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22 h 3 minAudiobook6 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
The Night Land, the audiobook coverAudiobook edition · 22 h 3 min
StandardLarge printLarge print · 8.5 × 11 in · 800 pages · bigger, clearer type
The Night Land, paperbackPaperback · 6 × 9 in · 541 pages
The Night Land, hardcoverHardcover · 6 × 9 in · 541 pages
About this book

Beyond humanity’s last defenses, enormous beings wait in darkness—and a beloved voice calls from another shelter.

In William Hope Hodgson’s The Night Land, Earth lies beneath an endless night. Humanity shelters in the Last Redoubt, an immense pyramid protected by the Earth Current. Outside, the Watchers and other hostile powers threaten the sunless world. The refuge holds a whole society, but the energy behind its defenses cannot be trusted to last forever.

The narrator’s story begins with his love for Mirdath. In the far future, he makes contact with Naani in the Lesser Redoubt and recognizes her as the beloved of his earlier life. To reach her, he must leave humanity’s defenses behind. Food and a weapon called a Diskos offer help, but no safe passage through the unknown.

What you’ll discover

  • A world without sunlight Cross a strange future Earth where darkness surrounds human shelters and conceals vast threats.
  • Love across distant lives Follow the bond linking Mirdath, Naani, and a man willing to face the unknown.
  • The immense Last Redoubt Enter a pyramid that shelters a whole society without promising safety forever.
  • Watchers in the dark Feel the dread of enormous beings waiting beyond the reach of humanity’s defenses.
  • An ordeal of endurance Travel with a lone rescuer whose supplies and weapon cannot remove the danger.

Who will love it

You will love this if you enjoy sweeping dark fantasy, quests across strange lands, and romance that stretches across ages. It suits readers drawn to imagined worlds and to tales of devotion.

What’s inside

The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary

  1. A love begins in the Kent twilight
  2. Jealousy and a prank nearly part them
  3. Death takes Mirdath and a dream begins
  4. The Last Redoubt and its watching monsters
  5. A voice answers across the dark
  6. Alone through the Night Land and the Slope
  7. Seas of fire, a dark pyramid, and the Maid
  8. The way home with Naani
  9. What the story is really about

Who’s who

  • The narratorA strong young man who loses his wife, wakes in the far future, and sets out across the dark to find her again.
  • NaaniA gifted girl in a distant refuge who hears his call and shares a strange memory of old love.
  • The Master MonstruwacanThe wise head of the tower of observers, who believes the narrator and watches over his journey.
  • Mistress AlisonMirdath's friend who dresses as a courtier to play a trick on the jealous narrator.
  • AschoffThe bold leader of the five hundred youths who leave the pyramid to rescue Naani's people.
  • The Master DoctorA skilled healer who tends the narrator and understands how deeply his grief runs.

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Large-print eBook
The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
Audiobook
22 h 3 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
15-minute summary
The key ideas in about 6 minutes, to read or to hear.
Paperback
6 × 9 in, 541 pages: 16,95 USD when you start free, 22,95 USD on its own.
Hardcover
6 × 9 in, 541 pages: 23,95 USD when you start free, 29,95 USD on its own.
Large print paperback
8.5 × 11 in, 800 pages: 27,95 USD when you start free, 33,95 USD on its own.
Large print hardcover
8.5 × 11 in, 800 pages: 35,95 USD when you start free, 41,95 USD on its own.

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Science Fiction

The Night Land

by William Hope Hodgson · 1912

A man walks out of a metal pyramid into endless darkness to answer a faint call from the woman he loves.

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In short

What would you cross a dead world to reach? In The Night Land, William Hope Hodgson tells of a man who loses his wife, then wakes in a far future where the sun has died.

The Night Land by William Hope Hodgson, the cover

From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1

A love begins in the Kent twilight

The story opens in the English countryside, where the narrator meets his neighbor and cousin, Lady Mirdath the Beautiful, at dusk. He is a strong young man who has spent his days on books and exercise. She calls out to him from the trees, and a friendship starts at once.

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What is The Night Land about?

It tells of a man who loses his wife, wakes in a far future where the sun has died, and journeys across monster-filled darkness to find a woman whose voice calls him.

What is the Last Redoubt?

It is a giant pyramid of grey metal, nearly eight miles tall, where the last millions of humans shelter. A circle of light and the Earth-Current keep out the monsters.

What is the Diskos?

It is the narrator's weapon, a rod topped with a spinning disk powered by the Earth-Current. It roars, blazes with light, and cuts through monsters.

The author

William Hope Hodgson

1877–1918 · English horror and fantasy writer

William Hope Hodgson (1877–1918) was a British writer born in Essex, England. He worked as a sailor before becoming a writer. His novels include The House on the Borderland (1908) and The Night Land (1912). He served in the British Army and was killed in France during the First World War.

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