R. A. Gilbert

I always wondered why "A Christmas Carol" was a Christmas story with such dark and spooky elements. It seems much more suited to Halloween than more modern sugar-coated Christmas tales. Now, from the introduction to this book I know: it was a common tradition in England in the past (I can’t say for the present) to tell ghost stories on Christmas Eve! The introduction is informative and puts the reader in the right frame of mind to read the stories.
This is not a collection of ghost stories if you want to be scared, though there are a few with elements that raise goosebumps. I found it more valuable as a window into the Victorian Era. The details that the authors add to make the story more lifelike, and thus add to scariness, are also the details most interesting about the period. When they describe the scenery—often detailed descriptions of the rooms where the horrors take place, it also takes the reader back into the past.
On a different note, I love when they describe the when a building was built or last updated not in years, but by what monarch was on the throne at the time. It’s a very charming collection.… (more)

Wonderfully creepy collection with a wide variety of the more high quality Victorian ghost stories. Particularly enjoyed "At Chrighton Abbey" by [a:Mary Elizabeth Braddon|45896|Mary Elizabeth Braddon|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1202597702p2/45896.jpg] and "An Account of Some Strange Disturbances in Aungier Street" by [a:J.S. Le Fanu|5784865|J.S. Le Fanu|http://www.goodreads.com/assets/nophoto/nophoto-U-50x66-251a730d696018971ef4a443cdeaae05.jpg]. It's a really good book for its representation of many female authors.… (more)