Confessions of a Bibliophile

Of the three short collections, this is definitely the more horror-themed of them. Fragile Things does have horror elements, but there’s also more elements of fantasy and magical realism. And Smoke & Mirrors has the same things, but there’s a little bit more of a darker element to the stories.This has some of my favorite stories. “The Goldfish Pond…” is probably my hands-down favorite, and surprisingly that’s the one with the least fantastical elements (and I like the “mostly a true story” aspect). “Murder Mysteries” is fantastic, I love “Chivalry” and “Snow Glass Apples.” “Shoggoth’s Old Peculiar” is hysterical, even to someone who doesn’t really know a lot of the Cthulu Mythos. And there’s “Bay Wolf” which shouldn’t work, but he excels at the whole poem.As for the rocking back and forth…hoo boy. One word: “Babycakes.” Less so, “The White Road,” and I’d like to find a copy of “Eaten” as Gaiman refers to the two poems as part of a triptych. I wouldn’t say that it’s completely disturbing, but a lot of the stories are extremely unsettling.It’s a well-structured collection, and I recommend it for a good scare or just a deeper read into Gaiman’s work.