There's long been a rumor in the cinema world that Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff made a film together that was never released. The reasons vary slightly but it is commonly believed that there were powerful forces behind the decision and that all copies of the film were burned. So when film researcher Sandy Allan is informed that a surviving print exists and there's an opportunity to view it, she's on board and thrilled.
But shortly before the determined viewing date, the film disappears (again), but knowing it actually exists, Sandy sets out to track it down. The person who had first contacted Sandy about the film, and who was going to show it to her, is now dead and Sandy is determined to learn as much about the film as possible. Did the contents of the film cause her friend's death?

Sandy interviews everyone she can find who worked on or knew about the film. Actors, cameramen, wardrobe, make-up... even descendants of people who worked on the film - if there was any chance at all that they knew the films secrets, she wants to interview them.

But some secrets are meant to stay secret.

I really like the work of Ramsey Campbell and I know I like it because I've read quite a bit of it and as I was reading this I couldn't help but get a sense of déjà vu - sure enough, this book was first published in 1989 and it is very likely I read it back around that time. However, I was first convinced that I was confusing it with something else ... about a week before starting this book I had checked out a book from my local library - Alive! by Loren D. Estleman - which is about a lost screen test of Bela Lugosi testing for the role of Frankenstein's monster, which was of course made famous by Boris Karloff. Yeah ... similarities much?

Campbell's work is definitely not for every reader. Aside from the horror and horrific themes, he writes a slow building of suspense. This is not in-your-face terror or splatterpunk, but the kind of horror that first makes you question if there's really anything so terrible and then the reader, like the protagonist, starts to get that prickly feeling at the back of the neck that there's something 'there.'

Campbell brings it all together, but there's definitely a need for the reader to be patient and to trust that the author knows what he's doing - two things that are more challenging to readers than most would admit.

I've included this in my "Vampire Week" because something Campbell writes in his "Afterworld":

It occurs to me that among other things this is my vampire novel. ... In Ancient Images we have the aristocratic family that feeds on the blood of its tenants, which could be seen as making explicit one metaphor at the heart of traditional vampire fiction. Or you could argue that the vampire here is the landscape itself, which shares the name of the doomed family in the manner of Poe.
Looking for a good book? Slow building suspenseful horror may not be for every reader, but if you think it's right for you, give Ancient Images by Ramsey Campbell a read.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

I was sure I must love this book, but in the end it was just a moderate horror novel for me. Guess it tells something that it took me four months to read the story from start to finish, reading a couple pages every now and then and while doing so falling asleep most of the time. For large parts, the book consisted only of Sandy driving around and talking to people, which sounds much more interesting than it turned out to be - at least for me. The episodes seemed to repeat themselves with only little variety. Only towards the end did the story catch my attention, and the most interesting part of the book really was the author's afterword. In the end, this was a very close candidate for a DNF book but I just couldn't bring myself to do so, hoping that things would get better, as they finally did at the end.

This was an interesting read, with interesting twists and turns to keep you on your toes.

Not my usual kind of book to read, but it’s nice to venture out of my usual reads to try something new.

I got this from NetGalley but then was gifted a copy by a friend so I did my reading of this in physical media. I was excited for this novel, but had a hard time getting into it. I couldn't really connect with any of the characters so I found myself struggling a bit to get through the main exposition part of the book. As the novel went on, it picked up pace definitely. I feel like I'll need a read or two more of this before I can fully explain my thoughts.

Kept me awake most of the night as I just had to finish it. A great read… grabbed my attention from the first page… with each new revelation, I just kept wanting to turn the pages… I highly recommend this book I have been so caught up in this one – I devoured the whole thing in just one sitting.

I remember reading this author when I was young…finding myself more grossed out and confused than scared or entertained. I’ve heard comparisons to Clive Barker (hit or miss, for me) but I fail to see any similarity. This book has such a great premise…a (possibly cursed) lost film of Lugosi and Karloff?! Unfortunately there were two story arcs…and the tenuous connection was such a stretch as to be ridiculous. Further, the writing seemed amateurish…not what one would expect from a renowned author. Sloppy, juvenile…like rather poor fan fiction.

A mixture of social commentary and folk horror which does not feel dated, especially given the 'post fact' , social media driven world which we live in, 'Ancient Images' manages to finely balance the need of the reader to be challenged and scared, with underlying issues of morality and culpability, whilst avoiding the exposition that other authors use when exploring these themes.

A rumoured movie which was thought to be lost, is the fulcrum on which the book turns. Sandy Allan, has been invited by her good friend to watch the one and only known copy but instead witnesses his death, and the cans of film are missing, bar one torn scrap of film trapped under a door frame.. Inexplicable and brutal, the nature of this crushing blow spurs Sandy to try and finish what Graham started, restore the film and show it to as wide an audience as possible. She does not consider that maybe there is a reason why the film was never shown, why no one talks about it despite starring Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi...

There is a plot running alongside the main one regarding a British bread manufacturer-Staff Of Life wheat makes the best in Britain, it has an unexpected effect for that most British tradition, the cucumber sandwich-and a group of nomad/hippies who are creating havoc by refusing to live a life as espoused by 1980's, Thatcherite mores. How they dovetail together is not immediately obvious but as Sandy tries to track down all known survivors of the film, 'Tower Of Fear', and, bearing in mind that they are old super elderly, a surprising amount of death dogs her journey. As does a peculiar smell, and the sense of being followed by someone just out of the corner of her eye. The sense of menace builds and builds, and I can guarantee that you will never look at a scarecrow in the same way again.

As well as being a top notch horror novel, the open discussion of what contsititues being British, what are the morals-or lack of them-who guards these and maintains them is so interesting to me, this was a time when Thatcher was pushing the whole 'anyone can make it if you try hard enough' rhetoric which amounts to throwing anyone under a bus until you get what you need. This is reflected in the discussion about journalistic responsibility to tell a story truthfully, versus selling stories for shock value. The movies produced in this country were meant to reflect this, even back in the 1930's where the marginalisation of horror split people from the general public up to the highest levels of government as to the effects it could have on moral decay, watching horror films and the correlation with anti-British sentiment were seen as co-dependent factors in what people were, and were not , allowed to see.

As well as the above topics, the sense of ownership between film maker and their audience really made me think-with the advent of social media and the spreading of opinions, whether they are valid or not-including, obviously what I write here contributes in a way towards how people regard this book, hopefully it will get someone picking it up! What responsibility do we have before writing a review, creating a 'buzz', deriding those artists who work in a world we can barely comprehend? Does the experience of watching a movie belong to the viewer or the director? Is anything 'owed' on either side, and if so , what?

I really dug into what is and is not , individual and collective responsibility and it seems the link between artist and audience since the original publication, has , to some extent, both widened and narrowed. Widened because we have access, of a kind, to writers, artists, film makers via their public platforms and narrowed, because those people can choose to block, mute and report opinion pieces which they do not like, agree with, or find objectionable in any way.

The folkloric elements were genuinely terrifying and dark, and when intertwined with this moral unease as well as creating a feeling that you, the reader, was both enchanted and bereft at the idea of a missing Karloff/Lugosi film, really drives home why Ramsey Campbell is so well regarded and why his influence on the horror genre continues to this day.

Campbell definitely has creative plots,
paced and not too long enough to drag. His characters are well developed, building suspense consumes your attention and time.
Great read!
I mean the first life of the blurb will get you - from Goodreads :
A lost horror film holds the key to terrifying secrets.

Part of Campbell’s genius is his deceptive way of easing you into the horror, first situating his characters in a world that, however violent, exists on steady ground, before plunging you into a land where it seems we can never be safe again. The divide between the present and the past is so abrupt in Ancient Images that the book itself seems like it has a divided personality. That tenuous grasp of reality that we hold so dear is particularly vulnerable in the hands of this stylist, and even if his works don’t immediately strike a chill in the soul, its foggy terrors are far more effective than the ordinary beasts that jump out of the dark.

Enjoyed the premise but sometimes I had a difficult time following parts of this book. That being said, I really did enjoy seeing the way that it used horror and I believe that it used it to a great effect.

Ancient Images by Ramsey Campbell: Personal entertainment value 4⭐️. It’s Ramsey Campbell, by now you’re either into his work or you’re not. If you’re not, this may not be the one to win you over, but if you are then… Ancient Images is an old school folk horror slow burn originally released in 88-89ish, rereleased from Flame Tree Press. It is concerning the search for an unreleased, possibly cursed, Karloff/ Lugosi film. What happens when ancient rituals are lost, forgotten, over the generations?

Campbell crafts quite an unsettling narrative, not uncommon to his body work, with a great nuance to his dialog. I'd definitely like to be more well versed in his bibliography,

5 Stars!

I cannot get enough Ramsey Campbell so I was happy to see that Flame Tree Press was reprinting Ancient Images. I wanted to get right into the novel but life got in the way for a little while and I got delayed. I was finally able to dig in and found that the book was well worth the wait.



Some films are legendary. Other films are legends of their own. That seemed to be the case of a lost film starring Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi. For unknown reasons, the film was suppressed before it was released and no one ever got to see the finished movie. With stories of strange happenings around the filming of the movie to the film itself never seeing the light of day, it seemed more of a legend than a reality. Sandy Allan, a film researcher, seems to be ready to see the Holy Grail of horror films when she is invited over to a friend’s house for a screening of the lost movie. But when the film disappears and her friend dies, it seems the movie has once more faded into darkness. Little did Sandy know that her part in the film’s legend was just beginning.



Sandy finds herself traveling around England to find the film in memory of her friend before finally coming to the town of Redfield. Along the way, she meets a band of gypsies that were soon to become an important part of the story. After meeting the descendant of the man who suppressed the film and exploring the town and its sinister chapel, she is convinced that there is something much deeper going on that just the suppression of a film to protect the morality of the country. When she finally finds the film and watches it, the terrible horror that it hides comes to light. As the gypsies approach Redfield, Sandy realizes that the horrible secret of the film is about to come to light once more. Sometimes reality can be worse than fiction. Sandy knows she must take drastic action to keep the film’s dark legacy from once more emerging into the unknowing world.



Ancient Images is not a new novel by Ramsey Campbell but it has all the elements of a Campbell novel that makes him one of the greats in the dark fiction genre. The pacing of the story keeps it moving along without dragging even while much of the action is building in the background. On some levels, the story feels like a straightforward tale of a missing film, but fans of Campbell know that there is much more lurking in the background. The novel unfolds in a series of revelations as Sandy works through the mystery of the film and the tension slowly simmers toward a crescendo until it is all released at the end of the story. Campbell masterfully handles all the elements of the story and the reader is filled with unease at the events of the novel but there is also the comfort of being in the hands of a master. Ancient Images is Campbell at his creepy, unsettling best.



Ancient Images is a great book for those who are not familiar with Campbell’s work to get a glimpse at why he is so good. The story is intricate and takes some thinking on the reader’s part to unravel but it never feels overwhelming or dull. The reader has to put in effort, but it never feels like work. Instead, it is the thought required that makes this work of fiction seem so real. There are times throughout the story when you can almost feel a specter standing behind you just waiting to leap into the pages. Campbell brings the story to a slow boil, but when the climax arrives, it comes with a bang. Campbell pulls all the tension of the novel and its many elements into one explosive ending that leaves the reader breathless and stunned at what just happened. Campbell is a true master of horror fiction, and Ancient Images will leave the reader eager for what Campbell is going to bring to the table at his next ghoulish feast.



I would like to thank Flame Tree Press and NetGalley for this review copy. Ancient Images is available now.

Sandy Allen is a film editor. Her friend, Graham, is looking for a lost film. The film starred Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi. But the film never saw the light of day, apparently blocked by someone or something of great power. But Graham is killed before her eyes. Or was it suicide? No one is sure. But Sandy is sure of one thing. If the film exists, she is going to find it.

Taking a leave of absence, she sets out on a journey to find the film. But the closer she gets to the truth, the stranger things become.

This is an excellently written horror story. It will keep you up at nights!

[Thanks to Netgalley and FlameTree Press for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review.]

Originally published in the 1980s, this early novel by Ramsey Campbell revisits one of the author’s interests as a film critic for the BBC. In Ancient Images, Graham, a film historian, finds a copy of “Tower of Fear”, which was thought lost, but which causes his death. He describes the film thus:

“The Victorian ghost story it was based on seems to have disappeared, and the film was being condemned even before it was released. […] I’ve got a feeling this one particularly upset some people in high places.”

This film, starring the legendary Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi, apparently reveals a secret that some people want to keep hidden. The friend of the recently deceased Graham, Sandy Allan, decides to search for answers to her friend’s apparent suicide and the tape that was stolen from his flat. At first, Sandy believes that the “cursed” tape somehow caused her friend’s death, but she gradually becomes convinced that he was murdered. Her research about the film takes her to Redfield, a town almost cut off from modernity and which was the location where the story was filmed. Sandy contacts some people involved in the filming, but they all want nothing to do with it and have no intention of remembering ever having worked on it. Soon, the reader realizes that the film is not the killer per se as in The Ring saga, but that it is the film that reveals events that happened in Redfield and that there are people who want this to never come out.

Surely, at the time this novel was published — during a time when the British government censored or outright banned violent films called “video nasties” — having a horror film as the object of interest was more appealing then than it is now, considering modern films can be even bloodier than a Lugosi or Karloff soft film. While Ramsay manages to keep us curious about the plot of this imaginary film and the secrets it reveals, Sandy’s journey feels tedious and the chapters where nothing happens become tiresome after several pages. We read Sandy going from place to place, chatting with her new boyfriend, having doubts about whether someone is following her, chatting with her co-workers, etc. It isn’t until the last third of the story that we start to see some movement, but even the dénouement feels tamed. It is certainly not a gore novel, nor is it a horror novel in the strictest sense, as there is no suspense despite the fact that something or someone caused the death of the protagonist’s friend. There are hints of something dangerous but nothing happens until the final moments, and when it does, it is not at all surprising. While not a poorly written novel, its plot is wasted in unnecessary dialogue and chapters, as well as in its anticlimactic resolution. A slow-burn mystery, for sure, but maybe one too slow. ~

How could any avid film collector resist the promise of a missing film starring Boris Karloff and Bela Legosi? A film no one has ever admitted to seeing, no less! Sandy's friend and coworker has spent years tracking down just this film and he's finally found it. But before they can watch the film, Sandy witnesses her friend tumbling from the roof of a building. And the film in question is turns up missing.

With her friend's legacy in mind, Sandy becomes determined to find out what happened to the missing film. But the amount of secrecy and threat that surrounds not only the film itself but the story it's based on is more than she ever expected!

So not only is Ramsey Campbell one of the horror greats, but this book in particular has been on my radar for a while. And I was disappointed to find that it was out of print. Originally published in 1989, the book has thankfully been brought back to print by the fabulous folks over at Flame Tree Press!

I first heard about this book via an interview with Gemma Files about her own book Experimental Film where she cites Ancient Images as one of the inspirations behind her novel. And while there are no shortage of books about cursed films, I would say that when you have one of the best mentioning another one as one of the best, you know you need to track it down :)

So yes, I was thrilled to see this was coming back in print and I think it's the perfect time! Found Footage horror has been on trend for a while, and I absolutely love it!

Here we have a film historian who's been tracking down a film for two years before finally securing a copy. Two years! And the book begins with his revealing to Sandy that he's not only found it, but that he's inviting her to an exclusive screening.

Campbell does a fantastic job of setting the scene so that the reader feels like they're right alongside Sandy. And the anticipation of what the film would turn out to be is hugely tense! Especially when it goes missing before our narrator can see it.

But of course she doesn't suspect what we the reader already suspects, that the film itself is somehow behind her friend's death.

Sure, the police believe it was a break in. That the man died trying to save his sought after film from a thief. And that's what Sandy suspects as well. But seeing as this is a horror novel, I would say the reader already has more complex suspicions at this stage!

And honestly, that's just the first few chapters. There are flashbacks to a side story woven throughout, the meaning of which becomes more clear as the story progresses. But for me, those opening chapters set the tone for a perfectly enthralling story that is every bit as fantastic as I'd hoped it would be!

Liked the premise but I had a hard time getting into this one for some reason. It was a DNF for me..

ANCIENT IMAGES, by Ramsey Campbell is a novel that centers around an old, "lost film", starring Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff. Sandy is a film editor who's friend tells her he has finally found this "holy grail" of horror films, that most claim doesn't exist. After a series of suspicious events leading to his death, Sandy takes it upon herself to find this film and give her friend the credit she felt he deserved.

This book was originally published earlier, and is now being re-released by Flame Tree Press. The timeframe of the narrative in England is prior to cell phones, or more modern ways to to quickly get in touch with people (ex. emails, messages...). I found this added tremendously to the atmosphere, as things just started getting more dire and "dark" as Sandy progressed in her search. At the heart of the story are superstitions, paranoia, deaths, creature-like images, and a folk town that I certainly wouldn't recommend visiting....

The only thing that bothered me here was that I felt our protagonist spent about 80% of the novel either driving from one location to another, or looking for a hotel from which to phone someone.

Recommended.

Rereleased edition of a 1989 Campbell novel, built around a “lost” film starring Karloff and Lugosi and the danger involvement with the film appears to carry.

Wonderfully atmospheric, building tension throughout with a very creepy folk horror vibe. Really enjoyed the tracking down of those involved with the film, and the grubby world of horror films following the video nasties.

As a historical document it’s fascinating too - so many dreary hotels and restaurants, so many phones… I’m not entirely sure some of the sexual politics would carry if a man wrote a book set in the 80s now, but it’s very of it’s time.

Very enjoyable

Ancient Images just wasn't for me, unfortunately. I loved some of the subject matter (classic horror films) but I found I couldn't get into the characters, and Sandy in particular didn't feel very developed to me.

I think the late 1980s/early 1990s is the wrong era for me when it comes to horror: it's somewhere between classic horror and modern horror, and I can't really get into it. Campbell's writing style was also a bit too stream-of-consciousness for my taste. I wound up deciding not to finish reading this one.

Ramsey Campbell is adept at making you feel a creeping sort of dread; of something pursuing you, lingering on the fringes... ANCIENT IMAGES is FILLED with these moments. This, plus a rumored Karloff/Lugosi film, blood sacrifices to the land, and a malevolent town, equals one hell of a scary book.