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Terrapin

Terrapin: Short story by Patricia HighsmithThis story by Patricia Highsmith involves a psychologically disturbed woman who cannot face the prospect of her eleven-year-old son “growing up”. The poor boy faces humiliation and bullying at school by having to wear tight, much younger boy’s shorts and is embarrassed at home by being forced to recite children’s poetry for his mother’s guests. When she brings home a terrapin (turtle) to cook for a special dinner, he mistakes it for a pet. The terrapin’s seemingly agonising death in boiling water, including a perceived cry for help, triggers a terrifying response. Themes: child abuse, control, change, identity, escape, insanity. More…

Carmilla

Carmilla: Novella by Sheridan Le FanuThis 1872 novella by Sheridan Le Fanu was ground-breaking in several ways. It is not only one of the first examples of vampire fiction (pre-dating Bran Stoker’s Dracula by 25 years), but also the first to infer a lesbian element to vampiric attraction. This vampire seems to have a taste for blue blood. Peasant victims die quickly; two young aristocratic women enjoy her seductive company for longer. Could Carmilla have something else in mind for these two, such as spending eternity together? Themes: class differences, patriarchy, the supernatural, female sexuality, life and death. More…

Ringing the Changes

Ringing the Changes: Novelette by Robert AickmanThis story by Robert Aickman describes the frightening first night of a delayed honeymoon. The bride, much younger than the groom, wanted to spend their time in a remote coastal village neither had visited before. The moment they arrive, a church bell starts ringing continuously. It is out of tourist season, the streets are empty, the hotel staff act strangely, and there is a sickening, rotten smell in the air. Later, the bells of every church in the village begin ringing with urgency, heralding a macabre annual festival involving the walking dead. Themes: marriage, insecurity, isolation, class, fear, the supernatural. More…

The Bloody Chamber

The Bloody Chamber: Short story by Angela CarterIn Angela Carter’s titillating re-telling of Charles Perrault’s Bluebeard, a wealthy, three-times widowed French nobleman marries a seventeen-year-old virtuoso pianist and rushes her away to his secluded castle for a “honeymoon”. When browsing the library, she is shocked to discover his penchant for sadistic pornography. After a passionless consummation that satisfies his desire to have married a virgin, he lays a deadly trap designed to end the marriage. While he is away on business, the woman’s dark newborn curiosity springs the trap, which leads her into his bloody chamber. Themes: manipulation, sexual awakening, depravity, loneliness, curiosity, violence, death. More…

The Cask of Amontillado

The Cask of Amontillado: Short story by Edgar Allan PoeThere is not much one can add to what has already been written about this classic tale from Edgar Allan Poe. Widely regarded as one of the world’s greatest Gothic horror stories, it is yet another example of Poe’s ability to supplement situational horror with insights into the twisted minds of his protagonists. The horror aspect of this story about a wine-tasting gone wrong (or right, depending on how you look at it) is enhanced by the ambiguity about the seriousness of the “insult” that lead to the victim’s claustrophobic end. Themes: revenge, trust/deceit, pride, envy, mortality, confession. More…

Three Skeleton Key

Three Skeleton Key: Short story by George ToudouzeLast year we featured Leiningen Versus the Ants, a story in which 400 men try to fight off an army of killer ants. In today’s tale by George Toudouze, three men are trapped inside an isolated lighthouse, surrounded by a horde of starving rats. One of the men is prone to panic and loses his mind when the rats break in to the lower part of the tower. The other two remain calm and, although a serious breach of duty, agree on a desperate course of action that saves the day. Themes: man vs. nature, fear, calmness under pressure. More…

House Taken Over

House Taken Over: Short story by Julio CortázarSaid to be Julio Cortázar’s first published story, this suspenseful tale is about a middle-aged brother and sister who, having never married, live quiet but contented lives in their aging family mansion. One night, their solitude is interrupted by strange noises coming from a disused wing of the house. The brother locks and bolts the door leading to that part of the house. Unfortunately, the title foreshadows the final outcome. The brother and sister know the identity of the intruders (referred to only as “they”), but this is not shared with the reader. Themes: the idle rich, isolation, fear, change. More…

The Demon Lover

The Demon Lover: Short story by Elizabeth BowenIn this horror story by Elizabeth Bowen, a woman returns to her large, war-damaged city house to collect personal items. The house had been locked up, nobody knew she was coming, yet there is a letter addressed to her sitting on a table. It had been hand delivered earlier that day and is an anniversary greeting ending with the words: You may expect me at the hour arranged. Someone (possibly the spirit of a former soldier-lover) may be in the house or coming for her. Themes include the trauma of war, gender stereotypes, doubt, imagination and fear, betrayal and revenge. More…

Dharma

Dharma: Short story by Vikram ChandraThis story from Vikram Chandra focuses on the life of career soldier Jago Antia. In a twist on the ghost story genre, most of the action occurs in a house haunted not by the ghost of a dead inhabitant, but the “lost” spirit of Jago’s youth. A question raised by the story is Which of the many meanings of the word “dharma” does the title refer to? Superficially, it reflects Jago’s distinguished career (duty). On a deeper level, it represents the self-awareness (freedom) provided by confronting his personal ghost. Themes: modern vs. traditional beliefs, duty, self-discipline, courage, the supernatural, dharma. More…

The Star

The Star: Short story by H. G. WellsThis apocalyptic story from H. G. Wells describes a near miss of Earth by a huge planetary fragment from outside the solar system. A somewhat disheartening theme is how insignificant the human race and its achievements are in the grand scheme of the universe. Part of the story’s appeal lies in questioning whether people would respond in a similar way if the same thing were to happen today. At first, people view the new “star” with excitement and anticipation. When a master mathematician makes dire predictions, many flee their cities in panic. But surprisingly, most do nothing until too late. More…

The Oval Portrait

The Oval Portrait: Edgar Allan PoeThis short Edgar Allan Poe story demonstrates the sinister side of how beauty can live on through art. An injured traveler takes shelter in an empty mountain chateau. There are paintings on and around the walls of his room. On his pillow is a book describing them. His eyes fall on the portrait of a beautiful woman that seems a little too lifelike. Disturbed, he finds its entry in the book. The woman’s story is one of rare beauty, love, obedience, obsession and death. A possible moral: although art can preserve beauty, artistic obsession can destroy it in the making. More…

Leiningen Versus the Ants

Leiningen Versus the Ants: Short story by Carl StephensonIn today’s story by Carl Stephenson, four hundred men on a Brazilian plantation fight off an army of killer ants. Its major theme is the courage and ingenuity of (European) man against the power of nature. Other themes include the “civilizing” benefits of colonialism, racism (Leiningen is portrayed as a heroic leader, the Indian “peons” primitive and fearful) and misogyny (Critical situations first become crises when oxen or women get excited.) Ironically, despite Leiningen’s boasts about his superior intelligence and faultless preparations (which fail), it is a last-minute idea, which he had previously overlooked, that saves the day. More…

The Boogeyman

The Boogeyman: Short story by Stephen KingAlthough not one of Stephen King‘s best-known short stories, The Boogeyman explores one of the greatest fears of many young children as they go to bed: the fact that some sort of evil creature may be hiding under their bed, behind the curtains, or in their closet. In the story, a man with serious mental problems blames himself for the death of his three children. He thinks a monster from his childhood killed them, and that it is now coming after him. At the end of this story, readers are left to wonder who or what this boogeyman really is. More…

The Whimper of Whipped Dogs

The Whimper of Whipped Dogs: Short story by Harlan Ellison This horror story from Harlan Ellison uses magical realism to explain a crime: the 1964 murder of Kitty Genovese. Newspapers at the time (incorrectly) reported that 38 people, none of whom did anything to help, witnessed her stabbing. Here, a witness to a particularly brutal murder senses an evil presence. She later learns that it was a form of black mass, and joins the demonic cult as a means of survival. Themes include negative aspects of city life (competitive pressure, lack of connection, loneliness), behavioral effects of city life (depression, insensitivity, anger, rudeness, aggression, violence), supernatural (demonic) forces, and cultism. More…

Poison

Poison: Short story by Roald DahlRoald Dahl is best known for short stories that make their point using dark humor and have a surprise ending. This story exhibits neither of these features. The central theme is the racism that existed under British colonial rule. Dahl gets the message across through this allegory about the way a British businessman acted badly towards an Indian doctor who answered his call for help in the middle of the night and may well have saved his life. In the story we learn that there are several kinds of poison. Unlike the deadly krait, some of them kill quite slowly. More…

The Outsider

The Outsider: Short story by H. P. LovecraftH. P. Lovecraft was a pioneer of cosmic horror, a horror fiction sub-genre in which gothic settings and the introduction of “other-worldly” elements replace shock and gore. A feature of Lovecraft’s writing is dream-like (or rather nightmare-like!) plot twists that defy logic or reason. The protagonist in The Outsider has grown up alone in a decaying castle set among frightening woods. When he climbs the crumbling castle tower to look further afield, he finds a stone slab that leads to a more earth-like world above the clouds. He is excited to encounter other people, but soon learns a frightening truth. More…

Heavy-Set

Heavy-Set: Short story by Ray BradburyI once read a comment that this story by Ray Bradbury is the scariest ever written in which nothing happens. Lenny (Leonard) lives at home with his mother. He appears to have a lot going for him. He is young and fit, has a body-builder’s physique, secure job, nice car, and no shortage of girls wanting to go out with him. The story takes place on a Halloween night. Lenny is excited, but the party he goes to is a flop. When he comes home, we see the horror that his mother must face most days of her life. More…

The Man in the Black Suit

The Man in the Black Suit: Short story by Stephen KingThis story from Stephen King builds on a common legend in folklore in which an unsuspecting protagonist is tempted by the devil. King made two changes to the standard plot that result in a truly frightening the tale. First, the devil’s target is an innocent nine-year-old boy. Second, instead of the devil’s usual objective of offering an earthly reward in exchange for the boy’s soul, this devil is hungry and plans to give the poor lad a heavenly reward by eating him. Themes: isolation, innocence, the supernatural, deception, fear, religious belief, life-long trauma, aging and death. More…

The Lottery

The Lottery: Short story by Shirley JacksonShirley Jackson had no idea of the angry reaction The Lottery would receive when it first appeared in 1948. It tells how each year the otherwise ‘normal’ people in a small American farming town perform a gruesome ritual to ensure a favorable growing season. The major theme is how herd or mob mentality can drive people to do things they would never consider individually. Other themes include dystopia, gender roles, violence and cruelty (human sacrifice), acceptance (the blind following of tradition), and man’s inhumanity to man (the potential for evil in all of us). More…

Who Will Greet You At Home

Who Will Greet You At Home: Short story by Lesley Nneka ArimahIn this surreal horror story from Lesley Nneka Arimah, children are created in the form of craft dolls by their mother, blessed by their grandmother or an elderly substitute, and nurtured for a year until they “become flesh”. In the interim they feed, move and act like babies, but in their doll form. The dolls can be made from any material (straw, sticks, clay, etc.) that is strong enough to last a year. But there are rules. When Ogechi, the impoverished protagonist desperate to have a child breaks one, bad things happen. Themes: magic, poverty, exploitation, isolation, obsession, motherhood. More…