What do you think?
Rate this book
The Murders in the Rue Morgue & Other Stories
First published in Graham's Magazine, April 1841, this tale is a literary landmark: the first modern detective story.
There are no clues for police specialist C. August Dupin -- only a room in "wildest disorder" with all the doors and windows locked, a blood-smeared razor and a body shoved up a chimney. Who could have done this? And more importantly, why?
Also included in this collection: "The Purloined Letter," "The Thousand-and-Second Tale of Scheherazade," "A Descent into the Maelstrom," "The Raven" and "The Masque of the Red Death."
Audio Cassette
First published January 1, 1841
444 people are currently reading
3932 people want to read
About the author
Edgar Allan Poe
7,284 books28.6k followersThe name Poe brings to mind images of murderers and madmen, premature burials, and mysterious women who return from the dead. His works have been in print since 1827 and include such literary classics as The Tell-Tale Heart, The Raven, and The Fall of the House of Usher. This versatile writer’s oeuvre includes short stories, poetry, a novel, a textbook, a book of scientific theory, and hundreds of essays and book reviews. He is widely acknowledged as the inventor of the modern detective story and an innovator in the science fiction genre, but he made his living as America’s first great literary critic and theoretician. Poe’s reputation today rests primarily on his tales of terror as well as on his haunting lyric poetry.
Just as the bizarre characters in Poe’s stories have captured the public imagination so too has Poe himself. He is seen as a morbid, mysterious figure lurking in the shadows of moonlit cemeteries or crumbling castles. This is the Poe of legend. But much of what we know about Poe is wrong, the product of a biography written by one of his enemies in an attempt to defame the author’s name.
The real Poe was born to traveling actors in Boston on January 19, 1809. Edgar was the second of three children. His other brother William Henry Leonard Poe would also become a poet before his early death, and Poe’s sister Rosalie Poe would grow up to teach penmanship at a Richmond girls’ school. Within three years of Poe’s birth both of his parents had died, and he was taken in by the wealthy tobacco merchant John Allan and his wife Frances Valentine Allan in Richmond, Virginia while Poe’s siblings went to live with other families. Mr. Allan would rear Poe to be a businessman and a Virginia gentleman, but Poe had dreams of being a writer in emulation of his childhood hero the British poet Lord Byron. Early poetic verses found written in a young Poe’s handwriting on the backs of Allan’s ledger sheets reveal how little interest Poe had in the tobacco business.
For more information, please see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_al...
Just as the bizarre characters in Poe’s stories have captured the public imagination so too has Poe himself. He is seen as a morbid, mysterious figure lurking in the shadows of moonlit cemeteries or crumbling castles. This is the Poe of legend. But much of what we know about Poe is wrong, the product of a biography written by one of his enemies in an attempt to defame the author’s name.
The real Poe was born to traveling actors in Boston on January 19, 1809. Edgar was the second of three children. His other brother William Henry Leonard Poe would also become a poet before his early death, and Poe’s sister Rosalie Poe would grow up to teach penmanship at a Richmond girls’ school. Within three years of Poe’s birth both of his parents had died, and he was taken in by the wealthy tobacco merchant John Allan and his wife Frances Valentine Allan in Richmond, Virginia while Poe’s siblings went to live with other families. Mr. Allan would rear Poe to be a businessman and a Virginia gentleman, but Poe had dreams of being a writer in emulation of his childhood hero the British poet Lord Byron. Early poetic verses found written in a young Poe’s handwriting on the backs of Allan’s ledger sheets reveal how little interest Poe had in the tobacco business.
For more information, please see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_al...
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 357 reviews
September 26, 2021
As is often the case with short story collections, some tales are exceptional, others I found absolutely uninspiring. I don't particularly love Poe, but his imagination was madly —madly— fervid, and I admire him for it.
October 21, 2016
I checked this audiobook out to celebrate the October Spooky mood. I have been an admirer of Poe since I was a grade school student, and what I've read by him, I've loved. I have been meaning to read more by him, but haven't taken the time. Audiobooks are such a good way to maximize my time because I can listen and do other things, so I grabbed this one. In all honesty, it wasn't very scary or even eerie (with the exception of "The Raven. " I am glad that I did listen to it though. I had never read any of these stories. I could have done without a couple of them, but overall, it was enjoyable, and this four hour audiobook format was a good way to keep me company as I did other things. The narrator's voice was a bit irritating, with a nasally tone that wasn't my favorite. He was good with accents and voices though.
Here are my thoughts on the stories:
"Murders in the Rue Morgue" --I love a good detective story, and this is the first detective story, and that is to be celebrated. I saw a lot of Sherlock Holmes in C. Auguste Dupin and Watson in his anonymous friend. It was a great mystery with a crazy resolution. I never would have guessed. My only issue with it is that it's basically telling and not showing. Dupin seems very pompous in his way of analyzing people, and he seems very self-important. He shows the observant trait of a good detective, which Poe terms ratiocination. I loved the twist on how each witness thought the guttural speaker was a foreigner, but from a place that had never been. In light of the resolution, that was a very nice touch. I give this four stars because it's impressive as the first detective story. I think all the detective fiction readers and writers owe Mr. Poe a great debt.
"The Purloined Letter" --I didn't find this one as impressive as the first. It seemed very simplistic, and there was no real tension. I do give Dupin props for his handy solving of a mystery that had the police stumped, but he's so obnoxiously arrogant about it. Sherlock with some aristocratic French attitude thrown in. 3 stars.
"The Thousand and Second Tale of Scheherazade" --I didn't care much for this, sadly. I love Scheherazade and the Arabian Nights stories, and I don't think this added anything to the mystique of the stories. I felt like it was full of weirdness, way too random, with bizarre diversions in the storytelling, but at the same time, really quite boring. Besides, it ruined the best aspect about the stories, so that was a downer for me. Probably my least favorite story by Poe. 2 stars.
"A Descent into the Maelstrom" --This felt more like a Jack London story than a Poe story. It's good to see that he does venture into straight adventure, no pun intended. I felt it was an average read. It didn't have much of an impact on me, but I didn't dislike it like the previous novel. 2.5 stars.
"The Raven"-- A classic by this author. I love poetry, especially eerie poetry. I admit I don't like overly long poems, so this was a nice length. Long enough to get a reader involved, with a beautiful rhythm to it. Listening to this was a lot of fun. I think I would need to read it, to delve more meaning out of it. It's a bit oblique, in my opinion. 3.5 stars
"Masque of the Red Death" --I really appreciated listening to this. I have seen the movie with Vincent Price and thought it was very clever. It's interesting how they managed to get a full-length movie out of this, since it was very short. I think the tone was nicely Gothic and sinister, and it has an impactful statement about the concept of believing that being wealthy and high status makes one exempt from all ills. And there is something very repugnant about indulging debauchery and hedonism when people are suffering around you. Death finds everyone of us. 4 stars.
Conclusion: Four hours of my life that I can't say I regret. It helped that I was finishing a project for school at the time, so it kept me busy. I would say that one's life is not added to much by "Scheherazade" and "A Descent into the Maelstrom", but I recommend the other stories.
Here are my thoughts on the stories:
"Murders in the Rue Morgue" --I love a good detective story, and this is the first detective story, and that is to be celebrated. I saw a lot of Sherlock Holmes in C. Auguste Dupin and Watson in his anonymous friend. It was a great mystery with a crazy resolution. I never would have guessed. My only issue with it is that it's basically telling and not showing. Dupin seems very pompous in his way of analyzing people, and he seems very self-important. He shows the observant trait of a good detective, which Poe terms ratiocination. I loved the twist on how each witness thought the guttural speaker was a foreigner, but from a place that had never been. In light of the resolution, that was a very nice touch. I give this four stars because it's impressive as the first detective story. I think all the detective fiction readers and writers owe Mr. Poe a great debt.
"The Purloined Letter" --I didn't find this one as impressive as the first. It seemed very simplistic, and there was no real tension. I do give Dupin props for his handy solving of a mystery that had the police stumped, but he's so obnoxiously arrogant about it. Sherlock with some aristocratic French attitude thrown in. 3 stars.
"The Thousand and Second Tale of Scheherazade" --I didn't care much for this, sadly. I love Scheherazade and the Arabian Nights stories, and I don't think this added anything to the mystique of the stories. I felt like it was full of weirdness, way too random, with bizarre diversions in the storytelling, but at the same time, really quite boring. Besides, it ruined the best aspect about the stories, so that was a downer for me. Probably my least favorite story by Poe. 2 stars.
"A Descent into the Maelstrom" --This felt more like a Jack London story than a Poe story. It's good to see that he does venture into straight adventure, no pun intended. I felt it was an average read. It didn't have much of an impact on me, but I didn't dislike it like the previous novel. 2.5 stars.
"The Raven"-- A classic by this author. I love poetry, especially eerie poetry. I admit I don't like overly long poems, so this was a nice length. Long enough to get a reader involved, with a beautiful rhythm to it. Listening to this was a lot of fun. I think I would need to read it, to delve more meaning out of it. It's a bit oblique, in my opinion. 3.5 stars
"Masque of the Red Death" --I really appreciated listening to this. I have seen the movie with Vincent Price and thought it was very clever. It's interesting how they managed to get a full-length movie out of this, since it was very short. I think the tone was nicely Gothic and sinister, and it has an impactful statement about the concept of believing that being wealthy and high status makes one exempt from all ills. And there is something very repugnant about indulging debauchery and hedonism when people are suffering around you. Death finds everyone of us. 4 stars.
Conclusion: Four hours of my life that I can't say I regret. It helped that I was finishing a project for school at the time, so it kept me busy. I would say that one's life is not added to much by "Scheherazade" and "A Descent into the Maelstrom", but I recommend the other stories.
October 16, 2019
"I remained too much inside my head and ended up losing my mind."
October is the perfect month for Edgar Allan Poe, and so I read one of these stories a day to get myself in the Halloween spirit. While some of them fell flat, most of Poe's tales are dizzying and disturbing, and show clearly how our dark emotions or thoughts can take control over us.
The sound of a beating heart, grief for a lover that won't pass, a curiosity towards a stranger on the street...the worst demons are often the ones we create ourselves.
My favorite stories of this collection are:
- Ligeia: I love you until death do us part, unless I refuse to let death get the upper-hand. What a chilling, marvelous story!
- The Man that was Used Up: Rumor has it...but the truth is more morbid and funny than expected.
- William Wilson: I think Dorian Gray could really understand this man's problem.
- The Murders in the Rue Morgue: the WILDEST murder-mystery I've read in a long time. Brilliant deductions Dupin!
- The Oval Portrait: Art selfishly tries to imitates life, with tragic consequences.
- The Masque of the Red Death: A dramatic, chilling Danse Macabre.
- The Pit and the Pendulum: This torture story slowly turns up the pressure until you yourself can hardly take it anymore!
- The Black Cat: a horrible man get's exactly what he deserves (TW: Animal abuse).
- The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar: science and morbid curiosity lead to a horrifying experiment. This story haunts the most.
Overall, I give this collection 3,5 stars, and a definite recommendation to read the work of this fascinating author.
October is the perfect month for Edgar Allan Poe, and so I read one of these stories a day to get myself in the Halloween spirit. While some of them fell flat, most of Poe's tales are dizzying and disturbing, and show clearly how our dark emotions or thoughts can take control over us.
The sound of a beating heart, grief for a lover that won't pass, a curiosity towards a stranger on the street...the worst demons are often the ones we create ourselves.
My favorite stories of this collection are:
- Ligeia: I love you until death do us part, unless I refuse to let death get the upper-hand. What a chilling, marvelous story!
- The Man that was Used Up: Rumor has it...but the truth is more morbid and funny than expected.
- William Wilson: I think Dorian Gray could really understand this man's problem.
- The Murders in the Rue Morgue: the WILDEST murder-mystery I've read in a long time. Brilliant deductions Dupin!
- The Oval Portrait: Art selfishly tries to imitates life, with tragic consequences.
- The Masque of the Red Death: A dramatic, chilling Danse Macabre.
- The Pit and the Pendulum: This torture story slowly turns up the pressure until you yourself can hardly take it anymore!
- The Black Cat: a horrible man get's exactly what he deserves (TW: Animal abuse).
- The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar: science and morbid curiosity lead to a horrifying experiment. This story haunts the most.
Overall, I give this collection 3,5 stars, and a definite recommendation to read the work of this fascinating author.
December 22, 2024
***Review of this edition only, not the text.
This is the “Classics Illustrated” edition. It is not the original series of comics from the mid-20th century, which have been republished by the Classic Comic Store Ltd., but a new edition from 2013. It is published by “Papercutz” using the same instantly recognisable yellow and black “Classics Illustrated” logo, plus the word “Deluxe”. It measures 9“x 6½”, the dimensions being reduced yet again from the already reduced Classic Comic Store Reprints. It is quite chunky; more like a thin paperback than the originals, and the paper quality and glossy cover are far superior. The graphic Art work too is good, but it is extremely difficult to read, even for those with normal sight (I checked!) Sometimes there will be five captioned boxes, but there may be up to 12. Various fonts are used, but mainly capital letters, as is usual in graphic novels. The text is obviously abridged, but often it is the original 19th century prose. This does not sit well with the production style, and is extremely cramped to read. I shall stick to the Classic Comic Store reprints.
I had to give up on this one, but think it probably deserves 1 star for the production and 3 stars for the graphics, hence 2 stars. One good thing is that the illustrators, editors etc. are all credited. Papercutz produce graphic novels for all ages (“Nancy Drew” is advertised in this one) and this one comes with an adult content warning. As far as I can tell it contains adaptations of “The Murders in the Rue Morgue”, The Mystery of Marie Roget“ and ”The Gold Bug”, but for some reason it is unpaginated, despite being quite a thick booklet.
This is the “Classics Illustrated” edition. It is not the original series of comics from the mid-20th century, which have been republished by the Classic Comic Store Ltd., but a new edition from 2013. It is published by “Papercutz” using the same instantly recognisable yellow and black “Classics Illustrated” logo, plus the word “Deluxe”. It measures 9“x 6½”, the dimensions being reduced yet again from the already reduced Classic Comic Store Reprints. It is quite chunky; more like a thin paperback than the originals, and the paper quality and glossy cover are far superior. The graphic Art work too is good, but it is extremely difficult to read, even for those with normal sight (I checked!) Sometimes there will be five captioned boxes, but there may be up to 12. Various fonts are used, but mainly capital letters, as is usual in graphic novels. The text is obviously abridged, but often it is the original 19th century prose. This does not sit well with the production style, and is extremely cramped to read. I shall stick to the Classic Comic Store reprints.
I had to give up on this one, but think it probably deserves 1 star for the production and 3 stars for the graphics, hence 2 stars. One good thing is that the illustrators, editors etc. are all credited. Papercutz produce graphic novels for all ages (“Nancy Drew” is advertised in this one) and this one comes with an adult content warning. As far as I can tell it contains adaptations of “The Murders in the Rue Morgue”, The Mystery of Marie Roget“ and ”The Gold Bug”, but for some reason it is unpaginated, despite being quite a thick booklet.
October 31, 2018
After presenting you a list with book suggestions for this Halloween, we decided to offer a full article to the one who was the father of morbid and horror stories: Mr. Edgar Allan Poe.
Why Edgar Allan Poe?
His name is always associated, nowadays, with unusual stories that include murders, burials, and women who return from the dead. However, during his life, he was a very versatile writer. His works include short stories, poetry, a novel, a textbook, a book of scientific theory and a very big number of book reviews.
His gloom writing style was a reflection of his life. Death robbed him of all the persons that he loved. His mother died when he was 3 years old and his wife after 12 years of happy but poor marriage. Both lost the fight against of Tuberculosis. After the loss of his wife, he started to drink heavily and died 2 years after her. The exact cause of his death remains a mystery, but he spent his last days in the Washington College Hospital.
Here I opened wide the door;— Darkness there, and nothing more.
After his death, his rival Rufus Griswold tried to dishonor his name and wrote an obituary in which he described Edgar Allan Poe as a drunken crazy person, with no morals or friends. However, even back then, bad publicity was still publicity and due to this, the sales of Poe’s books rose so high as they never were during his life.
Read the short presentation of this Badger’s favorite Edgar Allan Poe’s stories: https://readingbadger.club/2018/10/31...
I can’t think of better words to finish this article other than a quote from Mr. Arthur Conan Doyle: “Each [of Poe’s detective stories] is a root from which a whole literature has developed…Where was the detective story until Poe breathed the breath of life into it?”
Why Edgar Allan Poe?
His name is always associated, nowadays, with unusual stories that include murders, burials, and women who return from the dead. However, during his life, he was a very versatile writer. His works include short stories, poetry, a novel, a textbook, a book of scientific theory and a very big number of book reviews.
His gloom writing style was a reflection of his life. Death robbed him of all the persons that he loved. His mother died when he was 3 years old and his wife after 12 years of happy but poor marriage. Both lost the fight against of Tuberculosis. After the loss of his wife, he started to drink heavily and died 2 years after her. The exact cause of his death remains a mystery, but he spent his last days in the Washington College Hospital.
Here I opened wide the door;— Darkness there, and nothing more.
After his death, his rival Rufus Griswold tried to dishonor his name and wrote an obituary in which he described Edgar Allan Poe as a drunken crazy person, with no morals or friends. However, even back then, bad publicity was still publicity and due to this, the sales of Poe’s books rose so high as they never were during his life.
Read the short presentation of this Badger’s favorite Edgar Allan Poe’s stories: https://readingbadger.club/2018/10/31...
I can’t think of better words to finish this article other than a quote from Mr. Arthur Conan Doyle: “Each [of Poe’s detective stories] is a root from which a whole literature has developed…Where was the detective story until Poe breathed the breath of life into it?”
May 5, 2024
Amazing collection, my physical copy slightly differs but I couldn’t find the exact one here.
Edgar Allan Poe was a mastermind in gothic tales and mystery stories. I’ve read this book religiously for months, savoring every single piece.
Edgar Allan Poe was a mastermind in gothic tales and mystery stories. I’ve read this book religiously for months, savoring every single piece.
May 16, 2016
I had a lot of trouble getting used to Poe's style. I think for me he's a denser writer. I'd get drawn in, then the slightest disturbance or noise would draw me out. I had this happen over and over, get a few good pages, get pulled out. I don't normally have that problem, so I wound up only reading this at night, right before bed while my husband was catching up on his shows. Once I took that approach I found myself actually enjoying it.
My favorite story by far was The Gold-Bug, but I love anything with that sort of cipher, puzzle aspect to it. I honestly skipped The Tell-Tale Heart - I've read it a hundred times in school. I did reread The Cask of Amontillado though, I've always enjoyed that one.
Once past the hump of figuring out how to read it I did like this one. I don't think Poe is anywhere near my favorite classic writer, or my favorite mystery writer but I would say if you enjoyed him in school definitely try him again.
My favorite story by far was The Gold-Bug, but I love anything with that sort of cipher, puzzle aspect to it. I honestly skipped The Tell-Tale Heart - I've read it a hundred times in school. I did reread The Cask of Amontillado though, I've always enjoyed that one.
Once past the hump of figuring out how to read it I did like this one. I don't think Poe is anywhere near my favorite classic writer, or my favorite mystery writer but I would say if you enjoyed him in school definitely try him again.
May 20, 2017
I'm just not the Edgar Allan Poe type of person, I guess, but to me these stories didn't seem to have much substance (except for the Dupin ones): they're mostly all just set-up for a shocking revelation and lacking much of a plot. At least that's how I feel about them.
February 5, 2025
Manuscris găsit intr-o sticlă 1⭐️
Prăbușirea casei Usher 3⭐️
William Wilson 2⭐️
Crimele din Rue Morgue 4,5⭐️
O pogorâre în Maelström 4⭐️
Masca mortii roșii 4,5⭐️
Hruba și pendulul 5⭐️
Misterul Mariei Rogêt 2⭐️
Inima care își spune taina 5⭐️
Cărăbușul de aur 5⭐️
Îngropat de viu 4⭐️
Scrisoarea furată 2⭐️
Balerca de Amontillado 3⭐️
Hopa-hop sau opt urangutani înlănțuiți 4,5⭐️
Prăbușirea casei Usher 3⭐️
William Wilson 2⭐️
Crimele din Rue Morgue 4,5⭐️
O pogorâre în Maelström 4⭐️
Masca mortii roșii 4,5⭐️
Hruba și pendulul 5⭐️
Misterul Mariei Rogêt 2⭐️
Inima care își spune taina 5⭐️
Cărăbușul de aur 5⭐️
Îngropat de viu 4⭐️
Scrisoarea furată 2⭐️
Balerca de Amontillado 3⭐️
Hopa-hop sau opt urangutani înlănțuiți 4,5⭐️
December 21, 2023
The Penguin English Library edition of The Murders in the Rue Morgue and Other Tales consists of nineteen tales of horror and the macabre and an afterword by D.H. Lawrence.
Poe’s use of long sentences and esoteric vocabulary was a little challenging to read in some stories but was more straightforward in others where the words just flowed. In any case, most of the stories were amazing and I learned lots of new vocabulary.
My ratings:
M.S. Found in a Bottle (4/5)
Ligea (4/5)
The Man that was Used Up (3/5)
The Fall of the House of Usher (5/5)
William Wilson (4/5)
The Man of the Crowd (3/5)
The Murders in the Rue Morgue (4/5)
A Descent into the Maelstrom (3/5)
Elenora (5/5)
The Oval Portrait (4/5)
The Masque of the Red Death (4/5)
The Pit and the Pendulum (5/5)
The Tell-Tale Heart (5/5)
The Gold Bug (2.5/5)
The Black Cat (5/5)
The Purloined Letter (5/5)
The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar (5/5)
The Cask of Amontillado (5/5)
Hop-Frog (4/5)
Poe’s use of long sentences and esoteric vocabulary was a little challenging to read in some stories but was more straightforward in others where the words just flowed. In any case, most of the stories were amazing and I learned lots of new vocabulary.
My ratings:
M.S. Found in a Bottle (4/5)
Ligea (4/5)
The Man that was Used Up (3/5)
The Fall of the House of Usher (5/5)
William Wilson (4/5)
The Man of the Crowd (3/5)
The Murders in the Rue Morgue (4/5)
A Descent into the Maelstrom (3/5)
Elenora (5/5)
The Oval Portrait (4/5)
The Masque of the Red Death (4/5)
The Pit and the Pendulum (5/5)
The Tell-Tale Heart (5/5)
The Gold Bug (2.5/5)
The Black Cat (5/5)
The Purloined Letter (5/5)
The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar (5/5)
The Cask of Amontillado (5/5)
Hop-Frog (4/5)
October 30, 2025
Love rereading Poe every so often. This one has been adapted a number of times, but going back to the original is still a treat.
You can see the influence Poe had on Doyle and his creation.
You can see the influence Poe had on Doyle and his creation.
November 8, 2015
Es interesante tener la oportunidad de leer las investigaciones de Chevalier Auguste Dupin: el padre literario de Sherlock Holmes. Me encanta ponerme en la piel de esas mentes brillantes, y comprobar como de minucias que pasan totalmente inadvertidas para la mayoría, para ellos son los hilos que van tejiendo una enorme tela de araña compuesta de pensamientos, pistas e ideas fundamentales que les ayudan a resolver los casos más rocambolescos que puedan existir.
La edición que leí recoge tanto el relato Los crímenes de la rue Morgue como sus dos continuaciones El misterio de Marie Rogêt y La carta robada. Los tres son unos relatos muy amenos y entretenidos; son de lectura ágil y con una trama que engancha e incita a seguir leyendo para conocer de qué manera se resuelve la historia.
Sin duda cabe decir que Sherlock Holmes es tan bueno porque tenía un buen espejo en el que mirarse. Bravo por el señor Poe y la invención de este carismático Auguste Dupin.
Si te apetece leer una reseña un poco más extensa puedes pasarte por mi blog, ¡Gracias! http://fjp.es/los-crimenes-de-la-rue-...
La edición que leí recoge tanto el relato Los crímenes de la rue Morgue como sus dos continuaciones El misterio de Marie Rogêt y La carta robada. Los tres son unos relatos muy amenos y entretenidos; son de lectura ágil y con una trama que engancha e incita a seguir leyendo para conocer de qué manera se resuelve la historia.
Sin duda cabe decir que Sherlock Holmes es tan bueno porque tenía un buen espejo en el que mirarse. Bravo por el señor Poe y la invención de este carismático Auguste Dupin.
Si te apetece leer una reseña un poco más extensa puedes pasarte por mi blog, ¡Gracias! http://fjp.es/los-crimenes-de-la-rue-...
April 19, 2023
3,5/5⭐️
O serie de povestiri științifico- fantastice și horror cu personaje foarte bine conturate. Unele povestiri mi-au dat impresia ca întâmplările relatate chiar s-au întâmplat in realitate, altele mi s-au părut superficiale.
Manuscris găsit intr-o sticla - 4/5⭐️
Prăbușirea casei Usher - 3,5/5⭐️
William Wilson - 3/5⭐️
Crimele din Rue Morgue - 4/5 ⭐️
O pogorâre in Maelstorm - 4/5⭐️
Masca morții roșii - 2/5⭐️
Hruba și pendulul - 4,5/5⭐️
Misterul Mariei Roget - 2/5⭐️
Inima care își spune taina - 4/5⭐️
Carabusul de aur - 3/5⭐️
Îngropat de viu - 4,5/5 ⭐️
Scrisoarea furată - 4/5 ⭐️
Balerca de Amontillado - 3,5/5 ⭐️
Hopa-Hop sau opt urangutani înlănțuiți - 4,5/5⭐️
O serie de povestiri științifico- fantastice și horror cu personaje foarte bine conturate. Unele povestiri mi-au dat impresia ca întâmplările relatate chiar s-au întâmplat in realitate, altele mi s-au părut superficiale.
Manuscris găsit intr-o sticla - 4/5⭐️
Prăbușirea casei Usher - 3,5/5⭐️
William Wilson - 3/5⭐️
Crimele din Rue Morgue - 4/5 ⭐️
O pogorâre in Maelstorm - 4/5⭐️
Masca morții roșii - 2/5⭐️
Hruba și pendulul - 4,5/5⭐️
Misterul Mariei Roget - 2/5⭐️
Inima care își spune taina - 4/5⭐️
Carabusul de aur - 3/5⭐️
Îngropat de viu - 4,5/5 ⭐️
Scrisoarea furată - 4/5 ⭐️
Balerca de Amontillado - 3,5/5 ⭐️
Hopa-Hop sau opt urangutani înlănțuiți - 4,5/5⭐️
February 29, 2016
Worth spending as long reading the first few pages as it is the rest of the book. Not to be attempted on a hangover.
December 14, 2016
3.5 stars
I hadn’t read Poe since high school, but I remembered being introduced to his work for class and loving it. October seemed to be the month of switching up my reading habits, as I don’t read many graphic novels and I don’t read many short story collections. I was craving some old school horror though and decided that Halloween was the best time to read the master of the creepy short story.
I’d read a few of these stories before, but many were new to me. Even for the stories I’d already read, I found myself delighted by the twist, as if it were all new to me. The stories that I enjoyed the most are some of the most well-known ones, including “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” and “The Cast of Amontillado.” I also loved the stories that reminded me of the classic detective stories of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Agatha Christie (although I suppose Poe came first!). Since the language is a bit dense, I decided to read one or two of these stories a night, and I really enjoyed dipping in and out of the collection.
I hadn’t read Poe since high school, but I remembered being introduced to his work for class and loving it. October seemed to be the month of switching up my reading habits, as I don’t read many graphic novels and I don’t read many short story collections. I was craving some old school horror though and decided that Halloween was the best time to read the master of the creepy short story.
I’d read a few of these stories before, but many were new to me. Even for the stories I’d already read, I found myself delighted by the twist, as if it were all new to me. The stories that I enjoyed the most are some of the most well-known ones, including “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” and “The Cast of Amontillado.” I also loved the stories that reminded me of the classic detective stories of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Agatha Christie (although I suppose Poe came first!). Since the language is a bit dense, I decided to read one or two of these stories a night, and I really enjoyed dipping in and out of the collection.
September 26, 2018
1. Manuscript Found in a Bottle
2. Ligeia
3. The Man That Was Used Up
4. The Fall of the House of Usher - 4*
5. William Wilson- 4*
6. The Man of the Crowd - 5*
7. The Murders in the Rue Morgue
8. A Descent into the Maelstrom
9. Eleonora
10. The Oval Portrait
11. The Masque of the Red Death
12. The Pit and the Pendulum
13. The Tell-Tale Heart - 5*
14. The Gold-Bug
15. The Black Cat - 5*
16. The Purloined Letter
17. The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar
18. The Cask of Amontillado
19. Hop-Frog
2. Ligeia
3. The Man That Was Used Up
4. The Fall of the House of Usher - 4*
5. William Wilson- 4*
6. The Man of the Crowd - 5*
7. The Murders in the Rue Morgue
8. A Descent into the Maelstrom
9. Eleonora
10. The Oval Portrait
11. The Masque of the Red Death
12. The Pit and the Pendulum
13. The Tell-Tale Heart - 5*
14. The Gold-Bug
15. The Black Cat - 5*
16. The Purloined Letter
17. The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar
18. The Cask of Amontillado
19. Hop-Frog
January 21, 2025
Entiendo porqué Poe está considerado como el padre de la literatura de terror y policíaca, pero no es para mí, demasiado raro. Demasiado, demasiado... no sé
No soy profunda ni fantástica, ya lo siento; soy de sota, caballo y rey.
No soy profunda ni fantástica, ya lo siento; soy de sota, caballo y rey.
July 20, 2015
Primera vez que leo a Poe, definitivamente seguiré haciéndolo.
December 24, 2021
Y con esto creo que va a acabar mi revisión de clásicos de momento. Me ha resultado muy curiosos especialmente los crímenes de la calle Morgue por el desarrollo y la crudeza de las escenas narradas que se contrapone muy bien a la, por lo general, pulcritud de los asesinatos de Agatha Christie.
He recordado que me sabía el final justo antes de leerlo, y me parece un final fantasioso que se contrapone a todo el desarrollo anterior. Lo que es una pena.
Los demás relatos, alguno ya los había leído... pero ha sido un reencuentro con Poe que hacía mucho que no tenía.
He recordado que me sabía el final justo antes de leerlo, y me parece un final fantasioso que se contrapone a todo el desarrollo anterior. Lo que es una pena.
Los demás relatos, alguno ya los había leído... pero ha sido un reencuentro con Poe que hacía mucho que no tenía.
December 24, 2014
I thought this short story was really impressive. I remember watching a black and white version of the film when I was really young and being really scared by it. Who would have known that I would read the book behind it one day. It’s a story about a murder that takes place in Paris which is almost unsolvable because they cant work out why the perpetrator would leave without any money, the killings are almost inhumanely gruesome and the police cant work out how the individual got in and then got away in the first place. There is an interesting section in the beginning about how analysis takes place and then need to view the whole as supposed to viewing things individually which we tend to do well in the west. This ties in with the way the detective is able to take the many disparately strange elements of the murder and put something coherent together. The murderer in the end is not human …
November 5, 2019
I am so surprised at me giving this 2 stars. I enjoyed reading 'Ligeia', 'The Oval Portrait' and 'The Black Cat', but even these were 3 or 3.5 stars for me. I felt like, somehow, all these stories would have worked so much better if they would have been read to me or if they would have been in a film adaptation. I found Poe's writing style and word choice really overwhelming and congested which really didn't do it for me. I'm not one to shy away from flowery language per se, but unfortunately, this book just wasn't for me. Nevertheless, if you're looking for some spooky stories for these cold and dreary nights, I would recommend reading 'Ligeia', 'The Oval Portrait' and 'The Black Cat', because they were nice and spooky. Perhaps read a couple more if you get on better with Poe's writing.
February 6, 2019
Si no llega a ser por ese final creo que mi calificación hubiera cabiando bastante, me estaba dando miedo porque al principio no me estaba gustando, Poe es el ejemplo de creatividad e imaginación en un artista, en este caso de un escritor. Esa solución del conflicto de la historia, en resumen la solucion de los crímenes..., todavía estoy pensando en ese ejercicio de creatividad, wow magistral.
August 31, 2016
For this I only read five short stories, all for uni purposes. They definitely some stories that I loved, some that were weird and others I really didn't like. But overall it was interesting to read other works from Poe. Hopefully I'll read the rest of the short stories of the text soon.
December 11, 2023
Fav stories:
- The Fall of the House of Usher
- The Murders in the Rue Morgue
- The Masque of the Red Death
- The Fall of the House of Usher
- The Murders in the Rue Morgue
- The Masque of the Red Death
October 30, 2019
Let me begin by saying that I had never read anything by Edgar Allan Poe. And I was very pleased by our encounter!
Some stories I didn't like a lot, but there were more that I fancied. Some made me shiver (The Fall of the House of Usher and The Black Cat) and some simply took me by the throat (Ligeia, which is one of the best short stories I have ever read, and Eleonora) or sucked me right in (The Murders in the Rue Morgue and The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar).
* In Manuscript Found in a Bottle, Poe tells an interesting tale of a man on the sea who finds himself in horrible circumstances. A good starter!
* In Ligeia, a man beautifully revisits the love he has for his deceased wife, only to learn that she maybe wasn't dead after all... I loved this story so much for its beautiful choice of words and its harrowing plot. It might be my favorite story of this entire collection.
* The Man That Was Used Up didn't really do it for me. It was a little too political and I didn't get the references before I looked them up online (although I must add, I like the way Poe went all sarcastic and satirical on this one).
* The Fall of the House of Usher was eerie and well-written. I liked it a lot! I could see the Ushers dying right in front of me. This is the horror I bought this book for. Yes!
* I liked William Wilson for its deeper meaning. Wilson tried to kill an exact copy of himself, as he thought someone was haunting and taunting him. It turns out to be nothing like he expected, which makes it painfully true to humanity's view of ourselves.
* In The Man of the Crowd, Poe shows us just how easy it is to get lost in the company of a lot of people.
* The Murders in the Rue Morgue is not so much a horror story (although the description of the crime is indeed bloody and horrific), but more a detective story. Other than the lengthy introduction about the importance of analytics, this was a fun and interesting read.
* A Descent into the Maelström felt similar to Manuscript Found in a Bottle. About surviving nature's horrors while one shouldn't have survived them. A fun read.
* I liked reading Eleonora, while Poe really got out there to find the most beautiful words and ways to describe the love between the narrator and his cousin. It was a sweet story, a nice way to mix things up in this collection!
* The Oval Portrait was a very short story, and it had something dark and funny to it. I liked this one, and I was pleased to read that Oscar Wilde was inspired by it to write his fantastic The Picture of Dorian Gray. It shows the fragility of life, and also the absurdity of what was expected of women regarding their relationship to their husband in those ages.
* The Masque of the Red Death was a thrilling read. It builds up nicely, with the vivid details of the different rooms and the strange ebony clock. And when the story unravels... that's when the good stuff happens.
* The Pit and the Pendulum for some reason didn't succeed in keeping my attention like some of Poe's other stories can. Yes, it's graphic and describes horrible things, but I kind of missed a deeper meaning to it.
* The Tell-Tale Heart is amazingly written and shows just how far a human can go to take certain measures--only to come back from it...
* In The Gold-Bug, Poe shows quite a few racist remarks, which made me dislike the story a lot. By making Jupiter (the African-American houseboy in this story) speak with double tongue and bad grammar, he insinuates white supremacy. Yikes. I did like the idea of deciphering a cryptogram to find a valuable treasure, but this story feels too wrong to like it because of the way Poe portrayed Jupiter.
* The Black Cat I really liked. It was scary and showed the terrifying side that humans can have. Also: I liked the ending. Good for him.
* I didn't quite enjoy The Purloined Letter. My mind kept drifting off, and to be completely honest I found this one a little boring. More detective stuff (although not nearly as twisted and exciting as The Murders in the Rue Morgue), more talk about analytics... This one just wasn't for me.
* The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar was gory and terrible and unbelieveable. I loved it.
* The Cask of Amontillado was so-so. Not a bad story (and yes, I know it is a famous one), but also not one that will stick with me for a long time. I think the writing felt somewhat rushed to me. Maybe I didn't catch it in the right time.
* This collection concludes with Hop-Frog. A tale about the consequences human terror can have. It's a nice one, with all its horrificness and terror.
My book has an essay by D.H. Lawrence at the ending, a well-thought and elaborate essay on Poe and what moved him. A nice touch, and after finishing all of these tales I must say I agreed with lots of what Lawrence had to say.
Overall, I liked this collection and I liked Poe's sad stories and exquisite writing style. Some stories were not as much my taste as others, but so it goes with collections as large as this one. Would reread and recommend.
Some stories I didn't like a lot, but there were more that I fancied. Some made me shiver (The Fall of the House of Usher and The Black Cat) and some simply took me by the throat (Ligeia, which is one of the best short stories I have ever read, and Eleonora) or sucked me right in (The Murders in the Rue Morgue and The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar).
* In Manuscript Found in a Bottle, Poe tells an interesting tale of a man on the sea who finds himself in horrible circumstances. A good starter!
* In Ligeia, a man beautifully revisits the love he has for his deceased wife, only to learn that she maybe wasn't dead after all... I loved this story so much for its beautiful choice of words and its harrowing plot. It might be my favorite story of this entire collection.
* The Man That Was Used Up didn't really do it for me. It was a little too political and I didn't get the references before I looked them up online (although I must add, I like the way Poe went all sarcastic and satirical on this one).
* The Fall of the House of Usher was eerie and well-written. I liked it a lot! I could see the Ushers dying right in front of me. This is the horror I bought this book for. Yes!
* I liked William Wilson for its deeper meaning. Wilson tried to kill an exact copy of himself, as he thought someone was haunting and taunting him. It turns out to be nothing like he expected, which makes it painfully true to humanity's view of ourselves.
* In The Man of the Crowd, Poe shows us just how easy it is to get lost in the company of a lot of people.
* The Murders in the Rue Morgue is not so much a horror story (although the description of the crime is indeed bloody and horrific), but more a detective story. Other than the lengthy introduction about the importance of analytics, this was a fun and interesting read.
* A Descent into the Maelström felt similar to Manuscript Found in a Bottle. About surviving nature's horrors while one shouldn't have survived them. A fun read.
* I liked reading Eleonora, while Poe really got out there to find the most beautiful words and ways to describe the love between the narrator and his cousin. It was a sweet story, a nice way to mix things up in this collection!
* The Oval Portrait was a very short story, and it had something dark and funny to it. I liked this one, and I was pleased to read that Oscar Wilde was inspired by it to write his fantastic The Picture of Dorian Gray. It shows the fragility of life, and also the absurdity of what was expected of women regarding their relationship to their husband in those ages.
* The Masque of the Red Death was a thrilling read. It builds up nicely, with the vivid details of the different rooms and the strange ebony clock. And when the story unravels... that's when the good stuff happens.
* The Pit and the Pendulum for some reason didn't succeed in keeping my attention like some of Poe's other stories can. Yes, it's graphic and describes horrible things, but I kind of missed a deeper meaning to it.
* The Tell-Tale Heart is amazingly written and shows just how far a human can go to take certain measures--only to come back from it...
* In The Gold-Bug, Poe shows quite a few racist remarks, which made me dislike the story a lot. By making Jupiter (the African-American houseboy in this story) speak with double tongue and bad grammar, he insinuates white supremacy. Yikes. I did like the idea of deciphering a cryptogram to find a valuable treasure, but this story feels too wrong to like it because of the way Poe portrayed Jupiter.
* The Black Cat I really liked. It was scary and showed the terrifying side that humans can have. Also: I liked the ending. Good for him.
* I didn't quite enjoy The Purloined Letter. My mind kept drifting off, and to be completely honest I found this one a little boring. More detective stuff (although not nearly as twisted and exciting as The Murders in the Rue Morgue), more talk about analytics... This one just wasn't for me.
* The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar was gory and terrible and unbelieveable. I loved it.
* The Cask of Amontillado was so-so. Not a bad story (and yes, I know it is a famous one), but also not one that will stick with me for a long time. I think the writing felt somewhat rushed to me. Maybe I didn't catch it in the right time.
* This collection concludes with Hop-Frog. A tale about the consequences human terror can have. It's a nice one, with all its horrificness and terror.
My book has an essay by D.H. Lawrence at the ending, a well-thought and elaborate essay on Poe and what moved him. A nice touch, and after finishing all of these tales I must say I agreed with lots of what Lawrence had to say.
Overall, I liked this collection and I liked Poe's sad stories and exquisite writing style. Some stories were not as much my taste as others, but so it goes with collections as large as this one. Would reread and recommend.
October 15, 2017
I have to be honest and say that I went to great lengths in order to find audiobooks of each individual tale to listen to (since I couldn't find an audiobook version of this exact collection). I read a couple, some I read along as I listened to the audiobook, but mostly I just listened, which probably made me miss a whole lot of the plots. But I couldn't help it. I feel as if Poe's writing style isn't for me unless I sit down and really concentrate, which I haven't had the time to do. But let's be real. Poe is an author I'll probably return to, hopefully to read more properly when I'm older. But for now this is how it is. I enjoyed what I understood, and can see why he's very loved. Hopefully I can love him too one day.
January 30, 2021
It took me a little while to get into Poe’s long-winded and punctuation-filled sentences, but when I did, I understood why his stories became - and have stayed - so popular. He is great at creating eerie atmospheres in just a few pages, and many of the horror elements are disturbing even though they were written almost 200 years ago. I liked the horror stories better than the detective mysteries since the latter often resulted in long, braggy monologues, but it was fun to read early examples of this type of story.
February 23, 2021
Relat breu precursor de la narrativa detectivesca i model per al futur Sherlock Holmes de sir Conan Doyle, peca d'un excés de contingut analític cientifista que el pot fer de vegades feixuc de llegir i seguir. Dues dones han aparegut mortes assassinades atroçment en un apartament de París. Aparentment hi ha poques pistes per tal de descobrir el culpable de la matança. L'investigador Dupin, amb una anàlisi i interpretació dels fets ben lúcida, posarà llum a la foscor.
March 10, 2021
Originelle Auswahl, die neben Klassikern auch eher weniger bekannte Stories enthält - eigenwillig und originell übersetzt von Arno Schmidt. Sehr schönes Hardcover, hässlicher Schutzumschlag, stimmungsvolle Illustrationen. Leicht berfremdlich finde ich, dass in der Übersetzung vorkommende rassistische Begriffe in keiner Form kontextualisiert wurden.
January 7, 2024
2,5⭐️
A primeira e a terceira história até foram legais, mas a segunda foi muito arrastada. O Dupin precisa se mostrar mais inteligente que todo mundo, mas o que ele critica em uma história, ele faz em outra. No geral foi um livro mediano.
A primeira e a terceira história até foram legais, mas a segunda foi muito arrastada. O Dupin precisa se mostrar mais inteligente que todo mundo, mas o que ele critica em uma história, ele faz em outra. No geral foi um livro mediano.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 357 reviews