Reviews

French Decadent Tales by Jules Barbey d'Aurevilly, Georges Rodenbach, Jean Lorrain, Octave Mirbeau, Auguste de Villiers de l'Isle-Adam, Catulle Mendès, Gustave Geffroy, Stephen Romer, Léon Bloy, Rémy de Gourmont, Marcel Schwob, Pierre Louÿs, Guy de Maupassant, Jules Laforgue, Jean Richepin

biblio_lore's review

4.0

Reviewing a collection of short stories is never easy because it really depends on the choices of stories and the authors and how they all mix together and how they stand apart. That said, I love decadence tales. I truly love the rich and thoroughly dark sense of humor that defines the Fin de Sicle era of literature and this collection is full of exactly that. If you loved 90s style satire, irony and sarcasm, this is definitely going to be up your alley. And then there's also the tales that are just so beautiful and twisted to read and they have a kind of haunting afterglow. Of course, I can't rave enough about Guy de Maupassant because he was one of the best of the time period but there is a lot more to enjoy in there. Some of it shines brighter than others and some is a little bit on the dull side but it's a great collection.

mydreamsaresilent's review

3.0

I'd give it a solid 3.5 stars. Very we'll put together, logically too, but the overall tone was a bit too morose for my taste. Like Poe but more explicit and, well, decadent. There were a few stories I did absolutely love, however, and am happy to have discovered Jean Lorrain through this compilation as his writing style is so spot on.