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Wagner, the Wehr-Wolf
Reynolds, a contemporary of Dickens and Thackeray, was a prolific writer of popular fiction who has been called the most popular writer of his times. Set in Florence in the early 1500s, Wagner, the Wehr-Wolf tells the story of how Fernand Wagner becomes a werewolf after making a pact with the devil. This gothic novel is full of family secrets, mysterious manuscripts, and supernatural encounters. The tale was originally serialised between November 1846 and July 1847.
488 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1846
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1195 people want to read
About the author
George W.M. Reynolds
358 books23 followersGeorge William MacArthur Reynolds was a journalist and, as author of "penny dreadful" serials, one of the most popular authors of Victorian England. He was also a leading proponent of the working-class Chartist movement for expanded suffrage and other populist Parliamentary reforms.
During his lifetime, Reynolds greatly outsold Dickens and Thackery, and on his death, he was described by The Bookseller as 'the most popular writer of our times'.
During his lifetime, Reynolds greatly outsold Dickens and Thackery, and on his death, he was described by The Bookseller as 'the most popular writer of our times'.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 57 reviews
August 18, 2024
Not A Werewolf Story!
Born in 1814, in Sandwich, Kent, George William MacArthur Reynolds was a British fiction writer and journalist. His gothic novel, Wagner, the Were-Wolf, describes how Wagner became a werewolf after making a pact with the devil.
Although I read this book because I love reading about werewolves, there isn’t much about werewolves in this book.
Yes, there are a few episodes in which Wagner transforms into a werewolf and spend all night running through the woods or mountains, but that’s all you get.
No. This book is more than a book on werewolves, this book is about religion, culture and the rights of women.
I don’t intend to write an essay, but I must mention that Reynolds spews his views on the superiority of Christianity versus Judaism and Islam throughout his novel.
Women in this book are considered weak or evil. And are sometimes the causes of the violence and mistreatment of other women. As can be expected for a novel written during Victorian England.
And, as can also be expected, Reynolds doesn’t shy away from bragging about the superiority of Italian versus Turkish culture. Despite the many influences the Ottoman Empire left on Italian oral and written culture.
Being disappointed in the carriage of the werewolf did not take away my pleasure of the book. I am a big lover of history, so I got a familiarity with Victorian England’s attitude with non-Christian religions, non-western cultures and the predicament of women. So, for historical reasons, the book gets four stars.
Four stars. ✨✨✨✨
Born in 1814, in Sandwich, Kent, George William MacArthur Reynolds was a British fiction writer and journalist. His gothic novel, Wagner, the Were-Wolf, describes how Wagner became a werewolf after making a pact with the devil.
Although I read this book because I love reading about werewolves, there isn’t much about werewolves in this book.
Yes, there are a few episodes in which Wagner transforms into a werewolf and spend all night running through the woods or mountains, but that’s all you get.
No. This book is more than a book on werewolves, this book is about religion, culture and the rights of women.
I don’t intend to write an essay, but I must mention that Reynolds spews his views on the superiority of Christianity versus Judaism and Islam throughout his novel.
Women in this book are considered weak or evil. And are sometimes the causes of the violence and mistreatment of other women. As can be expected for a novel written during Victorian England.
And, as can also be expected, Reynolds doesn’t shy away from bragging about the superiority of Italian versus Turkish culture. Despite the many influences the Ottoman Empire left on Italian oral and written culture.
Being disappointed in the carriage of the werewolf did not take away my pleasure of the book. I am a big lover of history, so I got a familiarity with Victorian England’s attitude with non-Christian religions, non-western cultures and the predicament of women. So, for historical reasons, the book gets four stars.
Four stars. ✨✨✨✨
February 18, 2018
Only one of the following 19 things does NOT happen in WAGNER, THE WEHR-WOLF - can you guess which one?
1. A Christian Italian in Turkey renounces his faith and becomes a Muslim to win the heart of a beautiful woman!
2. A werewolf battles a giant python!
3. Skeletons in a closet - LITERAL skeletons!
4. The Devil provides visions of far-away places with the use of his magic telescope!
5. A sinister Carmelite Convent hides a secret dungeon for enforced penitents!
6. An illness is healed with a Rosicrucian potion!
7. Someone dies from overly strong emotions!
8. Satan, Faust, Christian Rosenkreuz (here Rosenkrux) and an Angel all put in appearances!
9. A major character is suddenly killed by an unexpected sword through the heart!
10. Some characters in the narrative actively denounce the prevalent Antiemitism of the time!
11. The Inquisition (not unexpectedly) is denounced as unholy and un-Christian!
12. A hoard of bandits are massacred in their underground lair!
13. A convent is invaded and burns/collapses!
14. Sailors become drunk during a storm and then...SHIPWRECK (on The Isle Of Snakes)!
15. A gossipy barber regales his customer with the gory details of a murder and decapitation while giving a shave and haircut!
16. An innocent Jew is accused of blood-libel!
17. A married woman's presumed illicit lover is hacked into pieces before her eyes!
18. The reading of a will includes directions for handling the mysterious contents of a locked room which hides a great secret!
19. A Countess secretly meets with her lover in her chambers, as her husband the Count listens at the door AND a notorious bandit-chief hides behind a tapestry!
Give up? The answer - it was a trick! ALL of these things happen in WAGNER, THE WEHR-WOLF, a full-blooded, sprawling, rollicking, ludicrous Gothic novel - and more besides! Actually, my little preceding joke was originally going to have a different trick answer: "20. A werewolf continually murders and preys on residents of Florence Italy in gruesome detail and at length" - and THAT would have been the ringer because, despite the title and regardless of being chock-a-block with plot events, the only thing missing from this books is much "werewolf action" - in fact, despite his curse (placed by Faust himself on poor Fernand Wagner) that makes him transform at sunset on the last day of every month until sunrise the next morning, Wagner only changes into a werewolf 3 separate times in these 500+ pages (but more on that anon).
This is a Gothic novel in its latter form - predecessor of blood and thunders, sensation novel, dime novels, pulp novels and the soap opera (putting that last piece together actually made me understand why 60s TV soap DARK SHADOWS obviously took the direction it did and introduced a vampire early on) - in other words, endless clunky purple prose, broad characters uncontrollably driven by their desires (revenge, love, fame, sadism, etc.), plots that can turn in almost any direction, lashings of bloodthirsty action, gruesome violence and Orientalist intrigue. If you don't dig Gothics you won't dig this and you shouldn't expect much werewolf detail, but if you DO, then I can say that this is a solid example of the form with lots to recommend it. But you should expect what you're getting into....
There are all kinds of intriguing details - our main characters are of dubious morality at times, and even the "criminals" are occasionally allowed to have honor and pursue noble ends. One main female character is a deaf/mute (at least to start) and finding that portrayal here was surprising. The book is on the side of Christianity but Jews and Muslims are NOT presented as unknowable others, and the Catholic Church comes in for lots of drubbings with regards to convents and The Inquisition, while the text specifically calls out the antisemitism of the times. I was also surprised to discover just how "proto-meta" the Gothic form was, as the omniscient narration often addresses the reader ("in the preceding chapter..." "who we will now follow, dear reader, as they exit the room..." "But we shall not dwell upon this portion of our tale; for the reader is about to pass to scenes of so thrilling a nature, that all he has yet read in the preceding chapters are as nothing to the events which will occupy those that are to follow..."). There are odd turns - the second book's sudden shifting of focus onto a secondary character's brother over in Constantinople is odd, and the plot dispensation of a main character near the very climax is shockingly abrupt and underwritten.
This book provided a nice palate cleanser from all the short fiction I read, and I discovered it was best digested 2 chapters at a time, which was about all of the discursive, rococo writing style I could take in one sitting. Characters are constantly taking heartfelt oaths, overhearing important conversations that further the plot (in fact, a misunderstood overheard conversation is the lynch-pin the mystery turns on!), hiding secrets or passions or grudges, and, generally, coincidence runs rampant (who would have thought the bandit gang's underground lair and the dungeon of the pleasure-denying nuns were separated by only a wall!?!).
So, about that "Wehr-Wolf" aspect - possibly the last thing the book is actually focused on is Wagner's lycanthropic curse. Three different times he transforms, and what this generally means is that from sunset to sunrise he's rushing around the countryside attacking people, knocking over coffins in funeral processions, trampling lovers at trysting spots, sending people flying into rivers where they drown, etc. He does kill people, directly and indirectly, but the main impression one gets of the werewolf here is of something like an elemental spirit that can barely ever slow down, running ever running and sowing random violence and woe until it drops exhausted at sunrise. Having said that, the second chapter in which Wagner transforms is surely the highlight of this aspect, as he's being put on trial (for murder he didn't commit, no less!) at the time!
A fun read for a Gothic novel!
1. A Christian Italian in Turkey renounces his faith and becomes a Muslim to win the heart of a beautiful woman!
2. A werewolf battles a giant python!
3. Skeletons in a closet - LITERAL skeletons!
4. The Devil provides visions of far-away places with the use of his magic telescope!
5. A sinister Carmelite Convent hides a secret dungeon for enforced penitents!
6. An illness is healed with a Rosicrucian potion!
7. Someone dies from overly strong emotions!
8. Satan, Faust, Christian Rosenkreuz (here Rosenkrux) and an Angel all put in appearances!
9. A major character is suddenly killed by an unexpected sword through the heart!
10. Some characters in the narrative actively denounce the prevalent Antiemitism of the time!
11. The Inquisition (not unexpectedly) is denounced as unholy and un-Christian!
12. A hoard of bandits are massacred in their underground lair!
13. A convent is invaded and burns/collapses!
14. Sailors become drunk during a storm and then...SHIPWRECK (on The Isle Of Snakes)!
15. A gossipy barber regales his customer with the gory details of a murder and decapitation while giving a shave and haircut!
16. An innocent Jew is accused of blood-libel!
17. A married woman's presumed illicit lover is hacked into pieces before her eyes!
18. The reading of a will includes directions for handling the mysterious contents of a locked room which hides a great secret!
19. A Countess secretly meets with her lover in her chambers, as her husband the Count listens at the door AND a notorious bandit-chief hides behind a tapestry!
Give up? The answer - it was a trick! ALL of these things happen in WAGNER, THE WEHR-WOLF, a full-blooded, sprawling, rollicking, ludicrous Gothic novel - and more besides! Actually, my little preceding joke was originally going to have a different trick answer: "20. A werewolf continually murders and preys on residents of Florence Italy in gruesome detail and at length" - and THAT would have been the ringer because, despite the title and regardless of being chock-a-block with plot events, the only thing missing from this books is much "werewolf action" - in fact, despite his curse (placed by Faust himself on poor Fernand Wagner) that makes him transform at sunset on the last day of every month until sunrise the next morning, Wagner only changes into a werewolf 3 separate times in these 500+ pages (but more on that anon).
This is a Gothic novel in its latter form - predecessor of blood and thunders, sensation novel, dime novels, pulp novels and the soap opera (putting that last piece together actually made me understand why 60s TV soap DARK SHADOWS obviously took the direction it did and introduced a vampire early on) - in other words, endless clunky purple prose, broad characters uncontrollably driven by their desires (revenge, love, fame, sadism, etc.), plots that can turn in almost any direction, lashings of bloodthirsty action, gruesome violence and Orientalist intrigue. If you don't dig Gothics you won't dig this and you shouldn't expect much werewolf detail, but if you DO, then I can say that this is a solid example of the form with lots to recommend it. But you should expect what you're getting into....
There are all kinds of intriguing details - our main characters are of dubious morality at times, and even the "criminals" are occasionally allowed to have honor and pursue noble ends. One main female character is a deaf/mute (at least to start) and finding that portrayal here was surprising. The book is on the side of Christianity but Jews and Muslims are NOT presented as unknowable others, and the Catholic Church comes in for lots of drubbings with regards to convents and The Inquisition, while the text specifically calls out the antisemitism of the times. I was also surprised to discover just how "proto-meta" the Gothic form was, as the omniscient narration often addresses the reader ("in the preceding chapter..." "who we will now follow, dear reader, as they exit the room..." "But we shall not dwell upon this portion of our tale; for the reader is about to pass to scenes of so thrilling a nature, that all he has yet read in the preceding chapters are as nothing to the events which will occupy those that are to follow..."). There are odd turns - the second book's sudden shifting of focus onto a secondary character's brother over in Constantinople is odd, and the plot dispensation of a main character near the very climax is shockingly abrupt and underwritten.
This book provided a nice palate cleanser from all the short fiction I read, and I discovered it was best digested 2 chapters at a time, which was about all of the discursive, rococo writing style I could take in one sitting. Characters are constantly taking heartfelt oaths, overhearing important conversations that further the plot (in fact, a misunderstood overheard conversation is the lynch-pin the mystery turns on!), hiding secrets or passions or grudges, and, generally, coincidence runs rampant (who would have thought the bandit gang's underground lair and the dungeon of the pleasure-denying nuns were separated by only a wall!?!).
So, about that "Wehr-Wolf" aspect - possibly the last thing the book is actually focused on is Wagner's lycanthropic curse. Three different times he transforms, and what this generally means is that from sunset to sunrise he's rushing around the countryside attacking people, knocking over coffins in funeral processions, trampling lovers at trysting spots, sending people flying into rivers where they drown, etc. He does kill people, directly and indirectly, but the main impression one gets of the werewolf here is of something like an elemental spirit that can barely ever slow down, running ever running and sowing random violence and woe until it drops exhausted at sunrise. Having said that, the second chapter in which Wagner transforms is surely the highlight of this aspect, as he's being put on trial (for murder he didn't commit, no less!) at the time!
A fun read for a Gothic novel!
April 5, 2013
I was expecting this to be another Penny Dreadful like Varney the Vampire. But it was so much more. I think this is the best Gothic novel that I have ever read. It is just SO wonderful. The main characters are all delightful shades of gray and all do some rather bad things but still remain the heros of the story. It has wonderful strong women characters who have agency, are clever and very independent spirits. One of the best things about this book was how free of prejudice the author was. The portrayal of a Jewish money lender was simply superb. Not only was he humanised but the anti-semitism in the culture of the time was severly slammed.
The story is a wonderful supernatural tale. There are werewolfs, Rosicrucians, an inquisition, cross-dressing, demons, the devil, evil nuns, bandits all the things you'd want to see in a gothic novel. But the heroines aren't helpless but are causing as much trouble as their male counterparts. There are many different branches to the story but it remains consistent throughout and all the interweaving tales inter-mingle in a way that makes sense and leads to a very satisfying conclusion. The end of the story revealing the mystery at the begining.
I really enjoyed the writing style. It was lovely Victorian prose. Reynolds out sold Dickens in the 19th century and I can really see why. I'm definitely going to read what else I can find. Next up will be his Faust which I'm really looking forward to.
The story is a wonderful supernatural tale. There are werewolfs, Rosicrucians, an inquisition, cross-dressing, demons, the devil, evil nuns, bandits all the things you'd want to see in a gothic novel. But the heroines aren't helpless but are causing as much trouble as their male counterparts. There are many different branches to the story but it remains consistent throughout and all the interweaving tales inter-mingle in a way that makes sense and leads to a very satisfying conclusion. The end of the story revealing the mystery at the begining.
I really enjoyed the writing style. It was lovely Victorian prose. Reynolds out sold Dickens in the 19th century and I can really see why. I'm definitely going to read what else I can find. Next up will be his Faust which I'm really looking forward to.
October 27, 2014
This is about a werewolf named Jacob with incredible abs who is fighting a sparkly vampire named Edward over a girl named Bella—
That's actually not true.
The back cover says this is "one of the very earliest treatments of the Werewolf theme in English literature", but I'm not sure if that's entirely accurate. I have nothing to back that up, but we're going with my gut here, though I am feeling contrary so.
The book started out very well, lots of good ol' family fun with lots of excitement and inoffensive melodrama. We meet Wagner, an old dude who has lost his granddaughter, and he's all depressed and stuff. He then meets Faust whose character, I think, has been inspiration for a few other things. I haven't read Goethe or any of the other main Faust treatments, so while I knew the basic story, I have no experience with any of the readings. I turned to my smart Goodreads friends who all confirmed pretty much what I already knew, so I don't feel like I missed out anything here by not having any Faust experience. In between all of that stuff there are some virgins and some other things, but again, it wasn't nearly as exciting throughout as it had began.
After about 50-100 pages or so, the fun of the melodrama and sensationalism wore off for me. I was getting tired of all the heaving bosoms and the histrionics motivating every single character. If a sensational Gothic novel is what you want, you will certainly get that here, but I found the stuff that were really good about this book were few and far between after a while. Wagner turns into a werewolf like a small handful of times, so I found myself wondering why he was even in the title of the book.
But I do appreciate Reynold's contribution to the horror genre and, specifically, werewolves in literature since they're not as big a thing (yet) as vampires. Werewolves seem to be nice background characters, not really holding their own very often, and I'm sure it's just a matter of time before marketing really grasps onto that and some sparkly new version of them hit the shelves/screens.
That's actually not true.
The back cover says this is "one of the very earliest treatments of the Werewolf theme in English literature", but I'm not sure if that's entirely accurate. I have nothing to back that up, but we're going with my gut here, though I am feeling contrary so.
The book started out very well, lots of good ol' family fun with lots of excitement and inoffensive melodrama. We meet Wagner, an old dude who has lost his granddaughter, and he's all depressed and stuff. He then meets Faust whose character, I think, has been inspiration for a few other things. I haven't read Goethe or any of the other main Faust treatments, so while I knew the basic story, I have no experience with any of the readings. I turned to my smart Goodreads friends who all confirmed pretty much what I already knew, so I don't feel like I missed out anything here by not having any Faust experience. In between all of that stuff there are some virgins and some other things, but again, it wasn't nearly as exciting throughout as it had began.
After about 50-100 pages or so, the fun of the melodrama and sensationalism wore off for me. I was getting tired of all the heaving bosoms and the histrionics motivating every single character. If a sensational Gothic novel is what you want, you will certainly get that here, but I found the stuff that were really good about this book were few and far between after a while. Wagner turns into a werewolf like a small handful of times, so I found myself wondering why he was even in the title of the book.
But I do appreciate Reynold's contribution to the horror genre and, specifically, werewolves in literature since they're not as big a thing (yet) as vampires. Werewolves seem to be nice background characters, not really holding their own very often, and I'm sure it's just a matter of time before marketing really grasps onto that and some sparkly new version of them hit the shelves/screens.
December 2, 2017
2,5
Still a better love story than Twilight
Don't expect a literary masterpiece, Wilkie Collins at his worst day is better writer than Reynolds. However the book is still readable, and I would even reccomend it: if one is looking for a long, trashy novel.
I was pleasantly surprised how progressive the author was for his day when it comes to religion, women rights and calling out antisemitism.
As for this being one of the first werewolf stories in English, I found it very interesting that Wagner
Favourite characters Nisida and Allesandro/Ibrahim. These two made compelling heroes/villains.
Still a better love story than Twilight
Don't expect a literary masterpiece, Wilkie Collins at his worst day is better writer than Reynolds. However the book is still readable, and I would even reccomend it: if one is looking for a long, trashy novel.
I was pleasantly surprised how progressive the author was for his day when it comes to religion, women rights and calling out antisemitism.
As for this being one of the first werewolf stories in English, I found it very interesting that Wagner
Favourite characters Nisida and Allesandro/Ibrahim. These two made compelling heroes/villains.
May 21, 2019
A book full of bandits, long-kept secrets, love affairs, daring rescues by swash buckling heroes, and a little bit about a wehr-wolf.
January 29, 2020
Recensione originale: https://sonnenbarke.wordpress.com/202...
Ormai caduto nel dimenticatoio, ai suoi tempi George W.M. Reynolds era più famoso di Charles Dickens e William Makepeace Thackeray. Tanto che alla sua morte, nel suo necrologio la rivista The Bookseller lo definì «lo scrittore più popolare dei nostri tempi». Noto soprattutto per il romanzo in più volumi The Mysteries of London , scritto sulla falsariga de I misteri di Parigi di Eugène Sue, ha scritto moltissimi altri romanzi, che trovate elencati qui e, con un po' di pazienza e di lavoro di ricerca, potete scovarne le versioni gratuite in vari siti web. I suoi romanzi, incluso quello qui commentato, sono stati pubblicati a puntate e vanno ascritti al famigerato genere dei penny dreadful, pensato per le masse e che ha contribuito alla diffusione del romanzo gotico. Se siete interessati ad approfondire il mondo dei penny dreadful, vi consiglio un sito estremamente completo, Price One Penny, che riporta anche un elenco esaustivo delle varie pubblicazioni ascrivibili a questo genere. G.K. Chesterton, autore della famosa serie di padre Brown (di cui ho letto e odiato profondamente la prima raccolta, L'innocenza di padre Brown), ha scritto un testo a difesa di questo genere tanto bistrattato e mal considerato.
Per un approfondimento sulla figura e l'opera di George W.M. Reynolds consiglio le pagine a lui dedicate dal bellissimo sito The Victorian Web (bellissimo nonostante la grafica pessima) oppure, se preferite l'ascolto alla lettura, qui trovate una puntata di 45 minuti a lui dedicata dalla BBC. Molto completo anche questo articolo sul blog Ainsworth & Friends, interamente dedicato alla letteratura del XIX secolo più nota al tempo ma ormai dimenticata.
Invece, per un approfondito sguardo d'insieme sull'epoca vittoriana, vi consiglio il sito The Victorian Dictionary.
Fatta questa lunghissima premessa, che secondo me è necessaria per fornirvi degli spunti volti a darvi un quadro del contesto in cui si situa Wagner, the Wehr-Wolf, veniamo al romanzo vero e proprio.
Se volete, qui c'è l'ebook gratuito. Non esiste una versione in italiano. Io, come forse il 99,9% di voi, non avevo mai sentito parlare di questo romanzo, ma l'ho scoperto, insieme a molti altri testi interessanti, in questo enorme ebook che attualmente trovate su Amazon.it a 0,99 €.
Il romanzo è lungo quasi 500 pagine e, credetemi, durante la lettura sembra molto più lungo. È pienissimo di personaggi e l'autore pensa di poterli seguire tutti nelle loro vicende. E non solo lo pensa, ma lo fa!
Se vi approcciate a questo libro pensando di trovare la storia di un lupo mannaro, rimarrete delusi. Certo, Fernand Wagner è, come dice il titolo, un lupo mannaro, ma la sua storia non è veramente la principale in questo romanzo (diciamocelo) caotico. La vera protagonista è infatti la bellissima Nisida di Riverola, venticinquenne di grande bellezza ma resa sordomuta dal trauma subito in seguito alla morte della madre in circostanze misteriose, avvenuta dieci anni prima.
La storia è ambientata nella prima metà del Cinquecento. Nel prologo ci troviamo in Germania, nella Foresta Nera, e facciamo la conoscenza di Fernand Wagner, un uomo di 95 anni che vive in una modesta casa insieme alla sua unica parente, l'amatissima nipote sedicenne Agnes. Il resto della famiglia è stato sterminato dalla peste, e la ragazza si prende cura di lui. All'inizio del romanzo, però, Agnes è scomparsa e il vecchio Fernand non si dà pace. In una notte tempestosa riceve la visita di un uomo (che si rivelerà poi essere Faust), che gli offre di ritornare giovane e ricco, a una condizione. Ovviamente, questa condizione è acconsentire a diventare un lupo mannaro ovvero, secondo la tradizione popolare, un uomo che, a seguito di una maledizione o un patto col diavolo, al tramonto dell'ultimo giorno del mese si trasforma in lupo ed è destinato a vivere in queste vesti fino all'alba del giorno successivo. Wagner, non rendendosi bene conto del patto che sta facendo, accetta.
Lo ritroviamo cinque anni dopo a Firenze, dove si è stabilito dopo anni di viaggi intorno al mondo. Qui, il conte di Riverola è in punto di morte e chiama a sé l'odiato figlio Francisco, a cui ha tuttavia lasciato tutti i suoi averi a causa della disabilità dell'amatissima figlia Nisida, ma a una condizione che verrà svelata in seguito. Inoltre, il conte, sul letto di morte, chiede al figlio un giuramento: il giorno stesso del suo matrimonio dovrà recarsi, insieme alla moglie, in una stanza che finora era sempre stata tenuta chiusa a chiave, dove verrà a conoscenza di un segreto.
Da qui si sviluppa tutta una serie di narrative che, come dicevo, seguono le vicissitudini dei vari personaggi. Ma appare evidente che il personaggio principale è Nisida, la figlia maggiore dell'ormai defunto conte di Riverola, la quale si innamorerà ben presto del ringiovanito Fernand Wagner.
Le vicende narrate si fanno via via sempre più bizzarre. Che siano inverosimili è inutile sottolinearlo, dato che il romanzo fa parte della letteratura gotica. Quindi misteri, terrori, svenimenti, orrore, segreti. Ma in confronto gli altri romanzi gotici sono favole per tenere fanciulle, e possiedono una logica che manca a Wagner, the Wehr-Wolf. Naturalmente il mistero principale ha una spiegazione, ma è talmente bizzarra, arzigogolata e orribile che al lettore moderno fa quasi ridere.
Non manca niente in questo romanzo, qualsiasi cosa vi venga in mente c'è, e più è bizzarra meglio è. Il lupo mannaro, come dice il titolo, c'è. L'orribile mistero c'è. Ma ci sono anche un cristiano convertito all'Islam che fa una carriera vertiginosa, le torture dell'Inquisizione, adulteri veri e presunti, i Rosacroce, omicidi di varia foggia, gelosie parossistiche, amori intensi, e via dicendo.
Ovviamente Reynolds descrive le donne come angeliche oppure gelose e terribili, ovviamente anche gli uomini sono gelosi e vendicativi, ovviamente tutta questa gelosia e mentalità criminale è dovuta al fatto che l'azione si svolge in Italia. Per cui, alcuni recensori accusano questo romanzo di sessismo e razzismo, ma vorrei ricordare che è stato scritto alla metà dell'Ottocento e che si svolge nel Cinquecento, quindi bisogna un attimo vedere le cose nella giusta prospettiva e capire il contesto. Mi sarei, insomma, meavigliata delll'assenza di razzismo e sessismo. E di fatto c'è anche di che stupirsi positivamente, in questo romanzo. In particolare, l'autore e alcuni dei suoi personaggi mostrano un'incredibile tolleranza nei confronti degli ebrei, che vengono sì descritti come usurai, ma di cui anche si prende le difese di fronte alle persecuzioni e ai pregiudizi di cui i cristiani li fanno oggetto. Allo stesso modo, l'Inquisizione (e, per analogia, la cristianità o meglio il cattolicesimo) viene rappresentata in maniera per niente lusinghiera e si punta il dito verso le terribili atrocità commesse dalla religione cattolica. Ovviamente, essendo l'autore britannico, non era cattolico, quindi di nuovo potremmo ascrivere questa sua rappresentazione a un razzismo di stampo religioso. Resta comunque il fatto che secondo me questa accusa della malvagità di certi cristiani all'epoca in cui si svolgono i fatti è per me degna di nota.
Devo ammettere che il romanzo mi è piaciuto e mi ha divertito molto, ma bisogna fare attenzione al modo in cui lo si legge. Se, infatti, pensate di immergervi in questo romanzo trovando un Charles Dickens alternativo o una Ann Radcliffe al maschile, temo che ne resterete delusi, perché Reynolds non è né l'uno né l'altro. Il romanzo ha evidenti pecche, manca spesso di coerenza e di verosimiglianza (pur nel genere fantastico, un po' di coerenza nello svolgimento dei fatti ci deve pure essere), quindi se cercate un romanzo ben scritto, vi invito a cercare altrove. Tuttavia, se decidete invece di farvi intrattenere da questo libro, non ne rimarrete delusi. Se vi approcciate al romanzo come a un'opera di puro intrattenimento che vi servirà per passare un po' di ore spensierate, e se siete disposti a passare sopra agli evidenti difetti e alle incredibili esagerazioni, penso che vi divertirete così come ho fatto io.
C'è di certo un motivo se i penny dreadful sono oggi dimenticati, ed è che sono esagerati e spesso neanche tanto ben scritti. Chiamarli classici è un'esagerazione, ma sono secondo me molto rappresentativi di un'epoca e di un gusto che andava per la maggiore. Sicuramente la gente leggeva Dickens e Thackeray nell'Ottocento, ma le masse leggevano i penny dreadful, e se vogliamo capire un po' meglio la società vittoriana, sarà bene che scendiamo dal piedistallo su cui la cultura accademica tende a porsi e smettiamo di guardare con sufficienza questo tipo di opere. Se c'è un motivo per cui i penny dreadful sono caduti nel dimenticatoio, bisogna ammettere che c'è anche un motivo per cui erano così famosi all'epoca in cui sono stati scritti.
Se dunque leggete questo romanzo con l'intento di divertirvi e/o di capire qualcosa in più a proposito della società vittoriana, a mio parere sarete soddisfatti
Ormai caduto nel dimenticatoio, ai suoi tempi George W.M. Reynolds era più famoso di Charles Dickens e William Makepeace Thackeray. Tanto che alla sua morte, nel suo necrologio la rivista The Bookseller lo definì «lo scrittore più popolare dei nostri tempi». Noto soprattutto per il romanzo in più volumi The Mysteries of London , scritto sulla falsariga de I misteri di Parigi di Eugène Sue, ha scritto moltissimi altri romanzi, che trovate elencati qui e, con un po' di pazienza e di lavoro di ricerca, potete scovarne le versioni gratuite in vari siti web. I suoi romanzi, incluso quello qui commentato, sono stati pubblicati a puntate e vanno ascritti al famigerato genere dei penny dreadful, pensato per le masse e che ha contribuito alla diffusione del romanzo gotico. Se siete interessati ad approfondire il mondo dei penny dreadful, vi consiglio un sito estremamente completo, Price One Penny, che riporta anche un elenco esaustivo delle varie pubblicazioni ascrivibili a questo genere. G.K. Chesterton, autore della famosa serie di padre Brown (di cui ho letto e odiato profondamente la prima raccolta, L'innocenza di padre Brown), ha scritto un testo a difesa di questo genere tanto bistrattato e mal considerato.
Per un approfondimento sulla figura e l'opera di George W.M. Reynolds consiglio le pagine a lui dedicate dal bellissimo sito The Victorian Web (bellissimo nonostante la grafica pessima) oppure, se preferite l'ascolto alla lettura, qui trovate una puntata di 45 minuti a lui dedicata dalla BBC. Molto completo anche questo articolo sul blog Ainsworth & Friends, interamente dedicato alla letteratura del XIX secolo più nota al tempo ma ormai dimenticata.
Invece, per un approfondito sguardo d'insieme sull'epoca vittoriana, vi consiglio il sito The Victorian Dictionary.
Fatta questa lunghissima premessa, che secondo me è necessaria per fornirvi degli spunti volti a darvi un quadro del contesto in cui si situa Wagner, the Wehr-Wolf, veniamo al romanzo vero e proprio.
Se volete, qui c'è l'ebook gratuito. Non esiste una versione in italiano. Io, come forse il 99,9% di voi, non avevo mai sentito parlare di questo romanzo, ma l'ho scoperto, insieme a molti altri testi interessanti, in questo enorme ebook che attualmente trovate su Amazon.it a 0,99 €.
Il romanzo è lungo quasi 500 pagine e, credetemi, durante la lettura sembra molto più lungo. È pienissimo di personaggi e l'autore pensa di poterli seguire tutti nelle loro vicende. E non solo lo pensa, ma lo fa!
Se vi approcciate a questo libro pensando di trovare la storia di un lupo mannaro, rimarrete delusi. Certo, Fernand Wagner è, come dice il titolo, un lupo mannaro, ma la sua storia non è veramente la principale in questo romanzo (diciamocelo) caotico. La vera protagonista è infatti la bellissima Nisida di Riverola, venticinquenne di grande bellezza ma resa sordomuta dal trauma subito in seguito alla morte della madre in circostanze misteriose, avvenuta dieci anni prima.
La storia è ambientata nella prima metà del Cinquecento. Nel prologo ci troviamo in Germania, nella Foresta Nera, e facciamo la conoscenza di Fernand Wagner, un uomo di 95 anni che vive in una modesta casa insieme alla sua unica parente, l'amatissima nipote sedicenne Agnes. Il resto della famiglia è stato sterminato dalla peste, e la ragazza si prende cura di lui. All'inizio del romanzo, però, Agnes è scomparsa e il vecchio Fernand non si dà pace. In una notte tempestosa riceve la visita di un uomo (che si rivelerà poi essere Faust), che gli offre di ritornare giovane e ricco, a una condizione. Ovviamente, questa condizione è acconsentire a diventare un lupo mannaro ovvero, secondo la tradizione popolare, un uomo che, a seguito di una maledizione o un patto col diavolo, al tramonto dell'ultimo giorno del mese si trasforma in lupo ed è destinato a vivere in queste vesti fino all'alba del giorno successivo. Wagner, non rendendosi bene conto del patto che sta facendo, accetta.
Lo ritroviamo cinque anni dopo a Firenze, dove si è stabilito dopo anni di viaggi intorno al mondo. Qui, il conte di Riverola è in punto di morte e chiama a sé l'odiato figlio Francisco, a cui ha tuttavia lasciato tutti i suoi averi a causa della disabilità dell'amatissima figlia Nisida, ma a una condizione che verrà svelata in seguito. Inoltre, il conte, sul letto di morte, chiede al figlio un giuramento: il giorno stesso del suo matrimonio dovrà recarsi, insieme alla moglie, in una stanza che finora era sempre stata tenuta chiusa a chiave, dove verrà a conoscenza di un segreto.
Da qui si sviluppa tutta una serie di narrative che, come dicevo, seguono le vicissitudini dei vari personaggi. Ma appare evidente che il personaggio principale è Nisida, la figlia maggiore dell'ormai defunto conte di Riverola, la quale si innamorerà ben presto del ringiovanito Fernand Wagner.
Le vicende narrate si fanno via via sempre più bizzarre. Che siano inverosimili è inutile sottolinearlo, dato che il romanzo fa parte della letteratura gotica. Quindi misteri, terrori, svenimenti, orrore, segreti. Ma in confronto gli altri romanzi gotici sono favole per tenere fanciulle, e possiedono una logica che manca a Wagner, the Wehr-Wolf. Naturalmente il mistero principale ha una spiegazione, ma è talmente bizzarra, arzigogolata e orribile che al lettore moderno fa quasi ridere.
Non manca niente in questo romanzo, qualsiasi cosa vi venga in mente c'è, e più è bizzarra meglio è. Il lupo mannaro, come dice il titolo, c'è. L'orribile mistero c'è. Ma ci sono anche un cristiano convertito all'Islam che fa una carriera vertiginosa, le torture dell'Inquisizione, adulteri veri e presunti, i Rosacroce, omicidi di varia foggia, gelosie parossistiche, amori intensi, e via dicendo.
Ovviamente Reynolds descrive le donne come angeliche oppure gelose e terribili, ovviamente anche gli uomini sono gelosi e vendicativi, ovviamente tutta questa gelosia e mentalità criminale è dovuta al fatto che l'azione si svolge in Italia. Per cui, alcuni recensori accusano questo romanzo di sessismo e razzismo, ma vorrei ricordare che è stato scritto alla metà dell'Ottocento e che si svolge nel Cinquecento, quindi bisogna un attimo vedere le cose nella giusta prospettiva e capire il contesto. Mi sarei, insomma, meavigliata delll'assenza di razzismo e sessismo. E di fatto c'è anche di che stupirsi positivamente, in questo romanzo. In particolare, l'autore e alcuni dei suoi personaggi mostrano un'incredibile tolleranza nei confronti degli ebrei, che vengono sì descritti come usurai, ma di cui anche si prende le difese di fronte alle persecuzioni e ai pregiudizi di cui i cristiani li fanno oggetto. Allo stesso modo, l'Inquisizione (e, per analogia, la cristianità o meglio il cattolicesimo) viene rappresentata in maniera per niente lusinghiera e si punta il dito verso le terribili atrocità commesse dalla religione cattolica. Ovviamente, essendo l'autore britannico, non era cattolico, quindi di nuovo potremmo ascrivere questa sua rappresentazione a un razzismo di stampo religioso. Resta comunque il fatto che secondo me questa accusa della malvagità di certi cristiani all'epoca in cui si svolgono i fatti è per me degna di nota.
Devo ammettere che il romanzo mi è piaciuto e mi ha divertito molto, ma bisogna fare attenzione al modo in cui lo si legge. Se, infatti, pensate di immergervi in questo romanzo trovando un Charles Dickens alternativo o una Ann Radcliffe al maschile, temo che ne resterete delusi, perché Reynolds non è né l'uno né l'altro. Il romanzo ha evidenti pecche, manca spesso di coerenza e di verosimiglianza (pur nel genere fantastico, un po' di coerenza nello svolgimento dei fatti ci deve pure essere), quindi se cercate un romanzo ben scritto, vi invito a cercare altrove. Tuttavia, se decidete invece di farvi intrattenere da questo libro, non ne rimarrete delusi. Se vi approcciate al romanzo come a un'opera di puro intrattenimento che vi servirà per passare un po' di ore spensierate, e se siete disposti a passare sopra agli evidenti difetti e alle incredibili esagerazioni, penso che vi divertirete così come ho fatto io.
C'è di certo un motivo se i penny dreadful sono oggi dimenticati, ed è che sono esagerati e spesso neanche tanto ben scritti. Chiamarli classici è un'esagerazione, ma sono secondo me molto rappresentativi di un'epoca e di un gusto che andava per la maggiore. Sicuramente la gente leggeva Dickens e Thackeray nell'Ottocento, ma le masse leggevano i penny dreadful, e se vogliamo capire un po' meglio la società vittoriana, sarà bene che scendiamo dal piedistallo su cui la cultura accademica tende a porsi e smettiamo di guardare con sufficienza questo tipo di opere. Se c'è un motivo per cui i penny dreadful sono caduti nel dimenticatoio, bisogna ammettere che c'è anche un motivo per cui erano così famosi all'epoca in cui sono stati scritti.
Se dunque leggete questo romanzo con l'intento di divertirvi e/o di capire qualcosa in più a proposito della società vittoriana, a mio parere sarete soddisfatti
January 25, 2015
If you're a fan of the Gothic tradition, you must read this. The title implies a lot more werewolf action than the books actually give us, given that the eponymous Wagner is only one part of a sprawling cast of characters. And even if it hasn't got too much werewolfery, it's got schemes, secrets, murders, clandestine affairs, public executions, lovable (and not-so-lovable) rogues, demons and angels, shipwrecks, apostates, revenge plots, self-flagellating nuns, the Inquisition, Rosicrucians, literal skeletons in literal closets, and so much more. Reynolds is weirdly progressive in some ways, and the Lady Nisida is one of the most complex and morally grey lady characters I've encountered, particularly given the time period. The plot moves along at break-neck pace, necessitated by its publication in installments, so you can't go even a few pages with something bonkers and melodramatic occurring. A lot of modern readers find 19th century texts long-winded and boring, but I can't imagine that being a problem here. The writing is quite readable, as far as penny dreadfuls go, and I just had a blast reading it. I can't recommend it enough to genre fans.
March 3, 2023
Despite it taking six months for me to read this book, I did actually enjoy it, liking it more than I expected but less than I hoped. The only reason it took me so long was because of other commitments, such as uni and book clubs. Again, it has been too long since I read this to write a decent review so you will get the basics. One of the only things I do remember is that the word ‘countenance,’ was used often enough for me to have started disliking it.
It was through reading the introduction of this book that I learnt that introductions sometimes contain spoilers. Apparently I am a slow learner as it took a couple more spoilers in a couple more introductions before I learnt my lesson and started reading the introduction after I’ve read the main content of the book. I’m not sure why many classics seem to do this in their introductions, but I wish they would put spoiler type information at the end of the book instead. I suppose part of it is to give you some context which could increase your understanding whilst reading, but why spoilers? Anyway, back to the actual review.
Wagner the Werewolf is a typical gothic novel with a continuous feeling of dread and dark descriptions. Plot wise, I felt that there was too much going on at times that it was hard to keep track, especially when it came to differentiating between characters. Some of these subplots did not seem necessary, and that had they not been included, there would have been no effect on the overall story. Although I did enjoy the book, there were also many parts of the plot I did not like.I had to roll my eyes at the . There are other examples of when the plot seemed silly or unbelievable, but you probably don’t need to hear any more of them.
One thing I found interesting was that
Being published in 1846, I was surprised to find that the author seemed to challenge some of the sexist laws and views of the time. For instance, a character points out how unfair it is that a woman will be seen negatively for sleeping with a man, but the man would not be, ‘a man may seduce, and yet not be dishonoured in the eyes of the world. It is his victim, or the partner of his guilty pleasure, only who is dishonoured. Such is the law written in society’s conventional code. Vile – detestable – unjust law!.’ Had I my English student head on I could delve into this further but instead I have my zombie, tired head on so this is all I have to say on the matter.
Overall, I enjoyed Wagner the Werewolf and I might reread it at some point, making sure it does not take me six months to read it. I might find that in doing so the many plots and characters will be easier to keep track of and I might have a better understanding of the book as a whole. Currently, it just seems like I have a lot of negative things to say about it but I know that I must have found more positives otherwise I wouldn’t have continued to read it.
It was through reading the introduction of this book that I learnt that introductions sometimes contain spoilers. Apparently I am a slow learner as it took a couple more spoilers in a couple more introductions before I learnt my lesson and started reading the introduction after I’ve read the main content of the book. I’m not sure why many classics seem to do this in their introductions, but I wish they would put spoiler type information at the end of the book instead. I suppose part of it is to give you some context which could increase your understanding whilst reading, but why spoilers? Anyway, back to the actual review.
Wagner the Werewolf is a typical gothic novel with a continuous feeling of dread and dark descriptions. Plot wise, I felt that there was too much going on at times that it was hard to keep track, especially when it came to differentiating between characters. Some of these subplots did not seem necessary, and that had they not been included, there would have been no effect on the overall story. Although I did enjoy the book, there were also many parts of the plot I did not like.I had to roll my eyes at the . There are other examples of when the plot seemed silly or unbelievable, but you probably don’t need to hear any more of them.
One thing I found interesting was that
Being published in 1846, I was surprised to find that the author seemed to challenge some of the sexist laws and views of the time. For instance, a character points out how unfair it is that a woman will be seen negatively for sleeping with a man, but the man would not be, ‘a man may seduce, and yet not be dishonoured in the eyes of the world. It is his victim, or the partner of his guilty pleasure, only who is dishonoured. Such is the law written in society’s conventional code. Vile – detestable – unjust law!.’ Had I my English student head on I could delve into this further but instead I have my zombie, tired head on so this is all I have to say on the matter.
Overall, I enjoyed Wagner the Werewolf and I might reread it at some point, making sure it does not take me six months to read it. I might find that in doing so the many plots and characters will be easier to keep track of and I might have a better understanding of the book as a whole. Currently, it just seems like I have a lot of negative things to say about it but I know that I must have found more positives otherwise I wouldn’t have continued to read it.
September 21, 2012
Wagner the Werewolf reads like a cheap, outdated serialized romance novel. Which is exactly what it is, and I’m loving it – one of the first tales of werewolves in the modern (Victorian) era. Certainly no Bram Stoker or Mary Shelley, it does have a certain appeal, especially keeping in mind its an anachronism, and it doesnt delve deeper than superficial romance novel. The romance and intrigue takes a front row seat while the werewolf theme is actually quite minimal. It does however put forth some very advanced themes regarding victorian era ethics with regard to religion, involving Muslim and Jewish characters and portraying the attitudes of the 16th century (when this novel is set), which were not much more enlightened in the 19th century, a point that Reynolds actively sought to shed light on as an atheist. Its drawbacks are offset by the fact that it is a quick and easy read.
January 16, 2017
Reynolds was a very prolific writer in the 19th century. This may be one of the first Wehr-Wolf stories ever. Very intriguing, interesting locations and a real evil character in form of a woman. Reading this book is like watching a movie. You won't regret reading that book if you're interested in 19th century fiction!
June 6, 2010
One of the most famous of the 19th century penny dreadfuls. Pulpy but fun.
December 24, 2021
I'm not quite sure how to rate this. In one hand I liked that it was quite different from the werewolf books I've read and it was a bit interesting to read, but in the other hand I had issues getting connected with the story. Never felt truly invested in the plot. Might be a book I'll revisit one day. 3.5 stars rounded up for now
June 16, 2017
This book, I feel, is more a historical curiosity than a piece of literature that can really be appreciated today, at least by me. I was curious about its status as a "penny dreadful" popular during the mid-19th century, a piece of Victorian pop fiction. Unlike more "classic" works that are still read today, (like Shelley's "Frankenstein" or even Stoker's "Dracula") Wagner the Werewolf has little to offer modern readers. Word count is stretched, the plot is melodramatic and easily predictable, dialogue is sporadic and stilted, and characters are of hazy motivation. These problems may have been less noticeable by readers in the 1840s, but still Wagner the Werewolf is perhaps best as an example of what would be, in today's terms, an average TV melodrama.
However, I was particularly interested in reading a 19th century imagining of the historical events of the 16th century, which roots the work in its particular time period, with rival European powers and the Inquisition providing a backdrop to the plot. Also, Reynolds put forward social ideals in his writing that were progressive for his day which were slightly evident in some of the plot (especially the equality of religions) but still the majority remains embedded in typical viewpoints of Victorian English society. In the end, Wagner the Werewolf remains an artifact of 19th century popular culture and I can't recommend reading it for pleasure.
However, I was particularly interested in reading a 19th century imagining of the historical events of the 16th century, which roots the work in its particular time period, with rival European powers and the Inquisition providing a backdrop to the plot. Also, Reynolds put forward social ideals in his writing that were progressive for his day which were slightly evident in some of the plot (especially the equality of religions) but still the majority remains embedded in typical viewpoints of Victorian English society. In the end, Wagner the Werewolf remains an artifact of 19th century popular culture and I can't recommend reading it for pleasure.
November 4, 2012
A ridiculous book, but great fun. It has everything; wehr-wolves, evil priests, sex, violence, Arabs, ladies in distress, nudity, Faust, the devil, angels. Let me know if there are any other of Reynolds books available.
couldnt-get-into-it
March 4, 2023Of all the books I've given up on, this is the one I'm most convinced is due to its poor literary quality and total forgettability.
April 21, 2020
First published as a weekly serial in the 'penny dreadful' 'Reynolds' Miscellany' from late 1846 to mid 1847 under the title 'Wagner the Wehr-Wolf', and subsequently published in book form in 1853 with the revised title, this historical/supernatural adventure is set mainly in early 16th century Florence. Its penny dreadful origins means that it has many short tightly plotted chapters, often finishing with a cliffhanger ending, presumably to encourage you to buy the next issue. A bewildering cast of characters, set against a background of some (mostly) historical events results in many threads to the storyline, some of which are resolved during the novel leaving all of the juiciest ones for near the ending. unusually for a novel of this time, many women feature in the plots, including arguably the novels key character Nisida. The plot proceeds at a gruesome pace, with many characters male and female alike suffering a variety of nasty ends such as torture, garrotting, stabbing, and, not surprisingly, being torn apart by a werewolf. Not great literature but good entertainment and (allegedly) the first English novel featuring a werewolf.
December 18, 2021
This was an extremely complex story, with multiple plotlines and a lot of intrigue, of which the werewolf element only played a minor role. Some of the characters felt a little over the top, and a few plot elements by the end felt unresolved. This might make an interesting TV series.
October 21, 2025
Gothic lit of the 1800's really is in a class of its own. Nowhere else are you going to find a legit plot point like I overheard the villains evil machinations, but when I went to warn the people concerned I got lost whoopsie. Unhinged.
December 29, 2025
4.5/5 - Great and well written gothic tale. There is a werewolf in it but that is not the main focus of the novel. There is horror, mystery, intrigue and more. Very well written, but of course in the style of that time.
February 26, 2010
This is the first book in years that tried my patience so much so I couldn't bare to finish it. The novel starts with some nice, creepy imagery, some obvious precursors to modern horror tropes (some of them rather trashy, like self-flagellating virgins), but Reynolds employs the most verbose prose possible, no doubt to extend this serialized story as long as possible, to make a buck.
So, this book defeated me. I've had a long streak of finishing every book I start, and this one just made me rethink my whole policy. I felt like I was wasting my life.
Now, the story itself was fun and soap opera-ish, in a bawdy, dark way that I really liked, and I think is missing in a lot of more contemporary horror fiction (though certainly prevelant in some horror cinema). The opening scene in particular with Wagner as an old man, and a later scene, where the domestic at Nisida's house is sent to a convent where innocent virgins whip themselves, seemed like prototypes for a million Hollywood and British vampire movies.
But the prose here is ridiculous. It's verbose in a way that's just not justified by Reynolds' time period. Poe was writing before this dude, and his fiction is eminently readable. Not to mention that the story was originally serialized over a very long period of time, and so, goes through many twists with secondary characters, and restates so many things, that 75% of the words seem like filler.
Some poor soul named Spoonbridge, who reviewed it on goodreads, said something like, this book is more a historical curosity than a piece of literature. I think that's true. Stephen King in Danse Macabre cites Stevenson's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde as the protypical werewolf story, even though there's no standard "werewolf" to be found in the tale. Wagner came a good 40 years earlier, but it's so atrociously written that its existence is hardly recognized today. And it's got some of the good old images and tropes that have been used in Hollywood ever since. One particular scene, when Wagner rushes off into the country side, transforming into the beast, being chased by a pack of dogs, reminded me very much of something out of Endore's Werewolf of Paris.
So, this book defeated me. I've had a long streak of finishing every book I start, and this one just made me rethink my whole policy. I felt like I was wasting my life.
Now, the story itself was fun and soap opera-ish, in a bawdy, dark way that I really liked, and I think is missing in a lot of more contemporary horror fiction (though certainly prevelant in some horror cinema). The opening scene in particular with Wagner as an old man, and a later scene, where the domestic at Nisida's house is sent to a convent where innocent virgins whip themselves, seemed like prototypes for a million Hollywood and British vampire movies.
But the prose here is ridiculous. It's verbose in a way that's just not justified by Reynolds' time period. Poe was writing before this dude, and his fiction is eminently readable. Not to mention that the story was originally serialized over a very long period of time, and so, goes through many twists with secondary characters, and restates so many things, that 75% of the words seem like filler.
Some poor soul named Spoonbridge, who reviewed it on goodreads, said something like, this book is more a historical curosity than a piece of literature. I think that's true. Stephen King in Danse Macabre cites Stevenson's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde as the protypical werewolf story, even though there's no standard "werewolf" to be found in the tale. Wagner came a good 40 years earlier, but it's so atrociously written that its existence is hardly recognized today. And it's got some of the good old images and tropes that have been used in Hollywood ever since. One particular scene, when Wagner rushes off into the country side, transforming into the beast, being chased by a pack of dogs, reminded me very much of something out of Endore's Werewolf of Paris.
June 13, 2019
Gave up on this. Been reading it since February and it's still not finished, so that just goes to show how unengaging it is.
It's not my genre, really. This is Victorian pulp. I thought it would be interesting to read an original penny dreadful, but this book was very melodramatic and not all that 'dreadful'. It might have been mildly entertaining if it were shorter (originally it would have been published in installments in a penny dreadful magazine), but reading it one go, it's just too ponderous and TOO DARN LONG!
It's not my genre, really. This is Victorian pulp. I thought it would be interesting to read an original penny dreadful, but this book was very melodramatic and not all that 'dreadful'. It might have been mildly entertaining if it were shorter (originally it would have been published in installments in a penny dreadful magazine), but reading it one go, it's just too ponderous and TOO DARN LONG!
August 21, 2012
This book has EVERYTHING! Enough said: just pick one and read!
September 8, 2022
I 110% used this book to sleep to more often than not
March 14, 2024
This book was very different from how I expected it to be. From the book title, the blurb and also the series my copy was from (Tales of Mystery and the Supernatural) I expected a rather dark and gloomy victorian novel. The opening chapter lived up to those expectations: In a stormy night a mysterious stranger visits an old man in his hut on the edge of the Black Forest and offers him long life in exchange for becoming a werewolf. It was a very promising start. But right after it already came the disappointment:
The plot turns to Florence, where the patriarch of an aristocratic family dies, leaving behind an orphaned son and his deaf sister. Drama unfolds when both of them fall in love; the brother with a housemaid and the sister with the rejuvenated Wagner (the formerly old man), who has (by pure coincidence) arrived just at that time in Florence. Reynolds develops multiple subplots about how there is a mysterious closet in the late patriarch's room which is not to be opened, how the daughter (Nisida) opens it anyway and finds a mysterious manuscript, how that same daughter has her housemaid incarcerated (for loving her brother) in a horrible carmelite convent, which is then attacked by bandits who want to free a countess, who is also there because she was unfaithful to her husband, how the brother of the housemaid rises from simple italian ambassador in Turkey to the Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire by marrying the sister of the sultan ... the list goes on and on. However, the one thing that is not drawn out over several chapters and described in the minutest detail is the werewolf himself. Wagner the human gets about as much of the plot as the other major (and minor) characters but all he does is lament his fate and muse about his love for Nisida. He transforms three times into a werewolf but does not do anything interesting. He just runs around destroying things like a giant mad dog would do. However, his condition has almost no relevance to the story. The only thing it does is allow him to live on despite being far over a hundred years old and make him feel miserable. The real climax the plot builds up to is about the secret in the closet and all the tangled love dramas behind it. Accordingly, the entire novel is a mess of love triangles aswell with woman murdering her rivals and husbands seeking vengeance against unfaithful wives (and vise versa) and within the space of a few chapters there always turns up a new virgin of "unrivaled charms and ravaging beauty". Needless to say I did not pick up the book for that.
The second thing that surprised me is how heavily the plots relies on religious devices. Part of the book felt very religion-critical with the decidedly averse stance the narrator takes to the carmelite convent and the holy inquisition, condemning their rash torture of innocents and painting them as unfeeling "agents of the evil". However, the way Wagner actually frees himself from his affliction is by refusing the offers of Satan (who visits him thrice in person), listening to a guardian angel advising him and seeking out Christian Rosencrux (a historical figure, leader of a secret group sometimes called the Illuminati and allegedly superhumanly wise). In that context the narration very clearly praises christian faith and virtues. There is of course nothing wrong with that but the overt way religion is integrated in the plot is very different from the Victorian tradition I am familiar with where it is (when used at all) much more subtle and unobtrusive.
All in all this book both in its poetic narration style, focus on romantic love and heavy use of christian elements reminded me much more of "Faust" than a gothic work. Of course, Faust himself makes an appearance too but he is all but irrelevant to the plot and only appears in the first chapter to set the story of Wagner in motion. However, my problem with this book is not as much its story (which is probably entertaining if you like love drama) but the way it is presented as a werewolf story despite the lycanthropy being only a very minor aspect. I am convinced that a different title and blurb are needed in order to convey this book to the right audience. As it stands now fans of italian romance probably won't give the book a second glance while gothic readers will have their expectations of a true werewolf story go unfulfilled.
The plot turns to Florence, where the patriarch of an aristocratic family dies, leaving behind an orphaned son and his deaf sister. Drama unfolds when both of them fall in love; the brother with a housemaid and the sister with the rejuvenated Wagner (the formerly old man), who has (by pure coincidence) arrived just at that time in Florence. Reynolds develops multiple subplots about how there is a mysterious closet in the late patriarch's room which is not to be opened, how the daughter (Nisida) opens it anyway and finds a mysterious manuscript, how that same daughter has her housemaid incarcerated (for loving her brother) in a horrible carmelite convent, which is then attacked by bandits who want to free a countess, who is also there because she was unfaithful to her husband, how the brother of the housemaid rises from simple italian ambassador in Turkey to the Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire by marrying the sister of the sultan ... the list goes on and on. However, the one thing that is not drawn out over several chapters and described in the minutest detail is the werewolf himself. Wagner the human gets about as much of the plot as the other major (and minor) characters but all he does is lament his fate and muse about his love for Nisida. He transforms three times into a werewolf but does not do anything interesting. He just runs around destroying things like a giant mad dog would do. However, his condition has almost no relevance to the story. The only thing it does is allow him to live on despite being far over a hundred years old and make him feel miserable. The real climax the plot builds up to is about the secret in the closet and all the tangled love dramas behind it. Accordingly, the entire novel is a mess of love triangles aswell with woman murdering her rivals and husbands seeking vengeance against unfaithful wives (and vise versa) and within the space of a few chapters there always turns up a new virgin of "unrivaled charms and ravaging beauty". Needless to say I did not pick up the book for that.
The second thing that surprised me is how heavily the plots relies on religious devices. Part of the book felt very religion-critical with the decidedly averse stance the narrator takes to the carmelite convent and the holy inquisition, condemning their rash torture of innocents and painting them as unfeeling "agents of the evil". However, the way Wagner actually frees himself from his affliction is by refusing the offers of Satan (who visits him thrice in person), listening to a guardian angel advising him and seeking out Christian Rosencrux (a historical figure, leader of a secret group sometimes called the Illuminati and allegedly superhumanly wise). In that context the narration very clearly praises christian faith and virtues. There is of course nothing wrong with that but the overt way religion is integrated in the plot is very different from the Victorian tradition I am familiar with where it is (when used at all) much more subtle and unobtrusive.
All in all this book both in its poetic narration style, focus on romantic love and heavy use of christian elements reminded me much more of "Faust" than a gothic work. Of course, Faust himself makes an appearance too but he is all but irrelevant to the plot and only appears in the first chapter to set the story of Wagner in motion. However, my problem with this book is not as much its story (which is probably entertaining if you like love drama) but the way it is presented as a werewolf story despite the lycanthropy being only a very minor aspect. I am convinced that a different title and blurb are needed in order to convey this book to the right audience. As it stands now fans of italian romance probably won't give the book a second glance while gothic readers will have their expectations of a true werewolf story go unfulfilled.
March 5, 2023
The Man Who Outsold Dickens
It is a thing easy to believe that in the Victorian day and age George W.M. Reynolds was more popular and widely read than Charles Dickens himself, which did not hinder Reynolds from cashing in on the success of Dickens’s debut novel, The Pickwick Papers by writing a sequel called Pickwick Abroad, much to Dickens’s chagrin and anger.
After starting on Wagner, the Wehr-Wolf, I found it even easier to believe that Reynolds must have been one of the most-read authors of his time and that the instalments of his novels were selling like hot cakes, and that is for several reasons. First of all, Wagner the Wehr-Wolf is written in a style that could best be characterized as bloated melodrama, the author wallowing in purple prose, rehashing two dozens of recurring adjectives in order to create emotion, and making the narrative voice sound like that of a ham walking up and down on an empty stage (and probably before an empty auditorium) and declaiming a collection of Walt Whitman’s worst poetry. Reynolds has hardly any genuine talent for writing and for making his characters believable and interesting to his readers, and he never shows but only tells, tells, tells or spills, spills, spills. Let’s give you a random example of this mind-deadening style, which is both verbose and trite:
The author always tells us what those cardboard characters think and feel and aspire to, and he uses lots of adjectives and emotive expressions but strangely remains lame and shallow because he never once arouses our imagination or intellect, but rather our lust for sensation.
Which brings me on to the second reason why I find it believable that Reynolds outsold Dickens: There is a lurid quality to his writing that must have appealed to the prurience of the reading public – all the more so as the narrative voice quite often castigates the passions and lusts it so vividly evokes, telling his readers to – of course, of course – abhor them as they should be abhorred by every decent Christian. Consequently, Reynolds was able to titillate and edify his readers at the same time – and we all know that moral indignation is the sauce on which the hypocrite’s shallow mind floats best.
A third sign of the undebatable quality of this book – in terms of popularity – is that it is so plot-driven that we don’t even stop to ask ourselves where the plot is driving us and if it isn’t in two different directions at the same time. We are expected to believe the most incredible situations and coincidences, and it is quite clear that the characters serve the plot rather than the other way around, and the result is a vast cloud of sound and fury, the tale told by a hack who sometimes also capitalized on other people’s ideas.
It is quite obvious that a novel like Wagner the Wehr-Wolf must have appealed to the masses but unlike true art, pulp is a child of its own time and its lustre quickly blunts. That is probably why I could not finish this book and decided not to invest any more time in the utter boredom it exudes.
It is a thing easy to believe that in the Victorian day and age George W.M. Reynolds was more popular and widely read than Charles Dickens himself, which did not hinder Reynolds from cashing in on the success of Dickens’s debut novel, The Pickwick Papers by writing a sequel called Pickwick Abroad, much to Dickens’s chagrin and anger.
After starting on Wagner, the Wehr-Wolf, I found it even easier to believe that Reynolds must have been one of the most-read authors of his time and that the instalments of his novels were selling like hot cakes, and that is for several reasons. First of all, Wagner the Wehr-Wolf is written in a style that could best be characterized as bloated melodrama, the author wallowing in purple prose, rehashing two dozens of recurring adjectives in order to create emotion, and making the narrative voice sound like that of a ham walking up and down on an empty stage (and probably before an empty auditorium) and declaiming a collection of Walt Whitman’s worst poetry. Reynolds has hardly any genuine talent for writing and for making his characters believable and interesting to his readers, and he never shows but only tells, tells, tells or spills, spills, spills. Let’s give you a random example of this mind-deadening style, which is both verbose and trite:
”Though devoured with ardent passions, and of a temperament naturally voluptuous and sensual even to an extreme, she had hitherto remained chaste, as much for want of opportunity to assuage the cravings of her mad desires, as through a sentiment of pride – but since she had loved Wagner – the first and only man whom she had ever loved – her warm imagination had excited those desires to such a degree, that she felt capable of making any sacrifice, save one – to secure him to herself.
And that one sacrifice which she could not make was not her honour: no, of that she now thought but little in the whirlwind of her impetuous, ardent, heated imagination. But, madly as she loved Fernand Wagner – that is, loved him after the fashion of her own strange and sensual heart – she loved her brother still more; and this attachment was at least a pure, a holy sentiment, and a gloriously redeeming trait in the character of this wondrous woman, of a mind so darkly terrible.”
The author always tells us what those cardboard characters think and feel and aspire to, and he uses lots of adjectives and emotive expressions but strangely remains lame and shallow because he never once arouses our imagination or intellect, but rather our lust for sensation.
Which brings me on to the second reason why I find it believable that Reynolds outsold Dickens: There is a lurid quality to his writing that must have appealed to the prurience of the reading public – all the more so as the narrative voice quite often castigates the passions and lusts it so vividly evokes, telling his readers to – of course, of course – abhor them as they should be abhorred by every decent Christian. Consequently, Reynolds was able to titillate and edify his readers at the same time – and we all know that moral indignation is the sauce on which the hypocrite’s shallow mind floats best.
A third sign of the undebatable quality of this book – in terms of popularity – is that it is so plot-driven that we don’t even stop to ask ourselves where the plot is driving us and if it isn’t in two different directions at the same time. We are expected to believe the most incredible situations and coincidences, and it is quite clear that the characters serve the plot rather than the other way around, and the result is a vast cloud of sound and fury, the tale told by a hack who sometimes also capitalized on other people’s ideas.
It is quite obvious that a novel like Wagner the Wehr-Wolf must have appealed to the masses but unlike true art, pulp is a child of its own time and its lustre quickly blunts. That is probably why I could not finish this book and decided not to invest any more time in the utter boredom it exudes.
February 10, 2022
What's to love about Wagner, the Wehr-Wolf:
- The narrator is an absolute drama queen, and his words were clearly written to be read aloud. I felt transported to a Victorian sitting room where dinner guests gather around the fireplace and take turns reading the book in the most theatrical manner.
- I thoroughly enjoyed Reynold's tendency to admonish readers to hold true to their Christian values while steeping us in graphic scenes of violence and sex.
- The early chapters heap the dark atmospheric language on thick. I feel completely immersed in this world of demons, bandits, and intrigues.
- A sympathetic portrayal of Jewish characters, surprisingly progressive for the time.
What will probably annoy you:
- The title character's wehr-wolf transformations have a surprisingly small impact on the story. One evening, Wagner runs rampant through Florence, mauling monks and noblemen's children, and pitching farm maids into the river, the next morning no one is even talking about it.
- The plot feels needlessly complex, with many story arcs that have little or no connection to the main characters. One minute we are in a gothic horror novel about a wehr-wolf, the next we're in a nun S&M torture dungeon, only to be thrust into a swashbuckling adventure about bandits and a miscreant nobleman, then to be shipwrecked on an uninhabited island off the African coast, then thrown headfirst into a historical novel about one of the minor characters' adventures in the Ottoman Empire, and so on. Many readers will enjoy the variety and spectacle. Even I found myself compelled to read on, more out of curiosity for where we would be transported next than anything else. Even so, the detours really tried my patience, as I trudged through hundreds of throwaway pages in search of character development.
- The characters are difficult to relate to. Everyone is "wondrously beautiful," "gloriously beautiful," or "surpassingly beautiful." Everyone is experiencing intense emotions that "no pen can describe." Everyone is screaming at each other, swearing hysterical oaths, and making puzzling decisions that will test the reader's suspension of disbelief. They are noble and gallant when the plot needs them to be and cowardly or immoral when the plot needs them to be. We can call them "complex" if we're being generous, but no one could call them realistic. Maybe for Reynold's intended audience, they don't need to be either.
At 484 pages, Wagner, the Wehr-wolf is difficult to recommend, in spite of its thrills and vibrant personality. Perhaps I would enjoy it better if I knew more about the genre conventions that Reynolds is responding to. I would love any reading recommendations in the comments.
- The narrator is an absolute drama queen, and his words were clearly written to be read aloud. I felt transported to a Victorian sitting room where dinner guests gather around the fireplace and take turns reading the book in the most theatrical manner.
- I thoroughly enjoyed Reynold's tendency to admonish readers to hold true to their Christian values while steeping us in graphic scenes of violence and sex.
- The early chapters heap the dark atmospheric language on thick. I feel completely immersed in this world of demons, bandits, and intrigues.
- A sympathetic portrayal of Jewish characters, surprisingly progressive for the time.
What will probably annoy you:
- The title character's wehr-wolf transformations have a surprisingly small impact on the story. One evening, Wagner runs rampant through Florence, mauling monks and noblemen's children, and pitching farm maids into the river, the next morning no one is even talking about it.
- The plot feels needlessly complex, with many story arcs that have little or no connection to the main characters. One minute we are in a gothic horror novel about a wehr-wolf, the next we're in a nun S&M torture dungeon, only to be thrust into a swashbuckling adventure about bandits and a miscreant nobleman, then to be shipwrecked on an uninhabited island off the African coast, then thrown headfirst into a historical novel about one of the minor characters' adventures in the Ottoman Empire, and so on. Many readers will enjoy the variety and spectacle. Even I found myself compelled to read on, more out of curiosity for where we would be transported next than anything else. Even so, the detours really tried my patience, as I trudged through hundreds of throwaway pages in search of character development.
- The characters are difficult to relate to. Everyone is "wondrously beautiful," "gloriously beautiful," or "surpassingly beautiful." Everyone is experiencing intense emotions that "no pen can describe." Everyone is screaming at each other, swearing hysterical oaths, and making puzzling decisions that will test the reader's suspension of disbelief. They are noble and gallant when the plot needs them to be and cowardly or immoral when the plot needs them to be. We can call them "complex" if we're being generous, but no one could call them realistic. Maybe for Reynold's intended audience, they don't need to be either.
At 484 pages, Wagner, the Wehr-wolf is difficult to recommend, in spite of its thrills and vibrant personality. Perhaps I would enjoy it better if I knew more about the genre conventions that Reynolds is responding to. I would love any reading recommendations in the comments.
March 30, 2020
I started this quaint old tale as a Librivox recording on my daily commute but under the current quarantine I ended up reading the last third of it the old-fashioned way. I'm hard pressed to come up with a fitting adjective to sum up the novel but "gonzo" is a pretty fair estimation. Reynolds borrows joyously from his betters and there are scenes lifted lightly from The Monk and Melmoth. One thing I didn't know going in is that this Wagner is the same Wagner who is Faust's traditional assistant and companion and this novel is a sequel of sorts to Reynold's earlier telling of the Faust legend. Besides Faust, the novel also wends its way through the Spanish Inquisition, the fall of Constantinople, the Rosicrucians, and a tropical island infested with giant snakes. The core plot is like a Jacobean revenge drama and the leading lady, Nisida, is a true femme fatale who frequently cross dresses and kills without guilt, at least until the book's end. The werewolf scenes are scattered through the book and are almost incidental to the story but they are breathless races of blood and carnage when they occur. I don't know if it's a sign of the era's relative restraint or a failure in Reynolds' vision that he can put a werewolf on an island of giant snakes without staging the expected battle between the two. No modern writer would resist the notion.
July 10, 2021
When your research is based in a specific time period (for me, specifically 1850 to about 1880), you sometimes read things that you think, this is so within my period, no one outside of that would want to read this. I feel that way about Wagner (okay, it was serialized in England 1846-47) -- why would anyone who doesn't have connections to mid-nineteenth century history and literature in the English-speaking world want to read this? It's over-written, massively melodramatic, and there's very little werewolf-ery (despite the title). But I had a good time with it. It was exactly what it was supposed to be (with some progressive religious politics, if not sexual politics (sadly). Also, in one death, the fact that she was pregnant at her passing seems to matter to no one, even though the matter is brought up a few times throughout the novel. [shrugs] The introduction on the life of George W.M. Reynolds is DELIGHTFUL, but also contains spoilers, so read aferwards.
September 30, 2024
This book has to be the biggest one I've read so far. Not in the terms of page's length but it had so many events, side character development that even if it wasn't important to the story it feels like the author was excited to introduce it to us and the language was the one they used at old times which it makes sense since it was written around the mid of 19th century (taking part during 16th century tho)
I enjoyed it even if it hadn't many scenes with Wagner who was the werewolf, many plot twists and i think the characters will stay with you even years later.
It was an incredible book, maybe i wouldn't read it again in the future because it was "heavy" (plus the vocabulary) but i really enjoyed it!
I enjoyed it even if it hadn't many scenes with Wagner who was the werewolf, many plot twists and i think the characters will stay with you even years later.
It was an incredible book, maybe i wouldn't read it again in the future because it was "heavy" (plus the vocabulary) but i really enjoyed it!
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