Red Spectres: Russian 20th-Century Gothic-Fantastic Tales

by Muireann Maguire (Translator), Valery Bryusov (Contributor), Aleksandr Chayanov (Contributor)

This is a collection of 11 short stories in the gothic-fantastic genre by seven Russian writers mostly in the decade following the 1917 revolution.

CONTENTS
Valery Bryusov: In the Mirror
Aleksandr Chayanov: The Tale of the Hairdresser's Mannequin Aleksandr Chayanov: Venediktov
Aleksandr Chayanov: The Venetian Mirror
Mikhail Bulgakov: The Red Crown
Mikhail Bulgakov: A Séance
Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky: The Phantom
Aleksandr Grin: The Grey Motor Car
Georgy Peskov: The Messenger
Georgy Peskov: The Woman with no Nose
Pavel Perov: Professor Knop's Experiment

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Gothic, Russia, Horror, Anthologies, Russian Literature

160 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2012

Reviews

[Merl Fluin · Rating 4 out of 5]

42 SHORT STORIES IN 42 DAYS*

DAY 11: The Phantom, by Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky
A doctor suffers a macabre kind of haunting in this startlingly Ligotti-esque tale from the 1920s.

DAY 6: The Woman With No Nose, by Georgy Peskov
A sick man's descent into panic and delirium, very effectively rendered from a first-person POV.

*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

Any fresh reading suggestions/recommendations will be gratefully received 📚

[Mythili · Rating 3 out of 5]

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles...

Readers familiar with Chekhov, Gogol, Pushkin or Turgenev have already tasted some 19th-century Russian gothic literature. Harder to find, however, are early- to mid-20th-century examples of the form—after the Russian Revolution, gothic literature was essentially blocked from publication. A new collection translated and edited by Muireann Maguire showcases stories previously obscured by censorship. The darkness and dissonance of these tightly constructed tales reflect something of the political turbulence of Soviet Russia. “In the Mirror,” by Valery Bryusov and “The Venetian Mirror,” Aleksandr Chayanov’s response to Bryusov’s story, both explore the limits of sanity, as their protagonists do battle with their reflections. Like other stories in the collection, they dabble in the supernatural so as to illuminate the strangeness of the country’s transition. “The supreme irony of Soviet efforts to expunge the Gothic from Russia’s cultural legacy is that such attempts merely guaranteed its resurrection,” Maguire explains. Nearly a century after the time, the stories collected here are still powerful in their disaffection. As a character in Aleksandr Grin’s “The Grey Motor Car” puts it, “A dash of distortion lasts a long time, if not forever.”

[Robert Vanneste · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first story " In The Mirror " is a 4.5 - 5.0 . After that it takes a step down . Well actually a jump down . So the overall collection is somewhere between a 2.0 and 2.5 . Disappointing after the strong start .

[Electric · Rating 3 out of 5]

A mixed bag of course, some really good stories by Bulgakov, Krzhizhanovsky or Chayanov for example, some not so stellar. Would have benefited from including stories by authors that were sympathetic to the revolution, but this would of course have interfered with the editors claim that bolshevism and speculative fiction might never mix. I highly doubt it and so does China Mieville. Still a very good collection of stories full of mirrors, madness, doppelgängers and gloom. FFO E.T.A. Hoffman and E.A. Poe.

[Olesya Gilmore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Strange and fantastic, these haunting tales from the early 1920s Soviet era tell of horror inspired by the real-life specters of Great War, Revolution, and subsequent Civil War that overshadowed the lives of so many in that fraught and bloody time.

[Leia Nichols · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderfully creepy and somewhat beautiful

[Leniw · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting collection of weird stories.
The collection consists of 11 stories by 7 authors: Valery Bryusov, Aleksandr Chayanov, Mikhail Bulgakov, Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky, Aleksandr Grin, Georgy Peskov and Pavel Perov.

The collected tales evolve around madness, fear, decay, anxiety, death and deformation. Reflections with their own will, visitors from the other side, deformed creatures, scientists who believe to have outreach God.

Although Chayanov is supposed to be one of the greatest Gothic writers of Russia, I found his stories dull. Personally I really liked the stories of Bulgakov, Krzhizhanovsky, Peskov and Perov.

If you are a reader who appreciates Gothic literature this is a must-read.

[Michael Samerdyke · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very good anthology of Russian fantastic stories written between 1903-1927. I was pleasantly surprised at how powerful some of the stories were.

"In the Mirror" by V. Bryusov had the creeping terror of a Poe story if Poe ever had a female protagonist. "The Red Crown" by Bulgakov was a heartbreaking story of war and insanity, while "A Seance" was slyly humorous.

The real discovery was A. Chayanov (executed in 1937). His three stories were fascinating. One, "Venediktov" seems to have been an influence on Bulgakov for "The Master and Margarita."

A real eye-opening book.

[Martica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great collection of gothic tales from Revolutionary Russia. There is a story for everyone here that can make your spine tingle. My favourite has to be Valery Bryusov's "In the Mirror". An everyday object that can drive you insane.
"Happy" reading, not exactly the right word but if you like gothic tales, then this is for you.

[l · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bulgakov's 'A Seance' was brilliant.

[Bryan Alexander · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fine little anthology which makes a solid contribution to both Gothic and Russian literature.

Each story is from the early 20th century, just before, during, and after the Russian revolution and Civil War. Every tale has at least a touch, if not a full immersion in, the creepy, uncanny, and unsettling.

They cover a range of ideas. Doppelgangers (in mirrors and dolls), disturbing machinery, m/bad science, messages from the dead appear. The uneasy boundary between the living and the dead stems easily from the contexts of violence and war, while the doubles, science, and tech continue imaginative fiction's probing of the industrial-scientific revolution.

Most of the authors were new to me. I only recognized Bulgakov, and enjoyed his customary satire , narrative drive, and detailed character sketches. Aleksandr Grin impressed me with a very bitter riposte to Marinetti. Apparently he's known for cheerful pulp adventures, but his story was nearly acidic.

"'This is a lovely spot for a date,' he added, 'or for a suicide.'" (153)

The film, like thousands upon thousands of others, was insipid and void of content, but I was afforded immense satisfaction precisely because so much energy had been squandered on generating the constant, flickering motion of onscreen life...
My satisfaction in observing this was indistinguishable from malicious pleasure." (149)

Another Aleksandr, Chayanov, offered a fun take on E.T.A. Hoffman; his "Venediktov" took the typical Russian story of traipsing through high society in a surprisingly well-realized bit of horror. Thomas Ligotti fans like myself should enjoy "The Tale of the Hairdresser's Mannequin" and Krzhizhanovsky's body horror "The Phantom" (not about what the title suggests).

I'm impressed by Maguire's work in exfiltrating these stories from this part of Russian/Soviet history. I think she overstates the USSR's opposition to imagination, though.

[MJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

While some of the stories had their confusing moments, overall this collection was an enjoyable read. This isn't your typical rattling chains kind of gothic tales where everything is explained away neatly at the end. In addition to being gothic and creepy, these stories are written by Russian authors, and this fact is evident in every story's settings.

Stalinist and/or Russian Revolution era tales plus a gothic twist? Worth the read.

It would be 4 stars but some of the stories were a little confusing (translation problems?) and in one case there was a name change (maybe just a nickname that tends to happen in Russian stories? not sure) mid story that made it seem like a new character appeared when perhaps that wasn't the case.

[Elizabeth Kiem · Rating 3 out of 5]

n Red Spectres, an inspired but uneven collection of Russian horror stories, a host of apparitions, doubles, dolls and demons refuse to lie quietly. These are stories about the same age as Lenin’s mummy, but as members of a certain 18th century trans-continental literary family, they are, in a sense, much older souls. Penned in the cultural forge of the most radical and destructive social experiment of the 20th century, these are tales of modern men undone by Faustian haunts in antiquated attire. They have survived the New Order of the Proletariat, only to be tormented by “reproachful faces of a perished world.”


Full Review

[Jaci · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting collection of gothic tales from the Soviet era. The genre provided the authors with a venue for commentary on politics, industrialization and Civil War, not unlike that of Soviet science fiction. Some of the authors are more well-known, like Bulgakov, Bryusov, and Grin, and their stories seem more tightly constructed. Krzhizhanovsky's The Phantom was compelling in that an embalmed fetus is used in gynecological education by forcing it through a model of the female reproductive tract...over and over again. Lots of eternal torment in these stories and a nod to technology that destroys the soul.

[Tony Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A few stories stood out. Both Bulgakov's contributions were very good. So was “The Tale of the Hairdresser’s Mannequin” by Aleksandr Chayanov. It was written in 1918; Chayanov’s other two stories in the collection, both written in 1922, disappointed me, although apparently one of them helped inspire Bulgakov’s Master and Margarita. The two stories by Geogi Peskov (pseudonym for Yelena Deisha) were imaginatively rich, and satisfying. I would like to find more of her fiction, but she seems almost unknown; this collection seems to have rescued her from complete obscurity.

[elderfoil...the whatever champion · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aleksandr Grin, a man with whom I share sensibilities, had some disparaging words for the automobile in "The Grey Motor Car," my favorite story of the collection. That tasted very good with my morning blackberries.

Aleksander Chayanov's "The Venetian Mirror" was another great story, and also Bulgakov's "The Red Crown." I also won't complain about a woman with no nose.

[Meaghan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Please read my full review here: http://mwgerard.com/accent-a-little-r...

[Abby · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, I liked these stories, especially the last few.