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helhas3letters's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
This collection of short stories is tied together by eeriness. The horror that Jackson writes here often comes from mistrust, secrecy, paranoia, and things seeming ever so slightly out of place. Dark Tales draws on one of the scariest ideas of all: how we, as humans, can never really know each other.
Jackson here has a great penchant for revealing the true meaning of a story, or a twist of events, in the last few paragraphs, sometimes even the last line. It makes for a great race to the end to see how she's going to pull back the curtain and uncover what's truly going on.
Overall enjoyed this book, although I felt that some of the stories - especially a chunk in the early-middle section - were a bit too ambiguous in their endings and meanings. For a couple of them I found myself searching online for explanations! But the ones that I did enjoy were brilliant, and I'm excited to read more of Shirley Jackson's work.
My favourite stories were The Possibility of Evil; Louisa, Please Come Home; Paranoia; and All She Said Was Yes. More detailed thoughts on the individual stories below:
1. The Possibility of Evil - A woman, whom everyone in the town knows, harbours a secret. Expertly told and a brilliant opener to the collection.
2. Louisa, Please Come Home - A young girl runs away from home to begin a new life. Delightfully spooky. The ending reminded me of The Twilight Zone.
3. Paranoia - Our main character is trying to get home for his wife's birthday, but he is being stalked by a man in a light hat. Wonderfully creepy. Just genius. Again, the twist ending sealed this one as a winner.
4. The Honeymoon of Mrs Smith - Describes a newly married couple on their honeymoon and the reactions of the people around them. I didn't understand - until reading about it online - what Jackson was trying to get across to the reader here. (And thankfully I don't appear to be the only one!)
5. The Story We Used to Tell - There's a picture on the wall that's quite unusual. Stands out because it was written, unlike the other stories, in first person, and has a paranormal element. I think the wording of ending sequence of events could have been clearer.
6. The Sorcerer’s Apprentice - A timid, lonely teacher meets the little girl from downstairs. An odd story, definitely unsettling, but I'm not sure I grasped the point. Too much unexplained for me.
7. Jack the Ripper - A man finds a young girl passed out in the street. I don't think I understood the meaning of this one, especially the ending.
8. The Beautiful Stranger - A woman's husband comes home after a business trip. Another very Twilight Zone-style story. A solidly enjoyable read.
9. All She Said Was Yes - The next-door-neighbours suffer a tragedy, and our main character takes their daughter in. Adored the way this was written and its use of dramatic irony. Jackson shows a great talent of putting us in the brain of the main character but still making their fatal flaws obvious.
10. What a Thought - An exploration of intrusive thoughts and relationships. Possibly the shortest of the bunch, but still great, and, I thought, quite humorous.
11. The Bus - A woman's bus journey goes very wrong. Ohhhhh so creepy, and really shows Jackson's fascination with strangers, trust, and concealed motives. This might have been the story that unsettled me the most, because I felt so awful for the main character! Probably the most 'horror' of all of them.
12. Family Treasures - A university student finds that she's only interesting to her housemates when she suffers a bereavement. Less creepy than the other stories, but a good thread of tension running throughout.
13. A Visit - A young girl goes to visit her school friend in her otherworldly mansion. Possibly the longest story, and divided into three parts. I liked the journey of this one and the vivid descriptions of the setting. The house almost seemed to be its own character. I cottoned on to the twist fairly early on and still enjoyed seeing how it played out - but am still not entirely certain of the details of the situation and what the story is supposed to mean.
14. The Good Wife - A tale of marriage and confinement, with a superb ending.
15. The Man in the Woods - A man, who has been walking for days through the woods, comes across a cabin. Easy to read, but I needed to clarify the ending afterwards.
16. Home - A couple move into a new old house. The only story that actually involvesghosts !
17. The Summer People - A couple decide to stay later at their Summer house than usual. The ending of this story snuck up on me! Not sure what to make of this one as I enjoyed it, but I don't know if I fully understand what the ending implies.
Jackson here has a great penchant for revealing the true meaning of a story, or a twist of events, in the last few paragraphs, sometimes even the last line. It makes for a great race to the end to see how she's going to pull back the curtain and uncover what's truly going on.
Overall enjoyed this book, although I felt that some of the stories - especially a chunk in the early-middle section - were a bit too ambiguous in their endings and meanings. For a couple of them I found myself searching online for explanations! But the ones that I did enjoy were brilliant, and I'm excited to read more of Shirley Jackson's work.
My favourite stories were The Possibility of Evil; Louisa, Please Come Home; Paranoia; and All She Said Was Yes. More detailed thoughts on the individual stories below:
1. The Possibility of Evil - A woman, whom everyone in the town knows, harbours a secret. Expertly told and a brilliant opener to the collection.
2. Louisa, Please Come Home - A young girl runs away from home to begin a new life. Delightfully spooky. The ending reminded me of The Twilight Zone.
3. Paranoia - Our main character is trying to get home for his wife's birthday, but he is being stalked by a man in a light hat. Wonderfully creepy. Just genius. Again, the twist ending sealed this one as a winner.
4. The Honeymoon of Mrs Smith - Describes a newly married couple on their honeymoon and the reactions of the people around them. I didn't understand - until reading about it online - what Jackson was trying to get across to the reader here. (And thankfully I don't appear to be the only one!)
5. The Story We Used to Tell - There's a picture on the wall that's quite unusual. Stands out because it was written, unlike the other stories, in first person, and has a paranormal element. I think the wording of ending sequence of events could have been clearer.
6. The Sorcerer’s Apprentice - A timid, lonely teacher meets the little girl from downstairs. An odd story, definitely unsettling, but I'm not sure I grasped the point. Too much unexplained for me.
7. Jack the Ripper - A man finds a young girl passed out in the street. I don't think I understood the meaning of this one, especially the ending.
8. The Beautiful Stranger - A woman's husband comes home after a business trip. Another very Twilight Zone-style story. A solidly enjoyable read.
9. All She Said Was Yes - The next-door-neighbours suffer a tragedy, and our main character takes their daughter in. Adored the way this was written and its use of dramatic irony. Jackson shows a great talent of putting us in the brain of the main character but still making their fatal flaws obvious.
10. What a Thought - An exploration of intrusive thoughts and relationships. Possibly the shortest of the bunch, but still great, and, I thought, quite humorous.
11. The Bus - A woman's bus journey goes very wrong. Ohhhhh so creepy, and really shows Jackson's fascination with strangers, trust, and concealed motives. This might have been the story that unsettled me the most, because I felt so awful for the main character! Probably the most 'horror' of all of them.
12. Family Treasures - A university student finds that she's only interesting to her housemates when she suffers a bereavement. Less creepy than the other stories, but a good thread of tension running throughout.
13. A Visit - A young girl goes to visit her school friend in her otherworldly mansion. Possibly the longest story, and divided into three parts. I liked the journey of this one and the vivid descriptions of the setting. The house almost seemed to be its own character. I cottoned on to the twist fairly early on and still enjoyed seeing how it played out - but am still not entirely certain of the details of the situation and what the story is supposed to mean.
14. The Good Wife - A tale of marriage and confinement, with a superb ending.
15. The Man in the Woods - A man, who has been walking for days through the woods, comes across a cabin. Easy to read, but I needed to clarify the ending afterwards.
16. Home - A couple move into a new old house. The only story that actually involves
17. The Summer People - A couple decide to stay later at their Summer house than usual. The ending of this story snuck up on me! Not sure what to make of this one as I enjoyed it, but I don't know if I fully understand what the ending implies.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Confinement, Stalking, and Violence
Minor: Addiction, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Alcoholism, Grief, Infidelity, Kidnapping, and Murder
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