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The Lottery - 3/5 - Probably the best in the book, and clear why this is one of Jackson's most popular stories. Though for me, it isn't anything special - Again, relying on the uneasiness of society, combined with a 'true' horror scene - we see in this story how it's easy to be a sheep in this world until it affects you, where we all say 'it's not fair' when it directly affects us.

The Very Strange House Next Door - 2/5 - Started off with intrigue with a 'weird' feel to it, falls short with no resolution. The social aspect of this was based around small towns stuck in their ways, not welcoming new neighbours. Nothing overly exciting but the prose was good yet again. Something that I can definitely praise Jackson for in these story is her prose.

One Ordinary Day, with Peanuts - 2.75/5 - Slightly better than average is all I can say with this. A day filled with kindness with a sudden twist. Not much else to say without describing the whole story.

The Daemon Lover - 2/5 - just about enough in this story to keep you reading, though again, nothing that will live long in my memory. Whilst most of the stories so far have had a 'deeper social meaning', I've failed to pick that up in this one. Rather than an uneasy feeling, this one is led by confusion and delusion.

The Order of Charlotte's Going - 3/5 - One of the better stories in the collection. Charlotte and her family deal with the diagnosis of a terminal illness. Again, the 'horror' here being the uneasiness in which you can empathise with the family, and not wanting to wish a life away. To live in the moment, and enjoy what we have as no one know what is around the corner. There is a twist that was unexpected as well.

The Journey with a Lady - 2.5/5 - The uneasy feeling in this one is is fear of a 9 year old boy travelling on his own on a train, who encounters a criminal in which they become friends. An interesting story but again, nothing mind-blowing to me.

The Tooth - 3/5 - One of the better stories in the collection so far. Really hones in on the fears of the dentist - something a lot of people can relate to. There are a lot of dreamlike sequences in this one - and then there are more horrors after the procedure. The word 'horror' I would use loosely though. Jackson again creates that feeling of 'unease' that you associate with horror but with every day scenarios.

The Little House 2.5/5 - an eerie story that takes place after a niece inherits her aunt's house. Social expectation again is a theme in this story with two 'nosey neighbour' characters. A readable story but nothing that will live in long memory for me.

Reading both as audiobook and physical editions.

Chapter 37

Chapter 30

Just finished the story The Festival. I enjoyed this one much more than the previous story. The setting is gloomy and perfect for October reading. Appears to have been inspired by an actual town that Lovecraft discovered. Similar to Rats in the Walls, it also has the theme of family heritage dealing with the unknown horrors.