Raising Hell: A Concise History of the Black Arts - and Those Who Dared to Practice Them (Paperback)

~ (Author) "In the West, he has gone by many names..." (more)
Key Phrases: divinatory arts, virgin parchment, Mother Shipton, Middle Ages, Order of the Golden Dawn (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

It's always a pleasure to find a book of history so well written that I lose track of time while I'm reading it. Masello has collected the exploits of prominent sorcerers and alchemists, secret societies, rituals and key tools of black magic, without sinking into a subjective analysis of the morality of these occult arts.

Product Description

Here, in one spellbinding volume, is a history of the major occult arts as they have been practiced from ancient Babylon to the present day. Raising Hell weaves history with myths, quotes, anecdotes, and illustrations, to provide a vivid chronicle of the evolution of the occult arts. This definitive source offers a compelling look at the black arts and those who risked their lives to explore them.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Perigee Trade; 1st edition (October 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0399522387
• ISBN-13: 978-0399522383
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #842,997 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent For Beginners!, December 22, 1999

By	J. Robbins "JohanTheMighty" (Nacogdoches, TX) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book is a history of the black arts, and those who practiced them, as the title states. It goes into everything from alchemism to palmistry, to raising demons, to wizardry, and much more, with excellent examples and stories as well. The books format was easy to follow, easy to understand, and yet still managed to provide a cornecopia of information. I found this book quite fascinating, I found it very difficult to put down.

Trust me, I'm a pretty harsh judge of books, I don't hand out 5 stars for it unless theres something there. This book is a definate "must buy" if you, like myself, are generally new to the studies of the occult.

43 of 51 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brief Review of 'Raising Hell', June 18, 1998

By A Customer

I don't know which is worse: this book, or the fact that it is the best work for novice's to come out in a long time. The disgusting drivel that floods the modern-day market is appalling. Oh well, thats the price we pay for living in a more 'enlightened' age. It is a very commercial book, obviously geared twords (apply called) "naughty teenagers". It contains good information, but has a very swift 'spin' to it - sometimes nausiatinly so. All in all, though, it is informative - and should make any fan of Mr. King drool. If you are further interested, I would suggest reading:

The Black Arts

The History of Magic

The Powers of Evil

Encyclopedia of the Unexplained

The World of Ghosts and the Supernatural

Man, Myth, and Magic (12 vol.)

(all by Richard Cavendish - the leading authority on magic, mythology, and the supernatural)

History of Magic and Experimental Science

(Lynn Thorndike - one of the best - 8 vol.)

The History of Magic

(Kurt Seligmann)

Encyclopedia of Witchcraft and Demonology

(Rossell Hope Robbins - Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature)

Witchcraft, Magic, and Alchemy

(Grillot De Givry - translated by J. Courtenay Locke)

The Book of Black Magic

(Arthur Edward Waite)

The Secret Teachings of All Ages

(Manly P. Hall - a virtual tome of info. from a true believer)

Witchcraft and Black Magic

(Montague Summers)

Satanism and Witchcraft

(Jules Michelet)

These are some of the better books that grace Mr. Masello's bibliography. It is just unfortunate that he seemed to sacrafice scholorship for a quick 'rise' from his readers. He could have done alot better.

Sincerly, Shawn W. Ooten

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A quite complete review on the History of the Black Arts, November 9, 2001

By A Customer

Masello deals thoroughfully and in a very entertaining way with the History of the Black Arts through the five chapters of the book. It is focused on the Western tradition mainly and it is a bit brief.

- Chapter 1 tells us about black magic and sorcery, including nice examples of spells and anecdotes.
- Chapter 2 speaks about Necromancy, the art of raising the dead.
- Chapter 3 is devoted to Mystical Orders: Cabbala, Rosy Cross, the Masons and other.
- Chapter 4 includes the History of Alchemy and its adepts, such as Paracelsus and Seton.
- Chapter 5 collects the historical facts about foreseeing the future and divination methods.

The book also includes a glossary and a complete Bibliography, as well as some illustrations. The information is complete and enjoyable, though I would have liked it had more data about female witchcraft.