The House Among the Laurels (Fantasy and Horror Classics)

By William Hope Hodgson

William Hope Hodgson spent his early life as a cabin boy, before becoming a prolific author. Although best-known nowadays for two novels – The House on the Borderland (1908) and The Night Land (1912) – his short fiction was also extremely popular in its day. Many of the earliest ghost stories and tales of hauntings, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Read Books Ltd.
• Release date: Apr 4, 2013
• ISBN: 9781447499770

William Hope Hodgson

William Hope Hodgson (1877-1918) was a British author and poet best known for his works of macabre fiction. Early experience as a sailor gave resonance to his novels of the supernatural at sea, The Ghost Pirates and The Boats of the Glen-Carrig, but The House on the Borderland and The Night Land are often singled out for their powerful depiction of eerie, otherworldly horror. The author was a man of many parts, a public speaker, photographer and early advocate of bodybuilding. He was killed in action during the Battle of the Lys in the First World War.

Book preview

1918.

THE HOUSE AMONG THE LAURELS

by William Hope Hodgson

‘This is a curious yarn that I am going to tell you,’ said Carnacki, as after a quiet little dinner we made ourselves comfortable in his cosy dining-room.

‘I have just got back from the West of Ireland,’ he continued. ‘Wentworth, a friend of mine, has lately had rather an unexpected legacy, in the shape of a large estate and manor, about a mile and a half outside of the village of Korunton. The place is named Gannington Manor, and has been empty a great number of years; as you will find is so often the case with houses reputed to be haunted.

‘It seems that when Wentworth went over to take possession, he found the place in very poor repair, and the estate totally uncared for, and, as I know, looking very desolate and lonesome generally. He went through the big house by himself, and he admitted to me that it had an uncomfortable feeling about it; but, of course, that might be nothing more than the natural dismalness of a big, empty house, which has been long uninhabited, and through which one is wandering alone.

‘When he had finished his look round, he went down to the village, meaning to see the one-time Agent of the Estate, and arrange for someone to go in as caretaker. The Agent, who proved, by the way, to be a Scotsman, was very willing to take up the management of the Estate once more; but he assured Wentworth that they would get no one to go in as caretaker; and that his—the Agent’s—advice was to have the house pulled down, and a new one built.

‘This, naturally, astonished my friend, and, as they went down to the village, he managed to get a kind of explanation from the man. It seems that there had always been curious stories told about the place, which in the early days was called Landru Castle, and that within the last seven years there had been two extraordinary deaths there. In each case they had been tramps, who were ignorant of the reputation of the house, and had probably thought the big empty place suitable for a night’s free lodging. There had been absolutely no signs of violence to indicate the method by which death was caused, and on each occasion the body had been found in the great entrance hall.

‘By

Reviews for The House Among the Laurels (Fantasy and Horror Classics)

[lkernagh · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I usually have troubles with horror stories. I was hoping that this "Fantasy and Horrors Classic" short story would send a chill or two down my spine while I listened. It didn't from a horror perspective, although I did get a flicker or two as the focus of the story is on a paranormal investigation. Paranormal stories do tend to send a shiver down my spine. Not the best of stories, although I do not note that the original publication date for this one was back in February of 1910. It isn't as dated as I thought it would be. Overall a decent story if you are into classical paranormal investigation-style stories focused more on describing the occult investigations approach to paranormal detection than on presenting the reader with an emotional spine chilling experience. According to Wikipedia, this story is one of six short stories Hodgson wrote featuring his fictional occult detective Thomas Carnacki that were published in magazines between 1910 and 1912. Not sure if I will read more of the Carnacki short stories, but they do make for a quick audiobook read.