Noctuary [Hardcover]

Thomas Ligotti (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1994

This collection of horror stories, many previously unpublished, includes "The Medusa," "Conversations in a Dead Language," and "Mad Night of Atonement." By the author of Grimscribe.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Ligotti's ( Grimscribe ) clever title suggests the marriage of "nocturne" and "mortuary," an appropriate preparation for this dark grouping of tales. In the foreword, the author explains that they fall in the category of "weird fiction," that is, extreme gothic horror, featuring macabre endings and unremitting doom. The studied extravagance in the narration of the some of the stories verges on stylistic overkill. Nevertheless, as gothic tales, a number of them are interesting. Three good tales are "The Medusa," which tells of a scholar obsessed with the Gorgon whom Perseus apparently did not kill; "Mrs. Rinaldi's Angel," a tale that lends new meaning to the term "bad dreams"; and the novella-length "The Tsalal," a gothic work of demonic prophecy that boasts a gruesome ending. These 27 stories describe shadowy worlds of blurred dimensions and ill-lit interiors; as with all such tales, the "when" and "where" are much less important than the atmosphere of gothic horror produced by Ligotti's baroque prose.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Ligotti has written another colorful collection of horror stories ( Grimscribe , Songs of a Dead Dreamer , both Carroll & Graf Pubs., 1991), which spring on the unsuspecting reader the combination of supernatural characters, natural props, and "weird" circumstances. Stories include "The Medusa," which recounts the horror of Lucian Dregler, a man obsessed with finding the Medusa, the hideous woman with serpents on her head whose look turns men to stone. "Conversations in a Dead Language" is told from the perspective of an insane candy giver on three subsequent Halloweens; suspense mounts with each year as the reader witnesses the narrator's physical and mental deterioration. The last section of the book, "Notebook of the Night," is filled with short, lurid vignettes--snapshots of horror that demonstrate Ligotti's command of language and rich imagination. Starkly colored images keep the reader gasping. Recommended for horror collections.
- Stacie Browne Chandler, Plymouth P.L., Mass.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 194 pages
• Publisher: Carroll & Graf Pub; First Edition edition (February 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786700033
• ISBN-13: 978-0786700035
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 5.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,715,117 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "A man awakens in the darkness...", October 7, 2004

By 

H. Grove "Errant Dreams Reviews" (Maryland, USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Noctuary (Paperback)

Thomas Ligotti is a truly unusual author. He has a fascination with "weird fiction," with the unknowable, the macabre. This is paired with a knack for eloquent word-poetry, intelligence and complexity, and a sense of the chillingly unusual. When I finish reading several Ligotti stories, I find that the world looks different. The colors aren't quite right any more, or the angles, or maybe people seem a little darker, a little stranger.

I have several books of Ligotti stories and Noctuary is my favorite. I have often wondered why, and the answer I eventually came to is that most of the stories in here are shorter than those in other books. The longest one is less than 40 pages, and many are only two or three pages long. As much as I love all of Ligotti's writing, he's at his best when he writes in short chunks. Otherwise I find his writing sometimes drags a little.

Ligotti's work is not for everyone. If you don't like the weird or the macabre, you won't enjoy his work. If you prefer your stories to be normal, with a beginning, middle and end, all wrapped up in a neat little ribbon, then this is not for you. If you prefer your world to be its same, comfortable self when you close your books - don't read a word of Ligotti. Ligotti's style is definitely not for everyone. He hands us phrases that no one but he would conceive of, that almost cannot help but elicit a shudder:

"We witness the scene and, with what remains of our mouths, we smile."

But for those of us who enjoy it, it is a dread and harrowing pleasure - one that I would not give up. My only regret is that Ligotti is not a more prolific author.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I bought this book and now I'm gutted ..., September 25, 2002

By 

Angela Linton "Angie" (Manchester) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Noctuary (Paperback)

To realise that for only a few dollars more I could have bought 'The Nightmare Factory' instead which contains all the stories in this book + many more! I guess I will end up owning them both. Ligotti is one of the few creditable horror writers working today and I could never get tired of his stories. They just seem to get deeper and deeper with each subsequent reading. However - if you are looking for blood/gore type horror don't bother - this is a deeply subtle writer at work ..

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ligotti is the peerless Master of the tale of terror, January 9, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: Noctuary (Hardcover)

In _Noctuary_, Ligotti is at his finest. The short novella, "The Tsalal," in particular, is probably one of the most well written, psychologically twisted, disturbing tales I have ever read. If you buy no other horror short story anthology this year, buy this one. Though few people know Ligotti exists, those who have read him know that he is peerless in the field. For myself, I tremble in euphoric terror at the thought of what Ligotti's genius will turn out next. Fortunately, Ligotti's published stories have the lasting power of true classics, and I know I will continue to read them again and again as my life continues toward the inevitable.