Penguin Book of Vampire Stories: Amazon.ca: Alan Ryan: Books

Product Description

Book Description

Seductive, erotic, doomed to immortality - and forever hungry. In this collection of the very best vampire stories ever told, we see this pale creature of the night emerge from the shadows of myth and legend. Featuring stories by Lord Byron, Sheridan Le Fanu, Bram Stoker, MR James, Richard Matheson and Tanith Lee, among many others, "The Penguin Book of Vampire Stories" is the perfect book to discover vampires in all their extraordinary variety and form. It will chill and seduce you; and if you're very lucky your blood will run deliciously cold...

About the Author

Alan Ryan has served as a judge for the Film Fantasy Awards and is a member of the National Book Critics Circle. He regularly contributes to The Washington Post, USA Today, The Smithsonian, and Travel and Leisure, among other publications.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

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First Sentence
"In the year 17-, having for some time determined on a journey through countries not hitherto much frequented by travellers, I set out, accompanied by a friend, whom I shall designate by the name of Augustus Darvell. Read the first page

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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover

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Customer Reviews

9 Reviews

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4 star:		(3)
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Average Customer Review

4.7 out of 5 stars (9 customer reviews)

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Good, scary stuff, May 26 2004

By

JLind555 - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Penguin Book of Vampire Stories (Paperback)

This book is especially good reading during those late fall and winter evenings when dark comes early and the nights grow long. Even before Bram Stoker penned his classic horror novel, vampires were the stuff of lore and legend, guaranteed to scare the pants off people: evil bloodsucking monsters without souls or morals, looking to recruit innocent victims into their unholy ranks. Almost every country in Europe had its own vampire stories. But it was Stoker's "Dracula" that unleashed the widespread popularity of vampire tales and novels that has continued unabated.

This anthology includes vampire stories from 1816 (a fragment of a novel by Lord Byron) to 1984. Even Ole Drac himself makes a reappearance in Bram Stoker's "Dracula's Guest", a self-contained chapter initially written as part of "Dracula" but omitted to shorten the novel to its current length. Some modern-day gems include "Pages From a Young Girl's Journal" by Robert Aickman, in which a bored and lonely teenage girl meets her demon lover and eagerly awaits her passage into the ranks of the Undead, and "Bite-Me-Not" by Tanith Lee, a beguiling combination of love story and horror tale. The one glaring omission in this otherwise fine compendium is Stephen King's short story "One For the Road", in which Salem's Lot is revisited with calamitous results. I would have given this book five stars if it had been included here. There is also an appendix of selected vampire novels and vampire films. There are enough good, shivery reads in here to satisfy the most insatiable fan of vampire literature. Lock the doors, turn up the lights, and enjoy the fun.

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A lovely, entertaining read, Mar 8 2004

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Klytemnestra (UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Penguin Book of Vampire Stories (Paperback)

I seem to go for gothic when I'm in need of a nice, therapeutic read (Edgar Allan Poe when under stress last summer, that sort of thing) and this does the trick beautifully. Whether you're just looking for a good story to make you shiver, or are interested in the historical progression of the vampire myth and the ways different writers have used it symbolically, it's great fun to read. The stories range from deeply chilling, traditional vampire tales to the ridiculously melodramatic penny-dreadfuls of the 1800s to thoughtful modern sci-fi variations, and don't miss the hilarious account of the new werewolf who meets a rather nice vampire and is taken home to meet her parents...

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4.0 out of 5 stars A good vampire anthology, Dec 17 2002

By

Volks (Tucson, AZ USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Penguin Book of Vampire Stories (Paperback)

I had to get this for school and ended up keeping it for my personal collection. Some of the stories are a little poorly written, but most present a very entertaining cross-section of vampire stories from the eighteen-hundreds up through the end of the twentieth. As an intoduction to Western vampire myth, I found it very enlightening and entertaining.

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Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Aunt Wendy bought a book like this one for Sarah
This isn't the exact same book that Aunt Wendy bought for Sarah, my friend in Baltimore, but it's close. Read more

Published on May 14 2004 by Bethanie D. Pointer

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Vampire Stories
This is one of the best collection of vampire stories i've ever read. This book combines traditional vampire tales with those having more psychological or sci-fi elements. Read more

Published on Nov 27 2001