Julius LeVallon / The Bright Messenger [Paperback]

Algernon Blackwood (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 31, 2005

Julius LeVallon and its sequel, The Bright Messenger, form a union of two novels that deal with elemental spirits, ancient races, reincarnation and the supernatural world of Nature. As Mike Ashley says in his introduction, "these two novels...are the culmination of a lifetime's experience...you will encounter nothing like them anywhere else in the whole of fantastic literature."

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A remarkable faculty for dealing with subjects that lie on the borderland between body and spirit...and the other side." -- New York Times

"Mr. Blackwood makes the occult seem part and parcel of daily life." -- Boston Herald

"The story is a masterpiece." -- N. Y. Globe

"A remarkable faculty for dealing with subjects that lie on the borderland between body and spirit...and the other side." -- New York Times

"Mr. Blackwood makes the occult seem part and parcel of daily life." -- Boston Herald

"The story is a masterpiece." --N. Y. Globe

About the Author

Storyteller, mystic, adventurer, radio and television personality--Algernon Blackwood has been all of these in his rich and varied lifetime. In fact, as he revealed to his friends, most of his strange stories were based on actual events. And at the time of his death in 1951, he had become one of the greatest writers of supernatural fiction in the 20th century.

Product Details

• Paperback: 436 pages
• Publisher: Stark House Press (July 31, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0974943878
• ISBN-13: 978-0974943879
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,148,992 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Forgotten masterpieces, December 23, 2005

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A reader (Indiana) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Julius LeVallon / The Bright Messenger (Paperback)

It's often said that Algernon Blackwood's novels are less successful than his shorter works, but you wouldn't know it from these two rare and (almost) forgotten masterpieces. "Julius LeVallon" and "The Bright Messenger" are both supernatural novels that show Blackwood at his most inspired, visionary, and audacious. Stark House Press is to be thanked profusely for putting these unique works into print once again.

"Julius LeVallon" may well be Blackwood's best novel. It is visionary with a capital "V", presenting (via the title character) a cosmic panorama of reincarnation, karma, civilizations on other planets, nature elementals, magic - plus a little romance. I won't go into the details of the story - it must be read - except to say that it all builds to one of Blackwood's most potent and memorable climaxes.

"The Bright Messenger" is a sequel to "Julius LeVallon" which takes place some 20 years later. It's a little less focussed than the earlier novel and not as powerful, but it is just as visionary, and even more intensely moving. Again, no brief description of the book can possibly do it justice - it simply has to be read. (And if anybody thinks that there's anything "new" about the New Age movement, they should read the hilarious chapters in the middle of the book - written in 1921! - about a group of people known as the "Prometheans"...)

I can do no better than to quote Mike Ashley's fine introduction: "You will encounter nothing like [these two novels] anywhere else in the whole of fantastic literature." Amen to that. Essential reading for any fan of Blackwood, or of supernatural literature in general.