I got both books at the same time and thought I would review them at the same time. Jean Ray was called the "Belgian Poe" during his lifetime and he lived up to that reputation. Only a handful of his work was ever translated to English (a few years back, two of his stories appeared in Jeff and Ann Vandermeer's anthology The Weird). It's a shame really but Wakefield Press is trying to make up for lost time. So far, they published the first complete English translations of Ray's first two collections: Whiskey Tales (originally published in 1925) and Cruise of Shadows (1931). His third collection is supposed to come out in June.
Whiskey Tales: Ray launched himself to fame with this collection. If anything, he displayed his versatility, touching on psychological, supernatural, and quasi-Lovecraftian horror. It was unlikely that Lovecraft and Ray were aware of each other but some of Ray's fiction has elements of cosmic horror that made Lovecraft famous.
This collection offers 26 stories, most of which I really liked. They are all atmospheric, with drab, realistic settings. Some of my favorites include "At Midnight", a tale about a man haunted by his past and yet dreading his death. "Irish Whiskey" is about a brutal, supernatural revenge. Ray was often compared to M.R. James. I can see that since both have elegant, detached styles. Also, like James, Ray's spirits are tangible but Ray's are much more savage. " In the Fenn Marshes" is about a hunter and his dog who encounter a malformed thing in a swamp. "The Cemetery Guard" is one of the most effective tales of vampirism I ever read.
Cruise of Shadows: this is more of the same but the stories are fewer but longer. "The Horrifying Prescence" is about a man being hunted by an invisible force and tries to take refuge in a tavern. "The Last Guest" takes place at an inn where the owner is closing up the season and encounters some unexpected company. In "Durer, the Idiot", a man disappears by supernatural means and it haunts the man who witnesses it. This collection also contains two of Ray's most famous tales ( at least as far as English translations are concerned). "The Gloomy Alley" (A.K.A. "The Shadowy Street") is the story that got me into Ray to begin with. It's about an alternate world that intrudes on ours. A man living on the fringes finds it and exploits it for his own ends. Something comes out and death follows. The other is "The Mainz Psalter" in which a small ship finds itself in another dimension. Both tales handle cosmic horror with considerable subtlety. It's clear to the reader what is happening but still leaves plenty to the imagination.
One problem people might have with Ray's work are his anti-semitic remarks (which are mostly in the first book). It's hard to tell whether it comes from the author's personal attitude or not, but this will probably bother some people. I don't mind so much since it wasn't too intrusive. If it was overbearing, I would say that the author cared more about grinding his axe than doing his job but this is not the case here. I wholeheartedly give both collections an A-.
Written by Nicholas Montelongo
Whiskey Tales: Ray launched himself to fame with this collection. If anything, he displayed his versatility, touching on psychological, supernatural, and quasi-Lovecraftian horror. It was unlikely that Lovecraft and Ray were aware of each other but some of Ray's fiction has elements of cosmic horror that made Lovecraft famous.
This collection offers 26 stories, most of which I really liked. They are all atmospheric, with drab, realistic settings. Some of my favorites include "At Midnight", a tale about a man haunted by his past and yet dreading his death. "Irish Whiskey" is about a brutal, supernatural revenge. Ray was often compared to M.R. James. I can see that since both have elegant, detached styles. Also, like James, Ray's spirits are tangible but Ray's are much more savage. " In the Fenn Marshes" is about a hunter and his dog who encounter a malformed thing in a swamp. "The Cemetery Guard" is one of the most effective tales of vampirism I ever read.
Cruise of Shadows: this is more of the same but the stories are fewer but longer. "The Horrifying Prescence" is about a man being hunted by an invisible force and tries to take refuge in a tavern. "The Last Guest" takes place at an inn where the owner is closing up the season and encounters some unexpected company. In "Durer, the Idiot", a man disappears by supernatural means and it haunts the man who witnesses it. This collection also contains two of Ray's most famous tales ( at least as far as English translations are concerned). "The Gloomy Alley" (A.K.A. "The Shadowy Street") is the story that got me into Ray to begin with. It's about an alternate world that intrudes on ours. A man living on the fringes finds it and exploits it for his own ends. Something comes out and death follows. The other is "The Mainz Psalter" in which a small ship finds itself in another dimension. Both tales handle cosmic horror with considerable subtlety. It's clear to the reader what is happening but still leaves plenty to the imagination.One problem people might have with Ray's work are his anti-semitic remarks (which are mostly in the first book). It's hard to tell whether it comes from the author's personal attitude or not, but this will probably bother some people. I don't mind so much since it wasn't too intrusive. If it was overbearing, I would say that the author cared more about grinding his axe than doing his job but this is not the case here. I wholeheartedly give both collections an A-.
Written by Nicholas Montelongo
1334 Comments
Linear