Cover of The Necromancer, or The Tale of the Black Forest

The Necromancer, or The Tale of the Black Forest

"The hurricane was howling, the hailstones beating against windows, the hoarse croaking of the raven bidding adieu to autumn, and the weather-cock's dismal creaking joined with the mournful dirge of the solitary owl..." "The Necromancer" consists of a series of interconnected stories, all centering on the enigmatic figure of Volkert the Necromancer. Filled with murder, ghosts, and dark magic, and featuring a delirious and dizzying plot that almost defies comprehension, "The Necromancer" is one of the strangest horror novels ever written.

Read more

One of the earliest Gothic bestsellers, "The Necromancer" was first published in 1794, and after more than two centuries still retains the power to thrill and fascinate readers. This edition includes a new preface which reveals for the first time ever the true identity of "The Necromancer"'s author, as well as an original critical essay by Jeffrey Cass, analysing the novel from a modern queer theory standpoint. The complete text of three contemporary reviews and helpful annotations are also included to further enhance this edition.

Audience
adult
Length
medium · 232 pages

Click a tag to see books like this one that share it. Point at it (on a phone, tap it) for less of it instead.

Read it? Sign in to help tag it.

Liked The Necromancer, or The Tale of the Black Forest? Here’s where I’d start.

These suit anyone who liked The Necromancer, or The Tale of the Black Forest. Sign in and mark a few books for picks shaped around your own taste.

  1. The Midnight Bell Shares gothic, classics, gothic horror
  2. Clermont Shares gothic, classics, gothic horror
  3. The Orphan of the Rhine Shares gothic, classics, horror
  4. Free onlineFree
    The Old English Baron Shares gothic, classics, fiction

“People who read The Necromancer, or The Tale of the Black Forest tend to reach for these next.”

  1. The Mysterious Warning
  2. The Castles of Athlin and Dunbayne
  3. Glenarvon
  4. Wagner the Werewolf

“If you want more of the same (horror about gothic), start with these.”

  1. The Castle of Wolfenbach: A German Story
  2. The Romance of the Forest
  3. Free onlineFree Bungay Castle
  4. Zastrozzi

“If it was the gothic that hooked you, try one of these.”

  1. Free onlineFree Vathek
  2. Zofloya
  3. Face in the Pond
  4. Melmoth the Wanderer

“These start from a similar idea, even if they go somewhere else with it.”

  1. Powers of Darkness: The Lost Version of Dracula
  2. Robert Browning's Poetry
  3. The House in the High Wood: A Story of Old Talbotshire
  4. In Praise of Disobedience