Spook Stories

by E.F. Benson

Edward Frederic Benson (1867 - 1940) was an English novelist, biographer, memoirist and short story writer, known professionally as E.F. Benson. His friends called him Fred. Benson's first book was Sketches from Marlborough. He started his novel writing career with the (then) fashionably controversial Dodo (1893), which was an instant success, and followed it with a variety of satire and romantic and supernatural melodrama. He repeated the success of Dodo, which featured a portrait of composer and militant suffragette Ethel Smyth with the same cast of characters a generation later: Dodo the Second (1914) and Dodo Wonders (1921) The Mapp and Lucia series, written relatively late in his career, consists of six novels and two short stories. The novels are: Queen Lucia, Lucia in London, Miss Mapp (including the short story "The Male Impersonator"), Mapp and Lucia, Lucia's Progress (published as The Worshipful Lucia in the United States) and Trouble for Lucia. The short stories are "The Male Impersonator" and "Desirable Residences."

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

237 pages, Paperback

Published September 24, 2014

About the author

Edward Frederic "E. F." Benson was an English novelist, biographer, memoirist, archaeologist and short story writer.

E. F. Benson was the younger brother of A.C. Benson, who wrote the words to "Land of Hope and Glory", Robert Hugh Benson, author of several novels and Roman Catholic apologetic works, and Margaret Benson, an author and amateur Egyptologist.

Benson died during 1940 of throat cancer at the University College Hospital, London. He is buried in the cemetery at Rye, East Sussex.

Last paragraph from Wikipedia

Reviews

[Bill Kerwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Benson's third collection of ghost stories is arguably his best. Three of the twelve tales included here are superb ("The Face," "And No Bird Sings" and "The Temple") and three others ("A Tale of an Empty House," "Naboth's Vineyard" and "The Corner House")are near to them in quality.

I particularly recommend: "The Face" (perhaps Benson's most terrifying story), "And No Bird Sings" (the best of his giant slug/elemental tales) and "The Corner House" (not that scary, but featuring a memorably repulsive incarnation of Benson's greatest personal terror--the large, assertive, middle-aged woman).

Benson's a pro, and every story in this collection is well written and worth at least one read.

[H. P. Reed · Rating 4 out of 5]

E.F. Benson's stories probably raised quite a few hairs on the late Victorians and Edwardians who comprised his audience. His tales included monsters, murderers, mad men and spectral visitors. None had good intentions. Benson writes competently. His descriptions of landscape are evocative but he opens his stories too often with long passages on the rural delights - or not - of the place the narrator is visiting. His stories most often begin with the narrator explaining why he was in some small village where the action takes place. Formula, time and again, and yet his monsters, whether human or spectral, are chilling enough. For someone who grew up on Saki and Le Fanu, Benson's work, despite its flaws, is pleasant reading.

[Sophy H · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another excellent set of spooky stories from my homeboy E F Benson. This man can write uneasy spookiness till the cows come home. His ability to describe an atmosphere, surroundings and a person's visceral reaction to something untoward is second to none, especially given that it's all done within a limited page count.

These were all genuine belters of stories, not one dud amongst them.

5 star fare for sure.

[Orrin Grey · Rating 4 out of 5]

A remarkably charming little book of light, traditional ghost stories. I'd read and enjoyed some anthologized tales by Benson previously, and those combined with a glowing review from Eric Orchard led me to pick this up.

Notably, the copy I got from my library was part of the "Supernatural and Occult Fiction" line from the now-defunct Arno Press. This was the first I'd heard of this line, but there were a listing of other titles in the back of the book, many of which were unfamiliar to me. I think I'll be checking some more of those out, if I can scare them up.

[Eric Orchard · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful collection of ghost stories by one of my favorite ghost story writers. A slightly different tone than some other ghost story writers, creepy but with a light touch. The protagonists are usually unattached men living pretty leisurely lives whose lives are interrupted by a bit of supernatural weirdness. There are even touches of humour which he somehow makes work perfectly. Along with my M.R. James collection this is probably my favorite collection of ghost stories. I can't recommend it enough.

[Quicksilver Quill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Plenty of Spooks to Be Found Here

Spook Stories is another fine offering by E.F. Benson showcasing his talent for penning ghostly tales. He's actually pretty good at creating spooky atmospheres and describing strange occurrences. Granted, some of the stories feel quite similar, many involving a character heading out for a vacation in a rented house in the country where, invariably, plenty of weird things take place. Still, Benson is enjoyable to read and very approachable. I would recommend checking him out if you're looking for some fun ghost stories.

[Greg Kerestan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Benson hasn't started running out of tricks yet, and this volume contains the first true signs of an emerging "mythos" of Benson's horror iconography. The Elementals, the sluglike demonic presence that have reared their heads before, finally appear head-on in "And No Birds Sing." The ongoing dissection of the Spiritualist movement continues throughout, with seances and guilty spirits of all kinds. Finally, in "The Face," the demon-vampires get their biggest appearance yet, in what many (myself included) consider Benson's most disturbing story. Benson even continues the tradition of getting meta and including himself as a character in the final story of the collection, the eerie "The Temple." Worth reading for "The Face" alone, but many others here are almost as good.

[Bruce · Rating 2 out of 5]

A slight book with moderately entertaining ghost stories. Mostly interesting to me because the author is also the creator of the wildly entertaining Mapp and Lucia books.

' "There are queer things," I said.'

[Julia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice, spooky set of short stories from the 1920s. Quick read.

[Sheryl Sato · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spooky tales from one of horror's master writers. Made me jump a few times, very absorbing!

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reconciliation • (1924) 3.25⭐
The Face • (1924) 5⭐
Spinach • (1924) 3.25⭐
Bagnell Terrace • (1925) 4.25⭐
A Tale of an Empty House • (1925) 3.25⭐
Naboth's Vineyard • (1923) 3.25⭐
Expiation • (1923) 3⭐
Home, Sweet Home • (1927) 3.5⭐
"And No Bird Sings" • (1926) 4⭐
The Corner House • (1926) 3.5⭐
Corstophine • (1924) 4.25⭐
The Temple • (1924) 5⭐

[Paul Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are some truly exceptional and compelling stories in this collection; Icommend it to you.