Tales Accursed: A Folk Horror Anthology, is a collection of horror stories that are quite old (and some of which have become popular in our society’s retellings/themes in movies and modern books). There are beautiful illustrations contained in this book that make it totally worth looking into!

Of course, like with any book or piece of media that contains old literature, there are going to be “out-dated” ideas and beliefs, but that is to be expected when choosing to read something with such old folklore. Keep that in mind if that is something that might bother you.

Overall, this is a nice collection of folk-y horror stories! I liked some, didn’t like others, as is to be expected.

3 stars simply because I do not see myself purchasing this, but I think it would be a great gift for someone who is really into horror folktales.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with this ARC!

Folk Horror is currently experiencing a revival, which has meant that the genre has been introduced to a much wider audience thanks to books/films like 'Midsommar' and 'The Ritual'.

This anthology is a great collection of UK Folk Horror stories, containing pieces by Shirley Jackson, Algernon Blackwood, M.R. James, and many others.

There is also wonderful artwork included at the start of each story that adds to the experience and the setting of the scene.

Although half the stories are fairly old, they still stand up and work to unsettle and scare the reader. I particularly liked 'The Man in the Woods' and 'The Wailing Well'.

I'd definitely recommend this anthology, but I would also welcome an anthology filled with more international and multicultural stories.

*I received an advance reader copy of this book via NetGalley, and I'm voluntarily leaving a review.*

3.75 / 5

Ok, so ...

I absolutely love reading classic horror tales from way back... And folk horror is one of my favorite sub-genres. So this was a perfect pairing for me, even though I was already familiar with several of the stories within. There were a couple of truly awesome surprises. And Richard Wells's illustrations bookmarking each story was such an added bonus. I thoroughly enjoyed that aspect ...

Honestly I found enjoyment in every story, (Well, all except one. I'll let you know more about that one on publication day...) with most stories being rated a 4 of 5. (one 5, a couple 3's and one 1)

If you're into supernatural classics, don't pass this one by.
I'ma be buying it for my coffee table.

This was a book that made me want to return to some of the 'oldies but goodies', cuz I grew up reading short horror tales from the late 1800 to early 1900's. (In the late 80's, early 90's, it was the only horror my very conservative school library allowed.)

Thanks to Netgalley and Unbound for this ARC eBook in exchange for my honest review.

This is a truly classic collection of timeless creepy tales. There’s a strong Celtic theme throughout and links to nature, folklore, myths and legends. I’ve read works by a few of the authors, James, Le Fanu, Benson for example, but there are others who are new to me.

What really appeals is the quality of writing which stands the test of time. It doesn’t matter that most of these short stories are around a 100 years old; they tap into the inherent fear of the supernatural and are genuinely chilling. A couple lead you in to a false and comfortable sense of security then take sharp dark turn. Great for a dark night and despite electronic gadgets and wizardry, these prove the power of the well written word. Some cracking woodcut style illustrations too. Love this collection.

A spooky anthology to read in Augtober, count me in! I really love anthologies generally because you get a sense of what types of stories the editor enjoys. Also, I find an anthology to be lovely to gift and with a cover like this I can totally see myself gifting this book to some friends.

Most of these creepy and well curated stories are fairly old (a century or so) and provide some insights into folk horror. Some of the stories tend to be a little slow and because of how old a few of the tales are, the characters and themes are not up to modern times. With that said, the collection itself is pretty perfectly curated and the stories make sense together. Okay, now to my favorite thing, the lino-print illustrations in this book are STUNNING! I plan to buy a copy just for them and then do a reread of this book in October when it is released.

Thank you for NetGalley for the ARC

This is a collection of "folk horror" short stories, though I would note that this is used somewhat loosely with some of the stories. Generally, it's a good collection, but none of the stories really stood out to me. I felt there were far too many based on Celtic folk. The older stories in the collection have not aged well and can be quite a slog. The more recent stories fare better and are pretty fun to read. The woodcuts complement the stories well. It's a good book to have out during spooky season.

This was a fascinating read, going through different folktales from different time periods. Each one was spooky in their own regard and the illustrations are a great touch that add to the creepiness.

This is a beautifully presented collection of folk stories, billed as folk horror, though more "spooky" than horror in my opinion.

The collection includes 16 short stories dating back to 1870 and ranging right through to 1975. One story, "the Man in the Woods" by Shirley Jackson was published posthumously in 2014, but would be over 50 years old since written.

Many of the stories are Celtic in origin and have a similar structure that goes something like: A traveler visits a part of the country and is told a strange story by a local, dismisses it as superstitious nonsense only to experience the phenomenon for themselves. The tales include a range of specters and spooks including witches, sea creatures, lost civilizations, murderers, suicide and creepy cats.

Historically, this curated collection is an interesting read, though challenging at times, with its use of old English, and grammatical spelling of local accents in some of the older stories. What I loved about this book were the memories it brought up for me from my childhood. My mother had a very old copy of Grimm's fairy tales that she would read to me, bound and worn with line drawings scattered throughout that illustrated a scene from the story. Similarly the black and white block printing, one for each story, gives gravitas to the tales, and is presented beautifully.

A fine collection and nostalgia piece.

Thank you Unbound and Richard Wells, via NetGalley, for this advanced reading copy.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!

This is a neat little anthology of folk horror tales, most of which come from at least a century ago, and all of which have that delicious sense of crawling dread running through them. We owe a lot to our folk tales and horror, and there is a certain creepiness that resides in the exact tone of these kinds of anthologies.

While it is hard to weight the merits of the writing itself, what must be said is that this anthology is beautifully curated. There's a lot of stories in here, but not to a point that it feels bloated, and each and every one of them makes complete sense as to why they are there. I had a great deal of fun with this book, and enjoyed curling up to get through some solid spookiness where and when I could.

I was particularly a fan of 'The White Cat' - having one myself and knowing just how much chaos and mischief they can cause (although perhaps not so much unexplained deaths).

Anthologies are always interesting; you get a look at the editor’s taste, to see what they think is a good story or a well written tale, and sometimes my taste and theirs don’t always sync up. The tales collected in this anthology — all of which have a little illustration which look like old wood-block printings which add to the old world charm — are ones I haven’t read before, and feel united not only by the folkloric horror element, but by the idea of an outside looking in at a community, a myth, a place they don’t belong and aren’t invited into. It’s very well curated.

Personally, the first two stories were misses. Perhaps it because they are over a hundred years old and what was scary then isn’t as effective, now, when I’ve been watching horror novels and reading horror stories since I was a kid and these felt too familiar and too predictable. Whatever the case, the third story — No-Man’s Land by John Buchan — had some nice atmospheric moments. The Hand of Glory, further in, had a really clever ending, and it’s interesting to see how many stories relied on the “this is a story I heard told from someone else” as a framing device.

Celui-La has a rather Evil Dead-ish feel to it that I quite enjoyed, and Woe Water had a decidedly Lovecraft feel to it.

The highlight of this collection, for me, was The Country-side by Elinor Mordaunt — which is an amazing name for a horror writer. A man and his wife move to the countryside where he fits in, and she doesn’t, leading to a growing isolation and sadness as she is abandoned by her husband. It’s moody, it’s well written, and is the one I’ll most remember from this collection.

It’s always nice to find a new anthology where I enjoy the majority of the stories, and also fun that I hadn’t read any of them prior to this! I want to thank Net Galley and the publisher for granting me access to an advanced reader copy .

I LOVE short stories, especially ghost/supernatural/etc tales. Tales from the Victorian era are a special favorite. So, it takes a lot to find an anthology that has good, quality tales that are not the same old tales that get reprinted in every anthology. This book has only had one tale that I'd read before, even thought it boasts some well known authors. (HOW did I miss that Shirley Jackson story??)

I highly recommend this anthology. Even if you are a fan of these types of stories, you will find new stories you haven't read before.

The illustrations are wicked cool, too!

Thank you to NetGalley and Unbound for the ARC

Okay, so this anthology is like this total trip through history, right? You've got these ancient tales of folk horror, and for sure, it's fascinating to see where the genre started. The whole vibe of malevolent landscapes, ancient curses, and creepy creatures is seriously on point.

But, okay, let's keep it real. Some of these stories? They're like, seriously showing their age. You know, with all the old-school framing and, like, the super slow pace. And can we talk about those protagonists? Totally predictable— dudes who think they know everything. Ugh, not my vibe.

The illustrations totally add to the creepy factor—they're dark and evocative, setting the scene perfectly. Plus, it's awesome discovering these old-school horror tales that, like, set the stage for what we read today.

So, yeah, Tales Accursed gets a solid four stars from me. It's not perfect, but if you're into diving deep into classic horror or just want something to spook you on a rainy night, this anthology's got your back.

This is my first NetGalley ARC, so I'm very excited to review it.

Tales Accursed is a horror anthology packed with spooky folklore from many incredible authors. Initially, I had trouble getting into the first few stories because of the written accents of some of the characters, but I eventually found my feet. I enjoyed reading all of the different author's takes on horror and found the art and editing to be superb. I'm rating this book a 4/5, because I did have trouble staying engaged in the text.

Would recommend grabbing a copy once it's published. Especially if you read the first book.

Very fun and unique read! I see everyone says the same thing that I do wish I would've read this in the fall/Halloween time but I plan to do a re-read!

I had heard of only a few of the many stories included in the anthology so it was a treat to get some old school horror stories. I would definitely refer back to this book to read a few of the memorable stories and look back at the beautiful illustrations. That being said, in 2024 some of the stories did not age well but I sort of expect that when you go back as far as this collection does.


Thanks to Netgalley and Richard Wells for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

I'm finding it quite difficult to rate this anthology, since most of the stories in it are over a hundred years old.

On the one hand, this is an interesting insight into the history of folk horror, which is one of my favourite genres. The themes of the malevolent, hostile landscape, ancient curses and legends, and evil, inhuman creatures are explored from many angles and enhanced by some truly amazing descriptions.

On the other hand, some of the stories aged badly. The excessive framing of the stories through various narrators, the slow, meandering pace, the typical, unappealing protagonist (white, male, English, pompous and patronizing) and rampant misogyny made it difficult to enjoy them.

The illustrations are great, dark and evocative.

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

Really solid anthology of folk horror and adjacent spooky tales. Really enjoyed the stories in this, I was familiar with some of the stories, some were new to me. Thank you for the ARC Net Galley.

A really good collection of short stories!
I love the mix between the ones that might be more well known and the ones that are a bit more obscure, it makes it more fun to read.
The stories were all very on brand with what was expected from the title, so that was pretty amazing!

Some of these stories are hard to read as they have old/dialectal English and no translation or explanation. But, I do love old ghost/horror stories and some of these are magnificent! So if you like short stories and horror/ghost stories, give this one a go!

A really fun read with a great spooky atmosphere that lasted from the first short story to the last. I wish I would have picked up closer to fall, because this would be an amazing book to read next to a campfire on a cool autumn night. It was not only the stories that were great, the accompanying illustrations added an ambiance that in some cases left me a bit unsettled. I’m excited to pick this up again in October!

An incredibly curated anthology sure to intrigue any horror reader. Wells thoughtfully and carefully selected thrilling tales by some of the best thriller/horror writers of our time to create a masterpiece that will be enjoyed for the readers fun and in college classrooms. The illustrations sprinkled throughout are sure to delight as well!