Adrift on the Haunted Seas: The Best Short Stories

by William Hope Hodgson

William Hope Hodgson (1877-1918) is acknowledged as one of the undisputed masters of the sea story. There has never been a collection of his very best short stories offered to the trade. Hodgson's sea stories have unusual authenticity owing to his having spent a lot of time on merchant's ships-he left his family in 1890 at the age of thirteen to spend eight years at sea, where the experience of mistreatment, poor pay, and worse food was contrasted by Hodgson's immeasurable fascination with the sea. His obsession for the sea fills his writings. This volume collects the very best of Hodgson's sea stories-which has not been done before-with some of the most exciting and dramatic creatures of fantasy on the written page, exhibiting the sea in all her moods: wonder, mystery, beauty, and terror."This collection brings together the very best of his short stories, together with a sampling of his poetry. It includes a variety of his sea horrors along with two non-fantastic pieces: "On the Bridge," a journalistic story written immediately after the sinking of the Titanic which attempts to show some of the various factors which contributed to the tragedy, and the suspenseful nonfiction story "Through the Vortex of a Cyclone," which is based on Hodgson's own experiences at sea." - From the Introduction by Douglas A. Anderson

"Among connoisseurs of fantasy fiction William Hope Hodgson deserves a high and permanent rank . . . Few can equal him in adumbrating the nearness of nameless forces and monstrous besieging entities through casual hints and significant details, or in conveying feelings of the spectral and abnormal." - H. P. Lovecraft

"Among those fiction writers who have elected to deal with the shadowlands

and borderlands of human existence, William Hope Hodgson surely merits a place with the very few that inform their treatment of such themes with a sense of authenticity." - Clark Ashton Smith

Genres: Horror, Fiction, Short Stories, Fantasy, Classics, Gothic

288 pages, Paperback

First published October 18, 2005

About the author

William Hope Hodgson was an English author. He produced a large body of work, consisting of essays, short fiction, and novels, spanning several overlapping genres including horror, fantastic fiction, and science fiction. Early in his writing career he dedicated effort to poetry, although few of his poems were published during his lifetime. He also attracted some notice as a photographer and achieved some renown as a bodybuilder. Hodgson served with the British Army durng World War One. He died, at age 40, at Ypres, killed by German artillery fire.

Reviews

[J.R. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would say realistically this was a 3.5. Some of the stories, like "a Tropical Horror," "The Voice in the Night," "The Voice in the Dawn," "An Adventure in Deep Waters" and "The Haunted Pampero" are either great fun or moody and atmospheric. "Voice in the Night" in particular is basically he ur-text for fungal infestation stories. Some of the selections in this "best of" are a bit strange (Why begin with the non-supernatural, weirdly defensive and off-putting 2 page vignette "On the Bridge?).

If you want to hear our fairly in-depth and irreverent podcast treatment, check out our three-part series on the Horror of Nachos and Hamantaschen:

http://thehorrorofnachosandhamantasch...

[Steven · Rating 5 out of 5]

A collection of the best nautical ghost and giant monster stories told with a mix of sailing terminology and classic storytelling.

[Fishface · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great collection of piscatorial horror stories by a little-remembered, but very influential Gothic writer. Great stuff on every page. Quite chilling. This collection includes the all-important "A Voice In The Night," source of one of my all-time favorite movies, MATANGO.

[David L · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here are sea stories with elements of sci-fi and horror written in the early decades of the last century by an ex-sailor who had a strong influence on those genres. I found most of them ripping yarns full of atmosphere and action. Occasionally he was too outlandish and once he lessened a story’s impact with a “scientific” explanation. He made much use of sea monsters but I was more impressed with his use of plants, of all things, especially in his use of the weed-choked Sargasso Sea as a death trap for the unlucky.

[Howard Kistler · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very fine collection of Hodgson's short fiction, rich with his tales of nautical horror. Stories of especial note in this collection are The Voice In The Night and The Stone Ship (both of which received wonderful radio adaptations), The Derelict, Out Of The Storm, and The Finding Of The Graiken. These will show that the sea is a place equal to the land in its capacity to hold unknown wonders and terrors. Terrors all the more primal, because upon the seas we are no longer natives, but uninvited guests.

[Brian Tacik · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this because clearly Mike Mignola was influenced by these ghost & monster stories on the sea. You know, I should have read this when I was twelve because it has hard to swallow. Glad though that I read this source material and that I know have an understanding of Hodgson's work. Will never read him again. I should probably try Night Land, but why?

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fine collection. Even though you probably would not say that any of these stories are great, and they are somewhat repetitive, the fact is I enjoyed each and every one and looked forward to reading the next. If you like the sea and eerie stories of the abominations hidden therein this is your book!