W. J. Wintle
Autor(a) de Ghost Gleams
About the Author
Obras por W. J. Wintle
The Story of Victoria R I: Wife, Mother, Queen 2 exemplares
Paradise row 2 exemplares
LibriVox Short Ghost and Horror Collection 013 2 exemplares
Associated Works
Sunless Solstice: Strange Christmas Tales for the Longest Nights (2021) — Contribuidor — 49 exemplares
Before Armageddon (An Anthology of Victorian and Edwardian Fiction Published Before 1914, Volume 1) (1975) — Contribuidor — 41 exemplares
A Century of Children's Ghost Stories: Tales of Dread and Delight (1995) — Contribuidor — 27 exemplares
Supernatural Sherlocks : Stories from The Golden Age of the Occult Detective (2017) — Contribuidor — 21 exemplares
Cats of Shadow, Claws of Darkness: Stories of Were-Cats, Ghost Cats, and Other Supernatural Felines (2012) — Contribuidor — 2 exemplares
Invertebrata Enigmatica: Giant Spiders, Dangerous Insects, and Other Strange Invertebrates in Classic Science Fiction… (2008) — Contribuidor — 2 exemplares
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Conhecimento Comum
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Estatísticas
- Obras
- 5
- Also by
- 13
- Membros
- 26
- Popularidade
- #495,361
- Avaliação
- 3.7
- Críticas
- 2
- ISBN
- 2
One of these is William James Wintle (1861~1934), a devout Catholic writer, editor and natural historian who eventually became an oblate (lay brother) at a Benedictine abbey. Indeed, as he himself suggests in the introduction to his only published collection of ghost stories, he originally made up the tales to entertain the boys of the Abbey's school. The author's Catholic background can be felt in a couple of stories featuring priests or novices and restless ghosts who return to complete some unfinished business.
Generally speaking though, the author who Wintle most reminds me of is M.R. James. First of all, the terrors which lurk between the covers of this book are surprisingly physical in nature. I tend to consider the "classic ghost story" as subtle and psychological in contrast with the "body horror" beloved of so many contemporary writers - however, authors such as M.R. James were not averse to dealing with very palpable horrors. Similarly, in Wintle's collection we find killer monster cats, blood-sucking spiders, vampiric werewolves and demons with fiery fingers. Another Jamesian element lies in the malevolence of the spectres involved. Forget bonding with departed relatives or vaguely Romantic white ladies - most of Wintle's apparitions mean serious harm, and dispense violent deaths to their mostly sceptical male victims to the accompaniment of "evil sneers" and "malevolent chuckles".
There is plenty of promising material here. At the same time, reading this collection, one soon realises why Wintle is not one of the greats. His style is strongly laced with humour and, whilst this works in places, the constant attempt at irony and wit drains the darker stories of their atmosphere. He also does tend to repeat himself, to the extent that some of the stories come across as reworkings of each other.
Still, this remains a byway worth exploring.
Ghost Gleams is available as an ebook here: https://gothictexts.wordpress.com/2013/06/28/ghost-gleams-1921-by-w-j-wintle/
And there's a brilliant review (much more detailed than mine) on G.R. Collia's Haunted Library blog: http://hauntedlibraryblog.blogspot.com.mt/2016/02/ghost-gleams-w-j-wintle.html… (mais)