Who invented the detective, and the modern mystery story? Is terror a cross-town hike of several hours? Or a single, terrifying plunge over a precipice? Stephen King takes multiple volumes to tell a story without the horror or despair of this author's dozen pages. Having a bad day? Comfort yourself with knowledge that it could be so much worse. English, French and Latin dictionaries by your side might help. The vocabulary of an educated man has shrunk shamefully since the invention of the phonograph, and the wireless. Prepare for the return of old nightmares. If it is your first attempt to walk through the worlds of Edgar Allan Poe, there are no safe words.