The Siren’s Call: An archive of past reviews

Plumbing the depths with Nostradamus, Ilchi Lee, Dana Wilde

In ‘Rimbaud in Java,’ Jamie James seeks to fill in a mysterious six-month gap in the French poet’s life.

Simon Armitage’s translation ‘The Death of King Arthur’ presents a familiar legend in an unexpected light; Bernard Cornwell pits Vikings against Saxons in ‘Death of Kings.’

Thomas Penn’s ‘Winter King’ presents power politics in the time of Henry VII; ‘A Game of Thrones,’ the graphic novel

History is now in ‘Leonardo’s Lost Princess,’ A.S. Byatt’s ‘Ragnarok’ and ‘How to Win an Election.’

What do Polish readers think of Richard Zimler’s depiction of ghetto life in ‘The Warsaw Anagrams’? The author traveled there to find out.

Michael Dirda’s ‘On Conan Doyle,’ A.N. Wilson’s ‘Dante in Love’ and much more.

Stephen Greenblatt describes a momentous rediscovery in ‘The Swerve’; plus the opinions of H.P. Lovecraft and Margaret Atwood.

Duels and fantastical creatures await readers of ‘The Night Circus’ and ‘The Circus of Dr. Lao.’

The lure of the sea in Bernd Brunner’s ‘The Ocean at Home’ and Andrea Di Robilant’s ‘Irresistible North.’

‘Breaking Up With God’ by Sarah Sentilles; ‘Waiting’ by Marya Hornbacher.

People ignore a bleak world by hiding in their memories in Dan Simmons’ novel ‘Flashback.’ Plus: Lama Surya Das wants us to make peace with time.

Charles Freeman’s “Holy Bones, Holy Dust” is an insightful study of the religious rise of relics during the Middle Ages; plus a relic left behind by C.S. Lewis.

New books on legendary creatures give us fresh glimpses of monsters real and imagined.

In Richard Matheson’s ‘Other Kingdoms,’ a young man wanders into fairy mischief; a view of the sky that’s 200 years old.

Magic powers in Deborah Harkness’ ‘A Discovery of Witches’ and ‘The Occultist’; if only we didn’t need sleep.

A ghost may (or may not) haunt Andrew Taylor’s ‘The Anatomy of Ghosts’; UFOs continue to hover in popular culture.

An early Christian document, ‘Revelation of the Magi,’ provides unexpected insights into the Nativity story.

The point of our lives, says Ram Dass’ ‘Be Love Now’ and Rumi’s ‘The Big Red Book,’ is to get into that flow of energy and stay there.

History of both species are linked, hand in paw.

New, unexpected versions of the poet’s epic work are nothing short of heavenly.

The literary tradition of detective duos continues in George Mann’s ‘The Osiris Ritual.’

In Lawerence Goldstone’s ‘The Astronomer,’ a young student is enmeshed in a plot to silence a revolutionary thinker. Plus: William Eamon’s ‘The Professor of Secrets’ shows the plight of Renaissance-era doctors.

Breaking fantasy from the genre ghetto: That’s one result of the splendid anthology ‘Stories: All-New Tales’ edited by Gaiman and Al Sarrantonio. Plus: ‘the Penguin Book of Ghost Stories’ edited by Michael Newton.

In “The Boy with the Cuckoo-clock Heart,” a young man looks for love and stays alive thanks to a little wooden clock. Plus: “The Bradbury Report’s” unsettling vision of the near-future.

New books consider our unending quest to slow down daily life. Plus: Timothy Leary and Huston Smith hold an unexpected dialogue.

Plus: The reason why Clark Ashton Smith’s work is hard to find.

Plus: New and forthcoming releases, Umberto Eco and an excellent clockwork blog.

A talk with Michael Haag, author of ‘The Templars: The History and the Myth.’ Why did they disappear? Blame it on the king of France, Haag says.

This entertaining biography takes the long view of Led Zeppelin.

A new edition of ‘Frankenstein’ shows the contributions of her husband, Percy. Plus: In praise of Dan Brown’s ‘The Lost Symbol’; why is the Bilderberg Group so secret?

They could be divine or neural -- John Geiger’s ‘The Third Man Factor’ and Rami Shapiro’s ‘The Angelic Way’ consider the possibilities.

How much evidence do you need? Is the truth out there? New books consider our tireless fascination with unsolved mysteries.

The creator of Elric, Jerry Cornelius and so much more reflects on his work, his career and what it was like to be a sci-fi writer in the Golden Days of the 1960s.

Owen Davies’ ‘Grimoires: A History of Magic Books’ and a new edition of ‘The Hammer of Witches.’

Before Conan, there was Kane, a Puritan swordsman on a restless search for justice.

People have always been fascinated with the occult, as Matt Baglio’s “The Rite” and Alec Ryrie’s “The Sorcerer’s Tale” demonstrate.

“The Man in the Picture” and “The Gable Window” present supernatural and cosmic treachery lurking in paintings and windows.

Books by Kate Summerscale, the Steampunks, Christopher Priest and more

In ‘Finding Merlin: The Truth Behind the Legend of the Great Arthurian Mage,’ Adam Ardrey condemns long-ago chroniclers for their motives but is like a sleuth in tracking ancient details.

Spoiler alert: Plot surprises in Christopher Priest’s novel “Inverted World” are discussed in the following column.

In ‘Steampunk,’ an anthology edited by Ann and Jeff VanderMeer, there are unavoidable echoes of Classical myth.

There’s a Minotaur at the center of “The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher,” an intriguing account of a murder in mid-19th century England.

The inclusion of unorthodox symbolism in Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel ceiling

In Lauren Groff’s “The Monsters of Templeton,” there’s a creature in the lake, a ghost and a family secret hidden through the ages.
ALSO: Kevin Brockmeier’s “The View from the Seventh Layer”

There’s a golem at the center of Jonathan Barnes’ novel “The Somnambulist.”
Plus: Books on theories of the afterlife and the Nazi occult.

The quest for an ancient manuscript of animals, real and fantastic.

Contemplating the angel in us all.

Darkmans A Novel Nicola Barker Harper Perennial: 838 pp., $16.95 paper ONE reason why Nicola Barker’s novel “Darkmans” made the Man Booker short list this year but didn’t win was that it isn’t reader-friendly enough.

A busy year for Tolkien fans.

Just because you can’t see them doesn’t mean they’re not there.