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The Phantom Death and Other Stories
W. CLARK RUSSELL (1844-1911) was an English author, and a sailor for several years before he turned to journalism and fiction. He was well-regarded in his day for THE WRECK OF THE GROSVENOR and for THE DEATH SHIP, A STRANGE STORY (sometimes reprinted as THE FLYING DUTCHMAN). He wrote much on nautical topics and campaigned to improve working conditions for seamen. The Phantom Death and Other Stories collects 11 of Russell's classic horror-laced nautical stories, including: "The Phantom Death," "Brokers' Bay," "The Lazarette of the Huntress," "A Memory of the Pacific," "So Unnecessary ," "The Major's Commission," "A Nightmare of the Doldrums," "Try For Her in Fifty," "The Chiliman Tragedy," "The Secret of the Dead Mate," and "The Transport."
188 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2005
12 people want to read
About the author
William Clark Russell
451 books17 followersWilliam Clark Russell was a popular American writer of nautical novels and horror stories.
Russell gained his experience of sea life during eight years' service as a sailor. Then he was a journalist on the staff of the Daily Chronicle before he took to writing his many novels, only a few of which are listed here.
As a testament to the popularity of Russell's novels in his day, one can read about him at the beginning of the Sherlock Holmes story "The Five Orange Pips," where Doctor Watson is shown 'deep in one of Clark Russell's fine sea stories'.
According to modern scholar John Sutherland, The Wreck of the Grosvenor (1877) was "the most popular mid-Victorian melodrama of adventure and heroism at sea."[1] It remained popular and widely read in illustrated editions well into the first half of the 20th century.[2] It was Russell best selling and most well known novel.[2] Russell noted in a preface, the novel 'found its first and best welcome in the United States.'[1]
William Clark Russell was the son of composer Henry Russell, the brother of impresario Henry Russell, and the half brother of conductor Landon Ronald. His horror work has similarities to the nautical horror stories of William Hope Hodgson.
Russell gained his experience of sea life during eight years' service as a sailor. Then he was a journalist on the staff of the Daily Chronicle before he took to writing his many novels, only a few of which are listed here.
As a testament to the popularity of Russell's novels in his day, one can read about him at the beginning of the Sherlock Holmes story "The Five Orange Pips," where Doctor Watson is shown 'deep in one of Clark Russell's fine sea stories'.
According to modern scholar John Sutherland, The Wreck of the Grosvenor (1877) was "the most popular mid-Victorian melodrama of adventure and heroism at sea."[1] It remained popular and widely read in illustrated editions well into the first half of the 20th century.[2] It was Russell best selling and most well known novel.[2] Russell noted in a preface, the novel 'found its first and best welcome in the United States.'[1]
William Clark Russell was the son of composer Henry Russell, the brother of impresario Henry Russell, and the half brother of conductor Landon Ronald. His horror work has similarities to the nautical horror stories of William Hope Hodgson.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
March 10, 2020
What a great book. This book is long out of print. I found it quite at random when searching turn of the century (18th-19th) for free books that would be good to read at Halloween. With a name like "Phantom Death" I was pretty sure there may be some good stories in here for me. I promptly set it aside forgetting I have downloaded it.
Well, despite what some reviews state, this is not a book of horror stories. They are all short adventure mystery stories with a nautical theme to tie them together. Now, nautical themed books do not appeal to me in the least bit, and had I read this fact, I would not have downloaded and would not have started to read. I remember reading the first story, and as there will be no spoilers, I can say it was more along the line of a Sherlock Holmes story than anything else. This is one decent size book full of a number of short stories most of which caught me off guard by their endings. it took me a few stories to understand that these were not horror stories, but adventure mysteries. By that time I was pleasantly hooked.
I was so enthralled by this book, that while I started weekend reading on my kindle (Project Gutenberg), I also found it was available from librivox.org as a free of charge audio-book. It was immediately downloaded to my iPhone and I have enjoyed the last two weeks daily work commute listening to the stories. I will say that it is a particularly great librivox audio book. All of the readers are quite talented and it sounds like a professional production. I am unsure how the readers found this very obscure work and what set them to the task of putting it to voice. This book is so obscure indeed that there have not been any other reviews, and I am the first to review on this forum.
I would say that the language, as with other turn of the century writings is advanced for this generation of readers, but not overburdensomely so. I feel this is a book I wold have enjoyed in my late teenage years and I certainly enjoyed it in my quinquagenarian years. I would recommend it for those that have boys in home school. Out of all the books I have read in the last few years this rates as one of the best. If you have stumbled upon this review it is my sincere hope you will download the free Project Gutenburg or Librivox versions and enjoy and tell me what you think.
This is the first book I have read that caused me to think "I must share this" Enjoy!
Well, despite what some reviews state, this is not a book of horror stories. They are all short adventure mystery stories with a nautical theme to tie them together. Now, nautical themed books do not appeal to me in the least bit, and had I read this fact, I would not have downloaded and would not have started to read. I remember reading the first story, and as there will be no spoilers, I can say it was more along the line of a Sherlock Holmes story than anything else. This is one decent size book full of a number of short stories most of which caught me off guard by their endings. it took me a few stories to understand that these were not horror stories, but adventure mysteries. By that time I was pleasantly hooked.
I was so enthralled by this book, that while I started weekend reading on my kindle (Project Gutenberg), I also found it was available from librivox.org as a free of charge audio-book. It was immediately downloaded to my iPhone and I have enjoyed the last two weeks daily work commute listening to the stories. I will say that it is a particularly great librivox audio book. All of the readers are quite talented and it sounds like a professional production. I am unsure how the readers found this very obscure work and what set them to the task of putting it to voice. This book is so obscure indeed that there have not been any other reviews, and I am the first to review on this forum.
I would say that the language, as with other turn of the century writings is advanced for this generation of readers, but not overburdensomely so. I feel this is a book I wold have enjoyed in my late teenage years and I certainly enjoyed it in my quinquagenarian years. I would recommend it for those that have boys in home school. Out of all the books I have read in the last few years this rates as one of the best. If you have stumbled upon this review it is my sincere hope you will download the free Project Gutenburg or Librivox versions and enjoy and tell me what you think.
This is the first book I have read that caused me to think "I must share this" Enjoy!
Displaying 1 of 1 review