A surreal, obscure tale of a heroine who must escape her father's island. Yes, her father is a black magician and yes the island exists outside of time but if you like shorter stories that read like a fever dream- this one is for you.

Sometimes you read a story that is at once very clear in its vision and yet feels like something of a fever dream. Ithell Colquhoun's Goose of Hermogenes, brimming with surrealist imagery and psychoanalytical thought, was one of those stories for me. I don't know if I can make full sense of it, but I did have a good time with it. Thanks to Pushkin Press and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Ithell Colquhoun was a painter, poet, and author who was affiliated with the Surrealist movement. Surrealism, as an art form but also a literary form, wants to give expression to the unconscious mind, meaning that the works that emerge are intended to show the process of thinking, rather than be something of their own. In Goose of Hermogenes (first published in 1961), then, I think we are meant to witness how the protagonist's thoughts and being move and develop, how her thoughts are free-ranging and yet deeply embedded in tradition. Because of this, the story is difficult to follow in a logical sense. Mark Morrison also states that the story was written largely through automatic processes, or psychography, meaning that she wrote the words unconsciously, without focusing on the process. So don't expect straightforward plot or consistent characterisation here! However, there is an intuitive logic to Goose of Hermogenes which, if you let it flow, makes a lot of sense. Colquhoun joined the British Surrealist Group in the late 1930s, but was expelled shortly after for refusing to relinquish her other group affiliations, especially to occult groups. Her openness to different thoughts, ideas, and symbolisms comes through in the novella as well, which is a very rich text. While I read it in one furious go, I can imagine that the novella would also be very rewarding in short bursts, where you can let all the pictures and ideas raised simmer and percolate slowly.

In Goose of Hermogenes our unnamed protagonist must make her way to her uncle, who lives on an island that may or may not hold a volcano and other oddities. The journey itself is full of strange monks and other trials, but once she arrives at the house, the true challenge begins. Her uncle wants something from her, perhaps her jewels which might hold some power. In coming to understand the threat posed by her uncle, our protagonist goes through various stages of evolution and transformation, which seem aligned with alchemical processes. A clue for this is not just in the little headings of various sections, but also the novella's title, which is another term for the Philosopher's Stone, which is meant to grant eternal life. Will this journey end in her becoming part of her uncle's process, or will she find a strength of her own? I can definitely see why the blurb brings Prospero, and thereby Shakespeare's The Tempest into it, because a young woman, an odd servant, and an old sorcerer with mysterious books definitely speaks to the play. The play itself is also the originator of two great, and very different, film adaptations, Forbidden Planet (1956) and Prospero's Books (1991). However, Goose of Hermogenes is much more focused on the female perspective than either of these are and in this way Colquhoun really produces something very intriguing. Again, it is not necessarily straightforward or logical, but there is something intuitive about the gentle monstrosity of everything in this book.

Ithell Colquhoun wrote a number of things, but this is my first time encountering her. I am quite fond of certain Surrealist art, the way that it is so open to interpretation and yet there are endless clues that can lead you down mythological, symbolic, psychoanalytical, and/or occult pathways of interpretation. Still, I struggled getting into Goose of Hermogenes initially, my brain doggedly looking for a structure. It wasn't until I let all of that go, coincidentally while flying, itself an unnatural act for humans, that I began to sink into the unconscious logic of the story. The writing is dreamlike, which means it also holds nightmarish stuff. There is horror, weird body stuff, sexual themes that cross some borders, fantastical feats of ability, and all of that is covered in the haze of "I just woke up and can only half remember my dreams". It is worth noting that the final "chapter" of the book is more like a separate short story which shares elements of the same world but devolves into an absurdist list of cruelties small and large. There is something to this last story which is very intriguing and makes me want to read more by Colquhoun.

Goose of Hermogenes is an intriguing read, full of beautiful images and horrible oddities. For those who are happy to let go of any expectations of narrative logic, this will be a very rewarding read!

In this short novella, a young woman travels to an island to visit her uncle, only to gradually realise that he practices occultism and black magic, and that he invited her only to serve his own ambitions. The narrative is surreal and dreamlike, almost like a feverish nightmare. The heroine remains emotionally detached from the events unfolding around her. Nothing is explained, and the writing itself and the atmosphere are gothic and dark.

This isn’t a linear story by any means. At times, the author writes entire chapters as a stream of consciousness, where she, or rather, her heroine, describes everything she sees, referencing well-known works of art and occult symbols. I strongly recommend reading the book if you also enjoy surrealistic novels, but I would advise checking the trigger warnings. Although it's never made explicit, it’s unclear whether certain things really happened or were drug-induced hallucinations. Some of them might hurt if you are unprepared.

Thanks to the publisher for a free ARC. All opinions are my own.

Very strange and surreal. Interesting imagery but hard to follow, plot-wise. It’s not quite for me but someone who likes magical realism, surrealism, dark magic, and so on will enjoy.

This is a twisty, dreamy story but I didn't really enjoy it - I thought the undercurrent of incest was uncomfortable and the weird orgy with her uncle whipping her sure was... something.

As a reader, I was never entirely sure I fully understood the symbolic imagery that Colquhoun wove into this Gothic fantasy surrealist story about a young woman who finds herself trapped on an enchanted island where her uncle practises his alchemy. Obsessed with finding the correct equation, the niece suspects that her uncle invited her because of the family rings in her possessions, believing that they hold the key to his ambition.

Each of the twelve chapters is named after a stage in the alchemical process believed necessary. Told entirely through the POV of the niece, we step foot on the island along with her and meet its usual inhabitants, who often underestimate and unnerve the niece. Colquhoun sets up a fantastic atmosphere of the island — alluding to its eeriness and mystical properties and events and people with fantastical destruction of surreal biodiversity, nightly events, visits by fairly exotic birds and animals, and shadows and noises that follow the niece everywhere.

The story really picks in the chapter Separation, and by then it becomes trifling difficult to read. Colquhoun was known to practice automatic writings, a form of writing where she wrote conscious association writing without editing. And, it shows. Paragraphs will suddenly take a left turn, and you find yourself abandoned from the plot. But one prevails, because of the intoxicating and hypnotic writing of Colquhoun’s. She writes with such a clear precision thoughts, even though they often go left, right, or back and don’t follow this linear thought, it is nonetheless gripping.

The book is a landmark in surrealist fiction, and its compelling and layered imagery and their symbolic meanings are stilling debated to this day. This latest edition, with Coluhoun’s own illustrations is beautifully packaged and bound.

Very awkward short novel, probably of its time but not so now. There are definitely hints and more of incest in this, and the lead character claims to be a prisoner of her alchemist uncle. Mind you, she claims a heck of a lot of other things on these pages, so who knows what the hell's going on. I like the best surrealist painting, but even Dali's novel was unreadable (and from the same publisher, if it helps you look) – here I haven't worried to check out her art, and only hope the travel books she produced are more to my taste. The only merit here really is the sterling little introduction, so for one final absurdity I'll pretend that that makes this worth two stars. It doesn't, really.

omg?? had no idea I'd like this as much as I did. Surprising twists and turns and I read it all in one sitting! So glad I picked it up, and a huge thank you to NetGalley for giving me this book!

I’m so happy this book is being republished. I learned so much about Colquhoon, what a fascinating figure and mind. Her are was beautiful, I want to find a print. Surrealist literature is incredibly cool. I’ve read some contemporary surrealist literature the last few years which really primed me to tackle this book. It’s a great book to read in one sitting with a few cups of tea.

The prose is poetic without being overly flowery, the premise of the story is very interesting, and the setting gives a nice eerie gothic feel to the book. Unfortunately, I found this difficult to get through because it’s incomprehensible to me. It feels like reading someone’s dream which might be ok if it ever went anywhere. But I didn’t feel like it did. I can see why some people will really enjoy this, but it was not for me.

Goose of Hermogenes by Ithell Colquhoun is a surreal, dreamlike novel that defies conventional narrative structure. First published in 1961, it blends elements of gothic fiction, alchemical symbolism, and occult philosophy into a richly enigmatic tale. The story follows a nameless female protagonist who visits her sinister uncle on a remote island, only to become trapped in a strange, shifting reality where time and logic dissolve.

It’s a challenging read—oblique, poetic, and intentionally obscure—but for those drawn to esoteric literature or the occult, Goose of Hermogenes is a fascinating and haunting experience.

A poetic, lyrical work that blurs the lines between novel and extended meditation. The prose is dense at times, but rich with imagery and emotion. It’s less about what happens and more about how things feel. Ideal for readers who appreciate language as much as plot, it explores longing, identity, and the unknowable aspects of love. Moments of narrative clarity emerge between abstract, dreamlike sequences. While it won’t suit everyone, it offers a unique and rewarding experience to those willing to surrender to its rhythm. It’s a novel that reads like a long, thoughtful sigh.

What a strange little book. If someone told me that Colquhoun wrote down every dream that she had for a decade, then wove the strangest of them into this book, I would believe it.

Colquhoun was into alchemy, and the chapters of this books are named after the steps required for creating the philosopher’s stone. I suspect that I would enjoy the story more if I knew something/anything about alchemy, but alas, I do not. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the bizarre narrative and imagery.

The 4th chapter, “Conjunction,” invents a delightful backstory for two of the figures found in Hieronymus Bosch’s Garden of Earthly Delights. The 5th chapter, “Putrefaction,” made so little sense to me that I may as well have skipped it. The ninth chapter, “Fermentation,” surprised me with ghost prostitution. The thirteenth and final chapter, “Hexentanz,” seemed not be part of the book at all and indeed was not included in the original publication; this Final chapter is exceedingly gross.

Overall, at under 150 pages, it’s worth the experience.

Thank you to Pushkin Press and netgalley for free access to this book.

Goose of Hermogenes opens with our narrator making her way to a mysterious island to visit her uncle. She soon realizes that she's trapped, her uncle keeping her there for some presumedly nefarious purpose centering around the jewels she wears. Between bits of the narrator unearthing secrets about her uncle and his land, the book is interspersed with surreal happenings (consequences of the magic being performed by her uncle or fevered hallucinations, we never know) and meetings with other inhabitants of the island. The prose switches expertly between these parts to mimic loss of reality.

Dreamlike, Gothic and very much surreal, Ithell Colquhoun's novella is only vaguely structured; the basic narrative of an isolated, magical island with the sinister uncle of an unnamed protagonist calls to mind the grim but decadent fairytales of various cultures, with very clear allusions to many other authors as seen in the quote headings of the chapters.

But the 'grounded' quality of the narrative really ends with that summary. A reader will transition from one scene to the next, listlessly floating through the plot with the same curiosity and helplessness as our protagonist, but this is no flaw. Colquhoun's long, labyrinthine sentences unfurl vivid and hypersensitive imagery, the sort of liminal and ornate vision that can only come from both a writer and an artist, and that's where Goose truly shines. However, its surrealist quality is a double-edged sword, as there are moments of too much obfuscation in the prose that, without a healthy amount of clarity, can confuse a reader as to what is really happening. But that's a small price to pay for the unique atmospheric intrigue that Colquhoun paints with her words.

Thank you to Pushkin Press Classics for the ARC through NetGalley.

Our unnamed F protagonist travels to a bizarre island.
The ways of transit are peculiar and this gives us a good hint about the tone - everything that happens afterwards makes little sense in the world of physics.
There is an active clash between the protagonist and her uncle, who is a black magician.
Told very interestingly, the protagonist transforms in the most surrealist ways in this story.
What stands out is the atmosphere. This book is a cousin to the writer’s surreal paintings.
3.5 stars

gorgeously written, incredibly intricate hallucination of a book, made of the most elegant cobwebs and mothwings. a quick read that fully engrosses you. a book that's definitely ahead of its time in many ways. 5 stars. tysm for the arc.

Goose of Hermogenes follows an unnamed young woman, as she tries to escape her uncle's island, whose goal it is to conquer death. The chapters are rife with magic, alchemy and symbolism, and weave a surrealist tale.
I found the premise really interesting, but the novel was hard for me to follow, and I struggled with keeping my attention, perhaps because a lot of the symbolism was unfamiliar to me. The chapters seem disjointed and disconnected at times, and feel at times, not like a novel, but like the description of a painting. But for anyone enjoying fantasy, this might be an interesting read!

A bizarre and beautiful narrative in which a nameless female protagonist embarks on a quest, the nature of which is uncertain. Each chapter correlates to an alchemical process which suggests that immortality is to be desired or explored.

I can’t say that I understood this but it was very much like reading a series of interconnected fairy stories in which you don’t necessarily have to get what’s going on to take pleasure in reading them.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy

Goose of Hermogenes by Ithell Colquhoun is a first person-POV classic fantasy. The unnamed narrator travels to her uncle’s enchanted island and finds herself the center of a plot to steal her magical stones. As she experiences multiple visions, including ones of romantic love, she also has to contend with the possibility that she could lose her life.

The prose is a lot less straight-forward than I’m used to in modern fantasy. There’s constant metaphors, poetic imagery, and references to classics that make Goose of Hermogenes feel very different. If it came out now, I would probably argue it’s literary fantasy because Ithell Colquhoun is a lot more interested in the artistry of language than she is in telling a very clear plot that goes from A to B to C. I’m probably going to return to this book so I can soak up the language more.

As this book was written in 1961, some of the language in it is outdated, including the use of racialized terms for Asians and Black people. While I am personally fine with preserving the language of a text because it was written in the context it was written in and those word choices preserve our understanding of different time periods, I do think it is also important to warn readers when that kind of language is in a book.

I would recommend this to fans of classic fantasy looking for something more literary-leaning