At Chrighton Abbey and Other Horror Stories [Paperback]

Mary Elizabeth Braddon (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 18, 2002

MARY ELIZABETH BRADDON (1835-1915) was one of the most prolific and popular authors of her day. She was responsible for no less than 80 novels, 9 plays, and dozens (perhaps hundreds) of short stories and articles, many of which were published pseudonymously in cheap and sensational magazine. Today Mary Elizabeth Braddon is remembered among fans of weird fiction for her classic horror and ghost stories, the most famous of which are collected herein. "At Chrighton Abbey" is a Christmas ghost story; "The Cold Embrace: is the story of a proud art student pursued by the ghost of a lover he scorned; "The Shadow in the Corner: uses rationalism to try to explain away a ghostly presence, with no success; "Good Lady Ducayne" is Braddon's updated reworking of the vampire myth, using Victorian-era medical knowledge instead of the supernatural (and it is all the more chilling because of its pluasibility); and "Eveline's Visitant" is the tale of two cousins who fight to the death over a woman-and the loser vows to haunt the one who killed him in his moment of greatest happiness. This volume is an excellent introduction to the fantastic works of Mary Elizabeth Braddon and a welcome addition to the Wildside Fantasy Classics line.

Product Details

• Paperback: 124 pages
• Publisher: Borgo Press (November 18, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 159224033X
• ISBN-13: 978-1592240333
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 5.9 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,029,155 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Five Good Ghost Stories from the Author of "Lady Audrey", June 19, 2004

By 

Tsuyoshi (Kyoto, Japan) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: At Chrighton Abbey and Other Horror Stories (Paperback)

[WHAT YOU CAN READ] This collection contains five short horror stories by Mary Elizabeth Braddon (1835-1915), prolific Victorian writer famous for her "Lady Audrey's Secret." These five stories are "At Chrighton Abbey" "The Cold Embrace" "The Shadow in the Corner" "Good Lady Ducayne" and "Eveline's Vistant."

[CONTENTS] The stories are all related to the horror themes in a lurid Victorian way, and wil give you all perfect reading in a country house at midnight. The contents are (some words I quote from the backcover): 'At Crighton Abbey' is a Christmas ghost story; 'The Cold Embrace' is the story of a proud art student pursued by the ghost; "The Shadow in the Corner' is about a frightening thing seen by a girl working for a man with a scientific mind; 'Good Lady Ducayne' is a spooky tale, and great anthology favorite too, dealing with a vampire theme (published one year before "Dracula" by Bram Stoker, friend of Braddon; and 'Eveline's Vistant' is the tale of two cousins who fight to the death over a woman. All the tales are chilling enough for modern readers, but what is remarkable is that Braddon deftly hides a sexual or social themes about contemporary women under these ghost stories, as she always does.

[EDITION] The book contains only these stories (besides a too brief introduction) and nothing else. No footnotes, no illustrations, no original publication data. And you may remember that all these tales here are also included in another collection titled "The Cold Embrace" edited by Richard Dalby (published by Ash-Tree Press).

[ORIGINAL PUBLICATION] "The Cold Embrace" is from "The Welcome Guest" 29, Sep. 1860. "Eveline's vistant" from "Belgravia" Jan. 1867. "At Chrighton Abbey" from "Belgravia Annual" 1871. "The Shadow in the COrner" from "All the Year Round" 1879. And "Good Lady Ducayne" from "The Strand Magazine" 1896.