except a few (about 4-5 from 26) that did not match my taste (but were not bad), the rest ranged from good to very, very good and also very much diverse in the types of terrors described. They are also all written my kind of style, realistic and straight to the point, without the artsy-pantsy ”not
really going anywhere worth the wait” I hate in Datlow anthologies, for example.
The word that summarizes this book is solid work, and it is a good collection to read thoroughly (but keep in mind it is a very big one, 26 stories, as I said).
4.5/5 for me - I will look for more Stephen Jones anthologies. ( )

We have here yet another excellent Stephen Jones anthology. While there were some stories that I liked better than others, I must say that there are no weak tales, and at least four unqualified masterpieces:

"Under the Crust" by Terry Lamsley. This was my favorite story, a masterpiece of weird horror. This book is probably the most inexpensive way to acquire this tale, and I recommend the book solely on that basis.

"Open Doors" by Michael Marshall Smith. This one is non-supernatural, which generally means, for me, that I will tend to not like it as much as its more fantastical counterparts. However, this tale is an absolute knockout, short, precise, and deeply chilling.

"The Chimney" by Ramsey Campbell. I had read this one previously, but it is so terrific that I reread it. Probably the finest Christmas-oriented horror story I've ever encountered. A classic of the genre.

"Among the Wolves" by David Case. This is another non-supernatural tale, a powerful novella, grisly and unforgettable. ( )

A great and creepy selection. Personal favourites from this volume are:

Fruiting Bodies - Brian Lumley.

Set on the crumbling North East coast this Lovecraftian tale of mysterious fungi is spine chillingly disturbing. Best read from an old and slightly musty copy of the book, just to add to the fright factor.

It Was The Heat - Pat Cadigan

Hot and sticky this one tells of an unconsidered danger of that business trip fling. Told so well that you'll want to open all the windows while you're reading it. ( )

I'm a big fan of Stephen Jones. I feel he's one of the few editors left that still understands the horror genre; each year I eagerly await his year's best collection (the award-winning Mammoth Book of Best New Horror). When I purchased his follow-up to 1991's Mammoth Book of Terror (which I unfortunately do not own (yet)), I had high expectations - horror stories rarely scare me anymore, but a book full of tales of terror? I'll get my nightlight ready!

Well, that wasn't exactly the case here. Jones' goal was not to collect together stories that were more frightening than what you'd find in his or any other year's best anthology. Instead, his goal was to collect stories that, in his words, "...for one reason or another are not currently in print, or have never been previously published on one side of the Atlantic or the other." That said, this is still a solid collection of short stories. However, while there are several stellar stories, there are a few duds as well.

Among the stellar entries are Karl Edward Wagner's "The Fourth Seal". I'm a huge supporter of including Wagner's work in any sort of anthology where it's appropriate; mostly because he is one of the giants of horror and dark fantasy, but also because collections of his short fiction are prohibitively expensive so it's nice to just get to read something of his every now and then. "The Fourth Seal" concerns a brilliant young doctor on the brink of a miraculous breakthrough in his research. However, he quickly learns that not every doctor is truly dedicated to the greater good and, perhaps, the very profession isn't all that it seems.

Another strong entry in this anthology is David Case's "Among the Wolves," a story that has been out of print for 30 years. It's the story of a young researcher on the periphery of an investigation of a string of local murders, believed to be the work of a maniac, and his discussion with an elderly ecologist who attempts to argue the actions of the killer from a natural perspective (rather than a anthropocentric one). He argues that the killer is only targeting the weak and the infirm, groups that, in nature, are often sacrificed to predators for the benefit of the species and that the human practice of taking care of the weak and infirm is, in fact, unnatural. The ending for the story was somewhat predictable, but I'm not certain if that was intentional, as it never seemed like Case took any particular precautions to mislead the reader, or if it's due to the age of the story (though I feel the former is closer to the truth).

Perhaps the weakest story in the book was Lisa Tuttle's "Tir Nan Og". Perhaps the biggest barrier keeping me from enjoying the story is that it's hard for me to relate to the protagonist, "a woman of a certain age" (in her 50s), unmarried and romantically involved with a married man. It also seemed there was nothing really horrific in this story; depressing, yes, perhaps even weird, but not horrific. It centers on this "woman of a certain age" coming to grips with the fact that the man she's involved with is quickly losing interest while she has discovered that her feelings for him are deeper than she suspected. Knowing what's coming, she turns to her circle of friends to ask how they coped with similar situations in their lives, and received some odd advice.

The Mammoth Book of New Terror is a good general introduction to contemporary horror. It covers all the basics, from stories about monsters to purely psychological terror to tales that mix sex and horror. Despite a few hiccups, the overall quality of the stories is good, and it's always nice to see a modern anthology that includes stories that have been out of print for years or even decades. ( )