Again this suffers from the anthology problem where the quality isn't really consistent and it was hard to pick stand outs as stuff kind of blurred together. There's only 1 outright bad story here I think but i get the feeling some weaker stories were chosen just because they're more obscure and not printed before or whatever. Which is interesting in its own way! But difficult to rate on a pure enjoyment level.

My favourite was really barely a horror story, California Burning by Michael Blumlein - about the aftermath of death and what we really know about someone. Also stylistically I found myself drawn more to the older stuff from Victorian era and a bit after - even when the horror is bad and cliche the approach really works for me ( )

The Valancourt Book of Horror Stories: Volume One is one of my favorite collections of this year, and that's saying a lot because I've read some STELLAR collections in 2016.

This is one of the rare times that every. single. story. worked. The stand-outs to me were:

Miss Mack by Michael McDowell. It's McDowell. How could it not be good? This starts out as such a nice story about a friendship between two women and then it takes a sharp turn into darkness. Permanent darkness.

Furnished Apartments by Forest Reid (I would be remiss if I did not mention the excellent intro to this little known author's story. This, and the story itself made me want to immediately read more of Reid's work.) This is a creepy little story about (surprise!) a furnished apartment for rent.

A Psychological Experiment by Richard Marsh Most known these days for his novel, "The Beetle", Richard Marsh wrote over 80 books and 300 short stories. This particular tale is a delicious story of revenge featuring some creepy crawlies. I absolutely loved it.

The Progress of Arthur Crabbe by Stephen Gregory Stephen Gregory is another favorite author of mine. He's not as prolific as I wish he would be. Valancourt somehow dug up this nasty tale, (which, once again, features a bird), originally published in the Illustrated London News back in 1982. I am so glad they did! I have read everything I could get my hands on from Mr. Gregory. Without Valancourt, I would never have had the opportunity to read this gem.

California Burning by Michael Blumlein Michael Blumlein is another author introduced to me via Valancourt Books. They published his collection: The Brains of Rats which contains one of the most disturbing short stories I've ever read. Once again, Blumlein knocked my socks off with this story of a man whose bones would not burn.

The Terror on Tobit by Charles Birkin A beautifully written tale and one I found to send chills up my spine. Not only because of the spookiness of the story, but because of the amazing prose. I've never even heard of this guy before, but now I want to read everything he's written.

The Head and the Hand by Christopher Priest Probably most well known in horror circles for his novel The Prestige , Christopher Priest's contribution to this collection was superb. It reminded me a bit of Katherine Dunn's Geek Love and makes me wonder if she ever read The Head and the Hand. It's a rather weird tale, but I loved it. Plus it made me REALLY want to read The Prestige which has been sitting on my Kindle for well over a year.

I could go on and on, because as I said every story in this collection worked for me. I can't write a review that's a long as the book though, so just a few more things. The intros to these stories were excellent. Many of them talk about how these authors were prolific back in their day and now have been forgotten. I love that Valancourt is dedicated to bringing these authors back into the public eye. I'm going to do my best to read more of the authors that appealed most to me, like Priest and Birkin.

This collection receives my highest recommendation! Every single story is thought provoking and even the introductions to the tales are well written and informative. Plus, these aren't a bunch of stories that you've already read in countless other collections and anthologies. Valancourt worked hard to bring you enticing pieces that will likely be unfamiliar to most contemporary horror readers. All I can say to that is BRAVO! (And MORE, PLEASE!!)

Get your own copy here: The Valancourt Book of Horror Stories

*A free copy of this book was provided in exchange for an honest review. This is it!* ( )

The Valancourt Book of Horror Stories, Volume One is a collection of rarely anthologized tales. Editors James D. Jenkins and Ryan Cagle have a sharp eye for assembling a collection that exhibits an unwavering thread of dark malevolence. The stories range from the Gothic to the Victorian Era and through to the present day. And for the most part, these are solid, well-crafted tales with a certain crispness in style and sharpness in their storytelling. And Valancourt thoughtfully precedes each story with a short blurb, neatly placing both the author and story in historical and literary context. Only a handful fail to intrigue, including Michael Blumlein’s “California Burning” (a darkly humorous story of a corpse that refuses to be cremated, against a backdrop of raging California wildfires), Christopher Priest’s “The Head and the Hand” (just too gruesome for my taste), and Hugh Fleetwood’s “Something Happened” (a curious tale of a Marek, a “lazy good-for-nothing“ and his magical encounters with the mysterious Mr. Smith) all of which are among the more recent tales in this anthology. That said, these ten are the standouts:

Aunty Green - John Blackburn.... A terrific dark tale of revenge.
Miss Mack - Michael McDowell... Another dark tale of jealousy and revenge. This one’s horror seems to linger with you...
A Psychological Experiment - Richard Marsh.... A group conversation of murders and suicides slides into a one-on-one confrontation, and then further devolves into a taunting accusation.
The Progress of John Arthur Crabbe - Stephen Gregory.... A mentally deficient boy’s strange power to heal small animals is only the the prelude to a more astounding feat.
The Frozen Man - John Trevena.... Wonderfully atmospheric tale of the icy north lands, with some truly chilling moments.
Let Loose - Mary Cholmondeley.... An architect wheedles his way into a long-shuttered crypt to study its frescoes, and learns why entry has been forbidden.
Out of Sorts - Bernard Taylor.... A sly comic tale that culminates with a terrific punchline.
The Ghost of Charlotte Cray - Florence Marryat.... An excellent Victorian ghost story of jealousy and obsession.
The Terror on Tobit - Charles Birkin.... A good little monster story; another one where the chilling dread lingers on...
The Tarn - Hugh Walpole.... Walpole gives a wink and a nod to Poe in this tale of revenge taken by Fenwick for the many times that Foster “interfered” with his happiness. ( )

Read Volume One after Volume Two, and I think it was the weaker of the two. The first volume seemed to contain a more traditional selection of stories. Although sufficiently entertaining, few were surprising. Standouts were the stories by Michael McDowell and Christopher Priest. ( )

Yet another wonderful compilation from Valancourt Books and what a delight this is. Putting together a number of unknown (to me anyway) authors with each story including an introduction about the writer and what is to follow. So what stood out?" California Burning" by Michael Blumlein...A rather dark comic view on the inability of a crematorium to safely dispose of some human remains came with a subliminal message...we all hold secrets and we are all not what we seem. Of course having read this tale I was intrigued to learn a little more about the author and the fact that he was also a physician by profession certainly added some intrigue to his writing. I shall be checking out "The Brains of Rats" by Michael Blumlein in the very near future (what a wonderful macabre title!)

"The Frozen Man" by John Trevena was very Lovecraftian (Mountains of Madness) in both its content and execution. An expedition sent out on a journey of investigation to the North as...."some Germans were passing through the country further north, trapping and shooting all the furs they could find, thereby infringing upon the rights of the Governor and Company of Adventurers of England trading into Hudson's Bay." I love this type of story with the cold and desolation creating its own terror and the madness that must surely happen!

"The Ghost of Charlotte Cray" a sublime and classic ghost story. Sigismund Braggett, publisher, caught between the love of two women; Emily Primrose and the divine Miss Cray. Braggett had hoped that the two women might meet but this idea faded to nothing (or did it!) when the body of Charlotte Cray was discovered at her lodgings in Hammersmith.

"The Gentleman all in Black" by Gerald Kersh is a familiar Faustian theme of selling one's soul to the devil. It's a short snappy tale to end, and brings to a conclusion a very varied and exciting compilation. Valancourt Books are amazing; They are bringing back into print and helping us discover rare and special books and by so doing introducing us to some amazing authors and their works. A special thanks to them for supplying me with a gratis copy for a fair and honest review and that is what I have written. ( )