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Rating: The Flemish Jean Ray, one of the great writers of fantastic literature of the last century, was a quirky character, author of “imaginary” autobiographies, a lover of Dickens, influenced by William Hope Hodgson and his maritime horrors.
The Whisky Tales (Les Contes du Whisky), now published by Edizioni Hypnos, is an important volume as it represents his first book published in 1925 in Belgium, which at the time earned him some fame at the local level. Subsequently, the book was reprinted by the legendary Belgian publishing house Marabout, which contributed significantly, along with the French science fiction magazine Fiction, to Jean Ray's popularity, especially in Belgium and France.
The anthology presents what the Flemish writer considered at that time his best production. Some of the stories present here later ended up in the mythical anthology 25 Neri and Fantastic Tales (Baldini & Castoldi - 1963 - now unobtainable in the Italian market and priced at about 200 Euros). In these tales, you can notice certain references to the Catholic religion, a legacy of the context in which he lived, demonstrating how Jean Ray's “philosophical” vision was more traditional compared to that of H.P. Lovecraft. However, the cult of HPL and Jean Ray for the narrative of William Hope Hodgson will bring closer, in some stories, the themes addressed by the two writers. Not all the stories in The Whisky Tales are related to the fantastic, but, in any case, the level always remains at levels of excellence, and you can find some true gems of the macabre such as Irish Whisky, a story of a terrible revenge in which a vile, unscrupulous character, following a curse, turns into a spider (the suggestion reminded me of The Spider by Hanns Heinz Ewers!). Also noteworthy are The Window of the Monsters, where everyday reality deforms and takes on fantastic appearances, and In the Fenn Swamps, a story that describes an abominable creature and its contact with man. The Strange Studies of Dr. Pauknenschlager instead deals with the theme of the fourth dimension and reminded me of some science fiction stories by Clark Ashton Smith. Then there is The Night at Camberwell - where in a desolate district of London roam horrors without name - and The Cemetery Keeper, a masterpiece story in which the theme of vampirism is treated in an exemplary and textbook manner.
The volume concludes with a sharp and knowledgeable afterword by Danilo Arona titled The Spectral Chimes of Mystery (an updated version of a previous article published in the print magazine Carmilla). The Whisky Tales can be purchased directly from the Edizioni Hypnos online store.
The Whisky Tales
Black and Fantastic Tales. Vol. 2
Jean Ray
Collection Biblioteca dell’Immaginario, Edizioni Hypnos, 2013
Paperback, 278 pages, €21.90
ISBN 9788896952108
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