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William Hope Hodgson
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Carnacki the Ghost Finder Paperback – February 4, 2003

by William Hope Hodgson (Author)
4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 369 ratings
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Six tales of Carnacki the Ghost Finder, tales of the outre, the unexpected, and the unexplained from a reknowned master of the macabre, William Hope Hodgeson.
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  1. Print length
    168 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    February 4, 2003
  4. Dimensions
    6 x 0.42 x 9 inches
  5. ISBN-10
    1587155710
  6. ISBN-13
    978-1587155710
  7. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

During their original run, the magazine that published them boasted: “Complaints continue to reach us from all parts of the country to the effect that Mr. William Hope Hodgeson’s Carnacki stories are producing a widespread epidemic of Nervous Prostration! So far from being able to reassure or calm our nervous readers, we are compelled to warn them that ‘The Whistling Room,’ which we publish this month, is worse than ever. Our advertising manager had to go to bed for two days after reading the advance sheets; a proofreader has sent in his resignation; and, worst of all, our smartest office boy — But this is no place to bewail or seek for sympathy. Yet another of those stories will appear in April!”

About the Author

William Hope Hodgson (1877 - 1918) was an English author. He produced a large body of work, consisting of essays, short fiction and novels spanning several overlapping genres including horror, fantastic fiction and science fiction. Hodgson used his experiences at sea to lend authentic detail to his short horror stories, many of which are set on the ocean, including his series of linked tales forming the "Sargasso Sea Stories". His novels, such as The House on the Borderland (1908) and The Night Land (1912), feature more cosmic themes, but several of his novels also focus on horrors associated with the sea. Early in his writing career Hodgson dedicated effort to poetry, although few of his poems were published during his lifetime. He also attracted some notice as a photographer and achieved renown as a bodybuilder. He died in World War I at age 40.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Wildside Press (February 4, 2003)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 168 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1587155710
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1587155710
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9.3 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.42 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 369 ratings

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William Hope Hodgson

William Hope Hodgson

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Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
4.1 out of 5
369 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Bryan Reagan
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Occult Detective Fiction
Reviewed in the United States on December 24, 2022
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This is a collection of six (some later editions have nine) short stories about Tom Carnacki, a British occult investigator written in the first decade of the twentieth century. Some of the ideas first expressed in these stories have become genre conventions or cliches, but these are the original "ghost buster" type stories.
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4.0 out of 5 stars Carnacki, Grandfather of Ghost Hunters
Reviewed in the United States on February 21, 2014
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Carnacki is an investigator of hauntings. He is methodical in his techniques to confirm or disprove paranormal activity. He routinely attempts to photograph ghosts, gathers facts on the case, and even uses scientific tricks to confirm the veracity of certain phenomena, such as if doors really opened during activity. He is often called when owners of a home cannot deal with a haunting any longer. This sounds pretty conventional for today, which is why it is impressive that Carnacki, The Ghost Finder was published over a century ago in 1913.

Written by William Hope Hodgson as short stories for magazines between 1910 and 1920, Carnacki, The Ghost Finder collects six cases of the ghost hunter. Each case is written by a friend of Carnacki who recounts the ghost hunter retelling everything that happened through the course of the investigation, giving it an air of armchair reminiscence and a slight nod to Watson's retellings of the Sherlock Holmes adventures.

Carnacki is neither a Christian crusader nor a disbelieving scientist. He is methodical in his investigations, often using hairs or wax to tell if doors have actually opened while an area was locked and setting up unique tools like a camera triggered by a string. Some of his knowledge and ghost classification comes from the mysterious Sigsand Manuscript which he mentions, but Carnacki is hardly an occultist like you might see in Lovecraft or more modern works. Other than drawing circles or pentacles, he has no actual magical ability. He just uses what he has learned for defense and investigation. That is not to say that he is not without his innovations. One of the most intriguing ideas is Carnacki's Electric Pentacle. After noting that electricity appeared to enhance barriers against the paranormal, he merged it with the occult pentacle. Using vacuum tubes, the Electric Pentacle sends electricity continuously in the occult shape and is plugged into a battery within the protected area.

Carnacki himself is an interesting character. He isn't some Lovecraftian scholar, lost in his fear of the unknown, his brain locking up in the darkness. Carnacki is brave, but he is not full of bravado either - he clearly gets scared in the middle of the dark night, fearing things in the unknown and trying to stay immobile in his pentacle. The most dominant part of Carnacki's personality seems to be his can-do attitude. He always has a next thing to try, a new way to continue the investigation. Even when scared, he does not dwell, he merely rests and begins again.

Why haven't you heard of Carnacki before? The name comes up here and there, but mostly in more literary accounts that are usually talking of the history of the horror or supernatural genres. Rarely do you hear him mentioned as a recommendation for reading. William Hope Hodgson died at the age of 40 in World War I and his works fell into obscurity since then. Every decade or so there is a resurgence, and his works capture a few new readers. Though it seems obvious to suggest Hodgson influenced Lovecraft, the latter did not discover Hodgson's works until 1934, late into his career. Carnacki has only been adapted to the screen once, in an episode the 1970s TV series Rivals of Sherlock Holmes where Carnacki was played by Donald Pleasence.
It is impressive that the Carnacki stories are still quite readable for modern readers. Some works of that age come off stilted, slow, or lacking in bite due to all the things we've read in more modern works. But the Carnacki stories are still quite interesting and creepy. While there might be a few words that may be confusing or antiquated, the narrative voice is quite comfortable to read. The biggest drawback is that since this is Carnacki's account to a friend, every paragraph begins with a quotation mark and actual things said appear in nested quotes, which can be confusing at times. But outside of this small annoyance, the stories are still enjoyable to read without them feeling an uphill struggle.

Carnacki has passed into public domain at this point. You can find his stories free as an ebook. This also means that other authors are free to use him in their own works, as they have. Besides cameos in other works as varied as the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and Doctor Who novels, you can find the further adventures of Carnacki written by a variety of authors. I can speak only for the original works, but if you have an ebook reader, there's no reason not to check him out, if not for the amazement value of a type of story so commonplace now occurring over a century ago.
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zendoze
3.0 out of 5 stars Simple storytelling
Reviewed in the United States on June 1, 2023
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I enjoyed it for the archaic structure and older fashion in narrative. A comfortable read that’s entertaining in its simplicity.
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Nyarlathotep
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Occult Sleuthing
Reviewed in the United States on April 13, 2020
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Carmack is one of the first of the literary occult sleuths. Hodgson tells a good tale and leaves one satisfied, just as his audience of four friends.

Carmack, and the other early sleuths (Jules Degrandin, etc.) have spawned an entire genre, that of the occult investigator.

Carter's Anton Zarnack, Henderson's Teddy London, Lumley's Titus Crow, Butcher's Harry Dresden and a myriad of others, owe a tip of the hat to this, one of the earliest sleuths.

I would recommend this work to any one who enjoys a good sleuthing.
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David Swan
4.0 out of 5 stars The Original Ghost Buster
Reviewed in the United States on June 1, 2015
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Carnacki, the Ghost Finder was originally published back in 1913 and bears some similarities to the works of HP Lovecraft. Since Lovecraft didn't start publishing until 1917 that mean Hodgson predates him by a few years. I also get a similar vibe to the Alone in the Dark video game series which was inspired by the stories of Lovecraft. I'm impressed by Hodgson's writing but he has nowhere's near the poetic talents of Lovecraft which is why one author is a household name and the other is fairly obscure. That's not to denigrate Hodgson as he carves out his own niche which is a more lightweight version of the horror genre.

Usually in stories like these the ghost hunter either always finds actual ghosts or always finds fakes (as in Scooby Doo). In this case sometimes the spooks are real and sometimes not. I've never seen another ghost hunter type series like this. Carnacki’s three main weapons are his flashlight, his camera and his pistol. Well, also his chalk which he uses to draw pentagrams around himself in the same way DC Comics John Constantine would do to protect against menacing spirits. This works great when the ghosts are real. Not so well with the fakes. I also like Carnacki's policy that if he feels the urge to flee from a situation he does so. This is one of the common tropes in horror movies that people stick around in the face of mortal danger. Not so with Carnacki and it's not really a result of cowardice. He simply has accepted that if he feels that flight is warranted out the front door he will run.

The stories aren't particularly scary which is a side effect of having a continuing character who relays the stories in first person narrative. It pretty much guarantees nothing bad will happen. My bigger issue is that Hodgson creates mysteries but never gives the reader the opportunity to play along. There are no clues as to whether or not it’s a true ghost. If there is a human agent behind the haunting readers get nothing pointing them towards the culprit. This leaves the endings generally unsatisfying. In several stories it seems obvious that there must be a supernatural force but it turns out a human staged it despite the fact that it seems like an impossible act to fake. In two stories it turns out there are both fakers AND real ghosts working independently. There were some moments of tension in particular “The Searcher of the End House” but overall the stories weren’t overly memorable.

I read the Kindle version and for some reason it didn’t have “The Hog” and “The Haunted Jarvee” which are listed among the stories in Carnacki, The Ghost Finder so I’m not sure why they were omitted. These are good but not great stories.
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Maurice
5.0 out of 5 stars Genial
Reviewed in the United States on February 22, 2010
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Admittedly I'm not a big reader, but this is such a unique angle on telling a ghost story. Carnacki is a really fascinating character, through all the experiences he's had, he never loses his respect for the situation and hardly ever loses his objectivity. Each new ghostly encounter is just as exhilarating as the last for him and it's a joy to read it told from a first-person POV.

For those interested in a great handful of spooky short stories, look no further.
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Richard
5.0 out of 5 stars One of the most scariest books I've ever read if you like old office
Reviewed in Australia on October 15, 2023
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Reading this short story collection one night out in the back blocks in a jeep about 2am at a mine, I got scared and had to drive back to the lights of the industrial area of the mine, I was 43
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Confessions of a Reviewer
5.0 out of 5 stars 100 year old pure gold!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 6, 2014
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You're privileged again. 2 reviews of this one.

Review one: If you own a Kindle and read horror then you must get this......end of. IT IS FREE!!!!!!!

Review two: Thomas Carnacki is an Edwardian ghost hunter. Each time he goes on an adventure, when he returns he calls his 4 close friends Dodgson, Arkright, Jessop and Taylor to his house for dinner and a story. Carnacki is a very forthright chap. He is very set in his ways and can come across as curt in many instances but his friends keep coming back for more. The evenings follow the same pattern. Carnacki lets his guests in but doesn't speak to them initially. They settle down to dinner for about an hour then follow Carnacki to the fireside where he tells them about his latest "case". The minute his story ends he exclaims "Out you go" and they leave.

Sound weird? Well trust me it's a pattern that works extremely well. There are 6 stories in this book detailing various tales from a castle that drips blood, a family with an apparent curse on the first born child if it is a daughter to the case of the ancient dagger that attacks people by some invisible force. Now I am reliably informed that Hodgson wrote 9 Carnacki stories. If you are lucky enough to find a copy with all 9 in it please let me know because I can’t seem to find a version I can get in the UK.

Now I have only recently discovered William Hope Hodgson. I wish he were around today because I would be all over his Facebook page. Alas these stories were written between 1910 and 1912 and Hodgson was tragically killed in World War 1. The writing is just wonderful. The language used just adds and adds to the stories. The atmosphere that Hodgson emits in these stories is spine tingling. Genuinely full of tension and horror at every turn. You cannot help but imagine the sights, the smells. You genuinely get so wrapped up in the stories that you have to give yourself a shake and get back to the real world. That is high praise indeed. You have to keep reminding yourself when reading this that it is 100 years old and it tears strips off some of the novels I read today.

I cannot go on about this book enough. Well I could but I have a bed to go to and you would be bored. I will sum it up very easily. Book brilliant. Buy it. Or get it for free if you have a Kindle. I guarantee if you do, you will love it and come back to me to say "You were right oh great Nev, this book is superb!"

Absolutely 5 stars. This is where it all started.
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川流桃桜
4.0 out of 5 stars オカルト探偵ものの決定版！
Reviewed in Japan on January 3, 2003
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ホジスンの創造したオカルト探偵、カーナッキの活躍する傑作諸短編の裡、以下の六作品を収録。古の言い伝えと科学的幻想の入り交じった奇怪な事件に、霊的科学の知識を武器に立ち向かう幽霊探索家の姿が、簡潔にして力強い筆致で語られる。残りの三作品は未収録な上、よく見ると間違いや欠落が幾つもあるので、正直に言うと他のものが入手困難でなければこの版はお薦めしない。目次がないのもやや不便。
　The Gateway of the Monster
　The House Among the Laurels
　The Whistling Room
　The Horse of the Invisible
　The Searcher of the End House
　The Thing Invisible
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M. Forrest
4.0 out of 5 stars Ultimately Rewarding
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 21, 2014
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Written in an often convoluted and idiosyncratic style, which does take some getting used to, the actual ghostly tales themselves are very rewarding both in their ideas and in the images they conjure up.
I remember reading in a battered paperback copy of The House On The Borderland that Hodgson was actually not a very good write but he always managed to have several ideas that stuck in the memory and that certainly holds true here.
There are a few typos and repeated sentences but considering the book is free and brings Hodgson's works out of the shadows, more then makes up for any shortcomings.
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Parsec
4.0 out of 5 stars Sehr kultig - und seiner Zeit ein Stück voraus!
Reviewed in Germany on January 18, 2013
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Die fast 100 Jahre alten Geschichten um den Geisterjäger Carnacki sind in der Tat höchst bemerkenswert - und leider in Deutschland kaum bekannt.

Ich selbst bin durch die großartige Rollenspielkollektion "Forgotten Futures" von Marcus Rowland (Fans von originellen Rollenspielen sollten diese Seite unbedingt besuchen) vor einigen Jahren auf die Carnacki Geschichten aufmerksam geworden (es gibt ein in diesem Universum angesiedeltes Forgotten Futures Quellenbuch) und muss sagen, dass sie mich wirklich beeindruckt haben.

Interessant ist nämlich, dass die Carnacki-Geschichten nicht nur klassischen Horror bieten, sondern viele Elemente enthalten, die im breiten Bewusstsein erst späteren Generationen von Horror-Geschichten zueigen waren. So arbeitet Carnacki in diesen in den 20er Jahren spielenden Geschichten mit damals moderner Technik wie einem elektrischen Schutz vor übersinnlichen Kräften (eine ernste Version von Ghostbusters, sozusagen...), ist oftmals ängstlich und kein strahlender Held... und manche Fälle, die er untersucht, haben gar keine übersinnliche Erklärung. Darüber hinaus wird eine Kosmologie entworfen, welche ziemlich schlüssig ist und Geister oder Dämonen sehr gut rechtfertigen kann.... und schließlich muss man ganz klar feststellen, dass die Carnacki-Geschichten auch für heutige Verhältnisse schlichtweg gut geschrieben sind und einfach Spaß machen!

Für Fans von John Sinclair und Co. (eben Geisterjägern, natürlich ohne das Fantasy-Element), Leser kosmischen Horrors im Stile von H.P. Lovecraft oder einfach Nostalgikern auf der Suche nach cooler Horrorliteratur kann diese Sammlung unbedingt empfohlen werden. Die Geschichten um Carnacki waren lange Zeit nur schwer zu kriegen, umso schöner, dass sie jetzt gratis für den Kindle erhältlich sind!
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