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The Necromancer's House Hardcover – October 1, 2013
Christopher Buehlman (Author) Find all the books, read about the author, and more. See search results for this author |
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“You think you got away with something, don’t you? But your time has run out. We know where you are. And we are coming.”
The man on the screen says this in Russian.
“Who are you?”
The man smiles, but it’s not a pleasant smile.
The image freezes.
The celluloid burns exactly where his mouth is, burns in the nearly flat U of his smile. His eyes burn, too.
The man fades, leaving the burning smiley face smoldering on the screen.
“Oh Christ,” Andrew says.
The television catches fire.
Andrew Ranulf Blankenship is a handsome, stylish nonconformist with wry wit, a classic Mustang, and a massive library. He is also a recovering alcoholic and a practicing warlock, able to speak with the dead through film. His house is a maze of sorcerous booby traps and escape tunnels, as yours might be if you were sitting on a treasury of Russian magic stolen from the Soviet Union thirty years ago. Andrew has long known that magic was a brutal game requiring blood sacrifice and a willingness to confront death, but his many years of peace and comfort have left him soft, more concerned with maintaining false youth than with seeing to his own defense. Now a monster straight from the pages of Russian folklore is coming for him, and frost and death are coming with her.
- Print length416 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherAce
- Publication dateOctober 1, 2013
- Dimensions6.5 x 1.25 x 9 inches
- ISBN-100425256650
- ISBN-13978-0425256657
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Review
One of Publishers Weekly’s Top-Ten SF, Fantasy & Horror Novels
A 2012 World Fantasy Award Nominee for Best Novel
“What a treat. As much F. Scott Fitzgerald as Dean Koontz. A graceful, horrific read.”—Patricia Briggs, #1 New York Times bestselling author
“So real you can almost see the sweat roll down the page.”—Boston Herald
“Wonderfully eerie from start to finish—a novel sure to enthrall readers of all stripes.”—Grant Blackwood, #1 New York Times bestselling author
“An unsettling brew of growing menace…Do not miss this chilling debut.”—F. Paul Wilson, New York Times bestselling author of Cold City
“Sublimely crafted.”—New York Journal of Books
“Lures you into a different era, seduces you with eloquent prose and sensual period details, then clamps down on your jugular…An outstanding debut.”—Hank Schwaeble, Bram Stoker Award–winning author of Diabolical
“A delightfully genre-bending juxtaposition of supernatural horror and gothic drama.”—California Literary Review
“Gripping, compelling gothic horror in the most classical sense, an American Dracula that absorbs the reader into its seductive embrace through lush rhythms and a veneer of homespun innocence.”—The Trades
And for Between Two Fires
“By combining modern horror dynamics with a convincing medieval setting, Christopher Buehlman secures his status among today’s leading dark-fantasy authors.”—Shelf Awareness
“Fans of historical fantasy and horror will find this epic darkly rewarding.”—Publishers Weekly
“Buehlman is now two for two in delivering eerie, offbeat novels with admirable literary skill.”—Kirkus Reviews
About the Author
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Product details
- Publisher : Ace; First Edition (October 1, 2013)
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 416 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0425256650
- ISBN-13 : 978-0425256657
- Item Weight : 1.23 pounds
- Dimensions : 6.5 x 1.25 x 9 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #331,210 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #3,030 in Historical Fantasy (Books)
- #14,275 in Horror Literature & Fiction
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

Christopher Buehlman is a native Floridian and author of the literary horror novels 'Those Across the River' and 'Between Two Fires.' He is the winner of the 2007 Bridport Prize in poetry, and the author of several provocative plays, including Hot Nights for the War Wives of Ithaka. Many know him as comedian Christophe the Insultor, something of a cult figure on the renaissance festival circuit. He lives in St. Petersburg, Florida. His first novel, 'Those Across the River,' was nominated for a World Fantasy Award for best novel in 2012.
Customer reviews
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Of note however… this copy of Necromancer’s House, while evidently new, has yellow edged paper and stained ends.. shipped in soft wrap that clearly blunted the binding corners. D- in the vendor’s assessment of the book’s condition and ability to deliver it in fair condition.
I love the concept of a modern-day set of wizards who use materials at hand -- like Skype and videotapes -- to talk to the dead, and who have to wrestle with modern problems to be a fascinating new approach to wizardry and magic. I also love the way Buehlman plays with stereotypes and refuses to let standard "romantic" situations constrain his story. He also has a knack for just the right amount of withholding.
The book is also very well written, and I learned a lot watching Buehlman's expert hand at work. The story is about Baba Yaga, but he approaches her "reality" from such a fresh perspective he makes her truly horrifying. Bravo!
However, I didn't find the story as compelling as I'd like, because the characters were all very broken in not very appealing ways. And the character's motivations are less clear than I'd like -- they just stumble from one thing to another without a clear direction, it seemed to me.
I did find the characters very well-written and quite believable, but an AA-attending wizard whose dark past activities aren't well illuminated (and not in a suspenseful way) is not a character I want to live with for a long time. I do like that he is self-deceiving and this is his fatal flaw. That part is perfectly done.
A fantasy / horror writer to watch. Great ideas... modern insight, a real grasp of mythology and terror.
Andrew Blankenship is a recovering alcoholic and warlock immersed in a world melding magic and technology. Most of his closest friends have a specialty in some magic field or another. He is very protective of his home and keeps himself hidden as much as possible. He is hiding for a reason. That is about as much of the plot as I want to give away. I believe the description above posted by Amazon doesn't spoil everything, but still gives away too much.
The writing style of this novel comes off a bit chaotic. That's a compliment though, not a complaint. Reading through the majority of the book style wise, reminding me a lot of the book Fight Club, by Chuck Palahniuk. The way magic works and combines with technology in the world created by Buehlman is fantastic. Some reviews have complained about not being able to understand the characters in the story. I would argue that they aren't paying attention. You are able to really get into the head of Andrew Blankenship and see from his crazy, messed up, perspective.
This book is more of a suspense story than horror compared to his first two novels. But, if you buy into the world he created there is still quite a bit of stuff that you will find downright terrifying in The Necromancer's House.
I highly recommend it to anyone looking into the horror/supernatural/scifi genres. I would also recommend picking up his first two books, Those Across the River and Between Two Fires.
But no. We also get a ridiculous, straight man's fantasy about romance with a lesbian. Terrible characterizations of women-misogynist, sexist, puerile. And a cast of mostly awful, un-charming characters. And plotlines that just...end. After the sex-offender lesbian sleeps with her friend (a man), I almost quit. But I kept reading, hoping I would get the story about why the protagonist is being hunted. I got glimpses but as for details or how he ended up in Syracuse, nothing. So I sped-read through the last 30%, hoping for at least a good resolution. A damn disappointment but predictable given the rest of the book. The first and last book I'll read by this author.
Top reviews from other countries

Not sure how this book has slipped through the net in the UK.
Highly recommended.

Andrew ist eine sehr vielschichtige und sympathische Hauptfigur. Obwohl er ein mächtiger Magier und Nekromant ist, plagen ihn auch "normale" Probleme. So ist er beispielsweise ein trockener Alkoholiker und muss sich im Verlauf des Romans auch immer wieder mit seiner Sucht auseinandersetzen. Er hat also eine bewegte Vergangenheit, über die wir in Ansätzen etwas erfahren, und die Einblicke in seinen Charakter haben mir sehr gut gefallen. Seine Handlungen sind unterm Strich vielleicht nicht immer richtig, aber stets nachvollziehbar. Andrew stehen außerdem einige gut ausgearbeitete und interessante Nebenfiguren zur Seite. Besonders relevant für die Handlung ist Anneke, Andrews beste Freundin, die ebenfalls über magisches Talent verfügt, und die mir auch gut gefallen hat.
Die magischen Elemente in THE NECROMANCER'S HOUSE haben mich vollkommen überzeugt. Es gibt einige sehr interessante und unheimliche Ausprägungen und vor allem Baba Yagas Zaubersprüche haben es in sich. Mir haben die Einblicke in die russische Folklore insgesamt sehr gut gefallen und auch die übernatürlichen Wesen, denen wir begegnen, sind stimmig in den Roman eingefügt.
Die Handlung von THE NECROMANCER'S HOUSE ist spannend und schlüssig aufgebaut und mündet in einem befriedigenden Finale. Es sind immer wieder Rückblenden in Andrews Vergangenheit eingebaut und es werden auch immer wieder Nebenhandlungsstränge aufgegriffen. Mir hat diese Erzählweise sehr gut gefallen, ich hätte mir hier nur gewünscht, dass einige der noch offen gebliebenen Fragen geklärt werden.
Alles in allem hat mir THE NECROMANCER'S HOUSE sehr gut gefallen. Die Figuren sind sympathisch, die magischen Elemente interessant und die Handlung konnte mich völlig überzeugen. Christopher Buehlman hat wieder einen Volltreffer gelandet. Sehr empfehlenswert!



Saying that it has a great cover! and if this is a start of a series it could develop well.