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thevampiremars's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
3.5
My views on each individual story, in the order in which British Weird presents them:
Man-size in Marble by Edith Nesbit (1893) – 3.0☆
A neat concept which could have been fleshed out a little more.
No-Man’s-Land by John Buchan (1900) – 4.0☆
Starts off as an intriguing mix of anthropology and cryptozoology, but ends up leaning into the former (with all the racist undertones you’d expect from a story of this era). It is well written, though.
The Willows by Algernon Blackwood (1907) – 5.0☆
Spectacular. I honestly do not understand how Blackwood pulled it off (a horror story which closes with the words “like an otter” ???) A fascinating exploration of subjectivity and objectivity, truth, ignorance, and the unknowable.
Caterpillars by E F Benson (1912) – 3.5☆
The constant second-guessing and use of disclaimers undercut it a bit, but the concept was solid enough and the payoff was satisfying.
The Bad Lands by John Metcalfe (1920) – 2.5☆
Not for me. I’m not entirely sure what the author was going for or what the point of the story was.
Randalls Round by Eleanor Scott (1927) – 2.5☆
The “spooky folk traditions” trope doesn’t really do anything for me. Also, I found it odd that the author chose to write in the third person rather than the first.
Lost Keep by L A Lewis (1934) – 4.5☆
Kind of silly but well executed. The twists and turns and time skips make for an engaging story.
N by Arthur Machen (1934) – 2.0☆
Incredibly dry. I feel bad giving it such a low rating but it legitimately bored me to tears. I could not tell you what it’s about.
Mappa Mundi by Mary Butts (1937) – 3.0☆
I really don’t know what to make of this one. While the atmosphere is certainly otherworldly and ethereal, it lacks the horror element and instead feels kind of... wistful? It also gives off extremely queer vibes but maybe that’s just me.
The collection ends with an essay (also by Mary Butts) called “Ghosties and Ghoulies: Uses of the Supernatural in English Fiction.” It wasn’t great. I won’t give it a rating, though, because I read this book for the short stories, not this essay.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Kidnapping, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Moderate: Animal death, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Torture, Blood, and Murder
Minor: Ableism, Body horror, Cancer, Gore, Homophobia, Misogyny, Rape, Suicide, Terminal illness, Xenophobia, Vomit, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol
Other content warnings: restraint, human sacrifice, drowning, tooth extraction, eugenics
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