Yellow Glass and Other Ghost Stories

by Francis Young

The stained glass of a French cathedral is cursed by dark magic; an Icelandic rune raises a terrifying revenant; a fossil triggers an incursion from the fairy otherworld; three men are mysteriously burnt to death in an open field; a mysterious book haunts the dreams of three people over decades. Featuring seven stories of the supernatural and macabre, including ‘This Is My Book’ (winner of a prize in the 2018 ‘Ghosts in the Bookshop’ short story competition), historian F. K. Young’s début collection of ghost stories explores the terrors that await incautious delvers into the unquiet past…

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction

125 pages, Paperback

Published September 9, 2020

Reviews

[Paul Barnes · Rating 2 out of 5]

[St Jurmin Press] (2020). SB. 113 Pages. Purchased from Revival Books Ltd.

A cheap and nasty POD product.

Seven short stories. The opener - “Yellow Glass” - is perhaps the best. The last (and lengthiest) - “The Dreamt Book” - quite dreadful. “Afturganga” is flimsy and absurd.

Overall, the prose is often clumsy; awkwardly repetitive.

The author concedes, in a brief Preface, that his scholarship and writing skills aren’t comparable to those of M. R. James, an assertion which is most unlikely to invite dispute.

[Kaela Noel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is excellent. Riveting stories that are often truly creepy, yet with moments of sly humor and wit. Spooky, intelligent, gripping. Top-notch prose. Why doesn't the New Yorker or Granta or other literary magazines regularly publish these, or other stories like them? They feel classic. This is a must-read if you like classic ghost stories! A rare and wonderful collection.

[Linda Price · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent collection of ghost stories, well written and original. Could have done with being a bit more scary

[Tristan John · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great collection. The last and longest story, The Dreamt Book, is a minor masterpiece.