The Mammoth Book of Haunted House Stories

Rating:
Summary: Varied compilation includes lesser known works
Review: "The Mammoth Book of Haunted House Stories" is one of a very large series of 'Mammoth Books.' It's a fun series, including "Mammoth Book of Historical Detectives," "Mammoth Book of New Erotica," "Mammoth Book of Dracula," so on and so forth.

Clocking in at almost 600 pages, this extensive compilation should enthrall readers of the supernatural for an extended time. What I liked most about this book, besides the 30-plus short stories dealing exclusively with ghosts/haunted houses, was the inclusion of a near Hall of Fame list of great writers, among them Algernon Blackwood, Virginia Woolf, Robert Block, Ramsey Campbell, James Herbert, M.R. James and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Oddly enough, these writers' most famous supernatural stories are not included, but rather their lesser known works. So there are some great discoveries to be had.

I encountered one of the finest haunted house stories I've read in a while with Basil Cooper's "The Grey House." This chilling 1967 tale details a young couple's renovation of an old French manor, where they soon discover the evil history of the home. Once the renovation is complete, hideous forces are in motion as tragedy pays the couple a visit by way of an ancient ladder connected to the terrace. Part Lovecraft, part Blackwood, the terrifying account is a highlight of this compilation.

The stories are separated into chapters including Haunted Places, Avenging Spirits, Shadowy Corners and Phantom Lovers among others. Each story has an enlightening introduction detailing the haunted structure, plus a brief summary of the author's career. The tales are wildly diverse - which is not a recommendation - with a combination of moody 19th century goth and sexually aware modern sensibilities.

For lovers of the haunted house/supernatural genre, "The Mammoth Book of Haunted House Stories" will be an enjoyable addition. But first-time readers of the genre would be better served to track down the classics before opening these doors.

Rating:
Summary: a superb collection
Review: Good anthologies are hard to come by. In addition, I am picky. This collection contains many stories I already had. It was still worth it. This is the book I would most recommend for a newcomer to the horror genre. It contains great stories of M.R.James, R.A.Cram, L.P.Hartley,W.W.Jacobs, Lord Lytton....
Many of the very best.

Rating:
Summary: deffinatly Mammoth....
Review: I admit I read it all and even enjoyed a good portion of this really large anthology. Some of the stories were pretty creepy but I failed to have ANY nightmares. I enjoyed the Whistling Room by William Hope Hodgson and several others like Feet Foremost by L.P. Hartley and The Grey House by Basil Copper. Most of the tales are set in England at some point in the distant past and while the book claims several of the stories to be based on true happenings as defined in the prospectus at the beginning of each tale I can only recall one or two references to fact having been put forth. All in all I think Peter Haining who edited this anthology could have gathered a better sampling of stories and worked a bit harder at giving us a better scare.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent anthology!
Review: If you are looking for an anthology of strictly ghost stories, this is the way to go. All the masters are represented here. The selections are not the most obvious and there are stories from the inception of the ghost story to the present.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent anthology!
Review: If you are looking for an anthology of strictly ghost stories, this is the way to go. All the masters are represented here. The selections are not the most obvious and there are stories from the inception of the ghost story to the present.

Rating:
Summary: Uneven Mix of Haunting and not so haunting Stories
Review: Peter Haining has included some very good stories in "The Mammoth Book of Haunted House Stories" that have been collected elsewhere, e.g. "Lost Hearts" by M.R. James and "The Whistling Room" by William Hope Hodgson. He also included stories that have never (to my knowledge) been included in an anthology--and for a good reason. They usually weren't worth reading (at least, if you're looking for a good scare). There were also too many humorous ghost stories for my taste -- authors always seem to come off as over-arch and coy when they strain for levity in a ghost story.

I'd recommend "Haunted Houses - The Greatest Stories" which was edited by Martin H. Greenburg over this collection of Peter Haining's. Haining seemed to be straining for 'mammoth' rather than for 'haunted'.

Rating:
Summary: Book Review
Review: This book was excellent! It's suspenful and he uses very vivid description to build you up to the moment. He should follow through with detail's more though cause he sometime's says things that make you wonder or make you kind of lost. But otherwise he did a wonderful job! It was very interesting and entertaining to read, and I would like to read more of his novel's, if there is anymore like these stories. This book was a real pageturner, the suspense was great after each end. To wrap it all up I would suggest this book to anybody because if you're looking for something to do on a stormy evening, the best thing to do is to grab a good book and this is a good book to do that with.

Rating:
Summary: Delight for a Dark Evening
Review: This huge anthology is a wonderful treat for any lover of the spookiest of all horror genres - the haunted house. The selections are highly eclectic, although weighted toward the coziness of the British 19th century tradition (although there's NOTHING cozy about "Lost Hearts," the M.R. James tale included here!). You'll find a terrific balance between familiar names like William Hope Hodgson and Robert Bloch (best known for Psycho) and the more obscure - this anthology was my introduction to Basil Copper and H. Russell Wakefield, whose "Ghost Hunt" is a highly enjoyable bit of pulp. Also included are a number of stories by "literary" writers not known for the horror genre, including Penelope Lively, Fay Weldon, and Virginia Woolf.

Some of the stories are mostly of historical interest - modern tastes aren't likely to be thrilled by misers getting tediously Victorian comeuppances in the afterlife, and the "funny" stories are painful to sit through. But this eclectic collection offers gem after gem as well, and if you want a survey of the breadth and depth of the haunted neighborhood, here is your field guide.

Rating:
Summary: This Book Delivers Real Chills
Review: When I read ghost stories I want real ghosts and real chills. I want a tale that causes shivers. This book delivers. Great selection of ghostly tale that will make you think twice about turning that bedroom light out.