J. A. Cuddon

The Monk of horror, or The Conclave of corpses, by Anonymous The Astrologer's prediction, or The Maniac's fate, by Anonymous The expedition to Hell, by James Hogg Mateo Falcone, by Prosper Merimee [Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar]( by Edgar Allan Poe Le Grande Breteche, by Honore de Balzac The romance of certain old clothes, by Henry James Who knows?, by Guy de Maupassant The body snatcher, by Robert Louis Stevenson The death of Olivier Becaille, by Emile Zola The boarded window, by Ambrose Bierce Lost hearts, by M.R. James The sea-raiders, by H.G. Wells The derelict, by William Hope Hodgson Thurnley Abbey, by Perceval Landon The fourth man, by John Russell In the penal colony, by Franz Kafka The waxwork, by A.M. Burrage Mrs. Amworth, by E.F. Benson The reptile, by Augustus Muir Mr. Meldrum's Mania, by John Metcalfe The beast with five fingers, by William Fryer Harvey Dry September, by William Faulkner Couching at the door, by D.K. Broster The two bottles of relish, by Lord Dunsany The man who liked Dickens, by Evelyn Waugh Taboo, by Geoffrey Household The thought, by L.P. Hartley Comrade death, by Gerald Kersh Leningen versus the ants, by Carl Stephenson The brink of darkness, by Yvor Winters Activity time, by Monica Dickens Earth to Earth, by Robert Graves The dwarf, by Ray Bradbury The Portabello Road, by Muriel Spark No flies on Frank, by John Lennon Sister Coxall's revenge, by Dawn Muscillo Thou shalt not suffer a witch ..., by Dorothy K. Haynes The terrapin, by Patricia Highsmith [Man from the south]( by Roald Dahl Uneasy home-coming, by Will F. Jenkins The Aquarist, by J.N. Allan An interview with M. Chakko, by Vilas Sarang

"The ghost is the most enduring figure in supernatural fiction. He is absolutely indestructible... He changes with the styles in fiction but he never goes out of fashion. He is the really permanent citizen of the earth, for mortals, at best, are but transients" - Dorothy ScarboroughThis new selection of ghost stories, by Michael Newton, brings together the best of the genre. From Elizabeth Gaskell's 'The Old Nurse's Story' through to Edith Wharton's 'Afterword', this collection covers all of the most terrifying tales of the genre. With a thoughtful introduction, and helpful notes, Newton places the stories contextually within the genre and elucidates the changing nature of the ghost story and how we interpret it.