The Valancourt Book of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories: Volume Two

The Valancourt Books of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories #2

by Allen Grove (Introduction), Eliza Lynn Linton, James Grant

Fifteen more chilling tales of Yuletide terror, collected from rare Victorian periodicals

Following the popularity of Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol (1843), Victorian newspapers and magazines frequently featured ghost stories at Christmas time, and reading them by candlelight or the fireside became an annual tradition. This second volume of Victorian Christmas ghost stories contains fifteen tales, most of which have never been reprinted. They represent a mix of the diverse styles and themes common to Victorian ghost fiction and include works by once-popular authors like Grant Allen and Eliza Lynn Linton as well as contributions from anonymous or wholly forgotten writers. This volume also features a new introduction by Prof. Allen Grove.

“At first I was aware only of a bluish, misty, phosphorescent light, and then a ghastly terror, that froze the very blood in my veins, seized me, for suddenly I saw rise up out of the inky darkness the form of a man—the eyes of a hideous red, fixed on mine with a look of hate ...” - Coulson Kernahan, “Haunted!”

“As I stood in breathless horror, unable to stir a limb, the figure raised its arm, a skeleton hand emerged from the heavy folds of the cloak, and touched my elbow. A scorching pain shot through me, I uttered a shriek——” - Emily Arnold, “The Ghost of the Treasure-Chamber”

“Again that shudder passed through his body, and again he unwillingly met the glance of those diabolical eyes upon the scroll. Horror of horrors! was the face alive, or was he going mad?” - Anonymous, “The Weird Violin”

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

220 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 28, 2017

About the author

Born and raised in South Florida, Allen Grove is an author and an avid outdoorsman. His love for nature and quest for self-fulfillment are both heavy influences in his works. Most of the time you can find him writing under the sun, because mother nature tells the best stories. As a new author, he looks forward to perfecting his craft while traveling across the world. In his debut novel, Heart Like a Bear, the nature of the Bering Sea and the temperate northwest forests …

Reviews

[Johann (jobis89) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I finished Volume 2 of The Valancourt Book of Victorian Ghost Stories last week. It was quite a mixed collection, to be honest, I felt that Volume 1 was way stronger!

My favourite story was probably Number Two, Melrose Square, which really did give me the heebie jeebies with its chilling imagery! I also really enjoyed Christmas Eve in Beach House, coastal settings always lend to a story’s atmosphere.

I love the predictability of these stories, 9 times out of 10 you can guess where they’re going, but there’s a comfort in that I feel. I’m all in for the Victorian Christmas vibes and those chilly settings! It always make me long for simpler times when everyone would get together at Christmas to drink and dance and share ghost stories. Sounds like heaven to me!

I’ve got Volume 3 on deck for next December! 3.5 stars.

[Nancy Oakes · Rating 5 out of 5]

The stories in this book are an excellent sampling of ghostly tales appearing in various Victorian periodicals; I counted ten separate publications from which these fifteen stories were taken, including Bentley's Miscellany, The London Society Christmas Number, and Belgravia's Christmas Annual, to name only three. And while that's all part of what makes this book special, the truth is that it can be read and enjoyed any time of the year by anyone who has a deep and abiding fondness for these old tales. As Allen Grove reveals in his introduction,

"Ghost stories are meant to surprise and scare us, but at the same time their conventions bring a certain level of pleasure in their familiarity. The stories here don't disappoint on this front,"

and they absolutely do not. Citing "vacant old houses" with cheap rents, "secret rooms and hidden staircases," along with other pleasurable chills and thrills, he gives us a tiny peek at what we'll find inside this book. And for me, there's the added attraction of discovering new stories "by little known or anonymous authors," whose work resonates in "echoes" found in more "popular and influential writers of dark and disturbing tales."

I loved each and every story, and there is not a bad one to be found in the entire book. As far as personal favorites go, it's very tough to choose. In my top three are ""Wolverden Tower," for several reasons aside from the chills it produced, "The Ghost of the Treasure-Chamber," its "doggerel" verse included (I love clue-like "doggerel" verses in stories), and "Number Two, Melrose Square," which is referred to in the pre-story blurb as "one of the most accomplished and effective tales in this volume." It is exactly that, and just plain creepy to boot. Coulson Kernahan's "Haunted" has that lovely ambiguity I crave, while "Christmas Eve in Beach House" takes us to a "threatening Christmas Eve on that wild Cornish coast." But as I said, I loved them all.

This second volume of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories is a true treasure, and I just want to say to the Valancourt team how very much I appreciate all of the time and thought that went into the selections found within. I know that the purpose of publishing books is to sell them, but James and Ryan go well beyond the commercial to bring into our homes books that they love, which is why I'll keep buying them. Once again, they have outdone themselves.

Highly, highly, highly recommended.

Valancourt just continues to amaze me with these collections -- I do hope a volume three is in the works.

[Obsidian · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really enjoyable read. I can see me re-reading these again. Not going to lie didn't pay too much attention to many of the stories towards the end and was just focused on finishing. That said, I liked the writing styles of the different authors and kept imagining it was Christmas, but on a dark and scary night.

[exorcismemily · Rating 4 out of 5]

"It was only about Christmas-time that the worst and most deadly things happened." - Eliza Lynn Linton

In all honesty, I went into The Valancourt Book of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories Vol. 2 expecting to not enjoy it & probably end up abandoning it. In an unexpected turn of events, I am happy to say that I was wrong & I actually ended up really enjoying this book.

These 15 stories were published in Victorian periodicals, so there is very little information on some of the authors and stories. Most have not been republished until now, and I really appreciate the work that Valancourt Books does to get these stories out into the world again.

Quite a few of the stories were published anonymously, and if a lot of the anonymous ones were by women. There were more stories by women in this book than I expected, which was pretty cool.

I didn't love everything in this book, but I did enjoy most of the stories. My top 3 favorites were Number Two, Melrose Square by Theo Gift ( pseudonym for Dora Havers), Wolverden Tower by Grant Allan, Christmas Eve in Beach House by Eliza Lynn Linton. I had so much fun reading these ones.

Some of the other stories were a bit too slow and detailed for my taste, but they all appeared to be well-written. There was a lot to love in this anthology. There was also an impressive amount of fainting and weeping, and I really think we should work on bringing that back. There was a little less of a Christmas theme than I anticipated, but everything still wove together nicely.

I'm really glad that the Nightworms put this book in their first subscription box because I may not have picked it up otherwise, and I would have been missing out.

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5 stars - rounding up to 4 stars for Goodreads!

THE VALANCOURT BOOK OF VICTORIAN CHRISTMAS GHOST STORIES: VOLUME 2 is a collection of fifteen short stories from the Victorian era that were collected from various periodicals of the time. After the success of Charles Dickens’ A CHRISTMAS CAROL it became common for Victorian newspapers to publish ghost stories around Christmas time. Each of the stories within this book focus on a haunting or ghost of some sort. The tales range from spooky to mindbending and show the great variety with which authors can interpret the subject of a ghost story.

I was a bit worried after the first story that I would find myself bored by the level of detail that is common in older books and stories, however, I ended up being pleasantly surprised by this collection. There were stories that proved to be beyond their time and ones that really made me think. The situations in some of these are so uncommon for present times, but perfect for the Victorian period where they came from. They had charm along with scares! My favorites stories in this collection were NUMBER TWO, MELROSE SQUARE, THE WEIRD VIOLIN, THE STEEL MIRROR, WOLVERDEN TOWER, and CHRISTMAS EVE IN THE BEACH HOUSE.

One of my favorite things about this book was that the editor, Allen Grove, took the time to give each story’s background. These small blurbs before each story featured information on the author and when/where the story was originally published. I love learning more about these little-known authors and I thought it was a really special touch that allowed the stories to mean more to me as a reader. I would recommend this little collection to any reader looking for a classic read at the holiday time! I’ll definitely be checking out some of the other collections in this series next year!

[WendyB · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun for Christmastime

[Tom Mathews · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed volume two of Valancourt's Victorian Christmas Ghost stories even more than the first. Most story collections include one or two duds making a 5-star rating almost impossible. This book is an exception to the rule, which is highly improbable when the book is the second volume in a series. Even better, the publisher has combed through countless magazines from the era to find quality stories that haven't been previously reprinted. Of all of the stories in this collection, only two were familiar to me, which is unusual.

I highly recommend this collection.

My thanks to the folks at the Horror Aficionados group for giving me the opportunity to read and discuss this and many other fine books.

[Maddie · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

"The Valancourt Book of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories: Volume Two" is my third and final book that I received in the Night Worms debut December box ~ A Very Scary Christmas. It is an anthology of fifteen ghost stories collected from Victorian periodicals. Each story is preceded by a bit of information about its writer and/or its reception at the time of its publication, and the whole collection is prefaced by an introduction written by Allen Grove with a fascinating history of the connection between Christmas and ghost stories, and how ghost stories evolved during the 19th century. I found both these sections of information very well researched and put together, and I loved being given a bit of background information on a topic I am no expert on.

The stories themselves are very different in nature, and range from creepy and scary to uplifting and humorous. They are all very well written, and written by authors that I have never heard of before, despite having an interest in the literature of those times. Even though I have my favorites, there was not a single story in this anthology that I disliked reading.

The stories I enjoyed most were: "The Ghost of the Treasure Chamber", by Emily Arnold; "The Weird Violin"and "White Satin", both by anonymous writers; "Wolverden Tower", by Grant Allen; "Christmas Eve in Beach House", by Eliza Lynn Linton; "The Veiled Portrait", by James Grant and "A Terrible Retribution", by A.S..

My absolute favorite though was "Number Two, Melrose Square", by Dora Havers (writing under the pseudonym Theo Gift). This one falls in the creepy category, and I admit reading it right before bed in the dark was not a great idea. This one was a chilling one, and the imagery it created was very vivid.

To be honest, this was the book I was least excited about from the subscription box, but after finishing it in four days, I feel like I was in for a treat. I was also not thrilled about having a "Volume Two" by itself on my self, but that won't be an issue as I am most likely ordering Volume One and Volume Three fairly soon.

[Andy Weston · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very mixed collection.
Some of the stories are introduced as being humorous and light entertainment, and interest me only vaguely.
My stand-outs would be The Weird Violin and Squire Orton’s Ghost, but this isn’t as strong consistently as I would normally expect from Valancourt.

[Niki (nikilovestoread) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This second book in the Valancourt Book of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories was a good read overall. I loved some of the stories and was bored by others. Luckily, the good outweighed the bad. My favorites were: The Ghost of the Treasure Chamber by Emily Arnold, Number Two, Melrose Square by Theo Gift, Haunted by Coulson Kernahan, White Satin by Anonymous, Christmas Eve in Beach House by Eliza Lynn Linton, and The Veiled Portrait by James Grant. I was a little surprised that there were a few complete duds after really enjoying the first collection. You could easily skip A Real Country Ghost by Albert Smith, which drones on way to long before it gets to the point and The Ghost Chamber by Anonymous, which never really gets to a point. But, by far, the worst in the collection is Wolverden Tower by Grant Allen. It was a weird virgin sacrifice story, which was just terrible. Skip these three stories and you'll probably love the collection.

[Ceallaigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Walsham Grange...stood about six miles from the sea. A lonely, desolate old manor-house, with a bad name among the people round. Some horrible murder had been committed there in days gone by, and the house was haunted. Mudleigh was the nearest village, some three miles off, and queer tales were told by belated travellers of fearful shrieks, and strange lights flitting from room to room. It was, in fact, a regular haunted house of the old school.” — from Walsham Grange (1885), by E. Morant Cox

TITLE—The Valancourt Book of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories: Volume Two
EDITOR—Allen Grove
PUBLISHED—2017; the stories themselves were all written in the 19th c.

GENRE—Victorian gothic short stories
SETTING—var., usually England
MAIN THEMES/SUBJECTS—ghosts & hauntings, Christmas, haunted castles and manor houses, Death, pre-Raphaelite tropes, witches, family & inheritances, love & marriage

WRITING STYLE—⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
CHARACTERS—⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
STORY/PLOT—⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
BONUS ELEMENT/S—Loved the strong pre-Raphaelite and witchy vibes of Wolverden Tower which I also thought was the most beautifully written of this collection as well.
PHILOSOPHY—⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️—although I will say that Allen Grove’s editorial texts were particularly excellent in discussing the stories from a modern, intelligent, and informed perspective 👍🏻

“For our own part, we believe in ghosts.” — from A Real Country Ghost Story, by Albert Smith

After absolutely loving the first book in this series I am happy to report that the second volume is *just* as good! I definitely found a few new favorite Christmas ghost stories in here—especially Wolverden Tower which had some gorgeously witchy, pre-Raphaelite energy! I also really enjoyed White Satin, Number Two Melrose Square, and The Weird Violin. Would read novel-length retellings of those four stories for sure. [] Can’t wait to read Volume Three next year!

“Why this clinging to life—this terror of death—this inexplicable attachment to a world of misery?… For death is but a gate—the gate of life in its fullest beauty. It is written over the door, ‘Mors janua vitae’.” — from Wolverden Tower, by Grant Allen

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.75

Further Reading—
- The Valancourt Book of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories: Volumes I-V
- Charles Dickens’s Christmas Ghost Stories
- Spirits of the Season: Christmas Hauntings, by Tanya Kirk—TBR
- Chill Tidings: Dark Tales of the Christmas Season, by Tanya Kirk—TBR
- Ghosts of Christmas Past, edited by Tim Martin

[Suvi · Rating 4 out of 5]

More consistent than volume one, volume two was equally nice for this time of year. A story here and there in between cooking Christmas dinner and doing chores, or one with hot cocoa before going to bed. Ghost stories were an annual tradition in Victorian newspapers and magazines, so maybe it'll be one for me as well?

Favorites:

Number Two, Melrose Square by Theo Gift aka Dora Havers (1880): The woman protagonist, a translator working at the British Museum (love!), rents an apartment in Bloomsbury and encounters unpleasant visitations. Genuinely creepy and spine-tingling.

Haunted! by Coulson Kernahan (1885): Feels like a nightmare or a fever dream, where you're drawn into the narrator's madness.

Christmas Eve in Beach House by Eliza Lynn Linton (1870): Set in the Cornish coast, this is moody and atmospheric. A married couple buys a house, but it comes with the unpleasant company of a dark character.

[Lee Allen · Rating 3 out of 5]

While Charles Dickens made the Christmas ghost story famous and MR James cemented the tradition of telling ghost stories on Christmas Eve, many writers of the Victorian era turned their hand to ghost stories at Christmas, many published in magazines and subsequently lost for decades. Valancourt presents this annual tradition with a volume of ghostly tales from the era.

Amongst my favourites in Volume Two were 'Number Two, Melrose Square', by Dora Havers under the pseudonym Theo Gift, telling the tale of a haunting in an oft-abandoned property; 'The Steel Mirror', by WW Fenn, a tale of Christmas tradition and ill omens; and 'A Terrible Retribution', anonymously published under the name "AS", a tale of passion and murder, which ends the collection on a more hopeful and romantic note than many of its companions.

Overall, 'The Valancourt Book of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories, Volume Two' is a chilling collection of the gothic and the macabre.

[The Irregular Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finished just in time! I got this book through the Nightworms inaugural subscription box (which was AMAZING by the way), and this is the second of these collections for Valancourt I’ve read.

These are great little short stories, many all but forgotten nowadays, but carefully curated and annotated for modern readers. While most of the stories are more quaint than insomnia inducing, they are still wonderful repositories of traditional ghost story tropes. You can almost hear the crackling of the fire in the grate and the bare branches skittering against the window panes.

What a wonderful way to spend a December evening!

[Elford Alley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this collection. Not only do you get the ghost story equivalent of comfort food, but there is always a little history about the authors, many of which are forgotten or anonymous. I've made a tradition out of reading one of these collections every holiday season, and it's the perfect company for a cold winter day.

[fruitbatwoman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Similar to volume one, this spooky collection of Victorian Ghost Stories features a variety of ghostly stories set in winter and around Christmas. The stories here were a bit more hit and miss for me than in the previous book, as some didn't resonate with me at all. I also found them less scary than volume one but enjoyed my annual Victorian Christmas Ghost Story read nonetheless.

[Lady Megan Fischer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid collection.

My favorites:

Albert Smith, "A Real Country Ghost Story"

Emily Arnold, "The Secret of the Treasure Chamber"

Eliza Lynn Linton, "Christmas Eve at Beach House"

Isabella F. Romer, "The Necromancer"

James Grant, "The Veiled Portrait"

[andrej_reads7878 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Strong stories from this collection:

A Real Country Ghost Story
The Ghost of the Treasure-Chamber
Number Two, Melrose Square <- standout story
White Satin
Wolverden Tower
Christmas Eve in Beach House
Squire Orton's Ghost

[Neil · Rating 3 out of 5]

That was a nice comfy creepy Christmas read! All rather predictable, but that’s part of what makes them comfy! Nothing too great, but nothing too bad either. I’d say Squire Orton’s Ghost was my fave!

[J. Bone · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another (mostly) fantastic collection of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories from Valancourt Books.
My favourites of the bunch:
Number Two Melrose Sq. with scary ghosts with good descriptions of gruesome characters and dread.
Christmas Eve in Beach House had solid terrors, mood, and ghosts. (A typo on page 169 bead in place of head).
The Necromancer was long-winded, but a very satisfying ghost (p.191)
The book ends on the very enjoyable tale of foolish love and murder, A Terrible Retribution, or Squire Orton's Ghost.

[Nikki in Niagara]

Synopses are spoiler-free.

Reviews are currently underway:

1. A Real Country Ghost Story by Albert Smith (1846) recounts the tale of Florence, who is nearing the end of her battle with consumption. The narrative briefly shifts to the past to explore her character and the events leading to her current situation. Florence is beautiful, but also cruel to those who love her. For a short story, it takes some time to become engaging, as the initial focus is on the narrator's unrelated adventures. Aside from that, the story itself is quite good. (3/5)

2. The Ghost of the Treasure-Chamber by Emily Arnold (aka Mrs Henry Arnold) (1886) - A young woman is sent back to England from India due to her fragile and nervous health. It is believed that the fresh Cornish air at her deceased mother's sister's residence will improve her condition. During the voyage, she encounters a powerful mesmerist who puts her under hypnosis, leading to a vision of a castle in the hills, where a tall skeleton figure recites some lines.

This story features all the characters and images typically found in a good Gothic tale. The plot and pacing are spot on, always believable. The main character suffers from nerves, and her feebleness is annoying, but it's believable given the contemporary setting. The ghostly and spooky elements were done well. It's going to be pretty hard to find a better story, and we're only on the second one. (5/5)

3. Number Two, Melrose Square by Theo Gift(aka Dora Havers) (1880) - A woman rents a house where she can stay as she works on a translation at the British Museum. The first night, she sees a woman in her room. She is dressed in a nightgown, staring in terror at the closed bedroom door, and then she disappears. Written in chapters, it feels like a novel even though it's only a short story. Well-written, but not particularly great as a ghost story; the woman goes into hysterics and faints whenever anything spooky happens. She's accused of having bibliomania. This occurs when a person spends too much time with books, which can have a detrimental effect on the brain. (3/5)

4. The Weird Violin by Anonymous (1893) - A renowned violinist notices a peculiar violin in a music shop window as he hurriedly passes by, despite typically needing nothing from such stores. The violin's scrollwork features a distinct face. He requests to see it, and the instrument immediately grounds him in place, emitting resonant, tolling sounds that cause him to break out in sweat. Without hesitation, he announces he will perform with it tonight at the concert. A decent story. (3/5)

5. Walsham Grange by E. Morant Cox (1885) - A man wants to buy Walsham Grange as it's available for a song due to ghost stories about the place. He and a few friends reckon they can go down there for a few days as a Christmas party and rout the "ghosts" out. A brief story with little depth. There is nothing to care about in the story, so it rambles on quickly and ends. (2/5)

6. Haunted! by Coulson Kernahan (1885) -

[Suzy Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second volume by Valancourt of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories. "These 15 tales of Yuletide terror, are collected from rare Victorian periodicals. This started after the success and popularity of 'A Christmas Carol', in which Victorian newspapers and magazines frequently featured ghost stories at Christmas time. This volume contains 15 tales, most of which have never been reprinted."
First, let me just say that these ghost stories can be enjoyed any time of the year. But I will definitely start a new tradition in my house reading this book every Christmas! I actually loved every story, which I am hardly ever able to say about collections! There are a few reasons I loved this book. First, these are solid ghost stories collected over the Victorian era that range from darkly comic, to full blown hauntings by violent ghosts. It is very evident that a lot of time and effort was spent compiling these selections, which is very appreciated! I personally love the Victorian period, so it was particularly interesting to learn that 'A Christmas Carol' was a catalyst that spawned numerous ghost stories featuring haunted mansions, secret rooms, dark family secrets, and apparitions from beyond. These are the types of tales told by the fireside on Christmas or Christmas eve back then. I was intrigued by the anonymous or little known authors that contributed to a tone of creepiness in the stories. Three stories are written by anonymous contributors and three stories are written by women, which makes me wonder how many of the "anonymous" contributors might have been women? Just something to ponder.
I have said this in another review, and I believe that it applies to this collection of Victorian ghost stories; these unearthed little gems, almost destined to never see the light of day, were brought to life to remind us that the Horror genre is supposed to be fun!

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm so impressed at how much I enjoyed this collection! There were a few that were so so for me (3-3.5 stars), but many were between 4 and 5 stars (I did individual ratings and averaged them to get 4 stars for my overall rating).

My favorites (I gave these 5 stars) include:

*The Ghost of the Treasure Chamber by Emily Arnold
*The Weird Violin by Anonymous
*White Satin by Anonymous
*Walsham Grange by E. Morant Cox
*A Terrible Retribution; or, Squire Orton's Ghost by A.S.

Other standouts (4.5 rating):

*Number Two, Melrose Square by Theo Gift
*Wolverden Tower by Grant Allen

Considering there are 15 individual stories in this collection, I think having about half rate 4.5 or higher is pretty telling of how good these stories are.

My favorite part of this collection is that Valancourt took the time and effort to include a little blurb before each story. Even if the story was written anonymously, they gave a little information, either about the author or about when the story was first published. Considering many have never been published since, this is pretty fun to read about.

I think this was a great collection of stories fitting for not only Christmas/winter, but for anytime you want to sit and have a little spooky Victorian ghost story.

[Wyrd Witch · Rating 3 out of 5]

Once upon a time, Halloween wasn’t the only spooky holiday we all celebrated. In fact, the best and most traditional time to tell stories was Christmas! Sadly, as the most wonderful time of the year has become more and more saccharine, the tradition fell away for quite some time. However, hear at Dark Intersections, it has become a tradition to read and review those old Christmas ghost stories over the holiday season for your pleasure.

Read the rest of the review here.

[Joseph Jarvis · Rating 4 out of 5]

While this second volume of Victorian Christmas ghost stories may not be as engaging as Volume I, there are some interesting tales none the less, including some that are especially dark. These include Eliza Linton's Christmas Eve in Beach House, Coulson Kernahan's Haunted, and my favorite, Isabella Romer's The Necromancer, the story of a fake medium who conjures up more than he intends. Other highlights Inc!ude Theo Gift's eerie Number Two, Melrose Square and Grant Allen's Wolverden Tower which seems almost Lovecraftian in some sections.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this volume of ghost stories even better than the first one. The introduction was enlightening, especially for those of us gleaning info from these stories for our own WIPs. My favorite story was the one in which a lady poses as a ghost to recover her son's incriminating letters from the house, as well as deeds, so that he is not hauled off to jail and the property turned over to a scheming villian. Next would be the last story about the squire's ghost. I will be reading volume three as soon as possible and purchasing the rest in this series.

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was much better than the first volume in the series. Though there was not a story as powerful as Arthur Conan Doyle's or F. Marion Crawford's, in Volume 1, this volume was consistently better. There was not one story that I found to be weak or tedious. One story (I won't say which one) was not one I would consider a legitimate ghost story, as it involved a hoax, but even it was so entertaining that I won't hold that against it.

[MamaMiaReads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Received this in my December Nightworms package

A great collection of ghost stories. I feel a little split on this since some did not scare as much as I felt it should have but there was plenty to get my heart rate up. Not to mention these two that produce some interesting dreams, The Weird Violin by Anonymous and White Satin by Anonymous. I feel if you can get in the mindset of someone who lived in the Victorian era you can easily dive into these and get a right good scare.

[Kivrin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Found this book in a coffee shop up in North Georgia, and I couldn't resist. Unfortunately, they didn't have Volume 1 so I grabbed the next best one. Really enjoyed these old fashioned ghost stories from the Victorian period. Good bed time reading! My fave was probably "White Satin" which turned out to be a Scooby Do kind of ghost story, but it was very well done. I'll be looking out for more books in this series.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic read and a huge improvement over the previous volume.

Whilst the previous edition had several very difficult to understand and had dated poorly, but this edition is filled with wonderfully scary stories that don’t sound too archaic.

As was the case last year, few of the stories are Christmassy, but that isn’t the point anyway.

Highly recommended!