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Ghost Stories of an Antiquary
- Narrated by: David Timson, Stephen Critchlow
- Length: 4 hrs and 42 mins
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Ghost Stories of an Antiquary
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Summary
The powerful sense of evil – darkness, creepy hairy presences, cloaks, hoods, talons and tentacles – pervades these classic ghost stories by M.R. James. A Cambridge scholar himself, James explored what happens when academics dabble in things they don’t understand and unleash forces of which they know nothing. The titles in Ghost Stories of an Antiquary range from witchcraft to the occult, and tap into our primal fear of things that go bump in the night. They are recognised as the best of their genre.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your My Library section along with the audio.
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Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Serendipity
- 25-06-19
A Box of Darkest Delights
I love M R James stories full stop. His stories are like early urban legends that are steeped in dark delight. The narration is superb in this collection of 8 of his stories. the stories are
Number 13
Canon Alberics' Scrapbook
The Mezzotint
Lost Hearts
The Ash tree
Count Magnus
Whistle and I'll come to thee
Abbot Thomas's Treasure
These are some of James's best work, although his most famous story A Warning To The Curious is absent, it doesn't detract from this box of chilling dark delights!
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6 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- john
- 05-01-20
A masterpiece from the godfather of spooky
You have to love Monty’s restrained style. No slashing, screaming or blood spattered, gut turning histrionics like we get from modern exponents of the ghost genre, but rather a leisurely development of a series of short tales beautifully written and eminently believable. I recommend a candle on the bedside cabinet when reading in homage to his genius.
Brilliant!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Earnest Blofeld
- 22-04-22
Perfection.
Ghost Stories of an Antiquary by M.R. James. Classic Stories, perfectly realised. To be read and listened to on dark, dank nights.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Mrs
- 23-07-19
An Extremity of Terror
Ghost stories are traditional, to be read at Christmas or on Halloween (both are quite acceptable). And there are none better than those of M. R. James, scholar, antiquary, and master of the art language.
These stories are short but they are very characteristic, and most of the main characters can be seen to be thinly-veiled self portraits of the author, Monty (as he was affectionately known in his circle). This can be seen in the first story, “Canon Alberic’s Scrapbook”. But as the stories progress, the darker they become. “Lost Hearts”, with its inclusion of children as ghosts (classic staple); “Count Magnus” (perhaps one of my favourites), and “Number 13”, make you question everything about the world we know. But the last story, “The Treasure of Abbot Thomas”, is perhaps the most claustrophobic of all the stories. It’s climax is terrifying, and it makes the skin crawl with that “pleasing terror”, as Monty called it.
If you want a ghost story collection to read, I would definitely, ultimately, recommend this one as a start to the best ghost stories ever written. This is the first volume, there were three more to come: “More Ghost Stories”, “A Thin Ghost and Other Stories”, and “A Warning to the Curious and Other Stories”.
These are the greatest ghost stories I have ever read: up there with J. Sheridan le Fanu (who was an influence on Monty), Algernon Blackwood, and E. F. Benson.
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4 people found this helpful