Whispers

by Stuart David Schiff (Editor)

Contents: Schiff, S. D. Introduction.--Wagner, K. E. Sticks.--Drake, D. The barrow troll.--Leiber, F. The glove.--Bloch, R. The closer of the way.--Nolan, W. Dark winner.--Cave, H. B. Ladies in waiting.--Etchison, D. White moon rising.--Matheson, R. C. Graduation.--Russell, R. Mirror, mirror.--Lumley, B. The House of Cthulhu.--Crowley, J. Antiquities.--Saliss, J. and Lunde, D. The weather report from the top of the stairs.--Smith, B. A. The scallion stone.--Smyth, R. The inglorious rise of the Catsmeat Man.--Fritch, C. E. The pawnshop.--Aickman, R. Le miroir.--Brennan, J. P. The willow platform.--Wellman, M. W. The Dakwa.--Campton, D. Goat.--Campbell, R. The chimney.

Genres: Horror, Anthologies, Short Stories, Fiction, Fantasy

Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1977

Reviews

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

Whispers was an irregularly published semi-professional magazine of horror and dark fantasy that Stuart David Schiff published and edited in the 1970s. It was named after a fictitious magazine that H.P. Lovecraft named in one of his early stories in Weird Tales. This anthology appeared from Doubleday in 1977, containing stories that had first appeared in the magazine along with some new material, and led to several subsequent volumes. It has a nice, if misleading, cover by Tim Kirk that makes it look like a traditional fantasy book, and several fine interior illustrations from the likes of Stephen Fabian, George Barr, Lee Brown Coye, etc. The book contains twenty stories, many of them from the biggest names in the genre of the time, including good ones by Hugh B. Cave, Dennis Etchison, Robert Bloch, Fritz Leiber, David Drake, Robin Smyth, Joseph Payne Brennan, and Manly Wade Wellman. My favorite was Sticks by Karl Edward Wagner, one of the great all-time horror classics.

[Graham · Rating 4 out of 5]

WHISPERS is a nice collection of then-contemporary horror stories from the 1970s, collated from the pages of the magazine of the same name. It was successful enough to spawn numerous sequel volumes, perhaps because it contains many of the big names in horror, all of whom contribute work which is at the very least interesting.

Karl Edward Wagner's exemplary STICKS opens the collection on a very strong note. It's very Lovecraftian in tone and could well have inspired THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT. Brilliant stuff and certainly one of my favourite horror stories ever, which is purely down to the quality of the writing. David Drake's THE BARROW TROLL is an outrageously grim sword-and-sorcery shocker in which a bloodthirsty barbarian battles a hulking troll. You won't find fantasy more horrifying or nihilistic as it is here. THE GLOVE, by Fritz Leiber, is a deliciously-plotted psychological horror yarn set in a run-down block of flats, and subtly chilling.

THE CLOSER OF THE WAY is a neat story by Robert Bloch which serves to pastiche some popular Lovecraftian tropes. The author's presence in his own story is delightful, while this is particularly interesting to fans of the author as much of his own writing is referenced throughout. William F. Nolan's DARK WINNER is the first dud, written in transcript and confused as a result. LADIES IN WAITING, by Hugh B. Cave, is little better, telling of demons inhabiting an old mansion, more realistic than his old pulps but nowhere near as much fun. Dennis Etchison's WHITE MOON RISING is a murder mystery on a campus with oodles of suspense and a great climax; much more fun than the last two.

Richard Christian Matheson proves himself his father's successor with GRADUATION, in which a kid sends letters home to his parents while at university. It doesn't sound very horrific and it is subtle, but this is a slow burner that really pays off come the climax. Ray Russell's MIRROR, MIRROR is much like his MR. SARDONICUS and another deal-with-the-devil story, not bad but not great either. THE HOUSE OF CTHULHU sees Brian Lumley taking the fantasy genre and mixing it with Lovecraftian horror. The resulting mix is brilliantly entertaining with the writing almost jumping off the page. John Crowley's ANTIQUITIES tells of plague in Cheshire, of all places, and is both original and old-fashioned, a really different kind of story to those featured previously.

A WEATHER REPORT FROM THE TOP OF THE STAIRS is by James Sallis and David Lunde and tells of sentient toys planning revenge. I feel like this was heavily ripped off for the TOY STORY films so if any of that appeals then you'll enjoy it. Basil A. Smith's THE SCALLION STONE is about a sea-blood curse in Scotland, and so delightfully old-fashioned and in the spirit of M.R. James that it's an absolute pleasure to read and certainly one of my favourites collected here. Robin Smyth's THE INGLORIOUS RISE OF THE CATSMEAT MAN is a deliciously dark spin on the Sweeney Todd legend, full of black humour and well-observed characterisation.

THE PAWNSHOP has Charles E. Fritch having a go at another devil-deal story but incorporating it with enough twists and turns to make it worthwhile. It's very cleverly written too. Robert Aickman's LE MIRIOR is all about the weird, ghostly atmosphere, but too insubstantial for my taste and it doesn't help that I didn't really understand it either. Joseph Payne Brennan's THE WILLOW PLATFORM is about the legend of the Wendigo, and rather predictable, although it has decent characterisation. Manly Wade Wellman's THE DAKWA sees his regular hero Lee Cobbett fighting a water monster and is fun, albeit not one of his best efforts. GOAT, by David Campton, is something else entirely, a perverse story about a creepy old man with psychic abilities. It's totally unpredictable and has a superior climax. The final story is Ramsey Campbell's THE CHIMNEY and begins in a rather languid fashion, although it ends in a very harrowing fashion and is thus well worth a look.

[Canavan · Rating 4 out of 5]

✭✭✭½

“Sticks”, Karl Edward Wagner (1974) ✭✭✭✭✭
“The Barrow Troll”, David Dake (1975) ✭✭✭½
“The Glove”, Fritz Leiber (1975) ✭✭✭
“The Closer of the Way”, Robert Bloch (1977) ✭✭✭½
“Dark Winner”, William F. Nolan (1976) ✭✭✭½
“Ladies in Waiting”, Hugh B. Cave (1975) ✭✭✭
“White Moon Rising”, Dennis Etchison (1977) ✭
“Graduation”, Richard Christian Matheson (1977) ✭✭✭½
“Mirror, Mirror”, Ray Russell (1977) ✭✭✭
“The House of Cthulhu”, Brian Lumley (1973) ✭✭
“Antiquities”, John Crowley (1977) ✭✭✭
“A Weather Report from the Top of the Stairs”, James Sallis & David Lunde (1973) ✭✭✭½
“A Weather Report from the Top of the Stairs”, James Sallis & David Lunde (1973/1977 rev.) ✭✭½
“The Scallion Stone”, Basil A. Smith (1977) ✭✭✭½
“The Inglorious Rise of the Catsmeat Man”, Robin Smyth (1971) ✭✭✭½
“The Pawnshop”, Charles E. Fritch (1977) ✭✭✭✭
“Le Miroir”, Robert Aickman (1977) ✭✭✭
“The Willow Platform”, Joseph Payne Brennan (1973) ✭✭✭½
“The Dakwa”, Manley Wade Wellman (1977) ✭✭✭
“Goat”, David Campton (1971) ✭✭✭½
“The Chimney”, Ramsey Campbell (1977) ✭✭✭✭½

[Ari Pérez · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐⭐⭐⭐ Sticks KARL EDWARD WAGNER
⭐⭐⭐ The Barrow Troll DAVID DRAKE
⭐⭐⭐ The Glove FRITZ LEIBER
⭐⭐⭐ The Closer of the Way ROBERT BLOCH
⭐⭐ Dark Winner WILLIAM F. NOLAN
⭐⭐ Ladies in Waiting HUGH B. CAVE
⭐⭐⭐⭐ White Moon Rising DENNIS ETCHISON
⭐⭐⭐ Graduation RICHARD CHRISTIAN MATHESON
⭐⭐⭐ Mirror, Mirror RAY RUSSELL
⭐⭐⭐ The House of Cthulhu BRIAN LUMLEY
⭐⭐ Antiquities JOHN CROWLEY
⭐⭐⭐⭐ A Weather Report from the Top of the Stairs DAVID LUNDE / JAMES SALLIS
⭐⭐ The Scallion Stone BASIL A. SMITH
⭐⭐⭐ The Inglorious Rise of the Catsmeat Man ROBIN SMYTH
⭐⭐⭐ The Pawnshop CHARLES E. FRITCH
⭐⭐⭐ Le Miroir ROBERT AICKMAN
⭐⭐⭐ The Willow Platform JOSEPH PAYNE BRENNAN
⭐⭐ The Dakwa MANLY WADE WELLMAN
⭐⭐⭐ Goat DAVID CAMPTON
⭐⭐⭐ The Chimney RAMSEY CAMPBELL

[Wendopolis · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent collection of stories by some of the greatest horror writers of the past. Standout stories include: The Barrow Troll, by David Drake, reminiscent of Neil Gaiman’s “Troll Bridge”; The Closer of the Way, by Robert Bloch, author of Psycho; Graduation, by Richard Christian Matheson, son of the famed author of many novels adapted for the screen; The Pawnshop, by Charles E Fitch, a classic tale of why you shouldn’t deal with the devil; The Willow Platform, by Joseph Payne Brennan, a creepy tale about a found book; The Inglorious Rise of the Catsmeat Man, by Robin Smyth, easily the most disturbing in the collection; The Dakwa, by Manley Wade Wellman, whose stories rarely disappoint; and finally, The Chimney, by Ramsey Campbell, about a weak boy terrified of the chimney in his room and the large red man said to come out of it…

[Sam Coppola]

Incredibly entertaining mixture of horror, thrillers, tall tales, ‘weird’, and sword & sorcery stories.

Sticks by Karl Edward Wagner: 5/5 (absurdly spooky. Apparently inspired blair witch, to which I’m not surprised)

The Barrow Troll by David Drake: 4.5/5 (barbarian berserker talking shit and fighting…thats literally it. Loved it)

The Glove by Fritz Leiber: 4/5 (a rundown apartment complex just got worse. Someones slashing tenants and for some reason everyone wants to be blame it on the short guy!)

The Closer of the Way by Robert Bloch: 4/5 (‘autobiographical’ meta-story about what it takes to write a horror story…and where the ‘inspirations’ come from)

Dark Winner by William Nolan: 1.5/5 (telegraphed conversations about nostalgia I think? Kind of a snooze)

Ladies in Waiting by Hugh B. Cave: 3.5/5 (a car breaks down and the ‘ladies’ upstairs misinterpret the request for a ‘jack’)

White Moon Rising by Dennis Etchison: 5/5 (the opening paragraph of this story is the best description of anxiety induced horror I think I’ll ever find. Turns into a literal fever dream as our protag has vietnam flashbacks while pursuing a sorority slasher. Loved this.)

Graduation by Richard C. Matheson: 0.5/5 (ooof)

Mirror, Mirror by Ray Russell: 3.5/5 (short and sweet reminder not to make deals with the devil. Or at least double check the contract)

The House of Cthulhu by Brian Lumley: 5/5 (best story of the collection. Theres a ton of great Cthulhu mythos stories out there but capturing the purple descriptions and sheer weirdness of the worlds imo is only really executed perfectly by Clark Ashton Smith or Lovecraft himself. Lumley totally changed my tune and knocked this one out of the park.)

Antiquities by John Crowley: 4/5 (I’ve always wanted to check this guy out. A bunch of chaps sip whiskey and discuss a small hamlet’s marital woes. Never read a succubi story quite like it)

A Weather Report from the Top of the Stairs by James Sallis & David Lunde: 1/5 (yawn. Parents are bad yadda yadda)

The Scallion Stone by Basil A. Smith: 3/5 (a local curse makes a struggling doctor very nervous around the local fauna. There’s definitely something in the water)

The Inglorious Rise of the Catsmeat Man by Robin Smyth: 3.5/5 (serial killer with a slutty mother decides to change the family recipe)

The Pawnshop by Charles E. Fritch: 4.5/5 (another asshole has sold his soul to the devil. This time though, redemption seems possible- all you have to do is keep being an asshole!)

Le Miroir by Robert Aickman: 1/5 (way too eloquently written and antiquated in ideas, and just a snooze)

The Willow Platform by Joseph Payne Brennan: 5/5 (second fave of the collection. A hobo finds a book of spells and the town gives him a latin dictionary & says ‘have fun!’ Town, and said hobo, come to regret their decisions)

The Dakwa by Manly Wade Wellman: 3/5 (another guy I’ve always wanted to check out. If a native american says the lake is cursed, believe him.)

Goat by David Compton: 5/5 (the local asshole is also unfortunately a wizard. The local drunk stumbles (he-he) upon some morbid discoveries)

The Chimney by Ramsey Campbell: 2.5/5 (a child scared of Santa grows up disturbed. Big surprise there.)

[Vultural · Rating 4 out of 5]

Various (Editor: Schiff, Stuart David) - Whispers

Juicy sampling from one of the most acclaimed Horror fanzines from the 70’s and 80’s.
Opening with Karl Edward Wagner, closing with Ramsey Campbell.
In between: Fritz Leiber, Robert Bloch, Hugh Cave, Brian Lumley, Robert Aickman, many others.

Illustrators include Tim Kirk, Lee Brown Coye, Stephen Fabian.
These predate the Splatterpunk run, and are similar to classic Arkham House.

“The Closer Of The Way” makes a great in-joke from the genre’s top prankster.

The taped interview provides all the clues one needs in “Dark Winner”, a bitter competition that extended beyond the grave.

“Ladies In Waiting” manages to be suspenseful, sensual, and horrifying. Never relax on dusty sheets.

Whether the gentleman’s club or explorer’s club, the setting abides. Leather chairs, fireplace, a tumbler of single malt, cigars. And a yarn. “Antiquities” combines Egypt, cats, the exotic female, rural misdeeds.

“The Goat” features the malicious, know-all neighbor. Who knows what occurs behind doors, what was buried in your past, the slips unseen by everyone else. Sneering blackmail or exposure.

Issues of the old, stapled-together Whispers can hard to acquire. The HC compilations are generally affordable and will quench your thirst for old school horrors.

[Josh Bizeau · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two and a Half Stars.

Great: The Barrow Troll, Graduation, The Chimney

Very Good: White Moon Rising, The Inglorious Rise of the Catsmeat Man

Good: The House of Cthulhu, Le Miroir, The Willow Platform

Okay: Sticks, The Glove, Ladies in Waiting, Weather Report from the Top of the Stairs, The Pawnshop, The Dakwa, Goat

Poor: The Closer of the Way, Dark Winner, Mirror, Mirror, The Scallion Stone

Trash: Antiquities

[Matt Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not this volume, exactly but a placeholder for the old issues of Whispers I've been reading. The stories are good, but I think I appreciate the artifact of the things even more. Something about paging through a typewritten, hand set zine that's older than I am. It's very existence owing to the dedication of nerds who wanted to share and celebrate weird, scary stories with each other. Love it.

[Mario Pimental · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hidden gem of fantasy horror short stories from the 70s that I received in a book collection. There was some fantastic material in here. Added bonus was the library card from 1977 and that old book smell.

[Jenna]

Found this purely by chance, but this was a fun little collection! Honestly, wasn't disappointed by a single story, but there are some definite hits: Sticks (of course), Le Mirror, and the Dakuwa are the highlights. A great cozy, cosmic anthology.

[Ben · Rating 4 out of 5]

No real bad tales here, but some are definitely superior. Overall, a nice shot of vintage 70's horror, with the bonus of having new authors to look up.

[Eric Edwards · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5
None were terrible. There were 1-2 that were pretty good.

[Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's been a while since I read a collection of horror tales, and this was a nice sampling. Standouts, for me, were David Campton's "Goat," and Fritch's "The Pawnshop" and Wagner's "Sticks." Each of them seemed the most compelling, realistic, and horrific in their own way. Robin Smyth's "...Catsmeat Man" was also quite intriquing. Seemed like it could have been the impetus for "Sweeny Todd" but I suppose the idea of a butcher cutting up people has been around for a long time.

None of the stories were horrible, which shows that Schiff has done a good job of putting together this collection.

"Weather Report from the Top of The Stairs" was my least favorite in this collection. The story, written, based on a cartoon by Gahan Wilson, included two endings...the original by the authors and a rewrite (change of maybe two words?) at the request of the editor and cartoonist. Even with the variation, it lacked the meat that Wilson's fabulous cartoons manage to have.

A fun trip into the speculative/horror world.

[Jeffrey Hart · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like many anthologies there are good stories and bad stories. Karl Edward Wagner's "Sticks" is a classic and in my opinion the best story in this or any anthology. Wellman, Leiber, and Cave are in top form as well. Those three names in one volume is worth whatever you pay for the book. I can't honestly say I've read this book completely. I've been disappointed enough times by Ramsey Campbell to avoid his stories whenever I see them. I am just not a fan of his prose and his name tends to pop up in just about every anthology I buy. In DAW's Year's Best Horror Stories he can sometimes pop up twice! If you like this collection you may like those well.

[Paul Barnes · Rating 2 out of 5]

[Stuart David Schiff] (July 1973). Volume 1. Number 1. SB. 64 (+2) Pages. Purchased from Books-n-Things.

“The Urn” (David Riley) and “The Willow Platform” (Joseph Payne Brennan) are clear highlights in this otherwise dire issue.

“House of Cthulhu” (Brian Lumley) is, certainly, one of the worst Short Stories I’ve ever suffered through.

Dirk W. Mosig’s Jungian HPL survey is utter bilge.

Part I of an article concerning astrology and Robert E. Howard by Edgar Hoffmann Trooper Price (1898-1988) fuses nonsense and disrespect, in abundance.

[Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have the cover with the wizard looking fellow on it, which isn't really appropriate. I think of this mostly as a horror collection, although there are also some fantasy type stories, but only those with horror elements. A very good collection. I remember lots of stories from this one.

[David Osborne · Rating 4 out of 5]

***1/2= Good enough to finish and reread some stories.

There are a few decent Lovecraftian mythos stories, there are good standard horror stories. Nothing terribly surprising (The Glove was an exception). Horror writers: telling the audience that its just a story, and offering 2 alternate endings DETRACTS from the atmosphere. A couple of the stories have massive plot holes or obvious or cliché endings. Overall the writing was competent to excellent.