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The Beast With Five Fingers
A well off English bachelor receives a legacy from his uncle. This includes the uncle's very large library and a box containing something that used to belong to his uncle. The box has air holes in it. It is not a rat or other small mammal for his collection, but it is something still alive; something very malevolent and something very evil.
33 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1919
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About the author
W.F. Harvey
214 books31 followersWilliam Fryer Harvey was an English writer of short stories, most notably in the macabre and horror genres. Among his best-known stories are "August Heat" and "The Beast with Five Fingers", described by horror historian Les Daniels as "minor masterpieces".
Born into a wealthy Quaker family in Yorkshire, he attended the Quaker schools at Bootham in Yorkshire and at Leighton Park in Reading before going on to Balliol College, Oxford. He took a degree in medicine at Leeds. Ill health dogged him, however, and he devoted himself to personal projects such as his first book of short stories, Midnight House (1910).
In World War I he initially joined the Friends' Ambulance Unit, but later served as a surgeon-lieutenant in the Royal Navy, and received the Albert Medal for Lifesaving.[4] Lung damage received during the rescue leading to the award troubled him for the rest of his life, but he continued to write both short stories and his cheerful and good-natured memoir We Were Seven.
Harvey was a practicising Quaker.
Before the war he had shown interest in adult education, on the staff of the Working Men's College, Fircroft, Selly Oak, Birmingham. He returned to Fircroft in 1920, becoming Warden, but by 1925 ill-health forced his retirement. In 1928 he published a second collection of short stories, The Beast with Five Fingers, and in 1933 he published a third, Moods and Tenses. He lived in Switzerland with his wife for much of this time, but nostalgia for his home country caused his return to England. He moved to Letchworth in 1935 and died there in 1937 at the age of 52. After a funeral service at the local Friends Meeting House Harvey was buried in the churchyard of St Mary the Virgin in Old Letchworth.
The release of the film The Beast with Five Fingers (1946), directed by Robert Florey and starring Peter Lorre, inspired by what was perhaps his most famous and praised short story, caused a resurgence of interest in Harvey's work. In 1951 a posthumous fourth collection of his stories, The Arm of Mrs Egan and Other Stories, appeared, including a set of twelve stories left in manuscript at the time of his death, headed "Twelve Strange Cases".
In 2009 Wordsworth Editions printed an omnibus volume of Harvey's stories, titled The Beast with Five Fingers, in its Tales of Mystery and the Supernatural series (ISBN 978-1-84022-179-4). The volume contains 45 stories and an introduction by David Stuart Davies.
[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/W._F....]
Born into a wealthy Quaker family in Yorkshire, he attended the Quaker schools at Bootham in Yorkshire and at Leighton Park in Reading before going on to Balliol College, Oxford. He took a degree in medicine at Leeds. Ill health dogged him, however, and he devoted himself to personal projects such as his first book of short stories, Midnight House (1910).
In World War I he initially joined the Friends' Ambulance Unit, but later served as a surgeon-lieutenant in the Royal Navy, and received the Albert Medal for Lifesaving.[4] Lung damage received during the rescue leading to the award troubled him for the rest of his life, but he continued to write both short stories and his cheerful and good-natured memoir We Were Seven.
Harvey was a practicising Quaker.
Before the war he had shown interest in adult education, on the staff of the Working Men's College, Fircroft, Selly Oak, Birmingham. He returned to Fircroft in 1920, becoming Warden, but by 1925 ill-health forced his retirement. In 1928 he published a second collection of short stories, The Beast with Five Fingers, and in 1933 he published a third, Moods and Tenses. He lived in Switzerland with his wife for much of this time, but nostalgia for his home country caused his return to England. He moved to Letchworth in 1935 and died there in 1937 at the age of 52. After a funeral service at the local Friends Meeting House Harvey was buried in the churchyard of St Mary the Virgin in Old Letchworth.
The release of the film The Beast with Five Fingers (1946), directed by Robert Florey and starring Peter Lorre, inspired by what was perhaps his most famous and praised short story, caused a resurgence of interest in Harvey's work. In 1951 a posthumous fourth collection of his stories, The Arm of Mrs Egan and Other Stories, appeared, including a set of twelve stories left in manuscript at the time of his death, headed "Twelve Strange Cases".
In 2009 Wordsworth Editions printed an omnibus volume of Harvey's stories, titled The Beast with Five Fingers, in its Tales of Mystery and the Supernatural series (ISBN 978-1-84022-179-4). The volume contains 45 stories and an introduction by David Stuart Davies.
[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/W._F....]
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
October 16, 2020
I enjoyed this short novella, though it was pretty predictable. I liked the humor and the irony, and the quick pace. It is a typical horror story of its time, therefore I'd recommend it to the fans of the beginning of the 20th century horror stories. If you want real, goose-bumps, raw terror, this is not for you.
November 27, 2019
A nifty little tongue-in-cheek horror story about a disembodied hand that skitters all about. Phil Chenevert is a fantastic narrator for works like this.
September 1, 2024
A well-off English bachelor receives a legacy from his uncle. This includes the uncle's very large library and a box containing something that used to belong to his uncle. The box has air holes in it. It is not a rat or other small mammal for his collection, but it is something still alive; something very malevolent and something very evil. It is indeed 'the beast with five fingers'!
November 19, 2023
Not surprisingly, the namesake novella that leads this collection is the strongest of the stories. A murderous, severed hand with a mind of its own (or perhaps possessed!) makes a for a deliciously creepy tale. Other notable stories are "Miss Cornelius" with its poltergeist and surprisingly unreliable narrator, and Miss Avenal, a subtle vampire tale, are both satisfying. 'The Tool" is a close runner-up with its narrator experiencing inexplicable lost time, but loses some effectiveness when an explanation is attempted.
Like other reviewers say, this is not for those looking for terror, as the majority of the stories at best provide little more than an unsettling ambience.
The novella The Beast With Five Fingers does provide a charmingly dark description of an old library:
'It was arranged on the plan of many college libraries, with tall projecting bookcases forming deep recesses of dusty silence, fit graves for old hates of forgotten controversy, the dead passions of forgotten lives."
Like other reviewers say, this is not for those looking for terror, as the majority of the stories at best provide little more than an unsettling ambience.
The novella The Beast With Five Fingers does provide a charmingly dark description of an old library:
'It was arranged on the plan of many college libraries, with tall projecting bookcases forming deep recesses of dusty silence, fit graves for old hates of forgotten controversy, the dead passions of forgotten lives."
May 26, 2020
A murderous hand seeking revenge... at times brings some rather bizarre images to the mind but still rather creepy.
Probably would be creepier if I didn’t imagine Thing from The Addams Family but it’s still good. Bit of a comedy horror now rather than full blown horror.
Probably would be creepier if I didn’t imagine Thing from The Addams Family but it’s still good. Bit of a comedy horror now rather than full blown horror.
January 16, 2022
Its fantastic and unrestrained style is in keeping with the time in which it was written. Those who have a liking for that kind of 20th century horror will enjoy this novela. I found it to be both gripping and creepy.
June 18, 2024
This is a nice little old school horror tale about a dead uncle, automatic writing and something delivered in a box after the uncle's demise. What is it? Why is there some turmoil in the library. Atmospheric with a nice twist and fascinating characters. Really recommended!
October 5, 2021
Dude is haunted by a disembodied hand.
What more is there to say?
What more is there to say?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 12, 2025
Listed to the audiobook. Reminded me of a murderous “Thing” from Wednesday.
October 26, 2025
A fun enough spooky tale about a cursed severed hand and its would-be exterminators.
October 31, 2019
It pains me to give it even one star. Has to be one of the WORST stories ever! I read this as part of my Halloween selections. A waste of time.
May 21, 2019
Story was great. The reader, Edward Miller, was not. He has a great sounding, deep voice, but he didn't read it like a horror novel. He emphasized and emoted each and every word, which actually made it hard to follow. People don't talk like that. It was like he was so afraid of being monotone that he decided to make each individual word interesting. That approach did not fare well.
However, the story was great. I can see why it is a classic of horror literature.
However, the story was great. I can see why it is a classic of horror literature.
December 16, 2015
Uncle Adrian was blind but developed the use of his hands to a fantastic degree. Unknown to even him, he's capable of automatic writing. His nephew notices it.
After Uncle Adrian passes away, his nephew Eustace receives a box that contains what he thinks is a live animal...
Please read the full review here.
After Uncle Adrian passes away, his nephew Eustace receives a box that contains what he thinks is a live animal...
Please read the full review here.
February 2, 2019
Fantastic tale of weird fiction, and a great example of the ‘evil hand’ trope. A hand becomes at first seemingly possessed, communicating via automatic writing, then after the death of it’s host, becomes a disembodied entity of it’s own, one increasingly bent on horrifying and harming those whose possession it has come into.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews