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Vampire Stories
At once glamorous and loathsome, vampires are among the most memorable figures in the literature and film of the horror genre. These undead beings, possessed of supernatural powers of metamorphosis and hypnotism, stalk the night for the blood of the living. They have fascinated and terrified generations of writers and readers. Here are 18 bone-chilling tales of these bloodsucking creatures of the night, written by some of the most distinguished writers of the genre.
From premier writers including Anne Rice and Bram Stoker, the stories in this collection represent some of the finest horror writing spanning the past two centuries. Here are gothic melodramas set in Russia and Germany, as well as more modern twists on the vampire legend that take place in contemporary England and the United States. These are tales of decadence, lust, and loathing; they capture the dark side of the human psyche, dead and undead. Making few concessions to the squeamish, the tales in this collection will keep readers awake at night.
Stories include:
• "Dracula's Guest" by Bram Stoker
• "Phantoms" by Ivan Turgenev
• "The Lovely Lady" by D.H. Lawrence
• "The Master of Rampling Gate" by Anne Rice
• "The Undead" by Robert Bloch
Each of these finely-crafted tales is guaranteed to leave readers with goosebumps.
A foreward from the late actor Peter Cushing, who starred in numerous vampire and horror films, is a fitting introduction to this collection of horrifying and captivating tales.
Prepare to be terrified as you enjoy some of the best vampire stories ever written ... if you dare.
From premier writers including Anne Rice and Bram Stoker, the stories in this collection represent some of the finest horror writing spanning the past two centuries. Here are gothic melodramas set in Russia and Germany, as well as more modern twists on the vampire legend that take place in contemporary England and the United States. These are tales of decadence, lust, and loathing; they capture the dark side of the human psyche, dead and undead. Making few concessions to the squeamish, the tales in this collection will keep readers awake at night.
Stories include:
• "Dracula's Guest" by Bram Stoker
• "Phantoms" by Ivan Turgenev
• "The Lovely Lady" by D.H. Lawrence
• "The Master of Rampling Gate" by Anne Rice
• "The Undead" by Robert Bloch
Each of these finely-crafted tales is guaranteed to leave readers with goosebumps.
A foreward from the late actor Peter Cushing, who starred in numerous vampire and horror films, is a fitting introduction to this collection of horrifying and captivating tales.
Prepare to be terrified as you enjoy some of the best vampire stories ever written ... if you dare.
246 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1992
15 people are currently reading
399 people want to read
About the author
Richard Dalby
124 books22 followersRichard Dalby (1949-2017) was an editor and literary researcher.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
August 20, 2024
Even though this was a slim book of short stories, it took me forever to read, since most of them were not too gripping. The majority were pretty bad, especially the older ones. The best ones were:
1) Dracula's Guest by the master Bram Stoker
2) And No Birds Sings by E.F. Benson (known for the satirical Mapp and Lucia novels which I love)
3) Close Behind Him by John Wyndham (the best of the bunch) truly original and scary
4) Vampires LTD (about a vampire car!!!!)
I also liked China Rose, Quiet is the Night and Anne Rice's story, The Master of Rampling Gate.
All in all seven good ones out of 18 stories is not that bad for a compilation.
1) Dracula's Guest by the master Bram Stoker
2) And No Birds Sings by E.F. Benson (known for the satirical Mapp and Lucia novels which I love)
3) Close Behind Him by John Wyndham (the best of the bunch) truly original and scary
4) Vampires LTD (about a vampire car!!!!)
I also liked China Rose, Quiet is the Night and Anne Rice's story, The Master of Rampling Gate.
All in all seven good ones out of 18 stories is not that bad for a compilation.
August 22, 2012
An excellent collection of short stories for people of all tastes. Not just centered on the popular blood-drinkers, there are quite a few about psychic vampires.
January 11, 2022
This short story collection took way longer than expected. There were some really powerful writers here but for some reason my expectations were not met, only one story felt great and the rest seemed a bit weak and subdued. I thought that the scope of characters and themes could have been better as well...
February 10, 2025
After 6 months, I finally finished this book!
This was a wide mix of vampire short stories. The term “vampire” here is used very loosely.
The rating for individual short stories ran the whole spectrum from 5 ⭐️ reads to ones I ultimately had to DNF. But all of them were old fashioned style writing and were spooky.
The 6 stories I gave 5 ⭐️ to were:
Draculas Guest by Bram Stoker
And No Bird Sings by EF Benson
Close Behind Him by John Wyndham
The Master of Rambling Gate by Anne Rice
The Undead by Robert Bloch
Saint Sebastian and the Mona Lisa by AF Kidd
The one by Bram Stoker especially is something I’ve thought about a lot since I read it 3–4 months ago. Terrifying in the same way Dracula is terrifying.
This was a wide mix of vampire short stories. The term “vampire” here is used very loosely.
The rating for individual short stories ran the whole spectrum from 5 ⭐️ reads to ones I ultimately had to DNF. But all of them were old fashioned style writing and were spooky.
The 6 stories I gave 5 ⭐️ to were:
Draculas Guest by Bram Stoker
And No Bird Sings by EF Benson
Close Behind Him by John Wyndham
The Master of Rambling Gate by Anne Rice
The Undead by Robert Bloch
Saint Sebastian and the Mona Lisa by AF Kidd
The one by Bram Stoker especially is something I’ve thought about a lot since I read it 3–4 months ago. Terrifying in the same way Dracula is terrifying.
January 16, 2010
Well, I wasn't kept up at night but these shorts were definitely some of the better ones I've read in the more "classical" collections. I was a little put off by the introduction by Peter Cushing who wrote the forward. He mentioned that Vlad Drakul means "the Devil" when, in fact, it means "the Dragon" and is spelled with a 'c.' See this article for more information. Ask the people of Romania and Vlad the Impaler is actually a hero to them. He didn't randomly impale people on spikes for shits and giggles as people are so wont to think. He protected his people from an invading force. Vlad Dracul impaled his Turkish enemies on spikes all long the road leading up to his castle. When the general of the opposing army came to attack and saw all of his men dead and dangling all the way up to his enemy's door . . . well, would you stick around?
Anyway, back to the stories. Aside from the forward (written, I'm sure, for effect more than accuracy), these stories were pretty freakin' good and damn inventive. And lo! No glittering! Sure there was that slug-like vampire (really it was more of a misty thing in the amorphous blob shape of a slug) and then Christine with fangs (it was a racing car that drained your blood through your feet when you gassed it), not to mention the one about the Mona Lisa. How freakin' cool was that! But you're curious now, huh? But no glitter. Chagrin.
Of course, there were your standard vampire stories in there too. What irks me is that as much as I don't like Anne Rice (I'm not a fan of authors that treat their own fans like shit) and I really don't want to like her writing, some of it is just amazing, including her story in this book. For a short story, she included enough to set the tone and get the point across but it wasn't as heavy as her novels. At least it couldn't stop open a door.
Of course, the older stories were a little more difficult to get through, especially the ones with solid blocks of talking heads (basically they were nothing more than one guy telling a rambling story in huge blocks of dialogue, blah). A couple turned out to be pretty decent but there were also a couple that I really don't need to read again.
What I liked best about this collection was just how different the stories were. Considering how, now, we're in a time where every vampire out there blends into one another, it was so refreshing not only to read about true-to-form vampires in their element, but such vastly different types of vampires (from the standard blood drinkers to the psi-vamps to more ghostly beings to seemingly inanimate objects). It makes me wonder if our current culture (not just in the last couple of years but spanning back a generation or so) has become so inundated with a certain type of vampire that we're beginning to be unable to see outside of the box. The inventiveness of these stories just flabbergasted me. I loved them. And they makes me want to see Daybreakers even more!
I found this book on the bargain shelf at Barnes and Noble. If you can scrounge a copy, I'd recommend snagging it and reading for yourself. More classical vampire fans (for these story lack much of the romanticism and general contentment of current vampires, plus these are considered "adult," as in not YA, stories) will get a huge kick out of this book.
Anyway, back to the stories. Aside from the forward (written, I'm sure, for effect more than accuracy), these stories were pretty freakin' good and damn inventive. And lo! No glittering! Sure there was that slug-like vampire (really it was more of a misty thing in the amorphous blob shape of a slug) and then Christine with fangs (it was a racing car that drained your blood through your feet when you gassed it), not to mention the one about the Mona Lisa. How freakin' cool was that! But you're curious now, huh? But no glitter. Chagrin.
Of course, there were your standard vampire stories in there too. What irks me is that as much as I don't like Anne Rice (I'm not a fan of authors that treat their own fans like shit) and I really don't want to like her writing, some of it is just amazing, including her story in this book. For a short story, she included enough to set the tone and get the point across but it wasn't as heavy as her novels. At least it couldn't stop open a door.
Of course, the older stories were a little more difficult to get through, especially the ones with solid blocks of talking heads (basically they were nothing more than one guy telling a rambling story in huge blocks of dialogue, blah). A couple turned out to be pretty decent but there were also a couple that I really don't need to read again.
What I liked best about this collection was just how different the stories were. Considering how, now, we're in a time where every vampire out there blends into one another, it was so refreshing not only to read about true-to-form vampires in their element, but such vastly different types of vampires (from the standard blood drinkers to the psi-vamps to more ghostly beings to seemingly inanimate objects). It makes me wonder if our current culture (not just in the last couple of years but spanning back a generation or so) has become so inundated with a certain type of vampire that we're beginning to be unable to see outside of the box. The inventiveness of these stories just flabbergasted me. I loved them. And they makes me want to see Daybreakers even more!
I found this book on the bargain shelf at Barnes and Noble. If you can scrounge a copy, I'd recommend snagging it and reading for yourself. More classical vampire fans (for these story lack much of the romanticism and general contentment of current vampires, plus these are considered "adult," as in not YA, stories) will get a huge kick out of this book.
April 27, 2011
An OK selection of vampire horror, set out in chronological order. Some of the older stories show their age, but the content gets better towards the end.
I'm not a big fan of short stories in general. Like most collections, this one has a couple of gems, amidst an otherwise mediocre mass. The reason full length novels are so good, is that you have time to really open up and develop everything. The world, the characters, the plot, the themes. All of this is really hard to fit into a short story, but you need all of it to make a story really good.
That being said, this is a perfectly decent collection of short stories, in so far as short story collections generally go.
I'm not a big fan of short stories in general. Like most collections, this one has a couple of gems, amidst an otherwise mediocre mass. The reason full length novels are so good, is that you have time to really open up and develop everything. The world, the characters, the plot, the themes. All of this is really hard to fit into a short story, but you need all of it to make a story really good.
That being said, this is a perfectly decent collection of short stories, in so far as short story collections generally go.
July 23, 2014
Chronological overview on stories written 200 years ago all the way to present day. A must read to every vampire fan. Not very chilling but I found some interesting authors, like Turgenev, from whom I would like to try something else.
May 31, 2018
Not the best collection. Many stories are far too outdated and downright offensive to read. Most were just trite.
At least it has Dracula's Guest and an Anne Rice short story. Those made this collection worth it.
At least it has Dracula's Guest and an Anne Rice short story. Those made this collection worth it.
December 29, 2018
An odd and rather mediocre anthology of vampire short stories from Turgenev and D.H. Lawrence to Anne Rice and quite a few middling authors from the 1930s-50s whom I'd never really heard of before.
July 9, 2012
Boring. Only good thing was about the fact it was a novel collection. I could read one and put it down. I didn't ravage it like some other books.
September 10, 2019
did i read this almost entirely because peter cushing (aka Dad Helsing) wrote the foreword? pretty much. did i thoroughly enjoy it despite that? absolutely
November 1, 2020
Another short story collection that gets 3 stars. Below is a mini review of each story. Those with a * in front are my favourites..
.
1. Phantoms- Ivan Turgenev: a story of a man and a vampire phantom woman flying above the earth into different places and the past. Beautifully written. ***
*2. Draculas Guest- Bram Stoker: an alternate opening to Dracula that has unnamed protagonist in the carriage to the castle, but the driver is too scared and flees. Protagonist tries to travel himself but is attacked by a wolf. The village people save him under the directions of a telegram from Dracula. Cool short story and deleted scene from Dracula. ****
3. The Haunted House- E. Nesbit:
Some terrible, horribly paced story about a young man being trapped in a house where an old man and his assistant try to do blood experiments on him. Weird conversations about race. Can hardly remember what happened. *
4. An Episode of Cathedral History- M. R. James: Some boring conversation between two guys about a church. *
5. And No Birds Sing- E.F Benson: A middling tale about two guys hunting a vampiric animal/spirit that haunts the woods where no birds sing. Cool concept! ***
6. The Lovely Lady- D.H Lawrence: a story with a metaphorical-only vampiric aunt character preventing her niece from getting married, talked to herself out loud and was defeated in the end by the niece tricking her and convincing the aunt to allow her to marry. Weird, not a vampire story at all!! **
7. The Author's Tale- L.A Lewis: A story about some man trying to build a torture device to FLOG his third wife into loving him again and he's stopped by ghost vampires using his device to torture someone else. WTF!?!?! *
*8. Close Behind Him- John Wyndham: Really well written tale featuring two burglars being followed by an invisible force with bloody footprints. Good build up of horror and good metaphorical discussion. *****
9. The Woman on the Stairs- Margery Lawrence: NOPE ABSOLUTELY NOT. Man saves his god daughter from a psychic vampire Russian tutor who turns out to be a foreign~ crossdressing~ preadator man~ Horribly xenophobic and orientalist with outdated homophobic language. No star.
10. Vampires LTD- Josef Nesvadba: VAMPIRE CAR! VAMPIRE CAR! *
11. Chastel- Manly Wade Wellman: Theatre people stop a vampire actress. *
12. The Apples of Sodom- David Rowlands: Vampire creature under an apple tree. Boring. *
*13. The Master of Rampling Gate- Anne Rice: God dammit, Anne Rice is good. And its short enough not to include the usual weird shit!! *****
14. The Undead- Robert Bloch: Van Helsing tries to find the original Dracula manuscript at a little bookstore. It was alright. ***
15. China Rose- Ron Weighell: Well written, but the story of a man saving his cousin from a vampiric(?) couple was a little weak. ***
16. Saint Sebastian and the Mona Lisa- A.F. Kidd: Some boring tale about a vampires attacking a painter?? **
17. Quiet is the Night- Jessica Palmer: An alright tale about a girl killing her vampire father and becoming one herself. ***
18. The Last Sin- Ken Cowley: terrible fanfic drabble of Polidori's The Vampyre. *
.
1. Phantoms- Ivan Turgenev: a story of a man and a vampire phantom woman flying above the earth into different places and the past. Beautifully written. ***
*2. Draculas Guest- Bram Stoker: an alternate opening to Dracula that has unnamed protagonist in the carriage to the castle, but the driver is too scared and flees. Protagonist tries to travel himself but is attacked by a wolf. The village people save him under the directions of a telegram from Dracula. Cool short story and deleted scene from Dracula. ****
3. The Haunted House- E. Nesbit:
Some terrible, horribly paced story about a young man being trapped in a house where an old man and his assistant try to do blood experiments on him. Weird conversations about race. Can hardly remember what happened. *
4. An Episode of Cathedral History- M. R. James: Some boring conversation between two guys about a church. *
5. And No Birds Sing- E.F Benson: A middling tale about two guys hunting a vampiric animal/spirit that haunts the woods where no birds sing. Cool concept! ***
6. The Lovely Lady- D.H Lawrence: a story with a metaphorical-only vampiric aunt character preventing her niece from getting married, talked to herself out loud and was defeated in the end by the niece tricking her and convincing the aunt to allow her to marry. Weird, not a vampire story at all!! **
7. The Author's Tale- L.A Lewis: A story about some man trying to build a torture device to FLOG his third wife into loving him again and he's stopped by ghost vampires using his device to torture someone else. WTF!?!?! *
*8. Close Behind Him- John Wyndham: Really well written tale featuring two burglars being followed by an invisible force with bloody footprints. Good build up of horror and good metaphorical discussion. *****
9. The Woman on the Stairs- Margery Lawrence: NOPE ABSOLUTELY NOT. Man saves his god daughter from a psychic vampire Russian tutor who turns out to be a foreign~ crossdressing~ preadator man~ Horribly xenophobic and orientalist with outdated homophobic language. No star.
10. Vampires LTD- Josef Nesvadba: VAMPIRE CAR! VAMPIRE CAR! *
11. Chastel- Manly Wade Wellman: Theatre people stop a vampire actress. *
12. The Apples of Sodom- David Rowlands: Vampire creature under an apple tree. Boring. *
*13. The Master of Rampling Gate- Anne Rice: God dammit, Anne Rice is good. And its short enough not to include the usual weird shit!! *****
14. The Undead- Robert Bloch: Van Helsing tries to find the original Dracula manuscript at a little bookstore. It was alright. ***
15. China Rose- Ron Weighell: Well written, but the story of a man saving his cousin from a vampiric(?) couple was a little weak. ***
16. Saint Sebastian and the Mona Lisa- A.F. Kidd: Some boring tale about a vampires attacking a painter?? **
17. Quiet is the Night- Jessica Palmer: An alright tale about a girl killing her vampire father and becoming one herself. ***
18. The Last Sin- Ken Cowley: terrible fanfic drabble of Polidori's The Vampyre. *
September 10, 2014
Don't bother with this collection but for the following stories:
"The Master of Rampling Gate" (the very reason I cared to buy this book)
"The Undead" (short, sweet drabble by Bloch)
"Saint Sebastian and the Mona Lisa" (very nice and more like the vampire stories I frequent which are rich in history)
"Quiet is the Night" (lovely Victorian romantic short)
"The Last Sin" (WOW this guy is a dick!)
"The Master of Rampling Gate" (the very reason I cared to buy this book)
"The Undead" (short, sweet drabble by Bloch)
"Saint Sebastian and the Mona Lisa" (very nice and more like the vampire stories I frequent which are rich in history)
"Quiet is the Night" (lovely Victorian romantic short)
"The Last Sin" (WOW this guy is a dick!)
October 8, 2023
Phantoms, Dracula's Guest, 'And No Bird Sings', The Masters of Rampling Gate and Saint Sebastian and the Mona Lisa were all genuinely good. That leaves 14 stories ranging from, well, actually pretty bad to "okay" to contend with. The variety of types of vampire were good at least.
September 22, 2008
Good for short read.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews