Tales of Pain and Wonder

by Caitlín R. Kiernan

This collection of twenty-two short stories by the author of Daughter of Hounds and Alabaster, originally published in 2000, firmly established Caitlín R. Kiernan as one of the preeminent voices in dark fantasy today. Through a cycle of interconnected narratives, Kiernan unflinchingly explores a surreal world where the fantastic and the mundane are never separated by more than the insubstantial thickness of a shadow. From the murderous back-streets of New Orleans toan abandoned shipyard on the Hudson River, from sun-weary Los Angeles to a maze of dank and forgotten tunnels beneath Man-hattan, these stories present a landscape at once alien and un-deniably familiar.

Genres: Horror, Short Stories, Fantasy, Dark Fantasy, Fiction, Weird Fiction, Supernatural

436 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2000

About the author

Caitlín Rebekah Kiernan is an Irish-born American published paleontologist and author of science fiction and dark fantasy works, including ten novels, series of comic books, and more than two hundred and fifty published short stories, novellas, and vignettes.

Reviews

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my most favorite books. I think about the stories contained within this edition often. It's almost as if Caitlin R.Kiernan was possessed by lonely but omnipotent spirits when she was writing this. Jimmy DeSade and Salmagundi are fascinating characters that are woven in and out of this collection like lethal, dark threads.

[James Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is no secret that CRK is in the top three of my favorite writers in any genre. This volume is a collection of mostly previously published short works. It is for the fan and it is for the intrepid explorers of the painful and wonderful. I am in no way capable of truly reviewing this book, other than to say it is, in and of itself, an admirable life's work. However, it only covers approximately a five year stretch of her writing, the later half of the '90's. CRK's writing is so imaginable, so real, so raw, yet she writes of those parts of the world which we like to pretend aren't real, those dark corners and those little scritches and those lost people and those odd places. What she writes stretches my need to suspend disbelief not one bit.
Everything she writes is true; it may not be fact, but any honest with him/herself reader will know the truth of what she writes if said reader is not too afraid. CRK writes about the angels. No, not THOSE angels that will guide you and solve your problems and make your life all light and love. She writes of the brother and sister angels, the ones we want to pretend don't exist but we all know are there anyway.
The best review of this book is the honorific done as an afterword by Peter Straub. If he could write so highly of CRK's work 13 years ago, what would he write now.
I think of Emily Dickinson, such genius, kept to itself during her lifetime; and I think of Caitlin R. Kiernan, perhaps even more genius, but out there, commanding presence and willing to share her genius now. We are very lucky; there are no others like her.

[Traci · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of these were good, others were just sort of there. Of course, when I got close to the end, I realized there's an "alternative table of contents", putting the stories in chronological order, rather than publication order. Wish I'd seen that before I had started the book, as I was confused by some of the jumping around; one story in particular, I remember thinking "wait, isn't she dead?" about a character.

[Dries · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m giving this book 4 stars. Goodreads says that’s a score that means I “really liked it”, but I’m actually pretty conflicted about it... Not that Tales of Pain & Wonder was bad—far from it; it’s just that it was, at times, a very frustrating read. As with the previous Kiernan work I read, The Drowning Girl, I felt left out of the narrative(s) in a way that I don't think Kiernan was hoping the reader would be left out. As much as I like Kiernan's writing style and world-building, particularly the frequent allusions to Goth subculture, those aspects of the collection, sadly, were not enough to sustain my interest for 20+ stories. Some stories were pretty good ("Anamorphosis", "Bela's Plot"); some were just OK ("Tears Seven Times Salt", "Glass Coffin"); some went directions I wasn't expecting ("Breakfast in the House of the Rising Sun", "Paedomorphosis"); but a lot of them were just sort of... 'there'... not necessarily "bad", but not the kind of stories that I felt showcased Kiernan's full potential. In fact, I was almost considering quitting the book altogether (or at least putting it away for a while and then maybe returning to it later), until I came across one story about half-way through the book, "Postcards from the King of Tides", which was downright brilliant. After that the stories generally grow considerably in quality, but, sadly, they never reach the same height as "Postcards". So why am I giving this book, which I apparently only kind of enjoyed, 4 stars? Because I feel like on the whole I still saw what Kiernan was going for with this collection. I really wish I had known about the alternative reading order before I started reading the book; not that I think reading the stories in their chronological order would have made that much of a difference in and of itself, but had I known earlier that there was some kind of throughline (however loose and fuzzy that throughline may be), it might have made some stories which I now read as just filler pack on an extra layer of significance. Still, as with The Drowning Girl, there is enough in Tales that leaves me thoroughly convinced of Kiernan's capabilities as a writer, even if I still can't shake the feeling that she has more to offer...

[Ghengis · Rating 2 out of 5]

I find Caitlin R Kiernans prose extremely hard work. She constantly uses similes and adjectives at the expense of plot. This style seems fashionable now: personally I describe it as form over substance. There are flashes of brilliance but to find them I needed to read paragraphs two of three times.
One reviewer here enthusiastically describes these stories as "mostly inaccessible". I'm not sure who, other than a masochist, wants to work that hard on something that is meant to be a form of entertainment.
I'm guessing these stories may be very popular amongst angst ridden teenagers: the joy of being "mostly inaccessible" is that the reader can interpret this bleak purple prose to mean anything they want.
I started listening to these stories for free as part of my Audible membership, but halfway through they bizarrely disappeared from the free offering and were only accessible by payment.
Perhaps either Caitlin or Audible thought I would be so impressed from the taster I would then stump up cash to continue. Rather like one of the addicts in Caitlins stories. I'm afraid both will be disappointed.
For an authentic experience without spending money simply punch yourself in the face. You will experience pain and wonder for free.
There are thousands of better authors out there: I can recommend the worm and his kings by Hailey Piper as a brilliant new gothic novella.

[Jonah Barrett · Rating 2 out of 5]

Man... I really, really wanted to like this :/

Not showing the monster was cool when like... Jaws did it.

[Egghead · Rating 5 out of 5]

gossamer threads weave
between firefly lives lit by
drugs, blood, the unknown

[Jonathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is challenging to get a copy of unless you want to fork over $50 or so for a used Library copy, or even more for a new one. It also is at times challenging to read, though ultimately worth it. Individually, the stories don't always have massive impact, but together, combined in the collection, it's extremely impressive. Characters return from one story to the next. The overall plot is vague, and those expecting a set of traditional monster stories may be disappointed. Several stories have only hints of the supernatural, focusing instead on Kiernan's fragile characters: transexuals, goths, rivetheads, drug addicts, prostitutes, and the like. The cast of characters is bizarre, but not in the sense of being weird for the sake of weird, and the extremely dark, surreal tone makes the reader feel as though the supernatural is hiding there just beyond sight, even when it doesn't directly appear.

With the characters and settings shared in this, Threshold, Alabaster, Daughter of Hounds, and To Charles Forte With Love, Kiernan seems to be creating a unique mythos--not unlike what Lovecraft (who she often emulates) did with his monsters, but with a much greater emphasis on the human characters that Lovecraft never had any interest in.

Kiernan has a Best Of collection coming out summer 2011, titled "Two World and Inbetween." Although it will have some of the best individual stories in this collection, I think that this collection's stories are best read together, because a great deal of what makes them so fascinating is discovering how they intersect--what characters will return. Keirnan's mysterious plotting, combined with her interest in creating transcendence through terror and her extremely skillfull prose, make this sense of discovery all the more pungent. Although the climaxes of the tales are often given less emphasis than the buildup, the plot isn't what matters here: it's a slice of fucked up life in a world where it's possible (though rare) to come across the horrifying supernatural. It's enjoyable, frustrating, impressive, disturbing, beautiful, moving, boring, exciting, and unique--ultimately being a true work of art that's definitely worth a read.

[Wren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cool but not for me. I think maybe I'm just not that into horror fiction? But the connecting theme of this collection is actually the shared setting, and it's really dope to read about the people living in this sort of goth-junkyard-world she's created. All of the characters exist in this same sort of impoverished and destitute goth/punk scene, and it honestly reminds me a lot of so many real people/places I know. It's a cool thing to bring into horror fiction, particularly w/ the notable absence of judgement (even for some characters who, like, maybe should be judged). Also, the goth aesthetic is super strong in this one. Which is to say it's dark, trashy, and highly theatrical, so I defs. approve of that. Some of the gender stuff is a little outdated, weird, and uncomfortable, but I did also just like that it was there. Again, v. real for those kinds of communities and the people in them, and that's cool to see from a representational standpoint. There's something sad and painful about the lack of understanding surrounding it, but I guess that's probs. intentional since that kind of callous violence is a lot of what the whole book is about. Like, that's clearly coming from the characters and not the author, but it's still a lot. Some of these stories can also at times seem a little slow and boring. A lot of them didn't seem to really go anywhere much, or were v. subtle about it. I kind of wanted them to "show the monster" more, so to speak (and I liked the stories better that did), but then again like I said maybe that's just that I don't "get" horror.

[Ruby Hollyberry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Arrived in the mail today and finished today. Wow. Wasn't cheap and was worth every penny. Many of the stories are connected to the series of books I have (actually I think all her work is connected to every other piece). But every story was special. This lady has more talent and has polished that talent more than anyone else I can think of in any genre who is currently writing. Can't recommend enough but NOT for the squeamish. I had to read some of the stories again after finishing the book, particularly Tears Seven Times Salt. I feel grateful to have this, and will continue to acquire the other short story collections as I am able (they are many of them difficult to get).

[audrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a terrible, cruel, devastating and amazing book.

A collection of mostly inaccessible stories that don't care at all whether they're ever accessed or by who or what, that come together in a whip-stitched panoply of truly Kiernan things: transhumanism; the lie of gender; wet, gasping blind moist things; the world beneath the bricks and the dust; drowning girls and rotting metal.

If nothing else, it does what it says on the front cover: these are tales of pain and wonder, but you're never quite sure which at any given time.

[Allison Floyd · Rating 3 out of 5]

It took me awhile to get into this collection (of which I admittedly didn't read all), but get into it I did, from the sparkly corrosion so artfully rendered in Kiernan's prose to the compellingly vile Jimmy DeSade. I still vastly prefer Kiernan's most recent work, but this was a fun little jaunt through teenage angst and things that go bump in the night. A is for Atmosphere!

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting read. A colection of oddly connected stories. Much of this reads like out of order fragments of a novel. This is horror fiction, but it's not so much frightening as disturbing. I will have to try one of her novels.

[Terence · Rating 3 out of 5]

An unremittingly bleak collection of short stories but worth reading.

Kiernan's prose is beautiful, and she's a master at leaving the reader wondering if anything supernatural has really occurred.

[Razzle · Rating 4 out of 5]

At first I was nervous that I didn't actually like earlier Kiernan, since my favorite is Houses Under the Sea, and I haven't managed to finish The Drowning Girl yet. The stories in this collection really tend toward the gritty side of life and the terrible things that people do. My taste in horror leans more weird tale, ancient horrors, the instability of reality and the human mind, etc.

While HUtS has more of what I like, I did come around to this collection by the end. I think my favorite stories were the most Lovecraftian: "Postcards from the King of Tides," "In the Water Works," and "The Long Hall on the Top Floor." I did like the recurring characters and the lines of connection between stories. I like that the stories weren't chronological, though I did appreciate having the chronology included in the back of the book. Overall, ultimately enjoyable.

[august · Rating 2 out of 5]

I “finished” it at 34%; maybe I just wasn’t the target audience.

I know a few people will be mad at me for not liking it, because this book does cover a lot of serious topics, but that doesn’t mean they were written well. I don’t know, maybe I just didn’t understand it or something. It seemed like it tried way too hard to be dark or edgey, but it’s possible the author was just writing based on her own experiences.

What was up with the names, though? “Jesus”, “Rat”, “Ariadne”, “Pinky”? I mean it didn’t seem all that realistic to have so many bizarre/rare names pop up so commonly. People do have names like that, yes, but the chance they’d all be in the same room?

I feel like I missed a key part of the plot or something, because I was also confused as to why Jimmy Deshade started showing up in every single story passed a certain point. I would get it if he was in a couple that were tied together, but like, what?

[Tom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Introduction: Pain, Wonder, and Caitlín R. Kiernan (essay by Douglas E. Winter)
Author's Preface for the Third Edition (by Caitlín R. Kiernan)

• Anamorphosis
• To This Water (Johnstown, Pennsylvania 1889)
• Bela's Plot
• Tears Seven Times Salt
• Superheroes
• Glass Coffin
• Breakfast in the House of the Rising Sun
• Estate
• The Last Child of Lir
• A Story for Edward Gorey
• Salammbô
• Paedomorphosis
• Postcards from the King of Tides
• Rats Live on No Evil Star
• Salmagundi (New York City, 1981)
• In the Water Works (Birmingham, Alabama 1888)
• The Long Hall on the Top Floor • (1999) • short story by Caitlín R. Kiernan?
• San Andreas (1998)
• Mercury
• Lafayette
• ... Between the Gargoyle Trees
• Salammbô Redux

• Epilogue: Zelda Fitzgerald in Ballet Attire (poem)
• Afterword (essay by Peter Straub)

[Labeebah Hasan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kiernan is one of my favorite authors, but this collection didn't gel for me. She's a genius at poetic prose, but these often spiraled out into abstract noise. Following the thread of plot was very difficult on some of these. There were some gems and bright spots(Postcards From the King of Tides, Anamorphosis, Breakfast in the House of the Rising Sun, and The Last Child of Lir were among my favorites) and the author provides two table of contents to hang the collection theme more tightly together (be warned: these are bleak). Worth a read if you're already a fan, but if you're not, I wouldn't make this your first attempt.

[Alex Budris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seamy urban underbellies, dark underground rivers. Hardscrabble innocents finding (ready or not) transcendence among the rotting, disused industry. I live near Johnstown, PA, and my Dad used to take me to the Flood Museum there when I was a kid, so I know the story. It was a brutal catastrophe and Kiernan captures the roil and rage of a wall of water and fire chewing up everything in its path. I think that one was my fave of the bunch. I'm back to collecting S/L Kiernans now, so as soon as I have a couple of dollars I'll buy another to review.

[Lewis Housley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely beautiful. Mythic, dark, and wonderous. Beauty and Art and Youth encountering the Void, digging through the existence of the world and coming up with...Nothing. The soundtrack alone took me back to the wildness of my youth...and then reminded me that I was lucky(?) to survive.

Highly recommended.

[rom. · Rating 3 out of 5]

An uneven collection with 3-4 stories standing out. Some interlinked stories as well, but the narrative is just not there or appears very flimsy. Characters reappear later on, with motives and association not clear.

[James Ranger · Rating 5 out of 5]

this is what writing is all about. Take notes, wannabe authors

[Kris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Caitlin Kiernan's work. Weird and wonderful.

[Pierre · Rating 5 out of 5]

It reads like Pulp Fiction meets a far more adult version of Holly Black’s fantasy settings.

[Phil On The Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Caitlin R Kiernan is an author whose work I have skirted around over the years. As much as anything, because I was a little unsure where to start with her work and that it may have been too feminist in its leanings. Following an email exchange with a friend, she suggested I started with Tales of Pain and Wonder
This is a collection of short stories although laid out in the sequence they were written, there is an alternate sequence that places the stories in chronological order, which I followed. I suspect that this is the best way to read the stories. What I found clever about the narratives is the way that they are linked, directly or in directly, either through the reappearance of characters or places. One character in particular is represented from several different perspectives across different stories. The characters and places that populate the stories tend to be outcast from normal society. Lost children, misanthropes, damaged adults, broken and decayed buildings. The stories do contain elements of horror and Lovecraft like glimpses of otherworldliness, but I would class them more as dark fantasy.
The language Caitlin uses is often clipped and short and from time to time I had to re-read passages. In some ways the language is rich and well thought through, but it does take a bit of getting used to.
The edition of the book I have is from Subterranean Press and was difficult to obtain. This is disappointing that such a superior collection of stories is not more readily available. I really enjoyed this book and would heartily recommend it to those who enjoy the darker side of fantastic fiction.

[Matt Spencer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This original short story collection of Kiernan's appears to be out of print, which is a shame, as the author's star has only risen higher over the years as her talents continue to evolve. If you're a new or old fan of Kiernan, I urge you to snatch this up whenever you can find a used copy in your price-range, 'cause it's a keeper. Kiernan has a prose-style all her own, breaking many rules with grace and confidence, the hypnotic effect of which can best be described as "Painting pictures that move with words"...unflinching portraits of a desolate, nerve-fraying counter-cultural world and lifestyle, full of people and dynamics who feel authentic, with even more frightening, less explainable things always lurking just shy of your peripheral vision. Through recurring characters and settings from story to story, several loosely connected interwoven narratives emerge. The stories are presented here in the order they were written/published, with an alternative table-of-contents in the back, for readers interested in sorting out the sequence/reading the stories in chronological order. Personally, I found it far more satisfying to read them as presented, going "Ah-HA!" as the larger picture crystallized and more puzzle pieces fell into place. And one can notice Kiernan's continuous improvement as a writer from story to story. In the hypnotic swirl of it all, some tales are admittedly better than others, while some blur together after a while. Tales like "Breakfast in the House of the Rising Sun", "Estate," "Salammbo," "The Long Hall on the Top Floor," "Paedomorphosis" and "San Andreas" stand out in particular as classics that deserve to be back in print.

[Steven · Rating 4 out of 5]

As with several of the books on this list, this is a re-read. I haven't read Silk, or Murder of Angels, but from the novels and short stories I've read Kiernan has a feel for the rhythm and meter of language which few writers these days do, along with a gift for the telling phrase. She's moved away from the compound words she uses freely in these stories, which in some ways is a shame.

This is an older edition, with a cover image she despised.

[Barry · Rating 5 out of 5]

At least, the 2001 edition that I own was worth five stars. It's quite annoying, honestly, that there are different editions of this book...with DIFFERENT CONTENTS therein!

[Casondra · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my comfort books. Kiernan's beautiful prose is addicting.

[Erryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book, I love the stories. I adore the characters. I am spellbound by the way Caitlin R. Kiernan uses words to describe feelings, surroundings and the thought process of her characters.