By Horror Haunted (uncorrected proof copy) [first edition]

By Horror Haunted (1974) was Celia Fremlin's second collection of stories, and it runs the gamut of her many talents. The nightmarish plots, wit, elegance, and domestic details with an undertow of unease have lost none of their edge. 'Her Number On It' is a compelling portrait of kleptomania; the 'Unsuspected Talent' of a dissatisfied wife has dangerous consequences; while 'Don't Tell Cissie' is a superbly original ghost story. "The reader is lulled in to a false knowledge of events...At the last moment the events are turned inside out and the actions are re-interpreted nastily, chillingly or with penetrating realism". (Catholic Herald). "A really delightful collection of short stories...the suspense, in some of them, is almost painful...[Fremlin] is the complete mistress of an extremely difficult art form". (Huddersfield Day Examiner).