Literary Horror discussion
This topic is about
Morbid Tales
Monthly Reads
>
November 2014 Monthly Read: Morbid Tales
date
newest »
newest »
message 1:
by
Holly
(new)
Oct 27, 2014 06:20AM
This book is pretty rare, it is not available at any library in our state. There were no used copies for sale on Amazon. I don't do e-books, so I will just follow along with the discussion and learn what I can. Don't worry about spoilers, they always pique my curiosity and make me want to read the book even more.
reply
|
flag
I may not have time to participate in this month's read, as my November is pretty booked up. (Ha, get it?) However, if I can make it, I will. :)
Not yet. Hopefully l'll get started later this week.
I'm going to re-read The Mermaid soon...just letting you know I'm still alive, breathing & reading.
Attention to everyone wishing to get the paperback: Tartarus often says "sold out" when stocks dwindle, yet they still may have stock, just inquire with Ray and ask; world shipping is always included in the price.
1. I read the intro by Mark Samuels. Mark Samuels is an excellent writer of weird tales himself, and his story collections would make for a fine group read.2. I re-read the story "The Mermaid." I think its a good story, though a little disgressive in the beginning. The story has a supernatural tragic romance plot. I like those kind of stories. Others who wrote that type of story are Robert Aickman and Daphne DuMaurier.
Alas, I won't be commenting on this book (I have the electronic version) in the next few days. I have a hard drive problem on my recently bought computer. The computer is on warranty, though, and I'll get a new hard drive in a few days.
Cousin X was in one of the Tartarus Press Strange Tales anthologies (the first, perhaps?), and was the first story I ever read by Mr. Crisp. I still recall the frisson of otherness and otherworldly terror it instilled in me. I knew right away Quentin would become one of my favourite writers. He expressed sensations in a way that made me feel that he could somehow delve deep within my psyche. Powerful stuff. This thread has given me a severe longing to re-read Morbid Tales, one of the best collections of any sort of fiction I have ever read!
Randolph wrote: "Finished Cousin X, another longer story but not quite as long as The Mermaid. Crisp is striking a tone of tragedy so far through all these stories albeit in different ways in each. I seem to ha..."
Crisp often provokes a feeling of deja vu in me. I swore I read The Tatooist online somewhere in the early naughts but I have heard subsequently that this is quite impossible.
I'm back. I liked the story "Far-Off Things." Another supernatural tragic tale, with a Twilight Zone-style twist.
Randolph wrote: "I'm almost finished having just read The Tatooist. Even if the next story is the worst story I have ever read this is getting five stars."I know! "The Tatooist" is like nothing else! Along with his novella Shrike, novel "Remember You're a One-Ball!" and the stories "Ynys-y-Plag", "The Gay Wolf" & "Sado-ga-Shima"---these stories alone provide a strong testament to Crisp's mastery as a writer. I respect and admire no living writer more fervently.
Cousin X is another fine story. The Creepy Kid is an interesting trope in horror. The story is also partly metaphysical horror: Cousin X has a special way of seeing reality.
I read he story "A Lake" on the train going to, and from, work. Another fine story, this time cosmic/metaphysical horror.
In the story "The Two Timer" the narrator has the power to freeze time. I rate this story so-so.The story reminded me of the novel The Fermata by Nicholson Baker. The novel too has a narrator that can freeze time, and also has sexual content. I wasn't a fan of the novel either.
I finished reading the book.I really don't want to describe the plot of the last three stories. Of the last three stories, I liked "The Tattooist", then "Autumn Colors" and lastly "Ageless". This, I recognize, might be a matter of taste for the "The Tattooist" has a supernatural (and original) element. The last two stories are naturalistic. All three stories have a strong dose of sadness.
I plan to put up a review and rating in a few days. I leaning toward four stars.
