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A pretty good, if lightweight read
If American author Robert W. Chambers (1865-1933) is remembered at all today, it is for his macabre works, including his 1895 book, The King in Yellow. However, around the turn of the twentieth century, Mr. Chambers switched over to writing in the much more lucrative genre of romantic, historical fiction.

The Maid-at-arms is the story of two young people during the American Revolution - George Ormond and Dorothy Varick. Thrown together by family responsibilities, their love can never be. And yet, with the war intruding upon their comfortable New York world, everything is thrown into chaos, and anything is possible...

Overall, I found this to be a pretty good, if lightweight read. The story is interesting, and I loved the author's use of the upper-class New York seigniory class with its slavery and pretensions as a backdrop to the story. So, if you like good historical fiction, then I highly recommend this book to you. It's quite an interesting read.
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Customer Reviews (7)

S L O W......U N Q U I E T.......C H I L L S
I owned this book a long time ago -- and may buy myself another copy.The other reviews here give good opinions and recommend various stories and chapters in this book -- but do not seem to say what this book is ALL ABOUT.For those who have never heard of this classic, here is a summary of the book's plot."The King In Yellow" is about a book, (called "The King In Yellow"), that drives people insane, or nearly insane, when they read it.The various chapters detail what happens to various people when they read this book.

It is a masterpiece, but must be read carefully and slowly.Do read it.Your patience will be rewarded!

Darkly Beguiling
Any collection of Robert W Chambers's "King in Yellow" stories is a rare and welcome gift, and the best of those stories--"The Yellow Sign," "The Repairer of Reputations," and "In the Court of the Dragon"--are included in this volume. Curiously, though, others are omitted in favor of tales that, while quite good, simply don't seem to be part of the KIY cycle. The missing stories, in this reviewer's opinion, are as follows: "The Prophet's Paradise," "The Street of the Four Winds," "The Street of the First Shell," "The Street of Our Lady of the Fields," and "Rue Barree." Had the current volume included these tales, I would have given it the highest possible marks. Still, it is an excellent collection that I highly recommend to anyone interested in the work of the inestimable and terribly underrated Robert W. Chambers.

Chambers Chills
Robert W. Chambers is an almost forgotten writer of fantasy and horror who should be honored for his originality and insights into human nature. To read the King In Yellow is to give Robert W. Chambers a chance to show how a well written psychological story can unfold. His stories build slowly and soon pull the reader into a world only Chambers could envision. To reveal any of his story plots here would do him an injustice.
The sad part of today's readership is that many no longer have the patience to move slowly and deeply through a story to it's climax. Everything must be swift and obvious these days. If you read Robert W. Chambers prepare for a time in another world that slowly sucks you into the unknown and often the terrifying. Grab an armchair, turn off the tv and the radio and quietly allow yourself to be absorbed by Chambers masterful writing. You will be delighted.

poor quality
R. W. Chambers has achieved a curiously high standing among horror enthusiasts based upon two or three of his early books.The vast majority of his works are trashy romance novels utterly devoid of literary merit.He had very little artistic integrity: he once claimed that being able to write a good book was of less importance to him than rearranging the furniture of his cabin.Yet despite of this he has carried down through the ages a reputation of being a pioneering author of supernatural fiction.How did this happen?It may be simply because his work, although unexceptional in itself, has spawned a host of very well known and popular imitators, among them the legendary pulp writer H. P. Lovecraft.The King in Yellow may be viewed as the prototype upon which was modeled the Cthulhu mythos as we know it.
Unfortunately the quality of the stories in this book are very mixed.The tales here compiled are sadly flawed due to the fact that Chambers was unashamedly pandering to his intended audience: the uneducated, who in the 1800 hundreds formed a depressingly large percentage of the population.As a result his books sold phenomenally, becoming some of the highest selling volumes of the time.But the factor which so greatly contributed to his popularity at the time shows to his disadvantage here.The book is filled with cliches of the time.In approximately half of the stories a maudlin and unnecessary love story is worked in.Others are marred by his sickly and pitiful attempts at humor.As a whole the volume shows little literary merit.
There is, however, one redeeming feature.Although poorly realized, many of the tales here contain the first mentioning of concepts later used to greater advantage in the tales of H. P. Lovecraft and Robert E. Howard.Enthusiasts of their works may find this book worth purchasing purely due to the influence it had upon these authors.To the general reader, however, The King in Yellow and Other Stories contains little of interest.

Presenting some of Chambers' best from a range of sources
Robert Chamber's title story became one of the most important works in American supernatural fiction since those of Poe, representing one of the first attempts to establish the horror of the names: this reprints all the supernatural stories from THE KING IN YELLOW, presenting some of Chambers' best from a range of sources. A highly recommended pick for fans of horror and the supernatural.
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The book has no illustrations or index. Purchasers are entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Subjects: United States; Fiction / General; Fiction / Horror; Fiction / Short Stories; Fiction / Fantasy / General; Fiction / Fantasy / Short Stories; Fiction / Horror; Fiction / Literary; Fiction / Short Stories; ... Read more

Customer Reviews (14)

Fine Weird Fiction, But Not For Everyone
Were it not for the board game Arkham Horror, I would never have heard of The King in Yellow. Tantalized by its concept - a play that drives anyone who reads it insane - and encouraged by the knowledge that H. P. Lovecraft had read it, I dove eagerly into the book. I am pleased to report that it did not drive me mad.

The King in Yellow is a collection of ten loosely connected short stories - the first few reminiscent of Edgar Allen Poe with a distinct focus on the King in Yellow, his yellow sign, and his play; the remainder more romantic, less macabre, and sharing only a common character or setting with the stories preceding. At times the work has an engaging and modern feel; at others one is reminded of bad English novels and bored children listening to ghost stories by a campfire. Still, I found the overall experience enjoyable.

Because of its disjointed nature, it is hard to recommend this book to anyone - it simply has no target audience! Completist fans of the Cthulhu Mythos should definitely give it a read but horror enthusiasts may be disappointed.

A Long Awaited Volume
As the title suggests I have been waiting for this book for a good while and I have finally found it here at Amazon. Since many of the hardcovers are out of print "The King in Yellow" is hard to come by. However some publishers have carried on printing hardcovers and this one is very nice. It has a library binding which means they added a lot of reinforcing stiching to strengthen it and make it easier to read as well. Needless to say they did a good job! I just love the subtle horror of the stories. I almost wish the terrible fictional book of the same name as this one existed.

Read it for the last two stories.
The only really good stories in this book, are the last two, "The Street of Our Lady Of The Fields" and "Rue Barree". The rest is only so so. While it's true that these two stories don't mention the The King In Yellow explicitly, they are extremely subtle, and you have to read between the lines because there you MAY find the true horrors of the The King In Yellow hidden. Masterful story-telling!

Glad it's back in print
It is nice that someone decided to republish this book (when I was a kid it was almost impossible to find).Anyway, the edition is nice, but it would be cool if someone did an academic edition of the book.I am surprised no one has thought of this yet.

A self-replicating literary curse - brilliant!
Each time a reader reads this book, he or she is actually reading the same book spoken of in the text, the reading of which will drive the reader mad - case in point, the only passages that we are allowed to glimpse from the legendary "King In Yellow" within the stories are the same passages that appear in the actual copy one is reading at the time. For all of you who have seen the film "The Ring", think of it as a videotaped "King In Yellow" - beware the Yellow Sign, lest your reputation become beyond repair! ... Read more

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This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

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This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

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CONTENTS:
I.-Acquaintance
II.-Imprudence
III.-Shotover
IV.-The Season Opens
V.-A Winning Loser
VI.-Modus Vivendi
VII.-Persuasion
VIII.-Confidences
IX.-Confessions
X.-The Seamy Side
XI.-The Call of the Rain
XII.-The Asking Price
XIII.-The Selling Price
XIV.-The Bargain
XV.-The Enemy Listens

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This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

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The book has no illustrations or index. Purchasers are entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Subjects: Detective and mystery stories, American; ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

police is not obeying enough rules
original and inventive, as always. the stories worked better than usually by the author. some with real interesting concepts. but he never knows how to stick only to the story, to obey sensible literal rules, how to form the stories in a sensible way. ... Read more

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An American master of the fictional nightmare

Robert W. Chambers most famous and most highly regarded work is undoubtedly, 'The King in Yellow'-a collection of stories held by the common theme of a drama of the same title which drives those who read it to insanity. It is widely accepted that this work is one of the most important in the whole library of American supernatural writing. Nevertheless, it is but part of Chambers' output in the field of weird and supernatural writings, so this special Leonaur collection of Chambers fiction in the genre-which of course includes the stories that comprise 'The King in Yellow'-runs to a satisfying four substantial volumes. Leonaur editions are available in softcover and hardback with dust jacket for collectors. Leonaur hardbacks feature real cloth bindings, gold foil embossed lettering on their spines and fabric head and tail bands.
The first volume includes the novel 'The Slayer of Souls,' the novelette 'The Man at the Next Table,' and fourteen short stories. ... Read more

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This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

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"One night last winter I was lying in bed thinking about nothing at all in particular. I had been posing for you and I was tired out, yet it seemed impossible for me to sleep. I heard the bells in the city ring ten, eleven, and midnight. I must have fallen asleep about midnight because I don't remember hearing the bells after that. It seemed to me that I had scarcely closed my eyes when I dreamed that something impelled me to go to the window. I rose, and raising the sash, leaned out. Twenty-fifth Street was deserted as far as I could see. I began to be afraid; everything outside seemed so--so black and uncomfortable. ... Read more

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Originally published in 1905.This volume from the Cornell University Library's print collections was scanned on an APT BookScan and converted to JPG 2000 format by Kirtas Technologies.All titles scanned cover to cover and pages may include marks notations and other marginalia present in the original volume. ... Read more

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The Common Law is presented here in a high quality paperback edition. This popular classic work by Robert W. (Robert William) Chambers is in the English language. If you enjoy the works of Robert W. (Robert William) Chambers then we highly recommend this publication for your book collection. ... Read more

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Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free.This is an OCR edition with typos.Excerpt from book:CHAPTER IIIThe co a D'obThe days that followed were brilliant links in a fierce sequence of gaiety; and this though the weather was so hot that the very candles in their sconces drooped, dripping their melted wax on egrette and lace, scarlet coat and scarf. A sort of midsummer madness attacked the city; we danced in the hot moonlit nights, we drove at noontide, with the sun flaring in a sky of sapphire, we boated on the Bronx, we galloped out to the lines, escorted by a troop of horse, to see the Continental outposts beyond Tarrytown—so bold they had become, and no " skinners," either, but scouts of Heath, blue dragons if our glasses lied not, well horsed, newly saddled, holsters of bearskin, musket on thigh, and the July sun a-flashing on crested helmet and crossed sling- buckles. And how my heart drummed and the red blood leaped in me to beat in neck and temple, at sight of my own comrades! And how I envied them, free to ride erect and proud in the light of day, harnessed for battle, flying no false colors for concealment—all fair and clean and aboveboard! And I a spy!We were gay, I say, and the town had gone midsummer mad of its own fancy—a fevered, convulsive reaction from a strain too long endured; and while theoutlook for the King was no whit better here, and much worse in the South, yet, as it was not yet desperate, the garrison, the commander, and the Governor made a virtue of necessity, and, rousing from the pent inertia of the dreadful winter and shaking off the lethargy of spring, paced their cage with a restlessness that quickened to a mania for some relief in the mad distraction of folly and frivolity.And first, Sir Peter gave a ball at our house in honor of Elsin Grey, and we danced in the state drawing- room, and in the hallway, and in the south draw... ... Read more

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1920. An American-born girl, Tressa Norne, has been held in bondage in the Temple of Erlik, an Oriental devil-god of Central Asia. After many years of captivity, Tressa finally escapes to America knowing that a worldwide organization of murderous black magicians, made up of Yezidees and Hassani, are plotting to take over and enslave the world. A secret agent, Victor Cleves, protects and loves Tressa, and with his support, Tressa battles the black magicians who are trying to kill her.Will White Magic triumph over Black? ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Hilariously disappointing occult romance
Robert Chambers' second book, The King in Yellow (1895) is one of the greatest pieces of weird and horror fiction ever printed. His other books - over sixty of them - are now largely condemned as rubbish.

A best-selling author at the time, Chambers churned out historical romances (also occult romances, occasionally spy romances and occasionally colonial romances) to an eager audience. As a result, Chambers has largely been consigned to the derision of history - damned by his peers as an author that could have done better (as evidenced - once), but simply chose not to.

The Slayer of Souls (1920) only adds to the disappointment that Chambers has fostered in his critics. One of his 'romances', except with an occult twist, The Slayer of Souls has all the right pieces to make things interesting - an escaped temple priestess, a complicated esoteric mythos that harkens back to evil, extra-terrestrial elder gods and a sinister, world-spanning psychic cospiracy.

Alas, evil, extra-terrestrial elder gods do not a proper Lovecraftian short story make. (Please take note of that, all contributors to Chaosium-published short story collections). The Slayer of Souls is simply wacky hijinks, with fluttering lashes, manly 'secret agents' and conniving non-Aryan villains with ludicrous accents. Chambers does manage to fulfill one of Lovecraft's literary fantasies, in that he blatantly ties in capital-E-evil with all of the racist, anti-liberal issues of the day.

Fortunately, the last line of defense is a group of volunteer 'Secret Servicemen' and a single woman, Tressa Norne, escaped sorceress from the Yezidee temple. The Secret Service are a willing - and surprisingly inept - lot of gentlemen scholars. Largely their contribution to the battle against Evil is to serve as social chaperones to Ms. Norne, who single-handedly takes out the greater part of the Yezidee brotherhood. Tressa's powers consist of astral projection, snake-summoning and an uncanny ability to make romantic matches between her temple sisterhood and the brawny young men of the Secret Service. By the end of the book, the Yezidee threat seems little more than a Fraternity theme party - an excuse for the Secret Service to be introduced to lithe young temple priestesses.

Chambers made his literary mark with The King in Yellow. Any commercial success he gained afterwards (with, say, every other book he wrote) was undoubtedly well-deserved, and it is hard to begrudge him any success. That said, The Slayer of Souls is pure, ludicrous drivel. Come for the Cthulhu, stay for the anti-Communist rants.

Not the King in Yellow
Twenty five years separates this tale from Chamber's classic The King in Yellow. Unfortunately the Slayer of Souls supports the position that it was all downhill for Chambers, and I agree with the other reviewer that this was possibly rushed out for publication in a magazine and never intended as a novel.

Written nearly a hundred years ago, Slayer of Souls would be unreadable to many as it creaks along like the worst pulp romance of the period. It's marred by sexism and racism plus a copious amount of Chambers personal politics with the yellow menace and Bolsheviks lurking under every bed.The pseudo-foreign rituals and exotic names that seemed so masterful in King in Yellow fall flat, and the saccharine relationship between Secret Service agent Cleves and helpless Tressa is equally unsatisfying.

My recommendation - go back and read the King in Yellow again, and consign the Slayer of Souls to the dustbin of history. Even the most resolute fan of Chambers and early American gothic horror will find this novel hard to enjoy.

A return to his roots by the author of The King In Yellow

The Slayer of Souls, 1920

The Slayer of Souls, concerns a young American girl rased by the Yezidee-Mongols, a murderous cult of killers with psychic power, who want to rule the world. Because of her training in the East and her own powers, she is all that stands in the way of their evil plans. With the help of a standard issue dashing viral hero, the state department, and a female friend from her temple days they face danger and she falls in love with the hero.

Chambers before 1900 was a force to be reckened with in weird literature. By the time of this book his sugery romance style had corroded his formibable dark prose but there is still power here. This is his standard romance with all kinds of weird things thrown in. Every time you turn around some Mongol is stealing the bed sheets for his death shroud and going off to die.

This is not The King in Yellow but it is still a fun book and well worth the time if for no other reason then Robert W. Chambers wrote it. H. P. Lovecraft loved this book, maybe because he saw Chambers returning to his roots. Great ideas, good prose, written too fast most likely for a magazine sale. Could have used with a re-write.

Larry Loc
for more information on Robert W. Chambers see www.ioc.net/~larryloc/yking001.html ... Read more