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The Ghost-Feeler: Stories of Terror and the Supernatural
Diagnosed with typhoid fever at age of nine, Edith Wharton was beginning a long convalescence when she was given a book of ghost tales to read. Not only setting back her recovery, this reading opened up her fevered imagination to "a world haunted by formless horrors." So chronic was this paranoia that she was unable to sleep in a room with any book containing a ghost story. She was even moved to burn such volumes. These fears persisted until her late twenties. She outgrew them but retained a heightened or "celtic" (her term) sense of the supernatural. Wharton considered herself not "a ghost-seer"—the term applied to those people who have claimed to have witnessed apparitions—but rather a "ghost-feeler," someone who senses what cannot be seen. This experience and ability enabled Edith Wharton to write chilling tales that objectify this sense of unease. Far removed from the comfort and urbane elegance associated with the author's famous novels, the stories in this volume deal with vampirism, isolation, and hallucination, and were praised by Henry James, L. P. Hartley, Graham Greene, and many others.
200 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1935
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102 people want to read
About the author
Edith Wharton
1,440 books5,261 followersEdith Wharton emerged as one of America’s most insightful novelists, deftly exposing the tensions between societal expectation and personal desire through her vivid portrayals of upper-class life. Drawing from her deep familiarity with New York’s privileged “aristocracy,” she offered readers a keenly observed and piercingly honest vision of Gilded Age society.
Her work reached a milestone when she became the first woman to receive the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, awarded for The Age of Innocence. This novel highlights the constraining rituals of 1870s New York society and remains a defining portrait of elegance laced with regret.
Wharton’s literary achievements span a wide canvas. The House of Mirth presents a tragic, vividly drawn character study of Lily Bart, navigating social expectations and the perils of genteel poverty in 1890s New York. In Ethan Frome, she explores rural hardship and emotional repression, contrasting sharply with her urban social dramas.
Her novella collection Old New York revisits the moral terrain of upper-class society, spanning decades and combining character studies with social commentary. Through these stories, she inevitably points back to themes and settings familiar from The Age of Innocence. Continuing her exploration of class and desire, The Glimpses of the Moon addresses marriage and social mobility in early 20th-century America. And in Summer, Wharton challenges societal norms with its rural setting and themes of sexual awakening and social inequality.
Beyond fiction, Wharton contributed compelling nonfiction and travel writing. The Decoration of Houses reflects her eye for design and architecture; Fighting France: From Dunkerque to Belfort presents a compelling account of her wartime observations. As editor of The Book of the Homeless, she curated a moving, international collaboration in support of war refugees.
Wharton’s influence extended beyond writing. She designed her own country estate, The Mount, a testament to her architectural sensibility and aesthetic vision. The Mount now stands as an educational museum celebrating her legacy.
Throughout her career, Wharton maintained friendships and artistic exchanges with luminaries such as Henry James, Sinclair Lewis, Jean Cocteau, André Gide, and Theodore Roosevelt—reflecting her status as a respected and connected cultural figure.
Her literary legacy also includes multiple Nobel Prize nominations, underscoring her international recognition. She was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature more than once.
In sum, Edith Wharton remains celebrated for her unflinching, elegant prose, her psychological acuity, and her capacity to illuminate the unspoken constraints of society—from the glittering ballrooms of New York to quieter, more remote settings. Her wide-ranging work—novels, novellas, short stories, poetry, travel writing, essays—offers cultural insight, enduring emotional depth, and a piercing critique of the customs she both inhabited and dissected.
Her work reached a milestone when she became the first woman to receive the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, awarded for The Age of Innocence. This novel highlights the constraining rituals of 1870s New York society and remains a defining portrait of elegance laced with regret.
Wharton’s literary achievements span a wide canvas. The House of Mirth presents a tragic, vividly drawn character study of Lily Bart, navigating social expectations and the perils of genteel poverty in 1890s New York. In Ethan Frome, she explores rural hardship and emotional repression, contrasting sharply with her urban social dramas.
Her novella collection Old New York revisits the moral terrain of upper-class society, spanning decades and combining character studies with social commentary. Through these stories, she inevitably points back to themes and settings familiar from The Age of Innocence. Continuing her exploration of class and desire, The Glimpses of the Moon addresses marriage and social mobility in early 20th-century America. And in Summer, Wharton challenges societal norms with its rural setting and themes of sexual awakening and social inequality.
Beyond fiction, Wharton contributed compelling nonfiction and travel writing. The Decoration of Houses reflects her eye for design and architecture; Fighting France: From Dunkerque to Belfort presents a compelling account of her wartime observations. As editor of The Book of the Homeless, she curated a moving, international collaboration in support of war refugees.
Wharton’s influence extended beyond writing. She designed her own country estate, The Mount, a testament to her architectural sensibility and aesthetic vision. The Mount now stands as an educational museum celebrating her legacy.
Throughout her career, Wharton maintained friendships and artistic exchanges with luminaries such as Henry James, Sinclair Lewis, Jean Cocteau, André Gide, and Theodore Roosevelt—reflecting her status as a respected and connected cultural figure.
Her literary legacy also includes multiple Nobel Prize nominations, underscoring her international recognition. She was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature more than once.
In sum, Edith Wharton remains celebrated for her unflinching, elegant prose, her psychological acuity, and her capacity to illuminate the unspoken constraints of society—from the glittering ballrooms of New York to quieter, more remote settings. Her wide-ranging work—novels, novellas, short stories, poetry, travel writing, essays—offers cultural insight, enduring emotional depth, and a piercing critique of the customs she both inhabited and dissected.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
May 4, 2019
Harrowing stories made scarier by Edith Wharton's correct, buttoned-up prose. A riveting insider's social history of the 19th century.
NYRB recently published a piece on the resurgence of "Domestic Horror" - to me this collection is the grande dame of domestic horror. Wharton's stories tend to haunt housebound women. For ghosts, we get husbands, dead maids, fortune tellers, and the most persistent spook of all - parlor gossip. Don't miss "The Lady Maid's Bell"!
NYRB recently published a piece on the resurgence of "Domestic Horror" - to me this collection is the grande dame of domestic horror. Wharton's stories tend to haunt housebound women. For ghosts, we get husbands, dead maids, fortune tellers, and the most persistent spook of all - parlor gossip. Don't miss "The Lady Maid's Bell"!
December 21, 2010
The Ghost-Feeler Stories of Terror and the Supernatural is an anthology of ghost/supernatural stories written by Edith Wharton. The collection includes both chilling and even comedic stories. Her supernatural tales include ghosts, the dead walking, simple murder, psychological tales, and more. In each story I was struck with Wharton’s ability to weave vivid detail and imagery to create an unforgettable scene, such as in this description of a person dying:
At last even these dim sensations spent themselves in the thickening obscurity which enveloped her; a dusk now filled with pale geometric roses, circling softly, interminably before her, now darkened to a uniform blue-blackness, the hue of a summer night without stars. And into this darkness she felt herself sinking, sinking, with the gentle sense of security of one upheld from beneath. Like a tepid tide it rose around her, gliding ever higher and higher, folding in its velvety embrace her relaxed and tired body, now submerging her breast and shoulders, now creeping gradually, with soft inexorableness, over her throat to her chin, to her ears, to her mouth … Ah, now it was too high; the impulse to struggle was renewed; … her mouth was full; … she was choking…. Help!
‘It is all over,’ said the nurse, drawing down the eyelids with official composure.
While reading this collection, I have also been reading The Turn of The Screw by Henry James. One story in particular, The Lady Maid’s Bell, reminded me a lot of Henry James’ writing style. Which according to the introduction of this book is not surprising. Her style is also reminiscent of Edgar Allen Poe.
Overall, this book is a great collection of wonderfully put and vividly written stories. They aren’t scary in the traditional sense, but are indeed chilling and anyone who has a chance to pick up this collection should. It is like taking a walk through someones life and a journey through the dark recesses of Wharton’s mind.
At last even these dim sensations spent themselves in the thickening obscurity which enveloped her; a dusk now filled with pale geometric roses, circling softly, interminably before her, now darkened to a uniform blue-blackness, the hue of a summer night without stars. And into this darkness she felt herself sinking, sinking, with the gentle sense of security of one upheld from beneath. Like a tepid tide it rose around her, gliding ever higher and higher, folding in its velvety embrace her relaxed and tired body, now submerging her breast and shoulders, now creeping gradually, with soft inexorableness, over her throat to her chin, to her ears, to her mouth … Ah, now it was too high; the impulse to struggle was renewed; … her mouth was full; … she was choking…. Help!
‘It is all over,’ said the nurse, drawing down the eyelids with official composure.
While reading this collection, I have also been reading The Turn of The Screw by Henry James. One story in particular, The Lady Maid’s Bell, reminded me a lot of Henry James’ writing style. Which according to the introduction of this book is not surprising. Her style is also reminiscent of Edgar Allen Poe.
Overall, this book is a great collection of wonderfully put and vividly written stories. They aren’t scary in the traditional sense, but are indeed chilling and anyone who has a chance to pick up this collection should. It is like taking a walk through someones life and a journey through the dark recesses of Wharton’s mind.
May 12, 2020
I love October because I love Halloween and Halloween means ghost stories. I spent the last two weeks of October savoring these stories, turning the final page at the start of November. Edith Wharton played around with different styles and approaches and she excelled at all of them. I was pretty convinced that I liked Edith Wharton a whole lot after reading Ethan Frome and Age of Innocence, but after The Ghost-Feeler she entered into Favorite Author status.
July 13, 2020
'The Duchess at Prayer' is reminiscent of Browning's poem My Last Duchess. It is brilliantly told, with detailed descriptions of the villa and the state the Duchess's rooms are in, reminding one of du Maurier's style of writing. The story is layered with doubling imagery, each mentioned just twice; the new clove-carnations (symbolizing death), the hair sprinkled with gold, the fig (a phallic symbol, and ironically a symbol of modesty as well), the exposed shoulders of the Duchess, book-reading (symbolizing intellect and therefore masculine), and there are other symbols as well, giving depth and a certain measure of irony to the story. The Duchess goes to the chapel to pray, however she is suspected to be meeting a lover there, and we as readers never find out what the reality is. It is possible that she dies after being denied the one thing that brought her comfort after she was left to wallow in loneliness; it could be her prayers to the remains of Saint Blandina, or her clandestine trysts with a lover. Like Saint Blandina, the Duchess too has suffered tortures, not of the body but of the mind and heart. This was a brilliant, well-crafted story.
The Fullness of Life shows how we begin to appreciate things only when we have lost them. It also shows that a woman may desire the company of a better man, one who will connect with her soul and lead her to experience the fullness of life, but she will inevitably choose the husband that provides the comfort of routine, and is dependent on her to make his life meaningful.
I felt quite taken aback by the ending of A Journey , it felt very abrupt. But now that I think about it, it does seem rather logical that after losing her bearings on the train ride, that's how she would end up. To think that a man could is just too sad.
A Lady's Maid's Bell was full of mystery, more so than the first story in the series. I felt like I should read this again to make some more sense of exactly what happened. It's not terrifying thought. There were some basic elements which reminded me of the first story.
Afterwards definitely had that air of creepy mystery kept up by the previous two stories. An American couple buys a home in England, excited at the idea of having their very own haunted house coupled with discomforts of poor water supply and electricity to add to the drama. The irony is of course, that they've brought the ghost with them. It is not the house that has secrets, but it is Mary's husband who has kept many things from her. I get chills thinking about it now.
Triumph of the Night is beautifully written and thoroughly entertaining. I am reminded of Shakespeare's words: 'One may smile and smile, and be a villain' (Hamlet), and another: 'there's daggers in men's smiles.' It requires a special kind of evil to convince a person to kill himself. This was an amazing story to read.
A Bottle of Perrier is the only tale so far where I had already guessed the secret. I do love the description of the Arabian desert life here.
The Looking Glass is the last tale of this collection, and as good as the rest of them. A mirror should reflect the truth, and show you who you really are, but Mrs. Clingsland wanted was one that would show here an illusion of youth and beauty. She 'clings' to the idea that she is still desired by men, still hauntingly beautiful and loved by all. There is so much irony in this tale; it is ironic that Cora Atlee who wanted to keep money-hungry vampires from feeding on the weak Mrs. Clingland ended up taking money from the lady herself, ironic that the priest who disapproved of Cora's ability to 'feel' things through dreams would end up utilizing the money earned through those means, and of course the biggest irony is that Mrs' Clingsland loved looking-glasses but she never once truly looked at herself, instead she always looked at others and what they thought of her.
In short, I'm utterly in love with Wharton's writing and I want to read more of her works.
The Fullness of Life shows how we begin to appreciate things only when we have lost them. It also shows that a woman may desire the company of a better man, one who will connect with her soul and lead her to experience the fullness of life, but she will inevitably choose the husband that provides the comfort of routine, and is dependent on her to make his life meaningful.
I felt quite taken aback by the ending of A Journey , it felt very abrupt. But now that I think about it, it does seem rather logical that after losing her bearings on the train ride, that's how she would end up. To think that a man could is just too sad.
A Lady's Maid's Bell was full of mystery, more so than the first story in the series. I felt like I should read this again to make some more sense of exactly what happened. It's not terrifying thought. There were some basic elements which reminded me of the first story.
Afterwards definitely had that air of creepy mystery kept up by the previous two stories. An American couple buys a home in England, excited at the idea of having their very own haunted house coupled with discomforts of poor water supply and electricity to add to the drama. The irony is of course, that they've brought the ghost with them. It is not the house that has secrets, but it is Mary's husband who has kept many things from her. I get chills thinking about it now.
Triumph of the Night is beautifully written and thoroughly entertaining. I am reminded of Shakespeare's words: 'One may smile and smile, and be a villain' (Hamlet), and another: 'there's daggers in men's smiles.' It requires a special kind of evil to convince a person to kill himself. This was an amazing story to read.
A Bottle of Perrier is the only tale so far where I had already guessed the secret. I do love the description of the Arabian desert life here.
The Looking Glass is the last tale of this collection, and as good as the rest of them. A mirror should reflect the truth, and show you who you really are, but Mrs. Clingsland wanted was one that would show here an illusion of youth and beauty. She 'clings' to the idea that she is still desired by men, still hauntingly beautiful and loved by all. There is so much irony in this tale; it is ironic that Cora Atlee who wanted to keep money-hungry vampires from feeding on the weak Mrs. Clingland ended up taking money from the lady herself, ironic that the priest who disapproved of Cora's ability to 'feel' things through dreams would end up utilizing the money earned through those means, and of course the biggest irony is that Mrs' Clingsland loved looking-glasses but she never once truly looked at herself, instead she always looked at others and what they thought of her.
In short, I'm utterly in love with Wharton's writing and I want to read more of her works.
December 16, 2020
This is my second time reading this collection and both times I was fully immersed. I love how very real her subconscious makes scary dwellings of marriage and domestic life to wrong partners and some children. This is one of the ultimate favorite ghostly collections on my shelf. I Love it!
March 2, 2024
I enjoyed this so much more than Ethan Forme. All of these stories were so haunting and Wharton does a fantastic job at depicting different types of horror. I would recommend this to people who enjoy horror!
February 7, 2020
Wharton’s stories are delicious; unfortunately, this edition is riddled with typos.
October 29, 2021
The only stories I really liked was A Bottle of Perrier and The Looking-Glass.
July 12, 2022
I enjoyed reading this collection of tales by Edith Wharton. Her plots were well-written and unexpected. I plan to read more of her works.
October 25, 2015
Edith Wharton is such a lovely writer. Her sentences are perfect - just exactly the right number of words, no more and no less. This collection of stories is deliciously creepy. They aren't stories of "terror" like the book jacket says - they are stories in which the super-natural is as real as any other character. The supernatural element is completely real to the people experiencing it, so it's not hard to suspend disbelief. There are stories that are reminiscent of Poe or of James's Turn of the Screw, but without the melodrama. A couple of the stories are from the same "world" as Ethan Frome, and as realistically written, even if they contain ghosts and vampires. A very enjoyable spooky read.
October 18, 2012
Why didn't my sophomore English teacher have me read these instead of stupid Ethan Frome? Not only are these my favorite pieces written by Wharton, but these are among my favorite ghost stories. You can really feel the eerie, understated influence of Henry James on these stories in as diverse settings as North Africa and New Hampshire. Some of the creeping discomfort that we associate most with Scottish or Welsh ghost stories are now--wonder!--transplanted to even America. I'm so pleased. Only objection is the editors' inclusion of a contemporary review that described these stories as cozy. No, they are not cozy; they are haunting.
October 11, 2015
I found a few of these kind of confusing, but there were a few I really liked. The vampire story is one of the better ones I've read, and 'A Bottle of Perrier' was both gruesome and hilarious and the final story of the collection had a line that really stuck out:
'After all, I thought, these people don't know what real trouble is; but they've manufactured something so like it that it's about as bad as the genuine thing.'
'After all, I thought, these people don't know what real trouble is; but they've manufactured something so like it that it's about as bad as the genuine thing.'
November 9, 2008
Edith Wharton brings her skillful touch to stories that are alternately scary, psychologically deft, and even funny. Not just well-written genre fiction -- which, ahhh! I'm so happy -- but sound, intricate short stories worth reading.
October 28, 2011
Interesting, especially after reading The Turn of the Screw, Henry James was one of Wharton's idols and mentors. The stories were creative and psychological, but sometimes leave too much to the imagination. Not a bad read.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews