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The Shape of Fear
Collection of fantastic stories originally released in 1898. Contains "The House that was not," "Story of the vanishing Patient," and many more.
68 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1904
6 people are currently reading
63 people want to read
About the author
Elia W. Peattie
143 books8 followersElia Wilkinson Peattie (January 15, 1862 – July 12, 1935) was an American author, journalist and critic.
Elia Wilkinson was the daughter of Frederick and Amanda (Cahill) Wilkinson. She was born on January 15, 1862, in Kalamazoo, Michigan, but moved with her family to Chicago when she was young. She stopped attending school when she was fourteen, but kept up a reading habit. In 1883 she married Robert Burns Peattie, a Chicago journalist.
She began writing short stories for newspapers, and became a reporter with the Chicago Tribune and subsequently the Chicago Daily News. In 1889 she moved to Omaha, becoming chief editorial writer on the Omaha World-Herald. She wrote for magazines including Century, Lippincott's Magazine, Cosmopolitan Magazine, St. Nicholas, Wide Awake, The American Magazine, America, Harper's Weekly, and San Francisco Argonaut.
In 1888 she was commissioned by Chicago publishers to write a young people's history of the United States, and wrote the seven-hundred page The Story of America in four months. Her novel The Judge won a $900 prize from the Detroit Free Press in 1889, and was subsequently published in book form. Later in 1889 the Northern Pacific Railroad employed her to visit and report on Alaska: A Trip through Wonderland became a popular guide-book. With Scrip and Staff (1891) was a story of the children's crusade. Some time after 1890, Peattie befriended fellow writer Kate McPhelim Cleary while both were living in Nebraska. The two bonded over their financial, health, and family concerns.
Peattie subsequently returned to Chicago and became literary editor of the Chicago Tribune. Some time during her period in Illinois, she was a member of the Eagle's Nest Art Colony in Ogle County. One of her sons was the famed botanist, naturalist and author Donald Culross Peattie (June 21, 1898 - November 16, 1964).
Elia Wilkinson was the daughter of Frederick and Amanda (Cahill) Wilkinson. She was born on January 15, 1862, in Kalamazoo, Michigan, but moved with her family to Chicago when she was young. She stopped attending school when she was fourteen, but kept up a reading habit. In 1883 she married Robert Burns Peattie, a Chicago journalist.
She began writing short stories for newspapers, and became a reporter with the Chicago Tribune and subsequently the Chicago Daily News. In 1889 she moved to Omaha, becoming chief editorial writer on the Omaha World-Herald. She wrote for magazines including Century, Lippincott's Magazine, Cosmopolitan Magazine, St. Nicholas, Wide Awake, The American Magazine, America, Harper's Weekly, and San Francisco Argonaut.
In 1888 she was commissioned by Chicago publishers to write a young people's history of the United States, and wrote the seven-hundred page The Story of America in four months. Her novel The Judge won a $900 prize from the Detroit Free Press in 1889, and was subsequently published in book form. Later in 1889 the Northern Pacific Railroad employed her to visit and report on Alaska: A Trip through Wonderland became a popular guide-book. With Scrip and Staff (1891) was a story of the children's crusade. Some time after 1890, Peattie befriended fellow writer Kate McPhelim Cleary while both were living in Nebraska. The two bonded over their financial, health, and family concerns.
Peattie subsequently returned to Chicago and became literary editor of the Chicago Tribune. Some time during her period in Illinois, she was a member of the Eagle's Nest Art Colony in Ogle County. One of her sons was the famed botanist, naturalist and author Donald Culross Peattie (June 21, 1898 - November 16, 1964).
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
July 24, 2017
Found on Project Gutenberg, a collection of thirteen short supernatural stories; it's undated, but Peattie was active as a writer during the years 1889-1930.
The first thing to note is that the stories are, I'd say, almost beautifully written: I came to love Peattie's use of language. On the other hand, because the stories are really quite short -- I doubt if any is longer than six pages -- several of them have a sense of inconsequentiality about them, and in a couple of cases (notably "The House that was Not") it was as if Peattie had reached the end of an allotted number of words and hurriedly wrapped things up, whether the story was properly complete or not. That said, I relished her style and wit enough that this didn't much bother me.
And some of the stories are really very good. "On the Northern Ice" (which I think I may have read before) is a poignant tale of a woman returning from beyond the grave to save her lover as he skates through a wintry night. "From the Loom of the Dead" sees a dead mother persuade a selfish stepmother to take better care of the dead woman's child. The standout for me is "The Room of the Evil Thought," which isn't a ghost story but has some of the creepiness you'd expect from one.
There's no real attempt to scare here on the author's part; while I'd not say any of the stories are outright humorous, I found myself often enough smiling at their wryness. As I say, what captivated me here was the writing. I'm off to see what else Gutenberg has by Peattie . . .
The first thing to note is that the stories are, I'd say, almost beautifully written: I came to love Peattie's use of language. On the other hand, because the stories are really quite short -- I doubt if any is longer than six pages -- several of them have a sense of inconsequentiality about them, and in a couple of cases (notably "The House that was Not") it was as if Peattie had reached the end of an allotted number of words and hurriedly wrapped things up, whether the story was properly complete or not. That said, I relished her style and wit enough that this didn't much bother me.
And some of the stories are really very good. "On the Northern Ice" (which I think I may have read before) is a poignant tale of a woman returning from beyond the grave to save her lover as he skates through a wintry night. "From the Loom of the Dead" sees a dead mother persuade a selfish stepmother to take better care of the dead woman's child. The standout for me is "The Room of the Evil Thought," which isn't a ghost story but has some of the creepiness you'd expect from one.
There's no real attempt to scare here on the author's part; while I'd not say any of the stories are outright humorous, I found myself often enough smiling at their wryness. As I say, what captivated me here was the writing. I'm off to see what else Gutenberg has by Peattie . . .
December 20, 2016
New to me.
I discovered this author from one of. My Facebook groups. We read one of the short stories featured in this book and I liked it so much I got this book. The stories are short & good and easy to read. If you like classic ghost stories, I'd say try this one.
I discovered this author from one of. My Facebook groups. We read one of the short stories featured in this book and I liked it so much I got this book. The stories are short & good and easy to read. If you like classic ghost stories, I'd say try this one.
August 7, 2019
I have arranged my takeaway thoughts on the title story into a haiku:
"Shucking off your fate,
You’ll always be haunted by
Who you could have been."
"Shucking off your fate,
You’ll always be haunted by
Who you could have been."
December 3, 2019
This book is one of eight written by Frank Belknap Long between 1969 and 1977 under the Lyda Belknap Long pseudonym. These novels have a small cult following among horror aficionados to the extent they are known at all.
I spent just over $20 for my copy of this book. It was the one and only I could find for sale anywhere. I hoped it was a lost or overlooked literary treasure waiting for me to rediscover it and really wanted to like it. Unfortunately, the novel is deeply flawed. I can ignore the four or five typos. Even the first name of the pseudonym is misspelled (on the cover only, it's "Lyda" on the title and copyright pages). The back cover says the protagonist's name is Andrea. Close; it's actually Jocelyn. I point all this out by way of showing how little care was put into the book's execution.
Since Long was born in 1901 he was quite old when he wrote this. This one shows a corresponding lack of coherence in reasoning and plot.
Okay, the plot is that a famous New England artist invites his most promising six New York college students to his coastal Massachusetts mansion to spend the summer honing their artistic craft under his further tutelage. The protagonist takes him up on the offer, rides the bus up, and prepares to move in. Before she gets there, she gets warnings from a fellow bus rider, and then she gets attacked on her way there and in the mansion itself.
That's all okay as far as it goes except the attacks all come from nowhere, seem unmotivated, and people fail to respond to them in a way that seems at all likely. The melodrama continues in this haphazard fashion for many pages, but then is all explained in a massive dump at the end.
I've seen more coherent Scooby Doo 1970s cartoons, which this story really reminded me of, only with more reasonable plot structures. It was amazing just how poor the writing style and plot ideas were. The author made frequent use of the vernacular "you" when intruding his third person narration. The other student who was murdered happened to be found four miles down the beach on the first and only night the protagonist happened to be out and strolling about for fresh air. A four mile stroll by herself after suffering debilitating attacks! Good thing for the plot she chose the right direction for her moonlight stroll. The entire plot with its narrated deus ex machinas at the end were so laughably awful.
At least it was an easy read and did have some measure of suspense to keep a reader going, which is why I don't give it a one star rating. Recommended for readers who really like watching the Lifetime channel, melodrama, suspense, mild attempts at romance, and don't have at all sophisticated demands--14-year-old challenged girl readers perhaps?
I spent just over $20 for my copy of this book. It was the one and only I could find for sale anywhere. I hoped it was a lost or overlooked literary treasure waiting for me to rediscover it and really wanted to like it. Unfortunately, the novel is deeply flawed. I can ignore the four or five typos. Even the first name of the pseudonym is misspelled (on the cover only, it's "Lyda" on the title and copyright pages). The back cover says the protagonist's name is Andrea. Close; it's actually Jocelyn. I point all this out by way of showing how little care was put into the book's execution.
Since Long was born in 1901 he was quite old when he wrote this. This one shows a corresponding lack of coherence in reasoning and plot.
Okay, the plot is that a famous New England artist invites his most promising six New York college students to his coastal Massachusetts mansion to spend the summer honing their artistic craft under his further tutelage. The protagonist takes him up on the offer, rides the bus up, and prepares to move in. Before she gets there, she gets warnings from a fellow bus rider, and then she gets attacked on her way there and in the mansion itself.
That's all okay as far as it goes except the attacks all come from nowhere, seem unmotivated, and people fail to respond to them in a way that seems at all likely. The melodrama continues in this haphazard fashion for many pages, but then is all explained in a massive dump at the end.
I've seen more coherent Scooby Doo 1970s cartoons, which this story really reminded me of, only with more reasonable plot structures. It was amazing just how poor the writing style and plot ideas were. The author made frequent use of the vernacular "you" when intruding his third person narration. The other student who was murdered happened to be found four miles down the beach on the first and only night the protagonist happened to be out and strolling about for fresh air. A four mile stroll by herself after suffering debilitating attacks! Good thing for the plot she chose the right direction for her moonlight stroll. The entire plot with its narrated deus ex machinas at the end were so laughably awful.
At least it was an easy read and did have some measure of suspense to keep a reader going, which is why I don't give it a one star rating. Recommended for readers who really like watching the Lifetime channel, melodrama, suspense, mild attempts at romance, and don't have at all sophisticated demands--14-year-old challenged girl readers perhaps?
January 23, 2015
This is an odd little collection of late-Victorian era ghost stories, often too short and undeveloped unfortunately. As someone who has read a lot of folklore and ghost stories, the tropes used are ones I am very familiar with and feel like they were adapted from common folk tales.
For example, the second story "On the Northern Ice" is about a skiing ghost which a man follows, and saves his life. I swear I've read almost this exact tale from Musick's West Virginia ghost story collection "Coffin Hollow."
We get ghosts whose appearance presages their own deaths. We get people entering haunted houses and unknowingly holding conference with ghosts, only to discover the next day that the house has been unoccupied for years. We get helpful ghosts who bring aid to people in the time of need. We get a couple ghosts who just continue to do the stuff they once did in life.
There are some interesting ideas here like in "The House That Was Not" about the mirage of a house where a great tragedy occurred which disappears as one draws near. In "The Room of the Evil Thought" we encounter a room which seems to inspire people to murder. "From the Loom of the Dead" is interesting for it's Icelandic setting and unearthly atmosphere. More developed, these tales could have been quite good and original.
The first story here "The Shape of Fear" does generate some weirdness, because it's not really a ghost story. It's about a man who falls in with those who celebrate “art for art’s sake” and falls into drink and love with a cruel woman. He fears the dark and what it might reveal about his wasted life. Confused? Yeah...me too.
For example, the second story "On the Northern Ice" is about a skiing ghost which a man follows, and saves his life. I swear I've read almost this exact tale from Musick's West Virginia ghost story collection "Coffin Hollow."
We get ghosts whose appearance presages their own deaths. We get people entering haunted houses and unknowingly holding conference with ghosts, only to discover the next day that the house has been unoccupied for years. We get helpful ghosts who bring aid to people in the time of need. We get a couple ghosts who just continue to do the stuff they once did in life.
There are some interesting ideas here like in "The House That Was Not" about the mirage of a house where a great tragedy occurred which disappears as one draws near. In "The Room of the Evil Thought" we encounter a room which seems to inspire people to murder. "From the Loom of the Dead" is interesting for it's Icelandic setting and unearthly atmosphere. More developed, these tales could have been quite good and original.
The first story here "The Shape of Fear" does generate some weirdness, because it's not really a ghost story. It's about a man who falls in with those who celebrate “art for art’s sake” and falls into drink and love with a cruel woman. He fears the dark and what it might reveal about his wasted life. Confused? Yeah...me too.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews