Geraint Wyn Davies

I love a great ghost story. An entire shelf of my home library is dedicated to ghostly tales ranging from classic haunted house tales to urban legends. When I saw this audiobook available on my local library's digital service, I borrowed it immediately. I never pass up the chance to enjoy a good spooky story!

Great Classic Hauntings gathers six spooky tales from classic authors including Ambrose Bierce, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Edgar Allan Poe. I had read all of these stories before, but there is just something enjoyable about having them read to me, even if the plots are familiar. :)

Geraint Wyn Davies does a superb job of narrating these stories. Davies is a British-Canadian stage, film and television actor/director. He read the tales with perfect clarity, pitch and speed. So enjoyable! I am learning to like audiobooks and already know that the wrong narrator, or an annoying voice/reading style, can ruin the experience. That was not the case with this audiobook -- Davies was a perfect choice for reading these six great tales!

Tales in this audiobook anthology include: A Watcher By the Dead by Ambrose Bierce; The Body-Snatchers by Robert Louis Stevenson; The Adventure of the German Student by Washington Irving; Dickon the Devil by J. Sheridan Le Fanu; The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe; and The Open Window by Saki.

My favorite was The Fall of the House of Usher. Poe is a masterful storyteller, and Davies narration was spine-chilling!! But, every story in this audio anthology was awesome!

All of the stories are unabridged. Running time for the audio book is just under 3 hours.

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These are the stories contained within Great Classic Hauntings:

'A Watcher by the Dead' by Ambrose Bierce ***
A man accepts a bed to spend a night locked in with a corpse.

'The Body Snatcher' by Robert Louis Stevenson ***1/2
An eerie tale from the time of the infamous Burke and Hare. I don't doubt that the 'Dr. K' in this story is that duo's equally infamous customer, Dr. Knox. (The Boris Karloff movie differs from it somewhat, but retains the atmosphere.)

'The Adventure of the German Student' by Washington Irving ***1/2
A student with a strange obsession has been sent to study in France. He didn't have sense enough to go home when the French Revolution started. I'm probably not being fair to this story, but I had to study it for several literature classes. It also appears in several of my anthologies.

'Dickon the Devil' by J. Sheridan Le Fanu ***1/2
The Squire was a mild-mannered man when he was alive. Dead, his ghost doesn't take kindly to the fact that two relatives he couldn't stand inherited his estate.

'The Fall of the House of Usher' by Edgar Allen Poe****
This is probably the most famous story in this collection. Our narrator is visiting his melancholy old friend in his melancholy old mansion. The friend and his sister are the last of the ancient Usher family, and the sister is very unwell.

'The Open Window' by Saki [Hector Hugh Munro] ****
As I was listening, I realized I knew this one from my old Alfred Hitchcock Presents Ghost Stories for Young People record. Far from having my enjoyment spoiled, I found myself grinning while waiting for the ending.

'Letters of introduction' were a safeguard in the days before internet background checks. Was there a stranger in the neighborhood? That stranger had better have a letter from a trusted person stating that the stranger was trustworthy. Saki's stranger with letters of introduction meets a young woman who tells him a tragic tale.

Mr. Davies' narration worked well for these classics.… (más)