9 h 7 minAudiobook14 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 9 h 7 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if the hope of reaching someone you love draws you toward something you should fear?
Laurie Baxter cannot bear the loss of Amy, the woman he loves. Drawn toward spiritualism, he hopes to reach her through the world of mediums and séances. In The Necromancers, Robert Hugh Benson turns that longing into a Gothic story where grief makes the unseen tempting, and the search for comfort carries a serious risk.
Set in Edwardian England, the novel explores a world where messages from the dead are part of daily conversation. Benson, a Catholic priest, approaches these practices as dangerous rather than harmless. Beneath the supernatural atmosphere lies a painful question: how can Laurie live with loss when the promise of contact seems so hard to resist?
What you’ll discover
- Grief that opens doors Follow Laurie as his longing for Amy draws him toward the spirit world.
- The pull of séances Explore the hope that makes mediums and messages from the dead so compelling.
- An Edwardian fascination Enter an England where spiritualism draws curiosity and the unseen becomes a subject of conversation.
- A warning within the Gothic Discover a story that treats reaching beyond death as a risk, not a pastime.
- Questions without easy comfort Consider whether grief must be borne without the answers the bereaved long to hear.
Who will love it
Lovers of ghost stories set in English country houses will enjoy this novel, as will readers drawn to grief, faith and séances, and fans of Gothic suspense.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A calm house meets a sudden grief
- A lunch guest brings the dead into conversation
- A calm, kindly medium makes his case
- Maggie finds out she cares and hides it
- A secret message from the grave seems to prove true
- A dream, a fear, and a pencil that stands
- Seeing Amy's face changes everything for Laurie
- Friends try to stop him in quiet ways
- A storm, a warning, and a terror at the door
- Benson tells a ghostly tale in plain daylight
Who’s who
- Laurie BaxterA warm, impulsive young Catholic convert and law student who seeks proof that his dead sweetheart lives on.
- Maggie DeronnaisMrs. Baxter's adopted daughter, raised in a French convent, calm and strong, who loves Laurie and tries to protect him.
- Mrs. BaxterLaurie's gentle, pious mother, who protects her peace by ignoring anything that does not suit her view of the world.
- Mr. VincentA kindly, sincere, and powerful medium who draws Laurie deeper into spiritualism.
- Mr. CathcartA brisk, cheerful solicitor and former spiritualist who now fights to keep Laurie away from séances.
- Lady Laura BethellA fashionable London hostess who opens her drawing room to séances and begins to fear for Laurie.
- Mrs. StapletonA zealous follower of every new spiritual fashion, who brings the dead into conversation and watches Laurie closely.
- James MortonLaurie's blunt, skeptical barrister tutor, who thinks spiritualism nonsense but writes to Maggie in alarm.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet or computer, once the book texts are online.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, once the book texts are online.
- Audiobook
- Read by Lucas Linden, complete. It opens once the recording is online.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 14 minutes, to read today.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout. The eBook and the audiobook open when the book texts go online.
How it works
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read, listen and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, 5 accounts for the price of one.
- We remind you first. Free for 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment. Then 0,14 USD a day in your first year on the yearly plan and 0,27 USD a day after, or 0,66 USD a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
Bought on its own? Every eBook, audiobook and printed book you buy without the plan carries our 30-day money-back guarantee.
I negromanti
by Robert Hugh Benson · 1909
Grieving Laurie Baxter asks a medium to call back his dead sweetheart, and Maggie fears what answers.
Medium level5–10 hours to readItaliano
Learn a language with medium classicsSpagnoloFranceseTedescoItalianoGiapponesePortogheseIngleseHow we measure levels
Excellent
Free for 3 months · starts right away, on any device
Read free3 months free · cancel anytimeFree for 3 months, then 0,14 USD a dayCancel anytimeHow it works
- Read or listen
- Print and large print at cost
- 5 accounts for the price of one
In short
What if the one question every mourner asks, can the dead come back, were answered with a yes? On a September morning in Herefordshire, young Laurie Baxter stands at the grave of Amy Nugent, a grocer's daughter he meant to marry.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A calm house meets a sudden grief
The story opens at Stantons, an old Herefordshire house altered by every century since the Tudors. Mrs. Baxter, a small widow in a lace cap, lives there with her adopted daughter, Maggie Deronnais, who was raised in a convent school. On the day of the funeral they talk about Mrs. Baxter's son Laurie. She calls it terribly sad, yet she thought the death providential.
The dead girl is Amy Nugent, daughter of the village grocer, a Baptist. Mrs. Baxter dislikes her accent and her father's trade. Maggie sees further, and she decides that grief will be Laurie's test.
Free for 3 months · Cancel anytime
You looked at
Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 14 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1909
- Language
- Italiano
- Level
- Medium level
Cite this edition
Benson, Robert Hugh. The Necromancers. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-necromancers.
Benson, R. H. (2026). The necromancers. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-necromancers (Original work published 1909)
Benson, Robert Hugh. The Necromancers. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-necromancers.
@book{benson2026necromancers,
author = {Benson, Robert Hugh},
title = {The Necromancers},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-necromancers},
note = {First published 1909}
}
Free gifts
580 USD in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, 5 accounts for the price of one. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
170 USDFREE - Every audiobookIn 25 languages, any device
120 USDFREE - 15-minute summariesRead or listen, in 25 languages
60 USDFREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
60 USDFREE - 5 accounts for the price of oneA shelf for everyone at home
170 USDFREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
Questions about I negromanti
Can I read it free?
Yes. The first key idea of the 15-minute summary is free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 3 months, with the eBook to keep, plus 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
How many accounts do I get?
Five, for the price of one: you and 4 more people, each with their own login, shelf and their own place in every book.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. Nothing is charged in your first 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment.
What is The Necromancers about?
It tells of Laurie Baxter, a young Catholic convert who turns to spiritualism after his sweetheart dies, and of Maggie Deronnais, who loves him and tries to save him from the séance room and the danger it brings.
What does necromancer mean in this book?
A necromancer is someone who tries to speak with the dead. Here the word points to the mediums and their followers, and to Laurie himself, who is drawn into calling up a girl he loved.
Is The Necromancers a true story?
No, it is a novel by Robert Hugh Benson, who died in 1914. It draws on the spiritualist craze of its time, with mediums, trances, and materializations, but its characters and events are invented.
The author
Robert Hugh Benson
1871–1914 · English novelist and Catholic priest
Robert Hugh Benson (1871–1914) was a British writer and Catholic priest. He was born in Wellington, Somerset, England. Initially an Anglican priest, he became a Catholic in 1903 and was ordained in 1904. He wrote novels, including Lord of the World (1907) and The Necromancers (1909). He died in Salford, England.
More by Robert Hugh Benson
Vedi tutti i suoi libriMore like this
Our mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages, new audiobooks and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
