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4 out of 5 stars
By
Maliboo
on
07-14-13
Old School Vampires
This collection contains the earliest classics of the vampire genre. In fact, it includes what is considered the very first story in the vampire literary genre (well before Bram Stoker's Dracula.)
The Vampyre (1819) - Written by John Polidori in the summer of 1816 while staying at the Villa Diodati in the Swiss mountains with Lord Byron, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Mary Wollestonecraft and Claire Clairmont. While it stormed outside, the group took to the fireplace and dared each other to scare theirselves by telling frightening stories. Out of this inspiring atmosphere came two classics of the gothic horror genre: Frankenstein by Mary Wollestonecraft Shelley and The Vampyre by John Polidori. This fateful gathering has been the subject of numerous books and films including Ken Russell's magnificent film GOTHIC.
Wailing Well (1928) - Written by M.R. James and narrated by Anthony Head (Giles from Buffy the Vampire Slayer.) M.R. James is one of the masters of the ghost story, and having a vampire story told to you by Giles from Buffy the Vampire Slayer is obviously a geek thrill.
For the Blood Is the Life (1905) - F. Marion Crawford was a woefully under appreciated writer who wrote some outstanding classic weird stories that have been heavily anthologized. In addition to "For the Blood Is the Life" he also wrote "The Upper Berth," "The Dead Smile" and "The Screaming Skull" which was made into a film in 1958.
An Episode of Cathedral History (1914) - Another M.R. James classic.
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