Secret Historys Where Magic Works

[JoanDrake]

Does anyone know of secret history books based on the idea that magic actually does work, but the matter is kept hidden from the main populace?

Besides Harry Potter, of course, where this is a subtext. I'm looking for something where it's the main theme of the book

 

[nightdreamer]

I can't think of a book at the moment, but the films The Sorcerer's Apprentice (2010) and Bell, Book, and Candle (1958), seem to fit the requirements. I'm sure there are plenty in the urban fantasy genre, but I haven't really explored there.

 

[nerd literature]

I don't know if this is what you are looking for but there are several occult books that deal with the darker side of magic if you will, of course there are those that deal with the lighter side as well. The one that I am thinking of is one that Lovecraft was quite fond. It is Margaret Alica Murray's ,"Witch-Cult in Western Europe" that deals with magic and withcraft that survived into the modern age. It is controversial and I don't know how much the public is aware of it.

You also might want to try here. I hope this helps

http://www.sacred-texts.com/eso/index.htm

 

[hitmouse]

Dracula

or looking at comics/film: Blade

 

[elvet]

The Mrs. Quent trilogy by Galen Beckett (AKA Mark Anthony)

 

[chopper]

Ash: a Secret History, by Mary Gentle?

 

[hitmouse]

Thinking about it, this is a fairly major trope. Dan Brown exploied the thrill of hidden knowledge/secret societies togreat success in The DaVinci Code, though this does not really have muchexplicit magic.
Others that come to mind:
Artemis Fowl Eoin Coifer
The Dark is Rising Susan Cooper
Little Big John Crowley
The Weirdstone of Brisingamen Alan Garner

And of course this is quite a big thing for comics where secret identities etc are de rigeur: Thor, Hellboy, Dr Strange

 

[Ray Pullar]

Conjure Wife, Fritz Leiber, 1943 (all women are secretly witches)
Our lady of darkness, Fritz Leiber, 1977 (cities magically control the human population)
Strange Conflict, Dennis Wheatley, 1941 (Duc de Richleau confounds Nazi occultists during WWII)
The Illuminatus Trilogy, Robert Anton Wilson & Robert Shea, 1975 (all of history is a war between rival members of the same occult organization)

Look up just about everything Tim Powers has written especially: The Drawing of the Dark (1979), The Anubis Gates (1983), Last Call (1992) and Declare (2001).

 

[Randy M.]

Conjure Wife, Fritz Leiber, 1943 (all women are secretly witches)
Our lady of darkness, Fritz Leiber, 1977 (cities magically control the human population)
[...]

You beat me to them. If you read Our Lady of Darkness you might also find John Langan's House of Windows of interest; he taps into Leibers ideas about cities and melds them with ideas from other sources.

Look up just about everything Tim Powers has written especially: The Drawing of the Dark (1979), The Anubis Gates (1983), Last Call (1992) and Declare (2001).

Also applicable are Powers' The Stress of Her Regard and On Stranger Shores.



Randy M.

 

[clovis-man]

Look up just about everything Tim Powers has written especially: The Drawing of the Dark (1979), The Anubis Gates (1983), Last Call (1992) and Declare (2001).

Good call (no pun intended). And I also like the Fritz Leiber mystique.

Perhaps we should include prolific author Simon R. Green for his "Secret History" series of 8 novels beginning with The Man With The Golden Torc. All kinds of magic, demons, witches, etc. all around us, but we're just too dense to see it.

Oops. Make that 7 novels. Number 8 isn't out yet.

 

[Hypnos164]

Just finished the first two books of Ian Tregillis' Milkweed trilogy (Bitter Seeds and the Coldest War) and was really impressed by both.

They are alternate history where the Nazi's created scientific supermen and British SIS responded with Warlocks (spell casters dealing with somewhat Lovecraftian horrors from beyond). All of which is kept from the general public.

It's really well done and the second book sets up an ambitious conclusion (coming 24th April) for book 3.

Also: second The Anubis Gates - its a masterpiece.

 

[Dave]

Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch, which I read last year, fits your proposition. There is a special department of the Metropolitan Police that deals with crimes of a magical nature.

There are sequels: Moon Over Soho, Whispers Underground and Broken Homes that I have yet to get around to reading.

 

[Connavar]

Tim Powers is the master of these kind of books. History and secret magic behind those historical period is almost his whole fantasy career.

Great books like Drawing of the Dark, On Stranger Tides, The Last Call.

I wish there were more authors of his quality writing this type of fantasy books.

 

[nomadman]

John Crowley's Aegypt Cycle.

 

[TheTomG]

Was going to mention Powers too. Also, "Black Easter" and "The Day After Judgement" by Brian Aldiss come to my mind.

 

[nomadman]

Was going to mention Powers too. Also, "Black Easter" and "The Day After Judgement" by Brian Aldiss come to my mind.

Those are by James Blish, not Aldiss.

 

[TheTomG]

Ack yep, indeed they are, brain break down

 

[JoanDrake]

I've just bought Declare, but immediately misplaced it. I do have a general idea of where it is and you've all just motivated me to go look. I read Stress of Her Regard some time ago and really liked it

All I had to read was that T.E. Lawrence and Kim Philby were mentioned in it and I was hooked.

Thank you all for a nice reading list, and more is always welcome.