''Daemonomania'' is a 2000

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

novel by John Crowley. It is Crowley's seventh novel, and as the third novel in Crowley's Ægypt Sequence, a sequel to Crowley's 1994 novel ''

Love & Sleep ''Love & Sleep'' is a 1994 fantasy novel by John Crowley. It is the second novel in Crowley's Ægypt Sequence and a sequel to Crowley's 1987 novel '' The Solitudes''. In it, the protagonist Pierce Moffett continues his book project begun in ''Th ...

''. The novel follows protagonist Pierce Moffett as he continues his book project begun in '' The Solitudes'' about the Renaissance and Hermeticism, while dealing with a stormy relationship with his girlfriend Rosie Ryder. Like the previous novels, the novel has four main narrative strands, one occurring in the present day generally following Pierce or Rosie Mucho in their artistic works, and two occurring in the Renaissance following the historical fictional activities of

John Dee John Dee (13 July 1527 – 1608 or 1609) was an English mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, teacher, occultist, and alchemist. He was the court astronomer for, and advisor to, Elizabeth I, and spent much of his time on alchemy, divinatio ...

Edward Kelley Sir Edward Kelley or Kelly, also known as Edward Talbot (; 1 August 1555 – 1597/8), was an English people, English Renaissance magic, Renaissance occultist and scryer. He is best known for working with John Dee (mathematician), John Dee in hi ...

and

Giordano Bruno Giordano Bruno (; ; la, Iordanus Brunus Nolanus; born Filippo Bruno, January or February 1548 – 17 February 1600) was an Italian philosopher, mathematician, poet, cosmological theorist, and Hermetic occultist. He is known for his cosmologic ...

as written by fictional novelist Fellowes Kraft. The difference is marked stylistically by dashes indicating dialogue for events that happened in the Renaissance and events in the twentieth century marked by dialogue in ordinary English quotation marks.

Background

The novel's title derives from '' De la Démonomanie des Sorciers'' a book purporting to be about

demonology Demonology is the study of demons within religious belief and myth. Depending on context, it can refer to studies within theology, religious doctrine, or pseudoscience. In many faiths, it concerns the study of a hierarchy of demons. Demons may b ...

intended for would-be

exorcists In some religions, an exorcist (from the Greek „ἐξορκιστής“) is a person who is believed to be able to cast out the devil or performs the ridding of demons or other supernatural beings who are alleged to have possessed a person, ...

written by sixteenth-century French Jurist and politician

Jean Bodin Jean Bodin (; c. 1530 – 1596) was a French jurist and political philosopher, member of the Parlement of Paris and professor of law in Toulouse. He is known for his theory of sovereignty. He was also an influential writer on demonology. Bodin l ...

. Pierce and Rosie encounter the book in Part I Chapter 13 among Fellowes Kraft's collection of rare books collected from his travels in Europe. Thematically, the novel deals with the high numbers of demonic possessions and encounters with sorcery reported in the seventeenth century, precipitating a rise in dogmaticism among both Christians, Muslims and scientific thinkers at the time. In the Author's Note, Crowley cites the research of

Nuccio Ordine Nuccio Ordine (; born 18 July 1958 in Diamante) is an Italian author and philosopher, professor of literature at the University of Calabria. He is one of the world's top experts on Renaissance and the philosopher Giordano Bruno. Activities ...

, Angelo Maria Ripellino, Brian P. Levnack,

Carlo Ginzburg Carlo Ginzburg (; born April 15, 1939) is an Italian historian and proponent of the field of microhistory. He is best known for ''Il formaggio e i vermi'' (1976, English title: ''The Cheese and the Worms''), which examined the beliefs of an Ital ...

, Ioan P. Culianu, and Deborah Vansau Mccauley. The novel was Crowley's first work with editor

Ron Drummond Ronald N. Drummond (born 1959 in Seattle, Washington) is a writer, editor, and independent scholar. Writer Ron Drummond is the author of "The Sonic Rituals of Pauline Oliveros"; "The Frequency of Liberation", a critical fiction about the novels ...

. This novel of the sequence is sectioned based on the second three of the

Astrological Houses Most horoscopic traditions of astrology systems divide the horoscope into a number (usually twelve) of houses whose positions depend on time and location rather than on date. In Hindu astrological tradition these are known as Bhāvas. The hous ...

. Uxor, signifying spouses or partnership; and Mors, signifying death or reincarnation; and Pietas, signifying journeys or philosophy.

Plot

In an introductory chapter (chronologically taking place mid-way through the novel's plot), Pierce Moffett takes a bus ride from the Blackberry Jambs to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, reflecting on his relationship with Rose Ryder. While Pierce left his Catholic faith in adolescence, Rose is ardently pursuing her faith in the Powerhouse Christian sect. In the Renaissance, John Dee and Edward Kelley again contact the angel,

Madimi Babalon (also known as the Scarlet Woman, Great Mother or Mother of Abominations) is a goddess found in the occult system of Thelema, which was established in 1904 with the writing of ''The Book of the Law'' by English author and occultist Al ...

, who in previous volumes, first commanded their wandering. The treatments he prepared to grant the Emperor fertility have also failed, and the court grown paranoid, hiring spies who may be watching Dee. Dee arranges for the man accused of being a werewolf, Jan, to seek passage to the New World with Dee as he leaves Prague. He leaves Kelley behind, who on telling the Emperor of his supposed Irish nobility, is Knighted. Dee is further shocked when Kelley tells him and the court that all their alchemical practices were all derived from Kelley's own intuition, and not occult means. In an effort to lighten the load of their ship off the Continent, Dee spills the gold on the ground, much of which has somehow decayed and stinks. He finally returns to England (narrowly missing the premiere of Marlowe's ''Faustus''), and remains destitute for some time, until finally finding a wardenship at Manchester College. In the face of growing persecution, he refuses to harm Catholics, and treats those accused of demonic possession with caution, but kindness. He eventually hears word that Kelley has died, and in fear at his own growing reputation as a wizard, retires from public life, gaining money only by selling his books. On a visit to New York, Beau Brachman is given a tract from a quasi-Gnostic sect, advocating the worship of the exiled "Sophia" as primordial to all religious practice, and the only escape from mankind's "imprisonment." He takes the tract, remembering another copy early in his life, reflecting on how he has followed the broad demands of Ancient Gnosticism to seek spiritual pleasure, but not to procreate. Beau makes contact with a gnostic-like cult in the wilderness beyond the Blackberry Jambs led by an aging patriarch, Plato Goodenough. In the confusion of the crowd, an Ass tied near the area escapes, and wanders out of the city. The chest Mary Philomel unlocked in the previous volume is revealed to not have opened, but responded with sounds resembling internal

clockwork Clockwork refers to the inner workings of either mechanical devices called clocks and watches (where it is also called the movement) or other mechanisms that work similarly, using a series of gears driven by a spring or weight. A clockwork mec ...

continuing for several years and coming to a stop at the novel's end.

Characters

As earlier stated, the novel follows both characters in the present, as well as those in the Historical novels written by unseen character Fellowes Kraft. Characters in The Present *Pierce Moffett-The novel's protagonist. While still working on his book project, Pierce becomes especially interested in continued ways past systems of knowledge, even magical, can be relevant in the present. In ''Dæmonomania'', Pierce experiments with sexual dominance/BDSM with his girlfriend Rosie Ryder, but at the same time, loses her to the authoritarian Christian cult, The Powerhouse. *Rosie Ryder-Pierce's lover throughout the novel who is initiated into, and joins a Christian cult called The Powerhouse led by Rosie Mucho's ex-husband Mike. *Rosie Mucho (née Rasmussen)-Pierce's close friend. Throughout the novel, Rosie deals with her daughter Sam Mucho's epilepsy, first encountered at the end of ''Love & Sleep'', and brief custody battle, ultimately losing Sam to her ex-husband Mike. *Axel Moffett-Pierce's estranged father, now living with his male partner "Gravely" who dies in the course of the novel. *Mike Mucho-Rosie Mucho (née Rasmussen)'s ex-husband. Mike was first introduced as a psychologist in the previous volumes, but in ''Dæmonomania'' the organization he works for is revealed as a front for the quasi-Christian cult The Powerhouse. *Bobby Shaftoe-The character from Pierce's childhood, first encountered in ''

'' again appears, now an orderly at the pediatrics wing of the hospital where Rosie's daughter Sam is treated. Her past experience with Appalachian Churches is detailed, along with family lore suggesting she may have inhuman ancestors. She joins The Powerhouse and briefly lives with Rosie Ryder. *Ray Honeybeare-The leader of The Powerhouse cult, who encourages Mike to regain Sam and prevent her from receiving medical attention. Characters of the Renaissance *

-The Elizabethan cryptographer, doctor, alchemist and skryer. In the course of the novel, Dee discovers how to create Gold in Prague, but returns to England around mounting political pressure and paranoia. *Madimi-The childlike being that guided Dee and Kelley to Prague. In ''Dæmonomania'', she puts Dee and Kelley to the test in order to receive the secrets of creating gold. * Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II-The pope-crowned "Singular and Universal Monarch of the Whole Wide World" and the patron of Kelley and Dee. In ''Dæmonomania'' he becomes interested in Dee's skepticism as to demons and werewolves, and invites Bruno to speak in his court. *

-The Dominican Friar, writer, and academic. In ''Dæmonomania'', reveals his speculations including those about life on multiple planets to the court of Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II *

-John Dee's assistant, who eventually denounces Dee, and is knighted while in Prague.

Reception

Critic

Harold Bloom Harold Bloom (July 11, 1930 – October 14, 2019) was an American literary critic and the Sterling Professor of Humanities at Yale University. In 2017, Bloom was described as "probably the most famous literary critic in the English-speaking wor ...

praised the novel, calling it "A Masterpiece of spiritual insight and of superb style and characterization. ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...

'' positively reviewed the book, focusing on its ability to include philosophical and historical material into a novel still within the fantasy genre. The novel was briefly and negatively reviewed in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', the reviewer uncertain of any connection at all between the two storylines. In ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the crea ...

'', Elizabeth hand published an overview of the entire series, praising ''Daemonomania'' for its engagement of the darker aspects of the Renaissance, American spirituality, and Pierce's sexual drives. James Hynes wrote a long article advocating Crowley's be considered "a serious literary reputation" on the release of ''Daemonomania'', calling the three books already released of the series "already, unfinished–an astonishing accomplishment". Hynes pointed out that many other reviewers, particularly Jeff Waggoner, reviewed the novel improperly, having missed the connection between the previous volumes as comprising a series.

References

External links