olijeffery's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
littlelarks's review against another edition
4.0
The idea of smashing the glass ashtray over her husband's head had never before occurred to Margaret, but now it would not leave her mind. She stirred uneasily in her chair, thinking: what a terrible thought to have, whatever made me think of such a thing? Probably a perverted affectionate gesture, and she laughed.
"Funny?" her husband asked.
"Nothing," Margaret said.
She stood up and crossed the room to the hall door, without purpose. She was very uneasy, and looking at her husband did not help. The cord that held the curtains back made her think: strangle him. She told herself: it's not that I don't love him, I just feel morbid tonight. As though something bad were going to happen. A telegram coming, or the refrigerator breaking down. Drown him, the goldfish bowl suggested.
as a whole, this is the weakest Shirley Jackson collection i've read, but the presence of What A Thought immediately bumps the collection up to 4-stars, because this one story is so pitch-perfect and wicked and a pure distillation of everything i love about her style. other standouts are The Summer People and The Story We Used to Tell
"Funny?" her husband asked.
"Nothing," Margaret said.
She stood up and crossed the room to the hall door, without purpose. She was very uneasy, and looking at her husband did not help. The cord that held the curtains back made her think: strangle him. She told herself: it's not that I don't love him, I just feel morbid tonight. As though something bad were going to happen. A telegram coming, or the refrigerator breaking down. Drown him, the goldfish bowl suggested.
as a whole, this is the weakest Shirley Jackson collection i've read, but the presence of What A Thought immediately bumps the collection up to 4-stars, because this one story is so pitch-perfect and wicked and a pure distillation of everything i love about her style. other standouts are The Summer People and The Story We Used to Tell
erinbarton's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
3.0
my second short story collection of shirley jackson’s, the first being the lottery & other short stories. while i found that collection very hit or miss in my enjoyment of the stories, i thought this collection was very consistently middle of the road. would definitely recommend this if you are a fan of more subtle horror/suspense
fave stories - louisa please come home, what a thought, home, the summer people
ggttrrxx's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
remigves's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
helhas3letters's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
This collection of short stories is tied together by eeriness. The horror that Jackson writes here often comes from mistrust, secrecy, paranoia, and things seeming ever so slightly out of place. Dark Tales draws on one of the scariest ideas of all: how we, as humans, can never really know each other.
Jackson here has a great penchant for revealing the true meaning of a story, or a twist of events, in the last few paragraphs, sometimes even the last line. It makes for a great race to the end to see how she's going to pull back the curtain and uncover what's truly going on.
Overall enjoyed this book, although I felt that some of the stories - especially a chunk in the early-middle section - were a bit too ambiguous in their endings and meanings. For a couple of them I found myself searching online for explanations! But the ones that I did enjoy were brilliant, and I'm excited to read more of Shirley Jackson's work.
My favourite stories were The Possibility of Evil; Louisa, Please Come Home; Paranoia; and All She Said Was Yes. More detailed thoughts on the individual stories below:
1. The Possibility of Evil - A woman, whom everyone in the town knows, harbours a secret. Expertly told and a brilliant opener to the collection.
2. Louisa, Please Come Home - A young girl runs away from home to begin a new life. Delightfully spooky. The ending reminded me of The Twilight Zone.
3. Paranoia - Our main character is trying to get home for his wife's birthday, but he is being stalked by a man in a light hat. Wonderfully creepy. Just genius. Again, the twist ending sealed this one as a winner.
4. The Honeymoon of Mrs Smith - Describes a newly married couple on their honeymoon and the reactions of the people around them. I didn't understand - until reading about it online - what Jackson was trying to get across to the reader here. (And thankfully I don't appear to be the only one!)
5. The Story We Used to Tell - There's a picture on the wall that's quite unusual. Stands out because it was written, unlike the other stories, in first person, and has a paranormal element. I think the wording of ending sequence of events could have been clearer.
6. The Sorcerer’s Apprentice - A timid, lonely teacher meets the little girl from downstairs. An odd story, definitely unsettling, but I'm not sure I grasped the point. Too much unexplained for me.
7. Jack the Ripper - A man finds a young girl passed out in the street. I don't think I understood the meaning of this one, especially the ending.
8. The Beautiful Stranger - A woman's husband comes home after a business trip. Another very Twilight Zone-style story. A solidly enjoyable read.
9. All She Said Was Yes - The next-door-neighbours suffer a tragedy, and our main character takes their daughter in. Adored the way this was written and its use of dramatic irony. Jackson shows a great talent of putting us in the brain of the main character but still making their fatal flaws obvious.
10. What a Thought - An exploration of intrusive thoughts and relationships. Possibly the shortest of the bunch, but still great, and, I thought, quite humorous.
11. The Bus - A woman's bus journey goes very wrong. Ohhhhh so creepy, and really shows Jackson's fascination with strangers, trust, and concealed motives. This might have been the story that unsettled me the most, because I felt so awful for the main character! Probably the most 'horror' of all of them.
12. Family Treasures - A university student finds that she's only interesting to her housemates when she suffers a bereavement. Less creepy than the other stories, but a good thread of tension running throughout.
13. A Visit - A young girl goes to visit her school friend in her otherworldly mansion. Possibly the longest story, and divided into three parts. I liked the journey of this one and the vivid descriptions of the setting. The house almost seemed to be its own character. I cottoned on to the twist fairly early on and still enjoyed seeing how it played out - but am still not entirely certain of the details of the situation and what the story is supposed to mean.
14. The Good Wife - A tale of marriage and confinement, with a superb ending.
15. The Man in the Woods - A man, who has been walking for days through the woods, comes across a cabin. Easy to read, but I needed to clarify the ending afterwards.
16. Home - A couple move into a new old house. The only story that actually involves!
17. The Summer People - A couple decide to stay later at their Summer house than usual. The ending of this story snuck up on me! Not sure what to make of this one as I enjoyed it, but I don't know if I fully understand what the ending implies.
Jackson here has a great penchant for revealing the true meaning of a story, or a twist of events, in the last few paragraphs, sometimes even the last line. It makes for a great race to the end to see how she's going to pull back the curtain and uncover what's truly going on.
Overall enjoyed this book, although I felt that some of the stories - especially a chunk in the early-middle section - were a bit too ambiguous in their endings and meanings. For a couple of them I found myself searching online for explanations! But the ones that I did enjoy were brilliant, and I'm excited to read more of Shirley Jackson's work.
My favourite stories were The Possibility of Evil; Louisa, Please Come Home; Paranoia; and All She Said Was Yes. More detailed thoughts on the individual stories below:
1. The Possibility of Evil - A woman, whom everyone in the town knows, harbours a secret. Expertly told and a brilliant opener to the collection.
2. Louisa, Please Come Home - A young girl runs away from home to begin a new life. Delightfully spooky. The ending reminded me of The Twilight Zone.
3. Paranoia - Our main character is trying to get home for his wife's birthday, but he is being stalked by a man in a light hat. Wonderfully creepy. Just genius. Again, the twist ending sealed this one as a winner.
4. The Honeymoon of Mrs Smith - Describes a newly married couple on their honeymoon and the reactions of the people around them. I didn't understand - until reading about it online - what Jackson was trying to get across to the reader here. (And thankfully I don't appear to be the only one!)
5. The Story We Used to Tell - There's a picture on the wall that's quite unusual. Stands out because it was written, unlike the other stories, in first person, and has a paranormal element. I think the wording of ending sequence of events could have been clearer.
6. The Sorcerer’s Apprentice - A timid, lonely teacher meets the little girl from downstairs. An odd story, definitely unsettling, but I'm not sure I grasped the point. Too much unexplained for me.
7. Jack the Ripper - A man finds a young girl passed out in the street. I don't think I understood the meaning of this one, especially the ending.
8. The Beautiful Stranger - A woman's husband comes home after a business trip. Another very Twilight Zone-style story. A solidly enjoyable read.
9. All She Said Was Yes - The next-door-neighbours suffer a tragedy, and our main character takes their daughter in. Adored the way this was written and its use of dramatic irony. Jackson shows a great talent of putting us in the brain of the main character but still making their fatal flaws obvious.
10. What a Thought - An exploration of intrusive thoughts and relationships. Possibly the shortest of the bunch, but still great, and, I thought, quite humorous.
11. The Bus - A woman's bus journey goes very wrong. Ohhhhh so creepy, and really shows Jackson's fascination with strangers, trust, and concealed motives. This might have been the story that unsettled me the most, because I felt so awful for the main character! Probably the most 'horror' of all of them.
12. Family Treasures - A university student finds that she's only interesting to her housemates when she suffers a bereavement. Less creepy than the other stories, but a good thread of tension running throughout.
13. A Visit - A young girl goes to visit her school friend in her otherworldly mansion. Possibly the longest story, and divided into three parts. I liked the journey of this one and the vivid descriptions of the setting. The house almost seemed to be its own character. I cottoned on to the twist fairly early on and still enjoyed seeing how it played out - but am still not entirely certain of the details of the situation and what the story is supposed to mean.
14. The Good Wife - A tale of marriage and confinement, with a superb ending.
15. The Man in the Woods - A man, who has been walking for days through the woods, comes across a cabin. Easy to read, but I needed to clarify the ending afterwards.
16. Home - A couple move into a new old house. The only story that actually involves
Spoiler
ghosts17. The Summer People - A couple decide to stay later at their Summer house than usual. The ending of this story snuck up on me! Not sure what to make of this one as I enjoyed it, but I don't know if I fully understand what the ending implies.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Confinement, Stalking, and Violence
Minor: Addiction, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Alcoholism, Grief, Infidelity, Kidnapping, and Murder
dylankakoulli's review against another edition
3.0
She shoots, she scores!
That’s right folks, ol’ Shirl’s knocked it out the park once again!
As with many short stories (or Dark Tales as it were) this was a mixed bag of -magnificently menacing, to … well … minorly mundane -ok ok, enough alliteration jargon from me!
Devilishly dark indeed !
3.5 stars
That’s right folks, ol’ Shirl’s knocked it out the park once again!
As with many short stories (or Dark Tales as it were) this was a mixed bag of -magnificently menacing, to … well … minorly mundane -ok ok, enough alliteration jargon from me!
Devilishly dark indeed !
3.5 stars