I finished the third tale in the book today – Mr Justice Harbottle. This story had an incredible atmosphere to it. It felt like Sleepy Hollow combined with Monty Python in the depiction of the crooked 18C judge. The main character is a hang ’em high type who is pursued beyond the grave by his victims. The sense of impending doom and descriptions of characters and settings, such as twisted rotting tress outside a carriage door, are what made it for me I think.
More on Sheridan Le Fanu here – http://www.litgothic.com/Authors/lefanu.html and of course wikipedia – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheridan_Le_Fanu