Connavar, I'm not GOLLUM, but I'll take a swipe at this, if you haven't any objection.
To aid in this, here's a list of the volumes I came across:
Wordsworth Editions Ltd
You can skip down to the Aylmer Vance before you get to any I've read, and I've only read a handful of those, in various anthologies. Mildly entertaining, but nothing of great interest save to the dyed-in-the-wool afficionado, I'd say.
I've read a few of the stories by "the other Benson brothers", and found them to vary between quite good and rather forgettable; but there are several included in this volume I've not yet had a chance to sample.
I've read nearly all of Bierce's short tales, and again, they vary, only this time from damned good to "... meh". Though they usually fall closer to the former than the latter. A quirky, sardonic approach to the subject a great deal of the time; even his most starkly horrific tales hinge on some form of ironic comment about humanity.
The
Gothic Short Stories volume has quite a few very fine pieces, and some mediocre pieces (which are representative of much of the genuine Gothic school); but at the price, definitely worth getting for a broad taste of how this branch of the terror tale has evolved.
Marjorie Bowen: Again, I've read a handful of tales by her before, and these were well worth investigating. Frankly, "Kecksies" is itself worth the price of the volume.
Not read Caldecott yet, but I have recently read a good review of this one. Again, nothing particularly memorable, but an entertaining and representative collection of tales, it seems.
The
Classic Victorian and Edwardian Tales volume is definitely worth it, as it not only collects together quite a few much-anthologized classics of the field, but several lesser-known pieces which deserve to be set alongside them. It will also introduce you to a fair number of writers whose names you've probably never encountered before, but whose work you may well find rewarding.
Having fairly recently read a fair stretch of Collins, I can definitely recommend the collection of his shorter tales (though these, too, are somewhat uneven), and
The Woman in White (though I think in this case, I'd go for the Oxford pb rather than the Wordsworth), which is one of his best novels, and one that is likely to grow with repeated readings.
The Crawford... I've not yet read
The Witch of Prague -- a novel included in the collection -- itself, but I've read his shorter ghost stories. At least a few of these are high points in the literature of the weird. If you've not read them, this is a good, inexpensive way of making their acquaintance.
Return from the Dead... a nice selection, but I think more should have been included here;
The Jewel of the Seven Stars (another novel included in this anthology) hasits admirers, but I'm afraid I'm not quite among them....
Tales of Unease -- again, an uneven selection, but mostly worthwhile to classic.
I've only read one or two of Amelia Edwards' tales, but I'd put them somewhere in the mid-rank as far as writers of the genre go; not among the true giants of the field, but certainly worth reading.
I would strongly suggest getting H. D. Everett's collection (originally published as
The Death Mask), if only because all other editions of this thing are astronomical in price, and it is worth reading; though a minor light in the field, I think Lovecraft was right in including her in
SHiL:
Mrs. H. D. Eerett, though adhering to very old and conventional models, occasionally reaches singular heights of spiritual terror in her collection of short stories.
Mrs. Gaskell's stories, though also rather conventional in many ways, nonetheless hit some very high spots.
I've only read the title story of Harvey's work so far, but that one remains a noted classic in the field -- a grisly and unpleasant (in the positive sense of the term) work.
Lafcadio Hearn's work is at times ethereal, at times almost too exquisitely phrased, but also among the best of their kind. Don't miss this one.
Henry James.... Difficult to assess. He tends to be a bit "precious" in his writing, which can be very off-putting. He is often convoluted in his phrasing, and at times unbearably precise. But when he touches those points of supernatural fear, the effect is quite genuine. Despite reservations, I'd recommend reading his ghostly tales. While not always at the height when it comes to chills, they often are among the most literate ghostly tales written, and work on many levels.
M. R. James... considered by many as the master of the English ghost story.
Kipling... definitely a must. Variable, but also attains marvelous heights... and "They" is one of the most poignant ghost stories I've ever read.
The Le Fanu...
House by the Churchyard: I quite like it; Teresa dislikes it. I'd suggest, unless you really, really like Le Fanu, to give this one a pass... at least for now. The others should be high on the list....
Phantom of the Opera... easy enough to find; an entertaining book, combining mystery, suspense, and (seeming) supernatural. A fun romp, with some very good moments. Not, however, one I'd recommend as a high point in the field... merely a lot of fun.
Haven't yet read Gilchrist, but I believe Teresa did, and made some comments on the Chrons; you might try a search on that....
Nesbit is almost always worth reading, and occasionally strikes some very strong chords here.
Wagner... Not recommended, unless you enjoy the Penny Dreadful school; in which case, it's a must.
Mrs. Riddell... another staple of the ghost tale. I'd suggest picking her up a little later, perhaps, though several of her tales are ones you should read.
The Castle of Otranto/
Nightmare Abbey/
Vathek... The last, definitely. The middle one... an odd but enjoyable piece. The first... I have a perverse fondness for, and it is the grandaddy of 'em all... but if you read this one, it's probably best to read it for historical interest, not entertainment....
Carnacki... very uneven, but with some darned good stuff in there.
Several of the tales in
Dracula's Guest & Other Stories are worth a look, but Stoker can also be faulted with an often clumsy prose style which weakens or dilutes the effect at times. Still, a few of these remain high-water marks, and should not be missed.
Edith Wharton is better known for her mainstream work, but her ghost tales, while quiet pieces, are rather memorable on their own. She, along with Sarah Orne Jewett and Mary Wilkins-Freeman, wrote some of the best tales of the supernatural to come out of America in the late nineteenth-early twentieth centuries... literate, insightful, subtle and, in their own way, enormously powerful.
