Lud-in-the-Mist

Lud-in-the-Mist (1926) is Hope Mirrlees's third novel, and the only one of which most people will have heard if they've heard of her at all.

It was reprinted without her permission in 1970 in mass-market paperback format by Lin Carter for the Ballantine Adult Fantasy series. It is the only one of her works still in print today, thanks to recent reeditions, translations into German and Spanish, and some recognition in the canon of fantasy literature.

As a fantasy novel, it appeals for its perceived sui generis quality, and makes for a fairy tale of its own, as this strange little influential-yet-obscure book by an equally weird authoress. I mean "strange creature". This is facilitated by ignorance of and/or disregard for the rest of Mirrlees's work, all of which is conveniently out of print and almost impossible to find.

If you loved Lud-in-the-Mist, bring The Counterplot and Madeleine: One of Love's Jansenists back into print, by the Golden Apples of the West!

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Works Referencing This Title

Joanna Russ's short story, "The Zanzibar Cat" (1971)