A brilliant entertainer

A formidable talent, a formidable sum of talents

As clever a craftsman as the cleverest

Rendell's mastery of the difficult short story genre is unsurpassed ... Her mesmerising capacity to shock, chill and disturb is unmatched

Rendell is unrivalled at depicting psychologically warped people and at creating unease through the simplest things. This is another triumph

The Turn of the Screw is the most hopelessly evil story that we have ever read in any literature, ancient or modern

We are afraid of something unnamed, of something, perhaps, in ourselves... Henry James...can still make us afraid of the dark

Dazzling ...These narrative snapshots are skilfully framed and in-focus, the language forthright and fresh

This short story collection gives those new to her oeuvre a chance to delve into gems from her past...precociously vibrant

All the elements of Welsh's best work remain in tact here: the brilliant imagination, the phonetically-transcribed Scots dialect, the humour, the gritty realism

What's striking about these early stories is that the thicker Welsh was steeped in the primordial goo of his Edinburgh Scots phonetics, the better the storytelling got

As you would expect, the stories in this collection involve a certain amount of cultural tourism to the lower depths, undertaken with black humour... Welsh's relish for degradation covers up a strong sentimental streak

Welsh's transcription of Scots dialect is brilliant... Welsh also has a fabulous sense of the absurd... The overall vibe of these stories is dark and grim. And fierily, fiercely funny

A sparkling and adventurous writer