and ghost stories he wrote as a means of entertainment and a break from his academic work.
He wrote them down and then read them in the evenings during Christmas holidays to students and colleagues at the university.

He published only 4 collections of short stories and was already 42 when he published the first "Ghost Stories of an Antiquary" (1904) .
In 1911 he published the 2nd collection "More Ghost Stories of an Antiquary".
In 1919 he published the 3rd collection "A Thin Ghost and Others".
In 1925 he published the 4th collection "A Warning to the Curious and Other Ghost Stories".
In 1931, five years before his death, he published an omnibus edition including the 4 previous collections plus 5 new stories.
All 30 of these stories plus 4 are all included in this beautiful edition that I bought at the end of October 2018 but managed to read in October 2019.

It was both the first and the last book I read in October. With 34 stories I could read one every day alongside my other readings (From Don Quixote to 'Salems Lot). So every day I had to read something Halloween related (ghosts and clues).

But here I will say my sin:
Because this collection contains all of James's work from 1894 to 1931, almost forty years, many stories feel the same to the reader who reads them all in one go. You notice some patterns being repeated. An antiquary or scholar discovers an ancient object/artefact. The ancient object is cursed. The curse haunts the unfortunate scholar.

The more I read, the less I liked them.
For example, I was thrilled with most, if not all of the stories from the first collection. 
In the second I liked almost half of theme and by reaching the third and fourth I barely had one or two I enjoyed.
They weren't have the scary and creepy stories of the 1st collection.

Stories such as the following:
A demon from an old illustrated book haunts its new owner who buys it at a suspiciously cheap price.
An aristocrat experiments on young children to find eternal youth.
An engraving contains a moving apparition that commits a crime.
An Ash tree is cursed by a medieval witch.
In a hotel in Denmark between rooms 12 and 14 there isn't any room but the noises and shadows heard and seen by the occupants of rooms 12 and 14 say otherwise.
An English archaeologist makes the mistake of getting involved with the story of the tomb of a Swedish Count.
A teacher vacationing in a coastal English town finds an ancient whistle. He makes the mistake of whistling and from that moment a white-clad figure chases him. Like a sheet without distinct features.

In other words, these are the stories I liked and they are all from the first collection.

But overall it was a very nice neat edition, through which I got to know all of James's work (with the exception of 5-6 unfinished/unpublished stories).
I loved the stories of the first collection, I liked several of the stories from the second collection. The rest of the stories and collections were just interesting with a few being able to be distinguished as good and interesting (for me.)

They included all the themes I like, gothic ruins, ancient curses, graveyards and other burial sites. It is not Lovecraft's supernatural horror, with monsters from space and other worlds, but hauntings and ghosts from our own world, but just as creepy. I highly recommend it.

Note: There have been several adaptations of his stories for radio, television and theatre.
It is good to mention that one of the BBC productions has the great Christopher Lee as the narrator of some stories. What more do you want?

[El Cuervo de Poe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reconocido, por el propio Lovecraft entre otros, como uno de los mejores escritores de cuentos de fantasmas, la obra del inglés M.R. James es una clara muestra de las altas cotas de calidad literaria que se pudo, y se puede, conseguir con nuestro amado género de terror.

Con alguna leve reminiscencia tardía del gótico victoriano más clásico, la obra de James realmente se encuentra mucho más cercana a la literatura del siglo XX, es decir, mas moderna y sin tantos artificios como la del siglo anterior, al mismo tiempo que pone de manifiesto la gran erudición del autor y un prodigioso dominio de la prosa.

La presente antología de relatos, que recoge su obra completa, es, ante todo, una auténtica maravilla. De ahí el ya comentado reconocimiento del que goza el autor y que siempre sea de los primeros elegidos en toda colección de autores clásicos de terror que se precie.

Claro está que al tratarse de su obra completa no todos los relatos pueden estar a la misma altura de calidad, hay algunos mejores que otros e incluso alguno que resulta ser un tanto irregular. Pero de lo que no cabe la menor duda es que si de esta antología tuviéramos que quedarnos con tan solo con diez, doce o quince de los treinta y uno relatos presentes, estaríamos ante una de las mejores colecciones de relatos de fantasmas de todos los tiempos.

Lo cual es más meritorio si cabe, si tenemos en cuenta que Montague Rodes James realmente fue un "intruso" dentro de un género de terror del que solo le interesaban los cuentos de fantasmas. Un renombrado erudito y arqueólogo ingles con la incontenible pasión de escribir única y exclusivamente relatos de fantasmas para que estos fueran leídos o narrados en las festividades navideñas.

De hecho esto se nota bastante en algunos relatos, donde se adopta el formato narrativo hacia una tercera persona a la que se le está contando la historia o incluso derribando en alguna ocasión la cuarta pared con el lector.

Ahora bien, si el denominador común de su obra son los fantasmas del pasado y el peligro mortal que pueden representar, estos adoptarán muchas formas diferentes para sobrecoger al lector. Desde los fantasmas más tradicionales, a maldiciones, objetos encantados, cultos extraños y algunos seres de pesadilla.

Relatos que no siempre sorprenderán al lector moderno, algunos si, pero que en su día fueron todo un soplo de aire fresco al huir del clásico fantasma en pena y presentarnos unas historias originales y perversas, aunque a veces con toque de sentido del humor, donde el terror se puede esconder en los pliegues de una sábana, un silbato de eras inmemoriales o un libro maldito.

Y todo ello narrado con una prosa maravillosa, muy pulcra y totalmente encantadora.

Y que decir de la excelente edición y traducción de la Editorial Valdemar y su colección Gótica. Impecable, como siempre.

Antología muy recomendable para todo tipo de lectores, especialmente para los que amamos el terror y los autores clásicos. Más interesante aún, al menos en mi caso, si se puede disfrutar de ella en pequeñas dosis, entre otras lecturas.

[Krystal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nothing beats old school horror, and James was a master of it. I read this collection years ago and I still get goosebumps thinking of some of his ambiguous horrors that were mostly created by imagination after his written prompts.

These stories rely heavily on suspense and unanswered questions, and are more about subtle shivers than full-on nightmare creations. A fantastic collection and one I'll return to for sure.

[Mimi · Rating 4 out of 5]

M.R James, I think after reading this book is a very good writer. Stories such as 'Oh, Whistle, I'll Come to You My Lad' , 'Casting the Runes and 'A Warning to the Curious show his ability as a writer. I thought that they were well written and very entertaining. I think he has a really good ability to 'show' and not tell the reader what is happening.

Out of all the stories I would have to say that 'Casting the Runes', was the scariest. Even though Mr Karswell doesn't really appear much it, what M.R James suggests makes him out to be a really nasty character.

'A Warning to the Curious' would have to be my favourite out of them all. I just found the story very enjoyable and the ending was good.

Overall, I liked this book and I'm glad I decided to read it in October. It just wouldn't have been the same reading it at any other time of the year. I had only one real problem with this book and that was that I struggled with some of the stories. I found them difficult to read but I still kept with them.

If you like ghost stories, then I recommend this book.

[Ahmed Aziz · Rating 5 out of 5]

ভূতের গল্প লেখায় এম আর জেমসের জুড়ি নেই। সরাসরি ভূতের ভয়াবহ বর্ণনা না দিয়েও আস্তে আস্তে সামান্য একটা ঘটনাকে কতটা অন্ধকার দিকে টেনে নেওয়া যায় তার ধ্রপদী উদাহরণ গল্পগুলো। ভূতের গল্প লেখাটা যে একটা কতবড় শিল্প তার সাক্ষাৎ প্রমাণ এই বই।

[Terry Graybill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ghost stories are not my preferred genre nor is horror. That said, this collection of the ghost stories of M.R. James actually grew on me. I moved from tolerating to resigned to accepting to somewhat looking forward to the successive tales. I plodded through the 33 stories (nearly 600 pages!) in this work, and I think that's the best way to approach them.

Despite a pattern in many of the elements, each one offers a variation on the familiar theme. The stories were long on architectural detail from old English churches and country houses, the local inn, even of libraries.

Protagonists/narrators were typically literary men, sometimes antiquarians or researchers, sometimes writers, and generally ethical and caring. (There's a clear sense of right and wrong, with those out of sync with good ethics often receiving their comeuppance.) All protagonists were intrigued by the (well described) beauties of the country, village or seashore and often by the folk tales that underlie the “ghostly” doings of the particular tale. (Not all seem to be exactly ghosts, by the way, but creepy, malevolent, undead beings of one sort or another.)

But each tale features its own setting, the ghostly or horrific (pretty gentle horror, from a much more modern perspective) element differs, and whether the person facing the ghost is the protagonist or some person being described through the words and observations of others, varies story to story.

I will comment that I was aware that there were no heroines, only male protagonists. That felt like a comfortable choice for the author - he knew how to handle a narrator of a certain age, background, disposition - and did not venture out of it. These are mood stories, in which the feeling of anticipated horror is as strong as or stronger than the actual (not graphic) description of the critical moments. In other words, these are period pieces and enjoyable as such. Published in magazines in 1911, 1919, 1925 and 1933, they actually feel as if they were from an earlier period, perhaps the late 1800s or turn of that century.

James is credited as turning the ghost story into its “modern” form. So if ghost stories are to your taste, and you might like to see some of the ones still admired today, read these late at night, over a period of some days. Don't read them the way you might a novel - galloping through to the end. Instead, relish a frisson of horror, a shiver of anticipation, and James’s light hand at the inevitable crisis. Don't rush them. Shivers ahead.

[Leonie · Rating 3 out of 5]

If M.R. James had an editor, it's not obvious from these stories.

I'm having a dose of the Ray Bradburys, y'see. Both authors are ideas men, who can't write for shazbat. Some of James' ideas are very scary indeed, like some of Bradbury's SF concepts being compelling but alas! I am left again with a longing for an editor to take their respective works and WHIP THEIR ASSES INTO SHAPE. And I *know* that's gonna hurt. I have an editor who takes no prisoners and pushes me hard into streamlining my own works. Until I get belligerent and can take no more criticism for the afternoon.

Anyway.

To quote whats-his-face in Evelyn Waugh's Scoop, I enjoyed this volume "to a point". And you might too.

[Ellie Carr · Rating 4 out of 5]

The quality here is a bit all over the place, but there are some great lesser known gems in amongst the old favourites. This collection is so evocative of a certain time in history that even when plot is fairly thin on the ground, it really is like being in another world. In terms of individual stories, I read “After Dark in the Playing Fields” about five times and still have absolutely no idea what it is about. Special mention to “The Stalls of Barchester Cathedral” and “A Warning to the Curious”, both of which exceed the sum of their parts to become uniquely terrifying.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Canon Alberic's Scrap-book 4⭐
Lost Hearts 4.5⭐
The Mezzotint 5⭐
The Ash-tree 4.5⭐
Number 13 4.25⭐
Count Magnus 4⭐
'Oh, Whistle, and I'll Come to You, My Lad' 4⭐
The Treasure of Abbot Thomas 5⭐
A School Story 4.25⭐
The Rose Story 3⭐
The Tractate Middoth 5⭐
Casting the Runes 5⭐
The Stalls of Barchester Cathedral 4⭐
Mr. Humphreys and his Inheritance 5⭐
The Residence at Whitminster 3⭐
The Diary of Mr. Poynter 3.25⭐
An Episode of Cathedral History 3.25⭐
The Story of a Disappearance and an Appearance 3⭐
Two Doctors 2⭐
The Haunted Dolls' House 3⭐
The Uncommon Prayer-Book 4⭐
A Neighbor's Landmark 3.25⭐
A View From a Hill 4⭐
A Warning to the Curious 5⭐
An Evening's Entertainment 4⭐
There was a Man Dwelt by a Churchyard 3⭐
Rats 4⭐
After Dark in the Playing Fields 3⭐
Wailing Well 4.25⭐
Stories I have Tried to Write 3⭐

[Clare · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like a good ghost story, where it's all suggestion and not detailed descriptions with gore. There's a definite thread of threat running through James' stories which lead directly to the final moments of the Japanese version of the film, The Ring. Why do we find forms that are almost like our own but move oddly, crawling etc so horrific? Especially those where we can't see the face? It's interesting to see what other writers and adaptors have made of his tales, with Mr Gatiss' satisfying extension of The Mezzotint adding real horror to the original's promising if stunted tale. These tales are pleasantly spooky without giving me the creeps.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

The complete collection of ghost stories by English writer M.R. James, most of which were originally published in the early 1900s. I think this is a book to be placed on one's nightstand and enjoyed one or two stories at a time when in the mood. These are not graphic like modern era horror but leave a great deal to the imagination. I enjoyed the pace of these stories and the occasional touches of subtle humor.