Reviews

The Dark Descent by John Collier, David G. Hartwell, Joyce Carol Oates, Stephen King, Shirley Jackson, Clive Barker, Ray Bradbury

bunnieslikediamonds's review against another edition

4.0

This anthology contains the usual suspects: King, Barker and Oates, as well as the old classics: Pierce, Wharton, James. There were also some lovely new acquaintances (for me), and since a proper review is impossible considering I've been reading this over a six month period and I barely remember what I did yesterday, I'll just list my favorites: Sticks by Karl Edward Wagner, How love came to Professor Guildea by Robert Hichens, Seaton's aunt by Walter de la Mare, The summer people by Shirley Jackson and obviously, all three Robert Aickman stories.

gustafology's review against another edition

dark tense slow-paced

4.75

farkha's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

5.0

pacardullo's review against another edition

5.0

Excellent anthology/survey of short horror fiction that deserves its reputation. As with most anthologies, there will most certainly be some stories that grab the individual readers more than others, though there are more "hits" than "misses", by far. While reading it from cover-to-cover may not be the best way to experience it for everyone, it still earns a place on the shelf of lovers of dark fiction.

zozzle's review against another edition

Will come back to this 

andynorth's review against another edition

3.0

I'll echo most of the other reviews here in saying that you'll probably find a couple stories here that you'll love and a lot that will bore you to death. I'm used to anthologies being hit-and-miss, but I think this one is moreso than most collections in that the only unifying characteristic of these stories is that the editor has deemed them "important". I found that my hit rate was much higher in the first volume than in the second or third, maybe because I'm a much bigger fan of the uncanny/dread/weird fiction than ghost stories. If that's your taste too, here are some of the stories that stand out in my memory:

The New Mother / Lucy Clifford
The Call of Cthulhu / H. P. Lovecraft
The Summer People / Shirley Jackson
Young Goodman Brown / Nathaniel Hawthorne
The Crowd / Ray Bradbury
Vandy, Vandy / Manly Wade Wellman
The Yellow Wallpaper / Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Born of Man and Woman / Richard Matheson
Good Country People / Flannery O'Connor
Mackintosh Willy / Ramsey Campbell
Smoke Ghost / Fritz Leiber
Crouch End / Stephen King
The Repairer of Reputations / Robert W. Chambers
The Beckoning Fair One / Oliver Onions

bosermoki's review against another edition

dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

markyon's review against another edition

5.0

One of the best summaries of Horror about, in my opinion. Not all stories are necessarily the author's best nor best known, yet as a primer to give a reader something to work at, this is about as good as it gets.

adler's review against another edition

Smoke Ghost - Fritz Lieber
Seaton's Aunt - Walter de la Mare
A Rose For Emily - William Faulkner
The Summer People - Shirley Jackson
The Hospice - Robert Aickman
The Repairer of Reputations - Robert W. Chambers
Sticks - Karl Edward Wagner
Dread - Clive Barker
Young Goodman Brown - Nathaniel Hawthorne
Night-Side - Joyce Carol Oates
What Was It? - Fitz-James O'Brien

ctgt's review against another edition

5.0

An excellent collection of shorts/novellas from a wide range of authors. You will find some of the usual suspects-King, Poe, Lovecraft but for me the strength of the collection was the inclusion of so many authors I have heard of but never read. [a:Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu|26930|Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1410336850p2/26930.jpg], [a:Thomas M. Disch|29998|Thomas M. Disch|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1215627384p2/29998.jpg], [a:Theodore Sturgeon|12531|Theodore Sturgeon|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1211292667p2/12531.jpg], [a:Charlotte Perkins Gilman|29527|Charlotte Perkins Gilman|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1238281005p2/29527.jpg], [a:Robert Hitchens|6456794|Robert Hitchens|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-ccc56e79bcc2db9e6cdcd450a4940d46.png], [a:Henry James|159|Henry James|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1202237907p2/159.jpg], [a:Oliver Onions|7215088|Oliver Onions|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1422136574p2/7215088.jpg], [a:Joyce Carol Oates|3524|Joyce Carol Oates|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1191361565p2/3524.jpg] and authors you wouldn't normally associate with horror fiction [a:Fritz Leiber|23001|Fritz Leiber|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1233439233p2/23001.jpg], [a:William Faulkner|3535|William Faulkner|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1373572902p2/3535.jpg], [a:Gene Wolfe|23069|Gene Wolfe|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1207670073p2/23069.jpg] and [a:Philip K. Dick|4764|Philip K. Dick|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1264613853p2/4764.jpg].

A few of my favorites;

The Autopsy Michael Shea-read it now.

Sticks Karl Edward Wagner-a long time favorite of mine.

Vandy, Vandy Manly Wade Wellman-Silver John

The Yellow Wallpaper Charlotte Perkins Gilman-another unread classic for me.

A Rose for Emily William Faulkner-who knew?

The Repairer of Reputations Robert W. Chambers-The King in Yellow


If you like your horror with nuance and subtlety this is the book for you. If you're looking for gore and entrails look somewhere else.