Dennis Wheatley’s Followers (247)

Dennis Wheatley

Born

in Streatham, South London, The United Kingdom

January 08, 1897

Died

November 10, 1977

Website

http://www.denniswheatley.info/

Genre

Thriller, Historical Fiction, Paranormal

Influences

Alexandre Dumas, père

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Dennis Yates Wheatley (8 January 1897 – 10 November 1977) [Born: Dennis Yeats Wheatley] was an English author. His prolific output of stylish thrillers and occult novels made him one of the world's best-selling authors in the 1950s and 1960s.

His first book, Three Inquisitive People, was not immediately published; but his first published novel, The Forbidden Territory, was an immediate success when published in 1933, being reprinted seven times in seven weeks.

He wrote adventure stories, with many books in a series of linked works. His plots covered the French Revolution (Roger Brook Series), Satanism (Duc de Richleau), World War II (Gregory Sallust) and espionage (Julian Day).

In the thirties, he conceived a series of whodunit mysteries, pres Dennis Yates Wheatley (8 January 1897 – 10 November 1977) [Born: Dennis Yeats Wheatley] was an English author. His prolific output of stylish thrillers and occult novels made him one of the world's best-selling authors in the 1950s and 1960s.

His first book, Three Inquisitive People, was not immediately published; but his first published novel, The Forbidden Territory, was an immediate success when published in 1933, being reprinted seven times in seven weeks.

He wrote adventure stories, with many books in a series of linked works. His plots covered the French Revolution (Roger Brook Series), Satanism (Duc de Richleau), World War II (Gregory Sallust) and espionage (Julian Day).

In the thirties, he conceived a series of whodunit mysteries, presented as case files, with testimonies, letters, pieces of evidence such as hairs or pills. The reader had to go through the evidence to solve the mystery before unsealing the last pages of the file, which gave the answer. Four of these 'Crime Dossiers' were published: Murder Off Miami, Who Killed Robert Prentice, The Malinsay Massacre, and Herewith The Clues.

In the 1960s his publishers were selling a million copies of his books per year. A small number of his books were made into films by Hammer, of which the best known is The Devil Rides Out (book 1934, film 1968). His writing is very descriptive and in many works he manages to introduce his characters into real events while meeting real people. For example, in the Roger Brook series the main character involves himself with Napoleon, and Joséphine whilst being a spy for the Prime Minister William Pitt. Similarly, in the Gregory Sallust series, Sallust shares an evening meal with Hermann Göring.

He also wrote non-fiction works, including accounts of the Russian Revolution and King Charles II, and his autobiography. He was considered an authority on the supernatural, satanism, the practice of exorcism, and black magic, to all of which he was hostile. During his study of the paranormal, though, he joined the Ghost Club.

From 1974 through 1977 he edited a series of 45 paperback reprints for the British publisher Sphere under the heading "The Dennis Wheatley Library of the Occult", selecting the titles and writing short introductions for each book. This series included both occult-themed novels by the likes of Bram Stoker and Aleister Crowley and non-fiction works on magic, occultism, and divination by authors such as the Theosophist H. P. Blavatsky, the historian Maurice Magre, the magician Isaac Bonewits, and the palm-reader Cheiro.

Two weeks before his death in November 1977, Wheatley received conditional absolution from his old friend Cyril ‘Bobby’ Eastaugh, the Bishop of Peterborough.

His estate library was sold in a catalogue sale by Basil Blackwell's in the 1970s, indicating a thoroughly well-read individual with wide-ranging interests particularly in historical fiction and Europe. His influence has declined, partly due to difficulties in reprinting his works owing to copyright problems.

Fifty-two of Wheatley's novels were published posthumously in a set by Heron Books UK. More recently, in April 2008 Dennis Wheatley's literary estate was acquired by media company Chorion.

He invented a number of board games including Invasion.

-Wikipedia ...more

Combine Editions
Dennis Wheatley’s books

Average rating: 3.72 · 11,867 ratings · 1,125 reviews · 380 distinct works • Similar authors

	The Devil Rides Out (Black Magic, #1) 3.77 avg rating — 2,371 ratings — published 1934 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	To the Devil a Daughter (Molly Fountain, #1) (Black Magic, #4) 3.66 avg rating — 1,024 ratings — published 1953	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Haunting of Toby Jugg (Black Magic, #3) 3.69 avg rating — 643 ratings — published 1948 — 31 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Satanist (Molly Fountain, #2; Black Magic, #6) 3.60 avg rating — 508 ratings — published 1960 — 11 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Ka of Gifford Hillary (Black Magic, #5) 3.75 avg rating — 433 ratings — published 1956 — 34 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Strange Conflict (Duke de Richleau, #9) (Black Magic, #2) 3.67 avg rating — 430 ratings — published 1941 — 30 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Forbidden Territory 3.87 avg rating — 323 ratings — published 1933 — 34 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	They Used Dark Forces (Gregory Sallust, #8) (Black Magic, #7) 3.65 avg rating — 315 ratings — published 1964 — 27 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Gateway to Hell (Duke de Richleau, #10) (Black Magic, #10) 3.46 avg rating — 322 ratings — published 1972 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Launching of Roger Brook (Roger Brook, #1) 3.99 avg rating — 243 ratings — published 1947 — 30 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Dennis Wheatley…

Series by Dennis Wheatley

Duke de Richleau (11 books)
by

Dennis Wheatley

3.75 avg rating — 4,131 ratings

Molly Fountain (2 books)
by

Dennis Wheatley

3.64 avg rating — 1,532 ratings

Roger Brook (12 books)
by

Dennis Wheatley

3.84 avg rating — 1,303 ratings

Gregory Sallust (11 books)
by

Dennis Wheatley

3.70 avg rating — 1,189 ratings

Lost World (3 books)
by

Dennis Wheatley

3.58 avg rating — 383 ratings

More series by Dennis Wheatley…

Quotes by Dennis Wheatley (?)

“...age-old evil, tireless and vigilant, cloaked from the masses by modern skepticism, yet still a potent force stalking the dark ways of the night.”
― Dennis Wheatley, The Devil Rides Out (Duke de Richleau, #6)

10 likes

“The gods are being kind to me in my old age. Most beautiful women are either good, stupid or vicious. And you are the marvellous exception. Lovely as a goddess, clever as an Athenian and a bad hat like myself, yet one who still has decent feelings. I’m going to kiss the lips off you once we land in France.”
― Dennis Wheatley, Contraband

2 likes

“Are you sure of that? Baptism into the Christian Faith doesn’t ensure one going to Heaven, why should this other sprinkling be a guarantee of anyone going to Hell?’ ‘It’s such a big question, Rex, but briefly it is like this. Heaven and Hell are only symbolical of growth to Light or disintegration to Darkness. By Christian, or any other true religious baptism, we renounce the Devil and all his Works, thereby erecting a barrier which it is difficult for Evil forces to surmount, but anyone who accepts Satanic baptism does exactly the reverse. They wilfully destroy the barrier of Astral Light which is our natural protection and offer themselves as a medium through which the powers of Darkness may operate on mankind.”
― Dennis Wheatley, The Black Magic Series

1 likes

See all Dennis Wheatley's quotes »

Polls

Vote for the August group read in the 1900-1940 category.

Song of the Lark by Willa Cather (1915)

13 votes, 44.8%

The Edwardians by Vita Sackville-West (1920)

7 votes, 24.1%

The Devil Rides Out by Dennis Wheatley (1934)

5 votes, 17.2%

Close to Shore: The Terrifying Shark Attacks of 1916 by Michael Capuzzo (2002 - non-fiction concerned directly with the period 1900-1940)

4 votes, 13.8%

29 total votes

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Dennis Wheatley’s Followers (247)

Dennis Wheatley

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Series by Dennis Wheatley

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Dennis Wheatley’s books