I don't know if I want to talk about the stories individually, except to say that I don't think there's any that I actively dislike, though I'd have to say that Harlequin Valentine is probably my least favorite. All of the signature excellence with which Gaiman has rightly built his widespread fan-base is present to prove that he is equally wonderful with his short game as he is in novel form and to tell stories which will send shivers down the spines of readers of all ages.

How to Talk to Girls' had an interesting kernel of an idea, and a nice turn of phrase or three, especially when the narrator meets a girl who introduces herself as a poem.However what did not work where the sexual undertones and the analysis that Susan was left behind because of her growing sexuality which is what many people have criticised Lewis for.

The poetry and other short miscellanies within this book were interesting, and some of them actually made sense (unlike poetry in general which usually comes off to me as fluff). Forbidden Brides of the Faceless Slaves in the Secret House of the Night of Dread Desire" – gothic story published in the anthology Gothic! As the reader reaches the conclusion they will notice, if they are versed in Holmes lore a bit, an alternate reality that goes beyond the sci-fi elements.Reality, however, is not story-shaped, and the eruptions of the odd into our lives are not story-shaped either. The Facts in the Case of the Departure of Miss Finch – inspired by a painting by Frank Frazetta of a savage woman flanked by tigers.