Cabal vs Poe's Children: Which Should You Read?

Both live on shelves: English Horror tales, Horror

Cabal Clive Barker · 1988 ★★★★☆ 4.3 268 pages · ≈ 4 h 58 m · Moderate

“Of all the rash and midnight promises made in the name of love, none, Boone now knew, was more certain to be broken than "I'll never leave you."”

Cabal is a 1988 horror novella by the British author Clive Barker. It was originally published in the United States as part of a collection comprising a novel and several short stories from Barker's sixth and final…

1 film adaptation

Short Stories Fiction

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Poe's Children Peter Straub · 2008 ★★★★☆ 3.7 534 pages · ≈ 9 h 53 m · Moderate

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of Ghost Story—and 8-time Bram Stoker Award winner—gathers 24 bone-chilling, nail-biting, frightfully imaginative stories that represent the best of contemporary horror…

American Horror tales

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Side by side

The verdict

Readers rate Cabal highest: Cabal 4.3 · Poe's Children 3.7.
Cabal is the quickest read — about 4 hours vs 9 for Poe's Children.
Cabal has the widest readership — 636 ratings behind its score.
Cabal runs the darker storyline; Poe's Children stays the lighter read.

How to choose

Want a one-evening read? Cabal ≈ 4h vs 9h for Poe's Children In the mood for something dark? Cabal a darker storyline than Poe's Children Want something lighter? Poe's Children an easier tone than Cabal

Scores by source

	Cabal	Poe's Children
Goodreads	4.3 (636)	—
Hardcover	3.8 (79)	3.0 (7)
Apple Books	4.5 (82)	4.0 (7)

Reception

	Cabal	Poe's Children
Ratings	636	7
Editions	16	2
Film adaptations	1	—
Want to read	585	—
Reading it now	13	—
Written reviews	18	—
Wikipedia attention	2109	—
Pages	268	534

Questions readers ask

Which is rated higher: Cabal or Poe's Children?

Cabal has the higher combined reader rating across sources (Cabal 4.3/5, Poe's Children 3.7/5).

Which is shorter to read: Cabal or Poe's Children?

Cabal is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: Cabal (268 pages, ≈ 4 h 58 m); Poe's Children (534 pages, ≈ 9 h 53 m).

Which is harder to read: Cabal or Poe's Children?

Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — Cabal: Moderate; Poe's Children: Moderate.

Have both books been made into films?

Cabal: 2 film adaptations; Poe's Children: no film adaptation on record.