Great Tales of the Unknown - Short Stories from Masters of the Gothic and Macabre (Fantasy and Horror Classics) (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781447406426)

Step into the shadows of the 19th and early 20th centuries, where every mystery hides a horror.

This collection is a grand tour of uncanny, speculative, and terrifying fiction, gathering short stories from the founding fathers of the macabre and lesser-known masters of the Gothic. Great Tales of the Unknown showcases how the unknown--whether scientific, historical, or supernatural--became the ultimate source of dread.

Prepare for a journey across continents and centuries, encountering bizarre science, vengeful history, and existential terror:

Gothic and Psychological Dread:

• Morning on the Wissahiccon by Edgar Allan Poe: A classic piece by the architect of American Gothic, offering a richly atmospheric and contemplative study of a haunted landscape and the unsettling boundary between nature and the civilized world.

• The Spider's Eye by Fitz James O'Brien: An early master of bizarre and inventive fiction, O'Brien delivers a claustrophobic tale of psychological torment and a horrifying, predatory obsession.

Mad Science and Global Adventure:

• Dr. Immortelle by Kathleen Ludwick: A fascinating contribution that tells the disturbing consequences of medical hubris, posing the question: What price is paid for the secret of eternal life?

• The Passing of Van Mitten by Claude Farrere: A tale of exotic adventure and colonial dread, where a journey into a mysterious, foreign land leads to a chilling, irrevocable fate.

• The River of Death by Fred M. White: A gripping, pulp-era thriller that pits human ingenuity against a terrifying, possibly unnatural, hazard in the heart of a perilous jungle environment.

• A Shot at the Sun by M. P. Shiel: A highly imaginative and speculative piece from a writer known for his grandiose style, exploring a vast, quasi-scientific cosmic crisis.

Sword and Sorcery Meets the Ancient World:

• Delenda Est by Robert E. Howard: The legendary creator of Conan the Barbarian offers a tale steeped in ancient history and ferocious action, where the final, dark fate of a forgotten empire meets savage, elemental force.

Complete with short Biographies of each author, this collection is a testament to the boundless creativity of the genre's earliest practitioners and their endless fascination with the hidden horrors of the world.