Lupe

by Gene Thompson

The story of a young woman accused of witchcraft and murder by supernatural means.

In San Francisco, Emily Blake and her husband David, a dermatologist, buy an old Victorian in Pacific Heights and hope to start a family. Emily's happy plans are threatened when David begins an affair with a beautiful patient named Jennie.

A visit to a mysterious young boy in the Mission District named Lupe starts a chain of events in motion that result in Jennie's death -- by spontaneous combustion -- a murder trial, a media circus, and demon possession.

Genres: Horror, Fiction, Paranormal

285 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1977

Reviews

[Phil · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lupe comprises yet another Catholic horror novel from the 70s, such as Rosemary's Baby, The Exorcist, The Omen, etc. Thompson's stream of consciousness prose takes a little to get used to, but once the story gets going in ernest, it really takes off. Our main protagonist, Emily Blake, starts the novel with her and her husband David buying an old Victorian house in San Francisco, one which features strange noises and voices at night. This, however, is not a haunted house tale.

David, a dermatologist, soon starts having a torrid affair with one of his patients ('you know, sometimes when you examine them you know they want it' gag, gag) and Emily finds out about it. For some strange reason, Emily's BFF Marianne takes her to visit the titular Lupe, who is a 11 year old kid living in a poor part of town. Little Lupe promptly makes serious sexual advances on Emily, mentions the name of David's squeeze, and tells her he can get rid of her. For the next few weeks, Emily keeps seeing little Lupe around town in the strangest places and recognizes that it was his voice she kept hearing at the house they bought...

Entering into mild spoiler territory, (but no more than the back blurb on the cover), David's squeeze suddenly burns to death, in a chair, behind the locked doors of her house. The cops are stumped, as is the medical examiner. After some digging, the cops know about the affair and therefore have a motive for Emily, but not how the murder was done. Finally, and this is where the novel gets really interesting, Emily is arrested and tried for murder by witchcraft! And what a trial!

An interesting take on Catholic horror for sure here, especially as the trial progresses. Lupe does have some good creeps and the trial was super. The lead characters, however, are a pair of putzes. Emily just wants to get her man back and feels it must be something she did for him to be screwing around. Please. David has few if any redeeming qualities and really is quite the asshole. Taken together, pretty hard to root for either one. That, and the offbeat prose kept me from bumping this to 4 stars, but it is better than a straight 3. The paperback version also has a great 'peekaboo' cover.

[Kenneth McKinley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Next up on my world tour of Paperbacks From Hell - LUPE, the 1977 tale from Gene Thompson. Lupe is a mishmash of all the Possession/Exorcism/Child of the Devil/Occult themes that clogged the bookstore shelves and movie theaters during the 70s. Take ingredients from Rosemary’s Baby, The Exorcist, The Omen, and sprinkle in the psychokinesis element of Carrie, along with a morphed courtroom drama that turns dangerously close to a Salem witch trial reenactment, and you have Lupe in a nutshell.

Emily finds out her physician husband is cheating on her with one of his patients. So what does any wife of the 70s do? Does she go to her local neighborhood divorce attorney? Hell no. Her friend Marianne concocts some BS story and drags Emily to a crappy neighborhood to meet an eleven-year-old Hispanic boy named Lupe. Sweet, innocent looking Lupe has a vulgar mouth and he lets it loose on Emily, as he seems to know everything about her husband’s affair and offers to “take care” of his mistress in exchange for lewd, sexual favors from Emily.

Lupe feels like greatest hits album where you know all the songs, but shifts gears into a courtroom drama that goes off the rails. I’ve seen reviews that gripe about this direction the story takes, but I mostly enjoyed it. Don’t get me wrong. There are flaws in the plot. The end of the trial made me roll my eyes. Emily’s actions (or inactions in some cases) got under my skin. But Thompson’s writing flows well and I found myself eagerly turning the pages. Does it break any new ground? Eh, not a ton, but I enjoyed the ride. A solid entry from the 70s era.

3.75 Spontaneous Combustions out of 5

[Bliss · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was horribly gruesome and scary.

For some odd reason, I JUST recalled reading this after having NOT thought about this book in over 20 years. I must have blocked it out for some reason. Maybe it traumatized me!

[Oliver Clarke · Rating 2 out of 5]

In theory this should have been a lot of fun - witchcraft, courtroom drama, a creepy kid - but it lost me about halfway through and never got me back.

[Joshua · Rating 4 out of 5]

Phenomenal satanic novel mixed with crime and the utmost bizarre. Great twist at the end too. A personal guilty pleasure of mine.

[Chio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Intenso, Morboso, misterio total, la pobre casi se vuelve loca! Sus “visiones” o “encuentros” con Lupe me parecieron escalofriantes, Dios ¡Que penita! Estuve muy metida en la trama casi podía sentir la desesperación del personaje es increíblemente difícil cuando todo en lo que confías de repente no es lo que parece y la pobre siendo culpada de todo, en fin, me encantó ;)

[Lorna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Possibly one of the scarest books I have every read. Of course I read it when I was 15 years old.

[Ernie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a very scary read that will stay with you for a long time. The plot builds to a WICKED twist at the very end. It will make you shake your head and go..."Damn. That is just evil!" It just sticks in your head. Very well done. I recommend it to horror enthusiasts. It is out of print. There are a few on the system here so line up and get one! The only downside I have with this book comes from the fact that I have a legal background. I caution those with legal training that they may have to suppress their judgement of the courtroom scenes in the book. Things just don't work like the scenes plotted in the book in reality. So, to those with legal training, remember, it is fiction so don't let yourself be distracted or thrown off by the courtroom procedure in the plot. With that said, the book is awesome.

[Wayne · Rating 2 out of 5]

I came into this book with high hopes. Some reviews I've read told me that this was going to be a good one. Thought it would be a wild exploitative and sleazy ride. Sad to say, this was a heavy, heavy disappointment. What should of been some kind of Omen/Damien rip off turns out to be Perry Mason vs. Samantha ( Bewitched ) Stephens. It does have a couple unsettling moments at first. Then it just dissolves into a dreadful legal thriller. Just down right boring. I was hoping the judge would cast off his robe under the spell of Satan and flog someone's habeas corpus.

The ending was so so. If you didn't fall asleep during this, you could see it coming a mile away. I thought the reason people got into Satanism was for the sex and power. Going by this book, it looses a lot of it's luster. Skip this one and go to a church bake sale instead. Horrid.

[Richard K. Wilson · Rating 2 out of 5]

So, if you were to look at this cover when it came out in 1978 (which I did, and have had the book ever since and NEVER picked it up till now!) you would have thought...."This is going to be some scary shit!" NOT.

What was pictured on the front cover never was part of the book....well, it was kind of about; well no it wasn't. This was marketing genius. This book is more of a police/crime procedural more than it is a demonic child, devil possession book!! SKIP IT! Was so so, stupid, not scary and just plain not the 'Sexual, demonic horror.....' that it was promised to be.

2 🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️

[Adam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some of the events toward the beginning of this were a little ridiculous. Some were disturbing to the point I questioned my dignity for not tossing the book in the trash. It got better, and turned out to be a page turner. I really enjoyed the second act which was essentially a modern version of a Salem witch hunt. Good twist at the end.

[Ion · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this one up in a used book store for about 89 cents. It called to me. It's a very unusual book about a demon boy and a woman who gets caught up in a plan between the boy and her friend. It is scary and perverted, but it's one of those you can't look away from, not even the gruesome bits.

[Brian · Rating 2 out of 5]

from the back cover: "....Emily whose only hope may be a grotesque eleven-year-old boy with a demonic sexual craving..." uh, what can you say?

[Edwina Book Anaconda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Creepy and twisted = my kinda book.
I really enjoyed this one.

[Alexis Benitez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Evidentemente, no es perfecto. Y aún así, de haber tenido una adaptación se habría vuelto en un clásico instantáneo, una obra de culto. Mezclar demonios con un juicio moderno de brujería, con pruebas y testigos y todo el respaldo legal verosímil no es algo que se vea muy seguido. Se premia la buena ejecución de la creatividad.

Es una obra más de terror psicólogo que paranormal. Una vez llegado al nudo de la historia poco a poco la cuerda se aprieta más y más y todos los descuidos de los protagonistas empiezan a pagarse caro. Aunque esto no quita que lo paranormal no tenga sus momentos de gloria.

En cuanto a los motivos de la bajada de puntos, es bastante sencillo. Consta de dos partes:
*El primer motivo es la comparación entre introducción y nudo: la primer parte es un desastre, literal. No tenía ninguna fe. No se aclara quién habla en un diálogo, el ritmo es demasiado acelerado y pasamos de una escena a otra en el mismo párrafo sin ningún tipo de conexión, y la infidelidad que detona los hechos es tan superficial que no exagero cuando digo que en la segunda parte de la historia es como si eso nunca hubiese existido. El nudo, por otro lado, tiene un mejor ritmo, mejor estructura, diálogos entendibles y hasta instrospeccion de los personajes. Pareciera que la obra fuese escrita por dos personas distintas.
*El segundo motivo es la motivación del antagonista que se descubre al final de la historia: demasiado básico y jamás profundizado previamente para que cumpla con su intención de shock.

Aún así, recomiendo su compra si lo ven a un precio que consideren razonable. La originalidad del juicio a una bruja en los tiempos modernos es demasiado llamativo para dejarlo pasar.

En cuanto a mí edición, es de Grijablo. Primera edición en tapa dura en tela roja, impresa en 1977 y en hoja de muy buen gramaje. La humedad no le hace ni cosquillas y apenas si hizo presencia el tono amarillo de la vejez. Un buen trabajo 👌

[Aaron Mendez · Rating 4 out of 5]

En general es bastante bueno, tiene personajes inteligentes, la historia aunque pareciera de demonios o exorcismos es más bien de brujería y vejaciones acompañado de una trama legal muy absorbente. La narrativa si levanta algunas cejas, espero que sean cuestiones de traducción, pero la lectura resulta muy fluida. El suspenso se mantiene toda la novela. Las discusiones entre matrimonio llegan a ser algo cansadas y desesperantes. A mi parecer tiene tres finales; el del proceso legal (bastante básico en mi opinión), el del proceso sobrenatural (también bastante simple aunque teológicamente válido) y el final de una relación de amistad que tiene la protagonista (predecible pero bien logrado). Libro muy recomendable.

[Vivian · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book when it first came out in the late 70s or early 80s. I was about 14 or 15 and it scared me so much that I threw it out because I didn't want it in the house. I was that scared. To this day I remember the creepy cover art of the child's face with scary eyes and I get shivers...

[Mikepottz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Creepy kid with offensive language and sexual suggestions turns up at various places after meeting a women whose husband is cheating and his lover is killed. Well there is witch craft, a court case and demonic kid. Sounds confusing but quite entertaining.

[Trudi · Rating 1 out of 5]

I should have stopped reading this way before the end.

[Johanna Denton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Scariest book I have ever read. Actually remember having to leave the light on after I finished reading it in the wee hours of the morning. Loved it!

[Sean McDonough · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. Good blend of the supernatural and the natural. Great ending.

[Sean · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, old school horror!

[Emanuela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Emily Blake è solo una giovane donna che si trasferisce col marito in una casa nuova, all’inizio di questo libro.
Ma questa casa manifesta fin da subito qualcosa di strano: quando è da sola sente delle voci e dei rumori e il marito, probabilmente influenzato da ciò, comincia ad avere comportamenti anomali e inizia una relazione con un’altra donna.
L’amica Marianne porta Emily da un ragazzino messicano che avrebbe dei poteri per poterla aiutare secondo lei, e contemporaneamente la donna si sottopone a un esperimento all’università di antropologia che frequenta, sulla telepatia, mostrando invece capacità di precognizione.

Questi avvenimenti costituiscono la prima parte del libro, in cui si ha la sensazione di leggere qualcosa di già sentito, nemmeno tanto speciale per le sensazioni che causa, a dirla tutta, anche se qualche spavento riesce a darlo: nel momento della telefonata per esempio io sarei impazzita.
Ma a parte questo aspetto, il fastidio nei confronti di questa protagonista che si fa manipolare da chiunque, completamente succube, e che attua dei comportamenti tipici del peggiore film horror dove vorresti urlare all’ochetta di non fare cavolate che sta andando proprio nelle mani dell’assassino, cresce a dismisura esponenzialmente, perché davvero, al di là di tutto quello che succede dopo, sembra impossibile come possa andarsi a ficcare sempre in guai peggiori di quelli precedenti.

Poi a un certo punto, dopo un avvenimento specifico, inizia la seconda parte del libro, sul processo a Emily, che si scopre essere il vero fulcro del libro e che gli dà il titolo.
Qui le cose cambiano decisamente e pensare che possa esserci stato un processo per stregoneria in epoca moderna è davvero sconvolgente, e soprattutto poi negli Stati Uniti, che si definiscono tanto avanzati e moderni.
Il comportamento di Emily resta alquanto irrazionale e un tantino sciocco.
Certamente qui la reazione emotiva è molto più comprensibile visto quel che sta subendo ma la parte totalmente irrazionale che agisce nel determinare i suoi comportamenti autodistruttivi in diverse situazioni, continua a infastidire.
Stavolta però almeno la donna tira fuori un po’ di carattere e riesce a tenere un po’ a posto il marito in alcuni casi, ma non riesce a scegliere di fare la cosa più giusta per se stessa nella maggior parte dei casi.

Il caso però mi ha coinvolta davvero tanto, nel vedere come il procuratore riuscisse a rigirare le cose e a tentare di influenzare l’opinione pubblica e la giuria.
Ed è stato anche interessante vedere l’atteggiamento della scienza in questo caso, in particolare degli psichiatri che vengono coinvolti.
Le reazioni della gente in particolare sembrano assurde alla luce di quello di cui si sta parlando, che è la più irrazionale che possa esserci, finendo per appoggiare la tesi assurda dell’accusa, che ricorre ad argomentazioni inesistenti e a prove di secoli prima.

La conclusione è stata entusiasmante per un aspetto, per l’altro è stato bello che ci fosse un risvolto del genere in chiusura, ma sembra che Emily non riesca a reagire adeguatamente in tempo nemmeno alla fine purtroppo, decretando il proprio destino (tra l’altro non ho mica ben capito l’ultima frase…)

[AnnaLovesJelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book should have been perfect for me, but as a lawyer, I just couldn’t get past the choice of attorney. If you’re on trial for murder by supernatural means, why would you want to be represented by an 81 year old man who can only pee through a catheter? Every other aspect of the plot I could accept without question, but NOT THAT! I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I’m still thinking about it now. I can’t go a whole day in Court without peeing. Murder trials last for ages. Did he have to nip out in the lunch break to see a doctor? There’s no mention of it. And don’t even get me started on the issue of how you obtain professional indemnity insurance at that age. I don’t think I will ever get over this book…..

[Jordan Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Holy Christ on a cracker!

Lupe is unlike any other horror novel I’ve read. It’s a mix of so many genres: horror, thriller, mystery, legal thriller. It’s eerie and claustrophobic as hell with the absolute perfect amount of creep factor. And just when you think it can’t get any more twisted or dark, Thompson comes in and makes you rethink everything.

I honestly can’t speak much more about this book without giving away its freaky plot and insane twist at the very end of the book.

4 stars for some unbelievable motivations and actions from the main character, but don’t let that dissuade you from picking up this one.

[Luzonite · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decidí leerlo porque a todo el mundo que conocía le había gustado y asustado mucho, pero me llevé una gran decepción. No está mal, un poco escaso de vocabulario. En cuanto al argumento muy predecible para mí, sabía quién estaba detrás de todo desde el primer momento casi, y el cómo "resuelven" la situación es sinceramente muy molesto: todo el libro dándole vueltas a cómo sobrellevar o solucionar lo ocurrido para que al final y en 5 minutos de decisión por parte de los personajes decidan solucionarlo y fin. Le doy un aprobado raspado.

[Luchito Luconi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sin duda Lupe se va a mi top de libros de terror favoritos, una novela que tiene todos los componentes que para mi gusto hacen una espeluznante historia.
El autor supo jugar con la temática niños malditos, el personaje de Lupe es totalmente estremecedor.
Por un momento pensé que las escenas del juicio iban a resultarme tediosas, pero todo lo contrario, muy ágil. Hubo varias escenas que me chocaron bastante, flasfemias, hechicería, magia negra todos estos componentes hacen de Lupe una de las historias de terror más oscuras que he leído.

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Man, this book was wild and oh, so wrong! A creepy, perverted little Mexican boy haunts a woman whose doctor husband has been cheating on her. The kid sexually assaults her (!!!) and causes the husband’s mistress to spontaneously combust (!) which leads to the wife being put on trial for murder by witchcraft! This novel is just as insane as it sounds, and it’s everything I wanted it to be. I loved every second of it. It’s definitely a book that could ONLY have been written in the 1970s, and I wouldn’t have it any other way!

[Scott Oliver · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finding out about her husband’s affair with another woman, Emily is cajoled by a friend into visiting a psychic child on the pretence of locating a pair of lost earrings.

What results is the death of her husbands lover in a mysterious event and her prosecution for murder

A better book than I thought it would be with some creepy scenes and a well thought out second half court room showdown, with an ending that takes you back to the devil rides out with a great twist at the end

[Coral · Rating 3 out of 5]

This had some real ups and downs. The writing made it hard initially to get into but I found the beginning to be the most interesting part of the novel. Then about 1/3 in there's a huge, terribly boring court case. Luckily the last 10 pages made for a fairly solid ending.


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