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- Introducing the Penguin Weird Fiction Series
Grab a blanket, light a candle, and pull on your cosiest jumper: it’s officially spooky season. As the nights grow darker, we can’t resist losing ourselves in books with a gloomier atmosphere, whether that's uncovering the sordid secrets of dark academia, entering the magical but perilous landscapes of romantasy, or encountering the monsters – human or otherwise – of horror.
But if you’re looking for something that has the dread of horror, combined with the wild imagination of fantasy, we recommend trying out weird fiction.
What is weird fiction?
Weird fiction is a literary style that blends horror, fantasy and early science fiction. It originated at the turn of the 20th Century, and some of the best-known writers in the space include H. P. Lovecraft and Algernon Blackwood – although some also credit Edgar Allen Poe as an early influence on the genre.
'It's a very different sort of horror'
It's a style of fiction has some overlap with the Gothic literature that was popular in the Victorian era – but goes one step further. “It’s a hybrid genre that radically reinterprets the Gothic tropes of the past,” says Edward Kirke, the editor who compiled the Penguin Weird Fiction series. “So, in some ways, it’s radically reimagining those tropes until they are hardly recognisable, but sometimes it’s just making them weird. Making them odd.”
Where Gothic stories would have vampires or werewolves, in weird fiction there might instead be a mysterious tentacled beast. It’s “a very different sort of horror,” Kirke says.
At its heart, weird fiction evokes a feeling of unease as well as awe. “It is more inclined towards creating either a creeping sense of dread or a powerful sense of being overwhelmed,” Kirke explains. “And that can be a good thing, too. A lot of [weird fiction] writers are interested in exploring these emotions not necessarily as a negative but as a positive, too.”
What is the Penguin Weird Fiction Series?
If you're not sure where to start with weird fiction, you're in luck: Penguin has just launched a series of some of the genre's best works. This collection of five titles, out from 17th October 2024 and available to order internationally, features novels and short story collections from some of the most influential names in the genre, as well as lesser-known writers.
“I was aiming for balance,” Kirke explains. “As when you're recommending any selection of books, it's good to offer a mix of undiscovered gems as well as the really beloved classics.”
Each title has a gorgeously illustrated cover. Kirke says these designs were inspired by 1970s Penguin genre paperbacks, with cover artwork reminiscent of turn-of-the-century illustration.
For more information on each of the titles, as well as the inside scoop on why each story made the cut, read our guide to the collection below.
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Weird Fiction collection
This new collection is a must-have for the subgenre's fans and newcomers alike...
The books in the Penguin Weird Fiction Series
This collection of short stories introduces Dr John Silence, a detective of the occult. Through his investigations, he uncovers ancient Egyptian fire spirits, pagan magic, demonic possession, and a host of other supernatural phenomena. Ancient Sorceries is a great subversion of the Sherlock Holmes-esque hero, and a perfect blend of horror, fantasy and science fiction.
Why it’s in the series: “Algernon Blackwood is one of the greatest ghost story writers of the 20th Century,” Kirke explains. “I think it’s [because of] that combination of atmosphere but also imagination. He is engaged in a type of storytelling which feels different to other writers in that space.”
Jesse J. Robinson, a wealthy industrialist, is attacked by a burglar who has his eye on Robinson’s most prized possession: a mysterious green box, engraved with a single line from an unknown language. Dr. John Vanaman, called to Robinson's side after the attack, along with Robinson's niece Leilah, is drawn to the mystery, embarking on a quest that uncovers the box’s ancient, terrifying origin…
Why it’s in the series: Gertrude Barrows Bennett was “a real forerunner of any woman writing in this space, because this was an incredibly male-dominated sphere,” Kirke says. “This is my favourite of hers. There is a really good mystery at its heart. I don’t want to ruin it for anyone as it has a good twist at the end.”
This beloved classic of the weird fiction genre begins with the discovery of a manuscript that tells the story of an old recluse and his strange home – and his vision of an even stranger version of his home that exists alongside gods and monsters in another dimension. The recluse’s earthly home is besieged by pig-like creatures that come from the ground, but even greater horrors lie in store…
Why it’s in the series: “This is one of the defining documents of genre writing in the 20th Century,” Kirke says. “The monsters and events that frighten here aren’t the things that one would see in any sort of Victorian or Gothic writing. So this is a huge departure, and really important in the development of a new way of thinking about scares.”
This collection of short stories spans different time periods and locations but each is connected by the same motif: a play called The King in Yellow, which inspires madness in anyone who looks upon its pages. Infused with mystery, paranoia and dread, Robert W. Chambers’ work influenced the likes of H. P. Lovecraft, George R. R. Martin and even the recent TV series True Detective.
Why it’s in the series: “This is probably my favourite of all the five,” says Kirke. “I think the two things that really stand out here are the use of decadent language (there’s a really wonderful turn-of-the-century richness to his language which is kind of gone after the First World War) and then also Chambers' ability to create incredible atmosphere and mystery. It’s not what is said, it’s what’s not said. I think so much of the white space in these stories is masterful.”
Weird Fiction by Various
This anthology celebrates the voices and stories that define weird fiction, from the plague of Edgar Allen Poe’s 'The Masque of the Red Death' to the tentacled monsters of H. P. Lovecraft’s 'The Call of Cthulhu'. The collection also includes creepy tales from Arthur Conan Doyle (of Sherlock Holmes fame), Edith Wharton, Vernon Lee, Mary Sinclair, D. K. Broster, W. W. Jacobs and M. R. James.
Why these stories were chosen: The collection opens with Poe – a choice, Kirke acknowledges, that could be controversial. “I don’t think he would traditionally be classed as ‘weird fiction’ but he’s clearly a massive inspiration behind what happens in that space,” Kirke explains. 'The Masque of the Red Death' is “full of mystery, full of dread, full of awe, but is defined by brilliant narrative restraint.”
Kirke chose Lovecraft’s 'The Call of Cthulhu' because it is “probably his most famous story” – and his most influential. Conan Doyle’s work is included because it is an adventure story that explores the “other”, while Mary Sinclair’s 'Where Their Fire is Not Quenched' is full of subversive religious terror. “We’re not seeing exorcists,” Kirke explains. “It’s a very eery, uncanny terror here that’s just fantastic.”