Not bad collection of tales that are fun to read by the wintry fireside. A blend of classic and newer writers. Collection is held back by a few mediocre stories and three stories that in my opinion are just misplaced, didn't belong in this themed anthology. I think the editor was trying to send some message about the potential breadth of the genre and lost track of what it was all about. Especially notable offerings by [a:Sarah Pinborough|457300|Sarah Pinborough|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1226190981p2/457300.jpg], [a:Muriel Gray|237540|Muriel Gray|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-ccc56e79bcc2db9e6cdcd450a4940d46.png], [a:Nancy Kilpatrick|26935|Nancy Kilpatrick|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/f_50x66-9e23bac89f169d02e43709e42b361705.png], and [a:Lisa Tuttle|38313|Lisa Tuttle|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1296860221p2/38313.jpg]. Great cover. ( )

Gift

This is a solid collection of ghost stories by American and British women writing in English. Featuring a mix of old and new, thematically there's something for almost everyone, with an especially strong selection of haunted house type tales. I would have liked to see more diversity in setting and some stories by Anglophone authors from outside the US and UK, as well as some translated works if this was really meant to an anthology of ghost stories "by women", rather than women writing in English (Anne-Sylvie Salzman's work would have fit in very well-at least as well as Caitlin R. Kiernan's, which is featured here). A few clunkers (including the opening story, the only one I DNFd) mar the book's pacing and weaken the whole, but overall this is a nice addition to the Mammoth Books series and I'd love to see a (slightly more inclusive) second edition of 'Ghost Stories by Women'. ( )