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The Landlady
The Landlady is a brilliant gem of a short story from Roald Dahl, the master of the sting in the tail.
In The Landlady, Roald Dahl, one of the world's favourite authors, tells a sinister story about the darker side of human nature. Here, a young man in need of room meets a most accommodating landlady...
The Landlady is taken from the short story collection Kiss Kiss, which includes ten other devious and shocking stories, featuring the wife who pawns the mink coat from her lover with unexpected results; the priceless piece of furniture that is the subject of a deceitful bargain; a wronged woman taking revenge on her dead husband, and others.
In The Landlady, Roald Dahl, one of the world's favourite authors, tells a sinister story about the darker side of human nature. Here, a young man in need of room meets a most accommodating landlady...
The Landlady is taken from the short story collection Kiss Kiss, which includes ten other devious and shocking stories, featuring the wife who pawns the mink coat from her lover with unexpected results; the priceless piece of furniture that is the subject of a deceitful bargain; a wronged woman taking revenge on her dead husband, and others.
17 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 28, 1959
53 people are currently reading
3135 people want to read
About the author
Roald Dahl
1,481 books26.8k followersRoald Dahl was a beloved British author, poet, screenwriter, and wartime fighter pilot, best known for his enchanting and often darkly humorous children's books that have captivated generations of readers around the world. Born in Llandaff, Wales, to Norwegian parents, Dahl led a life marked by adventure, tragedy, creativity, and enduring literary success. His vivid imagination and distinctive storytelling style have made him one of the most celebrated children's authors in modern literature.
Before becoming a writer, Dahl lived a life filled with excitement and hardship. He served as a Royal Air Force pilot during World War II, surviving a near-fatal crash in the Libyan desert. His wartime experiences and travels deeply influenced his storytelling, often infusing his works with a sense of danger, resilience, and the triumph of the underdog. After the war, he began writing for both adults and children, showing a rare versatility that spanned genres and age groups.
Dahl's children's books are known for their playful use of language, unforgettable characters, and a deep sense of justice, often pitting clever children against cruel or foolish adults. Some of his most iconic titles include Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, The BFG, James and the Giant Peach, Fantastic Mr Fox, and The Witches. These works are filled with fantastical elements and moral undertones, empowering young readers to challenge authority, think independently, and believe in the impossible.
Equally acclaimed for his work for adults, Dahl wrote numerous short stories characterized by their macabre twists and dark humor. His stories were frequently published in magazines such as The New Yorker and later compiled into bestselling collections like Someone Like You and Kiss Kiss. He also wrote screenplays, including the James Bond film You Only Live Twice and the adaptation of Ian Fleming's Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
Despite his literary success, Dahl was a complex and sometimes controversial figure, known for his strong opinions and difficult personality. Nonetheless, his books continue to be treasured for their wit, originality, and the sense of wonder they inspire. Many of his stories have been adapted into successful films, stage plays, and television specials, further cementing his legacy.
Dahl's impact on children's literature is immeasurable. His ability to connect with young readers through a mix of irreverence, heart, and imagination has made his stories timeless. Even after his death, his books remain in print and continue to be read by millions of children worldwide. His writing not only entertains but also encourages curiosity, courage, and compassion.
Roald Dahl's work lives on as a testament to the power of storytelling and the magic of a truly original voice. He remains a towering figure in literature whose creations continue to spark joy, mischief, and inspiration across generations.
Before becoming a writer, Dahl lived a life filled with excitement and hardship. He served as a Royal Air Force pilot during World War II, surviving a near-fatal crash in the Libyan desert. His wartime experiences and travels deeply influenced his storytelling, often infusing his works with a sense of danger, resilience, and the triumph of the underdog. After the war, he began writing for both adults and children, showing a rare versatility that spanned genres and age groups.
Dahl's children's books are known for their playful use of language, unforgettable characters, and a deep sense of justice, often pitting clever children against cruel or foolish adults. Some of his most iconic titles include Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, The BFG, James and the Giant Peach, Fantastic Mr Fox, and The Witches. These works are filled with fantastical elements and moral undertones, empowering young readers to challenge authority, think independently, and believe in the impossible.
Equally acclaimed for his work for adults, Dahl wrote numerous short stories characterized by their macabre twists and dark humor. His stories were frequently published in magazines such as The New Yorker and later compiled into bestselling collections like Someone Like You and Kiss Kiss. He also wrote screenplays, including the James Bond film You Only Live Twice and the adaptation of Ian Fleming's Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
Despite his literary success, Dahl was a complex and sometimes controversial figure, known for his strong opinions and difficult personality. Nonetheless, his books continue to be treasured for their wit, originality, and the sense of wonder they inspire. Many of his stories have been adapted into successful films, stage plays, and television specials, further cementing his legacy.
Dahl's impact on children's literature is immeasurable. His ability to connect with young readers through a mix of irreverence, heart, and imagination has made his stories timeless. Even after his death, his books remain in print and continue to be read by millions of children worldwide. His writing not only entertains but also encourages curiosity, courage, and compassion.
Roald Dahl's work lives on as a testament to the power of storytelling and the magic of a truly original voice. He remains a towering figure in literature whose creations continue to spark joy, mischief, and inspiration across generations.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 738 reviews
January 31, 2019
Cool! We read this during the English lesson back in High school, and I'm surprised that it was so good! I really enjoyed this story; I only wish it was a bit longer. And I think this was my first Roald Dahl.
The tea tasted faintly of bitter almonds...
...............
Before we started this story, our teacher gave us one question: "Who is the Landlady."
And my answer was: "Creepy killer". But I would say this to anything.
The tea tasted faintly of bitter almonds...
...............
Before we started this story, our teacher gave us one question: "Who is the Landlady."
And my answer was: "Creepy killer". But I would say this to anything.
November 18, 2021
Un joven viajero acaba de llegar a destino en medio de la noche. Consultando en la Estación donde hospedarse le recomiendan un hotel cercano, pero de camino ve otro sitio que súbitamente le llama la atención y lo atrae. finalmente decide hospedarse en este sitio y es recibido por una amable mujer que parece haberlo estado esperando. La anfitriona, ademas de increíblemente atenta con su huésped, resulta ser bastante peculiar y excéntrica, entre otras cuestiones se dedica a la taxidermia, con un talento para emplear este arte que fue muy difícil para el viajero percatarse que el loro y el perro de la recepción en realidad no estaban vivos. Pronto el viajero comenzará
a hacerse varias preguntas.
Una narrativa sencilla y concisa. Con un notable manejo de lo explicito/ implícito, al punto de prescindir de un final per se, porque las cartas ya están echadas sobre la mesa.
Un ejemplo de la habilidad del autor para conectar con el lector juvenil y también con el lector adulto evocando la nostalgia con sus historias y embelleciendo lo siniestro.
a hacerse varias preguntas.
Una narrativa sencilla y concisa. Con un notable manejo de lo explicito/ implícito, al punto de prescindir de un final per se, porque las cartas ya están echadas sobre la mesa.
Un ejemplo de la habilidad del autor para conectar con el lector juvenil y también con el lector adulto evocando la nostalgia con sus historias y embelleciendo lo siniestro.
May 25, 2017
Written in the 1950's this short horror story set in England was a home run with my grade 7 &8 students during our short story unit that we've just completed. A young man looks for a place to rest his head for the night and discovers a Bed and Breakfast that no reader will ever forget!
August 24, 2015
Oooh, this was really good! It's a creepy little short story about, well, a landlady, and her rather unfortunate tenants. This is the best kind of horror- really subtle, just at the fringes, a lingering sense of unease and an open ending that has an implied conclusion but lets you fill in the blanks. Read it here.
July 6, 2017
wow, just wow!
I swear I once watched a horror movie inspired by this story.
I had no idea this was a horror story, I just read the title and started reading, and I'm glad I didn't because I'm not fond of scary things.
It's unbelievable that it came out of Roal Dahl's pen. I had no idea he could write such creepy stories.
Right from pages 1 I could feel my legs weaken, my heart pounding and the chills going up and down my spine. I was terrified, yet I wanted to keep reading.
Everything was just perfect, I could see it happening right in front of my eyes, I could see the parrot, I could see the book, the names, I could taste the sweet almonds flavored tea, I could see Billy realizing what would happen next.
I'm wowed, I'm definitely going to need more.
I swear I once watched a horror movie inspired by this story.
I had no idea this was a horror story, I just read the title and started reading, and I'm glad I didn't because I'm not fond of scary things.
It's unbelievable that it came out of Roal Dahl's pen. I had no idea he could write such creepy stories.
Right from pages 1 I could feel my legs weaken, my heart pounding and the chills going up and down my spine. I was terrified, yet I wanted to keep reading.
Everything was just perfect, I could see it happening right in front of my eyes, I could see the parrot, I could see the book, the names, I could taste the sweet almonds flavored tea, I could see Billy realizing what would happen next.
I'm wowed, I'm definitely going to need more.
May 17, 2021
This is my first time reading anything of Roald Dahl's that wasn't a children's book and I have to say that I wasn't a huge fan. This book was so dull and predictable that I didn't really feel the creepiness or scariness that I was supposed to feel from the story.
September 17, 2021
What a bizarre sense of dread you get from this incredibly brief story!
This is not a supernatural or ghost story. Instead, it's about an elderly lady who appears to be lovely and accommodating, albeit a little senile. She owns a Bed & Breakfast, and Billy Weaver, 17, is in need of a place to stay. Billy feels impelled to stop at the B&B, despite being directed to a tavern for lodging only down the road. Billy knocks on the elderly lady's door, and she promptly invites him in, as if she had been waiting for him. The creepiness multiplies tenfold from this point on!
The story is presented in such a way that it is clear that the lady has done "something" to her former lodgers. You just don't know what it is - and that is what makes the story so good! Dahl instills a real sense of unease. Something is wrong, and you grow concerned that the young man isn't "getting it," and you want him to get out of there! Billy doesn't seem to realize he's in trouble, even after recognizing that his tea "tasted faintly of bitter almonds."
We never learn what the old lady's motivations were. We don't understand why she does what she does, which adds to the unpleasant nature of the plot.
My only criticism is that I wish the story had been a little bit longer! I craved more!
This is not a supernatural or ghost story. Instead, it's about an elderly lady who appears to be lovely and accommodating, albeit a little senile. She owns a Bed & Breakfast, and Billy Weaver, 17, is in need of a place to stay. Billy feels impelled to stop at the B&B, despite being directed to a tavern for lodging only down the road. Billy knocks on the elderly lady's door, and she promptly invites him in, as if she had been waiting for him. The creepiness multiplies tenfold from this point on!
The story is presented in such a way that it is clear that the lady has done "something" to her former lodgers. You just don't know what it is - and that is what makes the story so good! Dahl instills a real sense of unease. Something is wrong, and you grow concerned that the young man isn't "getting it," and you want him to get out of there! Billy doesn't seem to realize he's in trouble, even after recognizing that his tea "tasted faintly of bitter almonds."
We never learn what the old lady's motivations were. We don't understand why she does what she does, which adds to the unpleasant nature of the plot.
My only criticism is that I wish the story had been a little bit longer! I craved more!
November 23, 2021
Disturbometer: 3 - 4 out of 10
Number 5 on my “most disturbing story ever" list
Okay, so the landlady
Sometimes it’s dangerous to be cute!
Heh, I found the story cute almost more than I found it disturbing. Sure, the implication is most certainly disturbing, but to me it felt almost like a fairy-tale, and pretty fun to read; especially as, despite some foreboding and foreshadowing from the start, you don’t see the specifics of what’s going on until right at the end, .
Despite the disturbia, a short, fun little read.
Number 5 on my “most disturbing story ever" list
Okay, so the landlady
Sometimes it’s dangerous to be cute!
Heh, I found the story cute almost more than I found it disturbing. Sure, the implication is most certainly disturbing, but to me it felt almost like a fairy-tale, and pretty fun to read; especially as, despite some foreboding and foreshadowing from the start, you don’t see the specifics of what’s going on until right at the end, .
Despite the disturbia, a short, fun little read.
January 11, 2022
I forgot to take a book with me to a coffee shop this morning, so ended up downloading this very short story via my son's school website.
I've read a few adult short stories from Roald Dahl in the past, and this follows a similar vein - mysterious circumstances with an overriding feeling of foreboding and dread for the main character. Dahl seems to take great pleasure in presenting these sweet and innocent old women and having their character be completely at odds with their image. This also reminded me a little of a Charlotte Perkins Gilman short story I read recently about a boarding house.
Creepy and unsettling.
I've read a few adult short stories from Roald Dahl in the past, and this follows a similar vein - mysterious circumstances with an overriding feeling of foreboding and dread for the main character. Dahl seems to take great pleasure in presenting these sweet and innocent old women and having their character be completely at odds with their image. This also reminded me a little of a Charlotte Perkins Gilman short story I read recently about a boarding house.
Creepy and unsettling.
October 25, 2021
Okay, this one was weird. And kind of disturbing. And somehow I still remember everything that happened in it with stark detail. Maybe it was because we had to write our own endings for the story and my ending creeped me out...
February 11, 2017
Short and sweet creepy story.
June 27, 2016
Brilliant short read, very evocative of its time. Billy Weaver is a smart, young man in his brown suit and brown hat, newly arrived in Bath to take up his first job. He is instructed to find somewhere to stay before reporting in and the draw of the little bed and breakfast he passes immediately warns the reader that this is a bad move! The story is delightfully predictable and very creepy in a way that makes you want to shout - 'Look behind you!'
Very enjoyable.
Very enjoyable.
July 6, 2015
Creepy short story about a woman who runs a cozy bed and breakfast.
August 21, 2020
Jesus Christ on a f*cking cracker!
June 9, 2016
As a lover of horror stories, I am so glad I had to read this for my English Lit class in college. I found the plot to be very curious, which kept me intrigued. Many people may disagree with me when I say that I appreciated the fact that it had an open ending. This way, people get creative by imagining different kinds of endings. It also makes room for people to reflect on the different aspects of the story to find out what the ending could be. Overall, I enjoyed this short story very much, and am looking forward to read more of Dahl’s work.
May 18, 2022
I love mysterious short stories like that!
March 28, 2017
The detail in The Landlady never ceases to amaze me. It's about an ambitious and naive young man named Billy Weaver, who stumbles across a seemingly perfect B & B, and subsequently meets a little old lady who runs the place. This story flows like clockwork - everything makes sense, and there's no unnecessary detail. The ending will definitely leave you scratching your head. I love how this piece is short, eerie, and leaves you thinking. I recommend this story if you want to read something snappy and thought provoking.
August 11, 2016
Daaaaang. CREEPY AS HELL.
June 3, 2022
The level of creepiness increases as the story goes on because the reader guesses what’s happening before poor Billy Weaver does.
June 9, 2025
read this in class today and my mind was blown
November 3, 2023
بادوم تلخ سیانیده؛ ولی چرا تاول اینا نمیزنه ؟ یا یهو نمیسوزونه؟
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 2, 2022
A lack of experience and a lack of intuition, but really lack of experience aids the horror of this story. This young man is so young, just seventeen, that I almost feel that the narrator is laughing a bit at him, thinking him too naive, too green to go out of town to work by himself. . . . And even more disturbing to my reading ego, I feel that the narrator is laughing at me for rooting for such a doomed character. And this is not the first time I have felt like this when reading a Ronald Dahl book/story. And I will come back for more. Oh me. Oh my.
July 20, 2020
ROALD DAHL! ROALD DAHL! ROALD DAHL! ROALD DAHL! ROALD DAHL!
Ha! Typical Roald Dahl ending.
I will give 5 stars impartially to all of his books because he's my favorite and someday I want to write like him, to be honest :p Or maybe copy his style of ending the narrative. Either way, I know he's terrific.
I still can't forget Royal Jelly: A Short Story from Roald Dahl's 'Kiss Kiss' even after 3 years. Now, this would be the next in line. I sincerely LOOOOOVVVEEEEE the epilogues.
Ha! Typical Roald Dahl ending.
I will give 5 stars impartially to all of his books because he's my favorite and someday I want to write like him, to be honest :p Or maybe copy his style of ending the narrative. Either way, I know he's terrific.
I still can't forget Royal Jelly: A Short Story from Roald Dahl's 'Kiss Kiss' even after 3 years. Now, this would be the next in line. I sincerely LOOOOOVVVEEEEE the epilogues.
October 9, 2015
I love Roald Dahl! I stole this several years ago, yes I admit, I stole it from the teachers’ resource library. I had every intention of using it in my teaching but went with Lamb to Lamb to the Slaughter instead and simply “forgot” to return it.
If you have a few minutes to spare and want to read a subtle horror story about a welcoming landlady, then this is the story for you.
If you have a few minutes to spare and want to read a subtle horror story about a welcoming landlady, then this is the story for you.
July 19, 2020
Story 1 The landlady
I have to say I never read books from Roald Dahl for grownups. I do like this story, but it should have been a few pages longer to get a better idea of what was going on. It lacked the punch. Maybe he wanted us to use our fantasy, maybe that is the clue.
I have to say I never read books from Roald Dahl for grownups. I do like this story, but it should have been a few pages longer to get a better idea of what was going on. It lacked the punch. Maybe he wanted us to use our fantasy, maybe that is the clue.
August 11, 2021
4.5/5 stars.
Sooooo creepy.
Sooooo creepy.
June 24, 2020
Creepy......
February 6, 2021
lol i read this with the kid i tutor
September 22, 2021
Evocative and creepy. Also super short, so definitely worth your time.
March 22, 2025
Creepy 😭 3.25 ⭐
Displaying 1 - 30 of 738 reviews