If my mother ever told me the stories included in this collection, half of them would have put me to sleep. After reading two excellent Twilight Zone anthologies in December, I came to this Alfred Hitchcock collection expecting stories of similar quality. Regrettably, I was underwhelmed.

Oh, there were a few gems among the 13 tales, but some, such as "Smart Sucker" by Richard Wormser and "Hostage" by Don Stanford, built up to anti-climactic endings. "Witch's Money" by John Collier began with an interesting plot, but seemed to lose momentum and wander off.

My favorites from the collection include:

When a young woman commits suicide from a broken heart, her father decides to exact a long, slow revenge against the man responsible in "The Wall-to-Wall Grave" by Andrew Benedict.

American author Ambrose Bierce vanished in Chihuahua, Mexico in 1914. However, his final tale was found inside an unusual bottle found in the obscure village of Oxoxoco. Will "The Secret of the Bottle" by Gerald Kersch reveal the mystery of Ambrose Bierce's final days?

Ellen Baker returned from a train ride a very different person— distant, cold, aloof. Worse, she found an unsavory new boyfriend who is prone to violence and seems to have Ellen mesmerized. Determined to protect his best friend, Eddie follows Ellen aboard another train, only discover the eerie truth about her boyfriend during "A Short Trip Home" by F. Scott Fitzgerald.

When Fred Perkins receives an invitation from wealthy socialites to join them on their next hunting expedition, his first impulse is to decline. However, his wife and friends convince him that it would be a step forward for him socially. When the big day arrives, however, Fred wishes he followed his instincts and ignored "An Invitation to the Hunt" by George Hitchcock.

Every morning before breakfast Caroline's husband Pete is more than a bit surly, he's literally murderous! As such, Caroline often finds herself making "Adjustments" by George Mandel.

When Robert and Janet Allison decide to remain at their country cottage during the first month of autumn instead of leaving at the end of summer as they typically do, the locals seem strangely taken aback. Worse, bizarre calamities begin to occur that make the Allisons wish they had continued to be "The Summer People" by Shirley Jackson.

Traveling through Maine on what was supposed to be a sightseeing tour, Mr. Ketchum is pulled over for speeding in the seaside hamlet of Zachary, Maine. After being detained overnight, the police take Ketchum to the judge's house where he expects to pay his fine and finally be released, until he learns a horrible truth at the hands of "The Children of Noah" by Richard Matheson. ( )