Arthur Conan Doyle

Oscar Wilde

Bram Stoker

Short stories have always been a sort of instant access into an author’s brain, their soul and heart. A few pages can lift our lives into locations, people and experiences with a sweep of landscape, narration, feelings and emotions that is difficult to achieve elsewhere.

In this series we try to offer up tried and trusted ‘Top Tens’ across many different themes and authors. But any anthology will immediately throw up the questions – Why that story? Why that author?

The theme itself will form the boundaries for our stories which range from well-known classics, newly told, to stories that modern times have overlooked but perfectly exemplify the theme. Throughout the volume our authors whether of instant recognition or new to you are all leviathans of literature.

Some you may disagree with but they will get you thinking; about our choices and about those you would have made. If this volume takes you on a path to discover more of these miniature masterpieces then we have all gained something.

The Edwardian era lasted under a decade at the turn of the 1900’s. Victoria was dead but everything else strode on. The Nation’s authors added to their number with new talents who attempted new ways of re-interpreting the Ghost Story. Benson, Pain and all the others found a ready audience for these sharp-edged gems and their malevolent ways.

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