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With an Introduction by William Breeze and a Foreword by David Tibet. This volume brings together the uncollected short fiction of the poet, writer and religious philosopher Aleister Crowley (1875 1947). Crowley was a successful critic, editor and author of fiction from 1908 to 1922, and his short stories are long overdue for discovery. Of the forty-nine stories in the present volume, only thirty were published in his lifetime. Most of the rest appear here for the first time. Like their author, Crowley s stories are fun, smart, witty, thought-provoking and sometimes unsettling. They are set in places he had lived and knew well: Belle Epoque Paris, Edwardian London, pre-revolutionary Russia and America during the first World War. The title story The Drug stands as one of the first if not the first accounts of a psychedelic experience. His Black and Silver is a knowing early noir discovery that anticipates an entire genre. Atlantis is a masterpiece of occult fantasy, a dark satire that can stand with Samuel Butler s Erewhon. Frank Harris considered The Testament of Magdalen Blair the most terrifying tale ever written. Extensive editorial end-notes give full details about the stories.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
genius,
By frodo "frodo (anagram)" (england) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Drug and Other Stories (Tales of Mystery & the Supernatural) (Paperback)
Full of weirdness. Demonstrates Crowley's wonderful mastery of English, his deep knowledge, and his extraordinary humour and inventiveness. If you are able to step back in time to the period in which he wrote these items and thereby to take into account the social framework and ambience in which he essayed these creative outpourings, then the humour will draw laughs-out-loud. Some of the plots are thin, but raised up by the sheer style of delivery. Theodore Bugg with his social pretensions is one perfect example of all of the factors I have mentioned so far with the exception of 'deep knowledge'. For this there are other more challenging inputs, and serious truths are presented in a way that is at times difficult to negotiate. Such stories are not suitable to read on a train journey, but many others are. So you have a wide selection of which to avail yourself according to your mood and circumstance.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Magickal Tales from the Master,
By XIII Warrior "Will" (Ulster) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Drug and Other Stories (Tales of Mystery & the Supernatural) (Paperback)
Even if you are not a Crowley fan or acolyte this is an outstanding collection of short stories whose imaginative breadth is staggering. Crowley was always a lucid and entertaining prose writer and here he shows off another colour of his rainbow. What is not includled in this pot of gold are the 'Simon Iff' tales. However this does not detract from the range of stories presented, some published here for the first time. There is an excellent,informative and if slightly slavish introduction the editor has obviously worked here on a labour of love and the care shows. Its a jolly fun mixture: Pathos, bathos, all the spices of a literary 'Glacier Curry': Saki meets Dunsany meets Conan Doyle meets Poe. As experimental as Joyce, with more readability. Yes it has the unbeatable quality of a good read. It will make you smile, frown and think. And the Wordsworth publication value is obvious, the book is practically a steal.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Delightful & Interesting,
By Markus (Germany) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Drug and Other Stories (Tales of Mystery & the Supernatural) (Paperback)
This is an excellent collection of Crowley's short stories. His mastery of English is awesome, as are his wit and humour. If you enjoy the stories of E.A. Poe or E. T. A. Hoffmann, then you will enjoy most of the stories here. Most of the stories involve Crowley's beliefs in some way or other, but even if you are not a Thelemite, they are good and enjoyable, you just won't appreciate the deeper meaning hidden within. As Crowley does not blatantly force his philosophy upon the reader, this book can indeed be enjoyed by non-Thelemites. If, however, you happen to be a Thelemite, then this is a must buy: his explanations on matters Occult are simply brilliant and are a welcome addition to his technical writings which many of these stories elucidate. Mind-blowing too, his prose depictions of the Qabalah, his past incarnations, etc.Crowley was predominantley an Occultist, not a story-teller, and this shows. Nonetheless, his skill is of a high standard, and given the price of the book, this is well worth it.
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