What do you think?
Rate this book
Classic Black Magic from Dennis Wheatley: The Devil Rides Out, To the Devil a Daughter, Gateway to Hell
An omnibus of three stylish occult tales, by the author known as the Prince of the Thriller Writers
The Devil Rides Out: In 1930s London, Duc de Richleau and Rex van Ryn rescue their friend Simon Aron from a devil-worshipping cult. Rex falls for a woman named Tanith and takes her away from the cult. The group's leader comes after them, and there is a desperate struggle to defeat the Angel of Death and escape the cult leader, Mocata. To the Devil a Daughter tells the story of a group of practicing Satanists who disguise themselves as "The Children of the Lord." Catherine—a nun—is one of this group. She is allowed to come home once a year on her birthday. On one of these trips home, an occult writer named John Verney realizes that the group are Satanists and are preparing Catherine to become an avatar of Astaroth on her 18th birthday. Gateway to Hell sees the return of characters from The Devil Rides Out. Rex van Ryn steals more than a million dollars from his family bank and vanishes in Buenos Aires. Rex's friends have suspicions about the ex-SS Gruppenführer with whom he is said to have been consorting; they find themselves pursuing Rex to the Bolivian Andes and confronting Satanist forces once again.
The Devil Rides Out: In 1930s London, Duc de Richleau and Rex van Ryn rescue their friend Simon Aron from a devil-worshipping cult. Rex falls for a woman named Tanith and takes her away from the cult. The group's leader comes after them, and there is a desperate struggle to defeat the Angel of Death and escape the cult leader, Mocata. To the Devil a Daughter tells the story of a group of practicing Satanists who disguise themselves as "The Children of the Lord." Catherine—a nun—is one of this group. She is allowed to come home once a year on her birthday. On one of these trips home, an occult writer named John Verney realizes that the group are Satanists and are preparing Catherine to become an avatar of Astaroth on her 18th birthday. Gateway to Hell sees the return of characters from The Devil Rides Out. Rex van Ryn steals more than a million dollars from his family bank and vanishes in Buenos Aires. Rex's friends have suspicions about the ex-SS Gruppenführer with whom he is said to have been consorting; they find themselves pursuing Rex to the Bolivian Andes and confronting Satanist forces once again.
720 pages, Hardcover
First published May 12, 2011
7 people are currently reading
246 people want to read
About the author
Dennis Wheatley
384 books248 followersDennis 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
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
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
April 1, 2012
I've been meaning to get around to reading some Wheatley for years now, and this big compendium gave me the chance to sample from his 'finest.' Overall, they're not that great, and particularly not as interesting to someone a little versed in occult lore (since often these stories lapse into nothing short of lectures about occult matters) as they would be to the uninitiated. Still, some fun black-magic adventure stories in a bygone style.
The Devil Rides Out was not Great Literature by any stretch, but a fun adventure with plenty of magic miscellany to keep me entertained. I especially appreciated Wheatley's rather liberal, pagan-connected view of religion and magic. Rather than just a Devil-vs.-God view, he attempts to explain the connections between spiritualities of varying times and places.
To The Devil A Daughter was a lesser, more domestic book, but still fun. His occult view now links to the us-vs.-them anti-commie 1950s ethos here, and ends up a little drier and duller for it.
Wheatley published the final book, Gateway to Hell, less than a decade before his death, and it often feels like a curmudgeonly grip against the state of things. He also seems to have forgotten his major character, de Richleau, was not a magic initiate, but had to look things up in their first magical adventure! Herein, Wheatley is writing in the 1970s, but the story is set in the 1950s. The enemy this time is...the Black Power movement. Yeah, apparently it was inspired by Satan and driven by the evillest of black magicians. That should give some idea of the mindset of this final book in this trilogy. A sad end to an otherwise entertaining romp of a set of stories.
The Devil Rides Out was not Great Literature by any stretch, but a fun adventure with plenty of magic miscellany to keep me entertained. I especially appreciated Wheatley's rather liberal, pagan-connected view of religion and magic. Rather than just a Devil-vs.-God view, he attempts to explain the connections between spiritualities of varying times and places.
To The Devil A Daughter was a lesser, more domestic book, but still fun. His occult view now links to the us-vs.-them anti-commie 1950s ethos here, and ends up a little drier and duller for it.
Wheatley published the final book, Gateway to Hell, less than a decade before his death, and it often feels like a curmudgeonly grip against the state of things. He also seems to have forgotten his major character, de Richleau, was not a magic initiate, but had to look things up in their first magical adventure! Herein, Wheatley is writing in the 1970s, but the story is set in the 1950s. The enemy this time is...the Black Power movement. Yeah, apparently it was inspired by Satan and driven by the evillest of black magicians. That should give some idea of the mindset of this final book in this trilogy. A sad end to an otherwise entertaining romp of a set of stories.
Read
December 6, 2013Hair Raising!!!
Read
January 17, 2023This book contains three novels, written in the space of 40 years. The first, The Devil Rides Out, is a tautly written thriller for the first 3/4, degenerating into a fair amount of black magic exposition toward the end, but still a stylish enjoyable thriller centered on the Duke De Richelieu. The second, To the Devil a Daughter, was my favorite of the three, an occult thriller with a hint of a mystery story at its center. Its characters were also a little more human and relatable. Its cocktails and upper crust British tone was enjoyable usually, and a little funny sometimes. The third, Gateway to Hell, is a mess rehashing the characters from the original novel as they travel around South America on a quest to rescue one of their own. Unfortunately, this novel features a Satanic villain who has conceived of "Black Power" in the US (this is written in 1970) as a satanic plot to inspire a racewar that will bring down civilization.... (not exaggerating this.) There are some predictable expository fig leaves of "Of, course we're not racists!" but the enjoyable arch-tory camp of the prior novels falls very flat against this stuff which leaves the reader to decide if it's more offensive or more ridiculous.
All in all, the writing is good and efficient and the situations and occult stuff creates a strong sense of evil/wrong, a bit like a gothic type of novel for the 20th century. There tends to be a fair amount of exposition, but it's overall Crowley-ness is amusing and campy. I'm hard pressed to think they couldn't have found a better example of his occult thrillers to include in a set of 3, so not sure I'll continue on with much Wheatley. On the plus side, the Hammer adaptations of the two novels here should be better.
All in all, the writing is good and efficient and the situations and occult stuff creates a strong sense of evil/wrong, a bit like a gothic type of novel for the 20th century. There tends to be a fair amount of exposition, but it's overall Crowley-ness is amusing and campy. I'm hard pressed to think they couldn't have found a better example of his occult thrillers to include in a set of 3, so not sure I'll continue on with much Wheatley. On the plus side, the Hammer adaptations of the two novels here should be better.
November 14, 2024
To the Devil - a Daughter (1953) by Dennis Wheatley is a clever updating of early Sallust novels like contraband in the 1930s horror thriller The Devil Rides Out.
Wheatley has also mastered a sleekly structured plot.
Molly Fountain, a tax-emigre thriller writer on the Golden Corniche, recruits her vacationing son Johnny and old wartime staff colleague Lieutenant-Colonel William Verney to help young neighbor Christina avoid sacrificial murder at the hands on Canon Copely-Syle.
The canon has made a homunculus which requires the blood of a female virgin, sacrifice at the hour of her twenty-first birthday.
Wheatley's trio marshal a network of old soldiers, retired police officials, heads of a Nice crime family, and the worst father in the world to make sure the homunculus must take second best.
Standout scenes include breaking and entering several remote estates and churches, one or two kidnapping and kidnapping-back showdowns, and a final showdown in a secret Paleolithic cave in the mountains north of Nice.
Along the way there is plenty of esoteric learning, good food, and rich living.
It was March 1st and John Fountain had arrived that morning. He and his mother had just finished lunch, and with a sigh of satisfaction he smiled across at her.
‘What a meal! How good it is to eat in France again. I bet there were six eggs in the omelette. And that fillet of beef—as tender as foie gras and as big as a month’s ration! Real butter instead of National grease, and the pineapple au Kirsch topped with lashings of cream. Most of our wretched people at home have forgotten that such food still exists.’
Wheatley has also mastered a sleekly structured plot.
Molly Fountain, a tax-emigre thriller writer on the Golden Corniche, recruits her vacationing son Johnny and old wartime staff colleague Lieutenant-Colonel William Verney to help young neighbor Christina avoid sacrificial murder at the hands on Canon Copely-Syle.
The canon has made a homunculus which requires the blood of a female virgin, sacrifice at the hour of her twenty-first birthday.
Wheatley's trio marshal a network of old soldiers, retired police officials, heads of a Nice crime family, and the worst father in the world to make sure the homunculus must take second best.
Standout scenes include breaking and entering several remote estates and churches, one or two kidnapping and kidnapping-back showdowns, and a final showdown in a secret Paleolithic cave in the mountains north of Nice.
Along the way there is plenty of esoteric learning, good food, and rich living.
It was March 1st and John Fountain had arrived that morning. He and his mother had just finished lunch, and with a sigh of satisfaction he smiled across at her.
‘What a meal! How good it is to eat in France again. I bet there were six eggs in the omelette. And that fillet of beef—as tender as foie gras and as big as a month’s ration! Real butter instead of National grease, and the pineapple au Kirsch topped with lashings of cream. Most of our wretched people at home have forgotten that such food still exists.’
May 10, 2022
Rough read, but still great stories. I just kept thinking of Hammer movies as I read these stories. When you read this book take your time. The prose is beautiful
March 9, 2015
I read this on a lark, I think it was a recommendation from Ken & Robin Talk About Stuff podcast, probably a "Consulting Occultist" segment. Anyway, this is a fun read - very reminiscent in style and substance to Bram Stoker's Dracula, but with demonic possession replacing the vampires and with less mysogeny. In general I found it much less compelling than Dracula, just because there is too much exposition, too much telling and not enough showing, and the characters are mostly lifeless cutouts who wander through the story with virtually no emotional depth. However, if you can enjoy it just as a fun sojourn into the weird world of mid-ish-20th century occultism, it can be recommended on that alone.
June 1, 2014
Wheatley would be the master of Black Magic tales. The suspense never stops as it builds to crescendo.
The Devil Rides Out is the greatest of his books and should be left to last lest it spoils the others. Having said that, I take nothing away from the rest.
If you are interested in this genre, then I highly recommend this trilogy. Keep you mind open and enjoy the twists and turns as you are led through every conceivable happening in the realm of Black Magic.
The Devil Rides Out is the greatest of his books and should be left to last lest it spoils the others. Having said that, I take nothing away from the rest.
If you are interested in this genre, then I highly recommend this trilogy. Keep you mind open and enjoy the twists and turns as you are led through every conceivable happening in the realm of Black Magic.
March 6, 2014
I first read these as separate books about twenty years ago and so when I found this in a discount book store I snapped it up.
I enjoyed it as much as I did back then. All three of the books were brilliant. The settings in each of the books was different, going all over Europe. The characters were well written as well. Awesome!
I enjoyed it as much as I did back then. All three of the books were brilliant. The settings in each of the books was different, going all over Europe. The characters were well written as well. Awesome!
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews