Xélucha and Others is a collection of stories by author M. P. Shiel

M. P. Shiel

Matthew Phipps Shiel was a prolific British writer of West Indian descent. His legal surname remained "Shiell" though he adopted the shorter version as a de facto pen name....

. It was released in 1975

1975 in literature

The year 1975 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:* August 12 — with the 20-year time limit stipulated by Thomas Mann at his death having expired, sealed packets containing 32 of the author's notebooks were opened in Zurich, Switzerland.* Writing under the...

 by Arkham House

Arkham House

Arkham House is a publishing house specializing in weird fiction founded in Sauk City, Wisconsin in 1939 by August Derleth and Donald Wandrei to preserve in hardcover the best fiction of H.P. Lovecraft. The company's name is derived from Lovecraft's fictional New England city, Arkham. Arkham House...

 in an edition of 4,283 copies. It was the author's first book published by Arkham House and was first announced in Arkham's 1948 catalog. It contains the stories Shiel considered to be his best.

Contents

Xélucha and Others contains the following tales:

1. "Introduction"
2. "Xélucha"
3. "The Primate of the Rose"
4. "Dark Lot of One Saul"
5. "The House of Sounds"
6. "The Globe of Gold-Fish"
7. "Many a Tear"
8. "The Bride"
9. "The Tale of Henry and Rowena"
10. "The Bell of St. Sepulcre"
11. "Huguenin's Wife"
12. "The Pale Ape"
13. "The Case of Euphemia Raphash"

Reception

Gahan Wilson

Gahan Wilson

Gahan Wilson is an American author, cartoonist and illustrator known for his cartoons depicting horror-fantasy situations...

reviewed the collection favorably, noting that even the lesser-known stories are "well worth your time" and singling out the title story as "an excellent example of Shiel's knack for decadence and is highly informative regarding the dietary preferences of graveyard worms."