Another Review at MyShelf.Com

 

The Horror on the Links
The Complete Tales of Jules De Grandin, Vol. 1
Seabury Quinn

Night Shade Books (Ingram Publisher Services)
April 4, 2017/ ISBN 978-1597808934
Mystery & Detective / Supernatural/Anthologies & Short Stories

Reviewed by Linda Morelli

 

As a lover of Sherlock Holmes and Hercule Poirot, and the horror writer Clive Barker, when I read the description of this book, I just knew I had to read it. I was a fan of Weird Tales when I was younger, and hunted down every used copy I could find. I was thrilled to find Seabury Quinn’s short stories, for they are highly entertaining, if somewhat bizarre. Seabury Quinn was the most popular contributor to Weird Tales pulp magazine during the 1920s, 30s, and 40s, and after reading just one story, I could see why. The characters seem real, and so do the fiendish characters in each episode.

The main characters of Dr. Jules de Grandin (a blend of Sherlock Holmes with French outbursts reminiscent of Hercule Poirot) and his assistant, Dr. Samuel Trowbridge (much like Sherlock’s sidekick, Dr. Watson), were thoroughly enjoyable. What I loved most about this collection are the diverse mysteries that the two doctors must solve, as they deal with various horrors and the supernatural, including vampires, ghosts, devil worshipers, monsters, werewolves, evil entities and much more. One story dealt with cannibalism on an island, though most of the stories are set in the town of Harrisonville, New Jersey, where I suspect most of the town folk were terrified. I would be, were it not for this ingenious detective pair.

Quinn has a way of describing scenes that immediately draw the reader into each story, experiencing the events along with de Grandin and Dr. Trowbridge. I suspect that’s what made his stories so popular. Read just one story and you’ll be hooked. This wonderful anthology kept me turning pages long into the night, shaking in dread yet unable to reach out to turn off the nightlight. I can’t wait to read the remaining releases.

Reviewer’s Notes: Seabury Quinn was a pulp magazine author, whose popular stories of the occult detective Jules de Grandin were published in Weird Tales between 1925 and 1951. Quinn penned ninety-two short stories and one full-length novel featuring “the occult Hercule Poirot,” which were enormously popular with readers.


Reviewer Linda Morelli is the award-winning author of Fiery Surrender, Shadow of a Doubt, and Lani's Challenge.
Reviewed 2017
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