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Cruel Stories
This book is extreme horror and appropriate for adults only.
The cruelty that human beings impose on each other, or upon themselves, is more horrifying than anything suffered in the natural realm. Nature is impersonal; in all of Nature only mankind is cruel. But cruelty is not the sole province of humanity. In the realm of the supernatural exist other entities which, like us, possess a capacity to torment. Gods, demons, wraiths, djinn can also be malicious. A single scarlet thread runs through these stories – the cruelty imposed upon men and woman both by the unnatural of this world and supernatural of the worlds that lie beyond.
The conte cruel (cruel story) is a subgenre of horror fiction defined by French writers during the decadent fin de siècle of the 19th century. Its seminal exponent was the writer Villiers de l’Isle-Adam, who in 1883 published a collection of short stories under the title Contes Cruels. As the name implies, it was characterized by terror and suffering inflicted by one person upon another, variously motivated by such things as hatred, revenge, lust, greed, ambition, or sheer sadism.
The addition of a supernatural element to this genre elevates it to the cosmic level. The suffering inflicted is not only physical and emotional, but spiritual and transformative. Spiritual horror strips away the comforting conventions of our shared reality to reveal what lies naked and beating beneath the skin. Those who suffer must confront the final and terrifying awareness of their own frailty. Suffering is a mirror – when we gaze into it, we see ourselves as we truly are, emptied of all illusions. This is the ultimate horror, which all of us at some point in our lives must face.
The cruelty that human beings impose on each other, or upon themselves, is more horrifying than anything suffered in the natural realm. Nature is impersonal; in all of Nature only mankind is cruel. But cruelty is not the sole province of humanity. In the realm of the supernatural exist other entities which, like us, possess a capacity to torment. Gods, demons, wraiths, djinn can also be malicious. A single scarlet thread runs through these stories – the cruelty imposed upon men and woman both by the unnatural of this world and supernatural of the worlds that lie beyond.
The conte cruel (cruel story) is a subgenre of horror fiction defined by French writers during the decadent fin de siècle of the 19th century. Its seminal exponent was the writer Villiers de l’Isle-Adam, who in 1883 published a collection of short stories under the title Contes Cruels. As the name implies, it was characterized by terror and suffering inflicted by one person upon another, variously motivated by such things as hatred, revenge, lust, greed, ambition, or sheer sadism.
The addition of a supernatural element to this genre elevates it to the cosmic level. The suffering inflicted is not only physical and emotional, but spiritual and transformative. Spiritual horror strips away the comforting conventions of our shared reality to reveal what lies naked and beating beneath the skin. Those who suffer must confront the final and terrifying awareness of their own frailty. Suffering is a mirror – when we gaze into it, we see ourselves as we truly are, emptied of all illusions. This is the ultimate horror, which all of us at some point in our lives must face.
- GenresHorror
224 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 14, 2022
5 people are currently reading
10 people want to read
About the author
Donald Tyson
99 books149 followersDonald Tyson is a Canadian from Halifax, Nova Scotia. Early in life he was drawn to science by an intense fascination with astronomy, building a telescope by hand when he was eight. He began university seeking a science degree, but became disillusioned with the aridity and futility of a mechanistic view of the universe and shifted his major to English. After graduating with honors he has pursued a writing career.
Now he devotes his life to the attainment of a complete gnosis of the art of magic in theory and practice. His purpose is to formulate an accessible system of personal training composed of East and West, past and present, that will help the individual discover the reason for one's existence and a way to fulfill it.
Now he devotes his life to the attainment of a complete gnosis of the art of magic in theory and practice. His purpose is to formulate an accessible system of personal training composed of East and West, past and present, that will help the individual discover the reason for one's existence and a way to fulfill it.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 29, 2025
In the introduction to this book, Donald Tyson talks about ‘conte cruel’ a subgenre of horror defined by French writers during the 19th century, and this book is exactly that and as the title states – Cruel Stories. Punishment doled out to people randomly, painful fates, and underserved brutality.
It’s a well written collection, that’s nicely varied and easy to get into. The writing felt precise with no words wasted, these are mostly succinct tales that are focussed towards their sharp edges. Some stories were bleak, some darkly satisfying, some subtle, or even occasionally ostentatious – There’s enough to keep you interested and wondering what’s next in this excellent collection.
It’s a well written collection, that’s nicely varied and easy to get into. The writing felt precise with no words wasted, these are mostly succinct tales that are focussed towards their sharp edges. Some stories were bleak, some darkly satisfying, some subtle, or even occasionally ostentatious – There’s enough to keep you interested and wondering what’s next in this excellent collection.
July 30, 2023
Mostly a collection that's pretty good, never bad or great--except for Future Indefinite, which is just a really terrible Fox News fever dream. In his introduction, he says he wrote that story in a "trance." Yeah, sure.
The one that the dynamite cover is based off of is pretty neat, but a lot of his horror hews too close to the traditional to really surprise.
The one that the dynamite cover is based off of is pretty neat, but a lot of his horror hews too close to the traditional to really surprise.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews