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Christmas Ghosts
Vintage paperback
263 pages, Paperback
Published November 1, 1988
3 people are currently reading
68 people want to read
About the author
Kathryn Cramer
56 books41 followersKathryn Cramer lives in Westport, NY. She is an editor of the Hieroglyph project sponsored by the Center for Science and the Imagination at Arizona State University. Her story, "Am I Free to Go?" was published by Tor.com in December 2012.
She co-edited the Year's Best Fantasy and Year's Best SF series with David G. Hartwell. Her most recent historical anthologies include The Space Opera Renaissance and The Hard SF Renaissance, both co-edited with Hartwell. Their previous hard SF anthology was The Ascent of Wonder (1994).
She is working on a film adaptation of her story "You, in Emulation" with director Edward Cornell.
She co-edited the Year's Best Fantasy and Year's Best SF series with David G. Hartwell. Her most recent historical anthologies include The Space Opera Renaissance and The Hard SF Renaissance, both co-edited with Hartwell. Their previous hard SF anthology was The Ascent of Wonder (1994).
She is working on a film adaptation of her story "You, in Emulation" with director Edward Cornell.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
December 13, 2020
Genuinely a nicely put together anthology of ghost stories that take place during the holidays. Most of them are pretty old-school, but I still found myself enjoying this as a December read. A lot of the stories remind me of story-time with my mum as a child and as such rate highly for me. Perfect for the season and lots of shorts that I had fun reading. A solid 4 for me.
(Fav stories have been marked with a “*”)
Their Dear Little Ghost (Elia Wilkinson Peattie):
An old maid’s little goddaughter passes away just before Christmas and is later on seen crying by her little brothers. They’ll have to work out how to help her. A 1898-short story from a time when it was not uncommon for children to not make it into adulthood.
Ultra-short and a bit on the bland side seen with the goggles of the current day and age, but I can imagine it having struck a cord and played with a common fear for parents back in then.
*The Curse of the Catafalques (F. Anstey):
An amusing story: A scoundrel who tries to win the hand of an heiress and her fortune finds that he’ll have to confront the family curse/demon first. Not the best ending, but genuinely funny otherwise.
*The Story of the Goblins Who Stole a Sexton (Charles Dickens):
His earliest Christmas story and a precursor to his more famous A Christmas Carol. It tells the story of Gabriel Grub, a mean & grumpy sexton who beats a boy with a lantern because the kid was singing. He’s then kidnapped by the Goblin King and the rest of his court who wants to teach him a lesson.
*Christmas Night (Elizabeth Walter):
The car dies on a couple whilst on a deserted stretch road one Christmas Night. They decide to stay at an old fashioned Inn for the night but are made uneasy by the landlord. With no car, no phone, no electricity at all, they’re pretty much out of options for the night. They flee in the night only to learn that a murder happened and that things might not be as they seem. Classic ghost short & comforting in its traditional style (although maybe not the most inventive).
A New Christmas Carol (Arthur Machen):
For those who feel like A Christmas Carol needed a quirky ‘t’was but a dream’ follow-up by Machen. Very weird, sort of funny and effective short pointing to the two things you can count on: Death & taxes.
*A Christmas Game (A.N.L. Munby):
A Christmas tradition of telling ghostly stories with props brings and unwelcome visitor from the past of one guest with ghastly consequences.
The Great Staircase at Landover Hall (Frank R. Stockton):
A young man buys an old mansion and meets the former (and deceased) owner. Ghost aside, this was ultimately a romance short.
*The Water Ghost of Harrowby Hall (John Kendrick Bangs):
The snarky and persistent ghost of a female ancestor has been haunting the lords of the manor on Christmas Eve for over 200 years- in what must be the most annoying manner ever: Having drowned herself she soaks the lord and whatever room he finds himself in (including his glass of whiskey) and quite often the room below as well. The current owner is understandably upset and has a chilling idea as to how to make the hauntings stop. Quite a funny story and I had a lot of fun reading it.
Christmas Meeting (Rosemary Timperley):
“A ghost from the past or future?”A middle aged woman spends Christmas alone when a young man (also alone for the holidays)mistakenly walks into her apt thinking it is his. They both appreciate not being alone and decide to continue chatting. That is, until he suddenly disappears.
The Ghost (William D. O’Connor):
The deceased friend (and the last letter he sent urging him to treat his struggling fellow humans well) has been on the mind of a Scrooge-like doctor. Yet he still tells a tenant she’ll have to vacate the place he has rented her since she hasn’t paid & let’s a scoundrel run a bar just because he pays on time. Like Scrooge, he’ll have a change of heart with a little help from his ghostly friend & daughter come Christmas.
Christmas Reunion (Sir Andrew Caldecott):
A ghost poses as Father Christmas in order to exact vengeance on someone who wronged him in life, although that only becomes clear well after the fact.
The Ghosts at Grantley (Leonard Kip):
A young man visits his uncle (& the cousin he’s in love with) for Christmas and encounters twin ghosts who haven’t gotten along for 2 centuries due to a misunderstanding.
The Christmas Banquet (Nathaniel Hawthorne):
A man decides to host an annual Christmas Banquet with the 10 most miserable people one can find, and the tradition continues well into when he himself is dead and only skeletal remains on a chair. One guest differs from the miserable lot and points to one thing being a lot worse than misery. The banquet is about as fun as it sounds like on paper.
The Crown Derby Plate (Marjorie Bowen):
A lady is one plate away from completing a China set and hears of a woman with a large collection that might help her finally complete it. She gets the plate but something’s definitely odd with the entire experience.
A Strange Christmas Game (Mrs. J. H. Riddell):
A young man and his sister inherits a haunted house from a relation who disappeared under suspicious circumstances.
*Calling Card (Ramsey Campbell):
An insidious Christmas card reading “A Very Harried Christmas & No New Year”, the (supposedly) drowned and homicidal son of the former resident and a nervous woman who keeps smelling stagnant water and hearing noises. Classic Campbell.
A Christmas Tree (Charles Dickens):
Dickens’ other (fairly) well-known Christmas story in which an elderly man reminisce of past Christmases inspired by the gifts and toys of the tree.
(Fav stories have been marked with a “*”)
Their Dear Little Ghost (Elia Wilkinson Peattie):
An old maid’s little goddaughter passes away just before Christmas and is later on seen crying by her little brothers. They’ll have to work out how to help her. A 1898-short story from a time when it was not uncommon for children to not make it into adulthood.
Ultra-short and a bit on the bland side seen with the goggles of the current day and age, but I can imagine it having struck a cord and played with a common fear for parents back in then.
*The Curse of the Catafalques (F. Anstey):
An amusing story: A scoundrel who tries to win the hand of an heiress and her fortune finds that he’ll have to confront the family curse/demon first. Not the best ending, but genuinely funny otherwise.
*The Story of the Goblins Who Stole a Sexton (Charles Dickens):
His earliest Christmas story and a precursor to his more famous A Christmas Carol. It tells the story of Gabriel Grub, a mean & grumpy sexton who beats a boy with a lantern because the kid was singing. He’s then kidnapped by the Goblin King and the rest of his court who wants to teach him a lesson.
*Christmas Night (Elizabeth Walter):
The car dies on a couple whilst on a deserted stretch road one Christmas Night. They decide to stay at an old fashioned Inn for the night but are made uneasy by the landlord. With no car, no phone, no electricity at all, they’re pretty much out of options for the night. They flee in the night only to learn that a murder happened and that things might not be as they seem. Classic ghost short & comforting in its traditional style (although maybe not the most inventive).
A New Christmas Carol (Arthur Machen):
For those who feel like A Christmas Carol needed a quirky ‘t’was but a dream’ follow-up by Machen. Very weird, sort of funny and effective short pointing to the two things you can count on: Death & taxes.
*A Christmas Game (A.N.L. Munby):
A Christmas tradition of telling ghostly stories with props brings and unwelcome visitor from the past of one guest with ghastly consequences.
The Great Staircase at Landover Hall (Frank R. Stockton):
A young man buys an old mansion and meets the former (and deceased) owner. Ghost aside, this was ultimately a romance short.
*The Water Ghost of Harrowby Hall (John Kendrick Bangs):
The snarky and persistent ghost of a female ancestor has been haunting the lords of the manor on Christmas Eve for over 200 years- in what must be the most annoying manner ever: Having drowned herself she soaks the lord and whatever room he finds himself in (including his glass of whiskey) and quite often the room below as well. The current owner is understandably upset and has a chilling idea as to how to make the hauntings stop. Quite a funny story and I had a lot of fun reading it.
Christmas Meeting (Rosemary Timperley):
“A ghost from the past or future?”A middle aged woman spends Christmas alone when a young man (also alone for the holidays)mistakenly walks into her apt thinking it is his. They both appreciate not being alone and decide to continue chatting. That is, until he suddenly disappears.
The Ghost (William D. O’Connor):
The deceased friend (and the last letter he sent urging him to treat his struggling fellow humans well) has been on the mind of a Scrooge-like doctor. Yet he still tells a tenant she’ll have to vacate the place he has rented her since she hasn’t paid & let’s a scoundrel run a bar just because he pays on time. Like Scrooge, he’ll have a change of heart with a little help from his ghostly friend & daughter come Christmas.
Christmas Reunion (Sir Andrew Caldecott):
A ghost poses as Father Christmas in order to exact vengeance on someone who wronged him in life, although that only becomes clear well after the fact.
The Ghosts at Grantley (Leonard Kip):
A young man visits his uncle (& the cousin he’s in love with) for Christmas and encounters twin ghosts who haven’t gotten along for 2 centuries due to a misunderstanding.
The Christmas Banquet (Nathaniel Hawthorne):
A man decides to host an annual Christmas Banquet with the 10 most miserable people one can find, and the tradition continues well into when he himself is dead and only skeletal remains on a chair. One guest differs from the miserable lot and points to one thing being a lot worse than misery. The banquet is about as fun as it sounds like on paper.
The Crown Derby Plate (Marjorie Bowen):
A lady is one plate away from completing a China set and hears of a woman with a large collection that might help her finally complete it. She gets the plate but something’s definitely odd with the entire experience.
A Strange Christmas Game (Mrs. J. H. Riddell):
A young man and his sister inherits a haunted house from a relation who disappeared under suspicious circumstances.
*Calling Card (Ramsey Campbell):
An insidious Christmas card reading “A Very Harried Christmas & No New Year”, the (supposedly) drowned and homicidal son of the former resident and a nervous woman who keeps smelling stagnant water and hearing noises. Classic Campbell.
A Christmas Tree (Charles Dickens):
Dickens’ other (fairly) well-known Christmas story in which an elderly man reminisce of past Christmases inspired by the gifts and toys of the tree.
February 13, 2021
Strange one this, it’s been on my bookshelf for 30 years & I only ever read one of the stories, decided I didn’t enjoy it & left it to gather dust. Having a yearning for some classic Christmas ghosties this year I picked it out again, only to be very, very impressed.
There’s only one dud in this anthology - The Christmas Banquet by Nathaniel Hawthorne, don’t bother, you’ll want to hang yourself after reading it - but the rest are great, particularly ‘Calling Card’ by Ramsey Campbell and ‘The Crown Derby Plate’ by Marjorie Bowen, both creepy spinetinglers. There’s even a couple of lesser-known Dickens in there, I’ll definitely be dipping in again next Christmas.
There’s only one dud in this anthology - The Christmas Banquet by Nathaniel Hawthorne, don’t bother, you’ll want to hang yourself after reading it - but the rest are great, particularly ‘Calling Card’ by Ramsey Campbell and ‘The Crown Derby Plate’ by Marjorie Bowen, both creepy spinetinglers. There’s even a couple of lesser-known Dickens in there, I’ll definitely be dipping in again next Christmas.
December 30, 2023
Given how much of a strong nostalgic connection I have with the anthology HAUNTING CHRISTMAS TALES (check out my review), I went into this similar anthology with high hopes, but it was a slog to get through.
CHRISTMAS GHOSTS is a collection of seventeen short stories, including one by Nathaniel Hawthorne and two by Charles Dickens. My main criticism is that almost none of the stories are either all that scary nor add much of a new element to the supernatural. And despite the title, not all of the stories feature Christmas all that prominently. In fact, one story, “Calling Card” by Ramsey Campbell, is really a New Year’s story.
One bizarre story, “A New Christmas Carol” by Arthur Machen, is a four-page sequel to Dickens’s A CHRISTMAS CAROL that only exists to be a criticism against paying taxes.
Another, “The Crown Derby Plate” by Marjorie Bowen, has the most predictable reveal you could ever see coming.
My favorite is a super short right in the middle of the book titled “Christmas Meeting” by Rosemary Timperly, which is a poignant snapshot of a chance meeting between two lonely souls.
And my favorite quote in the book is:
“There is nothing children enjoy so much as mummery, especially if it is slightly mysterious.”
CHRISTMAS GHOSTS is not an especially strong anthology, and lacks the heavy emotional gravitas that the Christmas setting should inherently bring.
CHRISTMAS GHOSTS is a collection of seventeen short stories, including one by Nathaniel Hawthorne and two by Charles Dickens. My main criticism is that almost none of the stories are either all that scary nor add much of a new element to the supernatural. And despite the title, not all of the stories feature Christmas all that prominently. In fact, one story, “Calling Card” by Ramsey Campbell, is really a New Year’s story.
One bizarre story, “A New Christmas Carol” by Arthur Machen, is a four-page sequel to Dickens’s A CHRISTMAS CAROL that only exists to be a criticism against paying taxes.
Another, “The Crown Derby Plate” by Marjorie Bowen, has the most predictable reveal you could ever see coming.
My favorite is a super short right in the middle of the book titled “Christmas Meeting” by Rosemary Timperly, which is a poignant snapshot of a chance meeting between two lonely souls.
And my favorite quote in the book is:
“There is nothing children enjoy so much as mummery, especially if it is slightly mysterious.”
CHRISTMAS GHOSTS is not an especially strong anthology, and lacks the heavy emotional gravitas that the Christmas setting should inherently bring.
November 26, 2025
♪ O tidings of hauntings and ghosts! ♪
This book contains 17 short, creepy Christmas tales. Found this at a used book store & thought of giving it a try.
------
Their Dear Little Ghost by Elia Wilkinson Peattie: A young girl dies before Christmas & returns on Christmas Eve. Good
The Curse of the Catafalques by F. Anstey: A young man takes over the identity of another who is going to meet a woman of a rich family as a potential suitor. He doesn't realize what he has to confront on Christmas Eve that dwells in the family's house in order to marry her. (This would've been a great story had the ending been much better then it was. A big sell of leaving the reader feeling like a fool for wasting time reading the story.)So-So
The Story of the Goblins Who Stole a Sexton by Charles Dickens: At night while working during the Christmas season, a hateful gravedigger is visited by goblins/elves, dragged underground & tortured into reforming his bad attitude. So-So
Christmas Night by Elizabeth Walter: Car troubles force a couple to stay overnight at a creepy inn on Christmas night in the middle of nowhere. (A classic spooky Twilight Zoneish tale to be sure. Cheesy? A little. But still would make your skin crawl with fear if you were the couple in the story. In general, no complaints about this one.) Good
A New Christmas Carol by Arthur Machen: Very short follow-up with Ebenezer Scrooge after his encounter with the spirits. Dull/Bad
A Christmas Game by A.N.L. Munby: A seemingly friendly guest at a family's holiday gathering is confronted with his dark past. Good
The Great Staircase at Landover Hall by Frank R. Stockton: A young rich bachelor buys a mansion for sale & is happy with his choice....until Christmas Eve arrives, then he becomes unhappy due to loneliness. But an unknown guest changes all that. (Good build up. You could feel the emotions of it. Great ending. This is my favorite story without a doubt.) Good
The Water Ghost of Harrowby Hall by John Kendrick Bangs:
A ghost with a curse attached to it appears every Christmas Eve for one hour in a specific room of a family manor & leaves it a wet mess every time. An heir to the family seeks a way to fight back. (A mildly humorous story) Good
Christmas Meeting by Rosemary Timperley: A lonely woman receives a visitor in her apartment from a man who mistook it for his. After chatting, he disappears. But who was the ghost? Dull/Bad
The Ghost by William D. O'Connor: A grumpy uncaring doctor shows his lack of sympathy towards the poor & remembers the life of a long-deceased estranged friend on Christmas Eve. Meanwhile, he is watched over by a mysterious ghost who attempts to change his attitudes. (A generic rip-off of A Christmas Carol. Many similarities to Dickens' work in this story.) So-So
Christmas Reunion by Sir Andrew Caldecott: A guest turns somber at a family's Christmas day festivities following a received letter, and the family's tradition of having a Father Christmas visit their home may spell his end. (The whole story, the guest's fate and all, was pretty much given away at the beginning but it still didn't hurt the fact that I found this a good story.) Good
The Ghosts at Grantley by Leonard Kip: Every Christmas day, 2 ghosts appear in a manor. Both are brothers who hate each other's guts & one irritates the head of the household by treating him as if he were not the owner while the other obstructs a gentleman caller. Good
The Christmas Banquet by Nathaniel Hawthorne: As part of a man's will, funds are used to host an annual Christmas feast to be attended by 10 unpleasant or emotionally miserable individuals to counter the joy of the holiday. But in attendance every year is the same individual who expresses no outward miseries, much to the irritation of the other guests. (The ending was kind of a letdown.) So-So
The Crown Derby Plate by Marjorie Bowen: An antique store owner visits a supposedly haunted house occupied by a recluse in the hopes of buying a piece of china to complete a set. Something about the homeowner is certainly unusual. (Nothing real special about this one. Saw the ending coming from miles away.) Dull/Bad
A Strange Christmas Game by Mrs. J.H. Riddell: A brother & sister inherit a manor. Apparently things get very noisy some nights. On Christmas Eve, the mystery of the noise & the disappearance of an ancestor are answered in a supernatural reenactment. Good
Calling Card by Ramsey Campbell: A woman receives a Christmas card with a rather dark message that concerns her greatly & begins to think strange appearances, occurrences & smells are related to it. (I've read a couple of R.C.'s stories before. This definitely has his signature "creepy factor" in it.) Good
A Christmas Tree by Charles Dickens: A man remembers Christmases of his past. Dull/Bad
Overall opinion: The number of "So-So" & "Dull/Bad" stories are quite high in this anthology. There's stories such as the rip-off of Dickens in The Ghost, the letdown of The Curse of the Catafalques & the barely touching of the Christmas theme in The Crown Derby Plate.
On the other hand, there are suspenseful ones such as Christmas Night, A Christmas Game, A Strange Christmas Game & Calling Card that make it worthwhile.
This book contains 17 short, creepy Christmas tales. Found this at a used book store & thought of giving it a try.
------
Their Dear Little Ghost by Elia Wilkinson Peattie: A young girl dies before Christmas & returns on Christmas Eve. Good
The Curse of the Catafalques by F. Anstey: A young man takes over the identity of another who is going to meet a woman of a rich family as a potential suitor. He doesn't realize what he has to confront on Christmas Eve that dwells in the family's house in order to marry her. (This would've been a great story had the ending been much better then it was. A big sell of leaving the reader feeling like a fool for wasting time reading the story.)So-So
The Story of the Goblins Who Stole a Sexton by Charles Dickens: At night while working during the Christmas season, a hateful gravedigger is visited by goblins/elves, dragged underground & tortured into reforming his bad attitude. So-So
Christmas Night by Elizabeth Walter: Car troubles force a couple to stay overnight at a creepy inn on Christmas night in the middle of nowhere. (A classic spooky Twilight Zoneish tale to be sure. Cheesy? A little. But still would make your skin crawl with fear if you were the couple in the story. In general, no complaints about this one.) Good
A New Christmas Carol by Arthur Machen: Very short follow-up with Ebenezer Scrooge after his encounter with the spirits. Dull/Bad
A Christmas Game by A.N.L. Munby: A seemingly friendly guest at a family's holiday gathering is confronted with his dark past. Good
The Great Staircase at Landover Hall by Frank R. Stockton: A young rich bachelor buys a mansion for sale & is happy with his choice....until Christmas Eve arrives, then he becomes unhappy due to loneliness. But an unknown guest changes all that. (Good build up. You could feel the emotions of it. Great ending. This is my favorite story without a doubt.) Good
The Water Ghost of Harrowby Hall by John Kendrick Bangs:
A ghost with a curse attached to it appears every Christmas Eve for one hour in a specific room of a family manor & leaves it a wet mess every time. An heir to the family seeks a way to fight back. (A mildly humorous story) Good
Christmas Meeting by Rosemary Timperley: A lonely woman receives a visitor in her apartment from a man who mistook it for his. After chatting, he disappears. But who was the ghost? Dull/Bad
The Ghost by William D. O'Connor: A grumpy uncaring doctor shows his lack of sympathy towards the poor & remembers the life of a long-deceased estranged friend on Christmas Eve. Meanwhile, he is watched over by a mysterious ghost who attempts to change his attitudes. (A generic rip-off of A Christmas Carol. Many similarities to Dickens' work in this story.) So-So
Christmas Reunion by Sir Andrew Caldecott: A guest turns somber at a family's Christmas day festivities following a received letter, and the family's tradition of having a Father Christmas visit their home may spell his end. (The whole story, the guest's fate and all, was pretty much given away at the beginning but it still didn't hurt the fact that I found this a good story.) Good
The Ghosts at Grantley by Leonard Kip: Every Christmas day, 2 ghosts appear in a manor. Both are brothers who hate each other's guts & one irritates the head of the household by treating him as if he were not the owner while the other obstructs a gentleman caller. Good
The Christmas Banquet by Nathaniel Hawthorne: As part of a man's will, funds are used to host an annual Christmas feast to be attended by 10 unpleasant or emotionally miserable individuals to counter the joy of the holiday. But in attendance every year is the same individual who expresses no outward miseries, much to the irritation of the other guests. (The ending was kind of a letdown.) So-So
The Crown Derby Plate by Marjorie Bowen: An antique store owner visits a supposedly haunted house occupied by a recluse in the hopes of buying a piece of china to complete a set. Something about the homeowner is certainly unusual. (Nothing real special about this one. Saw the ending coming from miles away.) Dull/Bad
A Strange Christmas Game by Mrs. J.H. Riddell: A brother & sister inherit a manor. Apparently things get very noisy some nights. On Christmas Eve, the mystery of the noise & the disappearance of an ancestor are answered in a supernatural reenactment. Good
Calling Card by Ramsey Campbell: A woman receives a Christmas card with a rather dark message that concerns her greatly & begins to think strange appearances, occurrences & smells are related to it. (I've read a couple of R.C.'s stories before. This definitely has his signature "creepy factor" in it.) Good
A Christmas Tree by Charles Dickens: A man remembers Christmases of his past. Dull/Bad
Overall opinion: The number of "So-So" & "Dull/Bad" stories are quite high in this anthology. There's stories such as the rip-off of Dickens in The Ghost, the letdown of The Curse of the Catafalques & the barely touching of the Christmas theme in The Crown Derby Plate.
On the other hand, there are suspenseful ones such as Christmas Night, A Christmas Game, A Strange Christmas Game & Calling Card that make it worthwhile.
December 26, 2021
There are a few really great stories in this book. Sadly there are many that are long and dull. Don't know that'll I'll revisit this book.
December 10, 2023
Some Classics and a sprinkle of modern ones (post-war to the 70s).
January 3, 2025
It's a mix of good-quality ghost stories with some forgettable Victorian fare. Boosted up to 3 stars for finding ghost stories all set at Christmastide.
December 22, 2025
Like all anthologies, some stories were better than others. The water ghost was the funniest.
maybe-read-sometime
February 10, 2011Not really fantasy, actually ghost stories. I'm not sure why I checked this out. Perhaps I was looking for Christmas Ghosts or I came across it while I was looking for Miracle and Other Christmas Stories? It's interesting that Charles Dickens created and fostered the idea of ghostly Christmas stories. (Of course there's A Christmas Carol but apparently he wrote others.)
Want to read
December 21, 2009I thought this would be more sf/f christmas stories. Or at least contemporary ghost stories. But it's mostly old stuff, even some Dickens. Which is fine, just not exactly what I was expecting.
I've abandoned it, after discovering a novella stuck in the middle of it that I was disinclined to read. Going back on the ILL van tomorrow.
I've abandoned it, after discovering a novella stuck in the middle of it that I was disinclined to read. Going back on the ILL van tomorrow.
Want to read
March 3, 2010Why did the Victorian Brits tell ghost stories at Christmas time? I don't know, but I am so glad they did, they are the BEST!!! Just stumbled upon this one at the Lib.
December 22, 2010
The Curse of the Catafalques was a fun little story in the style and humor of jerome k jerome.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews