Customer Reviews

Le Horla (Pocket Classics) (French Edition)

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It's not for no reason that The Horla is widely regarded as the best horror story ever told. I advise anyone who contemplates reading this to pour themselves a good stiff gin before turning the pages!

The Horla is written in the style of a diary, and is set in a rural area of northern France, near the medieval city of Rouen. The author of the diary is a rich, reclusive gentleman who wants for nothing, and spends most his time and energy contemplating the great philosophical questions of life. He enjoys the simple pleasures of his existence - such as watching ships whizz along the Seine.

The story begins in a happy mood with the diarist full of life and complety content, but as the days pass by he becomes ill. At first he believes the ailment is physical, but it soon becomes apparent that the illness is mental. As strange things begin to happen around him - which can only be explained rationally by his own actions of which he is not aware - the reader is drawn into the mystery that forms the crux of the plot: is he really mad, or are supernatural forces at work?

Maupassant leaves us guessing all the way, and while initially it looks like a clear-cut case of madness, the diarist contemplates other, more terrifying explanations of the bizarre incidents that seem to take place in his house. The story ends in a shocking climax - which I won't spoil by revealing it here!

What makes The Horla the masterpiece that it is, is that it "works" on so many levels. The entries in the diary reveal that the author is completely clear-headed and lucid, and because he admits the possibility of being mad, this gives his later ideas of the supernatural the credibility they need to make the reader think twice about his condition. The horror builds gradually, and much of it is left unsaid. The reader is forced to employ a lot of imagination.

This a gem of a tale, and no self-respecting connoisseur of horror worth their salt should go without The Horla on their bookshelf!

We have all heard of Stephen King - but check out Guy De Maupassant. The Horla is probably the greatest short horror story ever written. If you like psychological horror and are looking for a new title or author then I strongly advise you to try the stories of Maupassant. Maupassant (who eventually went insane himsef) knows the real terrors that lurk around us...He's been there...
If you want the ultimate collection of his horror fiction then a 'must-buy' is The Divided Self by the same author.

This is the story of a strange creature that comes from some place and has some strange effects, but the most important thing in this book is the atmosphere that the author creates. Mauppassant's style is beautiful and precise. He has not a positive vision of the world, maybe because of this particular way of seeing this book is sometimes so terrible, and so beautiful at the same time. In addition to be greatly written, it is a good story: mysterious, but not silly or ridiculous. When I began reading I was fascinated, while the story goes on, I was more and more inside its universe of confusion, mystery and fear. Finally It touches me so deeply that I finish reading it with all my doors and windows closed. I was afraid, but I could not stop reading. Of course, I am not afraid anymore, I am glad for have reading this wonderful book.

Read this three days after you read Carmilla, or better yet, two days before if you can.

Where to begin?... Guy de Maupassant's genius shines through in this all-too-short tale of a tortured soul and his stalker vampire. It would be positively sinful to reveal any of the plot as the magic that is woven is delicate like spider silk, and holds you best when you have no idea hat is to come next. A truly chilling tale, all I can do is to implore you to experience it for yourself. To say any more would be like revealing the end of The Raven ("Nevermore") in recommending Poe.

A word of caution however. This version is in French. Be sure to buy the English version if that is the language you seek. It is often known as "The Horla" and can be found in any quality anthology.

I hope this helped.

This is probably one of Maupassant's best known and most amazing short stories. It recounts the strange paranoia of a man who fears he is posessed by an unknown creature. As the story unfolds, this paranoia turns into sheer terror, as the narrator realises he is the prisoner of this strange being who dictates his will to him while he sleeps. He soon realises he no longer has any ocntrol over his own life, and attempts to forment a plan to rid himself of this parasite. Alas, in the final scene, when he sets fire to his house in a desperate attempt to vainquish his foe, he only succeeds in killing his housemaid, and realises he is the eternal prisoner of this exterior conscience. The novella ends in a state of utmost tragedy and crisis with the realisation that the reader, as the narrator is a type of "prisoner" in the wider frame of things.

This is an english edition. One of Maupassants best stories and one that has influenced many others since. An unpsecified creature haunts the author until.....

The story behind the story is that deMaupassant, at the time he wrote Le Horla, was himself going insane, dying of syphilis. So is the horla in the story only in the story, or did deMaupassant actually think that HE saw the creature? Or did he really see the creature...?

I simply loved it.A must buy and a great value for your money.

This book is written in French. Since I do not reed this language I am unable to review the book. I am looking for one written in English.You should indicate the language the book is written in before selling. I am giving the book to my local library.