Necroscope IV: Deadspeak [Mass Market Paperback]

Brian Lumley (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2009 | Series: Necroscope (Book 4)

The silence of the grave is not silent at all.  In their millions, the dead are screaming...but no one can hear them!

 

Atop a perilous cliff, deep in the Balkan mountains, rises the castle of the Ferenczy.  Once it was a stronghold of the Vamphyri...and now it will be so again, for Janos Ferenczy, vampire and black magician, has risen from his ages-long sleep.  Powerful and evil, Janos conjures dead men and women into a semblance of life and subjects them to fiendish tortures.

 

But the shrieks of the dead do not satisfy Janos's lust for blood--for that he needs living humans.  His terrifying armies of the risen dead will soon overwhelm a helpless, defenseless mankind...

 

Helpless and defenseless because a terrible battle against the vampires has destroyed Harry Keogh's deadspeak, leaving the Necroscope deaf to the teeming dead...and to their warnings of Janos's reign of terror. 

 

To save the world, Harry must join forces and link minds with the most powerful, and deadliest, vampire of all!

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

First published as a paperback original in 1990, this fourth volume in British author Lumley's popular series pays particular homage to Bram Stoker's Dracula, featuring a multinational team of vampire hunters who rely on the latest technology to scour Europe to foil a master vampire's plans to move his nest and expand his troop of thralls. The hunt's conclusion takes Harry Keogh, the "Necroscope" (one who speaks to the dead), into misty Transylvania, where he fights the resurrected Janos Ferenczy in his ruined castle for possession of his lady love, Sandra. Lumley retains much of the florid melodrama that Stoker reveled in, with an increased explicitness suited to the present day. Still, the traditions are there: vampires can change form, are vulnerable to silver and garlic and must receive permission before entering either a dwelling or a mind. Lumley provides more rationale than Stoker, and he also secularizes the legend, toning down the original's Christian aversion to "blasphemous" dialogue. Lumley also broadens the scope, adding much to the story of psychic abilities, centered on the ultra-secret "E-Branch (`E' for ESP)" division of Britain's Secret Service. With their paranormal powers, Harry's E-Branch teammates give the novel an Ian Fleming/Stephen King crossover feel. Despite a tendency to overreach his descriptive power and the dated Cold War background, Lumley (Psychomech) tells a fast-moving tale of the primal horror of an undead parasite worthy of Stoker's original.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

'Since reading Lumley's Necroscope series, I know that vampires really do exist.' H.R. Giger 'Like the vampires it so full-bloodedly portrays, Brian Lumley's Necroscope series just gets stronger. His lively mix of action and monstrosity transmutes the base cliche of the vampire and turns it into a wonderfully contemporary bane.' Fear Magazine 'This fourth volume in the popular series pays particular homage to Bram Stoker's Dracula ! Lumley retains much of the florid melodrama that Stoker reveled in, with an increased explicitness suited to the present day. Still, the traditions are there: vampires can change form, are vulnerable to silver and garlic and must receive permission before entering either a dwelling or a mind. Lumley provides more rationale than Stoker [to] give the novel an Ian Fleming/Stephen King crossover feel ! a fast-moving tale of the primal horror of an undead parasite worthy of Stoker's original.' Publishers Weekly --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 512 pages
• Publisher: Tor Books; Rep Spl edition (September 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0765363852
• ISBN-13: 978-0765363855
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.1 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,135,850 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Brian Lumley is the author of the bestselling Necroscope series of vampire novels. An acknowledged master of Lovecraft-style horror, Brian Lumley has won the British Fantasy Award and been named a Grand Master of Horror. His works have been published in more than a dozen countries and have inspired comic books, role-playing games, and sculpture, and been adapted for television. When not writing, Lumley can often be found spear-fishing in the Greek islands, gambling in Las Vegas, or attending a convention somewhere in the US. Lumley and his wife live in England.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A must-read, but not because it is particularly good, March 20, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Necroscope: Deadspeak No. 4 (Necroscope Series) (Paperback)

I am a devoted reader of Brian Lumley's works, but I found this book to be difficult to read. The plot is fairly obvious from the start and fails to develop very much until very close to the end, when it picks up the pace and more closely resembles some of Lumley's other books in terms of horror and suspense. I found myself forcing myself to read it, as if it were a chore, simply because I found all the Necroscope books before it to be fantastic and wanted to move on to the next volume in the Necroscope series. Of all the Necroscope books written to date, I found this one to be the weakest link in the series. Despite its slow plot developments, however, I recommend reading this book, if only to better understand the underlying plot of Deadspawn, which is a fantastic book. If you find this work to be a bit of a disappointment, you are not alone, but you'll be glad you read it once you begin the book that follows.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "The Case Of Charles Dexter Ward", August 24, 2003

By 

"The Woj" (Downers Grove, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Necroscope 4: Deadspeak (Mass Market Paperback)

Great story. Hum....come to think of it, I've read this somewhere else before? Oh yeah, it's the exact same premise as H.P. Lovecraft's "The Case Of Charles Dexter Ward" from 1941. If Lovecraft was still around he might even hire a copyright lawyer for this one. I strongly recommend anyone who has read this book to seek out Lovecraft's story; I even "more" strongly recommend reading Lovecraft first.
Anyway, despite the fact Lumley converted Lovecraft's tale into one of his "Necroscope" novels, I'll forgive him for the unoriginal idea, because this maybe one of the best books of the series. The read is easy and very fast paced. Character development as always is excellent. There is "plenty o' mean & evil" throughout.
Definitely read the Lovecraft story though....

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great!! Get this book!, November 9, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Necroscope 4: Deadspeak (Mass Market Paperback)

What can I say? I love horror books and Vampires are my favorite creatures. I usually like stories from the Vampire point of view like in Anne Rice novel and mostly stood clear of the Vampire Hunter stuff. I picked up the first Necroscope book because of the skull on the cover, I'm glad I did! I was totally sucked into the world of the Necroscope, the vampires and the ESP agents. The series is so well written and each character so original to the point where you can't help but want to read more.

Unlike Anne Rice's VC which has dragged down to ... over the years Brian Lumley's series continues to get better and better and the characters more and more interesting, not to mention his Vampires are so original and sinister, they take no ... from anyone. There is really nothing I can say but read the series, all of it (which I'm in the middle of doing right now) you will not be disppointed! So if you're sick of feeling like you're being pumped out of your money by vampire authors who don't care what they put paper then buy this book and restore your faith
in the genre.