The Black Death

by Basil Copper

In Slipcase. Limited to 100.

Genres: Horror

373 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 1991

About the author

Basil Copper was an English writer and former journalist and newspaper editor. He has written over 50 books and scripts. In addition to fantasy and horror, Copper is known for his series of Solar Pons stories continuing the character created by August Derleth.

Copper edited a 1982 two-volume omnibus collection of Derleth's stories of the 'Pontine' canon, published by Arkham House, a publishing firm founded by Derleth himself and chiefly publishing weird fiction (such as Cthulhu Mythos tales); in that edition, Copper "edited" most of the tales in ways that many Pontine aficionados found objectionable[citation needed]. A later omnibus, The Original Text Solar Pons Omnibus Edition, was issued in 2000 under the imprint of Mycroft & Moran (a name which is itself a Holmesian jest).

He also wrote the long-running hard-boiled detective stories of "Mike Faraday" (58 novels from 1966 to 1988).

Copper has received many honours in recent years. In 1979, the Mark Twain Society of America elected him a Knight of Mark Twain for his outstanding "contribution to modern fiction", while the Praed Street Irregulars have twice honoured him for his work on the Solar Pons series. He has been a member of the Crime Writer's Association for over thirty years, serving as chairman in 1981/82 and on its committee for a total of seven years.

In early 2008, a bio-bibliography was published on him: Basil Copper: A Life in Books, compiled and edited by Stephen Jones.

In March 2010, Darkness, Mist and Shadow: The Collected Macabre Tales of Basil Copper was launched at the Brighton World Horror Convention as a two-volume set by PS Publishing.

Reviews

[Greg Gbur · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ever since reading author Basil Copper’s The Great White Space (1974) and Necropolis (1980), both of which were recently reprinted by Valancourt Books, I’ve been binge-reading the works of Basil Copper. I’ve read two of his short story collections so far, From Evil’s Pillow (1973) and And Afterward, the Dark (1977), and have been ordering other books as I find relatively inexpensive editions.

Last week, I finished reading The Black Death (1991), which was Copper’s final horror/mystery novel (though not his last book, as he continued to write mysteries for over a decade).

At the time of The Black Death’s writing, Copper was in his late 60s. Though it is not a deterministic rule, it is not uncommon to see the quality of an author’s writing decline in his or her later years. With this in mind, I didn’t know what to expect from The Black Death!

I shouldn’t have worried. Copper’s novel is a fascinating mixture of mystery, horror, and period Victorian drama. It is probably my favorite among all the Basil Copper stories I’ve read so far.

Read the whole review.

[Emmett Hoops · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable book, and anyone who likes very English stories with Gothic plots and lots of foggy heath lanes, should find it worthwhile. It did seem to start off a bit slowly, and there were times I thought it might well be condensed to be a novella rather than a novel; yet I defer to Basil Copper's superior ability to craft a rock-solid plot, believable characters, and an unforgettable setting.

[Vultural · Rating 3 out of 5]

Copper, Basil - The Black Death

Young architect departs London and buys a partnership with a Dartmoor firm.
Repeatedly he is warned by various residents to keep off the moors.
Mind well, gentle reader, the moors soon draw him.
Copper could write yarns like this in his sleep, and yet this would be the last Gothic novel he wrote.
In manner, this is similar to Necropolis and The House Of The Wolf.
An old fashioned, atmospheric page turner, set, to my mind, in the Edwardian age.
(One of the residents notes the fad of the motor car in the city, declaring it will never succeed in Dartmoor.)
Perhaps more suitable in cooler months, but needs must ...