A review by chris_davies
Black Gate Tales by Paul Draper
2.0
If you are going to write an introduction in which you place yourself alongside the likes of M.R. James, Sheridan Le Fanu and Ambrose Bierce, you had better have some pretty impressive material to back it up. Sadly, for me, Paul Draper falls a long way short.
What I found here was a collection of very short tales, most of which lack any sort of suspense or surprise. For the most part, they tread well worn and predictable paths, in such a brief fashion that there is no time to even begin to build some tension. It might not be so bad if there was something in the writing style to catch the eye, but it is very plain, almost as if these were treatments or first drafts for longer stories.
It's not all bad - one or two stories buck the trend by providing something different - a touch of humour in 'Mrs Pendleton's Corpse' and of the surreal in 'The Undertow'. But these are nuggets of flavour in what is otherwise rather bland fare. I wanted to like it, I really did, keeping it by my bedside in the hope of some late night scares but, unlike the ghosts, these didn't materialise.
If you are looking for great, really short tales, try Janet Frame. If it's ghost stories you want, this book at least serves to provide a list of authors to seek out.
What I found here was a collection of very short tales, most of which lack any sort of suspense or surprise. For the most part, they tread well worn and predictable paths, in such a brief fashion that there is no time to even begin to build some tension. It might not be so bad if there was something in the writing style to catch the eye, but it is very plain, almost as if these were treatments or first drafts for longer stories.
It's not all bad - one or two stories buck the trend by providing something different - a touch of humour in 'Mrs Pendleton's Corpse' and of the surreal in 'The Undertow'. But these are nuggets of flavour in what is otherwise rather bland fare. I wanted to like it, I really did, keeping it by my bedside in the hope of some late night scares but, unlike the ghosts, these didn't materialise.
If you are looking for great, really short tales, try Janet Frame. If it's ghost stories you want, this book at least serves to provide a list of authors to seek out.