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Psychomech #3
Psychamok
Brian Lumley is an international horror phenomenon, with books published in thirteen countries, including China, the Czech Republic, Germany, Japan, Russia, and Spain. More than two million books have been sold in his Necroscope series alone, but that barely taps the potential of this wildly imaginative author. Lumley's horror often crosses the dividing lines between fantasy and horror or between science fiction and horror. The Psychomech trilogy, of which Psychamok is the conclusion, is a perfect blend of science fiction, adventure, and horror, combining in a fast-paced whirlwind of a story that leaves the reader doubting the evidence of his or her own senses.
Richard Garrison was once a corporal in the British Military Police, until a terrorist's bomb destroyed his eyesight and his career. Repaying Garrison for saving his wife and child from the blast, millionaire industrialist Thomas Schroeder introduced him to the Psychomech, an amazing machine that could either gift its users with astonishing mental powers-or destroy them utterly.
Having successfully harnessed the Psychomech, Garrison discovered the Psychosphere, a strange plane of existence where mental abilities were all. Thought became intent, word became deed, and Garrison became like unto a god.
Two decades later, Garrison is utilizing his unique powers to explore the universe. On Earth, his son, Richard Stone, is happily in love, until his beloved falls victim to "The Gibbering," a plague of madness that destroys men and women by destroying their minds. There is no obvious cause. There is no cure. There are no survivors.
When Richard Stone himself is infected by the Gibbering, the mental powers he inherited from his father enable him to defeat the madness, at least for a while. Then, to his horror, Stone discovers that the Psychomech has run amok and that the Gibbering is the result! Even though the insanity it creates batters his struggling mind, Stone realizes he is the only man with the knowledge and power capable of destroying the berserker mind-machine.
The son of Garrison is at war with Psychomech. Who will survive the final
battle, man or machine?
At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Richard Garrison was once a corporal in the British Military Police, until a terrorist's bomb destroyed his eyesight and his career. Repaying Garrison for saving his wife and child from the blast, millionaire industrialist Thomas Schroeder introduced him to the Psychomech, an amazing machine that could either gift its users with astonishing mental powers-or destroy them utterly.
Having successfully harnessed the Psychomech, Garrison discovered the Psychosphere, a strange plane of existence where mental abilities were all. Thought became intent, word became deed, and Garrison became like unto a god.
Two decades later, Garrison is utilizing his unique powers to explore the universe. On Earth, his son, Richard Stone, is happily in love, until his beloved falls victim to "The Gibbering," a plague of madness that destroys men and women by destroying their minds. There is no obvious cause. There is no cure. There are no survivors.
When Richard Stone himself is infected by the Gibbering, the mental powers he inherited from his father enable him to defeat the madness, at least for a while. Then, to his horror, Stone discovers that the Psychomech has run amok and that the Gibbering is the result! Even though the insanity it creates batters his struggling mind, Stone realizes he is the only man with the knowledge and power capable of destroying the berserker mind-machine.
The son of Garrison is at war with Psychomech. Who will survive the final
battle, man or machine?
At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
512 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1985
14 people are currently reading
479 people want to read
About the author
Brian Lumley
449 books1,366 followersBrian Lumley was born near Newcastle. In 22 years as a Military Policeman he served in many of the Cold War hotspots, including Berlin, as well as Cyprus in partition days. He reached the rank of Sergeant-Major before retiring to Devon to write full-time, and his work was first published in 1970. The vampire series, 'Necroscope', has been translated into ten languages and sold over a million copies worldwide.
He was awarded the World Fantasy Life Achievement Award in 2010.
He was awarded the World Fantasy Life Achievement Award in 2010.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
September 23, 2024
Let me start with my negatives. The book is too long, the story never fully comes together fully cohesively, and the ending was a little lackluster. The story was interesting and the action was well done. To me, this was perhaps the weakest of the trilogy but it was still an entertaining and easy read.
3.5/5
3.5/5
June 16, 2024
Finished book 3 of the psychomech trilogy on audible today. The opening threw me off a bit but once it got going I found it as much fun as the previous two
Interesting to note that this was written before the Necroscope saga, in that there are some very familiar themes from that series in an early form. Metempsychosis, paternity, amnesia, hypnosis, prophetic dreams & the elevation of man into something almost god like
The only thing missing really was the villain of the second book, who although implicitly present throughout doesn’t have that really ominous menace that the Wamphiri had in the Necroscope books
Still, a very enjoyable adventure with some clever twists & nice set pieces
Interesting to note that this was written before the Necroscope saga, in that there are some very familiar themes from that series in an early form. Metempsychosis, paternity, amnesia, hypnosis, prophetic dreams & the elevation of man into something almost god like
The only thing missing really was the villain of the second book, who although implicitly present throughout doesn’t have that really ominous menace that the Wamphiri had in the Necroscope books
Still, a very enjoyable adventure with some clever twists & nice set pieces
November 2, 2011
Pschamok
By Brian Lumley.
I read the book Pyschamok the third book in the Psychomech trilogy. This book opens in a utopic world, free of war, pollution and work. However there is a serpent in paradise. A horrible mind plague known as the Gibbering is sweeping the world at a tremendous and rapidly growing rate. Victims of the Gibbering hallucinate, rave, grow violent, and die within twelve months of their first "attack". The protagonist of the story is Richard Stone, the adopted son of a very wealthy business man, and an early Gibberer. Unknown to him, his actual father is Richard Garrison, the protagonist of the first two books. The Antagonist is J. C. Craig, a man that believes that he is god's second prophet (thanks to the villain from the last book.) Craig builds an "Oracle", the second psychomech, and plans to let the Gibbering be his deluge into a new world. Psychomech can cure the Gibbering, or at least hold it at bay, so he and his "Disciples" can be kept save from the so called "Mind Plauge". This story chronicles Richard's quest for answers in a world plunged into Dementia, as well as J. C.'s Decent into sane Madness.
As a fan of the Pyscomech series, This book brought everything together for me. It was fun to read, action packed and smartly written. The author of this book, Brian Lumley, is a geniusOf horror writing. He is undeniably insane, which makes for a fun story. Psychamok is one of those books thats a great story on it's own, but great as part of the series as a whole.
I would give this book a 5 out of 5. It is great if you like the genre (which I do). However, if you aren't a horror fan, then this book is NOT for you. The story is easy to follow (if you've read the other two books in the series), but could be hard for those with vocabulary issues. The book MUST be read after reading the first two, otherwise the storyline that your supposed to know doesn't make sense.
By Brian Lumley.
I read the book Pyschamok the third book in the Psychomech trilogy. This book opens in a utopic world, free of war, pollution and work. However there is a serpent in paradise. A horrible mind plague known as the Gibbering is sweeping the world at a tremendous and rapidly growing rate. Victims of the Gibbering hallucinate, rave, grow violent, and die within twelve months of their first "attack". The protagonist of the story is Richard Stone, the adopted son of a very wealthy business man, and an early Gibberer. Unknown to him, his actual father is Richard Garrison, the protagonist of the first two books. The Antagonist is J. C. Craig, a man that believes that he is god's second prophet (thanks to the villain from the last book.) Craig builds an "Oracle", the second psychomech, and plans to let the Gibbering be his deluge into a new world. Psychomech can cure the Gibbering, or at least hold it at bay, so he and his "Disciples" can be kept save from the so called "Mind Plauge". This story chronicles Richard's quest for answers in a world plunged into Dementia, as well as J. C.'s Decent into sane Madness.
As a fan of the Pyscomech series, This book brought everything together for me. It was fun to read, action packed and smartly written. The author of this book, Brian Lumley, is a geniusOf horror writing. He is undeniably insane, which makes for a fun story. Psychamok is one of those books thats a great story on it's own, but great as part of the series as a whole.
I would give this book a 5 out of 5. It is great if you like the genre (which I do). However, if you aren't a horror fan, then this book is NOT for you. The story is easy to follow (if you've read the other two books in the series), but could be hard for those with vocabulary issues. The book MUST be read after reading the first two, otherwise the storyline that your supposed to know doesn't make sense.
March 29, 2015
I would have given this book a much higher rating but it was so hard to get into. The beginning is confusing and the build up was too slow to hold my attention. As a result it took me three times as long to wade through it. By the time it got exciting enough to follow, it was over. I picked up two of this author's books at the library but this one has left such a bad impression I'm uncertain if I will attempt the second book. Highly disappointed.
February 10, 2016
I liked this story. Unfortunately, everything I read by Brian Lumley I compare to the Harry Keogh stories, and nothing matches them. I did think this entire story was very interesting. Very sci-fi and "out there." I like that. I just haven't found any characters that I like as much as Harry except for maybe Suzy, the Doberman bitch. I loved her.
March 13, 2026
Book 1: ★★★★ — 4/5
Book 2: ★★★★★ — 4.75/5
Book 3: ★★★★★ — 4.75/5
The **Psychomech trilogy** by Brian Lumley starts wild and somehow manages to grow even more feral as it goes. By the time you reach **Psychamok**, the third installment after **Psychomech** and **Psychosphere**, the whole thing feels like a supernatural engine running far past the red line. The tone shifts from strange psychic thriller to something darker, bloodier, and gleefully unrestrained. For readers who already know Lumley from **Necroscope** or the adventures of **Titus Crow**, this trilogy feels like watching him take the lid off the machinery and push every dial higher. The familiar ingredients are there. Psychic powers. Ancient horrors. Brutal confrontations between human will and forces that should probably remain undisturbed. But here the pacing is faster, the violence sharper, and the ideas about power and identity more reckless.
The first book, *Psychomech*, begins almost like a twisted science fiction experiment. A brutal crime boss named Richard Garrison survives death through an occult machine designed to transfer consciousness. What follows is a story about psychic evolution, body theft, and the terrifying idea that the human mind can be turned into a weapon. The premise alone gives Lumley room to unleash the kind of psychic warfare he clearly enjoys writing. Then *Psychosphere* expands the scale. What initially feels like a contained story about one monstrous personality becomes something bigger and stranger. Dimensions open up. Psychic landscapes become literal places. Characters who thought they understood their own abilities realize they’ve barely scratched the surface.
By the time you reach *Psychamok*, Lumley has stopped pretending this is anything other than a full-on supernatural brawl across realities. The violence escalates. The stakes grow cosmic. Psychic entities collide like heavyweight fighters in a ring that spans worlds. It becomes a kind of psychic apocalypse wrapped in pulp energy. What makes the trilogy so entertaining is Lumley’s unapologetic enthusiasm for excess. He writes with the confidence of someone who knows readers showed up for a spectacle and intends to deliver one. Fights are vicious. Powers are dramatic. Villains are gloriously awful. There’s a sense that the story is constantly leaning forward, daring itself to become more outrageous.
Readers who loved **Necroscope** will recognize that same flavor. Psychic abilities are not delicate or mysterious here. They’re explosive. Minds clash like artillery. Characters rip into one another with telepathic force the way action heroes might use machine guns. At the same time, Lumley keeps the narrative surprisingly readable. None of these books are particularly dense. They move quickly, with the rhythm of an author who understands momentum. That’s why they stick so vividly in memory. They’re fast reads that somehow feel larger than their page count because the imagery and the sheer intensity linger. But the trilogy absolutely has a specific taste, and not everyone will enjoy it.
Readers who prefer subtle horror or restrained fantasy may bounce off it pretty quickly. Lumley does not whisper his scares. He throws them at you with both hands. The violence is graphic. The villains can be grotesque in both personality and action. The psychic battles sometimes feel deliberately over the top. If someone prefers the slow psychological dread of authors like Shirley Jackson or the quiet cosmic unease of Lovecraft’s more atmospheric stories, this series might feel too loud, too pulp, too gleefully savage. And yet for the right audience, that exact quality becomes the appeal. If you enjoy horror that leans into spectacle, if you like supernatural stories where powers escalate into reality-warping chaos, if you want a trilogy that reads like a psychic demolition derby, then this one hits a sweet spot. Lumley understands how to blend horror, fantasy, and action without slowing down to apologize for any of it.
There’s also a particular nostalgia many readers feel for it. The books carry that slightly rebellious energy of discovering something a little too intense when you’re younger. The kind of stories that felt like secret contraband on a teenage bookshelf. You read them fast, half thrilled and half shocked at how far the author is willing to push things. That’s why the memory of them tends to stick. They’re not polite books. They’re not restrained. They’re loud, vicious, imaginative, and unapologetically fun. For readers already tuned to Lumley’s frequency, the **Psychomech trilogy** feels like watching him grab the steering wheel of psychic horror and decide that speed limits are merely decorative.
Book 2: ★★★★★ — 4.75/5
Book 3: ★★★★★ — 4.75/5
The **Psychomech trilogy** by Brian Lumley starts wild and somehow manages to grow even more feral as it goes. By the time you reach **Psychamok**, the third installment after **Psychomech** and **Psychosphere**, the whole thing feels like a supernatural engine running far past the red line. The tone shifts from strange psychic thriller to something darker, bloodier, and gleefully unrestrained. For readers who already know Lumley from **Necroscope** or the adventures of **Titus Crow**, this trilogy feels like watching him take the lid off the machinery and push every dial higher. The familiar ingredients are there. Psychic powers. Ancient horrors. Brutal confrontations between human will and forces that should probably remain undisturbed. But here the pacing is faster, the violence sharper, and the ideas about power and identity more reckless.
The first book, *Psychomech*, begins almost like a twisted science fiction experiment. A brutal crime boss named Richard Garrison survives death through an occult machine designed to transfer consciousness. What follows is a story about psychic evolution, body theft, and the terrifying idea that the human mind can be turned into a weapon. The premise alone gives Lumley room to unleash the kind of psychic warfare he clearly enjoys writing. Then *Psychosphere* expands the scale. What initially feels like a contained story about one monstrous personality becomes something bigger and stranger. Dimensions open up. Psychic landscapes become literal places. Characters who thought they understood their own abilities realize they’ve barely scratched the surface.
By the time you reach *Psychamok*, Lumley has stopped pretending this is anything other than a full-on supernatural brawl across realities. The violence escalates. The stakes grow cosmic. Psychic entities collide like heavyweight fighters in a ring that spans worlds. It becomes a kind of psychic apocalypse wrapped in pulp energy. What makes the trilogy so entertaining is Lumley’s unapologetic enthusiasm for excess. He writes with the confidence of someone who knows readers showed up for a spectacle and intends to deliver one. Fights are vicious. Powers are dramatic. Villains are gloriously awful. There’s a sense that the story is constantly leaning forward, daring itself to become more outrageous.
Readers who loved **Necroscope** will recognize that same flavor. Psychic abilities are not delicate or mysterious here. They’re explosive. Minds clash like artillery. Characters rip into one another with telepathic force the way action heroes might use machine guns. At the same time, Lumley keeps the narrative surprisingly readable. None of these books are particularly dense. They move quickly, with the rhythm of an author who understands momentum. That’s why they stick so vividly in memory. They’re fast reads that somehow feel larger than their page count because the imagery and the sheer intensity linger. But the trilogy absolutely has a specific taste, and not everyone will enjoy it.
Readers who prefer subtle horror or restrained fantasy may bounce off it pretty quickly. Lumley does not whisper his scares. He throws them at you with both hands. The violence is graphic. The villains can be grotesque in both personality and action. The psychic battles sometimes feel deliberately over the top. If someone prefers the slow psychological dread of authors like Shirley Jackson or the quiet cosmic unease of Lovecraft’s more atmospheric stories, this series might feel too loud, too pulp, too gleefully savage. And yet for the right audience, that exact quality becomes the appeal. If you enjoy horror that leans into spectacle, if you like supernatural stories where powers escalate into reality-warping chaos, if you want a trilogy that reads like a psychic demolition derby, then this one hits a sweet spot. Lumley understands how to blend horror, fantasy, and action without slowing down to apologize for any of it.
There’s also a particular nostalgia many readers feel for it. The books carry that slightly rebellious energy of discovering something a little too intense when you’re younger. The kind of stories that felt like secret contraband on a teenage bookshelf. You read them fast, half thrilled and half shocked at how far the author is willing to push things. That’s why the memory of them tends to stick. They’re not polite books. They’re not restrained. They’re loud, vicious, imaginative, and unapologetically fun. For readers already tuned to Lumley’s frequency, the **Psychomech trilogy** feels like watching him grab the steering wheel of psychic horror and decide that speed limits are merely decorative.
September 25, 2021
While the characters were occasionally a bit flat and rushed, this is my favorite of the three books. There is a bit cringey and bigoted language in there that took me out of the story for a bit (as with the first two books), but this was, IMO, a stronger story.
September 1, 2022
This one started a little slow, but ended up being probably the most engaging of the series.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews