Melmoth

by Sarah Perry

Overview

In a "Gothic stunner" a ghost roams through history in "a scary novel that chills to the bone even as it points the way to a warmer, more humane, place" (New York Times Book Review).

From the internationally bestselling author of The Essex Serpent, now an Apple TV+ Series starring Claire Danes

It has been years since Helen Franklin left England. In Prague, working as a translator, she has found a sanctuary. That changes when her friend Karel discovers a mysterious letter that speaks of Melmoth the Witness, who hunts her prey through the ages, dooming those she captures to timeless, itinerant solitude. To Helen it all seems the stuff of unenlightened fantasy. But then Karel disappears . . .

Spanning continents and centuries, Sarah Perry's breathtaking novel is a masterpiece of suspense as well as a profound investigation of the eternal nature of love and compassion.

"Masterful . . . scary and smart, working as a horror story but also a philosophical inquiry into the nature of will and love. . . . complex . . . and . . . rewarding." —The Washington Post

"A master of atmosphere." —Wall Street Journal

"Fierce [and] full-hearted." —NPR Book of the Year

"A gothic masterwork." -Entertainment Weekly

"Perry is changing what a modern-day ghost story can look like. . . . A chilling novel ." — Kirkus Reviews, starred review

"This fever dream of a novel will prove as compelling and all-consuming as TheEssex Serpent. — Library Journal, starred review

"Rich in gothic tropes and sinister atmosphere. . . . Perry's heartbreaking, horrifying monster confronts the characters not just with the uncanny but also with the human." — Publishers Weekly, starred review

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062856418
Publisher:	Custom House
Publication date:	02/27/2024
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	287
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Sarah Perry is the internationally bestselling author of The Essex Serpent, Melmoth, and After Me Comes the Flood. She lives in England.

Editorial Reviews

Perry's new novel…is another Gothic stunner…It is a scary novel that chills to the bone even as it points the way to a warmer, more humane, place…Plot moves concentrically, the stories like rings radiating from a drop of rain. There is no terrible secret or single horrifying deed. We know Melmoth and her intent from the beginning. Terror is not the point, nor is menace, exactly, although the novel offers both. The real horror of this novel is not the ghostly Melmoth at all, but the cruelty we human beings enact upon one another…By the end of Melmoth, you are left with a feeling that you have experienced something wholly entertaining, and that you have found humanity and compassion in the process.

The New York Times Book Review - Danielle Trussoni

Each detour in Melmoth could be its own novel, and I was often sorry to leave them. There is a clarity to these historical sections, a care and restraint. Perry could be describing her own well-appointed sentences when she writes of a home, "Everything in it was so affectionately chosen that it did not seem furnished so much as inhabited"…The novel reels you in, using the same trick of all the best ghost stories, from The Turn of the Screw on: Is there really a ghost before you? Or do you see the projection of your own secret sins and desires? What is more frightening than the human? For all the…special effects, it's the simple, domestic details that shine in this book: the hard snow that falls like "a table-salt glitter," the "consoling noises" of the teakettle, the way Perry brings a character to life in a few swift slashes…For all the swirling jackdaws and oppressive doom , this book has a ruddy optimism at its core…if suffering is never in short supply nor are opportunities for intercession, as Helen learns, to live according to the virtues of compassion, courage, self-sacrifice. "Look!" is the first word in several chapters. It is the book's moral injunction. Pay attention, Perry bids us. Don't leave the lonely to Melmoth.

The New York Times - Parul Sehgal

Masterful…scary and smart, working as a horror story but also a philosophical inquiry into the nature of will and love. Perry did as much in her richly praised novel The Essex Serpent, but this is a deeper, more complex novel and more rewarding.” — Washington Post

“Another Gothic stunner…a scary novel that chills to the bone even as it points the way to a warmer, more humane, place.” — New York Times Book Review

“Ms. Perry, whose last book, The Essex Serpent, was a breakout hit, again proves herself a master of atmosphere.” — Wall Street Journal

“The past few years have brought a glut of fashionably affectless and amoral fiction, to which Sarah Perry’s fierce, full-hearted books about love and ethics feel like the perfect antidote.” — NPR Book of the Year

“A gothic masterwork.” — Entertainment Weekly

“The last few years have brought a glut of fashionably affectless and amoral fiction....Sarah Perry’s fierce, full-hearted books about love and ethics feel like an antidote to that elegant apathy....In a world that feels desperate, chaotic, and unredeemable, Melmoth asks us to be witnesses for each other.” — NPR

“Reels you in, using the same trick of all the best ghost stories, from The Turn of the Screw on: Is there really a ghost before you? Or do you see the projection of your own secret sins and desires? What is more frightening than the human?” — New York Times

“A novel that manages that vanishingly rare feat – being at once hugely readable and profoundly important…Perry’s masterly piece of postmodern gothic is one of the great literary achievements of our young century.” — The Guardian

“The author of The Essex Serpent casts another haunting spell in this exquisitely written gothic novel.” — People

“Filled with thought-provoking ideas on historical guilt and personal responsibility, as well as a depth of learning…the message at its heart is an uplifting one; even if redemption for wrongdoing cannot always be achieved, there is power in bearing witness.” — Financial Times

“An unforgettable achievement…Perry’s heartbreaking, horrifying monster confronts the characters not just with the uncanny but also with the human: with humanity’s complicity in history’s darkest moments, its capacity for guilt, its power of witness, and its longing for both companionship and redemption.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“This fever dream of a novel will prove as compelling and all-consuming as The Essex Serpent.” — Library Journal (starred review)

“[A] stylized, postmodern work by a masterly writer… a sobering, disturbing, yet powerful and moving book that cannot fail to impress. The stories-within-stories and the Jewish themes recall Dara Horn’s The World to Come and Donna Tartt’s The Goldfinch, although Melmoth presents different kinds of nightmares.” — Booklist (starred review)

“A gorgeously wrought tale that feels as timeless as its title character and as real as the monster you’re sure is sitting at the foot of your bed. Perry doesn’t waste a word of this lean, taut novel...by the end you’re happily trapped in its eerie embrace.” — BookPage

 “A single-handed revival of the Gothic tradition.”—New York — New York

"One of the most complex and brilliant novels of the past few decades." — Guardian (UK)

“Ingenious… haunting, disquieting and memorable, and showcase[s] Perry’s dazzling creative powers.” — Minneapolis Star Tribune

“[A] spine-tingling, gloriously creepy tale … this is horror done masterfully.” — Globe and Mail (Toronto)

“A richly layered novel that will likely blossom even further with repeated readings…Atmospheric, emotive, and hauntingly beautiful, there’s so much to explore and so much to savor that it will undoubtedly follow you long after you finish.” — AU Review

“A spine-tingling story about despair and regret...[Perry’s] gorgeous lyricism and stunning prose make it difficult not to fall deeply for Melmoth, just as its fascinating characters and nested storytelling make it impossible not to get pulled into its darkness.” — Bustle

“The best word to describe Melmoth, the latest novel from Essex Serpent author Sarah Perry, is lush. This is a novel where every sentence has been wrapped in layer upon layer of velvet.” — Vox

“Arguably the most eagerly awaited novel of the year... a playful, bona fide page-turner.” — Daily Mail (UK)

“Sarah Perry is the real deal, an accomplished and often beautiful writer, and this book, like her first two, is full of power and makes an unforgettable impact.” — The Spectator

“The novel explores some of humanity’s darkest actions, asks us to consider our deepest secrets and conveys the importance of bearing witness to unspeakable events. At the same time, it’s also a novel of redemption, of the possibility of forgiveness, hope and reconciliation, and the healing power of love.” — Radio 4

“Haunting…Whether you want an unsettling autumnal read or a compelling piece of literary horror, this book will satisfy your craving and keep you hooked till the very last page.” — Book Riot

“Perry produces work that is substantial but also light of touch, filled with ambiguity, doubt and moral seriousness, and at the same time pacy, droll, vivid.” — New Statesman

“Melmoth chooses not to flinch away in such a fashion but rather rushes, full tilt and without apology, towards the uncanny... This bold, ambitious piece of work is a serious contribution to contemporary gothic.” — Literary Review

“Perry has crafted an atmospheric, gothic tale with the requisite bumps and shocks, but one that also asks profound and powerful questions about morality.” — The Bookseller

“A very good, very enjoyable, very moving and very subtle novel…you won’t expect the ending. And don’t leave an empty chair outside.” — The Scotsman

“Haunting” — Independent

“A brilliant, spooky meditation on the sins of history…If The Essex Serpent mined Victorian history for a legend and worked it up into a romance with broader social themes, then Melmoth repeats that trick in multiple dimensions.” — New Republic

“In rich, lyrical prose, Perry weaves history and myth, human frailty and compassion, into an affecting gothic morality tale for 2018. A chilling novel about confronting our complicity in past atrocities—and retaining the strength and moral courage to strive for the future.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

From the Publisher

Ms. Perry, whose last book, The Essex Serpent, was a breakout hit, again proves herself a master of atmosphere.

Wall Street Journal

A novel that manages that vanishingly rare feat – being at once hugely readable and profoundly important…Perry’s masterly piece of postmodern gothic is one of the great literary achievements of our young century.

The Guardian

The last few years have brought a glut of fashionably affectless and amoral fiction....Sarah Perry’s fierce, full-hearted books about love and ethics feel like an antidote to that elegant apathy....In a world that feels desperate, chaotic, and unredeemable, Melmoth asks us to be witnesses for each other.

NPR

Reels you in, using the same trick of all the best ghost stories, from The Turn of the Screw on: Is there really a ghost before you? Or do you see the projection of your own secret sins and desires? What is more frightening than the human?

New York Times

Another Gothic stunner…a scary novel that chills to the bone even as it points the way to a warmer, more humane, place.

New York Times Book Review

A gothic masterwork.

Entertainment Weekly

The past few years have brought a glut of fashionably affectless and amoral fiction, to which Sarah Perry’s fierce, full-hearted books about love and ethics feel like the perfect antidote.

NPR Book of the Year

Masterful…scary and smart, working as a horror story but also a philosophical inquiry into the nature of will and love. Perry did as much in her richly praised novel The Essex Serpent, but this is a deeper, more complex novel and more rewarding.

Washington Post

Filled with thought-provoking ideas on historical guilt and personal responsibility, as well as a depth of learning…the message at its heart is an uplifting one; even if redemption for wrongdoing cannot always be achieved, there is power in bearing witness.

Financial Times

The author of The Essex Serpent casts another haunting spell in this exquisitely written gothic novel.

People

Filled with thought-provoking ideas on historical guilt and personal responsibility, as well as a depth of learning…the message at its heart is an uplifting one; even if redemption for wrongdoing cannot always be achieved, there is power in bearing witness.

Financial Times

Masterful…scary and smart, working as a horror story but also a philosophical inquiry into the nature of will and love. Perry did as much in her richly praised novel The Essex Serpent, but this is a deeper, more complex novel and more rewarding.

Washington Post

Ms. Perry, whose last book, The Essex Serpent, was a breakout hit, again proves herself a master of atmosphere.

Wall Street Journal

A single-handed revival of the Gothic tradition.”—New York

New York

Melmoth chooses not to flinch away in such a fashion but rather rushes, full tilt and without apology, towards the uncanny... This bold, ambitious piece of work is a serious contribution to contemporary gothic.

Literary Review

Arguably the most eagerly awaited novel of the year... a playful, bona fide page-turner.

Daily Mail (UK)

Perry produces work that is substantial but also light of touch, filled with ambiguity, doubt and moral seriousness, and at the same time pacy, droll, vivid.

New Statesman

Ingenious… haunting, disquieting and memorable, and showcase[s] Perry’s dazzling creative powers.

Minneapolis Star Tribune

Haunting…Whether you want an unsettling autumnal read or a compelling piece of literary horror, this book will satisfy your craving and keep you hooked till the very last page.

Book Riot

Haunting

Independent Whig.

A gorgeously wrought tale that feels as timeless as its title character and as real as the monster you’re sure is sitting at the foot of your bed. Perry doesn’t waste a word of this lean, taut novel...by the end you’re happily trapped in its eerie embrace.

BookPage

[A] stylized, postmodern work by a masterly writer… a sobering, disturbing, yet powerful and moving book that cannot fail to impress. The stories-within-stories and the Jewish themes recall Dara Horn’s The World to Come and Donna Tartt’s The Goldfinch, although Melmoth presents different kinds of nightmares.

Booklist (starred review)

The novel explores some of humanity’s darkest actions, asks us to consider our deepest secrets and conveys the importance of bearing witness to unspeakable events. At the same time, it’s also a novel of redemption, of the possibility of forgiveness, hope and reconciliation, and the healing power of love.

Radio 4

A brilliant, spooky meditation on the sins of history…If The Essex Serpent mined Victorian history for a legend and worked it up into a romance with broader social themes, then Melmoth repeats that trick in multiple dimensions.

New Republic

A spine-tingling story about despair and regret...[Perry’s] gorgeous lyricism and stunning prose make it difficult not to fall deeply for Melmoth, just as its fascinating characters and nested storytelling make it impossible not to get pulled into its darkness.

Bustle

[A] spine-tingling, gloriously creepy tale … this is horror done masterfully.

Globe and Mail (Toronto)

Perry has crafted an atmospheric, gothic tale with the requisite bumps and shocks, but one that also asks profound and powerful questions about morality.

The Bookseller

Sarah Perry is the real deal, an accomplished and often beautiful writer, and this book, like her first two, is full of power and makes an unforgettable impact.

The Spectator

A richly layered novel that will likely blossom even further with repeated readings…Atmospheric, emotive, and hauntingly beautiful, there’s so much to explore and so much to savor that it will undoubtedly follow you long after you finish.

AU Review

A very good, very enjoyable, very moving and very subtle novel…you won’t expect the ending. And don’t leave an empty chair outside.

The Scotsman

The best word to describe Melmoth, the latest novel from Essex Serpent author Sarah Perry, is lush. This is a novel where every sentence has been wrapped in layer upon layer of velvet.

Vox

Haunting

Independent

Sarah Perry is the real deal, an accomplished and often beautiful writer, and this book, like her first two, is full of power and makes an unforgettable impact.

The Spectator

Reels you in, using the same trick of all the best ghost stories, from The Turn of the Screw on: Is there really a ghost before you? Or do you see the projection of your own secret sins and desires? What is more frightening than the human?

New York Times

The last few years have brought a glut of fashionably affectless and amoral fiction....Sarah Perry’s fierce, full-hearted books about love and ethics feel like an antidote to that elegant apathy....In a world that feels desperate, chaotic, and unredeemable, Melmoth asks us to be witnesses for each other.

NPR

[A] spine-tingling, gloriously creepy tale … this is horror done masterfully.

Globe and Mail (Toronto)

Masterful…scary and smart, working as a horror story but also a philosophical inquiry into the nature of will and love. Perry did as much in her richly praised novel The Essex Serpent, but this is a deeper, more complex novel and more rewarding.

Washington Post

Filled with thought-provoking ideas on historical guilt and personal responsibility, as well as a depth of learning…the message at its heart is an uplifting one; even if redemption for wrongdoing cannot always be achieved, there is power in bearing witness.

Financial Times

A novel that manages that vanishingly rare feat – being at once hugely readable and profoundly important…Perry’s masterly piece of postmodern gothic is one of the great literary achievements of our young century.

The Guardian

The best word to describe Melmoth, the latest novel from Essex Serpent author Sarah Perry, is lush. This is a novel where every sentence has been wrapped in layer upon layer of velvet.

Vox

Haunting…Whether you want an unsettling autumnal read or a compelling piece of literary horror, this book will satisfy your craving and keep you hooked till the very last page.

Book Riot

Arguably the most eagerly awaited novel of the year... a playful, bona fide page-turner.

Daily Mail (UK)

Perry has crafted an atmospheric, gothic tale with the requisite bumps and shocks, but one that also asks profound and powerful questions about morality.

The Bookseller

Haunting

Independent

Ingenious… haunting, disquieting and memorable, and showcase[s] Perry’s dazzling creative powers.

Minneapolis Star Tribune

Melmoth chooses not to flinch away in such a fashion but rather rushes, full tilt and without apology, towards the uncanny... This bold, ambitious piece of work is a serious contribution to contemporary gothic.

Literary Review

A very good, very enjoyable, very moving and very subtle novel…you won’t expect the ending. And don’t leave an empty chair outside.

The Scotsman

A gothic masterwork.

Entertainment Weekly

Ms. Perry, whose last book, The Essex Serpent, was a breakout hit, again proves herself a master of atmosphere.

Wall Street Journal

A richly layered novel that will likely blossom even further with repeated readings…Atmospheric, emotive, and hauntingly beautiful, there’s so much to explore and so much to savor that it will undoubtedly follow you long after you finish.

AU Review

[A] stylized, postmodern work by a masterly writer… a sobering, disturbing, yet powerful and moving book that cannot fail to impress. The stories-within-stories and the Jewish themes recall Dara Horn’s The World to Come and Donna Tartt’s The Goldfinch, although Melmoth presents different kinds of nightmares.

Booklist (starred review)

Perry produces work that is substantial but also light of touch, filled with ambiguity, doubt and moral seriousness, and at the same time pacy, droll, vivid.

New Statesman

 “A single-handed revival of the Gothic tradition.”—New York

New York

Another Gothic stunner…a scary novel that chills to the bone even as it points the way to a warmer, more humane, place.

New York Times Book Review

A spine-tingling story about despair and regret...[Perry’s] gorgeous lyricism and stunning prose make it difficult not to fall deeply for Melmoth, just as its fascinating characters and nested storytelling make it impossible not to get pulled into its darkness.

Bustle

A gorgeously wrought tale that feels as timeless as its title character and as real as the monster you’re sure is sitting at the foot of your bed. Perry doesn’t waste a word of this lean, taut novel...by the end you’re happily trapped in its eerie embrace.

BookPage

The novel explores some of humanity’s darkest actions, asks us to consider our deepest secrets and conveys the importance of bearing witness to unspeakable events. At the same time, it’s also a novel of redemption, of the possibility of forgiveness, hope and reconciliation, and the healing power of love.

Radio 4

The author of The Essex Serpent casts another haunting spell in this exquisitely written gothic novel.

People

A brilliant, spooky meditation on the sins of history…If The Essex Serpent mined Victorian history for a legend and worked it up into a romance with broader social themes, then Melmoth repeats that trick in multiple dimensions.

New Republic

It is a real pleasure to read something so full of conviction. The past few years have brought a glut of fashionably affectless and amoral fiction, to which Sarah Perry’s fierce, full-hearted books about love and ethics feel like the perfect antidote.

NPR Best Books of 2018