Arthur Machen

Step into the chilling world of The Terror by Arthur Machen. In this gripping work of supernatural horror, Machen weaves a haunting tale that explores the depths of human fear and the mysteries that lie beyond our understanding. Set in the eerie landscapes of Wales, the story follows a group of friends who stumble upon a series of inexplicable and terrifying events. As they uncover ancient legends, occult practices, and encounters with the supernatural, their sanity and beliefs are pushed to the brink. Machen's evocative prose and mastery of atmosphere create an atmosphere of unrelenting suspense and dread. Through his vivid descriptions and meticulous attention to detail, he immerses readers in a world where ancient terrors lurk in the shadows and the line between reality and nightmare becomes blurred. The Terror is a masterpiece of horror fiction that delves into the darkest recesses of the human psyche. With its exploration of ancient mysteries and the fragile nature of human existence, Machen's work resonates with readers, leaving an indelible mark long after the final page is turned. Prepare to be consumed by fear and uncertainty as you venture into the haunting pages of The Terror. Arthur Machen's chilling narrative will captivate lovers of supernatural horror and leave them questioning the boundaries of the known world.

Arthur Machen (1863-1947) was a Welsh journalist, novelist, and short story writer. He is best known for his supernatural, fantasy, and horror fiction. He translated several books from French including Memoirs of Casanova. His lively English style generated demand of his translated editions for many years. Many consider the novels The House of Souls and The Hill of Dreams to be his best work. The mystical qualities of the stories in "The House of Souls" are both rare and beautiful, and as a work of art alone it deserves to live. It is almost perfect-tender, true, intimate, and restrained.

The Three Impostors is an episodic novel by British horror fiction writer Arthur Machen, first published in 1895 in the Bodley Head's Keynote Series. Controversy: Publisher John Lane, wary of the atmosphere following the trial of Oscar Wilde, asked Machen to censor his manuscript. Barring the omission of one word, Machen refused to do this. In Things Near and Far Machen wrote: It was in the early spring of 1894 that I set about the writing of the said "Three Impostors," a book which testifies to the vast respect I entertained for the fantastic, "New Arabian Nights" manner of R. L. Stevenson, to those curious researches in the byways of London which I have described already, and also, I hope, to a certain originality of experiment in the tale of terror. The novel incorporates several inset weird tales and culminates in a final denouement of deadly horror, connected with a secret society devoted to debauched pagan rites. The three imposters of the title are members of this society who weave a web of deception in the streets of London-retailing the aforementioned weird tales in the process-as they search for a missing Roman coin commemorating an infamous orgy by the Emperor Tiberius and close in on their prey: "the young man with spectacles". (wikipedia.org)

The Three Impostors is an episodic novel by British horror fiction writer Arthur Machen, first published in 1895 in the Bodley Head's Keynote Series. Controversy: Publisher John Lane, wary of the atmosphere following the trial of Oscar Wilde, asked Machen to censor his manuscript. Barring the omission of one word, Machen refused to do this. In Things Near and Far Machen wrote: It was in the early spring of 1894 that I set about the writing of the said "Three Impostors," a book which testifies to the vast respect I entertained for the fantastic, "New Arabian Nights" manner of R. L. Stevenson, to those curious researches in the byways of London which I have described already, and also, I hope, to a certain originality of experiment in the tale of terror. The novel incorporates several inset weird tales and culminates in a final denouement of deadly horror, connected with a secret society devoted to debauched pagan rites. The three imposters of the title are members of this society who weave a web of deception in the streets of London-retailing the aforementioned weird tales in the process-as they search for a missing Roman coin commemorating an infamous orgy by the Emperor Tiberius and close in on their prey: "the young man with spectacles". (wikipedia.org)

Arthur Machen (1863-1947) was a Welsh journalist, novelist, and short story writer. He is best known for his supernatural, fantasy, and horror fiction. He translated several books from French including Memoirs of Casanova. His lively English style generated demand of his translated editions for many years. Many consider the novels The House of Souls and The Hill of Dreams to be his best work. The mystical qualities of the stories in "The House of Souls" are both rare and beautiful, and as a work of art alone it deserves to live. It is almost perfect-tender, true, intimate, and restrained.

The Great God Pan is a horror and fantasy novella by Welsh writer Arthur Machen. Machen was inspired to write The Great God Pan by his experiences at the ruins of a pagan temple in Wales. What would become the first chapter of the novella was published in the magazine The Whirlwind in 1890. Machen later extended The Great God Pan and it was published as a book alongside another story, "The Inmost Light", in 1894. The novella begins with an experiment to allow a woman named Mary to see the supernatural world. This is followed by an account of a series of mysterious happenings and deaths over many years surrounding a woman named Helen Vaughan. At the end, the heroes confront Helen and force her to kill herself. She undergoes a series of unearthly transformations before dying and she is revealed to be a supernatural entity. On publication, it was widely denounced by the press as degenerate and horrific because of its implied sexual content, and the novella hurt Machen's reputation as an author. Beginning in the 1920s, Machen's work was critically re-evaluated and The Great God Pan has since garnered a reputation as a classic of horror. Literary critics have noted the influence of other nineteenth-century authors on The Great God Pan and offered differing opinions on whether or not it can be considered an example of Gothic fiction or science fiction. The novella has influenced the work of horror writers such as Bram Stoker, H. P. Lovecraft, and Stephen King, and has been adapted for the stage twice. A pair of parodies of Pan were published in 1895 - Arthur Rickett's "A Yellow Creeper" and Arthur Sykes's "The Great Pan-Demon". Both suggest that Machen is an author of "limited imagination," with the latter depicting him as a mad scientist unleashing degenerate literature on an unsuspecting public. The Great God Pan was brought to the stage in 2008 by the WildClaw Theatre Company in Chicago. It was adapted and directed by WildClaw artistic director Charley Sherman. The novella Helen's Story (2013) by Rosanne Rabinowitz retells the story of The Great God Pan from Helen Vaughan's point of view. Helen's Story was written from a feminist perspective and nominated for a Shirley Jackson Award. The Great God Pan was adapted into a chamber opera by composer Ross Crean. Unusually for a composer, Crean wrote the opera's libretto himself. A recording of the work was released in 2017. The production saw its world premiere by Chicago Fringe Opera in 2018. According to the Chicago Tribune's John von Rhein, Chicago Fringe Opera's staging of The Great God Pan portrays Helen Vaughan as both a symbol of gender equality and an evil femme fatale. (wikipedia.org)

First published in the height of the yellow nineties and in the shadow of the Oscar Wilde trials, Arthur Machen's The Three Impostors (1895) remains a relatively obscure text even as Machen receives increasing attention for his contributions to supernatural horror, the weird, and even science fiction. Situating this generically uncertain, richly multi-layered text in transnational traditions of the short-story cycle, the print culture of the 1890s, and the colonial scientific and material cultures of the fin de siècle, this edition shows that Machen's long-neglected text has a strong claim to our renewed attention today. An extensive selection of accompanying historical documents includes contemporary reviews, related literary inter-texts, and documents and images related to the book's publication history, design, and relationship to contemporary print culture.

Fantastic and Horrific Stories is a collection of short fiction by Arthur Machen. Condemned as decadent and obscene upon publication, Machen’s writing earned praise from Oscar Wilde and H. P. Lovecraft. Throughout the years, Machen’s work has been referenced and adapted by such figures as Stephen King, Guillermo del Toro, and Josh Malerman for its masterfully unsettling blend of science, myth, and magic. The Great God Pan, perhaps Machen’s most celebrated work, is the story of an occult experiment gone horribly wrong. Clarke has always taken an interest in occult matters, so when a friend offers him a chance to witness an experimental procedure intended to access the spirit realm, he cannot refuse. When the young patient Mary awakens, she shows signs of terror and soon falls into a catatonic state. Convinced of their success in discovering the world of “the great god Pan,” Clarke and Raymond agree to keep their discovery a secret. Years later, a nearby town begins reporting the mysterious disappearances of young children, all of whom have been seen in the forest with a young woman named Helen Vaughn. In “The White People,” originally published in Horlick’s Magazine in 1904, a Welshman receives the diary of a young girl introduced to witchcraft. Surprisingly well-kept for its age, the green book accompanies Cotgrave on a journey through the lush countryside. Its pages contain the diary of a young girl who, encouraged by her nurse, immerses herself in the world of magic. As she grows adept in the ways of witchcraft, the girl begins referring to strange beings and unknown places, all while doing her best to conceal her secret life from friends and family. The Hill of Dreams is a semi-autobiographical novel about a young man who begins having strange visions after visiting an ancient Roman fort near his rural Welsh home. Published alongside “The Inmost Light,” “The Shining Pyramid,” The Terror, “Out of the Earth,” and Ornaments in Jade, these tales by Arthur Machen showcase his gift for illuminating the presence of the supernatural in everyday life. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Arthur Machen’s Fantastic and Horrific Stories is a classic of British horror fiction reimagined for modern readers.

The Three Impostors; or, The Transmutations is an episodic horror novel by British writer Arthur Machen, first published in 1895 in The Bodley Head's Keynote Series. It was revived in paperback by Ballantine Books as the forty-eighth volume of the Ballantine Adult Fantasy series in June 1972. The novel comprises several weird tales and culminates in a final denouement of deadly horror, connected with a secret society devoted to debauched pagan rites. The three impostors of the title are members of this society who weave a web of deception in the streets of London-relating the aforementioned weird tales in the process-as they search for a missing Roman coin commemorating an infamous orgy by the Emperor Tiberius and close in on their prey: "the young man with spectacles". (wikipedia.org)

The Great God Pan and 'The White People' are classics of the horror genre, while The Inmost Light is more conventional, but still a damn good piece. A Fragment of Life, the only non-horror tale in the collection, has its tedious sections, but this proves to be intentional as a rendering of the ephemera of life drowning out the beauty. Machen's career, though rarely less than entertaining, eventually descended into lesser material going over the same ideas, but The House of Souls is one of his essential books along with The Hill of Dreams, Ornaments in Jade and The Three Impostors. Uniquely powerful literature from a veritable visionary. (Jim Smith)

The Hill of Dreams is a semi-autobiographical novel by the Welsh writer Arthur Machen. The novel recounts the life of a young man, Lucian Taylor, focusing on his dreamy childhood in rural Wales, in a town based on Caerleon. The Hill of Dreams of the title is an old Roman fort where Lucian has strange sensual visions, including ones of the town in the time of Roman Britain. Later, the novel describes Lucian's attempts to make a living as an author in London, enduring poverty and suffering in the pursuit of art and history. The Hill of Dreams was little noticed on its publication in 1907 save in a glowing review by Alfred Douglas. It was actually written between 1895 and 1897 and has elements of the style of the decadent and aesthetic movement of the period, seen through Machen's own mystical preoccupations. (wikipedia.org)

A beautiful book by one of the least known writers of horror/supernatural fiction. It's the first volume of his autobiography, and by far far the best of the three. It is an amazing piece of writing not only for the things he describes, but also (and most of all) for how he describes them, with a style which is far from the one he used in his fiction. (Andrea Russo)

A beautiful book by one of the least known writers of horror/supernatural fiction. It's the first volume of his autobiography, and by far far the best of the three. It is an amazing piece of writing not only for the things he describes, but also (and most of all) for how he describes them, with a style which is far from the one he used in his fiction. (Andrea Russo)

Fascinating mystical and artistic creed and a good-natured marvel of circumlocution. Practically everything Machen wrote in the 1890s had the touch of genius, and this even applies to his non-fiction, though this is actually presented as a fictional account from Machen's familiar of imagination. Here Machen vaguely details how he separates high literature from mere reading material, and whilst such an essay may sound haughty and pretentious, it makes more sense when you realise he isn't making a critical separation based on quality, but is espousing his hearty belief that art should exist to portray those unknown spheres of the infinite and ourselves. I didn't agree with all of Machen's conclusions, but such rambling rants as these were a big influence in shaping my own views on art, and it remains a criminally underlooked book. Buy this if you loved Machen's classic dark fiction of that decade (The Great God Pan, The Three Impostors, The White People and The Hill of Dreams), but perhaps weren't able to articulate why you felt their beckoning mysteries so deeply. (Jim Smith)

Fascinating mystical and artistic creed and a good-natured marvel of circumlocution. Practically everything Machen wrote in the 1890s had the touch of genius, and this even applies to his non-fiction, though this is actually presented as a fictional account from Machen's familiar of imagination. Here Machen vaguely details how he separates high literature from mere reading material, and whilst such an essay may sound haughty and pretentious, it makes more sense when you realise he isn't making a critical separation based on quality, but is espousing his hearty belief that art should exist to portray those unknown spheres of the infinite and ourselves. I didn't agree with all of Machen's conclusions, but such rambling rants as these were a big influence in shaping my own views on art, and it remains a criminally underlooked book. Buy this if you loved Machen's classic dark fiction of that decade (The Great God Pan, The Three Impostors, The White People and The Hill of Dreams), but perhaps weren't able to articulate why you felt their beckoning mysteries so deeply. (Jim Smith)

The Great God Pan is a horror and fantasy novella by Welsh writer Arthur Machen. Machen was inspired to write The Great God Pan by his experiences at the ruins of a pagan temple in Wales. What would become the first chapter of the novella was published in the magazine The Whirlwind in 1890. Machen later extended The Great God Pan and it was published as a book alongside another story, "The Inmost Light", in 1894. The novella begins with an experiment to allow a woman named Mary to see the supernatural world. This is followed by an account of a series of mysterious happenings and deaths over many years surrounding a woman named Helen Vaughan. At the end, the heroes confront Helen and force her to kill herself. She undergoes a series of supernatural transformations before dying and she is revealed to be the child of Mary and the god Pan. On publication, it was widely denounced by the press as degenerate and horrific because of its implied sexual content, and the novella hurt Machen's reputation as an author. Beginning in the 1920s, Machen's work was critically re-evaluated and The Great God Pan has since garnered a reputation as a classic of horror. Literary critics have noted the influence of other nineteenth-century authors on The Great God Pan and offered differing opinions on whether or not it can be considered an example of Gothic fiction or science fiction. The novella has influenced the work of horror writers such as Bram Stoker, H. P. Lovecraft, and Stephen King, and has been adapted for the stage twice. (wikipedia.org)

The Hill of Dreams is a semi-autobiographical novel by the Welsh writer Arthur Machen. The novel recounts the life of a young man, Lucian Taylor, focusing on his dreamy childhood in rural Wales, in a town based on Caerleon. The Hill of Dreams of the title is an old Roman fort where Lucian has strange sensual visions, including ones of the town in the time of Roman Britain. Later, the novel describes Lucian's attempts to make a living as an author in London, enduring poverty and suffering in the pursuit of art and history. The Hill of Dreams was little noticed on its publication in 1907 save in a glowing review by Alfred Douglas. It was actually written between 1895 and 1897 and has elements of the style of the decadent and aesthetic movement of the period, seen through Machen's own mystical preoccupations. (wikipedia.org)

Most essential Machen work is from the 1890s, but The Terror is one of his most developed horror tales from his later career. This often waffling novella is meandering and less focused than his dark folk masterpieces The Hill of Dreams, The Great God Pan, Novel of the Black Seal and The White People, but also gleefully manic and quite inspired in parts, developing an atmosphere of magical mystery and dread around the countryside and featuring moments of terror, particularly the harrowing final siege diary, which is worthy of Machen at his best as a horror writer. (Jim Smith)

Fabulous piece of writing. It is really quite astounding that Machen is largely forgotten as a writer. In The Secret Glory, I particularly loved Machen's satirical social comments about the class system, Christian hypocrisy and the sadistic puritanism of English Public Schools. This isn't always an easy book to read but it is very rewarding, and after reading, like the best literary works, carves out a place for itself in one's psyche. (M. J. Johnson)