Death hounds, shape shifters, and vampires are among the patients treated by the Holmes-like Dr. Taverner and his assistant Dr. Rhodes in this work of supernatural fiction by acclaimed spiritualist and occult writer Dion Fortune. First published in 1926, the adventures of Dr.Taverner and Dr. Rhodes take readers across the marshy moonlit fields of nightfall, hunting spirits and keeping watch over souls. Suffering from vampirism? Being stalked by a death hound? Haunted by past life debts? Family under a suicidal curse? From across the countryside patients and their desperate families come to seek treatment for unconventional diseases from an unconventional doctor. His secret? Treating the diseases of the occult. Though Fortune wrote The Secrets of Doctor Taverner as her first novel, she maintained that all the events were based on true occurrences. Many believe Taverner to be Fortune's own spiritual teacher, Dr. Moriarty, and Rhodes to be based on Fortune herself. An essential and fun read for anyone interested in the Western Mystery Tradition, Dion Fortune, the melding of medicine and magic, or just good old-fashioned paranormal fiction.

Death hounds, shape shifters, and vampires are among the patients treated by the Holmes-like Dr. Taverner and his assistant Dr. Rhodes in this work of supernatural fiction by acclaimed spiritualist and occult writer Dion Fortune. First published in 1926, the adventures of Dr.Taverner and Dr. Rhodes take readers across the marshy moonlit fields of nightfall, hunting spirits and keeping watch over souls. Suffering from vampirism? Being stalked by a death hound? Haunted by past life debts? Family under a suicidal curse? From across the countryside patients and their desperate families come to seek treatment for unconventional diseases from an unconventional doctor. His secret? Treating the diseases of the occult. Though Fortune wrote The Secrets of Doctor Taverner as her first novel, she maintained that all the events were based on true occurrences. Many believe Taverner to be Fortune's own spiritual teacher, Dr. Moriarty, and Rhodes to be based on Fortune herself. An essential and fun read for anyone interested in the Western Mystery Tradition, Dion Fortune, the melding of medicine and magic, or just good old-fashioned paranormal fiction.

The Secrets of Dr. John Taverner by Dion Fortune invites readers on an extraordinary journey into the esoteric world of occult mysteries and hidden realms. Within the pages of this captivating book, Fortune skillfully weaves together elements of magic, psychology, and spiritual exploration, offering a unique perspective on the human psyche and the hidden forces that shape our lives. Set in the backdrop of a mysterious psychiatric institution, the story follows the enigmatic Dr. John Taverner as he delves into the depths of the human mind and encounters supernatural beings from other planes of existence. As Taverner unravels the secrets of his patients' psyches, he discovers a hidden reality that exists beyond the boundaries of conventional understanding. With its blend of mysticism, suspense, and psychological insight, this book invites readers to embark upon a thrilling odyssey of self-discovery and spiritual awakening, where the secrets of the universe and the depths of the human psyche converge in a tapestry of wonder and enlightenment.

Dr Taverner is an occult Sherlock Holmes, an esoteric Master who uses his powers to aid 'untreatable' patients for whom orthodox medical science can do nothing. Utilizing his knowledge of White Magic, he fights an unrelenting battle against vampires, death-hounds, body-snatchers and members of the nefarious Black Lodge. Well-written and briskly paced, these twelve stories stand on their own merits - but there is more to these tales than meets the eye. Dion Fortune was herself a mage, a high initiate of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and founder of the Society of the Inner Light. The tales she tells are based on real events, and she uses 'The Secrets of Dr Taverner' as a vehicle to introduce the reader to magical practices and many arcane principles of occult law. Each story in this collection is a complete case, as gripping and as entertaining as the stories of Sherlock Holmes. They take you into the inner worlds of the human mind - a world full of strange twists and unexpected happenings!

Talking to the Gods explores the linkages between the imaginative literature and the occult beliefs and practices of four writers who were members of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. William Butler Yeats, Arthur Machen, Algernon Blackwood, and Dion Fortune were all members of the occult organization for various periods from 1890 to 1930. Yeats, of course, is both a canonical and well-loved poet. Machen is revered as a master of the weird tale. Blackwood's work dealing with the supernatural was popular during the first half of the twentieth century and has been influential in the development of the fantasy genre. Fortune's books are acknowledged as harbingers of trends in second-wave feminist spirituality. Susan Johnston Graf examines practices, beliefs, and ideas engendered within the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and demonstrates how these are manifest in each author's work, including Yeats's major theoretical work, A Vision.

This book is the first collection to feature histories of women in Western Esotericism while also highlighting women’s scholarship. In addition to providing a critical examination of important and under researched figures in the history of Western Esotericism, these fifteen essays also contribute to current debates in the study of esotericism about the very nature of the field itself. The chapters are divided into four thematic sections that address current topics in the study of esotericism: race and othering, femininity, power and leadership and embodiment. This collection not only adds important voices to the story of Western Esotericism, it hopes to change the way the story is told.

Esotericism and Narrative: The Occult Fiction of Charles Williams situates the life and fiction of the Inkling Charles Williams in the network of modern occultism, with special focus on his initiatory experiences in A.E. Waite’s Fellowship of the Rosy Cross. Aren Roukema evaluates fictional projections of magic, kabbalah, alchemy and ritual experience in Williams’s seven novels of supernatural fantasy. From this specific analysis, he develops more broadly applicable approaches to the serious expression of religious experience in fiction. Roukema shows that esoteric knowledge has frequently been blurred into fiction because of its inherent narrativity and adaptability, particularly by authors already attracted to the syncretism, multivalence and lived fantasy of the modern occult experience.

Provides an extensive chronology and an introduction which explains the nature of Gothic and shows how it has evolved. Includes entries on major writers, and works of geographical variants like Irish, Scottish or Russian Gothic and Female Gothic, Queer Gothic and Science Fiction.

'A treasure trove of magical lore' Observer 'A fascinating guide ... From magic wands to ley lines, each chapter introduces a different aspect of all things enchanting.' Daily Express 'A magical mystery tour' The Times Of all the countries in the world, England has the richest history of magical lore and practice. English authors such as J.R.R.Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Terry Pratchett, and J.K.Rowling, dominate the world of magic in fiction, but from the earliest times, England has also acted as home to generations of eccentrics and scholars who have researched and explored every conceivable kind of occult art. Most people are torn between a fascination with magic and an almost instinctive fear of the occult, of a world redolent with superstition and illusion. And yet more people now practice magic in England than at any time in history. The Book of English Magic explores this hidden story, from its first stirrings to our present-day fascination with all things magical.

The seventh issue of "Sherlock Holmes Mystery Magazine" is another fine selection of tales about Sherlock Holmes, or in the Sherlockian spirit. Fiction: The Dead House, by Bruce Kilstein A Letter from Legrand, by David Ellis An Old-Fashioned Villain, by Nick Andreychuk The Premature Murder, by Michael Mallory The Double, by Janice Law The Way It Is (novel excerpt), by Carole Buggé A House Divided, by Marc Bilgrey Classic reprint: A Scandal in Bohemia, by Arthur Conan Doyle Features: From Watson’s Scrapbook (Editorial), by John H. Watson, M.D. Moriarty’s Mailbag, by Professor Moriarty The Adventures of the Six Napoleons...of Crime, by Lenny Picker C.E. Lawrence -- The Darker Half of Carole Buggé (interview) Sherlock’s Big Finish: An Interview with Nicholas Briggs, conducted by M J Elliott The Roots of the Psychic Detective in Fiction, by Lee Weinstein