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81st out of 152 books
—
26 voters
Ghosts by Gaslight: Stories of Steampunk and Supernatural Suspense
by
Jack Dann (Goodreads Author) ,
Nick Gevers , Peter S. Beagle (Goodreads Author), Terry Dowling, Garth Nix (Goodreads Author), Gene Wolfe, Margo Lanagan, Sean Williams (Goodreads Author)
,
more…
Seventeen all-new stories illuminate the steampunk world of fog and fear!
Modern masters of the supernatural weave their magic to revitalize the chilling Victorian and Edwardian ghostly tale: here are haunted houses, arcane inventions, spirits reaching across the centuries, ghosts in the machine, fateful revelations, gaslit streets scarcely keeping the dark at bay, and othe...more
Modern masters of the supernatural weave their magic to revitalize the chilling Victorian and Edwardian ghostly tale: here are haunted houses, arcane inventions, spirits reaching across the centuries, ghosts in the machine, fateful revelations, gaslit streets scarcely keeping the dark at bay, and othe...more
Paperback, 391 pages
Published
September 6th 2011
by Harper Voyager
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I found this book disappointing, not because of the quality of the writing, but because of the marketing. To call this anthology 'steampunk' is like calling a foot an ear. They don't look the same, work the same, or meet the same needs of their users.
The steampunk elements are weak. In fact, they are as transparent as the haunts that appear in Ghosts by Gaslight. The publisher should have subtitled this tone "Stories of Victorian Supernatural Suspense". These stories are light on steampunk eleme...more
The steampunk elements are weak. In fact, they are as transparent as the haunts that appear in Ghosts by Gaslight. The publisher should have subtitled this tone "Stories of Victorian Supernatural Suspense". These stories are light on steampunk eleme...more
The "steampunk" in the title is a little misleading, which is fine by me--I'm not super-interested in clockwork and steam engines for their own sake. Many of the stories aren't really even about ghosts, or at least they don't seem particularly "ghosty" to me. There are Satanic enclaves, mad inventors and their hideous machines, mummies, and time travel, all loosely bound together with phantasmagoric ties. The real throughline of the collection is the nineteenth century, that spooky, obsessive pe...more
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Ghosts by Gaslight: Stories of Steampunk and Supernatural Suspense is a collection of short stories by supposedly some of the best writers out there now in the realm of horror, suspense, and steampunk. I myself was not familiar with any of the authors and view this book as an excellent introduction to each.
Each story was written with the Victorian vernacular and feel to them. The voices were expertly done. They were so well done, in fact, it was easy to forget these were modern era stories and n...more
Each story was written with the Victorian vernacular and feel to them. The voices were expertly done. They were so well done, in fact, it was easy to forget these were modern era stories and n...more
This book rocked my world!
(Full disclosure: even though I really liked this book, I would have like to have taken off half a star because there was one f-word in the book.)
This is one of the most creative ghost story books I have read in a long time. Have I been missing some? I have a hard time finding books of short stories in my library, they aren't shelved together, so there might be others that I've missed. This collection was amazing. Every story was creative, I could rarely see where the s...more
(Full disclosure: even though I really liked this book, I would have like to have taken off half a star because there was one f-word in the book.)
This is one of the most creative ghost story books I have read in a long time. Have I been missing some? I have a hard time finding books of short stories in my library, they aren't shelved together, so there might be others that I've missed. This collection was amazing. Every story was creative, I could rarely see where the s...more
I find that sometimes the only way I can process an anthology is by reading and evaluating each story individually, and then determining an average score for the work as a whole. In this case, there were seventeen stories, and each could earn a score of up to five points. With 85 points available, my final score for this anthology is 61, or an average of 3.59, which I have rounded up to a four star rating here. This is really a 3.5 star review. Some of my favorite are evaluated below, with the s...more
Ghosts by Gaslight is the perfect example of what a short story collection ought to be. Though the stories are meant to convey a sense of dread (and indeed, many of them do - especially Lucius Shepard's dirty little tale), I found myself utterly delighted as I read each story. It has always seemed to me that ghost stories are best suited for briefness - else the author runs the risk of losing the tension. And yet, I am often frustrated by short stories that seem as though the author plucked them...more
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I am a fan of short stories, and of themed anthologies as a rule, and this was a very good one. While it's being presented as a book of Steampunk stories, it seems many of the contributing writers have only a rudimentary understanding of Steampunk as a set of aesthetics, which is what I think makes the collection so very interesting. Fantasy writers not known for their Steampunk aesthetic try their hand at some 19th Century Ghosts Stories with terrific results. Gene Wolfe has the very compelling...more
A very good collection, although better described as Victorian than Steampunk, I think.
For my future self, here's the individual story ratings:
The Iron Shroud. 3.
Music, When Soft Voices Die. 2.
The Shaddowwes Box. 4.
The Curious Case of the Moondawn Daffodil Murders. 5. Silly, but in a great way.
Why I Was Hanged. 5. One of the only really creepy stories in the book.
The Proving of Smollett Standforth. 2.
The Jade Woman of the Luminous Star. 3.
Smithers and the Ghosts of the Thar. 3.
The Unbearable Pro...more
For my future self, here's the individual story ratings:
The Iron Shroud. 3.
Music, When Soft Voices Die. 2.
The Shaddowwes Box. 4.
The Curious Case of the Moondawn Daffodil Murders. 5. Silly, but in a great way.
Why I Was Hanged. 5. One of the only really creepy stories in the book.
The Proving of Smollett Standforth. 2.
The Jade Woman of the Luminous Star. 3.
Smithers and the Ghosts of the Thar. 3.
The Unbearable Pro...more
To be fair I had pretty high expectations for this anthology. Solid, consistently good authors (in some cases GREAT WRITERS), an intriguing moody setting and steampunk overtones. How awesome is that? I'm afraid we'll never know as there were very few stories contained in the collection which actually dealt with any form of steampunk genre. The majority of the stories were much more focused on Edwardian or Victorian ghost stories, which are fine on their own merit, but not what I was looking for....more
I enjoyed most of the stories in the anthology. A nice mix, for me, of familiar and unknown authors. Some stories had more steampunk elements (looking at science, machines, etc.) and others felt more like traditional ghost stories. I think, though, what the anthology does show is that the idea of steampunk is wide and varying. A natural thing, really, as no one writes exactly alike. My favorite story was Rose Street Attractors by Lucius Shepard. I don't think I've read anything by him before, an...more
808.83 G346
A collection of steampunk and supernatural tales that breathes new life into the Victorian and Edwardian ghost story for a new generation of readers. “Seventeen all-new stories illuminate the steampunk world of fog and fear! Modern masters of the supernatural weave their magic to revitalize the chilling Victorian and Edwardian ghostly tale: here are haunted houses, arcane inventions, spirits reaching across the centuries, ghosts in the machine, fateful revelations, gaslit streets scar...more
A collection of steampunk and supernatural tales that breathes new life into the Victorian and Edwardian ghost story for a new generation of readers. “Seventeen all-new stories illuminate the steampunk world of fog and fear! Modern masters of the supernatural weave their magic to revitalize the chilling Victorian and Edwardian ghostly tale: here are haunted houses, arcane inventions, spirits reaching across the centuries, ghosts in the machine, fateful revelations, gaslit streets scar...more
This anthology has many very interesting stories and shows just how flexible steampunk can be, it's not all airships and spring-heeled jack. The variety in theme, voice and characters make this a great read for those looking for something different, and will no doubt have a story to appeal to everyone, and perhaps something new to get hooked on.
I will definitely look for other works by some of these authors, as well as being thrilled by some whose work I was already familiar.
Garth Nix showed a g...more
I will definitely look for other works by some of these authors, as well as being thrilled by some whose work I was already familiar.
Garth Nix showed a g...more
Not a bad book, although I think that steampunk is a bit over used at the current time. This anthology is a good selection of various ghost stories set to the Victorian fantasy back drop. My usual caveat concerning anthologies applies, and this collection does have one or two stories that you could skip, but I think, all in all this was a well-put-together collection
The stories in this collection could not be more different from each other, even though they, like most anthology entries are, usua
...more
An outstanding collection of new stories, almost all of them good, and some truly splendid; my favourite is Lucius Shepherd's "Rose Street Attractors", which is easily one of the most imaginative works of short fiction I've read this year. Not to be missed by followers of the weird, or fans of the Victorian pastiche (the lapses into verbal modernisms are surprisingly few). The debit side is very modest: Jeffrey Ford and Laird Barron decline to play the game by the rules (i.e. write a story combi...more
This anthology of steampunk-flavored ghost stories is one of the best overall that I've come across. There wasn't a single story I couldn't get through, and several of them were outstanding, particularly Margo Lanagan's "The Proving of Smollett Standforth" and "Christopher Raven" by Theodora Goss. I particularly liked the way Margo Lanagan's story focused on a main character who's a servant rather than a member of the privileged classes (one of those aspects of Victorian society that too often g...more
This is a collection of short stories, all taking place in the nineteenth or early twentieth centuries, written in the style of the time. The stories range from fifteen to fifty pages. I am not very familiar with this genre, nor am I familiar with any but one of the authors but the book has intrigued me to check them out.
As a whole, I give this collection three stars. Some of these individual stories warranted five or four stars, and others one or two. There were enough 1-2 star stories sprinkle...more
As a whole, I give this collection three stars. Some of these individual stories warranted five or four stars, and others one or two. There were enough 1-2 star stories sprinkle...more
I’ll admit, a lot of this anthology is, well, stereotypically steampunk. It uses every trope I’ve yet come across, and there’s a hearty dose of upper-crust villains, and smatterings of antisocial inventors. Well, more than just smatterings; given many of the stories found within connect spiritualism with science (I wouldn’t be surprised to find they were inspired by Edison’s early voice-phenomena), the inventors/scientists are part and parcel.
Unfortunately, I must admit, like many sorts of stori...more
Unfortunately, I must admit, like many sorts of stori...more
I picked this book up unexpectedly from a local bookshop and was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it.
Much of the work in the steampunk genre to me is terrible. It is often a wonderful concept or idea, which is then executed in the most brutal fashion.
I would say I enjoyed at least half of the stories in this collection, which given the wide array of authors featured is quite high.
If you're a fan of the steampunk genre I would recommend it, if not, this may not be the book for you.
Much of the work in the steampunk genre to me is terrible. It is often a wonderful concept or idea, which is then executed in the most brutal fashion.
I would say I enjoyed at least half of the stories in this collection, which given the wide array of authors featured is quite high.
If you're a fan of the steampunk genre I would recommend it, if not, this may not be the book for you.
Unusually strong collection of neo-Victorian ghost stories; although a few of the stories have steampunk elements, the subtitle is a bit misleading. I was a bit apprehensive of a number of established science fiction writers having a go at writing steampunk stories, but in fact, there's quite a bit of good writing here, very little in the way of steampunk cliche, and a decent attempt at writing Victorian-style fiction. I particularly enjoyed stories by Margo Lanagan, Theodora Goss, Lucius Shepar...more
Some hits and some misses as far as ghost stories are concerned. In no way are these stories "steampunk," so if that's your bag, pick a different set of stories (Extraordinary Engines is a good one). The first three stories are technological and Victorian, two criteria usually applied to steampunk, but the rest are mostly just Victorian suspense (still interesting, but mislabeled). If you like old ghost stories, read on.
As others have noted, the "steampunk" in the title seems misplaced, since there isn't a lot of time-mashing techo-anachronism going on here; perhaps these stories should have been called period pieces. In any event, it's a collection, so it's hit and miss, but it's mostly enjoyable. I especially liked Marly Youman's story "The Grave Reflection."
Personally I care not at all what the proper steampunk story might be. This collection introduced me to a fine new cadre of horror, speculative, supernatch storytellers, and I'm grateful. To name my favorites: Rose Street Attractors/Shepard; Christopher Raven/Goss; Blackwood's Baby/Barron. My biggest pleasant surprise was Peter S Beagle's Music, When Soft Voices Die. I'd heretofore thought of him as merely "the unicorn guy" (I'm sorry!!!), but this story is exquisite, dark, and haunting. Now th...more
Apparently, I quite like old-fashioned, Victorian-riffing ghost stories. Both Gene Wolfe and Margo Lanagan give the 'Downstairs' view of the 'Upstairs/Downstairs' world in 'Why I Was Hanged' (GW) & 'The Haunting of Standforth Smollett' (ML). Garth Nix provides a goofy, P.G. Wodehouse-Sherlock Holmes mash-up in the "The Curious Case of the Moondawn Daffodils Murder. Marly Youmans moves the haunting to a New England winter wonderland in the 'Concealment Shoes.' My personal favorite was Theodor...more
Collection of new ghost stories (using the broad definition of ghosts) set in Victorian/Edwardian times. Some stories were better than others (I was pleasantly pleased with the Robert Silverberg story, disappointed in the Peter Beagle story).
I don't usually read short stories, but the theme of these (supernatural stories in the Victorian "gaslight" era) appealed to me. They were all very well written and enjoyable. Intriguing, with memorable characters. I will be searching out more stories or books by these authors. Highly recommended.
A lousy collection barely even touching upon steampunk, it even included- horrors- a foolish Sherlock Holmes pastiche. Marginally supernatural, barely entertaining, I'm sorry I slogged through it.
Couldn't even finish it. I'm hoping for a really great steampunk/supernatural anthology. The writers of this one don't seem to take the subject terribly seriously. Highly disappointing.
Enjoyed many of these stories. My favorite being Grave Reflections by Marly Youmans. She did a fantastic job of creating a spooky story with a touch of humour AND did a great job with that Victorian vernacular.
One of the great things about anthologies is that you discover new authors that you may not ever read otherwise. I had not read anything by any of these authors but now have a new list of books to check out from the authors I found most interesting.
One of the great things about anthologies is that you discover new authors that you may not ever read otherwise. I had not read anything by any of these authors but now have a new list of books to check out from the authors I found most interesting.
This anthology is deemed 'steampunk' however it seemed more Victorian-esque to me rather than true steampunk. It was an enjoyable anthology however and some of the stories were truly spine tingly and goose pimply!
I should confess I didn't read all the stories. However, I did read about half of them and really enjoyed those I did pick to read. I don't usually like the short story format, but this collection may have opened me up to trying more anthologies.
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