Goose of Hermogenes

Ithell Colquhon (1906–1988) was a painter, writer, and mystic, one of the best-known English women surrealists. A close friend of André Breton, she was also, for a time, associated with Aleister Crowley. Now back in print and in paperback, the heroine of her 1961 novel is compelled to visit a mysterious uncle who turns out to be a black magician who lords over a kind of Prospero's Island that exists out of time and space. Startled by his bizarre behavior and odd nocturnal movements, she eventually learns that he is searching for the philosopher's stone. When his sinister attentions fall upon the priceless jewel heirloom in her possession, bewilderment turns into stark terror and she realizes she must escape. An esoteric dream world fantasy derived from medieval occult sources, this gothic-surrealist tale remains as vividly unforgettable and disturbing as when it was first published over forty years ago.