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On an Odd Note
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The discovery of piles of bones seeming to belong to a previously unknown species of monster will help to unfold a macabre and grisly tale. – A lady is found dead in her bed, the apparent victim of a murder the coroner proves could not possibly have occurred. – A merman found by fishermen off the coast of Brighton in 1745 will reveal the truth behind one of the most terrib
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A collection of weird little short stories, some pretty disturbing, beautifully written. As good as Dahl's short stories to my mind. Baffled by how this author is so comprehensively forgotten.
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Enjoyably weird little stories about unusual misadventures with unusual characters. There may be some familiarity with a few of the concepts (ventriloquist's dummy, Faust stand-in, etc.), but they're still their own thing, and they're all well-written. In the same arena as John Collier, Fritz Leiber, and John Keir Cross, among others.
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Interesting stories!
This is a small paperback collection, printed once, by Ballatine Books in 1958. It contains thirteen of Kersh's short stories, published in literary magazines and cheap periodicals in the 1940's and 50's. Its original price was 35¢. In it are the transitionary stories from Kersh's realistic fiction to his more outlandish science-fiction and horror. We find outlandish tales such as "Reflections in a Tablespoon" where a man encouters a waiter from a restaurant he used to visit, and they reflect on
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The guy's a very nice stylist, and the first several offerings were strong indeed. Unfortunately though he too often used the "here's a story I heard a while ago" approach, along with retaining his given name. The last few were pretty goofy, and almost made me give this collection 3 stars. Then too there was the all too familiar item about the ventriloquist and his dummy, appearing in print just a year after the movie Dead Of Night (although perhaps somehow or other he actually was the one to in
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A nice mixture of horror, suspense, and thriller stories that is reminiscent of the old One Step Beyond series or Alfred Hitchcock Presents. Kind of outdated but a simple, engaging read all throughout the book.
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Horror Aficionados : On an Odd Note (1958) by Gerald Kersh | 4 | 12 | Jan 17, 2015 06:22AM | |
| Valancourt Books: On an Odd Note (1958) by Gerald Kersh | 3 | 9 | Jan 17, 2015 06:21AM |
Readers also enjoyed
Gerald Kersh was born in Teddington-on-Thames, near London, and, like so many writers, quit school to take on a series of jobs -- salesman, baker, fish-and-chips cook, nightclub bouncer, freelance newspaper reporter and at the same time was writing his first two novels.
In 1937, his third published novel, Night and the City, hurled him into the front ranks of young British writers. Twenty novels la ...more
In 1937, his third published novel, Night and the City, hurled him into the front ranks of young British writers. Twenty novels la ...more
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