Carnacki: Heaven and Hell

It follows the same formula every time... yet is always enjoyable. The narrator is invited to Carnacki's place for a story. He is joined by his friends, who all sit and eat dinner and enjoy small talk. Then they retire to the parlor, and the real story begins. Carnacki always has some crazy latest adventure he tells to them, he always pauses for dramatic effect by filling his pipe, and Arkwright always interrupts and is stopped with a glare by Carnacki. Whenever I began to tire of it, another story starts up, and I was once again caught up in it. Where such repetition would annoy me to no end in other collections, here, it just worked.

His stories are varied but always involve him setting up his defenses, smoking his pipe, and drinking tea. I enjoy the language and them always mentioning the food or drink they get during the adventure. I won't delve into the stories, just read it and let Carnacki tell them much better than I. I will mention, however, the last story, which is a novella. It brings back the pig men and all the crazy in the House on the Borderland, and it's just a fantastic tale.

It kept me interested from beginning to end, despite things that would typically irritate me. Great collection.